Welcome to my blog about horsey life in the North East - the good bits, bad bits, endless coffees and plenty of mud!

Wednesday 12 June 2013

Last night I took Cady for a hack for the first time in a couple of weeks after her spot of mild lameness.

We had company, another livery on a slightly younger but level-headed mare.
At first it was a bit dramatic. We set off and with Rodney galloping along the fence line next to us and Cady getting pretty overwhelmed as she was lead horse.

I am less delicate about these matters after hard-learned experience. She gets lots of encouragement but she has to go forward as when she plants it's dangerous. When she goes forward there's lots and lots of praise. I did lead her for one small part of the ride early on as there's a gateway she finds very spooky but after that we just kept going and did several large laps of the farm in a fashion. There was some ginger tip-toeing, a bit of mad leaping and one of her trademark spooks where she abruptly jolts and shivers from top to toe.

I hope as we progress it will all look and feel a lot more elegant but at the moment it's a question of prioritising. She's a naturally very leery (heard this expression recently, love it - means eyes-on-stalks)  horse with a high sense of self-preservation. If she were in the wild NONE of her herd would get eaten by predators! She has all the qualities that have helped horses survive over millions of years.

In addition, I am quite a high energy person so together we can be like a Catherine-wheel...

This makes hacking pretty interesting! In four years she's never been eaten by a lion but she's still ready for the eventuality that one might pop out of the hawthorn hedge. So I was really pleased with her last night. She settled right down, led the vast majority of the way and after a bumpy start, obliged in my reguests for forward.

I felt much more confident and clear in what I was asking for and able to reward the right behaviour which I think shows a little bit of progress on my part. I also tried my damdest to keep breathing, stay centred and offer her a gently but consistent contact.

Rodney actually stomped over to see me last night instead of me having to sidle up to him. I just brought him in for a brush and a few carrot stretches. He seems quite happy which makes me happy :)

Happy horsing everyone x

2 comments:

  1. I like that you understand Cady's personality and work with it in a positive manner. :-)

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  2. Wolfie, you would not say that if you saw our 'schooling' session last night! We looked like two wrestling witches and today I've got my head in my hands once more... so frustrated with the two steps forward eight steps back routine, because I know it's my fault! Oh well, I went to see her this morning and gave her an apple of apology and once I've re-grouped I'll book a lesson, stop feeling sorry for myself and get on with it. Wish me luck :) And thanks for commenting x

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