Is this progress??

tiggypoodle · 02-26-2005, 06:58 PM

Sigh, another long ride on Stella today. I was so encouraged, because Brandon rode her yesterday in a new bit and she was so good... much more responsive and relaxed. I worked her a bit in the arena today and was so pleased, she was backing 100 times better, much more relaxed and willing to move out. Happy me. So to reward her, we hit the trails, and all heck broke loose. She got so anxious and agitated, her ears were dead forward and she got so tight and took these teeny tiny high steps. We were out for about half an hour and she was drenched in sweat and refused to calm down. Every time she started jigging I made her work-- sidepasses, backing, circles, anything to get her mind off the jigging. It didn't work. We literally sidepassed the whole way back. When I got back to the barn I went straight into the arena and worked her more-- I didn't want her thinking that home=no more work. We did some flying changes for a bit, and when I could tell she was obviously tired, I would let her walk, but if she started to jig, back into a canter and more flying changes. We did this forever, I had no idea she was in such good shape, lol. I felt like I was going to lose my mind but I kept at it, and eventually (a LONG time later) she was willing to walk out in a lovely swinging walk, head down, neck long, on a loose rein. After a couple of jig-free passes around the arena I got off and quit for the day.

So how do you think I did? Is this the right strategy? I just keep thinking "make the wrong thing hard and the right thing easy" but I am worried I am just making it worse. Aarrgghh. It's driving me nuts but all in all I feel like we did okay today-- getting to the point where she would walk rather than quitting makes me feel a bit better.......

Lily

Florian · 02-26-2005, 09:30 PM

Hi Lily,

How frustrating! It's hard to know what to recommend. Does Stella tend to act more anxious on trails than in the ring? (I know you've posted about her before, but I can't remember if you mentioned whether she is better in the ring or on trails)

If she is better in the ring, I would try to end all of your rides on a good note in the ring rather than going out on the trail after a ride in the ring. When you do go on trails, one thing you might try to get her to relax on trails is handwalking her. This is definitely not effective in a lot of situations, but I've found that sometimes it can help settle down a horse that is genuinely nervous and not just misbehaving.

You sound like you are doing a great job staying calm and encouraging her to relax--it's great to hear because we all know how easy it is to get worked up about it and make things worse

So, what to do now? I think I would try to keep things simple and relaxed. Is she ok when you first get on? If so, then you might try a short ride (maybe 30 minutes) and stick to the basics and if she goes well then call it a day. Then, try gradually increasing your ride and the level of difficulty of what you ask her to do.

It's hard to give advice without knowing exactly what it is that's setting her off. It seems like today it was going on the trail, but from what I remember about your other posts, that's not always what gets her worked up. It seems like you do a good job of getting her to work when she's upset, it's just that you can't get her to relax on a long rein. If that's the case, then I would try to put her in a nice trot and then work on transitions from trot to canter and back down to trot. Then, I would try some trot-walk transitions. You could try only keeping her at the walk for a few strides and then going back to trot. Then, go back down to walk again but this time for a few more strides and gradually increase the number of walk strides you ask for between transitions.

Anyway, I hope that some of this helps, but it's really so hard to know without seeing her. So, I guess my last piece of advice would be to get a good trainer or knowledgable friend to watch you ride so you can get another opinion. These things can be so tough to figure out, sometimes having someone else's perspective can really help.

Good luck and keep up the good work with her

tiggypoodle · 02-27-2005, 08:14 AM

She has never been more anxious on the trails than in the arena, typically on trails when she's not with another horse her attitude is very "up"-- fairly high energy but in an anticipatory way, like "I wonder what's coming next?" She does get excited but not anxious. And when there's another horse with her, she's a total babysitter-- I even trust her to carry my boyfriend who knows nothing about horses and is just barely learning to post. I won't even let him ride Sam, his own horse, on the trails, but Stella has always been so trustworthy.

This anxiety seems to be a new thing, both on trails and in the arena. I am looking around to try and see what could be causing it, but there have been no recent changes in her life. I'll keep working with her and keep you guys posted, hopefully I can reassure her that there's nothing to be upset about..........

Lily

saudimack · 02-27-2005, 07:57 PM

what is she eating? maybe its making her hot

tiggypoodle · 02-27-2005, 10:18 PM

No recent feed changes (still on grass hay and dry cob with corn oil), and she's not "hot". Anxious is a lot different from "hot"........

Lily

02-26-2005, 06:58 PM
tiggypoodle Coming two Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Home Sweet Home, Badger Canyon, WA Posts: 1,691	Is this progress?? Sigh, another long ride on Stella today. I was so encouraged, because Brandon rode her yesterday in a new bit and she was so good... much more responsive and relaxed. I worked her a bit in the arena today and was so pleased, she was backing 100 times better, much more relaxed and willing to move out. Happy me. So to reward her, we hit the trails, and all heck broke loose. She got so anxious and agitated, her ears were dead forward and she got so tight and took these teeny tiny high steps. We were out for about half an hour and she was drenched in sweat and refused to calm down. Every time she started jigging I made her work-- sidepasses, backing, circles, anything to get her mind off the jigging. It didn't work. We literally sidepassed the whole way back. When I got back to the barn I went straight into the arena and worked her more-- I didn't want her thinking that home=no more work. We did some flying changes for a bit, and when I could tell she was obviously tired, I would let her walk, but if she started to jig, back into a canter and more flying changes. We did this forever, I had no idea she was in such good shape, lol. I felt like I was going to lose my mind but I kept at it, and eventually (a LONG time later) she was willing to walk out in a lovely swinging walk, head down, neck long, on a loose rein. After a couple of jig-free passes around the arena I got off and quit for the day. So how do you think I did? Is this the right strategy? I just keep thinking "make the wrong thing hard and the right thing easy" but I am worried I am just making it worse. Aarrgghh. It's driving me nuts but all in all I feel like we did okay today-- getting to the point where she would walk rather than quitting makes me feel a bit better....... Lily

02-26-2005, 09:30 PM
Florian Halter broke Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 50	Hi Lily, How frustrating! It's hard to know what to recommend. Does Stella tend to act more anxious on trails than in the ring? (I know you've posted about her before, but I can't remember if you mentioned whether she is better in the ring or on trails) If she is better in the ring, I would try to end all of your rides on a good note in the ring rather than going out on the trail after a ride in the ring. When you do go on trails, one thing you might try to get her to relax on trails is handwalking her. This is definitely not effective in a lot of situations, but I've found that sometimes it can help settle down a horse that is genuinely nervous and not just misbehaving. You sound like you are doing a great job staying calm and encouraging her to relax--it's great to hear because we all know how easy it is to get worked up about it and make things worse So, what to do now? I think I would try to keep things simple and relaxed. Is she ok when you first get on? If so, then you might try a short ride (maybe 30 minutes) and stick to the basics and if she goes well then call it a day. Then, try gradually increasing your ride and the level of difficulty of what you ask her to do. It's hard to give advice without knowing exactly what it is that's setting her off. It seems like today it was going on the trail, but from what I remember about your other posts, that's not always what gets her worked up. It seems like you do a good job of getting her to work when she's upset, it's just that you can't get her to relax on a long rein. If that's the case, then I would try to put her in a nice trot and then work on transitions from trot to canter and back down to trot. Then, I would try some trot-walk transitions. You could try only keeping her at the walk for a few strides and then going back to trot. Then, go back down to walk again but this time for a few more strides and gradually increase the number of walk strides you ask for between transitions. Anyway, I hope that some of this helps, but it's really so hard to know without seeing her. So, I guess my last piece of advice would be to get a good trainer or knowledgable friend to watch you ride so you can get another opinion. These things can be so tough to figure out, sometimes having someone else's perspective can really help. Good luck and keep up the good work with her

02-27-2005, 08:14 AM
tiggypoodle Coming two Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Home Sweet Home, Badger Canyon, WA Posts: 1,691	She has never been more anxious on the trails than in the arena, typically on trails when she's not with another horse her attitude is very "up"-- fairly high energy but in an anticipatory way, like "I wonder what's coming next?" She does get excited but not anxious. And when there's another horse with her, she's a total babysitter-- I even trust her to carry my boyfriend who knows nothing about horses and is just barely learning to post. I won't even let him ride Sam, his own horse, on the trails, but Stella has always been so trustworthy. This anxiety seems to be a new thing, both on trails and in the arena. I am looking around to try and see what could be causing it, but there have been no recent changes in her life. I'll keep working with her and keep you guys posted, hopefully I can reassure her that there's nothing to be upset about.......... Lily

02-27-2005, 07:57 PM
saudimack Halter broke Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: wa Posts: 194	what is she eating? maybe its making her hot

02-27-2005, 10:18 PM
tiggypoodle Coming two Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Home Sweet Home, Badger Canyon, WA Posts: 1,691	No recent feed changes (still on grass hay and dry cob with corn oil), and she's not "hot". Anxious is a lot different from "hot"........ Lily