Autumn Grass? More Massages, More Maligation, Feral Charlie and Horses of Old.

 Wow we are nearly into Autumn (Yes Please).  We moved the Ponies onto the Autumn Grazing (The Hill Field) as it had some regrowth.  We hoped for the usual September growth spurt....but it hasn't happened. Its still HOT with little or no rain. So the herd ate the grass....and we have been feeding hay for a week! The Biggies have all lost weight. They needed to, but its unexpected in September. As they all live out, naked, through the Winter, we need them to go into the into the cold months a little fat. So Hay it is. Happy Hay Man !!!

Yesterday Lu and Charlie had a massage from Jade Monahan.  Lu as usual communicated very clearly what hurt!  She even bared her teeth. Lu is never subtle and very easy to understand.  Anyone that wants to learn how to listen to what a horse has to say, should come and spend a week with Lu. She might as well write it down!!  Lu had a few sore places and let Jade know!  Fortunately Jade doesn't need a week to get to know a horse.  She instantly reads the horse and responds accordingly.

Charlie was a bit of a dick.  After 5 minutes his attention started to wander. What can I eat? What is that on the floor? Is it edible? Can I go get some grass now? Can I untie the halter rope? Shall I bite Daisy over the stable door? It seems Charlie is very healthy in the muscle department, so nothing was tight.  He has got an over developed muscle on his near-side shoulder, but Jade figured out it was because of his dodgy off-side eye.  If something is happening on his off-side, he turns his head right round to that side so he can see with his good eye. As Jade massaged this muscle, he relaxed and gave several yawns.  Then he got a bit bored again....until Jade got to his quarters.  He like that. He liked it so much he dropped (willy out!). 

Daisy, who was just in the Barn so she wouldn't be alone in the field, really wanted a massage as well. She wickered to Jade when she saw her.  Sadly (or happily) for Daisy, Jade fixed her last time.  She has been moving so freely in the field.  I had Shaneece (Who helps on Saturdays) ride her today in the "school" and I couldn't believe how she was going!!  She looked like a dressage horse!!!

As I am working on a dance routine with Charlie (for the last in the 25 Things To Do With Your Horse On The Ground series on Youtube) and also have The Maligator with me, I have taken to pulling up in the Hill Field, first thing in the morning and doing 5 mins dance practice with him, while the Maligator yaps in the truck.  Charlie has been doing well. The Maligator then gets five mins out of the truck on the lead, as I try and get her to sit calmly and just watch the horses.

But last Sunday, I had a whole puppy free morning.  Work done, I got Charlie in with his mares as Lu was being ridden. Charlie was a complete arse to lead, not wanting to leave his mares heading for the Barn, while we continued to the Round Pen. I quietly drank coffee, while he careered round, bucking and squealing. Eventually I got his attention. For a nano-second.  Lu appeared, to be mounted, Daisy was bashing the stable door in the background. Charlie lost the plot, and raced through the wire fencing, pulling up several fence posts! I could put this down to jealousy of the time I am spending with The Maligator, but Charlie is not a deep thinker!!!  But he does go feral quickly. While he is happy to spend 5 minutes in his field dancing with me, if he is not properly worked away from the others, we lose our bond, and he quickly becomes herd-bound.

 

So yesterday i was reading a post from Karl Greenwood (horse trainer, people trainer).  He was talking about our relationship with horses throughout time. How they have empowered us. They gave us speed and strength we don't have. They were our transport (our taxis, trains and lorries), our Farm Machinery (ploughing, harvesting) and our war horses. Without the horse, we would have evolved much slower. Nowadays horses are mainly just for sport and leisure. But they haven't changed. They are still brave, bold and obedient. If we let them!  The Horse hasn't changed, but we have. We don't give them enough credit, or trust. We treat them as big wimpy pets instead of hard working brave companions. We may go to the Barn/Stables and decide not to ride because its Wet/Windy/Hot/ or its Bin Day, or the road is busy, or there are sheep in a field a mile away. Maybe there is a combine in the next field, or a rook scarer, or its Pheasant season. We have somehow come to believe our horses are brain-dead wimps!! 

Its time to give our horses the credit they deserve and trust them.  After all Ned who pulled the milk float in 1878, went out every day, whatever the weather.  War horses rode into gunfire and flames. They faced shield walls, while their friends pulled heavy loads of post/coal/firewood over the hills. Meanwhile small ponies went down mines, heavy horses ploughed fields, and carriage horses transported people around busy cities.

When Tess and I did our 120 mile ride for charity (The Ridgeway Romp), we had to ride each day, whatever the weather.  Even through the worst storm Oxfordshire had seen for 50 years.  We went through towns, over motorways, up ravines. We had no clue as to what was coming next. But we had trust in our ponies. And we didn't die!!

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Hot Hard Summer, Goodbye Dora and Maligation

 Its been sooooo long......I have been officially Maligatored!!!! Yup that is the official term for owning a Belgian Malinois pup!!  They are not called Maligators for nothing.  They are officially the most trying, nippy, attention seeking pups ever. They rarely sleep!  They constantly want to be with you, they demand your full attention at all times. They have huge amounts of energy and want to be entertained at all times. They have a Tasmanian Devil Mode, which switches on at Midnight, where they demand you play with them for 2 hours. If you don't they try to rip you to pieces.  If you tell them off.....they rip you to pieces!  If you try to sleep.....they rip you to pieces! Even the most dedicated Mali owners will tell you....they are horrible puppies!! Thankfully Freya is now 5 months old and we are starting to understand each other.  There is light at the end of the tunnel. We are nearly up to 4 hours sleep a night 😊. I am able to walk about without the leather arm guards now....mostly.

The herding instinct still has to be dealt with.....She cannot be let loose with the ponies yet. She just wants to herd them, they just want to kill her....and she has no fear. To avoid tears, I have had to abandon any training of Charlie, and just content myself with cuddles, while Freya is in her cage in the truck (just enough time to poo pick). 

Still it doesn't matter. Charlie doesn't mind and we get a once a week slot when we can have proper time together.  It is not exactly working time right now. The summer has been Hot...And Dry!!  The ground is baked hard and we are looking like Burnt Grass Ranch again.  The temperatures have been in the Thirties regularly and we are Brits.  We cannot cope with anything above 20c and we need rain!!

So Dora went off to her new home. She hasn't gone far, and now belongs to a little girl and her siblings, where she can hopefully fulfill her potential.  I got on really well with Dora, so thought I would miss her heaps.....but I kinda don't.  She used to try and 'help' me move the fences back.  I don't miss that. We also thought Lily would miss her, as they were always entwined around each other. But Lil has shown no signs of missing her........She is more than happy with her Shetland Herd.  So Good Luck Dora....We do love you.....but ....

The "replacement" i.e Coco is quite a lot cuter!!! She is no trouble at all. She has just fitted in sooo well. Her poos are so small, I can't help think of Coco Pops when I pick them up. Today she had a massage from Jade Monahan which she thoroughly enjoyed.

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Horsemanship Summit - Part Two

And so yesterday I spent several more hours watching videos....Just so I can pass the knowledge on to you lot!!  Oh The things I have to do 😊.

Again I scribbled notes.  And now I will try and make sense of them in a quickish summary!!

First up - The Importance of Touch and massaging your horse. This may sound a little Kookie.  But we all use a back person, without question. And if you only have 10 minutes spare after poo-picking, use it to touch your horse!  It will strengthen your bond if you just spend time with your horse without demanding anything of it. Run your hands all over it.  This will teach you what lumps and bumps are normal for your horse. Then if there is a problem you will spot it.  Watch his eyes.  If he blinks excessively at a certain point this may be a hint of trouble. Try a little massage. If you are unsure of this, then just figure out where his 'Sweet Spot' is and give him a scratch.  Most horses enjoy having their withers scratched, but all have different favorite spots. Experiment. If the horse starts pulling faces, lifts his head, mouths or goes parrot-mouthed you have found that spot.  And they will love you for it! Charlie loves having his chest scratched. Dora likes her chin rubbed. Daisy loves a forehead rub, while Lu loves having her ears gently pulled. Lily loves a good scratch behind her ears....and Mini? She just loves being scratched all over.  She loves having her bum scratched with a poo-picking rake. Equally she loves her chest and belly being scratched. I frequently sit down in front of her and do just that. In return she grooms my hair and back. Another day she will want a good forehead rub. She lets you know what she wants!!

There are a few different Bodywork Techniques and they all have their merits. Many years ago when I ran the RDA we were lucky enough to have Linda Tellington-Jones come out to do a demo of her T-Touch technique. She used the RDA ponies and boy were they in for a treat. I have forgotten so much but one thing that I have used many times since was a technique that may or may not have been called Clouded Leopard.  It involves small circles along the neck, just below the mane on the Bladder Meridian Line.  It certainly relaxes the horse!!

So check out Tellington Touch on YouTube.

Another Bodywork Technique that I found fascinating from the Summit was learning about the Bladder Meridian Line.  This is a line that runs from just above the eye, over the poll, down the neck just below the mane, along the groove just below the spine, through the line on the quarters, and down the hind leg, following the grooves between tendons, right down to the coronet band. There are many videos on YouTube. Also check out the Masterson Technique which uses meridian lines and various simple exercises to release tension in your horse and help your bond. 

I then watched a couple of videos on tack fitting with increasing horror!!! 

First up.... saddle fit. I have used many different saddles on many different horses over the years, and think I am a reasonable judge of saddle fit.  But please please use a properly trained saddle fitter. The saddle is an important piece of equipment, and a saddle that is ok, is not perfect.  The saddle also has to fit the rider.  And must NOT place the rider or any pressure behind the 18th vertebrae as this is where the ribs end.

There was a story from an old Cowboy about "Local Tying Up". Long and short, we have all heard of Tying Up (Azoturia), or as it used to be called 'Monday Morning Sickness'. Happened when the horse was worked hard all week, had a day of rest in its stable on Sunday and come Monday Morning its muscles had seized up. Anyways this cowboy had ridden a young mare hard all day, rounding up the cattle, in a saddle that was an Ok fit, but not perfect.  When they got home the large muscle on her back had swelled and seized up.  She had "Local Tying Up". If she hadn't have had to work so hard she would have been ok. However, if her Saddle had been a perfect fit she would have been able to do that work without injury!!

When I had Paddy I finally saved up enough for a decent 2nd hand saddle. I had a saddle fitter out who had a brilliant reputation and had being doing the job for years and years.  He turned up with a van full of saddles, and proceeded to try them on Paddy.  We ended up with 8 possibles. I then had to lunge him. 4 were discarded. I then had to ride in the remaining 4. For a long time. Over an hour and a half! Walk, trot, canter, jump etc. 2 more were discarded.  The saddle fitter was happy. My choice. Then my field mate arrived. Having ascertained that Marie also rode and jumped Paddy sometimes he made her get up and ride over the jumps. He pronounced that only one saddle was good for us both.  It was £50 more than I had......But it was also the one I wanted. A 16in Ideal Working Hunter Saddle. Perfect for a wide, short-coupled Fell Pony with upright shoulders that I liked to jump.  The Saddle Fitter let me off the £50 so that we had the right saddle!!  If you have anything less of a service.....Don't bother!

And now onto Bits. For a long time now I have not used Snaffle Bits with a Nutcracker action, only french links or 'peanut' bits, but having watched this video on bitting I am now questioning the use of bits at all. We have already moved Dora and Mini onto simple Bitless Rope Bridles. And they have both responded really well.  But they are usually on lead-reins. Dare we go Bitless ? I think after watching this we will!!! 

The video showed a simple demo of a cloth rolled up as a tongue, with two fingers the bars.  Then a simple plain old harmless snaffle was laid on the 'tongue'. Oops. just from the weight of the bit the tongue was squashed flat.

Next up a ported straight bar. Ok maybe if your horse has an exceptionally narrow tongue. But they don't. The tongue was squished.  So you hurt your horses tongue just on a loose rein. Then you pull on the mouth.  The bars of the mouth get pinched, the nutcracker action of the good old plain mild snaffle,  then comes up and hits the roof of the mouth.  The horse opens its mouth, tries to put its tongue over the bit, sets it necks...anything to relieve that pressure. So what do you do?  You say the horse is strong. Its naughty. You need stronger brakes. You fit a Flash nose-band or Grakle. That stops it being able to relieve the pain. With no relief the horse may set its neck even more, it will start to panic. It runs off. Adrenalin takes over. The Horse just wants to get away from the pain, and bolts, or bucks.....or both. So what do you do next?  Get a stronger, nastier more painful bit.  How about a Pelham? Or anything with long shanks? Yeah lets put pressure on the Poll too. Force its head down. Or we could chose a thin bit, one with tongue plates, one that hurts the mouth more. 

I am ashamed to say I have used Dutch Gags (Poll Pressure), Pelhams, Rollers (I naively thought the horse couldn't pull coz it couldn't get a grip on the bit, more likely the gaps between the rollers were nipping its tongue), and even a Running Gag (Cheltenham Gag) years ago on my very strong mare.  The thing is, I owned her for 12 years. I knew the more you held her back, the stronger she would get. If anyone else rode her I would advise them to ride on the Buckle. If she got faster I would say "Don't pull, just relax". Why the hell did I not see the connection and ride her in a headcollar????????  My only excuse is  thats how it was then. We didn't know any better.

 But we did....If only we had looked back a hundred years or so. Apparently in the old days, when horses worked for a living, there were Bitsmiths. Skilled men who traveled the country fitting and making custom bits according to each horses mouth and tongue.  When the Horse was sold, the Bit went with him. I can't help feeling since horses have become animals for leisure only we have lost all skill as horse-keepers.  For thousands of years, man used horses for work and transport. One horse had to work all day, and last for many years. It had to pull all goods. It was a taxi. It carried the whole family, it hauled logs, carried other animals (killed for food). It went to War. It delivered Milk, Coal and the post. It pulled the plough and brought in the harvest. It pulled canal boats, and went down mines. And there were no vets, ex-rays, hard feed, rugs. Ordinary people were extraordinary Horsemen, just because they lived and worked with horses all day every day. The horses had long working lives, because they worked! They were muscled up, unafraid, didn't eat sugar and were treated with herbs when they were sick. Sorry I digress. Thats only my opinion...Not the opinion of The Horsemanship Summit.

And so back to the Summit. Bitless Bridles.  As I am interested in going Bitless, I gobbled this up...And had to change a long held belief that Hackamores are severe. English Hackamores have a long shank....so I always assumed this meant they were severe.  But they are milder than any bit.  Yes they put pressure on the poll, jaw and nose.....but not the tongue or bars of the mouth. As Daisy seems to hate a bit, as soon as she is declared fit to ride, I am going to try her in a Hackamore.  And I am now saving up for a leather Sidepull which is the mildest.  Dr Cook Bridles put pressure on the opposing cheek, so not all horses like them. And plain old rope Bosals came in last, purely because a thin piece of rope is more severe than something thicker...although putting a bit of sheepskin over the nose-piece negates that. 

That said, it is important to fit Bitless Bridles correctly.  The noseband MUST sit on the bony part of the horse nose.  If its too low it will sit on the cartilage...and cause pain!

I have to say Daisy has concerned me for a while. She came to us in a bobbly bit and a Grakle. She pulled, she was on the forehand, and would lunge into canter. I have never been a fan of Nosebands, so before long had removed it. I had realised she pulled against the bit, so ride her on the Buckle, pushing from behind. Over the years she has become a lot more balanced and 'under herself'. She stopped bucking (mostly) and tripped a lot less. Sometimes she tanks off. I normally just let her go.....Once she is in front of Lu, she stops. Only once has she outright took off in a gallop with me. We were out alone and I steered her into some trees, which stopped her. She did rear a bit, and canter on the spot, but soon calmed down.  Occasionally she has these moments out on a hack, but I know her so well, I just sit quietly and laugh.  But one day I tried to see her from a strange riders point of view. I figured she may scare them.  So I got her a Dutch Gag with a French Link.  Mild I thought, but with a bit of stopping power if needed.  And yet when ridden by other people who don't trust her enough to leave the reins loose, she still opens her mouth against the bit. Despite the bars of her mouth being hard (through years of pulling), this bit obviously puts too much pressure on her tongue. I will be trying her in a Hackamore!

And thats it for tonight!!

Here is a picture that, in Hindsight I am not very proud of.  It was taken in the early nineties and i am riding Skittles in a Riding Club Horse class, where we had to use a 'plain old snaffle'.  She is pulling, and I am hauling back. Look at her mouth! 😦