For some reason training season always seems to bring the rain and wind. As an added bonus today it was cold. The cria are really getting the hang of the whole walking on a lead thing. It is a slow, individually paced process. Some days they are more interested than others. This is my preliminary evaluation.

Clackama- he is just like his father Phoebus- aka the Ninja, he is a close walker. The challenge with him is to get him to walk a little away from me. Given his choice he would tuck himself up under my arm and walk that way. I love this but it will be hard to show him if he is hiding.

Ranger- Ranger is a slow and steady kinda guy. I am trying to speed up his pace to show off his lovely stride. What Ranger has head and shoulders above the others- aside from actually being head and shoulders taller than the others- is presence. He stands like he is the king of the world. Head held high legs straight - although sometimes splayed- which we are working on. He is a picture perfect stander.

Holly- Holly comes from a nervous family and I am so proud that she is learning to accept being handled without going into a panic. She like her half-brother Ranger is a picture of standing perfection. Head up, chest out and proud. Her only challenge at this point is physical contact. She doesn't mind having me close but when it comes to examining her she is uncomfortable. We are working together, at her pace to solve this, what I can only imagine to be a genetic trust problem.

Pippi- Itty bitty Pippi. She is a doll. She is the best walker of the bunch but stands like a shrinking violet. I have been finding that unlike Holly she is more comfortable the closer you stand to her. You can see her physically relax. I wish there was a way to teach her to keep her ears up. Kahana, my son who has been helping with training has decided that her ears are just proportionately too small. I see it as her top knot, the fleece on her head, is just so long and luxuriant that they appear small. Big or small I wish she would let the world see them.