well.....not intentionally. We were working on the trot and at one point I think Dani was sick of her fast trot that she went into the canter for a 6 strides before I got her back to a trot. At least I know her canter is smooth to ride. Still BAD GIRL!!!
Saturday was a day of working on the trot. I did more lengthy bouts of trotting. We worked pretty hard and then went to ride across the street at the school for a short cool down. It was a tiring day but Dani and I did pretty good even if I felt frustrated at times.
Sunday I worked on more transitions with short bouts and slowing her to a walk when she sped up. We also changed directions when she sped up. I found it most helpful to do patterns like loose figure eights or serpentines. The trot was much nicer that way. We'll get there. I also worked on making my posting less BIG. That may be encouraging her to trot faster. We'll have to see what works best in the long run and just keep trying. It's always trial and error.
We kept it shorter today since I know she's not in the best shape and I don't want to be a drill sargeant. We ended on a good note and then went for a ride around the property. Dani was nervous with the wind in the pines but I moved her on with a pat and reassurance.
The next terrorizing thing was what....a newer wood post. Really? I couldn't for the life of me determine what got her shaking so much. She stopped several times and stared about 20 meters away. Then she actually spun away. I turned her hard back to the scary object. She tried to move away again but I encouraged her forward. I was a little shaken myself since she was so shaky and we were confined between rows of wire fencing. What in the world my dear? I quickly dismounted and led her up to the threatening post. Eventually she breathed deep and started to graze. I let her for a moment, then I got back on and continued down the trail. We turned around after about 10 meters and walked past the scary object....I want to say 6-7 times. I knew she was getting bored and antsy to move on down the trail but back and forth, from both directions and from the area of her first scare, we walked and walked. I decided to also bring her back past the scary pine trees. She was fine. Sometimes I just have no idea what horses see in their minds but the post is my only guess as to what caused her issue, we've walked past that corner MANY times. Perhaps the trapped tumbleweed looked like a monster but she sees both those things every day of her life!
Great article on how to work with a spooking horse I feel we addressed it well enough. Hopefully I can gain more courage to stay on but I felt it was best to just do it from the ground this time until she was relaxed and then ride her back and forth by the scary monster.
How silly ponies can be!
Sunday I worked on more transitions with short bouts and slowing her to a walk when she sped up. We also changed directions when she sped up. I found it most helpful to do patterns like loose figure eights or serpentines. The trot was much nicer that way. We'll get there. I also worked on making my posting less BIG. That may be encouraging her to trot faster. We'll have to see what works best in the long run and just keep trying. It's always trial and error.
We kept it shorter today since I know she's not in the best shape and I don't want to be a drill sargeant. We ended on a good note and then went for a ride around the property. Dani was nervous with the wind in the pines but I moved her on with a pat and reassurance.
 |
| What the posts used to look like in the corner |
The next terrorizing thing was what....a newer wood post. Really? I couldn't for the life of me determine what got her shaking so much. She stopped several times and stared about 20 meters away. Then she actually spun away. I turned her hard back to the scary object. She tried to move away again but I encouraged her forward. I was a little shaken myself since she was so shaky and we were confined between rows of wire fencing. What in the world my dear? I quickly dismounted and led her up to the threatening post. Eventually she breathed deep and started to graze. I let her for a moment, then I got back on and continued down the trail. We turned around after about 10 meters and walked past the scary object....I want to say 6-7 times. I knew she was getting bored and antsy to move on down the trail but back and forth, from both directions and from the area of her first scare, we walked and walked. I decided to also bring her back past the scary pine trees. She was fine. Sometimes I just have no idea what horses see in their minds but the post is my only guess as to what caused her issue, we've walked past that corner MANY times. Perhaps the trapped tumbleweed looked like a monster but she sees both those things every day of her life!
 |
| What the new wood posts look like now, these are not actual pictures of the site just an example. |
Great article on how to work with a spooking horse I feel we addressed it well enough. Hopefully I can gain more courage to stay on but I felt it was best to just do it from the ground this time until she was relaxed and then ride her back and forth by the scary monster.
How silly ponies can be!
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