It's interesting that I seem to have a completely different set of expectations depending on whom I'm working with. With Moo I expect him to comprehend more easily because he has been learning for longer and conversely I expect less from Chaps because he is only just starting out. I'm guessing though that maybe I should expect to be surprised sometimes and not without reason. Chaps is 'uncluttered' whereas Moo has so much white noise buzzing about that my guess is that he is sometimes almost 'deaf' to my blabbering.
So it was frustrating (albeit enlightening) that Moo couldn't translate my aid for halt when ground driving at liberty when Chaps could even take the next step of staying front facing during this halt. Also interesting (although I'm not actually certain of it's meaning OR relevance as yet) that Moo gets unclipped in the school and goes roll and mooch for 2 minutes until he comes over to work whereas Chaps is 'with' me from the first second.
Note to self..just shut up around the horses, less truly is more or they will (like children) just stop listening!
Friday, October 30, 2009
Thursday, October 29, 2009
sense and sensitivity
Another glorious day with temperatures in the low twenties, incredible for nearly November but very welcome. The flies aren't too bad so I was able to continue working with Chapiro again today. Even though the sessions will remain short I will up the frequency towards Christmas now that he's almost four.
Today Chapiro worked a little on desensitizing; targeting cones and then targeting a big sheet of corrugated cardboard (to start with targeting with the mouth and then the hoof) and ultimately getting him to walk over the cardboard.
We continued to take direction from pointing a finger and he will now weave in and out of the cones without following me but taking direction from the pointing. We finished with some liberty driving; firstly getting him to comprehend standing still while I walk around him as this is important when you want to take up the driving position. This is real "brainwork" for him because in some exercises I ask him to move from my body cues and others, like this one, I ask him to stand and wait. He is so clever and takes it all in his stride. He will happily walk on now from the driving position directly behind him and will halt (obviously from the voice command because he as at liberty during all this work) although he does turn to face me on the halt so we'll have to work on him staying forward facing next!
It is a crucial time as I see it. I want to reward common sense and calmness whilst retaining the sensitivity that the Andalusian breed has in abundance. I want him to think for himself yet translate my cues correctly...big weight on both our shoulders. This is uncharted territory for me, it's all in my subconscious and I can feel where I want to go but I need him to show me that I'm not making a big c*ck up; knowing the Andalusians, he sure as hell is going to let me know, lol.
Today Chapiro worked a little on desensitizing; targeting cones and then targeting a big sheet of corrugated cardboard (to start with targeting with the mouth and then the hoof) and ultimately getting him to walk over the cardboard.
We continued to take direction from pointing a finger and he will now weave in and out of the cones without following me but taking direction from the pointing. We finished with some liberty driving; firstly getting him to comprehend standing still while I walk around him as this is important when you want to take up the driving position. This is real "brainwork" for him because in some exercises I ask him to move from my body cues and others, like this one, I ask him to stand and wait. He is so clever and takes it all in his stride. He will happily walk on now from the driving position directly behind him and will halt (obviously from the voice command because he as at liberty during all this work) although he does turn to face me on the halt so we'll have to work on him staying forward facing next!
It is a crucial time as I see it. I want to reward common sense and calmness whilst retaining the sensitivity that the Andalusian breed has in abundance. I want him to think for himself yet translate my cues correctly...big weight on both our shoulders. This is uncharted territory for me, it's all in my subconscious and I can feel where I want to go but I need him to show me that I'm not making a big c*ck up; knowing the Andalusians, he sure as hell is going to let me know, lol.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
reunion
Moralejo had been ridden two days (and reasonably hard yesterday) so we went down to the bottom fields for a wander. Those fields are all on quite a slope but with a series of steps which are good for him to work on. We had a walk and a trot and he settled not too badly but was generally rather tense. We headed back up the track and past the yard and onto the lane...woohoo he was striding out and didn't stop, really keen and forward until we got to the last bit of our hamlet and he slammed on the anchors, bum. I tried to urge him on and we got piaffe, bit more and he felt horribly tight so I got off and led him up to the place where the bridleway turns off and got back on. He was still tentative but we managed the triangle (only about 15 minutes) without another stop and didn't have any hassle when the fuel lorry came by us on the lane. Lucky the weather is gorgeous and my patience knows no bounds, lol.
Chapiro was a total babe on our first solo walk up the lane. Patrick says he could hear him snorting from inside the house but he didn't stop once except when we exchanged greetings with our neighbour and her dog and I felt it only polite to stand for a few seconds whilst chatting.
We had ten minutes in the school when we got back and he is so accomodating and lovely to be with.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
While the cat's away
...the girls will play.
Patrick and Lydia are in the UK for a few days which has left me free to play ponies and catch up with friends. Yesterday Di came over with the treeless saddle so we put it through it's paces. Bev joined us for lunch and we had a great chin-wag and a bit of a giggle and probably too much wine!!
The treeless feels very comfortable but puts you in a slight 'chair' position but to be fair to the saddle it's not a dressage model. Moralejo went really well in it and it remained balanced even in canter.
Di took lots of 'photos but there's something blocking me from uploading them on here or video to youtube, my browser just keeps closing the page down or the computer grinds to a halt. I managed to email a couple to Patrick's computer so here they are. The canter is definitely improving since I started working with the idea of the AI (area of influence) I think I probably drove Di mad with my enthusiasm but it is just so exciting to have found a way to ride my gorgeous boy WITHOUT him being persistently behind the vertical. We now have decent enough canter transitions, OK running on in the downwards transition but he's not tucking back and disappearing up his own rear!!
Today we had another great session and rode in excess of 30 canter transitions from trot, walk or through rein-back to walk and then canter. I interspersed them with the walk and trot work and each time he calmed down and worked sensibly in the new pace. We worked on the canter transition on the long side, no bend, and he was correct each time in his lead and I even got counter canter on the long side (it took a few goes before he trusted that he understood that I was asking the 'wrong' lead lol).
I'm scared that we're having too much fun, he LOVES this work, and that he may not stay sound; oh well live for today and today (and yesterday thanks girls) was just excellent.
Photos of Moo in canter up and open at the front, YAY!!!
Patrick and Lydia are in the UK for a few days which has left me free to play ponies and catch up with friends. Yesterday Di came over with the treeless saddle so we put it through it's paces. Bev joined us for lunch and we had a great chin-wag and a bit of a giggle and probably too much wine!!
The treeless feels very comfortable but puts you in a slight 'chair' position but to be fair to the saddle it's not a dressage model. Moralejo went really well in it and it remained balanced even in canter.
Di took lots of 'photos but there's something blocking me from uploading them on here or video to youtube, my browser just keeps closing the page down or the computer grinds to a halt. I managed to email a couple to Patrick's computer so here they are. The canter is definitely improving since I started working with the idea of the AI (area of influence) I think I probably drove Di mad with my enthusiasm but it is just so exciting to have found a way to ride my gorgeous boy WITHOUT him being persistently behind the vertical. We now have decent enough canter transitions, OK running on in the downwards transition but he's not tucking back and disappearing up his own rear!!
Today we had another great session and rode in excess of 30 canter transitions from trot, walk or through rein-back to walk and then canter. I interspersed them with the walk and trot work and each time he calmed down and worked sensibly in the new pace. We worked on the canter transition on the long side, no bend, and he was correct each time in his lead and I even got counter canter on the long side (it took a few goes before he trusted that he understood that I was asking the 'wrong' lead lol).
I'm scared that we're having too much fun, he LOVES this work, and that he may not stay sound; oh well live for today and today (and yesterday thanks girls) was just excellent.
Photos of Moo in canter up and open at the front, YAY!!!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
FEI petition against rollkur
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/antiHF/index.html
Please sign the petition online and pass it on to friends.
Please sign the petition online and pass it on to friends.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
this made me cry :-(
http://www.youtube.com/user/eponatv#p/u
http://epona.tv/uk/news/show/artikel/blue-tongues-at-world-cup-qualifier/
Someone on EE brought this to our attention....it makes me sick to the core, I have no words to express the depth of my despair....
KWPN Stallion Watermill Scandic ridden by Swedish Patrik Kittel during a two hour session of various degrees of hyperflexion at the World Cup dressage qualifier in Odense, Denmark. Early on in the session, the horse's tongue has turned blue and limp and flops out of the stallion's mouth. Stopping the horse, the rider leans forward and fixes the problem, using the hand furthest from the camera. After this, the session is continued for a minimum of 90 minutes in the same way. This pair is trained by Dutch chef d'equipe, Sjef Janssen, who was present at the warm up arena.
KWPN-hingsten Watermill Scandic under en to timer lang træning i varierende grader af hyperfleksion ved World Cup-kvalifikationsstævnet i Odense. På et forholdsvis tidligt tidspunkt bliver hestens tunge slap, og blå og hænger ud af munden. Rytteren parerer hesten, og ordner problemet med hånden længst væk fra kameraet. Derefter rides der videre i mindst halvanden time på samme måde. Ekvipagen trænes af den hollandske landstræner, Sjef Janssen, som var til stede på opvarmningsbanen.
http://epona.tv/uk/news/show/artikel/blue-tongues-at-world-cup-qualifier/
Someone on EE brought this to our attention....it makes me sick to the core, I have no words to express the depth of my despair....
KWPN Stallion Watermill Scandic ridden by Swedish Patrik Kittel during a two hour session of various degrees of hyperflexion at the World Cup dressage qualifier in Odense, Denmark. Early on in the session, the horse's tongue has turned blue and limp and flops out of the stallion's mouth. Stopping the horse, the rider leans forward and fixes the problem, using the hand furthest from the camera. After this, the session is continued for a minimum of 90 minutes in the same way. This pair is trained by Dutch chef d'equipe, Sjef Janssen, who was present at the warm up arena.
KWPN-hingsten Watermill Scandic under en to timer lang træning i varierende grader af hyperfleksion ved World Cup-kvalifikationsstævnet i Odense. På et forholdsvis tidligt tidspunkt bliver hestens tunge slap, og blå og hænger ud af munden. Rytteren parerer hesten, og ordner problemet med hånden længst væk fra kameraet. Derefter rides der videre i mindst halvanden time på samme måde. Ekvipagen trænes af den hollandske landstræner, Sjef Janssen, som var til stede på opvarmningsbanen.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Area of influence
I think I mentioned yesterday that I've been letting Moo help me plan Chaps early training days. Part of this difficult task has been to ascertain exactly what I need to be training. In my previous life it was easy, lol, written down in every classical dressage book ever written. Now truly not much has changed except the lack of contact inside the mouth (to be fair that's quite a biggy if you talk to a true classicist) and many (read that as most) of the tenets that have always bound me to my training are still in place. No, what really has changed is the how, the method in other words. My buzz words are still ...light, energy, soft, together, power, engage and so on but now I have to reinvent my methods of achieving this nirvana.
I would love to sit here and just spew, it's all in my head but not beautifully formed as yet. I imagine I'll manage to put my thoughts down better when Moo has explained them more fully to me (rolley eye smiley just here). So I will try to give a general feel of what we've been working on and specifics as and when. I was hoping to have some video for tonight but as Claire so kindly sent me her rain it wasn't really the weather for filming.
I was given the task on the bitless forum of becoming more precise on my exercises, maybe using poles and markers to stop/turn at very specific points. Now I see the benefit of this but I also see the huge downsides; go look at Parelli type 'gamed' horses (sorry to all Parelli type trainers but the horses look dead and physically unhingeds to me) and that's one reason I don't want to be getting over accurate at this point in time. I still want there to be room for us to converse rather than beating ourselves with a ground pole (scuse the pun).
So I have marked out an area in the school with cones; it's roughly circle shaped but it could really be any shape. It doesn't touch the sides or the ends and sits roughly central in the school about 12/14 meters diameter. This is what I'm going to call my 'area of influence' and I started using it in-hand to begin with and then lunging and finally ridden. The rules are simple, you can only apply any aids/cues within the area of influence, outside of the area the horse gets to think for himself and develop the balance required to perform the task in hand; outside of the area you must not use any influence except body turning in the case of riding; no contact AT ALL through the hand (I am still using the cordeo in conjunction with the bitless). You can mark the area with anything, cones, poles, ropes etc, basically anything low level and relatively inconspicuous. It's not the size of the marker that trains the exercise but the intent of the rider. I'm finding cones work best as I use them for yielding around, turning and so on but different things would be good just to keep it bright and alive.
The main benefits of the area of influence are rider focussed (well most training is) but the big plus is the confidence the horse gains when working for the periods outside of the area. Things that seem to work well within the area (unsurprisingly) are transitions (direct and within the gait), reinback, turn on the forehand/giravolta, yielding (through the shoulder, through the quarters or leg yielding), any lateral movements.
Yesterday I played more with this and had an incredible session with Moo. We worked on changes of direction in the area through a transition and sometimes reinback (figure of eight) and it all got so light that he 'offered' a walk/canter transition that was so light and with bags of energy...I'm still smiling.
If you have lasted this long then take a medal, it's just really to help my memory but feel free to feedback, god knows I need all the help I can get ;-)
I would love to sit here and just spew, it's all in my head but not beautifully formed as yet. I imagine I'll manage to put my thoughts down better when Moo has explained them more fully to me (rolley eye smiley just here). So I will try to give a general feel of what we've been working on and specifics as and when. I was hoping to have some video for tonight but as Claire so kindly sent me her rain it wasn't really the weather for filming.
I was given the task on the bitless forum of becoming more precise on my exercises, maybe using poles and markers to stop/turn at very specific points. Now I see the benefit of this but I also see the huge downsides; go look at Parelli type 'gamed' horses (sorry to all Parelli type trainers but the horses look dead and physically unhingeds to me) and that's one reason I don't want to be getting over accurate at this point in time. I still want there to be room for us to converse rather than beating ourselves with a ground pole (scuse the pun).
So I have marked out an area in the school with cones; it's roughly circle shaped but it could really be any shape. It doesn't touch the sides or the ends and sits roughly central in the school about 12/14 meters diameter. This is what I'm going to call my 'area of influence' and I started using it in-hand to begin with and then lunging and finally ridden. The rules are simple, you can only apply any aids/cues within the area of influence, outside of the area the horse gets to think for himself and develop the balance required to perform the task in hand; outside of the area you must not use any influence except body turning in the case of riding; no contact AT ALL through the hand (I am still using the cordeo in conjunction with the bitless). You can mark the area with anything, cones, poles, ropes etc, basically anything low level and relatively inconspicuous. It's not the size of the marker that trains the exercise but the intent of the rider. I'm finding cones work best as I use them for yielding around, turning and so on but different things would be good just to keep it bright and alive.
The main benefits of the area of influence are rider focussed (well most training is) but the big plus is the confidence the horse gains when working for the periods outside of the area. Things that seem to work well within the area (unsurprisingly) are transitions (direct and within the gait), reinback, turn on the forehand/giravolta, yielding (through the shoulder, through the quarters or leg yielding), any lateral movements.
Yesterday I played more with this and had an incredible session with Moo. We worked on changes of direction in the area through a transition and sometimes reinback (figure of eight) and it all got so light that he 'offered' a walk/canter transition that was so light and with bags of energy...I'm still smiling.
If you have lasted this long then take a medal, it's just really to help my memory but feel free to feedback, god knows I need all the help I can get ;-)
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