Down Time and Waiting for Daylight Savings

I would love to come in here and talk of the latest achievements for Roxy and I but the fact is we have both been on holidays, her hanging in the paddock and me skiing. We also had a situation on the property which meant many of us were confined to our paddocks for several weeks. This combined with pretty severe and foul weather meant we all took a 5 week break.

Back on Rox last week and she was better than I had expected but a bit rusty with her ques. It would seem some flat work is in order over the next few weeks as we all slowly get our horses fit and back into work...AGAIN. :-)

One issue that Roxy and I had to resolve was that of the string girth. I bought her the most beautiful soft Angora ropers girth, having noticed that that is what Parelli used and Mohair or Angora was apparently definitely the go. Roxy could not disagree more and she began to show me in no uncertain terms what she thought. She has always been a bit girthy but the rope girth brought about some very undesirable behaviour and it got to the point that if I so much as brought the girth under her belly I would be ducking for cover from her teeth. This week I switched back to her favourite synthetic anti gall girth. Initially she expected the pinching so turned to nip me but I took it slowly and hopefully over the next few rides she will improve and stop being a bitch.

I also have a new addition which Leah and I purchased together and his name is Bundy. He is a rescue with 12.3hh of attitude but a clever little guy with loads of potential. We just need to find a confident kid rider to take him on and give him a new home that he deserves. We are getting back in condition and doing some ground work with him. Soon I will ride him a little as well just to see where he is at and assess him.

Summer is here soon so looking forward to the return of daylight savings and sneaking out for late afternoon rides. The sooner the better.

Talk soon
Lorrie and the snobby Roxy

A Glimmer of Something Great

There are moments in your life when you have to just stop and think…did that really happen?

I have watched countless You Tube videos of people playing with their horses at liberty and dreamed of what that might be like.

This afternoon after a quick trip out the paddock with two arguing kids in tow, I resigned myself to just doing some hill therapy with Roxy and giving her a groom and a feed.

While lunging she mucked up a bit on the right lead (normal) and the moment when I was distracted by screaming from my car, she took the opportunity to spin and start circles to the left (her preferred direction). She did it with a bit of speed and was actually cantering around using very un-characteristic speed. I tried to get her to face up and yield her hindquarter but she just kept on going like an energizer bunny. So instead, using drawing soft hands, I made her canter circles smaller and smaller until she was within 6 ft and then asked for her butt to get out of the way and for her to face me. Yep it worked.

We finished up and I fed and groomed her then let her out.

My friend Leah showed up shortly after and was doing some lovely ground work with her mare Bubba. At one point Roxy saunters over and gives Bubba a nicker, sniffs her rump and then comes in with her neck all arched and sniffs her muzzle! Then Leah sent Bubba to the right and Roxy circled with her following Bubba for about 2 circles before drifting off. Roxy was clearly in a playful mood!

I decided to grab my carrot stick and a pocket full of cubes and see what would happen if I went in and tried to play. Roxy had started to walk off so I sat in the grass and called her while Leah threw some carrots in my direction. Roxy started heading back.

After rewarding her for coming back I sent her to the right and she circled then drifted off. This continued with me getting her attention and getting her to walk with me before asking her to stop, back up and circle. All of which she did if only for a few paces it was something! Then I started running next to her, stopping suddenly, backing up and turning to go the other way, hoping that Roxy would mimic me. For the most part she did and it was FUN! When she drifted off I simply walked up to her and either dropped in beside her to walk next to her and get her attention back with me or tried to get her attention and draw her to me while walking backwards. Roxy did know that I had a pocket full of treats but she wasn’t pushy and for a left brain introvert the biggest reward for doing the right thing is a treat!

You could just see her starting to think ‘wow you are being a bit interesting?’

Leah called out ‘I feel a blog in this’ and at the time I was too focused on thinking and playing but when I got home I realised what a huge achievement it was. I truly believe that one day I will be that person with that horse doing those things and some person in the crowd will be wishing they were me.

Roxy's First Year of Life

I spend alot of time thinking about where Roxy came from and who her parents might be. Recently I have started to think more about how Roxy's first year of life might have affected her as the horse she is today. By 'reading the horse' I am starting to believe that you can probably tell quite a bit about a time that you know nothing about.

What I do know is that as yearling Roxy was subjected to the Camden Sale Yards. Bought by her previous owner as she was 'too cute' she then spent the next 3 years in a paddock near a main road and a little time somewhere near Yass after being started. And we all know what she got up to down there!

So I have been thinking about some of the things Roxy objects too, her possible breeding and her lack of brands and basic behaviour and this is what I have come up with.

I believe that Roxy was born in a rural area maybe further out west of NSW and possibly by mistake. Given that she has no brands, she wasnt bred for a specific purpose and or the people who had her, didnt have the money to go through with the paperwork and processes involved and or she just had no breeding.

Once she reached one year old NSW was in the grip of a massive drought and a foal was an extra mouth that they couldnt keep feeding and she was, like most extra horses at this time, just sent to the sales.

Again referring to the drought I doubt that Roxy has seen much if any water over the years. Her preference for drinking is from muddy dam water or troughs and when I first purchased her water crossing of any kind was a real issue.

Roxy hasnt been mishandled as she really doesnt display any psychological scars, although she does get grumpy when trying to put on the bridle and she is a bit cinchy. This leads me to think that she was broken in the 'old' way and probably a bit rushed. Being left brain the process was probably all a bit quick for her. Despite this she still maintains a basic trust in humans but a preference for the herd. Roxy always places herself at the back of a herd. Her previous owner would have had alot of horses coming and going, so for Roxy being at the back meant safety and protection from new horses and new events. To this day she still prefers the back of the herd but now I find her sometimes in the middle.

The confidence that Roxy lacks is just because she is green. Traffic and the bush has never really bothered her given where she grew up this makes sense but like any horse in a new environment all the other stuff is just a learning process.

Now back to the fact that Roxy has had to endure the sale yards at such a tender age. My main clue to her left over objection from her treatment there is her dislike of cemented yards and mud. Of the few I pass she shows a minute but true fear which get's me thinking that she still associates that environment with the overwhelming fear and terror that she must have felt being herded in there and luckily for me saved.

On a positive note Roxy really likes cows and sheep, another clue to her possible first year of life maybe on a large cattle farm or sheep farm?

Finally to kind of summarise. Roxy was born and allowed to be a horse, she was handled and probably very sweet but for whatever reason had to go. She lacks confidence at times,like any horse, and was rushed in the breaking process. She doesnt forget easily, and is learning to trust but not without asking why. She accepts things once she sees no reason to be afraid, but still relies on the safety of the herd.

I feel that as my relationship with Roxy grows she trust' s me more and more not to make her do anything that might upset her or put either of us in a dangerous position. My main goal now is for Roxy to WANT to do things because at the end of the day they are fun and safe. You cant MAKE Roxy do anything she will fight back and if you dont take the time to see things the way she does you will lose. She is not intentional in her arguments, I feel now that she just wants to make sure I am sure and then she tends to adopt her 'oh well ok then' attitude.

Whoever let that little yearling get on a truck to the sales all those years ago made a huge mistake but I am so glad that they did.

xxx
Lorrie

5 Good Reasons to Outlaw Cream Jodhpurs

With much anticipation I headed off to the RDA Chicken Run today, a fundraiser for the Riding for The Disabled. After its initial cancellation it was all good today with perfect weather and perfect travelling up the winding pass to Moss Vale Show Ground.

My business partner Leah has been adamant that I look the part and left with me all the trimmings for a show ring ride. Upon arrival to the modest do I realised that a jacket would be over the top and decided on drumming up the courage to at least wear the cream joddies.

Roxy was calm and we headed out to do our dressage test, while she and I lacked impulsion she did really well and had some great comments such as 'nice obedient horse' and 'well ridden'. We scored 120/170 in our first ever test...fantastic!!!

Next was the showjumping....9 x 30cm high jumps. After a bit of a practice I felt ready to go but in the back of my mind wary of the double jump which was the second jump...sure enough Roxy felt my hesitation and although we went over I was unbalanced and then she placed two nice humps in for good measure and I was off! Not to be fazed I jumped back on and continued knowing that Roxy was willing to do this if I just drank my cup of cement and got on with it. The rest of the round was clear. You couldn't wipe the smile off my face....or the laughs as we played back the video of my fall over and over just to enjoy it together, what a treat.

Later my daughter Jade went in the dress up parade with Roxy as bumble bees, we were running a little late and Jade didn't place but the presenters made their way over to Jade to congratulate her on a fantastic outfit. I then took her for a little led ride and she really enjoyed it.

Last was the cross country, again not sure how Roxy would go I proceeded with caution but she was a champ and by 1/4 of the way through we were moving nicely...UNTIL.... we caught up to 'skittish balking horse' in front. I tried to pass but realised that her horse was going to crack it if I trotted off, and I decided to complete the course with her and in the meantime sneak in some training with Roxy and strange horses ;-)

So we ended the day very chuffed at how well our horses had done. Neville, Christine's horse was as fresh as they can get preparation wise and he also did really well. They had to deal with a lot today and then didn't let us down and remained calm the whole day. All our hard work is definitely paying off.

It is here that I fast forward a few hours and I am on the computer watching the videos from the day....I was mortified to see myself in those cream jods, as clearly standing in front of a mirror in NO WAY should give you any indication of how you will look bouncing up and down in a dressage saddle.

In a way that can only be described as 'dugongish' I now regale you with my 5 reasons for outlawing creams jods from competition or riding of any sort:

1. Your left arse cheek

2. Your right arse cheek

3. Any trace of cellulite that has crept on since child birth can be clearly seen

4. People have normally just eaten

5. It is just plain wrong and I would like my retinas back now please?

It is here that I must mention that had I wore said jacket my unmentionables may have been obscured by the bottom of the jacket...regardless, enough is really enough. When your husband refuses point blank to comment on your appearance when asked "Do I really look like that?" you know you have gone beyond the point of acceptable and it is time to rein it in so to speak :-)

So it is back to the old me, watching what I eat and trying to exercise a bit more than I do already.

Apart from that ......HOW AWESOME WAS MY HORSE!!

Until next we meet

xx

Lorrie

Leaps, Bounds and the Left Brain Introvert

Never say never...after passing on a Parelli DVD to my friend Leah, as I decided a few months ago it wasn't for me, I actually took the time to watch it. Turns out, as luck would have it. it may be one of the most important DVD's I almost didn't watch!

I am an extrovert, I doubt there is much dispute there. Roxy is a Left Brain Introvert, this means she uses the left side of her brain and is a thinker, has more whoa than go and needs time to mull something over before deciding on her actions. A classic example of Parelli's motto...take the time it takes.

Last Sunday week I finally convinced my family to come check her out and see how we were going. I warmed her up with ground work slowly slowly and as things progressed, she was focused and accepting of everything I asked of her, including giving Jade (7) and Zeke (3) a riding lesson. I had a ride and she was outstanding and I felt comfortable and in sync. Next I decided to ask her to cross a row of old tyres laid out on the ground and she willingly did this, then I raised it to two tyres high and over she goes, I felt confident and she was calm so I went to three tyres high and sure enough over she went. I was chuffed to say the least and Danny my suffering husband was too. This was the pinnacle of what we had achieved so far on the ground.

Fast forward a few days and I am back ready to do some more work. It was windy, threatening rain, horse dealer had arrived with a bunch of nervous horses and I knew all was not as it should be with Roxy's focus. We started out and she was doing ok.

We had a new tarp on the ground however this time it was silver. Now bear with me here while I explain how quickly a Left Brain can turn from calm to complete right brain. I took her over to the tarp and she was nervous but willing to sniff it. When she did this I should have taken her back to a familiar task elsewhere but no extrovert me tried to make her sniff it again and she did but, in hindsight, it was here that left brain was quickly switching to right. I then proceeded to put her over the tyres again. Seeing as though three was a breeze last time I though a single row high would be a piece of cake. Roxy however was still thinking about the tarp and I was moving her along too quickly, not taking the time it takes. She hesitated at the tyres and spun around the other way, when she circled back around she hesitated and spun again. Now here is where I should have realised again that I need to drop my energy and let her switch back to left brain. But NO I had to get firm with her a there were a few well place cracks of the string on the ground behind her back legs. SHE LOST IT! Off she goes almost galloping in circles on my 22 ft line. Then thankfully for her my brain went left brain and remembered the DVD "don't go after a left brain with the string and use your energy to bring them back" so I dropped all my energy and just let her go in circles until suddenly her left ear turns to me, she slows and trots up to me huffing and puffing but with a clear sense of "I have had enough of that I need a cuddle". She came to me for relief and to check in with me, similar to how a panicked foal would with its mother. Regardless of what had just happened this was HUGE for us.

Roxy spend a few minutes with me just being rubbed and reassured and then we went off to do some easy stuff before going back to the tarp. After taking our time she crossed it and the tyres several times and with confidence.

This is all translating to our ridden work and this morning I had a beautiful ride on her, just the two of us around the top paddock of my friends property. We did some trotting and cantering and we also rode through a dam.

This journey is so rewarding and is hard work but I really don't find it hard at all. I just need to understand where she is at personality wise and it all falls into place. I make mistakes but she forgives me for them and we move on and the partnership continues to develop.

The chicken run was postponed so we have two more weeks to work on that also before attempting some stuff in public. :-O

Until then xxx

What a Difference a Year Makes

Well, well, well who would have thought I would ever get back in a dressage arena? However this years RDA Chicken Run has me 'you tubing' Preparatory 2 dressage tests and drawing lines on rectangle arenas as I memorise my first test in probably 20 or more years! And lets not forget..I am not riding some well trained dressage horse with a few years of training under its belt, I am on my green, ex broodmare, prone to explosiveness, no clear breeding, slutty when in season mare officially known as Roxy Broomstick! But it is here that the insults must definitely end.

Yesterday, with a few nerves and the odd flash back to eventing on my dear friend Pasha, we made our way to the dressage arenas at the local Pony Club ground to practise. While I pretty much had the course down pat in my head, what I wasn't ready for was what Roxy came up with.

As I walked to the centre and prepared to trot it just felt right, we continued on to complete the test and I was quietly stunned at how great it felt and how well Roxy handled it. My friend Christine also practiced on Neville and again another green horse was kicking arse. Now by no means do I say that they were perfect and neither were we, but when you look at the whole picture it was a particularly impressive ride.

By the 3rd go I really felt that Roxy could handle this and handle it with a decent amount of class. She was on the bit alot of the time, rode into the corners, moved freely (although a crop will be needed just as a gentle reminder), transitioned in the right spots and all in all was a really, really good girl who was focused most of the time.

I am not a professional and I can only ride 3 times a week if I am lucky, but to get Roxy where she is today has made me immensely proud. We still have some hurdles that need sorting (her need to flirt and an objection to narrow strips of mud) and she will never be a high performance horse but she lets me dabble in a bit of everything and that is more than I could hope for.

The RDA event is on the 30th of May and I am hoping that I can film my dressage and maybe the jumping and cross country as well, but if she only does what she did the other day you wont be able to wipe the smile off my face.

Until then ride with the confidence you had when you were a kid and smile until your cheeks drop off!

Lorrie and Roxy

xx

$180....nope your horse is just lazy!!!

I guess it would come as no surprise that today I called a vet out to Roxy as I worried about her exhibiting 'exercise intolerance' during yesterdays training session in the round yard.

Roxy appeared, to me, to have a slightly swollen upper respiratory tract...maybe....and while trotting in frame she was coughing and slowing to a point that had me worried.

Fast forward 24 hours, a scope and $180 later...I have a horse that thankfully is good as gold and I am now left to assume that SHE IS A LAZY ARSE!!!

On the upside I got a lesson in horses respiratory systems and was amazed to see the inside of Roxy's throat. Worth the money just to see that in my opinion.

I am still waiting on my custom made Kent saddle which I should get in another 6 weeks. In the meantime I am 'back in the saddle' this week having spent the last six weeks resting Roxy's back and doing ground work to strengthen and lengthen it. She has turned into a tubby one though and will need to shift some weight, but she is all good to go.

I am looking forward to some more up and coming western clinics and have a few new training techniques to continue to improve my girl.

I also recently returned from a fantastic trip with my horse family and my actual horse widow husband and kids, to Tumbarumba (blog on that soon) in the snowy mountains and am thankful to good friends Mick and Lucy for the kind invitation to explore that part of the hill. The riding is amazing and a big hug to my April spare horse "Rose", what a great ride that girl is and man can she jump!

Next time I am hoping to take Roxy as she would have just loved it...although I am not so sure about the scary bridge on the Hume-Hovell Track...that is a story for another time!

Lots of love

Lorrie