good hack or bad hack??i am not sure :(

[giftgirl]

went for a hack this morning with my sister on her pony and my mum on the bike.
we went on a new track again (one that my mum had been on before, but not for a while) and it was really nice. It was around a few fields, which was really relaxing as there was not traffic. Then you had to cross a road and you got onto another track. That is when my moment of nerves came. We were walking down this track, and by the side of it there were some rollers(farm machinery). i Thought, right i am going to get past these with confidence (it didn't help that they were sticking up about 3ft in the air). I started to walk gift past them, getting right over so she wasn't near them. We got halfway past and i felt her tense up so i squeezed her on, and she suddenly spun round and shot off in the other direction. I decided that i would only make her worse by trying it with me again, as i was v. nervous. So i got off and my mum walked her past it. She still jumped and backed up but she did eventually walk past it (sideways)

The rest of the hack was brilliant, i had a canter down a track and it was really good, but i feel as if i should have taken her past the rollers because then she would have had more confidence in me.
I think what i am going to do is to go down there again on another hack, and make her go past them with me on her.
do you guys think that is a good idea?what do you think i should have done when that happened?
sorry for the long thread.
giftgirl xx

[em&ed]

sounds like a good hack overall... I am not very experienced myself, but I think you did the right thing to get off and walk past. Maybe you should walk her past it next time, instead of your mum? then she may have more confidence in you? That's what I would do anyway

[giftgirl]

made a slight mistake sorry- my mum rode her past it LOL
yeh, maybe next time i will walk her past it, and then i could get on and ride her past it.
good idea?
giftgirl xx

[laura]

a hack where you get home in one piece ;D

I strongly agree that if you feel nervous riding past an obstacle get off and lead past .( maybe repeating a few times) ..... you are then showing her its OK ...... once she will go past happily then ride past.

and make her go past them with me on her.

............ maybe better to let her see its nothing to worry about rather than something to have an "arguement" over

so your second worrding

maybe next time i will walk her past it, and then i could get on and ride her past it.
good idea?

much better ;D ;D ;D ;D

[amarche]

I echo what's been said above giftgirl, no point in having senseless battles where both you and your horse lose confidence in each other - I would recommend too getting off and leading past it to start with (unless the mood and time is right and you think you can do the ridden thing!)

Remember, always set yourself up to succeed, however and whatever it takes!

At the end of the day, you had fun, you learnt something new about you and gift's relationship and its given you a goal to work towards - Fab hack in my view! Well done!

[fee]

Can't remember which of Kelly's books it's in, but she certainly advocates getting off and walking past.

Helps if you can get back on tho' ..... hopped off and walked Tigg past some proper gypsy caravans cos there was a barking dog tied up under one and he wasn't playing. There was nothing to climb on to remount and we were still 2 miles from home so I tried to mount from the ground (he's 17'2), got leg over but saddle slipped, scared him witless, he took off and I hit the deck - ended up walking home anyway, and going straight to chiropractor!! LOL

Despite that, I'm still in favour of getting off if necessary - we just walk till I find a gate or log!!

[giftgirl]

lol fee- 17'2, that is big!!what breed is he?
gift is only 14hh and i can valut on her anyway so it isnt that hard lol
thanks for the advice, next time i go down there i will lead her past a few times to show her that it is ok
giftgirl xx

[fee]

He's an ID x something unknown, although several people have said he looks like there's some Clydesdale in there somewhere - especially his head and face. Mind you, I'm only a tad off 6' myself, so we do match well.

Not ridden him in a year due to unspecified lameness, and we're currently walking out on post surgery convalescence - talk about 2 steps forward, 4 steps back!!

When I first had lessons, I was always told to drive them past whatever they don't like, beating severely if necessary, otherwise they won't respect your orders!! I knew it didn't feel right, but I didn't know any better.

Thank the gods for IH and the breath of fresh air it's brought. If they need time to look at something new and get used to it, they deserve the time, same as we do.

[giftgirl]

lol he sounds lovely!
i totally agree that fear and force are not the way forward!
i agree- thank god for IH!
it has helped me so much, and it is nice to talk to people who think the same way as you do!
Sorry about tiggs lameness- that must be so hard to get back into work after 6 mnths!
giftgirl

[fee]

He's gorgeous, a real genuine gentleman, and I adore him (of course), but he's what someone described in another post as a 'big orange lawnmower' at the mo.

I shall be back here for some confidence boosting when I finally get the all clear to get back on board after a year on the ground - hopefully sometime in May.

Completely agree that it's fab to be able to talk to likeminded people and share ideas and tips.

All the best with your next hack - you won't need 'good luck' but I'll be thinking of you!

Fee x

PS love your 'treasures' by line. I've written it down and stuck it to my wall at work!

[kya]

Agree with all above. Very sensible behaviour and I would say an excellent hack!

[wozzer]

Echo the above. Good advice to lead past where appropriate. Good luck for your next hack!

[giftgirl]

lol fee-i love that line too- it is from kelly marks' book perfect partners. I liked it so much i had to put it somewhere!!
thanks for the advice guys
really appreciate it
giftgirlxx