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Haven't worked with Balthazar for three days due to extreme heat. Just too much to ask either of us to concentrate when it was so uncomfortable. Spent a good 15 minutes grooming dried sweat from his coat. Horses must feel as uncomfortable as we do, not only to the heat but being sticky and salt streaked.

Anyway, when the halter goes on he knows he's going to be groomed and stands quietly. He used to nip at his chest (or me although he never tried to connect, it was just a warning) during grooming. Since c/t he seems to enjoy it, except for his face although even with that he's much better and he loves his ears being groomed. Strange horse. At any rate, I c/t'd him when he still had the halter on but had to wait until he swung his head away to give the treat. Once the halter was off he knew we were starting.

Generally he was pretty good. He stood quietly most of the time although he still mugged. I tried clicking evasions today. When his head went down to eat I c/t'd. Thought it couldn't hurt and if he was eating he wasn't mugging. We did have alot of success with me standing near him and c/ting, moving behind without him turning to follow me but didn't have as much success when I stood, or tried to stand, on his left side. He would turn to follow me and was more inclined to mug with me on his left.

He started walking around me in a circle (a lesser priority but still clickable) so I c/t'd that as well. I verbally asked for head down. It took a second or two but he did eventually lower his head. Another thing I did was give the carrot in a way that he had to stretch his head out to get it. Noticed that when I gave it close to his chest so that his neck arched to get it the stallion behaviour intensified. That sloppy treat delivery happened because I was trying so hard to get the treat to him quickly. It just takes a bit of oganizing to have the treat away from him so that he has to stretch to get it. Because of doing that the stallion behaviour wasn't nearly as bad so I've learned something about treat delivery.