JJS
Well-Known Member
It's no secret that I have zero experience with youngsters. So as much as I adore Flower, having a rising two year old can be challenging. She's got a fair dose of Welsh quirkiness, with very little of her mum's calm, steady nature to temper it. There are times when she's left me wanting to pull my hair out in despair and others when she's had me glowing with pride.
But one thing we've always struggled with to some extent is leading. We can go through long periods where she's saintly, followed by a fortnight or more where she decides to test all of her boundaries. Half of the time you reason that it's perfectly normal for a youngster to go through periods where they experiment to see what they can get away with, and the other half (in my case anyway), you convince yourself that it's entirely your own shortcomings and lack of experience letting them down.
So today, I had a professional out to do a bit of work with her for the first time. He was wonderful, and so was she! I explained when he arrived that I felt I needed educating as much as her, and that's exactly what he did. She showed so much progress in a single session, and his way of working was great - so calm and unhurried. He was very mindful of the fact that she's a baby, and that my attitude has always been that I don't want to rush her or fry her brain, yet he really helped to iron out all of those little creases that had crept in. I do know that the real test will come in the days and weeks ahead, but I feel so much better equipped to deal with any testing behaviour in the future.
What's more, I found the whole experience hugely reassuring. I have a constant fear of ruining her, and as much as I've tried my hardest to educate myself, I still worry about doing her a disservice because of a lack of knowledge on my part. Thankfully, it seems that isn't the case. He said most of the groundwork was in place already, and that she seems like a perfectly normal rising two year old, rather than the ASBO I sometimes fear she is, so we've actually done a pretty okay job so far. What's more, he thinks she's a very sweet personality, with plenty in the way of brains and a willingness to please. He's convinced that if we just keep doing what we're doing, especially moving forwards with the tools he's given us, that she's actually going to turn into a lovely horse. Honestly, those words have made me feel like such a weight has been lifted from my shoulders! She's a good egg, my little Flower
But one thing we've always struggled with to some extent is leading. We can go through long periods where she's saintly, followed by a fortnight or more where she decides to test all of her boundaries. Half of the time you reason that it's perfectly normal for a youngster to go through periods where they experiment to see what they can get away with, and the other half (in my case anyway), you convince yourself that it's entirely your own shortcomings and lack of experience letting them down.
So today, I had a professional out to do a bit of work with her for the first time. He was wonderful, and so was she! I explained when he arrived that I felt I needed educating as much as her, and that's exactly what he did. She showed so much progress in a single session, and his way of working was great - so calm and unhurried. He was very mindful of the fact that she's a baby, and that my attitude has always been that I don't want to rush her or fry her brain, yet he really helped to iron out all of those little creases that had crept in. I do know that the real test will come in the days and weeks ahead, but I feel so much better equipped to deal with any testing behaviour in the future.
What's more, I found the whole experience hugely reassuring. I have a constant fear of ruining her, and as much as I've tried my hardest to educate myself, I still worry about doing her a disservice because of a lack of knowledge on my part. Thankfully, it seems that isn't the case. He said most of the groundwork was in place already, and that she seems like a perfectly normal rising two year old, rather than the ASBO I sometimes fear she is, so we've actually done a pretty okay job so far. What's more, he thinks she's a very sweet personality, with plenty in the way of brains and a willingness to please. He's convinced that if we just keep doing what we're doing, especially moving forwards with the tools he's given us, that she's actually going to turn into a lovely horse. Honestly, those words have made me feel like such a weight has been lifted from my shoulders! She's a good egg, my little Flower
