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                       

Warm Weather and War Wounds!

Unless you have left the country you might have noticed the weather is more than a little warm.  Not that I am complaining, if I did that it would probably rain non-stop for a year!! I do love the sunshine but I am not so much a fan of working in it, would much rather be reading a book by a pool somewhere.  The horses seem to be adapting fairly well to the heat, and are coming during the hottest hours of the day to enjoy some cooler time in the stable.  Skip has adapted well to be in his tiny paddock which has turned into a dust bath with his grazing and the lack of rain.  It doesn’t really seem to bother him as he is happy munching on his hay whilst he kicks back for his rest and recovery, allowing his tendon to heal.

The vet came out to us last week and I was delighted to find that he has now come sound.  Therefore we have started some in hand walking for 15minutes twice a day to help build his strength again.  In another week we will be able to do start doing some walking hacks which will continue for a month before another vets visit and then hopefully a return to increased work.  I have to say I am missing schooling no end and I love riding in the warm weather so I will be pleased to get back on board.  Of course I am happy that Skip is making progress as he should be and my fingers and toes are continually crossed to ensure that it continues.  

However the bad luck doesn’t quite seem to be over yet.  With the onset of the heat wave we decided to leave the horses out overnight which worked fine to start with… Then after a few days, each morning I went up to see Skip, only to find a series of nasty cuts- a new one appearing each day!  I just couldn’t work out how they were happening.  I mean he is only in a 10metre paddock on his own!  After a nasty cut on Sunday night I decided I had to try and do something to figure the mystery injuries out.  So during the boiling hot Monday afternoon I watered the ground and put up some fencing to stop any equine neighbours getting to him to bite him, then I collected all the stones from the ground in case he was sleeping uncomfortably on the ground.  Well I am not sure which option worked, but I am happy to report that since I have done this we have no further injuries (though I am still touching wood as I never know what tomorrow will bring).  He has another 5 weeks of paddock rest so I am hoping that’s the last of the drama.

As the heat continues I am looking forward to getting back in the saddle but not so much looking forward to getting the jodhpurs and long riding boots back on in the 30 degree heat.  I have a feeling my 6am starts might be getting even earlier.  How are you and your horses coping in the heat wave?  Are you still managing to ride?  Please feel free to share your top tips and summery tales and I hope to be able to share mine with you during the upcoming weeks xx                 

It’s the Dentist All Round!!

As every horse owner will know it’s important to have your horse’s teeth done at least once a year, or more regularly if advised by your equine dentist or if you spot any odd behaviour.  So often pain can be the source of so much supposed “bad behaviour” so it is best to rule out any pain sources as  quickly as possible rather than trying to mask symptoms that can lead to long term behavioural problems. 

This week it was time for Skip’s annual jabs and having had his teeth checked when I purchased him 6 months ago, with no problems identified, I decided to schedule in his annual dentistry with his vaccinations.  However little did I know it would fall the day after I would have to have my own dentistry work!  I have to say mine was a tad more traumatic than Skip’s and I was feeling rather delicate whilst waiting for Skip’s teeth to be done.  At least (I thought) that I wouldn’t need to listen to a drilling sound that had rattled round my head for an hour the previous day. 

The vet soon turned up for Skip and gave him his vaccination for the year.  He then gave Skip a little sedation as he told me about the new method they used to do teeth now.  Gone are the metal rasps that I was previously used to seeing (whilst usually hanging on the end of a lead rope trying to keep my old horse still by backing him into the stable corner!) and instead he used an electronic machine which was much more intricate.  However I couldn’t believe it when he turned it on and it sounded like the dreaded drill from my tooth rebuild the day before- I am sure the colour instantly drained from my cheeks!!

The saving grace was the fact that the sedation went straight to Skip’s head, causing quite a giggle.  He only had a little sedation and given that he is such a huge horse I wasn’t sure how much it would really affect him.  After only a few minutes he was swaying and we had to lift his heavy head to rest on the headrest.  He barely moved throughout the treatment, only to occasionally pull his head away from the headrest as if to say “please let me sleep”.  The whole process was much less traumatic for everyone involved and instead of hanging on for dear life I was laughing away at Skips sedated state.  As you can see we took advantage of his sleepiness by taken a few comedy photos… (I am sure he will get me back for that when I ride later!).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the dental work was finished I left him in his stable to have a quiet snooze and after 20 minutes when I went in with a haynet he started eating again so I knew he was ready to go back out for some more grazing in the sunshine- it was a beautiful day here yesterday.

I am happy to say that Skip has seemed absolutely fine ever since and I am also feeling a bit brighter this morning…hopefully it will be more than mash potato and gravy for me for dinner tonight! I hope everyone is off out enjoying the sunshine.  I love the warmer weather and enjoyed a hard but fabulous dressage lesson last weekend- the first one when I didn’t have to wear a coat.  This weekend I am off to watch some friends at a local dressage show whilst I continue to train Skip to get him ready for his grand debut!      

Have fun with your horses x