Some days you're soaring, some days you hit the deck...

Ave Sodalis

I didn't really fall off though, but I thought we should have a thread to complain about horsey related stuff, whether it's falling off, the price of concentrates skyrocketing, or your lovely white pony rolled in mud the day before a show...

My whinge is that a really cool job has come up which I would love to apply for but it would mean moving to England a year earlier than planned, leaving at the end of this month which is quite sudden. But the job is in a stunt riding centre which would be a brilliant experience! On the otherhand, I'd have to leave my family, boyfriend and sick dog behind... oh the dilemmas...

TG1

And I was coming into the thread to whinge about how I soared and then hit the deck the other day... Ouch!

sup_dude wrote: »

My whinge is that a really cool job has come up which I would love to apply for but it would mean moving to England a year earlier than planned, leaving at the end of this month which is quite sudden. But the job is in a stunt riding centre which would be a brilliant experience! On the otherhand, I'd have to leave my family, boyfriend and sick dog behind... oh the dilemmas...

That sounds like a fantastic opportunity... All I'll say is England isn't as far away as it sounds... You can get from Cork to London quicker than Cork to Dublin these days!

On topic, I was soaring the other day as my green mare has really come on in the short time I've had her and I was a very proud mom while a friend was riding her. She's gone from a green hunting cob to potential rc dressage competitor, but instead of saying "well done you've improved her loads" she said her riding had obviously improved since she could get something I had been riding into a shape... My ego went splat...

Ave Sodalis

TG1 wrote:

On topic, I was soaring the other day as my green mare has really come on in the short time I've had her and I was a very proud mom while a friend was riding her. She's gone from a green hunting cob to potential rc dressage competitor, but instead of saying "well done you've improved her loads" she said her riding had obviously improved since she could get something I had been riding into a shape... My ego went splat...

Ah don't worry about it TG1. Cobs can be notoriously tricky to get to bend and get moving. They can also be very very stubborn. I would say if you got something that was for hunting (ie going in the one direction with near zero outline) to something that was worthy of a dressage competition, it's a good enough achievement by most standards. Also, could your friend tell she was green? I would take it as a compliment that she thought her riding had improved so much, when it was really your work. It means the cob has been schooled well enough that others can ride it as well

fits

Had a very disappointing outing at the weekend. Was pulled in first in in-hand show only to be unplaced in final outcome. What a rollercoaster.

Ave Sodalis

Not sure if I wanted to post in the happy thread or this one so it's going here. Finally got to the yard for the first time in 3 weeks. I've been sick and it took a lot out of me so I thought I would take it handy (mumps are horrible by the way) as I still exhaust easily. I took in three horses and left a fourth in the field with another horse. The first I knew had been rode two days ago so I thought I would take him out for a quiet hack. The other two I lunged to be rode next week as they weren't rode and are slightly more wired. Anyway, so off I go on a hack, nice long rein and not in any rush. Was out for a while when the horse slipped. Not sure what was on the road but he landed sprawled. Got up again quickly, walked him a few strides and he seemed happy enough, no heat etc* so kept going to over the half way point. The half way point (it's a circle) is marked by a main road and half way across, a car was approaching so I trotted to get out of the way quickly. Horse lame. So my nice easy day was put to an abrupt end when I had to walk three miles back, up some very steep hills, in boots which, to use a popular term, were not made for walking (Ariat V, if anyone knows about them. They're slanted and only made to ride in with heels down). I landed back shaking, with my heels cut to crap, and the only quiet horse we have lame.

*I should point out that the horse may well have been lame before we set off. I know the young girl who rode him during the week was only on him for half an hour and jumped in that time so there's a fair chance he wasn't warmed up/cooled down properly, and the horse is 16/17 now so not quite a spring chicken. Unfortunately, I wasn't there and the owner of the horse/yard is blind so didn't realise until she came up.

byhookorbycrook

That's pure hardship!

Ave Sodalis

My legs are so sore from yesterday. It turns out putting an appy/connie cross off work bar lungeing for a week (and being fed hard feed), before trying some work that makes most horses concentrate (direct/indirect transitions, changing speed within paces and so on) does the opposite on this horse and completely blows his mind, resulting in a horse galloping around the arena, completely oblivious to its rider. It took 5 laps to get him back to trot... and despite having a thick winter coat and not being overly fit since I started work, he wasnt out of breath and there wasnt a drop of sweat on him bar a bit under his girth.

Some days I've big plans for that pony when he goes lovely and calm. Then days like yesterday remind me why I don't take him many places...

TG1

I know it's been a while since this was posted in but I needed to have a vent somewhere!

Why does everyone feel it's ok to give unsolicited advice on my horse? She is going fabulously but not for me, for me she reverts back to a little shaking piece of jelly at the slightest sound. This is a problem given our history together.

I know it's a problem, I am more aware than a lot that it's a problem as its me who will end up eating dirt again. I am taking advice from a very trusted objective source on what to do. We have discussed options, and have tried some that didn't work and now are trying something else.

Yet everyone and anyone seem to think it's ok to wade in with suggestions and opinions and ridiculous notions about my horse! I think the owner and the person who has been riding her for the last few months are more aware of the intricacies of the situation than someone I've chatted to about it for 5 minutes! What's driving me mad today is that people who were telling me one thing weeks ago have now done a total 180 just after I have done a 180 and come round to their original point of view! There is no winning!!! :mad:

fits

It sounds very frustrating.

*holds back from offering advice*

Ah_Yeah

There is NOTHING more irritating than unsolicited advice. Unfortunately the horsey world is rife with 'experts' and we just have to shake it off. :cool: Easier said than done though! I just say 'thanks for that' and keep doing my own thing/the thing me and my trusted source agreed on!

fits

I think its a natural reaction when you hear of a problem to try and offer potential solutions. Especially in the horsy world.

Ah_Yeah

fits wrote: »

I think its a natural reaction when you hear of a problem to try and offer potential solutions. Especially in the horsy world.

Agreed. And usually everyone has had an experience similar to yours or knows someone who has had the same experience. I just ignore it if it's not useful

TG1

Ah_Yeah wrote: »

Agreed. And usually everyone has had an experience similar to yours or knows someone who has had the same experience. I just ignore it if it's not useful

This, it's when people start giving advice they know directly conflicts with the measured objective advice you have specifically sought from a very experienced source that I can't deal with.

We all know we are all a bit mad in the head when it comes to our horses, and that when issues crop up there is usually highly charged emotional involvement, so why make it harder?

I'll often look for advice, I don't know it all, or even half it all, but if I'm just casually chatting to someone on the other side of the world about my plans for my horse and they start weighing in with nothing helpful, trying to change my mind on a decision it took me months to make I get frustrated!!

fits

Even my husband and I disagree on best course of action with the horses all the time. ALL THE TIME. And he'd be pretty close to me in terms of attitude to training. Sometimes I just have to let him on with it as he is a more skilled rider and handler than I.

Ah_Yeah

fits wrote: »

Even my husband and I disagree on best course of action with the horses all the time. ALL THE TIME. And he'd be pretty close to me in terms of attitude to training. Sometimes I just have to let him on with it as he is a more skilled rider and handler than I.

All about picking the battles :P

Ave Sodalis

I'm bring back this thread instead of making a new one because this fits here...

So Annie, in typical cob fashion, burst out of the arena at the weekend. How did she manage this you ask? Well she walked straight through the rails like they weren't there. Did she stop in the field full of grass she got into? Nope! Did she walk out the open gate and into the yard full of horses? Nope! What did she do? She climbed up the very steep bank of the muck heap (which hadn't be emptied the year before so it's huge now) and proceeded to roll at the top of it... You know those videos of horses rolling in big patches of mud? Yeah it was like that, only much much worse.

So the cob who wouldn't move out of your way when you ride her, who moves at about 2 km/hr everywhere, who thinks of nothing but her stomach and eats absolutely everything (including coconut oil out of the pot)... she ignored the grass, ignored the easy way out of the field, ignored all her friends and climbed up a slope that I wouldn't even climb up in order to roll (which she could have done in the sand arena) in the most disgusting spot possible. I couldn't even get her dry enough to ride her that day.

Cobs.