finally....
I had this silly idea that I might get away from work one afternoon last week and get out on the horse. It actually wasn't that silly until I managed to convince myself that I had a meeting on Wedsnesday afternoon (it was at 9am) and so scuppered the main opportunity. So at that point I emailed the organisers and withdraw from the rescheduled dressage.
Probaby a good thing too. Saturday dawned clear but windy so I bunged the western saddle on Fi and took her down to the arena to see what happened. As always I started with ground work and biy did she need to move !
Normally on a Saturday she has itchy feet (not literally) and can't stand still when we first get to the arena. She has to move for a few minutes before she can actually manage to stand e.g. to tighten the girth.
This Saturday she had more than four weeks of "itchy feet" to work off and I just kept with the ground work until I could see the energy levels and state of mind getting better. She wasn't being naughty - she just needed to DO something !
And if there was an unexpected noise, movement (like her pals in the field having a quick canter), the energy levels went up and so did she - buck, leap, change direction (like she was cutting cows !).
Towards the end of the session I hopped on and did some walk work, at one end of the school. But she was pretty puffed, but still jumpy - so I took the safe option and didn't do too much.
Then mum worked Rosie from the ground while I worked Dudley. Dudley also needed to release some energy - and even Rosie was enthusiastic !!
I was expectin Sunday to be another wash-out but it was actually less windy, so Fi and I had another good session. The ground work was so much calmer so I was in the saddle much faster. We did walk, trot and a little canter work on both reins. She was still not 100% focussed, and still had enough energy that when something distracted her it felt like I was sitting on a wound up catapult :o But she was a good girl.
After that we tacked up Rosie and Duds and did a little "follow my leader" in the school. Dudley had spotted that the wind had blown various water troughs and compost bins down by the school fence - and first time round his energy just went sky high and he was all ready to exit stage left. So I hopped off and walked him up and down past them rather than risk a catastrophe with mum and Rosie on their first ride for maybe 6 weeks. He was fine after that.
When he gets worried about something, you have to give him just anough space to handle the situation and give his brain time to kick back in. If you "force" him past whatever is causing the issue he just gets more into "fight and flight" mode and less into "its not going to eat me mode".
Rosie was a good girl. She also still had a fair amount of energy and mum commented that it was hard for her (mum) to relax. But they both did some good work and we called it a day at that stage. The more we can do where Rosie gets the idea that if she does the right thing life is fun and nice... the better.
Fi's feet are very long but neither her nor Duds have lost a shoe yet. Fingers crossed for the farrier being able to see them quite soon after his return.
Fi is getting barley with dinner - and now with breakfast as well - as the weight tape shows her at 511, which is at the low end of her range, and she has no "gutter".
Duds and Red are still also at the low end of their ranges on the tape. Red had been struggling to finish some of his meals, so instead of getting the mix and barley he needed, he was only getting maybe half. By cutting out some of the fibre he gets, he is now back to finishing feeds so is getting more of the nutrition he needs. He gets hay and eats whatever of that he wants - and is out on the longer grass for a good 3 hours a day. So his diet still has a fair amount of fibre in it. But at 35, we have to do what we can to maintain his condition even if it is not completely "by the book".
Rosie of course is resolutely maintaining her weight.
The boys are losing their coats like it is going out of fashion. They are still quite itchy so got allowed to go out rugless as the weather was relatively mild.
Probaby a good thing too. Saturday dawned clear but windy so I bunged the western saddle on Fi and took her down to the arena to see what happened. As always I started with ground work and biy did she need to move !
Normally on a Saturday she has itchy feet (not literally) and can't stand still when we first get to the arena. She has to move for a few minutes before she can actually manage to stand e.g. to tighten the girth.
This Saturday she had more than four weeks of "itchy feet" to work off and I just kept with the ground work until I could see the energy levels and state of mind getting better. She wasn't being naughty - she just needed to DO something !
And if there was an unexpected noise, movement (like her pals in the field having a quick canter), the energy levels went up and so did she - buck, leap, change direction (like she was cutting cows !).
Towards the end of the session I hopped on and did some walk work, at one end of the school. But she was pretty puffed, but still jumpy - so I took the safe option and didn't do too much.
Then mum worked Rosie from the ground while I worked Dudley. Dudley also needed to release some energy - and even Rosie was enthusiastic !!
I was expectin Sunday to be another wash-out but it was actually less windy, so Fi and I had another good session. The ground work was so much calmer so I was in the saddle much faster. We did walk, trot and a little canter work on both reins. She was still not 100% focussed, and still had enough energy that when something distracted her it felt like I was sitting on a wound up catapult :o But she was a good girl.
After that we tacked up Rosie and Duds and did a little "follow my leader" in the school. Dudley had spotted that the wind had blown various water troughs and compost bins down by the school fence - and first time round his energy just went sky high and he was all ready to exit stage left. So I hopped off and walked him up and down past them rather than risk a catastrophe with mum and Rosie on their first ride for maybe 6 weeks. He was fine after that.
When he gets worried about something, you have to give him just anough space to handle the situation and give his brain time to kick back in. If you "force" him past whatever is causing the issue he just gets more into "fight and flight" mode and less into "its not going to eat me mode".
Rosie was a good girl. She also still had a fair amount of energy and mum commented that it was hard for her (mum) to relax. But they both did some good work and we called it a day at that stage. The more we can do where Rosie gets the idea that if she does the right thing life is fun and nice... the better.
Fi's feet are very long but neither her nor Duds have lost a shoe yet. Fingers crossed for the farrier being able to see them quite soon after his return.
Fi is getting barley with dinner - and now with breakfast as well - as the weight tape shows her at 511, which is at the low end of her range, and she has no "gutter".
Duds and Red are still also at the low end of their ranges on the tape. Red had been struggling to finish some of his meals, so instead of getting the mix and barley he needed, he was only getting maybe half. By cutting out some of the fibre he gets, he is now back to finishing feeds so is getting more of the nutrition he needs. He gets hay and eats whatever of that he wants - and is out on the longer grass for a good 3 hours a day. So his diet still has a fair amount of fibre in it. But at 35, we have to do what we can to maintain his condition even if it is not completely "by the book".
Rosie of course is resolutely maintaining her weight.
The boys are losing their coats like it is going out of fashion. They are still quite itchy so got allowed to go out rugless as the weather was relatively mild.
posted by seahorse | 2:13 PM
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