Post by Zoe RA on Mar 3, 2010 22:22:23 GMT 1
Namuun is an 8yr old Arab who Joanne has owned for the past year.
She was started at 5 and was ridden away, but has not done much since. She trusts Joanne implicitly on the ground, but once Joanne gets on board it all goes to pot. When Namuun is asked to do something she doesn't want to, she bucks, reares, runs backwards and generally gets very wound up. She never stands to be mounted, and more often than not swings away moves off immediately. When she first arrived she had a very badly fitting saddle.
When we were first discussing her behaviours I suggested that Joanne get checked out for Gastric Ulcers, but I think her behaviours could also indicate a horse who not only worries when she can't see Joanne, but who doesn't understand what is being asked of her half the time. I think she also has remembered pain there from when her saddle didn't fit.
So, we started off with the mounting issue. I worked with Namuun to teach her to stand square at the mounting block, then added Joanne to the equation.
Namuun was very tense to start with and tried to move off, but she soon settled.
Once she had got the hang of standing still with Joanne on the mounting block, I walked her away a few times then asked Joanne to actually mount her. She did try and move off a couple of times, but then stood still to be mounted - all be it very unhappily.
Joanne then asked her to walk on, but Namuun wanted to go strait off and out of the yard. She was VERY unhappy at being asked to stop!
We worked on that a bit, and then I decided she was ready for the acid test - to stand still at the mounting block for Joanne whilst I was not near.
She stood!
And then got a lot happier about stopping when Joanne asked her too
We then took her for a long lining walk, in which she gave me her full repertoire of rearing and napping in full measure - always when she was either asked to halt, or asked to walk into a puddle. Needles to say I have no photos of this - I would have probably lost both the horse and my head if I had tried
Eventually I got all I had asked of her, and by the time we were on the way back she was halting for me with just a flick of her tail.
This horse is very fixable - she just needs to be given very clear direction and be taken back to basics. I have suggested that Joanne doesn't ride her for a while until she is listening 100% on the long lines.
To progress significantly, I think she needs two people with her for a while so that she can be long lined further afield than just along the track near the yard so I have left Joanne to have a think about whether or not she is going to be able to get local help to just walk with the two of them for a while when they go for their walks.
She was started at 5 and was ridden away, but has not done much since. She trusts Joanne implicitly on the ground, but once Joanne gets on board it all goes to pot. When Namuun is asked to do something she doesn't want to, she bucks, reares, runs backwards and generally gets very wound up. She never stands to be mounted, and more often than not swings away moves off immediately. When she first arrived she had a very badly fitting saddle.
When we were first discussing her behaviours I suggested that Joanne get checked out for Gastric Ulcers, but I think her behaviours could also indicate a horse who not only worries when she can't see Joanne, but who doesn't understand what is being asked of her half the time. I think she also has remembered pain there from when her saddle didn't fit.
So, we started off with the mounting issue. I worked with Namuun to teach her to stand square at the mounting block, then added Joanne to the equation.
Namuun was very tense to start with and tried to move off, but she soon settled.
Once she had got the hang of standing still with Joanne on the mounting block, I walked her away a few times then asked Joanne to actually mount her. She did try and move off a couple of times, but then stood still to be mounted - all be it very unhappily.
Joanne then asked her to walk on, but Namuun wanted to go strait off and out of the yard. She was VERY unhappy at being asked to stop!
We worked on that a bit, and then I decided she was ready for the acid test - to stand still at the mounting block for Joanne whilst I was not near.
She stood!
And then got a lot happier about stopping when Joanne asked her too
We then took her for a long lining walk, in which she gave me her full repertoire of rearing and napping in full measure - always when she was either asked to halt, or asked to walk into a puddle. Needles to say I have no photos of this - I would have probably lost both the horse and my head if I had tried
Eventually I got all I had asked of her, and by the time we were on the way back she was halting for me with just a flick of her tail.
This horse is very fixable - she just needs to be given very clear direction and be taken back to basics. I have suggested that Joanne doesn't ride her for a while until she is listening 100% on the long lines.
To progress significantly, I think she needs two people with her for a while so that she can be long lined further afield than just along the track near the yard so I have left Joanne to have a think about whether or not she is going to be able to get local help to just walk with the two of them for a while when they go for their walks.