improving

on the in hand work, he was much more willing to move at a reasonable rate, and was listening to me,

whether that was a function of the noseband which i added today, probably not, i reckon it's just practice improving things for both of us.

the wind was blowing a gale but it's  been really warm - very odd, looked out the window and expected to get chilled stepping out of the door, but in fact was warmer out than in!

2 more geldings going in our field tomorrow .....argh ... it had too many horses in it before Charlie went 2 1/2 weeks ago....we really don't understand this at all, TBH, but doubt very much if decision will be changed by YM....

a bad week...

what with the floods, and mother being discharged from hospital yesterday (lots of near hysterical laughter from me, followed by my screaming at my sister down the phone...)

and i learnt a hard lesson - i really didn't want G to use her bit on M on Sunday but couldn't articulate why; rediscovered Theresa Sandin's piece on the subject (on sustainabledressage) and emailed it to G who cried

and M is very pissed with us...

it was his not wanting headcollar on that told me there was a problem ... not a lot of thought to work out what that problem might have been caused by ...

won't be happening again....

floods...

this is the 20 acre that we normally ride round (through the white gate and straight along...)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsz7Hq95YC4

it's about 10 feet above the normal height of the river ....

and poor gaynor, having a totally crap september - the house looks like its surrounded by a moat from one side (well, it did at 6.30ish) but the front porch is flooded, the flood defences having failed, everything moveable has been moved upstairs...

on the bit....

with Gaynor up....another smile on her face!  We're debating sharing M, but in the meantime, said she could ride him/play with him

so tonight she rode; originally planned a hack out, but life got in the way and ran out of time, so just in the arena, and he worked hard for her...

And then went out rugged, we're forecast some wet weather and they might be ok cold and dry, but NOT cold & wet...

surprised, TBH, he's not demanding to be in overnight yet, but expect him to express that view fairly soon...

walking round me

the work in progress, progressing... if i really really got after him with teh lunge line he eventually deided that i meant it and walked round.. to the extent that this worked both directions, not just one...

anyway, a debate ongoing...

is lunging beneficial or should one only longline?

personally, want to be able to do both + in hand work (once M has cracked the notion that that is what he is to do, not just stand there looking at me!) and don't really understand those who think that lunging has no place and that one cannot really have any communication with the horse on the lunge....

fingers crossed

next lesson arranged for 7th october (holidays for RI intervene) longlining....need a lesson on that and see if we can get something to click with M on the ground...

did some tuesday night, at least he walked round and vague attempts at changing rein, but his heart wasn't in it

last night managed to get him walking a few circles round me, progress of a sort...

when i'm on the ground, it's as if he pays attention to anything BUT me if  i;m asking for anything except following me about; but if i ask him to follow me about, he's quite happy to do that... which is all very well if that's what i want, but isn't going to get us a long way!

tonight, didn't do anything, it had rained on and off all day and threatening more... after going to visit gaynor, have spent the evening moving pics and videos of her & charlie that we had forgot i had onto a USB stick for her...

and, BTB, not riding as still not fully recovered from that crashing fall the other week; nicely bruised rib .... and the bruise on the behind is still touchy (albeit not on a spot that i sit on, but still...)

pathetic attempts at lunging

by me, but at least i got him to go round me, in both directions, without stopping and without turning in, in a slow walk, about 5 times round each side.... then, looking at big clouds heading our way, went back round ...

it did in fact rain a bit...

a smile!

on gaynor's face....

she'd had a bad day, but decided to come down to the yard and gave M some cuddles, a carrot, and then a lunging session since, yet again, he wouldn't do it for me!  and she did have a smile on her face

hurray!

horse therapy....

upset monfils...

in fact i would say somewhat distressed...

when we were eventually able to turn out (I did all the business when the van came for Charlie as G wasn't up for it, of course...) M went screaming up the field, clearly looking..

when i got him in ... in a gale, TBF - he was stressed....going along the track by the field as we normally do was not a good plan, as it woudl take us past the area where C went... and i knew M had been bad going past there yesterday, even though he'd already said his own goodbyes....so went another, unusual, way...

then when we got to yard, he looked hard at C's stable and i told him C wasn't there and burst into tears on his mane...

just fed him and turned out again the way we came in... think a few days for him to settle...

RIP charlie

Gaynor's Charlie.

dropped in the field about 4.30 this afternoon whilst running about with his friends....

this was taken a couple of summers ago when he and Molly were on their own near Gaynor's house...

he was 12; she'd had him from 2.  a gent in every way ....

:-(

hive of activity

of the farrier & vet kind...

gaynor and i had the vet booked - monfils eyes (blocked tear ducts) and charlie's teeth (needs sedating) and the farrier was coming for charlie and a mare with lami (with another vet from a different practice for her as well) .. i got there early, farrier arrived early (very unusual for him, LOL) so i got charlie in first (I hadn't even known he was coming, but probably as well he was early and we got charlie done before our vet arrived!) - expensive vets bill for me as i owed from the abscess 

so all told was at the yard for about 3 hours...

and i'd left some bread dough rising so made fresh loaf when i got home...

and in the morning i'd been up and tried (and bought) a hit air vest - in yellow hi-viz - this is the sort that expands with air if you fall off ...

and a load of washing done and dried after a wet start

and this evening cleaned some tack, and some yard boots 

had had the day booked off for a while, the reason for that booking got cancelled, but i thought i'd take the day anyway as i've a few left to get before the year end!

contemplating haynet

bathtime!

mega hot day (and forecast for more of the same tomorrow) so since i don't think i should be riding again yet (mega bruise, and back quite sore above the bra strap area) i thought i'd give him his first (and probably only) bath of the year.. he seemed to enjoy that - he loves drinking out the hose end, and is the first horse i've had i can safely aim the hose to the top of the neck at the poll ....

then we went out in hand down to the ford, gaynor was riding charlie - that was the drying off walk out ...i'd been meaning to do that, as that's the track i had the fall on ....no bother (and a lot less pheasants for some reason)

a lovely bruise

that i can't see, thankfully!  but moving ok, so just bruising i think! and possbly a pulled muscle or soemthing round a rib - coul hd have been a whole lot worse.

running late tonight as partner wanted an early tea, so just brought in, fed, turned out again...

a crashing fall....

pootling along on the buckle end, all quite happy, talking to friend about the safety or otherwise of western saddles and just how much do you want to be fixed in a saddle...

next second, monf is spooked up and off with no warning and i'm out the back door landing on my left buttock....i do rather think he'd stood on a pheasant that, as they do, came out in a rush under his feet... 

it's the only thing that makes any sense whatsoever, and i was vaguely aware of something not solid under him, if you see what i mean...

and unhelpfully, i landed on the gravel track...

doh.....

after some bellows of pain from me i was able to get up, thank goodness, and even  more thank goodness friend's horse had not been spooked and she was able to grab monf before he got away.

we were nearly back to yard at this point anyway - had only gone along the drive, and had been vaguely wondering whether the 20 acre would be a plan or not (given the number of pheasants underfoot) when the decision was made by the arrival of tractor and combine from the other direction, going into 20 acre, so we'd turned round...

the go slower seat...

is what i have at the moment... trying too hard, do i think?  probably....

but at least i got on again and pottered round the yard... at one point we set off purposefully but he stopped dead at the lane end...

far too late at night to have an argument, as everyone busy leaving ..

was thinking it's interesting how patterns of activity change at the yard... in years past, there was ALWAYS someone there riding about the same time as me, now there's hardly anyone ...people seem to be able to get away from work earlier...

so that was last night.

this morning, got up and found i'd hurt my knee whilst sleeping - weird.  still hurting so didn't ride on the grounds that whatever i'd done to it would  not be helped by extra strain..

rode charlie!

but my timing was VERY bad... got into the arena, and couldn't see a thing - blinded by the sun heading towards A!

then realised the saddle had slipped  back... it felt wrong in consequence...

so got of and tried what he thought of a bit of in hand work & flexions (he's never done that) until we were distracted by YO's dog coming in to ask for her belly rubbed ...at least that got charlies head to the floor, he wasn't giving to bring it down...

yesterday's plan today..

yesterday's plan was ride Monfils, but that was stymied by the rain

so rode him this evening, in new second hand vogue gp that i bought from my friend Steph - and after a lovely afternoon in alnwick catching up and spending money...(that is, on top of the money i spent on the saddle, oops!).

made a start on partner's xmas box in the farmway sale (nice jacket).  Monfils also got a new nuumed shimmy numnah for the new saddle (to which more shims had to be added), a pair of cob cheekpieces (current ones are really too long for his head...) and i got  a new AGA kettle to put on the AGA.

and books, from our favourite Barter Books - a first edition of Elwyn Hartley Edwards Saddlery (to add to the two later editions i already own, it is different and will be interesting to read) and the Marquis MacSwiney of Machanaglass book Training Horses from the Ground with an intro by Sylvia Stanier; have wanted that for ages, hard to find. and neither of those were expensive... with a Patricia Cornwell Scarpetta that i didn't have, under £19 the three.

Monfils was pretty good for the saddle trying on ... a shade sticky on the first mounting attempt, but then fine round to the arena ... where i got off after two circuits as not only was it more than clear that i needed more shimming, but it was also clear that he had been disturbed by YO + YO's wife + there two dogs in field... back round, find the extra shims, sort out, re tack up , stood perfectly, then pottered round the yard to try the saddle out with the new arrangement..

the idea of getting a GP is that, really, a dressage is hopeless given all the hills we have to go up and down on the land.... not really secure enough when going down! legs can't go in right place, balance goes awry, etc...

see how we do, but i might sell the dressage, as really the GP does as good a job, and its a VSD style...

have decided to get one of the tack lockers that people buy to put in trailers - will take two saddles (and my other stuff) is lockable and will be able to be locked to wall as well...and will protect them from spiders and damp!