Where to start?

[1stTimePonyLoaner]

So, as some of you may have read we are loaning a pony & we take him on next week. He’s a lovely young boy & my daughter seems to work well with him at lessons but I’m nervous & at a total loss about what to do with our time with him the day we don’t have lessons? She has access to the outdoor and indoor arenas on this day but without an instructor. What would you suggest we start with? Possibly just working on her trotting & handling to get the feel of him without her instructor present? It will be too dark by time we get to him to go for a hack just now.

 

[TGM]

Your best bet is to ask the instructor what the plan should be between lessons. They will know the pony and your daughter better than any of us!

 

[1stTimePonyLoaner]

Thanks I’ll do that. im sure well get a better idea of whats going on after our first stable management course/lesson at the end of the week. Im maybe overthinking it atm!!

 

[Winters100]

Agree with TGM to ask the instructor.

Also I would say in general set them up for success. Unless you have the experience to help her do not try new things. Stick to what she is doing in lessons with confidence. To put it simply, if she has been trotting with confidence for a while, but has only recently started to canter and lacks confidence, then stick to trotting. You will need to be careful since the pony is young, and therefore potentially less predictable than a 'made' pony.

If your daughter is young then you will need to take charge, but for sure the instructor can tell you what she should be working on.

Have fun with your new pony!

 

[1stTimePonyLoaner]

Agree with TGM to ask the instructor.

Also I would say in general set them up for success. Unless you have the experience to help her do not try new things. Stick to what she is doing in lessons with confidence. To put it simply, if she has been trotting with confidence for a while, but has only recently started to canter and lacks confidence, then stick to trotting. You will need to be careful since the pony is young, and therefore potentially less predictable than a 'made' pony.

If your daughter is young then you will need to take charge, but for sure the instructor can tell you what she should be working on.

Have fun with your new pony!

Great thank you. She’s 10 & just started cantering & jumping but I don’t think she’d be confident enough to do those by herself so will stick to flat work, trot, poles etc that she’s confident with & take the lead from her instructor. He’s a lovely boy but needs a firm hand sometimes but he’s settling down really well compared to when he first started in lessons.

 

[Winters100]

Great thank you. She’s 10 & just started cantering & jumping but I don’t think she’d be confident enough to do those by herself so will stick to flat work, trot, poles etc that she’s confident with & take the lead from her instructor. He’s a lovely boy but needs a firm hand sometimes but he’s settling down really well compared to when he first started in lessons.

This is a good idea to stick what she is confident with. May I ask how old is the pony?

You should maybe also think about things which may be different for the pony when riding alone. For example if lessons are usually in a group you may see different behavior from the pony when it is alone. If you have not seen the pony alone in the arena it might be an idea to have an individual lesson first. Also when there are not lessons going on might there be other owners there riding much faster? It is good to consider the situation in advance so that you can be prepared - forewarned is forearmed after all

 

[1stTimePonyLoaner]

He’s 5 years old.
I’ve said to my daughter that he’ll be very different when he’s not in group lessons, not that he does what all the other horses do in those either tbh! Her instructor is great so I’ll have a good chat with her when I see her as to how we go forward. I’m just very aware I’m not an instructor but sure they will guide me on what to work on when we have days in the indoor or outdoor school. Tbh I think she’d be happy out hacking with him atm but it’s too dark by time we get there so it’s schooling for the Mo. Thanks again, i appreciate the advice.

 

[Parrotperson]

if you can join the local pony club. you'll both have fun learning and they'll be plenty of help on hand should you need it in between lessons.

try this kind of thing to keep them both having fun https://www.yourhorse.co.uk/horse-riding-training/fun-riding-exercises-for-kids/