Pictures Producing 5/6yr olds

Haven't posted on this thread in a while. Just popping by to say that Hermosa has matured a lot as a six year old. The biggest change is she's becoming a reasonable person to ride in the school. We went through a long phase where she was fine if I had it to myself, but would have a strop if she had to share with other riders. Not ideal at a busy livery yard. She would slam on the brakes if a horse passed too close ('too close' still being not that close), get incredibly distracted by other horses and just want to stare at them, and occasionally run backwards. We seem to have finally attained the holy grail of ignoring other horses, and she's develope enough of a brain to focus on me and not bother with them. That will make winter a damn sight easier.

IMG_2866.JPG
 
I’m so excited to be able to join in with this thread!

I did my first polework session with Shadow, using them to help with our transitions. I also switched up our warm up and after a good walk warm up, popped straight up into canter and he felt so good. He’s quite a chilled out boy but today he was on fire - really on my aids (especially our upwards canter transition which is where we struggle the most) and felt incredible. Only schooled him for 20 minutes in the end as he was answering every question spot on.

He even got called “quite forward”, which is funny!

I’m actually so excited about this little connie.

IMG_0289.jpeg
 
J_sarahd said:
I’m so excited to be able to join in with this thread!

I did my first polework session with Shadow, using them to help with our transitions. I also switched up our warm up and after a good walk warm up, popped straight up into canter and he felt so good. He’s quite a chilled out boy but today he was on fire - really on my aids (especially our upwards canter transition which is where we struggle the most) and felt incredible. Only schooled him for 20 minutes in the end as he was answering every question spot on.

He even got called “quite forward”, which is funny!

I’m actually so excited about this little connie.

View attachment 149795
Click to expand...
This is awesome!
 
We've officially graduated from the 3/4 year old thread, although boyo isn't properly 5 for a couple of months.
He had his first baby dressage lesson yesterday and was lovely and forward, managed circles and serpentines and improved from start to finish, so nothing more to expect from him at this stage :)
Our big take-away was to get a more forward and engaged trot before asking for a canter transition and then doing a couple more canter-forward trot-canter until he really started to let go through his back. After a few of these, he was really striding out in the canter. It was lovely to feel and I definitely went away having achieved something. A good day!
 
I am the same as @GreyDot - we graduate onto this thread this year, albeit he's not 5 until the beginning of May.

I'm not sure I can call my p!ss poor riding abilities 'producing' but I try my best. Dex is excelling in the school, not that we have done a huge amount of it but he is super engaged brain wise and you show him something once and once he's got it there are no back steps. However I think his dressage saddle, which was new in Jan, has settled and he's made it clear he's unhappy, so until the fitter can come out on the 2nd April we are back in the jump which he is fine in - thankfully he makes himself VERY clear as he really puts his back up and goes stuffy and coiled spring like in a way thats very unlike him. I also need to work on my ability to sit his canter and not tense on him, so we haven't done a huge amount of it thus far.

Hacking..... now he was an absolute bomb proof dream last year and we had SO much fun seeing everything and having a blast, throughout winter I couldn't really hack as everything around us became too deep and muddy (and I lost my mojo for much more than keeping him ticking over in the dark) and I think I have done myself up a kipper.. He is now a snorting, piaffing, spinning, cantering sideways, small broncing, mini rearing, spooky little man and I am kicking myself for it. Fingers crossed spring has sprung and he's a bit bored and the nice, amicable youngster comes back, as he's also testing boundaries in hand, but we'll see...
 
Well I’m feeling exceptionally lucky and privileged today. My now 6yo had a horrid accident last summer and everyone was guarded about her future as a ridden horse.
We threw absolutely everything at her with the help of the vet, amazing physio, one of my good friends who has a laser, my rider who has stuck to the program and done all the ground exercises all the muscle stim machine work etc.

This girl has taken it all with good humour, been ahead of the curve and has pretty much surpassed expectations of everyone. She has been building up under saddle for a while and last week got full vet and physio sign off ‘don’t need to see her again, get entries in’ 😱😱😱😱

So she went to a 90cm CT yesterday to see what we had and was well, pretty much perfect! 70% dressage and a great sj with just a green pole coming into the double.

I’ll keep pinching myself and touching wood.
 
AShetlandBitMeOnce said:
I am the same as @GreyDot - we graduate onto this thread this year, albeit he's not 5 until the beginning of May.

Hacking..... now he was an absolute bomb proof dream last year and we had SO much fun seeing everything and having a blast, throughout winter I couldn't really hack as everything around us became too deep and muddy (and I lost my mojo for much more than keeping him ticking over in the dark) and I think I have done myself up a kipper.. He is now a snorting, piaffing, spinning, cantering sideways, small broncing, mini rearing, spooky little man and I am kicking myself for it. Fingers crossed spring has sprung and he's a bit bored and the nice, amicable youngster comes back, as he's also testing boundaries in hand, but we'll see...
Click to expand...
Hmmmm!

We need to graduate away from this thread because he'll be 7 in May (no idea where the last 3 years have gone) but 5&6 were definitely boundary testing! He's still sharp, still needs to be in work to avoid being a piaffing monster but generally now can be told to crack on. I'm not sure I'll ever give up my neck strap hacking tho!!
 
I’m going to join this thread with my May 2020 mare - she was initially the kids’ pony but proved too sharp as she matured. I’ve almost fixed the schooling (canter just lacks strength so sometimes wobbles and occasionally she loses focus and decides to spook at random stuff behind the fence). Absolutely adores anything to do with jumping, not that we’ve done more than a couple of sessions in trot over about 40cm! Cantered over poles on a curve today, which was the first time she had ever done anything like that. She was ever so sweetly adjusting her stride as required with no input at all needed from me. Clever pony!

Hoping to lay the foundations for her future jumping career this summer and take her out to see the world. My other two aren’t so athletic so going to make the most of this one!
 
Shamelessly bumping as I'd love to hear what everyone is up to with their 5 year olds. My 5yo RoR is out in the field as he's only just finished racing. He's had a couple of weeks learning about life outside of racing and is now having a bit of a break.
 
Mines doing surprisingly well. How long it will last who knows.
Did 2 unaff CC 90 events well, she now has a months holiday back home with me in the field, then will go back to rider with the aim for registering her with BE for a half season and a very loose aim of 1* at Osberton end of year
 
So mine hit the warmer weather, took a great sigh and reverted back to child’s pony. Currently happily toting around my 10 year old daughter with mutual adoration, washing line reins and all. There go my jumping plans for the summer 🤣! Glad she’s found her brain again though.
 
Tiny silly thing, but I took my (just) 5YO into the arena today for the first time since wintering off and she was just super. We’ve been on a few hacks, and I wanted to see if her canter was more balanced after time off and, it was!

She is immature physically for her age, so I think a few months off has worked wonders.

IMG_7036.jpeg
 
teddy_ said:
Tiny silly thing, but I took my (just) 5YO into the arena today for the first time since wintering off and she was just super. We’ve been on a few hacks, and I wanted to see if her canter was more balanced after time off and, it was!

She is immature physically for her age, so I think a few months off has worked wonders.

View attachment 159816
Click to expand...

She's looking great, lovely horse.
 
I continue to be besotted with my six yr old, she is the sweetest horse to handle, a puppy that a child could do, and a total Ferrari to ride. I havent done a huge amount with her, she still needs more strength to be able to balance her movement, but that will come with time. Shes a quick learner which really helps, but shes sensitive so I'm making sure shes really solid with the basics, and I'm doing lots of hacking and groundwork as well, I just love working with her. We had our first lesson in about six months recently, and my trainer was very happy with our progress, which was a relief. I hadnt intended to go that long without help with her, but my other horse needed the help more than she did, so she got pushed back a bit, but its done her no harm.
 

Attachments

  • canter off the floor.jpg
    canter off the floor.jpg
    72.1 KB · Views: 25
  • trot may cc.jpg
    trot may cc.jpg
    98.7 KB · Views: 25
daffy44 said:
I continue to be besotted with my six yr old, she is the sweetest horse to handle, a puppy that a child could do, and a total Ferrari to ride. I havent done a huge amount with her, she still needs more strength to be able to balance her movement, but that will come with time. Shes a quick learner which really helps, but shes sensitive so I'm making sure shes really solid with the basics, and I'm doing lots of hacking and groundwork as well, I just love working with her. We had our first lesson in about six months recently, and my trainer was very happy with our progress, which was a relief. I hadnt intended to go that long without help with her, but my other horse needed the help more than she did, so she got pushed back a bit, but its done her no harm.
Click to expand...

She is looking really smart!
 
I’m just nipping in here because I was blown away with our youngster, rising 5, with whom we have been taking things very slowly as she is still growing. Yesterday she was taken into the cross country jumping field for the first time..silage cutting was taking place nearby and the ground is very rough and uneven, lots of trees and a stream/burn to cross. She took my breath away by jumping beautifully…a double of logs she was stride perfect, jumped from light into shade, didn’t freak out with dry twigs cracking when stood on them, didn’t get over excited and would come back to walk calmly. The only thing she stopped to consider was a wood lined ditch with a steep drop down to it and up out. She looked and looked and did a huge leap without backing up. She jumped 8 to 10 times then we left it. She seems brave and trusting of her rider and as blummin usual I was so busy watching I didn’t video anything 🙁
 
So chuffed with my six yr old, shes a sensitive girl, and I'm not yet entirely sure which things will cause her consternation, and which things she will take in her stride. Her canter is very powerful with a very quick, active hind leg therefore she has struggled a bit to balance and control it, so I've done lots of postural based groundwork with her to help, and I can really feel it paying off now. So I decided the time had some to see how she felt about flying changes, if the idea of them made her feel dramatic I was happily prepared to shelve them for a bit, but no, she thought they were very easy and mildly dull! I got a calm, easy, clean change on my aid both ways, absolutely delighted with her! She got lots of treats and we went for a little cow parsley foraging hack to celebrate.
 
Mine is the bulk of her way through a 4 week holiday while her rider was focusing on the big boy ponies. She was reunited with her daughter for the first time since weaning. This was not quite as joyous as anticipated to start with (daughter = 🧙) but a week later and the family bond has returned!

IMG_3029.jpeg
 
Thank you @ihatework I love your girls, I hope the daughter follows in her mothers fabulous hoofprints.

My girl excelled herself again today, I wanted to try again just to check yesterday wasnt a fluke, and we only did two changes yesterday as she got it right each time, so I didnt ask again. Today I made it slightly more difficult and she got it right each way first time again. I'm so impressed with both her physical reaction and her mental attitude that despite only having done four changes in total, I'm going to leave them alone for a month or so because she really couldnt have made a better start. Its funny, that trying the more difficult things has given me a much better understanding of her and how she likes to do things, which I'm so happy about.
 
Gi and I went to our first Showjumping arena hire at our local venue, popped over her first water tray, did a few combinations and single fences first then strung them all together and did a nice course. We'll probably do the same again next week then potentially start going out to some clear rounds / training shows.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top