Fri-Mon 26-28 AUGUST
PERRY WOOD CLINIC in FIFE
PERRY WOOD CLINIC in FIFE
WOW....best clinic I've ever taken my horse Solly to, we were at the right place with the right people and in the right place in our journey for this and I'm so glad I took time to get us here (mentally, emotionally and physically) and to find the right teacher ;-)) But I'll start from the beginning....
Solly has been at the house bonding well with Tara for over 3 days now, they do everything together and I've been riding Tara bareback and ponying Solly from her once or twice a day and all's been going great. I made sure I had some sedalin oral sedative with me from the vet and also took some Kalms for myself and then on the morning of Friday 26th I took them out as normal, rode Tara, pony'd Solly and fed them as normal. Made sure the car was packed with everything I needed for the weekend (from chair, tent, camping gear, horse feed, equipment, saddle etc) and got Mark to take the car/trailer to the place we normally load just down the hill where it's flatter. I walked S&T to the trailer, Tara was pretty much okay, Solly was sceptical and we stopped a few times for him to get more confident, he had 3 poops before getting down the hill and then a long pee just in front of the trailer...at least he was now empty and relaxed! lol.
Down with the ramp, Tara straight in....Solly straight in, bars up, ramp up and I kiss Mark goodbye for the weekend and off I drive. The actual drive was good, no worries apart from the rain and then thunder & lightning on the M90 but found a good solution to that...take a couple more Kalms and turn the radio up as loud as can take it and sing to everything playing on Radion 2! lol. Worked well ;-)
It took just under 2hrs to get to Dalgety Bay, Fife and it's a nice drive, mostly larger, straighter roads so not too many twisty small roads. I drove between 30-43 miles per hour and no faster and it was easy, calm and no bother.
Once at our destination the lovely Jackie (organiser) & Caroline (yard owner/organiser) were there to greet us and show me which field to let S&T into. I then went, parked up and went and put my tent up immediately. After this I then went and got the horses water and hay and left them to it for a while. Both of them were so calm and happy, just shows what a nice atmosphere there is here as both my horses are very sensitive to outside influences but they just got down to eating grass and hanging out together.
To get them used to the weekend routine I took them out of the field around 4pm, put Tara on her tether which I'd set up in a nice grassy area where she could see us and we could see her from the arena and then took Solly into the arena for some play. It was a good play session too, lots of games, w/t/c and then saddled and rode him w/t and a bit of canter and he didn't have any spooky moments or any fretting at all. Super start. I then took them back to their field and fed them, sorted out all the horse feed to the trailer for ease and then went to my tent, got my dinner early and went to bed at 8.30pm...tuckered.
I was awoken at 1am on Sat morning to the sound of lashings of heavy rain on the tent and I managed to get back to sleep but was reminded it was still raining a few times before my alarm went off at 6.30am. I thought I'd get up early, breakfast, groom and play with the horses before the clinic but I put the alarm on for 7.30am and went back to sleep. lol. At 7.30 I got up, dressed and put some breakfast into a bag....got the horses breakfasts and some hay together and went and fed them and then fed myself in the clinic 'hut' where it was dry and had a kettle for a nice cuppa tea...lovely jubbly ;-)
The clinic started with Perry asking us all in turn where we were in our journey's, what we wanted from the sessions today and what our horses would say to us if they could speak...it was fun and it helped him to find out more about each of us, luckily he's been helping a few of these lovely ladies before so he knew the place and faces well and it felt really comfortable being there.
I told him about my PNH journey, learning 'true connection' from Ingela and wanting to learn more about collection and lateral manoeuvres but wasn't sure if I wanted, or we were ready to use the bit/bridle combo but he was happy to teach me in the rope hackamore which was nice. I decided that today (Sat) I would do the 2 sessions (of about 20-30 mins each) in the rope hackamore and see how it went. My main aim was to try some shoulder-in and leg yields.
I was on in the late morning but it was great to see everyone else's sessions, so much variety from a young girl to a pensioner and young horses to a veteran, all at ease in their journey's and all progressing within each session and there was no push, no make, no force, no doubts or negativity, only positivity, help, inspiration, softness and lightness and it really put me at ease about taking Solly in there. I was of course nervous before our first session but was very quickly put at my ease and I played/saddled Solly in the arena before our session (we went into arena in two's, one warming up/down and the other in a session) and in our session with Perrys help we managed some nice leg yields first L&R and shoulder-in L&R....YEEHAA.
When it was right we were together, that harmonious partnership, flowing, light and soft. He understood all I asked and Perry verbally tweaked us at the precise moments we need it and it felt good. I was very proud of my Solly, it was like he'd done this before with me.
The clinic started with Perry asking us all in turn where we were in our journey's, what we wanted from the sessions today and what our horses would say to us if they could speak...it was fun and it helped him to find out more about each of us, luckily he's been helping a few of these lovely ladies before so he knew the place and faces well and it felt really comfortable being there.
I told him about my PNH journey, learning 'true connection' from Ingela and wanting to learn more about collection and lateral manoeuvres but wasn't sure if I wanted, or we were ready to use the bit/bridle combo but he was happy to teach me in the rope hackamore which was nice. I decided that today (Sat) I would do the 2 sessions (of about 20-30 mins each) in the rope hackamore and see how it went. My main aim was to try some shoulder-in and leg yields.
I was on in the late morning but it was great to see everyone else's sessions, so much variety from a young girl to a pensioner and young horses to a veteran, all at ease in their journey's and all progressing within each session and there was no push, no make, no force, no doubts or negativity, only positivity, help, inspiration, softness and lightness and it really put me at ease about taking Solly in there. I was of course nervous before our first session but was very quickly put at my ease and I played/saddled Solly in the arena before our session (we went into arena in two's, one warming up/down and the other in a session) and in our session with Perrys help we managed some nice leg yields first L&R and shoulder-in L&R....YEEHAA.
When it was right we were together, that harmonious partnership, flowing, light and soft. He understood all I asked and Perry verbally tweaked us at the precise moments we need it and it felt good. I was very proud of my Solly, it was like he'd done this before with me.
At the end of a good day we all piled into three cars and went for a lovely meal locally which was brilliant. Nice to get out of jods for an evening and eat a good meal rather than camping food! lol.
On Sunday morning I was awoken at about 4am by strong winds but again went back to sleep and got up around 7.30am to feed horses and have breakfast and put the kettle on before the clinic started. This day Perry asked us what we'd learned from our sessions and from someone else's session yesterday. I first said that I learned that I was 'in the right place at the right time with the right instructor' after yesterday and that all the 3.5yrs of work/training/play/riding and taking the time for Sol and I, we were finally ready to take on some finesse and enjoy it. I said that I'd learned lots from watching everyone else and as I'd seen them all as a spectator earlier in the year it was great to see all their progress which was very encouraging for me as a student.
I told Perry that I had decided that if I was going to try the bit/bridle then this was the best place to do it, with an instructor I trusted to tell me if something wasn't right and how to change it or to be told to stick to the hackamore so today's session was going to be attempted in the bit. I was going to be looking for nice, calm, relaxed, self-collection and carriage and if possible to help with impulsion and in the afternoon session some leg yields and shoulder-in with the bit if all goes well. He was very cool about this and actually as soon as I started my session I could feel how much better going Solly was. Perry complemented him a lot, his shape, his willingness, his looking like a fancy Lippizaner ;-) made my day. I felt that for the first time in the bit Solly was connected to me in a very light, relaxed way. He was looking for the bit, I kept quiet in my hands and he was just 'there' for me. It felt like he was totally flowing underneath me and I was enjoying every second of it. The second session that day was EVEN BETTER, Solly had loosened up more in his HQ's and his impulsion was better, his collection was better, our lateral moves were better (all in walk still but going well) and my friend videoed the whole last 20min session and it looked great. The best we've ever been together. Now, I'm not saying it was Grand Prix level, there's a lot to learn, a lot to refine (especially my leg movements in trot) but after about a year of our journey's doorway being closed to me, constantly hitting my head on that door to try to figure out how to get through it, we've finally got to the place in our relationship where the right instructor helped open that door and bring us through it to the next part of our journey together....and I'm very much looking forward to where it will take us and being a student with a good instructor at last ;-)
On Sunday morning I was awoken at about 4am by strong winds but again went back to sleep and got up around 7.30am to feed horses and have breakfast and put the kettle on before the clinic started. This day Perry asked us what we'd learned from our sessions and from someone else's session yesterday. I first said that I learned that I was 'in the right place at the right time with the right instructor' after yesterday and that all the 3.5yrs of work/training/play/riding and taking the time for Sol and I, we were finally ready to take on some finesse and enjoy it. I said that I'd learned lots from watching everyone else and as I'd seen them all as a spectator earlier in the year it was great to see all their progress which was very encouraging for me as a student.
I told Perry that I had decided that if I was going to try the bit/bridle then this was the best place to do it, with an instructor I trusted to tell me if something wasn't right and how to change it or to be told to stick to the hackamore so today's session was going to be attempted in the bit. I was going to be looking for nice, calm, relaxed, self-collection and carriage and if possible to help with impulsion and in the afternoon session some leg yields and shoulder-in with the bit if all goes well. He was very cool about this and actually as soon as I started my session I could feel how much better going Solly was. Perry complemented him a lot, his shape, his willingness, his looking like a fancy Lippizaner ;-) made my day. I felt that for the first time in the bit Solly was connected to me in a very light, relaxed way. He was looking for the bit, I kept quiet in my hands and he was just 'there' for me. It felt like he was totally flowing underneath me and I was enjoying every second of it. The second session that day was EVEN BETTER, Solly had loosened up more in his HQ's and his impulsion was better, his collection was better, our lateral moves were better (all in walk still but going well) and my friend videoed the whole last 20min session and it looked great. The best we've ever been together. Now, I'm not saying it was Grand Prix level, there's a lot to learn, a lot to refine (especially my leg movements in trot) but after about a year of our journey's doorway being closed to me, constantly hitting my head on that door to try to figure out how to get through it, we've finally got to the place in our relationship where the right instructor helped open that door and bring us through it to the next part of our journey together....and I'm very much looking forward to where it will take us and being a student with a good instructor at last ;-)
I would like to thank Perry Wood for his great easy, clear instructions that put me at my ease from second one. To Jackie for her unflappable organising the clinic so that me and Solly got there without pressure but with a helping hand every step to help our journey. To Caroline for allowing me and my horses (took two so that Solly didn't panic in trailer and had his herd connection still in tact the whole time) to be on her lovely yard, her fields, her arena. To all the other students who were so friendly, happy and inspirational to be around. It was FAB to be around a whole group of people who constantly smiled...thank you everyone ;-)
Perry is coming back to Dalgety Bay, Fife on these dates so get your diary's out:
APRIL 28-29
JULY 14-15
SEPT 8-9
APRIL 28-29
JULY 14-15
SEPT 8-9
Thursday 24th August
Out teaching this morning but before I went I rode Tara bareback and pony'd Solly from her up the hill again. They were both much calmer today even though there was a low lying mist around. Am finding having my two main horses at the house in the Summer fun ;-)
When I came back from teaching I walked S&T in-hand just to the mounting block (not that far) and I sat on it and let them graze in-hand. Nice to just be with them and chill out with them. I teased Solly with some long grass for a while which was fun too.
After a while I asked Solly to try to stand on the mounting block stone, he's not done this since Spring but he did a good job, didn't get a picture of the actual standing on stone but here's one with him and a big 'try' ;-)
Then I just moseyed back to the paddock with them. At the gateway I decided to back them BOTH through the gate at the same time....yeehaa. This was fun and they did it actually very very well, impressed with them both for their try's. I don't always have to do a LOT with them, but getting that brain/heart 'connection' is very important to me and it doesn't take long for us to be talking the same language ;-) Love these horses so much.
Wednesday 24th August
Up early this morning to see how S&T were doing...all fab, grazing nicely and calm ;) I went out and said hello to them and then put T's bareback pad on, her halter and rope and then haltered up Solly. I played games whilst taking them out of the gateway, touch it on the trailer and backing out of the electric fence gateway all to get them both 'connected' to me. I then walked them up the track a bit to get them cooperating with each other and then from a very large stone I mounted Tara.
I rode Tara up the hill behind the house and pony'd Solly from her, we changed sides half way up so that he went from being on my right to on my left all the time asking Tara to be calm and not worry about the ropes going around her head or behind her butt. Sol stopped a couple of times thinking he was going back to the herd but I just sat on Tara and waited for him to make his mind up about coming with us and he did without any fuss, just needed some time to think ;-)
He tried a few times also to get behind Tara as he loves trying to bite her bottom, which she promptly tells him off for with a soft buck so I tried and succeeded in keeping him most of the time at my leg. At the top they got to graze and then back home all in a nice calm walk and they got a small feed for being good when I popped them back into their field together.
After getting the trailer panel fixed today I came back home and did exactly the same routine as I did this morning, pony'd Sol off Tara up the hill. This time on the way back I backed Sol through two gateways whilst still on Tara's back...he didn't quite get it to start with but then he did and did it beautifully. Got a carrot in his feed for that ;-)
Tuesday 23rd August
Rode Tara to the herd this morning and after Mark fed horses I haltered Solly and brought him back with Tara to the house as today the vet is coming to check his teeth. We don't normally do equine dentists as we try to be as natural as we can with our horses but to help me work out Solly's bitting issues I needed to rule out possible tooth, gum, tongue and general mouth pain. I pony'd him off of Tara and he was nice and willingly obedient this morning...a good start ;-)
Once at the house he was not bad in the garden whilst I was out and about poo picking etc but was running around mildly when I went in to have breakfast. I realised that he is still herd bound and I need him to be 'Tara' bound so it was a great opportunity to put him and Tara back into the top bit of our first winter grazing paddocks and let him stay here until after the weekend clinic, that way he will bond with Tara 100% and make me feel better about trailering him to Dunfermline on Friday.
Once at the house he was not bad in the garden whilst I was out and about poo picking etc but was running around mildly when I went in to have breakfast. I realised that he is still herd bound and I need him to be 'Tara' bound so it was a great opportunity to put him and Tara back into the top bit of our first winter grazing paddocks and let him stay here until after the weekend clinic, that way he will bond with Tara 100% and make me feel better about trailering him to Dunfermline on Friday.
Solly and Tara bonding whilst grazing ;)
Solly going under sedationSo, I put up a smaller pen for Tara to be in, next to part of the stream as she realises quickly that she's in a paddock with LOTS of GRAZING in it and I dont' want her blowing up or making herself ill SO into the small paddock she goes and Solly's fine with that. It also allowed me to trim her hooves without him trying to pinch my bottom or the equipment. lol
Then the vet comes and we have a chat about how I want to see things done (au-natural if possible) and he's happy to help anyway possible. I know that Solly is sceptical about anyone in or near his mouth so I ask the vet to sedate him which he does, after I do some needle prep and Solly was brilliant with the vet and needle. Vet was impressed with technique ;-)
Then the vet comes and we have a chat about how I want to see things done (au-natural if possible) and he's happy to help anyway possible. I know that Solly is sceptical about anyone in or near his mouth so I ask the vet to sedate him which he does, after I do some needle prep and Solly was brilliant with the vet and needle. Vet was impressed with technique ;-)
Then the vet and I put the dentist 'gag' on him gently and vet gets under way with his inspection and rasping. Considering Solly hasn't had any dentistry for over 3.5yrs I was impressed with how little needed doing. A few mins into rasping and he started putting his head right up again so we gave him a bit more sedation to help him settle (vet gave him very little to start with so that we could give more only if necessary), I also used the porcupine game to help him lower his head more and I explained to vet that I did this so that he could get his 'happy drug' of endorphins naturally and again vet was impressed with that.
His molars were wavey (normal really) so vet straighened that out for him and an extra bit of rasping needed on his right upper premolars which shortly could have become a problem but he had NO hooks, pointy bits, no broken teeth and no wolf teeth to worry him with a bit. His tushes were okay, not causing any problems SO, if he doesn't like being bitted or has problems then it's not his teeth and I'm glad we sorted that out for my piece of mind.
His molars were wavey (normal really) so vet straighened that out for him and an extra bit of rasping needed on his right upper premolars which shortly could have become a problem but he had NO hooks, pointy bits, no broken teeth and no wolf teeth to worry him with a bit. His tushes were okay, not causing any problems SO, if he doesn't like being bitted or has problems then it's not his teeth and I'm glad we sorted that out for my piece of mind.
So after vet went I put a sweat rug on him to keep him cosy as he wasn't moving at all and I knew he'd be like that for an hour or so. He started moving about within 20mins so I put him back into the field with Tara and he rested next to her for another hour or so. I went out and hugged him and held his head a bit to comfort him and he seemed to like having me close by which was nice. I always feel so sorry for animals under sedation or coming out of it, they're so vulnerable at this time. Anyway, within a couple of hours he's whinneying for the herd and when Mark takes the dogs for a walk up to feed the herd I go out and feed Sol and Tara. Solly was eager to eat but was very very slow and dropped most of his food on the floor so after a few mouthfulls I took it away from him incase he choked on anything. He can eat tomorrow when he's back 'with it'...poor lad.
As dusk fell he whinnneyed for the herd more and I went out and stood by the gateway of our drive looking nonchalantly about, breathing out and showing how relaxed I was to him and he was getting more and more cool about being up here. I set Tara free out of her small paddock for the evening so that she could be with Solly and help him relax more and after I'd had my dinner I sneaked a peak out at S&T and he was behind her asking her to move about and then they were mirroring each other so I took that as a good sign of true bonding. We will see what tomorrow brings us.
As dusk fell he whinnneyed for the herd more and I went out and stood by the gateway of our drive looking nonchalantly about, breathing out and showing how relaxed I was to him and he was getting more and more cool about being up here. I set Tara free out of her small paddock for the evening so that she could be with Solly and help him relax more and after I'd had my dinner I sneaked a peak out at S&T and he was behind her asking her to move about and then they were mirroring each other so I took that as a good sign of true bonding. We will see what tomorrow brings us.
Sunday 21st August
Bringing the boys into the arena
Nice day again so out we go to the herd. Ride Tara down there and leave her to be with her sister Fortune for the day. Mark starts off by playing with Stormy and gets some nice sideways and backups but works on his circling as he's okay with walk but not so good at the trot. Good that Mark works on this for him. After Stormy Mark goes and plays and saddles Holly for a hack out again.
I groom, play, saddle and cinch up Solly for a hack out today. I think he and Holly will be okay as Holly went out yesterday she's always quieter on the 2nd day of a weekend riding and Solly needs to get out more SO, off we go.
I get on Solly from the top of the hill and we follow Holly in a very calm manner. I use concentrated reins but with a nice soft feel about them and I play 'rein' games with him like shoulder-in and leg yields, backups and transitions to keep him connected to me in the big outdoors ;-)
Half way along to the village Holly and Solly stop for a picnic as Holly shows him where the tasty thistles are from yesterdays hack out. lol. Solly was impressed and loved his picnicing.
We then carry on nice and relaxed to the stream, into a big harvested field where we walk, leg yield and do circles along the field where they've put lines in the ground from harvesting (fun), then into another field but have to go through a small gateway and past a stack of silage bales (about 3 high and 10 wide, 10 long. Solly had a bit of a high head but we just took it slowly and as we rounded the bales I turned him towards the bales so that he could see around the back of them, backed up and then turned and carried on...worked a treat and no scary moments ;-) 2nd field was nice and open, harvested again so some nice circles and leg yields put in here.
Then we got to the 3rd field which is the village green, I got off to open the gate and couldn't find anything to use as a mounting block so we walked this field which let Mark and Holly have a nice canter without upsetting Solly. Holly put in a lovely canter, calm, relaxed and no RBext moments. We got our usual carrots/apples/icecreams and saw a few friends at the shop too which was lovely then we re-mounted and started off for hom again.
Village green was great, w/t transitions and then I got off to open the gate again but a lovely tin drum the other side to mount back on again...thank you ;-) Mounted and we were in the nice big open field where we did lots of nice leg yields, circles and fig 8's and in trot too. He was very relaxed and rhythmic and getting a better stride under him which was nice. Then nice and calm along this field, past the silage bales again (no bother) and through the 3rd field snatching at some grazing along the edges as we went. Lovely and calm from both horses and it was a pleasure to be able to walk next to Mark and Holly on our ride out as the field was nice and wide whereas our normal pathway pretty single horse track.
Then back on track we walked and trotted towards home. Right at the end of the track Solly was getting a bit anxious and joggy, probably as he knew it was near home but also maybe because of the canter that may come, so I changed the habit of cantering this bit and asked him just to trot nice and slow and before the final hill I got off and walked him up as there were cattle in the upper field along the track, also Mark wanted to canter this so it was good not to make a habit with Solly here ;-) Lovely ride out, really enjoyed it, nice and calm (both of us).
Taking the horse back to the field through a small forest...
Holly found the perfect tree to scratch an itch on...
she's such a clever horse ;-)
End of the day and I bring Tara back home...Holly found the perfect tree to scratch an itch on...
she's such a clever horse ;-)
working on perfecting our 'Sugar Foot Jog' ;-)
Saturday 20th August
Thought it was going to rain this morning but it was warm and stayed nice for us. I rode Tara to the grazing field around 12.30am and Mark drove the car down, he got Holly to catch him and then he saddled and played until she was ready to go for a hack out ;-) Tara in the meantime had some grazing time and she also found a great use for the cones in the HA arena....
she knew exactly what she was doing ;-)
I then played a bit with Tara at liberty and we had a lot of fun doing stuff we'd not done for ages.
and liberty jumping...yeehaa Tara ;-)
Holly really enjoying the picnic hedgerows...
this time of year she LOVES thistles ;-)
the girls picnic'ing together
...being there for her but waiting still...
...helping her to get connected with him again...
...slowly coming off the adrenaline whilst Mark helped her
do circles and fig 8's in trot and canter...
they actually did a flying lead change but didn't realise it! lol...
...calming more and more...
...phew, there's that relaxation...
...now that feels better ;-)
Peace and tranquility by the river on the way back towards home
Tara and me enjoying a canter along a harvested crop field,
love this time of year when we can canter the fields
Levade start but he jumps this time...
...but this time he levade's and sidepasses towards me,
at liberty, no equipment at all!!! COOL
Here Tara and Solly are happy to see each other again ;-)
Sol doing his laps ;-)
Sol and me riding to the house...yeehaa ;-)
twisted broken front trailer panel ;-(
Sol and his bridle ;-)
Me on Tara takes a pic of our lovely herd in their beautiful field
Fortune, Holly, Stormy, Solly
Thursday 18th August
Wednesday 17th August
After haltering and on the 22' featherlite,
put front feet in hula hoop from a distance ;-)
Put back feet into hula hoop from a distance...clever boy!
Sidepass over a small barrel from a distance ;-)
Backing up over a pole from a distance...
...continuing to backing up over two poles...
...not bad ;-0
Circling with a jump...
...circling and stop at jump...
...then do jump from standstill ;-)
Then off to put two feet on pedastal from a distance...
...all four feet on pedastal...
...then back feet only on pedastal. lol
Saturday 13th August
Then Mark and I, Tara and Holly went out for a 2hr hack in the neighbourhood. Really enjoyed the hack out, visited the village shop for carrots, apples and ice creams too but didn't go out for long as I was still tired from yesterday and I have Tara's feet to trim sometime this weekend too! never ends. lol
this time of year she LOVES thistles ;-)
Then coming home we went down the sides of a couple of fields and the first one was okay, done that one before but the second one which we have only done once a long time ago got Holly in a bit of a fluster and her RBext side came out. Mark did a FABULOUS job of helping Holly find relaxation and I just sat and waited with the camera going and Tara grazing peacefully until they were ready to continue on home ;-)
Holly having a RBext moment,
Mark doing a good job of sitting and waiting....
Mark doing a good job of sitting and waiting....
do circles and fig 8's in trot and canter...
they actually did a flying lead change but didn't realise it! lol...
...calming more and more...
love this time of year when we can canter the fields
After all that excitement with Holly and Tara doing a grand job of just being her usual relaxed, safe ride out we get back to the field. Holly gets de-tacked and brushed and Solly comes into the HA arena for a good brush up as since yesterday he's managed to get as mucky and muddy as a white horse can get! lol. A good brush later and he's beautiful and clean again. He kept asking me for treats so I told him he has to do something for them and he gives me two front feet in a hula hoop at liberty ;-) a nice jump towards me ;-) and after a couple of attempts he does a levade, jump, stop and sidepass towards me at liberty....SO COOL.
at liberty, no equipment at all!!! COOL
Friday 19th August
Today the weather is pretty good so I ride Tara down to the herd field and set her loose with her friends. Stormy comes straight up to me and he gets into the sectioned off grazing first. After Tara and Solly have said their hello's Solly then comes trotting up to me too and he gets in the grazing with Stormy. I then open up a small bit of grazing and Holly comes to visit too ;-)
Firstly I groom Solly and he loves this as there are quite a lot of flies about so we get rid of them with some spray and he enjoys his belly scratches. I then play at liberty with him to get our connection. Lots of S2M w/h/w/t/h/bkups and then some sideways together w/me in Z3 L&R and then some liberty circles w/t/c. I then saddle him up and cinch him using the circling game with him on the featherlite 22' line. I decide to just let him do 6 laps in trot going to the left first and see how he does them...he did them fabulously, keeping gait, keeping directin, looking where he was going, relaxing down and long and 6 laps was good to help him relax but not bore him ;-)
So then I mount and we do some S2M ridden. lol. Basically this means working with a loose rein and seeing if he can connect to my energy in the saddle with transitions. We start with w/h at every letter of the arena, then bring it up to w/t and then walk around short end, trot long sides, walk short end etc. Then we put in some 20m circles and it took a couple of times for him to connect my body aids and I also needed to get my aids better but then we got it nicely.
After this and our connection is working well we go to finesse work (concentrated rein position) and did transitions, 20m and 10m circles, fig 8's and some canter work too. We were getting some lovely flexibility in his circles today where he was working on my thought/energy/inside leg/outside rein and the inside rein was becomming redundant...cool. Very happy with todays riding.
SO, on this good note I walk Sol back to the house, at the last gate I decide to get on him and ride the last bit ;-) He does very well and I keep him on concentrated reins for him to stay connected with me and down the track we do our version of shoulder-in (not sure if a pure sh-i but it works for me at the moment), this helps us to keep connected and lets him also move his head to see L&R of the track so stops spooking so much. This works very well with us watching a herd of deer hop, skip and jump over the hill and forest to our right ;-)
After this and our connection is working well we go to finesse work (concentrated rein position) and did transitions, 20m and 10m circles, fig 8's and some canter work too. We were getting some lovely flexibility in his circles today where he was working on my thought/energy/inside leg/outside rein and the inside rein was becomming redundant...cool. Very happy with todays riding.
SO, on this good note I walk Sol back to the house, at the last gate I decide to get on him and ride the last bit ;-) He does very well and I keep him on concentrated reins for him to stay connected with me and down the track we do our version of shoulder-in (not sure if a pure sh-i but it works for me at the moment), this helps us to keep connected and lets him also move his head to see L&R of the track so stops spooking so much. This works very well with us watching a herd of deer hop, skip and jump over the hill and forest to our right ;-)
At the house I untack and give him an apple for his effort. I then set up the trailer and do some trailer loading. He goes in very well, never a problem really going in and I settle him down, put the back up and close the front up. Get into the car and start it up, the trailer starts to move a bit and I know Solly is not that happy on his own in the trailer today...he always goes somewhere nowadays with Tara but was trying to improve his solo trailering!!! But to keep it sweet I decide to not drive when he's unhappy and unsettled so shut the car off and got out, put the ramp down and talked to him. He was trying to turn his head a lot and I could sense his unease at not having his Tara there, SO, I undid the back butt bar and asked him out then in then out and continued doing this for about 15mins. He went in okay, stood and then came out and I put him straight back in with a point of my finger. When he seemed a bit more at ease I put the butt bar back up and went and stroked his neck and head, withers and back but he wasn't happy and he twisted about a bit and managed to buckle the front trailer panel. This may have happened because he has his front and butt bars in different positions from Tara on the other side so they weren't even along the panel sides BUT now I have a broken front panel in the trailer and we are trying hard to find a solution of a new one or fixing this so that I can get him to the Perry Wood clinic next weekend. I will be taking Tara along if allowed another horse on the property as I will now not travel him without her, it's too stressful for him (and me ;-)
SO, that was that!! As we had time to waste now before I wanted to take Solly back to the grazing field I took the opportunity to have a cup of tea and play with Solly whilst sitting in the sunshine. He did some nice backups and sideways to some grazing. lol.
I then took another opportunity and did some bridling and it actually went very very well. I used the Parelli Confidence snaffle instead of the french link and he played around with it a lot and took it into his mouth nicely 4 times in a row ;-))
I then took another opportunity and did some bridling and it actually went very very well. I used the Parelli Confidence snaffle instead of the french link and he played around with it a lot and took it into his mouth nicely 4 times in a row ;-))
I then saddle him back up and take him back to the herd where I release him back to the herd BUT he stays stuck to me until I release him emotionally ;-) He's such a cool horse. I then get Tara to catch me, put her bareback pad on and take her to the top of the hill where Mark has arrived to feed them all ;-))
Fortune, Holly, Stormy, Solly
Thursday 18th August
Rode Tara a couple of times today, once with a saddle which was fun and Tara was quite chirpy under it now that she's lost weight and has some yeehaa in her feet ;-)
Wednesday 17th August
A day at home today so I went out to be with Solly at around 1pm and the weather was kind to us, not too hot, not too cold and no rain! yeehaa. He was a little slow today so we did everything at his pace until he felt more connected to me. Here's what we did to start with:
put front feet in hula hoop from a distance ;-)
After such a good play I took him to the regular arena and saddled him up and played with circles and transitions for cinching. He did very well with the transitions today from w/t/c/t/cod/t/c/t/draw at trot ;-) I tightened the girth and mounted and then we did some arena work.
My main idea today is to get some more basic arena work under our belts so we started off with w/h transitions slowly bringing in the reins as he started to become more engaged. We then went to w/t transitions and put in a few h/bkups as we went. We did these quickly, every letter of the arena and he started to get lighter and with better impulsion. As he started working better we did quite a few 20m circles, then faster trot down the long sides, 20m fig's 8 and also 10m circles. We interupted these with changes of direction across the diagonal and I put in some w/t work on a loose rein to relax him for more collection work as we went.
He did very well and when I felt he's progressed nicely I took him out of the arena and rode a little bit around the field. We did fig 8's around clumps of buttercups and went to lots of different area's. He had a LBint (won't go) moment or two but I just sat and waited until he was confident about going forward again. He also had a couple of RBint (can't go) moments and I did exactly the same and waited for him to get confident about moving forward. He did very well and we stopped on a very good, lively trot back to the main arena where I dismounted, un tacked him, groomed him and gave him lots of treats for being such a good boy.
My main idea today is to get some more basic arena work under our belts so we started off with w/h transitions slowly bringing in the reins as he started to become more engaged. We then went to w/t transitions and put in a few h/bkups as we went. We did these quickly, every letter of the arena and he started to get lighter and with better impulsion. As he started working better we did quite a few 20m circles, then faster trot down the long sides, 20m fig's 8 and also 10m circles. We interupted these with changes of direction across the diagonal and I put in some w/t work on a loose rein to relax him for more collection work as we went.
He did very well and when I felt he's progressed nicely I took him out of the arena and rode a little bit around the field. We did fig 8's around clumps of buttercups and went to lots of different area's. He had a LBint (won't go) moment or two but I just sat and waited until he was confident about going forward again. He also had a couple of RBint (can't go) moments and I did exactly the same and waited for him to get confident about moving forward. He did very well and we stopped on a very good, lively trot back to the main arena where I dismounted, un tacked him, groomed him and gave him lots of treats for being such a good boy.
Saturday 13th August
Today started off grey but when we got to the horse in the afternoon it was breezy and hot...yeehaa ;-) Mark filmed my August OLHA tests, one on line with Solly and one on line with Stormy and then Mark played with Holly and I tacked up Stormy and had my first real ride on him for over a year. It was only in walk but it was good to be back on him. He's a bit heavy on the reins and awkward to move, really notice the amount of work he's NOT done and may invest in a sidepull for him as the halter bottom knot was really in the way for him today. Will see how it goes. I would love to have time to be able to ride him more, get him lighter again, working from my thought, energy and body weight, will have to see how much time we have over winter and until then we just love him being a great herd member! lol.
Here are some piccie's from today's fun play sessions, you can make the captions up yourselves ;-))
Friday 12th August
A very drizzly day today, the sort of rain you don't notice when you're out until you realise you're completely soaked! Very grey and dull and feeling cold but a good day to trailer load me thinks ;-)
I ride Tara up the hill behind us in the morning for her am exercise and then after breakfast I walk to the horses to play a bit with Solly. I arrive at the lower part of the field and have this to greet me ;)
obstacle # 3) jump/keeping it straight after the jump.
obstacle # 4) backing up straight with my hand on his back
obstacle # 6) backing under the curtain.
obstacle # 7) jump/stop/sidepass...just have to get the initial jump without hesitation ;-)
A good play session though, kept it short and sweet and to the point. We then left the field together and walked back to the house where he had fun seeing Tara again.
After I had a cup of tea I loaded Tara then Solly into the trailer outside the house and went for our half an hour trailer ride around the local lanes. All went well and when we got back Solly had very little sweat on him this time, just a bit on his shoulders and chest so much much better than yesterday. They both came out of the trailer to some nice grazing outside the house which they loved and then they went into the garden for a while to graze and rest.
After their rest Mark thought it would be a good idea to test out our bridge again with Tara (who's already done it once) and Solly's first attempt. Since Tara did it last time we've put down some new 'fieldguard' rubber mats. They will eventually dig into the mud and be overgrown with grass which will keep them tightly in place but at the moment they're just on top of the mud and smell all new. lol.
Here's some pictures from the bridge work:
Here's some pictures from the bridge work:
told him it was just like his pedastal in the field ;)
After such a good day with both horses it was dog walking time and I rode Tara bareback and pony'd Solly from her back to the herd for their dinner and then rode Tara back to the house where she lives at the moment. Great day, good sessions of play, learning and fun. Both horses very relaxed today and took everything in their stride.
Tara's calm with him next to her
and he tries his best not to bite her bum and tease her ;-))
Thursday 11th August
It's been raining a LOT up here (probably everywhere really) and our field water is in abundance at the moment. Makes for interesting play with the horses now we have water features to play with at the bottom of the field! lol. At least the horses don't have to go to the top of the hill everyday for water at the moment ;-)
But today, as I'm home and not working and it's not actually raining (shuush...keep it quiet! lol) I walked down to the grazing field to play with Solly and to bring him back to the house. This is the dogs looking at me when I left....ahhh, what cute boys ;-)
So, when I get to the field I say hi to all the horses, give them all some attention and Solly comes and catches me, not his bestest catch but a catch anyway. He often gets a bit 'sticky footed' when I've been away teaching or not been to see him due to the rain so I don't get after him, a catch is a catch after all ;)
I have the training arm and string around his neck and we play some gentle S2M transitions, w/t/w/h/bkups and bring it on from there, getting our connection back and seeing what needs to be played with (relaxation, obedience, impulsion, flexibility)...today it's a bit of impulsion really, he's obedient and very relaxed but the impulsion is a bit sluggish and I'm not asking for a lot just that he's snappy with my requests and that my requests stay requests so that he doesn't feel picked on.
I then take him over to the HA arena with halter and 22' line on and practise some sideways, circles and backups on the way...all goes well. In the HA arena we quickly go through the OLHA August test once, no frills, no worries just go through it in order and move away, out of the arena, through the main gate and walk together back home. He's not too worried about walking out on his own, our relationship is pretty good now that he partners up with me well and easily. All the way home I find some delicious grazing for him and we concentrate on S2M's all the way home which keeps us 'together'. Here, I found some lovely small thistles for him to eat...yum, yum ;)
I have the training arm and string around his neck and we play some gentle S2M transitions, w/t/w/h/bkups and bring it on from there, getting our connection back and seeing what needs to be played with (relaxation, obedience, impulsion, flexibility)...today it's a bit of impulsion really, he's obedient and very relaxed but the impulsion is a bit sluggish and I'm not asking for a lot just that he's snappy with my requests and that my requests stay requests so that he doesn't feel picked on.
I then take him over to the HA arena with halter and 22' line on and practise some sideways, circles and backups on the way...all goes well. In the HA arena we quickly go through the OLHA August test once, no frills, no worries just go through it in order and move away, out of the arena, through the main gate and walk together back home. He's not too worried about walking out on his own, our relationship is pretty good now that he partners up with me well and easily. All the way home I find some delicious grazing for him and we concentrate on S2M's all the way home which keeps us 'together'. Here, I found some lovely small thistles for him to eat...yum, yum ;)
Then when we got home I showed Solly all the grazing around the house online, Tara quietly following us the whole way around and then I let him off and Tara and he said hello and they went to graze together nicely. Last time I brought Sol to the house (even with Tara in the garden) he worried a lot, trotted and cantered around in a mild panic but this time he seemed much more at home...maybe because it really is Tara's main grazing now and he could sense her time here more this time.
Then I trim Solly front feet and Mark trims his back feet (I had a bit of backache today) and his feet now look much better, sure they feel better for Sol too ;-) THANKS MARK for helping me with that one ;-))
Then Mark took the car and trailer down the track a bit to a flatter piece of ground and I walk T & S in-hand to the trailer, load Tara in the left side of trailer and Solly in the right, up with the ramp and off we go. I am doing a clinic in Dunfermline at the end of the month with Perry Wood so trailer loading is a must to help Solly get used to it all again before the big date. I took them out on a circular trip that lasted about half an hour. I stopped twice, stayed in the car and re-started when the the horses were very very still so that they get used to stop/starting. They were both very good but when we got home Solly had sweated a LOT. Will do this again tomorrow to help reinforce good patterns with both of them and then next week I need to try this out with just Solly in the trailer as I will only be taking Solly to the clinic and I need to know for me that he'll be relaxed about it all.
Then Mark took the car and trailer down the track a bit to a flatter piece of ground and I walk T & S in-hand to the trailer, load Tara in the left side of trailer and Solly in the right, up with the ramp and off we go. I am doing a clinic in Dunfermline at the end of the month with Perry Wood so trailer loading is a must to help Solly get used to it all again before the big date. I took them out on a circular trip that lasted about half an hour. I stopped twice, stayed in the car and re-started when the the horses were very very still so that they get used to stop/starting. They were both very good but when we got home Solly had sweated a LOT. Will do this again tomorrow to help reinforce good patterns with both of them and then next week I need to try this out with just Solly in the trailer as I will only be taking Solly to the clinic and I need to know for me that he'll be relaxed about it all.
My babies in the trailer ;-)
When it's time to walk the dogs (around 5-5.30pm) I ride Tara and pony Solly back to the main herd and then ride Tara back to her grazing at the house. Fun day and repeat performance tomorrow hopefully.
Sunday 7th August
Last night we had a full night of rain and this morning it was raining still. The horses field is a bit flooded but okay. At around 2pm the rain is light enough to ride Tara to the horses field, Mark drives the car to the top of the field and we go down the forest track to the bottom of the field together. We decide to play and practise the OLHA August test together, giving each other challenges and helping each other with problems along the way. It works out as a very good 2 hrs of fun with some good horsemanship along the way, here are the piccie's of the day ;-)
Mark finds that Holly has a threshold about the curtain
Mark and Holly doing very well with the 'S' bend on the tarp
Holly not wanting to put her feet near the hula hoops. lol
Mark helps her to overcome her worry about hula hoops ;-)
Mark helping Holly to understand what he wants with the hula hoop
Holly gets a treat for being a clever horse, putting front feet in the hula hoop
Holly needing some TLC to help her with the curtain,
as a RBext it was interesting to see her go introverted with this
as a RBext it was interesting to see her go introverted with this
Holly getting to grips with the flapping curtain
Solly watching a much more relaxed Holly figure out the curtain,
good job Mark ;-)
Mark and Holly enjoying a hug
Mark and Holly trying something new...
Jump/Stops ;-)
Solly walking over the 5 hula hoops without putting a foot wrong ;-)
good job Mark ;-)
Jump/Stops ;-)
And they actually do it pretty nicely after a couple of attempts
Mark and Holly sidepassing away over the jump
Solly walking over the 5 hula hoops without putting a foot wrong ;-)
Solly walking confidently forward through the curtain
Solly backing up confidently through the curtain ;-)
Solly walking through the 'S' bend on a tarp
Solly walking through the 'S' bend on a tarp
pure FOCUS ;-)
Solly having a 'play' moment when he decided that picking
up a cone and moving it was FUN. lol
I was actually amazed as those cones aren't light weight!
up a cone and moving it was FUN. lol
I was actually amazed as those cones aren't light weight!
Solly doing a small 'levade' motion when he goes to jump/stop
Solly sidepassing towards me off the jump ;-)
Solly sidepassing towards, without a training stick too...clever boy
Solly sidepassing towards, without a training stick too...clever boy
Me and my clever, clever boy ;-))
Saturday 6th August
Rode Tara down to the herd in the afternoon today and after sorting out the electric fencing again Solly volunteered to come and play with me in the HA arena. I think he's been missing me and we had a nice long grooming/scratching session before anything else. I then put together the OLHA test obstacles that needed to be put up: scary corner (lots of bunting and flags), 2nd jump and plastic curtain. Whilst I was doing this Solly played with some of the obstacles on his own and seemed to be enjoying playing around with them too. lol
Solly playing with the hulahoop ;-)
I then haltered him, took some time over this as his mouthiness was coming out and I decided to start off as I mean to go on...with some excellence rather than mediocrity ;-) Once haltered we basically went around the obstacle course one thing at a time to see what needed working on.
1) Walk over 5 hula hoops, not stepping outside hoops. Thought this was going to be a BIG problem BUT actually he walked over them perfectly (three times during the session too!)
2) Circle: decided to do small, close to circles in walk as he does these really well.
3) Jump any height. I have done a decent sized jump (3 tyres high, 4 tyes long) and he jumps this very nicely.
4) Walk in open space then put hand on horses back and back up a few steps. He was okay with this but practised it a few times as he wasn't sure what I wanted but will become a good pattern soon.
5) Back between top poles in T shape and then walk out of middle poles forwards. This wasn't a big problem but he needs to really put some effort into going straight and backing up with some impulsion so that I'm doing less and he's doing more ;-)
6) Scary corner, horse to trot through on his own, owner on outside. I put what I could up in the new corner, flags all upright on outside, low down on inside as I have to hold rope over obstacles on inside. Also put a small tarp in the middle for him to trot over and he stopped first time, jumped it the second time but did it just perfect the third time...maybe he should have been called Goldilocks! lol
7) Trot through weave, horse to weave, owner not. Did well with this as he knows this pattern very well now.
8) Backup through curtain (think it said to do it wiht curtain tied up). Wasn't sure of instruction as drizzling and paperwork at home SO we backed through it with the curtain down. He was a bit worried with some thresholds in Z5 but we worked it out so that he was licking and chewing on the other side when done. I then asked him through it normally twice so that it's not a big deal after all that effort.
9) 'S' bend on tarp. He was a bit sloppy with this one so we worked on it a few times and praised him BIG TIME when he got it right, went away and played with something else and then came back to it again. Much much better by the end of that session. Will work on this again tomorrow after a normal play session (if it's not raining that is ;-)
10) Imagination Obstacle. I can't think of much to do so we're practising a jump/stop half way/sidepass towards off the jump. He knows well how to do this but practising that it becomes an every day item on his list of things he does well so that he goes up to it and jumps/stops without hesitation and then sidepass towards with a very refined cue ;-)
Very pleased with todays session, loved that he wanted to be with me all the time and not being mouthy or dominating. Just starting raining when the session was over. I decided to concentrate on Solly's OLHA test first and once we've accomplished that I will move the obstacles around and concentrate on Stormy's test otherwise I get a bit confused about what I'm supposed to be doing with each obstacle! lol.
Wednesday 3rd August
Stuff, hot day without a breath of air, very humid and hot with a very cloudy sky. Had to post a special delivery letter today so off out with Tara early to the village shop to do this and buy her a special apple for her wonderful effort on such a hot day ;-) On the way back from the shop we stopped at the river to let Tara have a drink and to put her hot feet into the cool, cool water.
Then we rode back to the horses field, I let her loose with the herd and I spent the next hour sorting out the electic fencing that quardens off the HA arena, long grazing arenas and schooling arena. Stormy (and probably the others now too) had brought down three fences during the night and I was very p**d off to see so many broken posts....bad horses ;-(
But I got it all sorted and we decided to let the HA arena be open so I took down the compelte fence and put it up in the corner of the field where my arena was last year. I did this as then they have the grazing they so want and I get an arena with shorter grass on it so that my HA tests will be smarter and the judges will be able to see the posts on the ground for a change! lol.
To move everything Mark came down with the trailer and we moved three lots of equipment across the field and he left me with a whole lot of stuff to put into place for the August OLHA tests. It took about 3hrs but it's now in place and I can now spend some time practising the tests with Solly and Stormy. The whole time I was setting up the fencing, putting obstacles in place, going and getting more fencing and putting all the unused obstacles to the side dear Solly followed me around the WHOLE time (3hrs of it). It was so sweet, he even stayed with me out of the arena when he could have easily gone and been with the herd but no, he wanted to be with me...love that boy ;0)
Last month we didn't do so well, each placing is usually only 1 mark difference so my un-practised July tests were not first this month. I noted to myself that I must find time to practise the bits and give myself and the horses time to settle into a new test. I was pretty pleased with the results considering we'd not practised BUT this is the sport I want to do so I must take it more seriously ;-)
To move everything Mark came down with the trailer and we moved three lots of equipment across the field and he left me with a whole lot of stuff to put into place for the August OLHA tests. It took about 3hrs but it's now in place and I can now spend some time practising the tests with Solly and Stormy. The whole time I was setting up the fencing, putting obstacles in place, going and getting more fencing and putting all the unused obstacles to the side dear Solly followed me around the WHOLE time (3hrs of it). It was so sweet, he even stayed with me out of the arena when he could have easily gone and been with the herd but no, he wanted to be with me...love that boy ;0)
Last month we didn't do so well, each placing is usually only 1 mark difference so my un-practised July tests were not first this month. I noted to myself that I must find time to practise the bits and give myself and the horses time to settle into a new test. I was pretty pleased with the results considering we'd not practised BUT this is the sport I want to do so I must take it more seriously ;-)
Monday 1st August
Today is grey and it starts to rain after 5pm but the morning was work-able SO Mark and I went out and cut 5 logs ready to put in place to make the 2nd bridge in the horses winter paddocks. We dropped them from our trailer by the entrance of the paddock and after a cup of tea we take Tara out in harness for her to pull them into place ;-) Here's some piccie's from the adventure...
Getting Tara through the gateway...
she was very clever with her feet getting past the logs ;-)
she was very clever with her feet getting past the logs ;-)
 |
| Mark and Tara with the first log |
Mark helping Tara get the forth log into place
Me as 'swingle tree, traces' girl...
...put swingle tree down and arrange rope noose around log end...
...then place chains from traces onto swingle tree...
...then take up slack on traces and get ready to
let go when Tara takes up the slack ready to go ;-)
(I also have a rope onto tree to help swing it around stones and obstacles on route)
let go when Tara takes up the slack ready to go ;-)
(I also have a rope onto tree to help swing it around stones and obstacles on route)
