Pleased as punch...

...with my little monkey man! Weather was against me for taking him out, so I decided on some ground work with his training head collar in the school.

Just worked him in at smart walk for five circles of the school in each direction, with a bit of turning to keep his mind busy, and then took him off the lead rope and did loose work, shoulder to shoulder, on really quick transitions stand/walk/trot back to walk.

He got click treats for quick responses, and when he didn't listen, he got nothing. I'd go collect him from where he stopped, saying nothing, not looking at him, take him back to where he went wayward and try again.

Well, he caught on pretty quickly as to what was being asked and what got a click, and he was so good! Really fast reply to my voice, managing to stay straight on the track rather than ambling in. A small triumph, I know, but I was really chuffed with him, and he got lots of hugs and pats, and enthusiastic praise (which he seems to enjoy almost as much as his pony nut).

I then did a little bit of canter work just to stretch him out and see how he was moving. We still lose direction completely on canter because I can't stay beside him to push him out, but that will come in time, and I'm not worried about it for now.

He had a little bit of trouble cantering on the right rein (that really does seem to be his tough one), but we got there in the end, and managed a nice canter right down the side of the school.

Gathered him up, gave him a final pat, and then said, "Your time now, Max" and walked away from him to sit on the bench and watch. He followed me for a bit, and then, just as I'd hoped, he had a good roll, a dusty shake, and ambled over to where I sat, nudged my boot, and we were done.

I had some success with his undercarriage today, too. I noticed yesterday that he was getting fairly crusty in the corners (euw!), but the sponge wasn't doing it, and neither were the sheath wipes which I bought as a kind of "in-between" mild cleaning session to keep him going without quite so much fuss.

Needless to say, I had my worry hat on, and decided that I'd try a soft cloth instead. Bought that yesterday, and had a go today with warm water. Really effective! I got all the gunk out and Max barely fussed at all. I think perhaps because I had a better "feel" (ick, I know!) and the cloth was warm and not so intrusive, Max was more tolerant. Gave me time to have a proper look round, too, and make sure I got everything clean as a whistle.

Whatever makes it easier for Max, though, which also necessarily makes it easier for me as a by-product.

I've given up wearing gloves to clean him. I just have a more sensitive feel to it if I'm bare handed, and though it's a bit icky, it's much more effective. I go wash my hands straight away, and I've got some anti-bacterial gel that I put on my hands afterwards, so I'm not a danger to polite society. Besides, how is it any worse than changing a nappy? Which is also icky, as it happens, but nobody flips out if you don’t put latex gloves on before you dive in!

I don't know what it is about the gloves, but it's definitely different. Partly Max reacts when he sees me put them on, but mostly I can't get enough of a sense of where he's in trouble through latex, and I really don't want any trouble to brew in his nethers.

One of my friends was saying the other night that she thinks I should just go for the op, and give Max a more natural life and save us both the aggravation.

It is so tempting, and it is something I'm going to talk to a veterinary surgeon about, but I'm just not sure. I wish I could talk to others with the same problem (if I could find any).

My first vet said the op would be painful, long recovery period, and no guarantee that it would "take". They'd have to cut into that ring of muscle and make it looser so he could drop, but would he be able to control it? Would he drop and not be able to lift back up again? Would we go through it all for no change at all?

Have also had a surprise benefit of clicker training and Max's stifle lock. He seems to be working out how to manage it. It could just be he's growing out of it, I suppose, but there's definitely been a change.

He still locks on pivot in his box, or backing up, occasionally, but I used to see the lock most often when I was trying to pick, out his hind feet.

So, I started working on a click treat for each foot nicely lifted and held for me without struggling. I'd wait and try again if he was locked, but always the click treat after each hoof.

He seems to have worked out how to unlock his back legs for this. He has a little pause now, before trying to lift the hoof, does a little shift, and then tentatively puts the foot into a "rest" position, from where I can pick it up and hold it. I jiggle it up and down and tell him to relax, and he just "gives" it to me then, and lets me get on with it.

We were having a struggle with picking up feet, I think because he found it a bit uncomfy, but now all I have to do is tap his leg and say "up!" and he obliges. Not always instantly, but the pause is always to sort himself out, and I'm happy to wait for that. He's a clever boy, and very willing once he's worked out what is required (and of course that he gets his click for it!).