spookypony
Well-Known Member
I haven't posted an update in a while, but thought I would do so with good news: we haven't had a serious planting incident for several weeks! Not only that, but he's been willing enough to move forward, that we've been able to start schooling in the woods again. At the moment, that consists of lots and lots and lots of transitions, especially trot/halt and halt/trot (that seems to wind him up nicely). Yesterday, he gave me some good canter transitions, and an excellent canter-to-slam-on-the-brakes-and-leap-sideways-because-there-is-a-shadow transition---now, which test asks for that one, again?
...Aaaaand, a few days ago, I started incorporating a wee (really really wee) log into our exercises, which he found very exciting! So exciting, that when he spooked himself by landing in soft ground on the other side, he shot off---and I am very proud to report that for once, I kept my leg on like a good girl, and actually asked him for more. That's been very hard for me to do in the last few months, but the nerves seem to be recovering!
I'm still waiting with the "big battle in the school" until he's a bit more consistent while hacking, but it won't be long now, I hope! In the meantime, I've been schooling in-hand, very very basic stuff, to try to get him to be happier about accepting the bit. The biggest challenge there has been that as soon as I stepped into his personal space by taking up position at his shoulder, he hurried backwards---timid soul. A generous application of click/treat appears to have sorted this problem.
Other in-school activities have included the re-introduction of loose-schooling over jumps, where he surprised me pleasantly by remembering exactly what he was meant to be doing, and generally giving the impression that we'll be able to continue with ridden jumps pretty much where we left off last summer. We'll have a few more loose sessions to boost his confidence, and then try something mounted again. I'm assuming most people don't loose-school over jumps much after a horse has begun jumping under saddle, but it seems to help him so much, that I think I'll keep on for now.
So, as you can see, he deserves the feed shop's largest neep for many reasons!
The neep in question:
Update: he managed to finish off about 2/3 of the neep in just a few minutes, stopped only by my removal of the same (he'll get the rest tomorrow). This is a personal best for him: as he has a fairly small mouth, he takes quite a while to get through a whole neep by himself!
...Aaaaand, a few days ago, I started incorporating a wee (really really wee) log into our exercises, which he found very exciting! So exciting, that when he spooked himself by landing in soft ground on the other side, he shot off---and I am very proud to report that for once, I kept my leg on like a good girl, and actually asked him for more. That's been very hard for me to do in the last few months, but the nerves seem to be recovering!
I'm still waiting with the "big battle in the school" until he's a bit more consistent while hacking, but it won't be long now, I hope! In the meantime, I've been schooling in-hand, very very basic stuff, to try to get him to be happier about accepting the bit. The biggest challenge there has been that as soon as I stepped into his personal space by taking up position at his shoulder, he hurried backwards---timid soul. A generous application of click/treat appears to have sorted this problem.
Other in-school activities have included the re-introduction of loose-schooling over jumps, where he surprised me pleasantly by remembering exactly what he was meant to be doing, and generally giving the impression that we'll be able to continue with ridden jumps pretty much where we left off last summer. We'll have a few more loose sessions to boost his confidence, and then try something mounted again. I'm assuming most people don't loose-school over jumps much after a horse has begun jumping under saddle, but it seems to help him so much, that I think I'll keep on for now.
So, as you can see, he deserves the feed shop's largest neep for many reasons!
The neep in question:
Update: he managed to finish off about 2/3 of the neep in just a few minutes, stopped only by my removal of the same (he'll get the rest tomorrow). This is a personal best for him: as he has a fairly small mouth, he takes quite a while to get through a whole neep by himself!
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Also the one with walk down the arena like a banana 
), yet the giant trug containing these in the feed shop clearly has a sign that says "Neeps" on it! 
