What qualities do you look for in your horse riding instructor?

After a summer plagued by injury, it seems a while since I have had a lesson with my lovely instructor.  This week has seen Skip occur another injury on a front leg and treatment continues as I write this blog.  As I enter into utter despair I decided it was time to catch up with my instructor who always gets me thinking clearly and rationally about horse related issues!  This made me realise that my instructor is not only there to teach me how to ride, but also provides emotional support for equine matters.  As many of you know this is why I nominated her for the NAF Magic Mentor and in fact I am going to take her prizes across to her at the weekend J

I am a firm believer that finding the right instructor for you and your horse is easier said than done.  However when you do it can make all the difference to your riding and partnership with your horse.  Everyone looks for different qualities depending on their likes and dislikes and the disciplines they wish to pursue.  Here are the top qualities I look for in an instructor, I wonder how they compare to yours?

·         A calm instructor who is relaxed with me and my horse and doesn’t get flustered when either of us struggle with something, taking time to explain things in a way we both understand (perhaps two or three times!).

·         A coach who is happy to move forward at the same pace as I am and recognises the correct type and nature of training for the individual horse, rather than implementing a “one rule for all” type of training.  The ability to think outside the box really helps here.

·         I like my instructor to be on her feet and close to me all the time watching every stride (poor thing!)!  I am a perfectionist and I don’t want to be doing something wrong down the whole long side if my instructor is the other end of the school and cannot see me properly. 

·         Trust is so important, especially when training a young horse.  Trust allows me to accept when my instructor is really pushing us to take our training to the next step.

·         Patience- for when I just don’t get something!!

·         Someone who is able to read the signs the horse is giving, highlighting when he is relaxed, when he struggles etc. This increases my learning and points out what I should be looking for when working my horse alone.  

·         A brief but motivating summary at the end of a lesson also really helps me and gives me guidelines of what to focus on during the upcoming week. 

Now I am sure I have missed out many top qualities but these are the ones that initially spring to mind.  Feel free to add your comments below on what you look for in your trainer, or in fact anyone you have working with your horse. 

In the meantime I best get back to seeing to my poorly boy, he is feeling most sorry for himself, especially as I have wrapped him in a pink bandage for my own amusement!  I think it rather suits him… But on a more serious note I wonder if these persistent injuries are a sign of something or telling me something needs to change.  Whilst I figure out what this is I need to try and get his legs back in full working order…at least I am well practiced with horse first aid skills at the moment, perhaps it’s time for a change of career!

Fingers crossed you are all enjoying some fun in the sun with your horses and I look forward to reading your comments below. Thanks for reading xx    

Trust

When I meet someone new, it takes a while for me to get to know them and be able to trust them.  The same can be said for me and horses.  I love horses (and humans sometimes!) to bits but it doesn’t necessarily mean I can instantly trust every one I meet.

Since purchasing Skip back in October much of the journey has been about developing trust in one another. Of course over time you get to know more about each other, develop a routine and your confidence grows.  But there are a few occasions when you just have to take a leap of faith and trust that they won’t let you down and the past few months have shown me how true this really is.

As we enter the final few weeks of Skip’s rest after his tendon injury there have been a few occasions where I have had little choice but to put faith in Skip to do the right thing…and putting my trust in him has been hugely rewarding. 

After weeks of rest, I had to trust in Skip to behave sensibly as we moved towards the next stage of recovery with daily in hand walking.  Now leaving a 16.2hh 5yr old in a ten metre paddock for 6 weeks could result in a few explosions, and I do think that the extreme heat had something to do with keeping him calm, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that he behaved impeccably throughout this walking period.

A month on I had to return him to hacking walk work without any lunging or turnout to let off steam.  In the end I just went for it and got straight on, and again he was absolutely fine and seemed happy to be back in work.  We are now back out hacking, and I’ll admit there have been a few “keen” moments and spooky times (due to pigs chasing us along the field!!) but we are doing it and our bond seems better than ever.  I have never really realised the value of in hand work in building trust and confidence in one another.  As hot and slow and sometimes boring as it was, it has been really beneficial. 

Of course I am under no illusion that all this hasn’t been without its hairy moments - a few handstands in the tiny paddock and a couple of flying bucks to be exact, but overall I am happy with how things have gone and of course happy to see these signs that Skip’s realised his legs are working well again.  We have another 3 weeks of rest before turnout can hopefully be resumed and we can get back to normal in every sense.

So to anyone who is struggling to bond with their horse, or wants to develop their partnership with their equine friend I would truly recommend concentrating on groundwork. A lot of activities were out of reach for me due to Skip’s injury, but there are many great books to help develop activities and keep it less boring than the constant miles I had to walk.  A good instructor will also value the significance of groundwork, so make sure you find someone supportive who may be able to introduce you to some fun confidence building tasks.

I would love to hear your stories of when you have had to just go for it and put trust in your horse, or any top ideas for groundwork exercises.  So today I wish you not only happy riding but happy bonding with your equine, however it may be! Xx