That moved Alfie up the batting order and so it was off to Hook to meet him and his owner, Loren. Alfie is a Warmblood cross Cob, not the easiest combination since you get the tenacity of the cob married to the agility of the warmblood. They tend to be all right until they are not all right and then they have the athleticism to move very quickly indeed. Less than sympathetic handling in a previous home means that Alfie is super-sensitive to movement and always very careful. However, it also makes a very intelligent horse beautifully responsive and once he knows he is getting it right he is very keen to engage.
With a liberal coating of fly spray we started off with general groundwork and leading. This is nice straightforward work for horse and handler just asking for his attention. Simple changes to leading position and hand position can make all the difference.
Asking for a step forward by simply moving out of his space means that there is no physical pressure at all. Alfie really got this and it's worth noting that although the exercises seem the same, every horse is different.
So far so good and we move into the shade of the indoor school for the next session.
I always introduce the bags very slowly and incrementally and only once I have shown the horse the way that I work using the feather duster. The aim is not to set off his flight reaction but to keep within his thresholds and show him that it's okay to stand still when he is in the slightest bit worried.
Like most horses Alfie seemed to like chasing the umbrella and was fascinated when it was twirled on the ground.
"Alfie and I had a great day. Thanks for coming up and showing us some really useful techniques that I'm pleased to say he has remembered :-)." LO
Email received 4.7.14: "I’m really pleased with his progress since your visit. He doesn’t seem so spooky coming in from the field and I have been introducing him to new things and situations which I’m pleased to say he has handled really well. Last week we had 3 cross country training days so had 90 + lorries parked in the field outside his field. There was a lot going on with horses being tacked up, loud speakers, quad bikes and parking signs etc. I was so proud of him, he walked through the lorries, past the new signs like a little lamb and I lunged him in the in-door school with horses flying over cross country jumps just behind us. He was relaxed the whole time. We still play our little games with the umbrella and feather duster. He is still cautious with having sun tan lotion on his nose, but is getting a lot better. I use the same technique as the feather duster and let him come to my hand until he lets me gently rest my hand on his nose." LO
