A New Challenge - Like Climbing Everest, and Spring Is Nearly Here

 Yup! Spring is nearly here.  Nearly but not quite.  Everything has burst into blossom, the swallows are back, my Hay Fever has been raging....and yet.... There is still a persistent breeze from the North East, coming straight off the North Sea and freezing fingers and toes when you least expect it.  Clothes have been on and off (depending on what field we are in).  And there has been a distinct lack of rain, delaying the growth of The Hill Field (Spring Grazing), so every-pony is still in the Winter Paddocks and we are still feeding hay daily.  We are hoping to move them by May 1st. Frankly the daily hay wrestling is becoming a bore!! And May 1st is a very important date.

Yes its the start of The Top Barn Summer Challenge!!!!! Last year I didn't take part, knowing my Dicky Ticker was struggling, and a stay in hospital to have an IV pump fitted was imminent. As we all know that didn't work out for me, but i am now on stronger Oral drugs and am 'stable' (hahahaha).  So Charlie and i are going for it this year.  

The Challenge goes like this:

10000 rider steps per day for 2 weeks daily.                                                        1000 training minutes with horsey over 3 weeks.                                                100 miles with horsey over 4 weeks                                                                  10 challenges over 1 week.

I can do the 10000 steps, the 1000 minutes and the 10 Challenges (hopefully), but the 100 miles seems like climbing Everest.  However the nights are light in June. I can in theory do a mile with Charlie 4 times a day! We have been working at doing stuff with him wearing a saddle (this is where his Lizard kicks off) and me wearing a riding hat (my Lizard wakes up for a look-see at this point). We have also been working on standing at the Mounting Block and me getting on. We are progressing to this happening with the saddle and the hat.  I know this seems weird, but my Lizard wakes up when I put a riding hat on. It thinks I must be doing something dangerous where I expect to fall on my head. If I get on Daisy, for a road hack, The Lizard goes back to sleep, as the idea of coming off her is preposterous.  With Charlie, the Lizard is on full alert as this is a strong possibility. 

However with no tack and no hat the Lizards Sleep. But this is more of a danger! So in the spirit of Health and Safety and Squashing Lizards, we are getting there. My plan is to spend the first month doing the steps, challenges and intense training in the hope that by Month 2, I can ride the 100 miles.  Hope is a wonderful thing.  I am also hoping to find a regular rider for Daisy, to come out with me and Charlie! Of course I could always box him 100 miles away and ride back, but I would need Tess Glanville for that!! Read The Ridgeway Romp on Amazon Kindle. 

So this Challenge is my Everest!  My final push to the top! 12 ish days to the start. I can't wait!!

Charlie in Training

The End Of The Challenge, Stressage Results and Clicker Training

 WOOHOO!  We completed the Top Barn Challenge.  With the Holiday Week still in hand!  I wanted to finish the Challenge by riding Charlie, but it was not to be. I did manage to sit on him for about 2 seconds and he was calm, but most of the last two weeks of The Challenge he has gone back to feral, suddenly afraid of the tack and being restricted in any way, so we spent our time at Liberty (his comfort zone) and learning to say Yes. The week following the Challenge (or Week 13 as I see it) we took a holiday.  Well Charlie did!  Obviously him (and the other 5) still expect room service daily! And the snow came!!  I Told You So!! Although it didn't lay for long, we had NE Winds bringing Snow, Sleet, Hail. I hate Hail, it hurts! Jo and I struggled on, pushing ourselves in the crap weather, wishing we had some weekday help.....So if you are that person sat at home, bored, wanting some hard graft and a good dose of fresh air in return for a nice Highland to ride, and coffee and biscuits......please get in touch.

And what of that Stressage Test?  Well it almost reduced me to tears!! If it wasn't a problem with filming, it was Charlie objecting to being led on his blind side. Not to mention I had to run. Ok not for long, but enough to reduce me to a heaving, gasping mess, ready to pass out. Eventually I ran out of time for perfection and submitted my best attempt. Imagine my surprise when i didn't come last!!! In fact we came 2nd.  I have just received my test marks!! 84% with a couple of tens and some lovely comments. I am soooo pleased with my boy,

And Finally I would like to talk about Clicker Training. Many people in the Horse World ignore Clicker Training, or think it may lead to a nippy horse.  BUT if taught right, it can actually teach your horse to be polite around treats. It is also a way to accelerate learning.  Horses and all animals (including humans) need motivation to learn and work. Imagine if you went to work every day and your boss just expected you to put in 100% with no praise and the only feedback you got was being moaned at?  Ok so this happens in the workplace (we have probably all been in that job), but that results in an unhappy employee. You are rewarded by a wage, so that's why you work, but there is no motivation to give it your all.  You become shut down, do the minimum amount of work required and have no job satisfaction. You are probably searching the Job Ads right now. 

But what if you had a nice boss?  One that praises you, thanks you? Brings in cream cakes on birthdays? Lets you have time off on school holidays? Works as hard as you do? Takes you out for meals? Yup you try twice as hard to get it right.

So it goes with animals. Tell your Dog s/he is a good girl/boy. The tail will wag. Dogs like to please their human family.  With Horses (and other animals) a "Good Boy" may not be enough reward. But a treat is usually a high value reward. 

Throughout the Animal Training world, Clicker Training is being used. Film and zoo animals are Clicker Trained, not only to perform tricks, but for veterinary work. I have seen videos of chickens playing The Star Spangled Banner on keyboards! Or Tiger coming in for jabs. My favourite was a Clicker Trained Polar Bear!

When I first began working with Charlie, he was feral. I tried a number of training methods, most of which messed up my head.  Then I found Clicker Training. It worked. We have a good relationship. When I call him he comes running. He wants to learn. Yes he wants his carrot treats, but he is excited to see what he has to learn to get them.

Here is a link to our latest YouTube Video - Begin Clicker Training

https://youtu.be/BCuQpoOIvoo

Top Barn Week 10, Stressage, And Hard Work

 Yes we have completed Week 10 of the Top Barn Challenge.  We have had our Rollover week, but not a Holiday week, so technically Week 11 is the last to complete the challenge, but I am still expecting snow! Ok so the last week has been mostly sunny.....I can feel the warmth of the sun, and layers have been stripped off.

Charlie has been full of spring grass, even though we cannot actually see it growing yet. It may be all in his belly. It is showing in his springy heels!!!

We have not been totally connected.....Charlie has his mind on fresh grass and the mares (probably in that order), so we have spent the last couple of weeks playing at Liberty and working on a dance routine. However although I haven't actually got on him, we are getting close.

We have also been working on our Stressage Competition. What was I thinking? Back in the day, I hated Stressage, the most boring part of ODE. And that was ridden!  In-Hand Stressage? Am I crazy? I have to run! With my Dodgy Lungs!! But anyway we are sort of getting there.  Jo filmed a couple of run-throughs today for me.  Charlie was fairly good. But I wasn't satisfied. So back I went this evening with Mark The Mechanic and Horse Whisperer for yet another take.  Although willing to work, Charlie decided it was too dark to trust me on his blind side.  I would say he 99% trusts me, but when he is struggling with what he can see.....At the end of the day (literally) I am not a horse!!  Yup Sorry to break that to you!  With his feral background he still looks to other horses to keep him safe. 

So more filming to come (sorry Jo).

As much as I have loved my 4th Top Barn Challenge, I may have to take a week off to recover at the end.  Its all been a bit hard core. I am still looking after my Mum 4 days a week.  And the Winter seems to have dragged on (even though its getting warmer).  It's the extra work involved in the Winter months that's the killer! Jo and I are on our knees!!! It hasn't helped this year that our Hay Barn is being restored.  So our hay is delivered once a fortnight. It lives outside, so we have a daily battle with a gigantic tarpaulin and several hundred bricks and pallets to keep it warm and dry.  We should be experts at putting up tents!

Daily we move 4 ponies onto the up-coming grass for 2 hours.(The other 2 stay on the night paddocks as they are Fat Fu****, I mean Good Doers). Then its a round of hanging up hay nets in the field, filling Hay Feeders, Filling Water Tubs, Poo-Picking, emptying Poo trailer, forking up Muck-heap, cleaning trailer, refilling Hay Nets and trailer with hay,  bringing back 4 ponies onto night paddocks. At this point we are exhausted and need to stop for a coffee and a biscuit! We have help at the Weekends, but we desperately need weekday help! It's the hay wrangling that's killing us.  SO.........

Do you have free mornings?  Would you enjoy the fresh air and exercise? Would you like to share a loving Highland Pony in exchange for a bit of hard graft and a small contribution towards her keep? Daisy has so much to give, and although we love her very much, she would love to have her very own human that she doesn't have to share with the other 5.  Daisy is a bombproof, but forward going Happy Hacker. She hacks out alone and in company, is very loving and sweet. She is in her 20's and is not going to set the world alight, but may well light up your world!

 

Storm Dudley, Storm Eunace and Storm Franklin versus Top Barn Challenge and A Dressage Test!

 Ok so this is not a weather Channel! However it may as well be.  After jinxing things with the last blog, by daring to mention how kind the Weather Gods had been to us so far in The Top Barn Challenge, they threw their toys out of the pram and sent us Storm Dudley, and Storm Eunace ....and Storm Franklin. Thanks! 

So week 7 of The Challenge started with Storm Dudley....  It was a bit blowy, but we are used to wind here on the East Coast. This coincided with my Nurse duties being upped as my Mum had hospital and hairdressing appointments. That was 3 days written off. As the well publicised Storm Eunace was do in on Friday I decided to take my Rollover Week ( still saving Holiday week for the Snow!!!).  Having banked 2.5 hours, I snuck in the needed half hour on Thursday, filming Rhi's Random, in between storms.  A Lunging task....Lunging is Charlies Nemesis.  However we have been working on it, and he completed the task.

 And so Friday dawned. Remembering the Non Hurricane of '87, I half thought the Weather Boffins were just covering their arses.  The other half was slightly excited at the thought of a mighty wind. Yup it blew a Hoolie.  I had to ride the hay trailer, to hold it down, standing upright was a bit of a problem, but it wasn't hurricane force.  The horses couldn't have cared less.  Bringing them in from the Summer Grazing to their Night Field, I got caught by a gust and the field gate.  As I sailed past Charlie, like a Galleon under full sail, I grabbed a handful of his mane.  He immediately anchored up and stood firm as if to say "I got you Mum". He's got Brownie Points for at least 3 weeks! 

 The wind got up, so I went for a walk down the Beach with Freya Dog, and Other Half.  I say walk!  They went for a walk while I filmed the sea. And got pushed nearer and nearer to the waves. Eventually I grabbed the anchor rope of a beached boat and pulled myself away from the Sea. As soon as I let go I was blown over.  My Other Half (Mark The Mechanic and Part Time Horse Whisperer) said it was like watching a rag doll being shaken by an angry Bear! Freya Dog who is 20kg lighter than me, had no trouble staying on her feet, although she is slightly lower to the ground and all muscle. 

And so Week 8 began.  With Storm Franklin, who was never mentioned until it started. Not quite as blowy, but very wet. Poo Picking was like having a power shower.  If I'd known I would have brought shampoo, and saved some time!

But this is the Top Barn Challenge, so to hell with the weather!! I seem to have entered The Hub In-hand Dressage Comp. It involves running....I mean who am I kidding???  Charlie and I set about practicing, in the 'School'.  Heaving for breath I measured the 'School' knowing it wasn't 20 x 40, but hoping it wasn't far off. it was!  In fact its 35m x about 14m.  So I set about making a 'Dressage Arena' in the flattest part of the Summer Grazing. The sun shone, the birds sang, spring was in the air. I grabbed Charlie and we started practicing. Suddenly all Hail broke loose. The 'Arena' was white within seconds. But this is the Top Barn Challenge...so we carried on!

Friday we had a Round Pen Session working on sharper transitions, and some standing at the mounting block. Of course I was up on the mounting block with my coffee. Charlie moved, so I asked him to reposition himself. He kicked the (flimsy) block, my coffee flew skywards and landed all over his ears. he curled his lips and that finished me off.  We may have to rework this!!

Today was warm (9c) and I was able to have my fleece surgically removed to soak up some Vitamin D.  Charlie and i spent a glorious hour playing at Liberty, starting Spanish Walk and generally having fun.  And so I have not got on him yet (again) as we have been pushed back a week......But next weeks looking good!

Whoa! We're Halfway There!

 Yes. We are halfway through The Top Barn Challenge. Week 6 already.....Its flying by!!  And dare I say it.....The Weather has been kind to us here on The East Coast. Plenty of icy mornings, but very little in the way of wind, rain and snow.  In fact no snow at all, but please don't tell anybody in case the Weather Gods decide to dump on us!  As our snowfall usually comes late (and hard) I have been building up the hours in case of a Rollover or Holiday Week. 

Charlie has been enjoying it. After my session with Marie we have been doing a lot of long reining and lunging (his nemesis) and he has been getting on with the job. We have also been working on standing at the mounting block and its beginning to sink in.

Planning to get on him next week.

We had a small blip last week. As we are short of grass (who isn't at this time of year?) I had been using my Pamper Time to give Charlie a little hand graze on the way from working to the Paddock (with its big container of hay).  Thursday last week I decided to take him for a walk in hand. Normally our solo walk outs go like this.  5 steps forward, freeze, wait, coax forward, 5 steps forward, freeze....you get it. It normally takes a good half hour just to get to the Barn which is about 500m away down the lane.  The Barn is owned by a nasty little shit that has threatened us a few times.  So off we went. At a spanking pace. No freezing. We got onto the lane and Charlie suddenly dived up the bank onto the cropped field. Hangry Cob on a padded leather headcollar versus weakling owner with dodgy lungs and dicky ticker!  Mmmmm.... The little shit dragged me rapidly along the bank searching for the best grass.  At one point I just couldn't keep up and he was free. I looked at the 35 acres of farmland and thought 'Bye Charlie'. I caught up as he was grazing, nearer and nearer to the Barn with its gate open to the back garden (and swimming pool). Not wanting to be shot, we had a brief wrestling match, which left me dizzy so I sat down (actually I sank to the ground gasping for air).  I then wormed my way over to Charlie, and quietly threaded the rope round his nose. With that I dragged him back to the road. I had one very cross pony!  He (not unsurprisingly) objected to the forced control I now had and we went home with him snorting, growling, leaping, plunging and rearing, boxing at me.  My 14hh pony had grown into a 15hh horse shaped kite.  I was reminded of my days at a Livery Yard, bringing in over-fed, under-worked TBs.

Having decided to let the bigger herd graze down the 'School', Jo went to take them to the grass the next morning. Yup Charlie broke free at the sight of the green drug. Jo put a foot on his rope and was faced with a rearing, boxing, hangry power-cob.  As neither of us can hold him when hes on a mission, I dug out the Monty Roberts 'Be-Nice' headcollar that Daisy once needed. Its not actually that nice, as it tightens up like a Dr Cook Bitless Bridle and puts pressure on the poll and nose.  But needs must. Neither Jo or I are young and fit enough to deal with a delinquent thuggy cob! Good yank on the rope, and the boy has been polite since.

I went back that evening after seeing to my Mum (Yes still on Nurse Ratchett duties) and went back to basic clicker training manners.  Ever since we have been on the 'Be Nice' Headcollar and have been working on manners. And Long-reining, and lunging, and moving his feet when I say, and standing quietly while I shut gates, and not pulling to snatch grass, plus Rhi's Randoms, waiting at the mounting block and any leading walking nicely and not trying to stop for a snack.

 I feel like a meanie, but at the end of the day, our partnership has to be based on mutual respect, so if Charlie takes the piss and uses his strength, I have to comeback by using MY strength. Most of my training is done using Positive Reinforcement, but if he uses my weak physical strength against me, then I have to take a different approach and remind him that I am in fact the brains of the partnership!

As I said I am planning to start mounting again next week. Come back to see if it works. I will post again in 2 weeks.

Top Barn Challenge, The Lizard and Nurse Ratched - The Story So Far

 Well we are already in Week 4 of the Top Barn 12 Week Challenge.  One way to make January whizz by. And the weather has been kind.  Its barely rained here in Sunny Suffolk, and more importantly the wind has been elsewhere. Yes its been cold (many frosty mornings), but its bearable without the wind and rain.

And what about that Lizard??? Well Top Barn has an extremely helpful Monday Evening Session with a lady called Vee Sheers.  Its all about confidence.  And what happens when that confidence disappears. This may be caused by a fall for example.  Next time you go to mount, The Lizard rears his ugly head, tells you that you are in danger, and pushes the panic button, which causes the fight or flight response to begin.  Helpful for staying alive in truly life threatening scenarios like being chased by a sabre-toothed tiger back in the year Dot. Not so helpful when you know better, and yet The Lizard still takes over.  The Lizard conveniently forgets the thousand rides you have had with no problem, and only remembers the bad ride.

I had a long chat with Vee. I am not lacking in confidence. I will get on any pony without the slightest fear. Except Charlie.  In fact I am happy to get on. But Charlie also has a Lizard pressing his panic button. He panics when i am not by his head. Once he panics, my Lizard pushes the button, and i jump off.  This has been going on a while.  I constantly get to the point where we are are both happy with me riding him, as long as someone is by his head. Once he panics, my Lizard reminds me of the time he bronced me off.  With my Dodgy Lungs and Dicky Ticker, I don't want to repeat this.  As the former Queen of Bucking Horses, I was more than surprised when he threw me, and so my Lizard remembers this and pushes the panic button......Charlie is a danger when he panics!

Vee suggested I get outside help. So I contacted my old friend Marie to see if she could help.  She could!! And Can!! Marie and I go back to The Dark Ages. We kept our horses together for many years. She was a top show-jumper as a child, and has started (and bred) many youngsters. So last Tuesday she showed up to access Charlie.  As our long-reining is a bit iffy, she started there.  She told me that I cannot do enough long-reining to get him used to going it alone with me behind him. Following another horse he is fine, but alone? Not so good, unless your idea of long reining is looking at the horses face!  Marie took up the reins. Charlie said No. Marie very firmly said Yes Get On. A look of fury crossed Charlies face. Here we go. Then he thought about it and decided he best get on with it. An hour later and we were all exhausted!  So I have been practicing ever since, and he has been a star.  We also addressed the mounting block phobia.  Although I can get on from the ground, the mounting block is a no-go zone. Progress has been made.  I can't wait for our next session.

As well as this, Charlie and I have been fitting in Rhi's Randoms (various groundwork tests), trick training ( We have just achieved our Intermediate Trick Horse certificate from Horse Tricks 101) and filming a Groundwork Competition for Top Barn. I've had more trouble from the Pivo filming the show, than I have from Charlie and i getting it right.  Every time I think I have filmed a perfect take, I find the Pivo has wandered off to intently film a non-moving, non-horse-shaped tree!! After take 1003 I have submitted my much edited entry and the Pivo is now for sale on Ebay!! Its lucky it's not stamped into the ground, or thrown into The North Sea!!! So if anyone wants to buy a 'pre-loved' Pivo.....I have one for sale!

As if this wasn't enough to be going on with, I am still performing my Nurse Ratched duties for my Mum.  Although she is slowly gaining her independence, it is a slow process. However there is light at the end of the Tunnel. We went to The Hairdressers yesterday. And she was less out of breath than I was!  She is regaining her appetite and microwaving meals for herself. I suspect she is sick of my burnt offerings!!  I am in quite a routine now, up early, work Charlie, look after ponies, see to Mum, sometimes eat, and fall asleep sitting up watching Emmerdale!!

Come back next month to see if I am riding Charlie at last!

Listen To Your Horse, A Crazy Month and Top Barn Challenge Begins!

 OMG Its been a crazy month!!! At the end of November my 84 year old mother became ill.  We thought it was a chest infection, so being the only child I began visiting daily ( hour long round trip).  I abandoned the Show-jumping classes and just did The Top Barn Fancy Dress classes with Charlie. (We got a 5th and a 6th and received some massive rosettes).  Apart from that Charlie languished in the field becoming feral, while I raced around in Headless Chicken mode.

Then I lost the plot slightly and decided to take him to a Livery Yard and put him on full grass livery. It seemed the only option in my new Time Short Life!! Christmas Day I went to Mums, and 'enjoyed' a Pot Noodle for Xmas Lunch!  I've had some dodgy Xmas Dinners in my time, but this took the prize!  But, never mind. Boxing Day lunch was booked up with Mark The Mechanic and Part Time Horse Whisperers family at our local Sports Club.  But upon ringing my mum, I discovered she had collapsed and an ambulance had been called.  Lunch abandoned, I got warp speed out of the Astra, and arrived just behind the Ambulance, running up the stairs and bursting into the flat, gasping for air.  The poor Paramedic!!  He was just about to give me oxygen as well and book a second ambulance, but I managed to gasp out that I had a long-standing heart and lung condition, and I would be fine....eventually.  Having extremely low oxygen sats, Mum was taken to hospital with Blue Lights and all.  My life then revolved around a booked in visit with daily Lateral Flow Tests, for a week, until the Hospital suspended visiting.  Turns out she has blood clots on her lungs.

So the day came to take Charlie to his new home.  He has always loaded fine.  In fact any time we have had a trailer or lorry open, he has loaded himself just to check for food. He wouldn't load.  When I say wouldn't, I mean he violently refused, rearing, knocking me over.  He couldn't have said No more clearly. It got dark. We gave up.  When I arrived the next morning, Lu was curled up like a dog. Charlie was flat out, snoring and leaning against Lu. When they got up, I realised Lu had Colic.  Jo and I went into nurse mode, like a well oiled team.  A few hours later, Lu was feeling better and I went home, thinking.  I don't generally think much. I kind of Do, and sometimes React, but never overthink.  However my brain was in Full Thinking Mode.  I realised the Ponies had spoken loud and clear about my decision to move Charlie.  They were not happy. I also realised that I had had a knee-jerk reaction to the changes in my life.  I have always had a habit of doing a thing I call 'Chucking The Balls In The Air'.  When things change, I react without thinking and change everything, and see where the balls land.  It has rarely worked out.  So this time I followed my heart and Charlie's feelings....and we are staying put.

And so the Top Barn 12 week Challenge has begun.  2 days later my Mum was released into the wild.  As weak as a kitten, living alone, but apparently not feeble enough for any help.  And so I am again racing over to cook her meals, shop, clean etc. But I will not give up the Top Barn Challenge.  The answer has been simple!  Get Up Earlier!!!  Plan each day like a Military General. Forgo the PH induced afternoon nap. Ignore the Side Effects from my meds. Oh and ignore the state of the house (Its NOT the end of the world if I don't hoover daily...after all the doggo makes a mess daily).  I have in fact discovered if I ignore the Washing Up long enough that Mark The Mechanic and Part Time Horse Whisperer does it! 

And so the first week of the Challenge has gone surprisingly smoothly. Charlie has forgiven me for trying to move him and is entering into the spirit of the Challenge with enthusiasm.  We have mostly been working on the next Top Barn Competition, and re-visiting our trick training.  We belong to a Trick Training Group, Horse Tricks 101 and are completing our levels. Who needs Sleep?