Today is Wizard’s 17th birthday. To celebrate, he had the day off from work on Monday, and got to graze in his favorite little field. Today, I took him out in the Assunpink for a 35-minute hand walk. It was chilly and snowing just a little bit, and Wizard had a spring in his step. There was a HUGE tractor thing on the road by the hunt club cleaning up trees from last week’s storm. On the way out, Wizard gawked at it through the trees, and had an ear on the crunching sounds for most of our walk. On the way back, we walked right past it on the road. He was on his toes, but was actually much better about it when it was closer to him. As we passed it, he kept himself at a flat-footed walk, even when it crunched down a huge branch.
When we returned to the barn, we did some long line work in the indoor arena. It was yet another fantastic session. I increased the walk-trot-walk transitions, and we also worked on our lengthenings like we did on Sunday. The thing that really impressed me was after the canter work, when his topline was swinging, relaxed, and soft. His trot was loose and rhythmic, and he was softly chewing the bit instead of champing on it. The sessions are short and sweet, but we get a lot done. It feels like we’ve made some really great progress. I can’t wait to start riding him again.
Before work, I headed to the barn to enjoy the streak of unseasonably mild weather we’re having here in New Jersey. Wizard and I hiked for about 30 minutes on the trails, without the excitement we had on Sunday when we encountered the hunt club.
When we got back to the barn, we did a 20-minute longeing session including warmup. I worked him woth two lines again. I might never longe with one line again. The training benefit is huge, and it’s not as hard as I expected. I did, however, goof up and accidentally hook one line to the outside bit ring and one line to the inside cavesson ring instead of one or the other. Oddly, interestingly, Wizard was amazing with this odd setup. He accepted the contact of the outside rein (hooked to the bit) and was able to bend with cues from the cavesson on the inside line. Maybe I’ve stumbled onto something interesting. Or maybe I just goofed and he was feeling really honest. Either way, he was balanced, responsive, and happy. And SOUND. Very sound. He was going so nicely that I asked for just a few circles of canter, and I was rewarded with a really lovely canter in both directions. Hmmm. Maybe I need to start riding with goofily-attached reins, too.
I’m milking every moment of this week’s streak of mild weather. Wizard and I took a hand walk in the Assunpink on Sunday morning. Wizard wore his fluorescent yellow saddle pad under a surcingle to increase our visibility. We were out for about 45 minutes. In order to work on Wizard’s strength and balance, I asked him to do some halts on the hills. He cheerfully obliged.
When we were rounding the turn to head up the big hill, I heard hounds. I could not tell if they were in the kennels at the hunt club or out on a hunt until we got closer. Wizard was VERY good as we walked past the members of the hunt and past the trees where the hounds were working on a scent. They were loud, and Wizard was concerned, but listened to me the whole time. Good boy!
When we got back to the barn, we worked in the outdoor arena on long lines. I tried warming him up with the long lines attached to the bit, but he immediately curled behind and would not get in front of the vertical. I hooked the lines to his longeing cavesson, and then he was able to settle and find a rhythm. Once he was warmed up and engaged, I was able to hook up the lines to his bit. He was even better than he was in our last session, and was eventually able to stretch out at the trot and do some relaxed trotting. I tend to back off whenever I think I’m overfacing him, but this was a perfect example of letting him figure something out. It took a few minutes, but he did get into the groove.
After our session, he enjoyed some grass in the spare paddock. Days like this make January not so bad.
I got in touch with my regular vet last week and we had a good chat about what she saw in the x-rays (see previous training blog). She also talked with my farrier about a shoeing plan.
First of all, and this may or may not be related, but his Lyme Disease levels are much lower now than they were when we tested and treated him a year ago.
Basically, she has seen way worse on many horses, and she is optimistic that corrective shoeing and work will help quite a bit. She saw some very minor arthritic changes in the right knee. In the right foot, she did not think there was coffin bone rotation, per se. She said there was a change in the angle, but she was looking more at the whole picture, including the broken-back angle of P2 and P1. I was glad to hear this, because my farrier agrees with this assessment. My vet saw some very minor sclerosis of the navicular bone. It sounded to me like whatever issue he has/had was affecting the whole foot and the angles. Shoeing, injury, etc. Wizard’s body compensated, and we are seeing the long-term results in the x-rays.
Since we were between shoeings, my farrier came out and put aluminum shoes on his fronts, set well back for heel support, and a size larger to support his whole foot (aluminum because the larger size would make regular steel shoes heavier). He put snow rim pads on him. And the day we put the new shoes on Wizard, I saw him land consistently flat on the footing for the first time. He always tends to be toe first. It wasn’t heel first, but I was pleased to see flat!
So the short-term training plan is to let him get used to the new shoes and gently work him until my saddle arrives. I’m trying not to do too much circling, but when we’re stuck indoors due to the weather, it’s tough to avoid it.
Wednesday, 12/26/12 We worked indoors in long lines, and upon suggestion, I tried a little flash noseband attachment thingy, as an experiment. Wizard is very chompy on the bit, and the suggestion to try the flash was not in order to crank his mouth shut, but instead to steady the bit. Some horses don’t like bit movement, and a flash can help to keep things steadier. Wizard was NOT amused. He stuck his nose out, and leapt around a little when he felt rein pressure. We kept the session short, mostly doing bending exercises at the walk and a little trot work.
I’ve been at the barn for a lot of grooming sessions and sometimes quick hand walks in the park, but these are the actual work sessions he has had recently:
Thursday, 12/27/12
Years ago, when Wizard was doing more of his spinning and occasional rearing routines on the longe, a friend suggested longeing him in two lines. It seemed too complicated for my clumsy self, so I never tried it. Now that we’ve done more long lining work, it seemed like something worth revisiting.
We worked indoors again (%&*$%&$ winter &%*^&*% rain), and it was mostly successful. The biggest issue I had was him sucking back off the bit and geting behind the driving aid (whip) from time to time. I’m going to try a longeing cavesson next time out. Other than that, the two-line method was pretty neat.
Friday, 12/28/12
Wizard was tacked up in a bridle, surcingle, and longeing cavesson for this session. We were indoors (again). I used two longe lines, with the clips attached to the rings on the cavesson instead of on the bit. It worked much better. He was feeling a little fresh from all the rain and not a lot of work, and threw some pretty wild kicks when the longe line got too tight around his hind end. At one point, it also got shimmed up under his tail for a minute, ending in another kicking spree until his tail loosened and he got back to normal. We also experimented with the outside line draped over his back. I like the two-line method quite a bit, because it is closer to riding, and I have more control of his shape. On a regular longe line, I have no outside “rein” so he can pop his shoulder whenever he wants.
Thursday, 1/3/13
OUTSIDE- finally! The rain cleared, and a strong wind blew for a few days, drying things up nicely. I was going to go for a walk in the Assunpink, but I forgot to renew my permit, so we stayed at the farm and worked in the outdoor arena. I swapped bits to a fat loose ring snaffle, trying to make it as mild as possible for our groundwork. Over the bridle, he wore his cavesson. We warmed up at the walk on long lines, with me walking behind and also working from his hip. Then, we did a little light trot work, all with the lines snapped to the cavesson. The cavesson is basically as mild as a halter, and Wizard started to play, breaking from a big trot circle to a loopy, bucky canter festival. I was able to slow him down, but the force of him against the lines was hard enough that I was running pretty quickly to keep up as he slowed down. Okay, I guess he can handle a bit now! So we went on to the bit. He did his curling routine again, backing off the bit. I asked for a few transitions, which helped a lot. After a little gentle work, he began to stretch into the bit at the trot. YESSSSS. My goal with the long line work is to patch up some of the holes in his training, especially getting him to accept contact and loosen his back more. Today, I saw him doing a little bit of that. Now if only that saddle would arrive…
I heard from the saddle fitter and she’s hoping to be able to schedule an appointment to adjust my saddle very soon- hooray! In the meantime, training has not ceased for JR. I started our session with work on long lines. For those who are unfamiliar with the process of long lining, check out this link. I’m about a million times more boring as I wander around the arena with a wiggly green horse, but the link gives you an idea of what you can do with long lining. With JR, we’re only walking at this point- he occasionally jogs and then settles back to a walk. The long line work is good for him to learn the driving aids. I’m working him in a cavesson until he’s a little more experienced and then I can try the bit.
I long lined JR for 10 minutes and then longed him. Today, we used the entire arena (100×200!). I moved the circles as JR worked so that he started at the bottom of the arena and ended at the top. I’m gaining more lateral control over him. He still has that gravitational pull to the gate, but I learned today that a little give-and-take on the line as he goes through the “magnetic” part of the circle really keeps his “birdie” on me on the longe line and not at the arena door.
JR is showing more rhythm and relaxation in his trot. Occasionally he feels the need to remind me that he’s a green youngster, like when he did a 180 degree spin at the canter and bolted in the opposite direction when he saw a break in the arena wall. The little guy has quite a pirouette on him :^) I’ve increased canter work with JR on the longe and now we’re doing more than a few rotations. His balance is improving at all gaits. When we finished longeing, I turned him loose and let him stretch his legs: buck, leap, fart, leap. I cooled him out and put him to bed.
Today was the first day I’ve ridden Wizard without Ulcergard in a few weeks. I decided to use today as a test to see if I need to go back to administering a dose before each ride or not. I did not see a big difference under saddle, but I saw a difference while I was grooming him. He was touchier and more irritated than normal- he did not make contact, but he nipped in my general direction I brushed his side. He also lifted a leg when I brushed near his belly. Is he touchier without ulcer meds? I shall continue my experiments.
My friend Kris visited the barn today. I’ve known her since 1997- she’s a friend from college. She always loved horses but has gotten more serious about her hobby in the past year or so. In two weeks, she will begin leasing her first horse. I’m really happy for her. And it’s a lot of fun to have a crazy horse friend who understands the joy of the latest Dover Saddlery catalog and enjoys visiting the barn during my crazy night owl hours.
While I was tacking up Wizard, I showed off Wizard’s carrot stretching abilities to Kris. Side to side, Wizard flexed his bendy neck. Then, we did the bowing carrot stretch. Wizard began the bow as usual, arching his neck, lifting his topline, lowering his head. Then, he bent his front legs and… WHOAH! Wizard was on his knees and just about lying down in the barn aisle. I helped him back up and checked him for any injuries. Aside from rumpled hair on his knees, he was fine. I tried the bow one more time, and WHOAH! On his knees again. What the heck was going on??? I brought him in the arena so I could watch him move out and see if anything looked out of the ordinary.
I saw nothing out of the ordinary. I worked on the same exercises with Wizard as I did with JR and I walked up and down the whole arena with Wizard circling me. Left and right at the trot, he was very good. I did a spiraling exercise on the longe and Wizard was a champ. Then, I stepped up the difficulty level and we did the arena exercise at the canter :^) To the left, Wizard was fabulous- I don’t think he broke stride more than once. To the right, it was much more difficult for him. He broke stride a few times but he kept trying and eventually his rhythm and balance improved. As we moved back to the gate end of the arena, he broke stride several times and began stopping a few times. Once he successfully cantered one last rotation on the correct lead, we were done. The canter work is much more of a workout for Wizard- he does not break a sweat at the trot but the canter is more mentally and physically taxing. He’s come a long way!
I rode for about 15 minutes, working at a walk and a trot. Since it was late at night, I used the under-saddle work as a cooldown. We did a lot of walking on the buckle and a lot of relaxing trotting. He was great to the left and a little more tense to the right (as usual). I got several good little stretches- not exactly a stretchy circle, but he definitely loosened his topline. I was able to trot him on a slack rein in each direction. After Wizard was cooled out, I put him to bed with a tub of Dengie.
As I drove home from the barn, it occurred to me why Wizard ended up on his knees in the barn aisle: the shoes! I do the side-to-side carrot stretches before almost every ride but I have not done the bowing stretch in a while. The last time Wizard did the bow, he was barefoot. The poor guy had no traction when he tipped his toes forward as he bowed deeper. It was a slow-motion thing and I think he was simply sliding. And then he even did it again for me when I asked the second time! He’s such a sweet, willing horse. I’ll be sure to only ask for carrot stretches on dirt from now on. Or as Kris suggested, I can purchase a yoga mat for Wizard.
“We have to show the horse what we would like to do, but we have to allow him to do it.” – Walter Zettl
Thursday, 3/19/2009
The other day, I got the wheels turning in Sarah’s head when I told her how well Wizard trotted the ground pole in our last ride. Tonight during my warmup for my lesson, I heard the wonderful and familiar sound of jump poles being rearranged. Once we worked on getting a good rhythm for our trot and asking for a little bend, Sarah told us to trot the a pole. I stayed straight, concentrated on the rhythm of the trot, curled a pinky finger in his mane, kept my eyes ahead, and Wizard took care of the rest. Good boy! We trotted the pole in both directions. She added another pole and we trotted a “line”.
Then Sarah got creative.
She set up a little bitty hunter course of poles. Line, diagonal, line, diagonal. If I felt Wizard rushing or getting tense, I asked for a walk for three steps and went back up to the trot. Wizard was fabulous! He trots the poles really nicely. I remember doing a lot of work like this with Alibar and he always wanted to canter after the pole, but Wizard is happy to trot, and he really picks his feet up nicely. Work over ground poles and cavaletti will help his topline as well as his balance.
Sarah got really creative.
She made little itty bitty teeny tiny crossrails that were about the height of the poles themselves. She even made what we jokingly called a vertical and a spread fence, of poles on the lowest jump cup, about 6 inches apart. Wizard did the little course like a champ! It was so much fun (after the initial shock! I had assumed we were working on more trot work and bending and was totally not expecting this kind of lesson).
The change in routine was great for me. I could feel myself riding better and Wizard was very interested in his job. It was a big challenge to keep all of our flatwork in mind and focus on the course of poles.
Here’s our little outside line…
And then we popped over this one… Just kidding.
The entire ride lasted about 45 minutes. Wizard is getting fitter- he just had sweat under the saddle. As Walter Zettl also says, “We have to go to the limit, but never over”.
I was recently going through Ingrid and Reiner Klimke’s The New Basic Training of the Young Horse and was delighted to see that Wizard is following the basic schedule that they use for young horses (minus the hacking, but I’m hoping to do a little trail riding soon). Of course, we’re going twice as slowly as the book’s plan *g* Here’s the third month’s training plan:
Main aim:Developing looseness under the rider; developing pushing power and contact on the lunge.
Quiet work in rising trot on both reins, both on the circle and going large around the school, trot-walk transitions, stretching and chewing the reins out of the rider’s hand. When possible following a lead horse in walk and trot over cavaletti and single poles. Hacking out in walk behind a lead horse- enjoying the countryside.
Introducing the driving aids of the voice and the whip on the lunge. Short spells of canter on the lunge. Increasing tempo in trot to develop pushing power and the contact with the bit, making sure that the horse does not come behind the vertical. The side reins must not be too short. Cavaletti work on the lunge is a good gymnastic exercise and strengthens the back muscles. Free-jumping; free-schooling in the indoor school- with correct equipment.
After Wizard was cooled out and put to bed, I took JR out for a groundwork session. My goal was to start him with the process of long-lining with clicker training. I tacked him up with a surcingle and a longeing cavesson and attached my long lines to the rings on the cavesson and through the surcingle rings. I stood to his side, asked for a walk, and when he did… click and treat. Good boy!
We repeated the cues a few times in each direction. He broke into a trot a few times but as long as he was forward and straight, I let him trot. I prefer forward at this point.
I longed him a few rotations at the walk and trot, then turned him loose to stretch his legs.
He is moving out freely and I think that he’s feeling pretty good after his chiropractic adjustment. Hooray! He has an amazing amount of suspension for an Appendix Quarter Horse- I can totally see him in the dressage ring some day :^)
As I walked out of the barn, I felt a familiar muscle burn- abs! Hello abs, nice to have you back. It’s been a while, eh? I think the work over poles with Wizard helped me use my core muscles more properly today. I’ve long believed that the motivation of jumping always makes me a better rider- I always pinned better in over fences classes than I did in flat classes. It feels really good to get my riding muscles back. A year ago, Alibar injured his hock and I did not ride very much for several months. When the hock healed was when he was diagnosed with lymphosarcoma. And in the beginning of my sessions with Wizard, I really sat pretty quietly and stayed out of his way. Now that we are ramping up the work in our lessons, I’m beginning to feel like a rider again and it feels good.
For years and years, I’ve asked for a cavesson and surcingle as a gift. Nobody ever got one for me until now. Mom and Dad finally broke down and ordered them from Dover Saddlery. After I opened them, I had to field a flurry of questions about my strange gear. “How does it work?” “Why can’t you just longe in a saddle and bridle?” “Won’t he look a little like Hannibal Lecter?”
So on Tuesday night, I put my new gifts on Wizard. I was a little concerned that he would be concerned about the big old piece of metal on his nose and the big old piece of leather around his belly, but he was just ducky with both. I even put a quarter sheet on his hind end while he warmed up and he was fine with that as well. Good boy!
I longed Wizard for a few minutes in the cavesson, surcingle, and a bit underneath (with no noseband). I used my KK Ultra. I normally ride in a Myler Comfort Snaffle (D ring) but I think that the KK Ultra is better for longeing and I’d like to eventually ride in it as well.
Once we got some good forward motion, I put VERY loose side reins on him. First, I hand walked him. Then, I longed him. He was actually better on the longe with side reins than he was in hand. I think he felt a little behind the bit when he was being led and the “door” was more open when I was longeing.
After we longed for a little while, I turned him loose and free longed a little bit.
Then, I put him to bed and fed him his good-night Dengie.
Rock and Racehorses: Sarah K. Andrew 