October 2006 (2)

I finished a good run at the Margaret Green Foundation Trust on Thursday knowing that I had all but done myself out of a job. The staff there are all much more confident around the horses now especially the big ones like Tyson, Cassie, Barney and Cinnamon. Much of the groundwork has become instinctive to them and the horses are enjoying the consistency. There is also a greater acceptance that "playing" with the horses is really very worthwhile work. It was good to hear that Squirrel and Cinnamon are being worked regularly in preparation for them finding new homes. From now on I will only be going there to work with particularly difficult cases.

On Thursday night I went to a talk by Sally Fear, a superb photographer and supporter of the New Forest and the work of the Commoners. Her book and film "The New Forest Drift" provide a real insight into the workings of the Forest and the issues faced by the Commoners. She points out that 10% of the Commoners own 80% of the ponies on the Forest and without these commoning families the Forest just would not work. It is true that it is the same faces that turn up whenever there is hard work to do on the Forest; managing the drifting of the ponies; the running of the sales yard and manning various stands at public events. If the animals were taken off the Forest it would be an ecological disaster and the Forest would be overgrown and almost impenetrable within a few years. Sally's book is a must for anyone who loves the Forest or owns a Forest-bred New Forest pony.

The last week of October seems to be developing a theme. All three of the ponies that I met at the beginning of the week have been trained using natural horsemanship methods - including Intelligent Horsemanship and modified Parelli, most of which had been gleaned from books. Accordingly my work was simply to tighten up their groundwork with suggestions aimed at achieving better clarity and responsiveness. For example, it is so important to establish a neutral position at the withers before asking a horse to move his hindquarters away from you otherwise he may start to move as soon as you walk down his side. This can result in a horse that moves away from you when you want to mount. It must be excellent news for horses if this sort of horsemanship is becoming more widely used - although in each case the owners felt somewhat isolated within their own livery yards. One of these ponies was Flash, who used to be at the Margaret Green Foundation Trust, this delightful little pony is now so confident and came over to be caught. He had been frightened opf his rug but by the end of the session he was happily accepting it.

October 2006 (1)

The theme of this month seems to be long reining. My visit to the Margaret Green Foundation Trust entailed long-reining two horses for re-homing in the morning and in the afternoon we took Squirrel out on the roads. It is hoped that she will become a driving pony so Holly walked behind her with a squeaky wheelbarrow. We got some very funny looks from people going by but Squirrel was unperturbed. Later I started to long-rein Maisie the donkey. Maisie is quite a complex character but loves having something to do. That same evening I long reined a horse that has some leadership issues and objected to being directed at all. She performed the most beautiful capriole in protest and I was glad of my hat and all Kelly's warnings about being clear of the kick-zone!
I am always pleased to have a copy-book loader too. S-horse had a bad experience of being loaded four years ago and has not been asked to load since. Using very gentle pressure and release and rewarding two steps forward with one step back, I was able to ask him to load within minutes and we were able to spend the rest of the session getting him used to the bars going up, the partition being closed and the ramp going up behind him. By shaping his behaviour in this way we break down the loading process into a series of bite size peices that keep the horse's adrenalin down. I also feel it is important to put the person loading the horse in control of everyone else around the trailer. I get them to tell me when they are ready for the ramp to go up and to unload the horse when they feel that they are ready - not the second the doors are opened.
Happily I am busy every day this month. I had the chance to tone up my skills in handling untouched ponies when a lady contacted me after she had bought two New Forest foals from the Beaulieu Road Sales yard. Despite being weaned at just four months, both of these foals are well grown and well bred and should turn into lovely ponies once they trust people. By the end of our session, both ponies had been touched all over and were far more relaxed. I also had the chance to practise clicker training with a particularly sensitive pony who just cannot cope with long reins. Hopefully we can encourage him to stick around for long enough to learn that they aren't actually going to kill him.
It was good to see Hilary Vernon again at a clinic I helped to arrange at Caroline Douglas's yard in Sway. Both Hilary and Caroline are driving enthusiasts and it was extremely interesting to watch Hilary work with carriage horses and ride and drive ponies.
The following week started with a lot of groundwork training for horses and owners. Most owners don't have the facilties for a Join-Up and I usually make a start by establishing my body space and simply moving the horse around. Quite often I then have a calm and amenable horse to work with amd I am told that the horse hasn't shown it's true colours. I don't think it's because I have any special gift and I certainly don't have a magic wand. I have lost count of the times that I have seen this basic simple work change a horse's attitude. It was Tom Widdecombe who taught me the value of this and his book "Be With your Horse" is on my recommended list. Trust me, this stuff works.
One of the horses I saw this week is an 18 month old Appaloosa cross Arab. Two major injections of intelligence in her parentage - a very bright sensitive horse with manners to die for. Her owner had applied logic from the outset and despite a strong emotional bond had always treated the horse as a horse. I was called in simply to make suggestions as to the best way to prepare her for a ridden life. I emphasised the need to work on the left as well as the right (we do so much on the left because of our swords!), to work in her blind spots above her back and behind her tail and the benefits of getting her used to all sorts of objects. It's nice to be asked before things go wrong.
On Wednesday evening I accompanied Caroline Douglas to a demonstration that she was giving to the New Forest Pony Enthusiasts' Club in Brockenhurst. She took Norman and Torin, her two wonderful Hampshire Cobs, and gave a display of long reining technique that included figures of eight and lateral movement. Achieving such precision at the same time as obviously having great fun had the audience entranced. She is the epitome of Kelly's favourite quote: "An amateur will practice something until they get it right; a professional will practice it until they can't get it wrong".

September 2006

My New Forest ponies are on the mend and gaining weight too. Some people on the Forest are really blase about strangles and local shows have been going ahead as well as the sales. The drifts were cancelled for Turf Hill and Long Cross. I shall pleased when this is over as my girls will be immune to strangles forever more.
I have not been totally ostracised, and have had some very interesting work this week. Today for example I did a radio interview for BBC Radio Somerset Sounds on the Moorland Mousie Trust and went to load a New Forest pony in the afternoon before visiting a Morgan x Trotter on behalf of a friend. I was so nervous before going on air but the producer and the DJ were really easy to talk to and I used all my horsey methods for bringing my adrenalin down. I really enjoyed the experience and got a good plug in for the Trust.
The afternoon pony was a real planter (what do you expect from a pony that is called Flower?) and it took some time to get her to move at all. We used the panels to help her and once she was loading we took them down again. She must have loaded 25 times by the end of the session and her owner, who is 12 was doing all the work. I am always amazed at the abiltiy of teenagers (or thereabouts) to absorb information through watching and then put it into action.
Incidentally, David really enjoyed his five day course at Hartsop Farm and has come home enthused. Now he is discussing ponies with me!


Leaving Nickie in charge, David and I were able to go to Denmark for a week without horses although I did spot some Warmbloods, Norwegian Fiords and Shetland ponies. Copenhagen is marvellous and we came back very relaxed.


Back in England, Blue and Nell are both better. What a relief. They can come in and eat their heads off all winter before going out again next spring. It also means that Petra is allowed out of the field again and we spent the weekend at a Perry Wood clinic. Petra went beautifully and Perry said some lovely things about her. He also praised my hands and seat - it's good to hear such reassurance when I am working with sensitive and young horses most of the time. Petra still stretches me more than any other horse - just a millimetre in one direction with a finger or my leg and she will respond by mirroring me.
I ended the month by helping out at the Monty Robert's demo at West Wilts Equestrian centre. It was great to be surrounded by people I know - Patsy, Linda, Freya, Georgi and David all came to help too and we joined Carol, Serena, Rita and Yann. Helping at the demo is a fabulous way of discovering what goes on behind the scenes - how the horses are assessed, how Monty prepares himself and the amount of sheer hard work that goes into setting up the venue. I love doing car park duty because I get to say hello to everyone that comes in. My favourite clients turned up including almost everyone from the Margaret Green Foundation Trust. Monty's third horse was one of the most dangerous cases that I have seen him work with - a lovely looking horse that would stand straight up on it's hindlegs when anyone tried to mount it. To see Dan Wilson riding this horse around the round pen after a display of some of the most intense and careful horsemanship I have seen was a very emotional experience. This horse came in holding a one way ticket to the slaughterhouse. There is no doubt that this little horse will need a prolonged period of very sensitive training before she is fully rehabilitated and yet she has already put the hardest part behind her. Monty's demos have provoked great debate as to the ethics of the so called "quick fix" and to the inherent pressure of working under bright lights with an audience of over a 1,000 people. I think it is by no means established that the slow way is always the best way - Monty is extremely experienced at working with horses just beyond their comfort zone and yet well below the panic zone - a narrow corridor where learning is at its absolute peak.

August 2007 (3)

Ahh - a very busy day - I worked with five horses today - three that hardly reached my knees. I love working with Shetland ponies. They really make you think abut the body language you use; no good using lots of eye contact if they have a huge forelock and can't see anything but your feet!
I have faced two of the most challenging cases I have ever met this week. A gorgeous Hackney horse that really doesn't mind running straight over the top of you and a big Irish horse with a big biting habit. I managed to avoid being trampled by the first one but I did get bitten quite hard by the second one. Both of these horses are difficult on the ground but for different reasons - I don't think the first one has ever had any ground rules imposed on him before and the second one has had to defend himself from some pretty awful treatment in the past - why would he have seven seperate brand marks up his neck including right behind his ear? Both owners have inherited these problems from the past and their horses have each had 10 years to perfect their behaviour. It's going to be a long road for both of them but we have started to make an impression at least. Contrast this with a young ex-racehorse that I went to see. She was very sweet and just waiting for someone to say, come on, let's do it this way instead. Kelly Marks has a fabulous article called "The Racehorse in Your Garden" coming out in the Autumn Listening Post. I think it's one of the most important articles she has ever written for the post and I shall be making sure that anyone thinking of rehabilitating a racehorse has a copy.
Lovely Lars, my vet from Endell's, has moved to Damory in Blandford now. I used to be with them when I lived in Dorset and only had to change vets because they were too far away in an emergency. This week Fernando from Endell's came out and did an amazingly thorough job of rasping a pony's teeth for me. I have decided to adopt him as my vet now - I hope he is pleased!
Pie got caught up in the Drift today. I had intended to get my ponies off the Forest to avoid the drift but the date was brought forward without notice. I turned up at my field to find the Drift underway and ponies corralled at the drift pen just beyond my gate. I really do like all of the Agisters that work on the Forest but I wish the drifts were less brutal. Ponies are hit and poked with sticks to get them to go down the chute when if they only moved people away from the outside of the chute they would be able to go down voluntarily. The ponies seem someone scary standing with their arm through the fence and don't want to go forward. Sometimes two ponies will run into the chute together and they bang their pelvises and shoulders on the post. Branding is pretty controversial in the first place and if it is justifiable on the grounds of identification and that it involves less handling than freeze-branding or micro-chippping, then there is no justification for a second brand. When young colts are being branded there is no need at all to twist their ears or their tails. Pushing them against the fence and making sure they are not approached from the outside is plenty. At least the brands are hot enough - on Exmoor the brands are often heated up with a blow-torch - it's not good enough. Today's Drift involved no roping so that has to be very good news. When I did my project on the New Forest ponies, I was told that there was no psychological effects from the drifts and the sales yard. So why do I spend so much time working with ear-shy and rope-shy ponies? It's not just because they were born wild in the first place. There are many many Forest-bred New Forest ponies succeeding in all sorts of spheres from showing to show-jumping but I do wonder what the fall out rate is.
At the drift I also got the apalling news that both Blue and Nell have strangles. I had ridden out to see them at the weekend and they had both been fine.They looked very bright and a nice weight. I went to find them immediately and my fears were realised. The Agisters have asked me not to bring the ponies in as there would be a risk of them giving it to ponies in the area around the yard. As it is, they are half a mile away at Longcross and we shall just have to see whether it spreads throughout Fritham. I am very fortunate because both of my ponies are friendly and I can catch them easily. Fernando has advised that they should not have antibiotics as this will only supress the formation of abcesses. I take their temperature every day and if it goes much over 101.f then they can have a sachet of Bute. They have lost a lot of weight and I am giving them very sloppy feeds of Lucibix, pasture mix, garlic, Total Eclipse and linseed oil with hay for pudding. No wonder they are pleased to see me. I go to see my home horses before going anywhere near these two and then I am showering and disinfecting before going to see anyone else's horses. I have closed the fields themselves so nothing is coming in or going out until the coast is clear. Being so methodical is helping me to cope with the fact that my poor ponies are so sick. I am keeping a close eye on Pie too - since his girlfriend and step-son were taken off the Forest at the drift, he has rejoined Blue and Nell.
Sadly, I have had to cancel the Hilary Vernon Clinic that I had arranged for 2nd September and I may have to cancel my holiday to Denmark - my first horseless holiday for well over a year. I'm also going to need to look for a part-time job. Apparently envelope stuffing has become totally automated these days.
One of the positive benefits of closing the yard has been that I have had longer to work with a piebald pony that came in just before the scare. He has proved to be quite a conundrum. He has been trained using natural horsemanship techniques for a good long time and although his groundwork is exemplary, he seems to go through the motions rather than to understand that it's all about leadership. If he does understand, then he seems to have found this leadership wanting. He is really good at panicking and surging forward and I have to work quite hard to stop him running into me. I am hoping I have had a breakthrough this week - I did another Join-Up with him this morning and he was much more attentive and when I invited him in he came and stood stock still next to me. His follow-up was perfect and then he let me into all his vulnerable areas - just as if he had read a how-to-do book and for the first time I felt that we had really connected. After this we went back to some trailer work that he has really been struggling with. Today he was calm and every time he softened, I rewarded him by gently backing him out of the trailer. This is a pony that used to tremble on the ramp and make a dash for the front door once he was in. After this we let off some steam by using the clicker to guide him through and over the obstacles. He really seems to like this work and I hope that eventually he will follow the target into the trailer.
As the week has gone by, this pony's attitude is changing rapidly and today we had no spooks at all despite the windy weather. By combining the body language work with the clicker training I have been able to establish my leadership through complete consistency coupled with very positive reinforcement. These two methods are not mutually exclusive although some purists believe that horses should not be given food rewards. By being very disciplined about the use of the food reward, for example, never giving food for free, I have found that the horse does not become bargey or rude. By always using a target you avoid the risk of being frisked. This is proving to be excellent therapy for both of us while we can't go out and explore the Forest. Some purists say you shouldn't kiss your ponies either..........

August 2006 (2)

On the 6th, I attended the Margaret Green Foundation Trust's Annual Dog Show where I provided an all day demonstration of horsemanship to an ever changing audience. Almost 300 people came to watch in total. I had a lovely time working with Roodi (17.1hh Appaloosa), Barney (17.1hh ex-hunter), Cassie (17 hh Percheron x T.B.) and Squirrel (11hh New Forest x Shetland). I based my demo on turning fear into curiosity, asking all of the horses to walk over the obstacles including the tarpaulin and then to long-rein over them too. I rode Roodi and Barney over the obstacles too. It was a great day and hot again!!!





They say that pride comes before a fall, and I partially fell off a remedial pony the following day. Due to back pain and an unsympathetic saddle (synthetic) this lovely pony had been running away from the saddle and rearing on mounting and dismounting. Having had his back treated and fitted him with a comfortable leather saddle, done lots of groundwork and long-reining, I had got to the stage where I could put his saddle on while he was loose, mount him quietly and ride him in the round pen without incident. Unfortunately he was still very frightened of being dismounted and shot away as I was half way off. The rest of my descent was somewhat chaotic and I have a badly bruised and strained hand and tender bottom. This has really made up my mind for me that I can no longer ride remedial buckers, bolters or rearers especially if they have already put someone in hospital! I don't bounce as well as I used to (in fact I don't seem to bounce at all!); horses and ponies like this really need to go to people like Ian Vandenburgh. I shall stick to straightforward starters, groundwork, non-loaders, handling problems, clipping problems and untouched ponies, as well as continuing to do preparation work with remedial horses.

August, 2006

I started the month with a 99.9% horse who is an absolute darling until anyone produces a set of clippers. Poor lad has obviously had a bad experience at some time and trembles as soon as he hears the noise. I encouraged his owner to walk around with something vibrating in her pocket for the week before I met him and she had got as far as being able to lay the clippers on the floor next to his feed bucket while he ate. We used a little travelling hair dryer to desensitize him to noise and warm air before we just touched him with the clippers. We finished the session by being able to touch him all the way up his hogged mane to his ears. He has had this problem for a long time and it will take some time for him to get over it but it was a good start; much better than having to resort to a so-called humane twitch everytime. Twitches may work in the short term but eventually the horse gets wise and starts to play up way before the twitch arrives. I wish vets wouldn't resort to them quite so quickly - if they want to keep themselves safe why on earth don't they start with something as basic as a skull cap?!
Now don't get too excited, but my lovely man, David is off to do his Stage I at the end of August. David is unwittingly good with horses - he has no preconceived ideas about them and see them for what they are - a horse. He doesn't feel the need to dominate them or project his unresolved emotional issues on to them and they seem to find his chest a very comfortable place to be. He doesn't do ego and he doesn't do macho even though he has a motorbike and leathers. He doesn't do competitive and he doesn't do stressful. He's the only person I trust to put me on an unbacked or remedial horse. On the other hand, he has an interesting style in long-reining.......

July 2006

I spent the first weekend of July doing one-to-one work and a small demonstration at a livery yard on the Isle of Wight. Phew! What a scorcher as the papers always say. It was extremely hot in the sand school. The following day it was off to Exmoor. Regrettably the Open day couldn't take place because the building hadn't been completed but I was able to work with the new staff, Laura and Caitlin, who are both wonderful and some of the ponies that the Exmoor Pony Centre will be using for trekking. I was happy to hear that these ponies will be rotated so that they have a break from trekking and that they are going to live out full time when they are not working. It was also a great opportunity to go and see Billy Milton and Liony. We took Billy out for his first walk on the roads and he loved every minute of it - he has such courage and was happy to take the lead in front of Merrion and to go up to things like tractors and give them a jolly good inspection. Liony is living at Twitchen Farm at Challacombe; yet another lovely place that does bed and breakfast for horses as well as people. Liony looked extremely well and has, at last, filled out. David and I went down to the Dartmoor Pony Centre at Brimpts Farm, Dartmeet and met Dru the project manager. She told us all about the scheme for the preservation of the Dartmoor Hill Pony and to increase the marketability of the Dartmoor colts. Once again, it all comes down to sensitive early handling.
During my first quiet week in months, I went to Malvern to see my Grandad, Pye. He was in good health so we went off to see my cousin Rosie who works for Weston's Cider in Much Marcle (Fred West country!). Unfortunately I am no relation to the Westons but I they always look pleased to see me anyway. The visitor centre is excellent and the cider too but the highlight was being able to groom their Shire horses and to meet their new arrival, Duke. Rosie's husband Tom has recently taken over the reins, quite literally, and drives their team through the middle of Ledbury.