Getting somewhere, Plans of action and general pony updates!

-
Manners.
Confidence.
Tolerance.
Leading.
Which one first?
Since my last post I have been busily analysing Robbie's reactions in his last session, and working out my plan of action for any future work with him. 
It's amazing the different views people have on how to manage a horse like him.
Personally, I have come to the conclusion that he needs firm get forgiving handling. 
The boundaries need to be put in place but at the same time, he needs a good amount of guidance in order to understand them.
With this in mind, I decided that the best way forwards would be to teach him targeting.
I believe that this will get him thinking and will encourage him to investigate things instead of running away.
As for the others. 
Stella is coming along beautifully and now that she has settled in properly I am going to begin teaching her some more in-depth ways to deal with things that she still finds difficult. 
Thimble is fat and happy but will soon be a little more trim as we pick up her exercise levels again and continue with the driving and walking in hand. 
I have also been getting to know the farms eldest resident, a 29-year-old welsh pony that I have already grown quite fond of since his arrival and I am spoiling him rotten with tonnes of food.... not that he minds, it's hard to keep a good amount of weight on old bones! 
That's my quick update , more to follow soon.
Just need to get home and commence work now! 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Injuries, Organisation and Education

-
Image
So being the insanely graceful human being that I am I managed to fall down my steps the other day, spectacularly.  So with my arm not broke (whoop), but all strapped up with ligament damage. Safe to say I was lucky. Its sore and irritating but it's done now so I'm simply on a mission to try and get it sorted asap, lots of using it gently and building it all back up.  Also in the land of me being brave this week, as part of my 'sort yourself out' campaign, I managed to get myself to a dentist this week.  This is something that literally terrifies me, and I haven't been for years, consequently, there is a lot to do, but like my horses, it's going to be done in small manageable steps.  If I expect my horses to face fears and learn then it's only fair that I expect the same from myself. Also, I have finally put the deposit down on my course to study equine sports massage.  I really want to build a career within the equine industry and I plan to
Read more

But I love him too much to tell him off - Mini Rant!

-
Such a common thing to hear. I love him/her, I don't want to tell them off. The lack of discipline that comes with spoilt horses never fails to amaze me. And frustrate me.  There is nothing that I can do to make people put boundaries in place, but I personally believe that just like we should respect our horses, our horses should also have respect for us.  Now that's not to say I think they should be beaten into submission, or battered when they do something wrong. Quite the opposite My view on leadership is this. If you take the responsibility away from your horse, they feel safe.  You manage the danger. You decide what is safe and they trust you. But with that, you need respect both ways. A lead mare does not keep her position by simply grooming everyone in her herd.  A stallion does not keep his mares by doing nothing.  Leadership is earned, Respect is earned. It comes with Discipline.   For example, If my horse pushed past me and blunders in
Read more

Down to business or Play based Learning. My views on Training.

-
Image
"He's impossible, stubborn and nothing works" Once upon a time, I was told this about a horse that refused to load, and for me, this was where a lot of my inspiration came from.  The horse in question did appear stubborn, no amount of tugging, pushing, pulling, feed or lunge lines would get him to load if he didn't want to. Yet watching him in the field showed that he was incredibly intelligent. Taking off his rugs with all straps done up, opening gates, opening stable doors.  It was clear to see he was a horse that liked thinking but didn't like pressure. Therefore I decided to give something else a go.  I turned the task of loading him into a puzzle, something that he had to work out, for his own gain.  A game if you like.  He didn't like going onto the lorry, but he did like coming off. He also liked to think that he knew what was coming next.  This was where he gained the upper hand. For me this was what I was seeing from him:
Read more