Poo Picking the Cleanser

Ok.. this blog is not about poo picking alone.. but it got you looking 👀😛. Its about how cleansing horses are in general. My mum does not understand why I have a horse, she thinks they are just expensive.

Well, I don't smoke and rarely drink. But the best part and the most most important part is, being around Nancy is my meditation.. most of the time. I say most of the time as we know how frustrating horses can be. But, they are only frustrating because of the demands we place on them, which ultimately serve us and our own ambitions. That said there is the huge factor that we have domesticated them, stuck them in stables and paddocks, so it is our responsibility to ensure their fitness is maintained.

A horse with other ideas

I bought a horse that had been bred for showjumping, out of a grade A show jumper.. I had ideas of grandeur, but she had other ideas about what her vocation was going to be.. if she was hooman, it would be couch potato 🤣, but, given she is not hooman, and hoss, this would be lawn mower. The point is, Nancy has a very laid back personality, when Im not asking her to do something she doesn't want to do.. I know a lot of her difficult behaviour comes from the grass (which you can read about here), but I also think her lack of willingness comes from the fact she is bored.. bored of doing the same thing (because of our/my limitations)and because (thankfully) she does not suffer with LH (Learned Helplessness)(Read Here)

However, I think I am starting to grasp how to get her to do things by asking her only to do the things she loves to do. But this can only happen if she isn't 'grass affected', as nothing happens when she is too spooky!

Its a tricky thing being alone

Actually, being alone (in the single sense) is bloody marvellous, but being alone on a yard with a difficult horse who has knocked your confidence is not so marvellous, well, it is as there are no yard politics (yep, we've all experienced those and they can make horse life miserable), but the simple task of someone to take photos or video is a tough one.. especially when I want to show off Nancy's Spanish walk skills 😛. Incidentally she chinned herself today doing it as she gets so excited, and because I didn't have her head high enough. I don't know why this action gives her so much joy.. but it does. And she's actually learning to swap legs (figured this all out by herself clever little monkey!). But its more of a little hop and a prance (not ideal when I'm standing right next to her)

I woke up with a great idea!

So, yesterdays training session was really unsuccessful! She lacked concentration, lacked energy, really did not want to be there, and when I pushed her forwards she turned her bum to me, bucked at me and went to bog off (this was a regular thing back in the day), yet the day before she was sweet as pie, willing and enthusiastically jumped a double (which I haven't asked her to do in many years, and she has always refused the second part, well, run out and then bucked in my face, so this I was super pleased with!).

So this morning I woke with the idea that I was going to dust off my £3k saddle, tack her up and take her for a little walk. (I've had a couple of dreams these past couple of nights about Nancy and my old mare Bronte, who was a little star to hack out, so I'm obviously missing riding). My plan was to walk her in hand going out and jump on on the way back, as she doesn't have the confidence to go it alone, and thought this would be a great exercise for us both to build our confidences. I'll be honest though, I don't really like riding on the road and the one off the yard is a particularly bad one. Not so much for busyness, but speed. The saddle is still in my car, it didn't come out.

It was however, a horse Super Day

So, after my frustration that yesterdays session was a bad one, and my thoughts of never having a consistent horse who I know will be safe to get on, I decided to poo pick, hang up some rugs, brush her and just do 'stuff' around the yard.

My motivation shifted and I decided to do something with her, and it was simply going to be in hand work. No lunging, just close connected work. I had no idea what mood she would be in. I can usually assess this by how reluctant she is to walk up the track to the school. She was reluctant to leave the stables but happily walked up the track.

So, we enter the school, she does her Nancy special and fixates on something in the distance. (I'm aware this is a stress response. When horses are stressed their attention will go elsewhere (a bit like when we are struggling to learn something, we go off and do something else. Their attention won't be on you or what you are asking them to do, but, in order for progression and learning to happen we must work against the horses natural behaviour. One of fight, flight and stand still.

Horses are quite happy to stand still for hours in the field. Stress in their relationship with people often causes this to disappear~ Oliver Hilberger~ Schooling Exercises In-Hand

Horses, like any other animal or person, must be pushed out of their comfort zone to learn new skills. Not many individuals enjoy this experience. One thing I remember reading is that horses will turn away from you if your presence brings them discomfort. It's almost like if they can't see you you aren't there. But in order for a working relationship for the domesticated horse to exist between us then comfort zones must be pushed.

Nancy loves to learn, this I know (her excitement with Spanish walk and her double jumping are testimony to this), but when she is stressed she finds it really difficult.. her concentration isn't on the job in -hand, and you simply cannot force a half ton animal to do what you want.

Sometimes I don't know if her lack of concentration and reluctance is because she is grass affected, getting too much magnesium (yeah I'm throwing that in the pot too as I know this plays a part, these sessions of too much mag are more than just a lack of concentration though, its pure fear) or just because on that particular day she doesn't want to do the work, and the gawking is more about what is over there is more interesting than the hooman stood in the centre asking her to go round in circles (a pointless exercise to her, but an essential one for her physical well being).

I want to note that my lunging does not consist of just circles with her going around like a wooden horse bent to the outside. I really do not like it when she isn't listening as this is what she does, and it really isn't good for her physically. It still really should be an education on balance and improving her paces, that's my idea of good lunging (taught by my great instructor Becky Holden~ riding from the ground Up). But when she is in 'that' mood its just impossible to get her listening, impossible to get inside bend, impossible to get nice lengthened strides and just impossible to get an overall nice lunge session. So then I'm ended up scratching my head trying to work out why I got this behaviour- and feeling disappointed that we are back to square one~or, unable to progress with her education!

Grass affected check list

Out at night (as weather still warm so grass still growing) ✔

Getting enough Grazezy ✔

Not a robot ✔ (nothing to do with being grass affected- this is just being sentient)

Could it simply be the 3rd option?

This I will never know, but I'm constantly seeing horse people schooling and hacking out. Even doing cross country clinics woah and behold, and wonder why I have so many issues with just a simple exercise routine.

As some of you may know I follow the training of Phillipe Karl~ Ecole De Legerete (the School of Lightness). I follow a page on Facebook, and this post post popped up Ecole De Legerete Perth ~ all about training for your horses personality.

Or should it be training for your horses mood on that given day?

Anyway, she was light, her mouth was soft, and she did some complex change of balance exercises. I'm not going to say her attention was on me all of the time, because asking a horse to balance unnaturally is hard and takes immense concentration and physical strength, and yes when the going gets tough, the tough get going, to the ghosts and ghouls that lurk on the other side of the fence posts, ie, her ears went away from me to indicate she was no longer listening. But, she didn't once run through the bridle to escape what I was asking her. And when she did look to the outside, I was able to get her concentration back, then give her a break to absorb the information.

DRUM ROLL PLEASE!

So, what I am about to say will not mean a lot to many, but to me it was immense. I got on her! I finished our session on a positive note.. led her out of the school and decided to ride her bareback down the track back to the stables. I was anxious. But I felt the fear and did it anyway.. stupidly bareback with no hat! But it felt the right time. She kept stopping and raising her head, not because she was worried, but because I normally click and treat when I mount, and this time I didn't! How dare I ❗❗❗. I was so pleased with us both..

Its important to be fit

I've had her 10 years and the Grazezy has improved our relationship no end. This has created a motivation in me to have that balanced and flexible horse. She may never be the riding horse, (that is my own limitation and lack of confidence to get on her), but I do want to work towards improving both our skills, which ultimately will create a closer bond and a fitter hoss and hooman.

At the end of today, I felt very cleansed.

Feel free to leave your comments below

Joanne GG Barrett