Ok guys, I am so pleased with this mare. I took her on as a project in september. She was a mass of raging hormones. Refused to allow anyone near her, flinched if touched, squealed, threatened to strike, etc. She was a little bit of a mess. So we worked on manners and focus and TRUST. I got her to accept face scratches first-- couldn't touch her anywhere else, but she loved those face scratches and I think they were a big part of gaining her trust. Got her to accept little treats-- that took a surprisingly long time. She was too tense to think she could eat from my hand. And we did some round pen work. I am not big on enforcing alpha stuff-- often I think that is an ego trip on the part of the human. "Look at me! I am IN CHARGE!" But with her. I needed a lot of clarity. I used the round pen to get her focussing on me. No looking out, no ignoring me, no running willy nilly. And then, with my heart in my throat, I began the process of saddling and backing...

That went wonderfully. She was as straightforward and easy with this of any horse I have ever worked with. She was EASY once we had worked out the stuff at the beginning (ie focus and trust).

And so here she is today. I showed her to a prospective owner today. She is still green but she walk, trots, canters under saddle, can go for little trail rides, and she has some of the basics started.

I think she is wondrful... here she is in a big puddle: