My next equine project horse

I read this thread almost every day, it brightens my evenings...please don't stop!!!!!!!!! its lovely to go through teds journey with you and you haven't reached the end yet......we need photos of AA on TED , just hacking would be ok but competing or hunting would be even better.....
 
AdorableAlice said:
Ted has been out and about this week, all on his lonesome and has been a very good boy. He has been schooling in a friends school and can now do shoulder fore in a reasonable fashion. However, just as with the canter, when Ted grasps something new he likes to offer it a lot. I can see him being a real pain with anticipation just now, his whole attitude is 'I want to please you' which is fabulous of course, but he does need to wait for instructions !

He is so supple from his poll to his tail, never known one so supple and he is finding sideways very easy. That is making hacking easier for him too apart from this afternoon when he met a JCB working in a narrow spot. I was not there but it went like this - walk on and take no notice Ted, can't frightened. You can do it, it's scary, don't want to. Lets do sideways past it - NOPE and stuck.

The digger driver then got off the machine and came over to the horse and produced the crust off a sandwich and with a very broad Irish accent spoke to Ted and offered him the crust and told Ted to follow him. Ted will do absolutely anything for food and sure enough ambled past the digger. The digger driver and my rider had a good chat and it turned out that the digger driver used to be a horseman and was quite complementary about Ted. No doubt the next JCB Ted meets will have to produce a sandwich before Ted will pass it !
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That would just indicate to the cob that JCBs contain men with food and he would make it his life mission to hunt them down! He gets his hay in a wheelie bin, and hacking out on bin day involves rows about not checking every single wheelie bin in case they contain food :lol:
 
I love this thread. Please don't stop. I recommended it to a friend who had breast cancer and she found it so helpful. I have just gone back to my favourite posts: your old OH visiting and the farrier fetching Ted out of the field to help the racehorse.
 
A young horse learns bad as quickly as he learns good behaviour.

In Ted's case in spadeful's of badness. The late afternoon phone call progress report contained a lot of 'b' words describing a crafty cart horse at his worst.

He didn't start the mounting block issues until he had been home for a while and we have worked on it carefully. He is perfect when two of us are around but cannot be trusted to behave with just his rider. The tack fits, he is not in pain and he is far too clever for his own good. He was fine to get on in my yard, hacked out well and visited a friend to use the school, however when dismounted to open the gate to go home he refused to be remounted. Forty five minutes of bottom swinging, reversing and shooting forwards before he gave in and stood still. He hacked home fine and then stood like a rock at the block in his own yard whilst he rider got on and off umpteen times.

So we have a horse that cannot be dismounted away from home - unless you want to walk home. He has been reminded that he could still be made into sausages.
 
oooops your new game didn't go down well Ted.... :( The boundaries are being tested I think! I bet you don't have trouble for a few months now and it will re-appear just as you thought he had forgotten about it................ :) :) :)
 
Hetsmum said:
oooops your new game didn't go down well Ted.... :( The boundaries are being tested I think! I bet you don't have trouble for a few months now and it will re-appear just as you thought he had forgotten about it................ :) :) :)
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I am sure you are right. He is certainly not a furry fool any more. More crafty cart horse with a large bag of tricks. He is five in June so I guess we have a least twelve months of mind games yet. He loves to learn and is just like a sponge but he does have a 'quickness' to him, he seems to want to be in a hurry all the time. I suppose all that anxiety and fear he had from yearling to four is still bubbling under the surface and it is only time and careful education that will help him.

The naughty step has been dusted off and his bottom will be stapled to it soon.
 
uh oh.... naughty Ted!!

I'm sorry to report that it may have been Ron that told him about that trick in his last letter... Ron stands for hours at our mounting block, but try to get on him out hunting, or hacking, or generally away from home and it's like trying to mount a rocket propelled grenade. My only hope usually is to climb to the top of a gate and launch myself, hoping to get into the plate before he's off at a trot (and obviously, it's always his bounciest, naughtiest, hunting trot!)
 
AdorableAlice said:
I am sure you are right. He is certainly not a furry fool any more. More crafty cart horse with a large bag of tricks. He is five in June so I guess we have a least twelve months of mind games yet. He loves to learn and is just like a sponge but he does have a 'quickness' to him, he seems to want to be in a hurry all the time. I suppose all that anxiety and fear he had from yearling to four is still bubbling under the surface and it is only time and careful education that will help him.

The naughty step has been dusted off and his bottom will be stapled to it soon.
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what about setting him like this. So take a mounting block out somewhere safe and hack to it. One that he can move around if necessary. Do the whole getting on and off there and then continue. Then perhaps start training him to line upto a fence and practise at home? I saw a very good Kelly Marks video whereby she was teaching her (huge) show hunter to line up so she wouldn't have a problem out hunting. She used a lunge line to stop him turning his bum around (had help on the floor) but I thought it was a good idea.

Needless to say I haven't actually done this myself and when I had to dismount quickly as my quarter sheet had come undone and was scaring the wotsits out of Big Ears... we had a very very long walk till I could find a stile to clamber on. I was just praying he wouldn't be a pain and start swinging his backside around but I think he was as bored as me of walking so stood still! I didn't dare try a wall as it would take me too long to try to clamber up and the first yard we passed didn't actually have a mounting block. Oh the shame!
 
I watched the show hunter of Kelly Marks being taught to stand by the railings. She very kindly replied to me when I first posted about Ted, with some good ideas and sent me her book. Lovely lady.

Good idea with a portable block, we do have a fold up bench on the lorry that could be used. He better look out, his breaker is visiting on Saturday, words are to be had. I bet he does not do it and we will all look like ejits.

Ron and Jenhunt, you are officially off the Christmas card list.
 
I knew it, the little toad. Ted took one look at David and announced he had no knowledge of any mounting issues, denied every naughty moment and claimed we had made it all up.

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Look at the state of him, I am ashamed ! Roll on Spring and dry fields.

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Oh dear, what a naughty owner you are telling such fibs!

The face says it all, I am an educated big boy who know what he is doing....
When it suits!

I had a similar young mare who we had to wedge between straw bales to get on... Glad to report, she did grow out of it!
 
AdorableAlice said:
I knew it, the little toad. Ted took one look at David and announced he had no knowledge of any mounting issues, denied every naughty moment and claimed we had made it all up.

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Look at the state of him, I am ashamed ! Roll on Spring and dry fields.

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He's gorgeous. A real credit to you.

P
 
splashgirl45 said:
he looks angelic!!!! I love your mounting block....
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It is for fat old birds, and the horses are taught to stand by it so I can get off onto it as well as on. Needs must when the devil drives !

Jury is out on angelic ! I have just given him one of the good quality rugs, he better not trash it.
 
AdorableAlice said:
Ron and Jenhunt, you are officially off the Christmas card list.
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oh don't worry, Ron has had a telling off for that one!
That, and for trying to bully Tom off his dinner because Ron thought that his was too wet and therefore didn't want it... (the teenage strop that ensued was hysterical)
And for nearly running over my Dad in his hurry to get to the hyarack this morning....
And for dribbling all down the farrier's back first thing on a Monday morning....

You'd think either I'm over feeding him (we're on a second bag of speedibeet and 3rd bag of hifi lite since October, between 2 of them).... or he's going through a teenage phase! ;)
 
JenHunt said:
oh don't worry, Ron has had a telling off for that one!
That, and for trying to bully Tom off his dinner because Ron thought that his was too wet and therefore didn't want it... (the teenage strop that ensued was hysterical)
And for nearly running over my Dad in his hurry to get to the hyarack this morning....
And for dribbling all down the farrier's back first thing on a Monday morning....

You'd think either I'm over feeding him (we're on a second bag of speedibeet and 3rd bag of hifi lite since October, between 2 of them).... or he's going through a teenage phase! ;)
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I know that feeling JH. We're just getting to the end of our 2nd bag of fast fibre (between 3) and wondering whether it's worth buying another before spring or letting them manage without. We soak one scoop at a time and it lasts them about 3 days.
 
Look out everyone, if you are on Ted's speed dial you are about to get a message. He has sacked me and is looking for a new money tree, poop shoveller, agent, driver and all round idiot.

He was due to go out on Tuesday and strut his newly found canter in his first prelim test. In fact he was going to do his first two test day with a W/T and the prelim, but I cannot get the day off so he is grounded and he is furious. Who taught him those naughty words ? Looking at you Ron and given that Ted has a lisp some of those words came out very wrong !

At least his stand still lesson as been retained and his rider hasn't had to walk home this week, always a bonus !

I could do with a lottery win so I can retire, work is getting in the way of playing with horses.
 
Oh no Ted! Sadly I too have to work to keep you in the life of luxury you have become accustomed to :( so you wouldn't make the Prelim Tuesday with me either. Never mind you can practise your moves and be even better for next time for your Prelim debut! :) :) :)
 
Ted has called a Board Meeting and against my better judgement the dressage is going ahead. Ted announced he and his rider do not need me and they are going alone. Now given the last time he went out he was a total plonker I have reservations, it was blowing a gale though.

Ted has had his first mane, tail and feather wash plus a bit of scissor hacking at the furry bits, he looks ok ish.

Whether it is a good idea will be announced on Tuesday evening, I think concentration at work for me on Tuesday is going to be difficult.
 
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