Any one else get odd looks when...

holzrokz

holzrokz

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....Trying to solve an issue with a horse and nobody quite understands what you're trying to do :rolleyes:

So, since starting to ride my share horse, she has always had a tendency to walk a few steps forwards as i get on, and occasionally will not stand at the mounting block straight away.
So after reading a post on here with someone else having mounting issues i decided to have a go with one of the suggestions made. Now normally i ride in the evening when no one is around, so tried the idea in the evening and i appeared to help although of course not perfect and she still did walk off as i sat in the saddle, but an improvement was made. I tried this again on Saturday morning. She was a bit fresh and so it took considerably more effort but i was determined to follow through with it, and so ended up turning her in many a tight circle, then making her stand, praising her etc whilst i stood by the mounting block.
However, it then occurred to me that i must look like a total nutter incapable of getting on the horse at all! :p One livery walked past and asked if i would like her to hold the mare whilst i got on. I said no its fine I’m just trying to teach her to stand still whilst i get on.....que bemused look from livery.
YO then walked past and said why don't i just get straight on from the fence? Again i said don't worry I’m just teaching her to stand still when i use a mounting block.....que bemused look again :p

So anyone else have any little training methods or just general things that they do where others simple don't get what you're doing? Or am i the only odd one around :D
 
holzrokz said:
....Trying to solve an issue with a horse and nobody quite understands what you're trying to do :rolleyes:
So anyone else have any little training methods or just general things that they do where others simple don't get what you're doing? Or am i the only odd one around :D
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Ha, this is the story of my life! :D

Seriously, I get that all the time ... I just do it in secret because the more I try to explain, the more ridiculous it sounds!
 
hmm, I wouldn't be able to tell the difference, tbh... I always got odd looks when on livery. Assuming they had the manners to keep their mouths shut and not be rude to my face, that is.
 
Mine is the complete opposite, he will nicely stand at a mounting block but if i try and mount from a small step ladder, fence, milk crate, chair he will move off the moment i line up to his side.

After months of persistance he will now stand at the steps, for a nano second, while i mount. I guess he classes that as standing still long enough for me to get on, i swear he thinks that i'm some kind of althlete that can vault in the blink of an eye :rolleyes:

The steps are a small set, i would spend 20 minutes or so following him around with these damn things, after a while he would get so fed up of walking in circles that he would just stand still.

People would see this and ask if i would like him to be held, i must have looked like a right tit following a horse around with a step ladder!! but i would politely say no thank you, he must learn..and he is
 
I either have my eyes shut when ever I am at my yard - or I live in cloud cookoo land. Whatever I do with my horse all other liveries are totally supportive. They sometimes ask questions but never look at me as though I am mad!

To put this into context, most of the people on my yard are highly competative, competing at a resonable level of dressage, SJ and Eventing and I am just a happy hacker, who does a lot of ground work with my boy.

The liveries at my yard see me doing ground work in the school with my lad, and often stop to watch and ask questions. If they are having handling issues with their horses they sometimes ask me to help, in the same way they ask for help with other liveries on schooling/jumping issues.

The scenario you described above about getting you horse to stand whilst mounting is pretty standard, and whyt would you turn down help? I would - it would mean that you could stand on the mounting block whilst you had someone on the ground helping you to walk the horse in circles until she stood still for you to get on. The bemused look was probably more of ."Why are you turning down help...." than "Why are you insisting your horse stands still?..."
 
Ha ha. The race yard I worked at for a bit the lads all leap onto a low wall then onto the horse. I can't do it so all the ones I rode regularly soon learnt to stand at the mounting block!
 
EllenJay - The trouble is i am usually there in the evening totally on my own, which is why i need to do it on my own, and although i've been there since October i don't really know anyone as i usually have her weekdays and have to ride in the evening when no-one is ever there.

Everyone at the yard is lovely, but i wouldn't want to waste anyone’s time helping me to teach her to stand still (many people there, including livery in question are competition riders). She’s not terrible with it to the point where i cannot get on, but she does need to learn to stand at its bad manners, and i know that she would happily stand still if someone held her :)

I think it was more a case of not knowing what i was doing and thinking that i couldn't get on at all :D

yaffsimone1 - perhaps i should try a different item of choice to mount and confuse her enough into standing so i can get on :D she does stand when i get on from the bit of grass next to the school when i go for a hack, just not this particular mounting block, lol!

Puzzles - shall have to go back to doing things secretly :p
 
My mare was also unwilling to stand at the mounting block when I bought her, and would also start to walk off the minute your foot was in the stirrup. So, like you I decided to deal with it (I have a slight disability so my horses have to learn to be "faff proof"). I spent half an hour every day for a week just walking her to the mounting block, making her do more work if she wandered and praising her if she stood still, climbing up on the block, scratching her withers if she stood still, and climbing down again.

I have to say that during this process I had to beat off well-meaning "helpers" with a stick - this could partly be due to the fact that the general culture on my yard is that horses who do not comply should be pushed and shoved and yelled at.:(. I smiled and politely declined, and now have a horse that presents herself at the block, whilst they continue to yell and scream...................
 
Lol, i actually came on here to write practically the same post as the OP! I spent half an hour yesterday teaching my boy to stand still by the mounting block. Kind people kept offering to hold his head or stop him swinging his quarters out, but the whole pont is he needs to learn so I can mount when there's no one around. Half an hour and half a packet of polos later he will stand betwen the block and a wall, just need to do it without the block now! More work tobe done so more odd looks to follow :)
 
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