Monday 17 September 2012

Finding my Patience

Anyone who knows me knows that generally i have no patience, its something that i have been trying to learn especially when it comes to my child and my animals.

I rode 3x this weekend, Saturday was a scratch because i worked both jobs and in between had to go out to Deworm G with the special vet dewormer because a horse in the heard turned up with wormer resistant worms.

Fridays ride was the same as Thursdays like riding a Giraffe again the big plus was that he was forward which is great. We tried at a walk to get some contact on the bit which resulted in a battle were i only gave when he did which took quite some time. It was also a bit of a fight to keep him on a 20m circle he kept trying to cut in or wander out to far. So to prevent him from being able to think about all the ways he could NOT do what i was asking i started asking him at a trot on a circle. We probably trotted for a good 30 minutes on a circle in both directions the reason we didnt carry on longer was that he FINALLY put his head down and relaxed a little. Both of us were quite sweaty at the end of the ride and exhausted, unfortunatly i had to hang out around the barn for a while because there were some young girls there riding with me who cannot be riding without adult supervision.

Sunday was a fairly short ride again starting out at the walk riding my Giraffe asking for straight forward and a 20m circle again all things that were not on G's list of what he wanted to do that day. I figured that we would try to mix it up a little bit and did some sitting trot work, some trotting without stirrups, some figure 8's and some serpentines before going back to a 20m circle he was a little bit quicker to relax today so the ride was a little bit easier on my hands but he definitely was not as forward as the other days. Most likely due to the fact that this weekend is the hardest i have ridden him and the most work he has had to do in a long time. How ever at the end of the ride while i was walking him out with no stirrups he finally brought his head down and took a little bit of contact with the bit for a few steps anyways so at that moment we called it a day and a win for the weekend.

Some quick notes... the head raising is strictly an evading manouver that he has picked up (again i allowed him to learn this), the martingale is not new and he has never done this before with the martingale had i not had it on him this weekend i most likely would have ended up with a broken nose. G has had his teeth done and i check them regularily to make sure that he is still good with his mouth. If this issue continues i may consider a different bit but this one was doing just fine before so i think i will just have to wait his stubborness out.

At this point i am also open to suggestions.

7 comments:

  1. I am no trainer so take this as you wish but when Henry lifts his head (though he doesn't go that high) my trainer tells me to drive him forward and to keep at it. Have you tried really making him work and march forward? Eventually he will have to bring his head down and realize that when it goes up the work ensues ...

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    1. yeah thats what i have resorted to trying. I allow him to slo0w down when he relaxes a little bit.

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  2. Since the evasion you are describing sounds dangerous, my suggestion would be to put him on a longe line and work on forward and rhythm in walk and trot sans tack except for a line and halter. When he is relaxed, forward, and maintains a steady tempo and rhythm in trot, he should start to let his back go and drop his head and neck. I wouldn't assume that he knows how to do this. Give him time to figure it out without the added complication of the rider or rein contact. Groundwork is also great for building trust and communication between horse and rider.

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    1. yeah we have done lots of ground work it took me a long time to even start riding him. Im giving him a few days off to relax his body and mind then i will lunge him before i ride to see were he is at, maybe there is something that i am missing who knows. It does sound dangerous but im hoping to get a video because it looks hilarious and all i can do is laugh when he starts acting like a Giraffe. When i rode on Sunday he was better than he was thurdsay and friday so maybe a few days off will do him some good.

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  3. I'm not a trainer and don't like to give advice. That said, Val had a good suggestion about lunging him first until he relaxes. When you do feel that he is relaxed and get on maybe just walking him in large circles until he listens to your cues would be best instead of trotting. This is what I did with Dusty until she learned to control her speed. A lot of opening inside rein in the corners trying to get her head down and at times the inside rein behind the wither. (I don't like to recommend this because if it's done wrong it could be harmful). I only do it in the corners. Good luck with your Giraffe.

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    1. ha ha thanks :) i think im going to need it.

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