Back to lungeing...

I've been working in the school for the last few days.
With Remy, I've been concentrating on trot transitions, making sure that there's enough energy to get a soft transition, but not too much that he hollows or rushes off. We seem to be getting there with the transitions, which give a balanced start to the trot, but he's not able to keep that balance for too long  before he tightens through the front end, and/or starts to rush. I'm finding it hard to determine his natural trot rhythm, so the last few days we've been having a short lunge session before riding.
It's been a revelation. Remy was always quite tense on the lunge, but having returned to it, it's great to see how much better balanced he is. He can maintain a nice, regular trot now, and it's been really useful to see him settle into his natural rhythm, which is quite slow, but once relaxed, becomes nicely energetic.
It's helping with the ridden work, and today, in one or two of the transitions,  I felt a real oomph from behind, while keeping the softness in front.

After a few days off, we had another session with Bonbon in the school. Starting with a lunge session - she's actually offering the trot now, and is much calmer. We now have to try and get some softness and relaxation in the trot. We followed that with a ridden session of the usual walk/halt transitions, with small circles and changes of rein. She's settling to it all so well.
I love getting on her, she's so biddable, a real little sweetie. I think she enjoys it.

Soft, round trot transitions

Another week's gone by and the weather has turned back to cold and wet. We need the rain, but that short glimpse of spring led us into a false sense of security.
I've had a couple of nice long hacks on Remy, exploring new tracks and some trotting on the uphill tracks. He's certainly getting the hang of it!
I've ridden Bonbon a couple of times in the school and todays session was really enjoyable.
A Short lunge session to start, and the trot is improving nicely. She's listening and relaxing more, and we're starting to get better bend.
She was a little distracted when I got on, but after a few minutes she started to listen and gave me nice flexion and softness in the the hand. We worked on walk/halt/walk transitions and small circles with lots of changes of rein.
I rode Remy in the school today and it was a really encouraging session. He was very relaxed, gave me some lovely shoulder-in, and some of the best trot transitions we've had. Lately, we've been struggling to get a round transition, but today he was more active behind, and his walk was much better balanced. I've not ridden for a few days and it was good to get back to it.

2 good lungeing sessions today.
Remy was forward and relaxed and we worked at walk and trot with lots of transitions. The trot work is becoming more relaxed now and I think it won't be too long before we can start working on the canter.
Bonbon was brilliant, attentive and relaxed, gave me good trot transitions and stayed really calm.

Lunge work - getting there

It's been a rainy old day today. Yesterday was hot and sunny, very close,  and so the horses had their first night out without rugs. Great for them, but not for me this morning as they came in looking like they'd been mud wrestling. Our fields are not muddy, but, somehow, they managed to find some!!
After a good grooming session, the rain had stopped so I took Remy up to the school and we had one of our best sessions in ages. We've been concentrating on lunge work, trying to get softness, rhythm, and good stretch long and low.  Today he had an active walk stride and when asked for the trot transition he was responsive and forward and quickly relaxed into a good stretch long and low with a good rhythm and good, even bend. He's becoming much more consistent and I think we're getting there, to that point of it all clicking into place. Not perfect by any means, but I'm so proud of him and the way he tries for me despite all the mistakes I make in the process. It was raining heavily by the time we finished and we were wet through but I'd not even noticed.

Obi improving

Obi seems to be improving day by day. We've had another 2 visits to the vet and she's pleased with him. Apart from being tired, he's much more like his old self. We're taking it as it comes.

Yesterday, Remy and Bonbon both had short in-hand sessions and I went for a short hack with Corky.  She had her stroppy head on. Another reason why I have to get her into the groove in preparation for going out with Rem. Once she gets her head around the fact that she's not, in fact, retired, she'll be fine.

Today a friend came over to help with the youngsters and Remy had a lunge session, walk and trot, looking for forward with more activity of the hind legs, relaxation and stretching and lowering his neck. Bonbon had an in-hand/baby lunge session. Both were well behaved and I'm very pleased with them.

After a week of doing nothing with the horses, we returned to work today in the school.
I took Anky up there first for a short lunge session followed by a little in-hand work. She was pretty relaxed with the lungeing but tense in the in-hand. I'm finding that she relaxes really well when we're inside, but once we get outside in the school she's distracted very easily and the first thing she does then is tense and raise her head. We'll work on it.
The wind had got up a little by the time I took Remy in the school. He was a little distracted by the wind and the toot tooting of a distant chasse horn, but he's such a patient and willing boy and tried to focus. We started with a short lunge session and he was pretty responsive in the transitions. By walking around with him, I find he stays much softer and doesn't hang on the rein, I can try to bend him a little inside, help him relax and encourage a sharper transition. Today the trot was more relaxed and active than it's been and the transitions were better. We then had a short session in-hand including asking him to move individual legs from a light touch of the whip. He's getting better at this, giving me a quicker reaction.



So, after a week off, it all felt a little rusty, but glad to be back doing something.

Phew, I'm worn out!

I woke early at 7.30am,which is a rare occurrence for me, I got up as the dogs were crying to go out. The horses were at the gate waiting to come in so I brought them in for their breakfast.
After breakfast I took Remy up to the school for a lungeing session. I worked on moving him around the school, waiting until we had a nice relaxed but purposeful walk before asking for the trot transition. The transitions are improving, with a quicker reaction into a softer transition. We had some lovely trot work down the long side with nice transitions to walk. He is a little uncertain on the large circle in trot, I think he feels a little insecure when he comes off the track but he's improving all the time. He's not particularly demonstrative and it would be easy to think that he's switching off, but as Trudi pointed out, his ears are moving all the time, he's definitely paying attention,watching and listening. At one point we were trotting down the long side and I got slightly out of position, ie, just in front of his shoulder and he gave me a beautiful transition to halt! He's teaching me quite a lot!!
I tacked Anky up next, we did the short ride to the wood, back past the house and up to the school. She was brilliant on the ride, forward, but with a nice stride. As we neared the house and she realised we were going past, she was a little reluctant, but she went on, and even though she was a little worried she stayed forward and willing. In the school we practiced stretching and lowering the neck at walk. She's very good on the right rein, still sticky on the left, with the same tendency to tip the nose, but that's improving and even though she was distracted by  fishermen on the lake she stayed fairly relaxed.
Before we put them back in the field I took Bonbon for a walk round the garden, down to the area that I use for lungeing and groundwork, she was a star. 
The afternoon was filled with trampoline workout, Egoscue exercise program ( I think I"m hooked) and sax practice in readiness for an afternoon with Ricky and another sax player tomorrow.

Remy back in the school

Same again today with Remy in the school. He was a little distracted as it was a little blustery and our neighbour appeared out of the wood with his dog, but when I asked him to refocus he came back to me and we carried on.
We trotted on both reins, the transition was ok, but the trot wasn't as relaxed as yesterday, I don't think he felt as secure, with the wind and the scary horse-eating dog but he listened and tried for me. On the way back down the field to the yard I stopped several times and asked for turn around the forehand. These were more forward and precise than his recent efforts and a couple of reinbacks. I was pleased with his efforts today as he was genuinely a little spooked by the weather and other distractions.
Looking at him today I realise that he's become a very large horse (when did that happen? :-o) and although I'm looking forward to starting some in-hand with him, it's going to be a challenge.
Anky seemed ok today and Corky hasn't coughed.

We are lungeing !

Yes we are :-)
The sun was shining again today and I took Remy up to the school to continue our lungeing training. He was  brilliant, we started with walk work around the school and then settled on a larger circle, I asked for  trot and he obliged with a nice easy transition, there was no confusion, he's just twigged what I'm asking for. I asked for 4 or 5 walk/trot transitions on each rein and then called it a day. He seems to have realised that he has a job to do and I love the way I can see him watching me, waiting for instructions when we're working. Well, perhaps I'm imagining it, but I don't think so.
Jim took our old 4x4 for it's MOT today, we we're both resigned to the fact that it was going for scrap, but it passed so we're happy bunnies, him because he has a soft spot for it and me because it means he won't be driving my car!!!
I rode Corky this afternoon, she felt much better, no sign of a cough and she had more energy. We saw the deer family on the way round , they were running through the field at the side of the track, a good excuse for Corky to have a blonde moment, prancing and jigging -  naughty, but I quite like it really :-)

When I got back I saw Anky stretching in the field, she had just done some droppings and it was obviously uncomfortable for her. She only stretched for a few seconds, but the fact that she still does it really bothers me.. Jim has said it can take months and months for a damaged bowel to heal so we'll just give her more time. She is certainly better in herself and she looks in good condition. Anyway I brought her in to check her, she wasn't tight or bloated and she dragged me over to the lawn to try and eat the grass, so thinking that a bit of gentle exercise might clear any wind, I took her into the garden. I lunged her gently at walk and then trot and she moved pretty easily and wasn't bracing and holding herself and to me she looked fine. I then did turns on the forehand on both reins and practiced leg yield in-hand. I've never done it before and she gave me 3 or 4 steps which I was happy with. I'm going to start some gentle ground work with her, I think it may help her and it will certainly help me, I think she could teach me a lot and I'm going to need it for when I start the in-hand with Remy.
I went to an art class with a friend last night. It was really enjoyable and I had every intention of doing some drawing this afternoon, but the day got away from me. Perhaps tomorrow.

The boy can trot.

After a whole day of rain yesterday, this morning was a mixture of sunshine and showers.
I got the best of the weather though and took Remy up to the school. As yesterday, I moved him around the school and then settled on a circle, moving with him on a smaller circle.  I asked for some walk/halt/walk transitions and he was very focussed, so I asked him for trot by placing the whip behind him and upping my energy (starting to trot myself). He's never trotted on the lunge before and we had a bit of a misunderstanding which was totally my fault. The first couple of times that I asked for the transition I was inadvertently getting  ahead of him, slightly blocking his forward movement. He took this as a signal to halt, so that's what he did. I think that's pretty cool as he was just giving me what he thought I'd asked for.
So when I'd got myself in the correct position :-o, I asked again and he trotted off pretty calmly with a nice soft transition.  We did a couple of  walk/trot transitions on each rein, he was calm, pretty well balanced and not hanging on the lunge line, so we finished the session there.  Oh what a good boy, I'm so pleased with him.

Solution for Dubious Training Methods?

We hacked out today, we were out for 50 minutes and Anky was very relaxed and forward. She was walking out nicely and stretching out to my hand. She's much better taking the lead, much more alert. Corky looks to be getting fitter also, according to Jim she was on a mission today!

We took Remy up to the school for his first real experience on the lunge. I was the lunger and Jim was the whip holder. Remy will now walk on from the voice so it was Jims job to keep him moving and out on the circle. He responded really well and moved off from the signal, continued at walk and on the couple of occasions he tried to come in to me, Jim pointed the whip at his shoulder and pushed him out. No problems, no confusion, out on the circle on both reins. A good session. He's a cool character. I just hope he's not cool verging on dull. ;-)

I'm wondering if this would be a good solution for all those dubious training methods? It could save many horses from their suffering. Perhaps the FEI should look into it?

Dodging the rain..........

....this morning with Remy and Anky. I took Remy into the garden to practice our lungeing technique (said in the very loosest of terms!!). I had an "I am totally useless at this" moment when he got confused and instead of walking on he kept coming in to me, but we continued and he did 'get' it and we walked around on both reins. For our next session I will take him up to the school and with Jims help, take him out onto the circle properly.

Anky has a scratch across her back where the saddle would lie, so she's having a couple of days off hacking. I took her up to the school again for a short lungeing session followed by a little in-hand work. This is all experimental for me but I'm taking Trudis advice and I think with a combination of Anky moving better and perhaps me starting to get to grips with it we're making some progress. Today we got some nice steps in shoulder-in and then leg-yield.

I've just put some Himalayan Salt Licks in the stables and Anky spent a good five minutes licking it this morning. She obviously needs it. Bonbon thought she'd like to share!!