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Post by beksnjake on Oct 29, 2012 15:47:03 GMT
Looks like beautiful countryside - I do like Lincolnshire. And Hairy is very cute too.
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Post by kas on Nov 6, 2012 16:24:48 GMT
OMG! I didn't realise that Lincolnshire was sideways...
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Post by quest on Nov 13, 2012 17:40:43 GMT
All going well at the moment. We can cope with the the feral sheep, the sabre tooth Shetlands but have a little trouble with the wild dogs because they SMELL. We are having lovely rides up the bank for a mile 1/2 a mile down the road and then back onto the bank again. The road and bank run parallel with each other with bridges between them every 1/2 mile. Nancy is now managing the Lincolnshire trot, which is a very slow lazy and relaxed pace. Hairy and Fairy are enjoying their lessons on stable management. It's helping Hairy relax. She is now starting to play in the field and can get quite cheeky which is lovely to see. She is still very well behaved with Fairy, Mermaid (nobody would challenge her) and Superman. We're pretty wet here are are busy making pathways as Nancy can't abide getting muddy feet - wet is ok but not mud.
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Post by quest on Jan 1, 2013 17:36:33 GMT
An absolutely beautiful day today, so I decided to start the new year off with a hack out on Nancy. She coped well with the troll bridge and the feral sheep and was relaxed and blowing her nose so we started working on her trot. She gets very emotional as she speeds up so I worked on preparing to trot and if it happened ok and if it didn't then also ok. As the ride progressed we did get 2 out of 6 beautiful relaxed swinging trots and we returned home both positively beaming and chilled out. I also did a little work with Hairy in the field (or rather In the lakes). I'm getting her used to to being caught, led, getting her feet to move and moving out of my space, also taking off her halter as she has a tendency to fling her head and dash off. All went very well although she had a few grumpy faces when I asked her to trot, but still an excellent session and she is really trying to do as I want.  |
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Post by beksnjake on Jan 1, 2013 18:46:56 GMT
Amazing what the sun does for our energy levels & motivation! Sounds like a really positive day.
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Post by quest on Jan 12, 2013 19:26:27 GMT
Having cleared up after Christmas, and prepared for any snow that may arrive, I decided to tak Nancy out. Although she was quite sharp and snorting a lot, she was very obedient. Having the long straight bank enables me to be able to set her into a steady rythmrtical trot and today I was able to sidestep her from each side of the bank and back and a little shoulder in, all at the trot. a vast improvement for her as she can get quite emotional as she speeds up. We had one plant as a walker came near as we were passing the feral sheep, but she coped well, I put both her eyes on him and let her go as fast as she wished, but she relaxed a little and just walked with a few snorts.
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Post by beksnjake on Jan 13, 2013 6:29:12 GMT
A good day! Before the snow  |
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Post by kas on Jan 18, 2013 16:10:34 GMT
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Post by quest on Jan 29, 2013 18:24:10 GMT
It wasn't raining and the lakes not too deep so we ventured out. Nancy dealt well with the feral sheep (2 of them quietly grazing in a small paddock) the sabre tooth Shetlands who were out walking with their servant. Did a wonderful shoulder in keeping both eyes on them, the asthma nurse out riding a lovely grey who most definitely as far as Nancy was concerned has designs on her virtue and the sabre tooth Shetlands passed again with their servant heading back, she relaxed a little and we headed home only at the walk as she was only just coping. Did a few neck bends and shoulder ins but as we reached the end of the bank, just 100 yds from home, with Hatti and Hairy smiling over the fence at us, horror of horrors A MAN WAS IN THE DITCH about 1/2 a mile away, he was checking the depth of the water or whatever is obviously very essential at the moment, but it completely blew Nancy's brain. The complete last straw. When I finally had her in a safe position do dismount, I did, much to her relief, as soon as mum was in front and between her and this terrible sight she managed to walk back home where she pretended everything was ok. I thought of Becks at this point and felt very in tune with her  |
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Post by beksnjake on Jan 29, 2013 21:55:13 GMT
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Post by quest on Feb 5, 2013 16:53:29 GMT
Having arranged to ride with the asthma nurse (very useful for both Nancy and me). I decided to have a short ride yesterday to check her out. What a bad idea that was. She tried very hard and did everything I asked both on the line and ridden but her attention span was .1 of a second. I gave up in the end and on the best note I could find put her back out. Today arrived and I decided to take each moment as it came and be ready at any time to be off of call a halt to our ride after my experience riding out with others last year. To my amazement we had a wonderful time. Tsar, a grey Russian trotting horse 23 years old was a perfect gentleman and Nancy was very confident following him through the village and out up the Tarmac droves. Interestingly Tsar didn't like lorries all of which stopped, unlike Kent, Nancy is rock solid in traffic and took the lead from him several times. The sun was out the fields were green, unfortunately the wind was gale force but all in all a most wonderful ride
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Post by beksnjake on Feb 5, 2013 19:55:09 GMT
 Some lorries stop in Kent but not many!!
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Post by quest on Feb 12, 2013 17:56:38 GMT
Had another superb ride with Tsar. Along the banks, down past the football field and through the village. Nancy really enjoyed it, with Tsar leading she was calm and very interested in looking at everything. The traffic is amazing and always passes at 20mph the other side of the road, and the village road is very wide. Tsar escorted us past the pig farm, where he lives, and we then went home by ourselves up Taylor's Drove (unmade up) and back along the bank. Madeline came over and rode Hattie while Fairy wandered off round the field leading Hairy communicating as children and ponies do. Mermaid requested she take Nancy for a walk and as Nancy was very chilled was allowed and was very excited to find Nancy mirroring her very movement. A lovely day |
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Post by quest on Feb 24, 2013 14:47:51 GMT
The lakes are drying up and the mus lessening but its bitterly cold but I've been playing with the girls in the field. Nancy is a dream and I can't get rid of her, will copy, mimic and dance with me. It's lovely to have her back to normal. Hairy, I've been considering. She is excellent to catch, lead at the walk, groom and pick feet, all of which she was very grumpy about when we first got her. Wen I ask her away from me on the left rein and when I attempt to trot her she becomes agitated. On first sight she appears to be aggressive but I am now fairly certain that its defensive aggression caused by not understanding and lack of confidence. If you are close to her and holding her she's fine, but on a loose lead or away this defensive attitude reassertion itself. I have used more energy and assertion myself and this controls it, but doesn't solve her concerns so I'm now going to try (in Parelli terms) extreme friendly game using my body and energy as I believe it's this that upsets her. Obviously I'll use the tried and tested methods of gentle advance and retreat, and believe this will help her confidence. It's interesting reading becks journey with Rosie as there are many similarities and it always seems to be the girlies. |
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Post by beksnjake on Feb 24, 2013 16:00:20 GMT
I am finding that mares are very very different to geldings quest. But then that shouldn't surprise me really - women are very different to men!
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