Time to get Ahanna's owner back on board today for the first time since Christmas and an unfortunate sudden dismounting incident. It's always a serious moment and important to assess the confidence of the horse and the rider through every step before. We started off with long reining to assess Ahanna's energy and emotion levels and then some important work on standing still to be mounted. As is so often the case it was just a matter of putting a little pressure on the right rein rather than the left in order to keep her straight and then making sure that we were completely relaxed.
"Thank you so much for today's session! I think it's the first step to gaining my confidence back, although I think I still have some way to go, but I'm prepared to take it slowly. Your notes are wonderful, I will work with her on accepting the bridle, and also doing the basic groundwork we did in the first session." MB
Equally gorgeous are Angus and Sarah who's work on the ground has already progressed to being able to take him for walks out on the Forest.
The mare that I was told was inclined to rear did in fact rear and had an alarming habit of coming at you at the same time. She actually worked extremely well, matching me step for step as we walked up and down the track, walking when I walked and stopping when i stopped. However it took very little to tip her over the edge - just someone calling repeatedly to their dog out on the Forest - and that's when the fun began. I was hard pushed to keep her out of my space and from rearing or striking out at me but stood my ground and just protected my own space without invading hers. In time she calmed down completely and walked back to her field as if nothing had happened. Hard for her owner though to live with the prospect of all that 'stuff' when things suddenly go wrong. We've both got some thinking to do. The vet is already involved and has been giving the horse hormone treatment following a clear scan for ovarian tumours and a blood test.
Sadly for me I got my hand kicked during the session and now it is very very sore. Just right for a ferry trip on a windy night!
