Dedicated to 'Just Donald'

I'm working on my next book, '100 Helpful Hints from Holistic Horse Help', and Simon asked if I wanted to dedicate the book to anyone.  Happy memories instantly came flooding back of Donald, a coloured horse I once had the pleasure of spending 6 weeks with (I upgraded his name in my mind to 'Just Donald' because I felt he deserved a posher name than 'Donald').  If there is one horse who I believe should have been 'my horse', it was Donald.  I was 18, and pretty tough really, I'd seen plenty of horses come and go, but Donald touched my heart and has stayed there ever since.
He arrived at the show jumping yard that I was working at because he'd thrown his previous rider off into the fence and broken the rider's leg - since that rider was employed by the dealer who owned Donald I don't think this made him a popular horse on the yard!  He was deemed to be a very difficult horse to ride, and I can't actually remember what my remit was for him (except that I knew he was ultimately for sale), but I fell in love with him the moment he arrived. He was very spooky, particularly afraid of anything behind him, which included a rider on his back - not a helpful attribute for a riding horse!  It meant that if and when you did manage to get on his back, you had to stay very, very still, or you wouldn't be on his back very long!  In walk this isn't too difficult, but it's quite tricky in trot, as rising trot necessarily involves moving in relation to the horse, and sitting trot petrified him even more! His trick was to shoot off in a high speed panic, and not stop until whatever was terrifying him had gone away. I adored him, and did my very best to raise the £2000 needed to buy him, but failed miserably.
I would spend extra time mucking out and grooming him, I would sit in the stable and eat my lunch with him, and I spent a long time doing groundwork with him, particularly working on being able to mount safely (swinging my leg over his back was enough to set off the panic reaction).  All of this was a long time before I'd heard of Monty Roberts or any form of 'natural horsemanship', so I was making it up as I went along. I think that Donald was really the first horse to get me thinking of how to work with a horse, rather than how to make him work for me. He just made me want to do things right by him. Although I didn't see it as thinking about things at the time (after all, I was only 18!), I just 'did' what felt right.  Maybe there was an instinct there that I was tapping into, I'd ridden since I was 3 years old, but I'm pretty sure that I hadn't specifically been 'taught' to do the things I was doing. I can clearly remember glowing with pride the day I showed my boss that I could do sitting trot on Donald, and his surprised reaction that this was possible. To begin with we could only ride indoors, where there was less opportunity for him to take off in panic, and I can also remember the excitement (and nervousness!) of the first time I rode him in the paddock.  I was so proud of that horse, and how hard he worked to overcome his fear, and I was sure it was because he was trying hard to do it 'for me'.
Imagine how thrilled I was when I was asked to take him to a show, where I'd have a chance to really show off how well he was coming along and how much he'd changed!  The dealer he belonged to was a show jumper, who obviously wanted to sell him on as a show jumping horse (it's not easy to fold over a fence on a horse who can't cope with the rider moving on his back), so they asked me to ride him at an affiliated show jumping competition. It was his first show, and we jumped clear in the Discovery, with just the second part of the double down in the jump off.  I was over the moon!  I'll never forget the feeling as I came out of the indoor arena at Blewbury into the cold drizzle, bursting with pride and grinning from ear to ear... as I jumped off Donald to give him a hug, his owner took the reins out of my hands, and led him off to their lorry.  I'd had no idea they were going to take him away from me, and I cried my eyes out.  I never saw Donald again, and I've never forgotten him.
It was only years later that I looked back and realised that Donald was probably the first horse to set me on the path towards Intelligent Horsemanship. He had as big an impact on the way I work with horses as any I have met. And that's why '100 Helpful Hints from Holistic Horse Help' will be dedicated to Donald.  I owe him a debt of gratitude, and only wish that he could be here with me now for me to repay it. 

Is your horse's girth causing him pain?

Is your horse's girth causing him pain?  Read on for one reader's experience:

Hi Sue,
 
I just wanted to give you some feedback.  A few months ago you mentioned the new Team GB girth from Fairfax.  After looking into it, I subsequently bought one for my GP saddle, which I probably use more than my dressage saddle (I couldn't afford both at once!).  The symptons I was hoping to alleviate were:
 
- girthiness when tacking up - eg grumpy face, chewing the door/wall, which had progressed over time to lifting a back leg on about 50% of occasions
- slightly shorter stride than you might expect from a horse of her size/conformation
 
I had of course had regular saddle checks, chiro and physio visits over the years from trusted professionals, drawing attention to these symptons and also discussing your articles, to try and rule out any other cause.  With retrospect, it sounds obvious that just about the only thing I hadn't looked into was the girth - though to be a bit fairer on myself, none of the professionals had suggested looking at the girth either I suppose.  (It turns out that my saddlers - Saddle Doctors/Mike Norton etc, I think you know them - had designed a girth the same shape years ago, although it doesn't have the Prolite edge)
 
The difference the girth has made is both dramatic and immediate: although there is still a bit of displacement chewing, overnight there are no more grumpy faces or lifting of the back leg - ever. The effects also seem to have transferred in part to my dressage saddle & girth, in that there are reduced symptons whilst girthing.  I will still get a new girth for that saddle as soon as I can though).  She also feels to be moving much better, in particular in her trot stride - although I have to say I am also doing some RWYM training which helps that plus due to the weather she is unfortunately being kept in more which makes her more forward in the school, so it's probably a combination of all those factors.
 
So purely on the positive effects it has had on her comfort, I would like to say a big "thank you" for your regular updates, and for continually prompting people to think about how we can do things better.   We have to keep reminding ourselves that there is always a reason for a particular behavior  (& my poor L had no other way of telling me her girth was painful - and being a little Monty Roberts horse it must also have been distressing her mentally to have to act in a "negative" way around us humans), and there is no excuse for just "putting up" with something.
 
Kind regards,

K

Anger

Anger can't be a pointless emotion, or we wouldn't have it as part of our repertoire, but boy sometimes I'm angry that I get angry! I'm writing this at just gone 11pm while the rest of the household sleeps and I wait for Philip to fall peacefully asleep again. For months now (well, he's not quite five months old bless him so I guess it can't be that many months!) he's settled to sleep really well by 7pm and then slept peacefully until after midnight. I'm someone who really doesn't do well on not enough sleep, yet strangely and unexpectedly I have no problem with these early-hours-of-the-morning wakings, in fact I look forward to them as cuddle time.
But this past week he's started waking up before midnight. Normally again I make the most of the extra cuddle time, but for some annoying reason, tonight the fact that I've been woken unexpectedly has triggered anger in me. It's most difficult for me when I've literally just fallen asleep and he wakes up. I squash the anger of course, and cuddle him and love him with all my heart and he's soon happily in the land of nod again. It got me thinking though, about anger and how irrational it can make a person, and how that can affect their behaviour towards others, human or animal. Some people lash out physically, some verbally, most have a way of controlling their anger so they don't lash out. But perhaps the reason not to lash out has to be stronger than the urge to do so, and I think sometimes horses get a bit of a raw deal.
The most common reason I know for people lashing out in anger is them (the person, not the horse) not knowing a solution to the problem. In my case, I know I don't want to let Philip cry himself to sleep, there are more than enough studies proving that's a bad idea. And I know how to get him back to sleep relatively quickly and easily. But I don't know how to have him sleep through in the first place (and the reality, of course, is that he doesn't need to until he feels ready to). In the horse world, loading is one of the areas you most commonly see people lashing out in anger (sadly often physically), and its almost always because they don't know how to get their horse into the lorry or trailer. They know that once he's on the trailer he'll travel comfortably (or at least, that's what they believe), and they know that he'll enjoy the hack or show they're heading for, but they don't know how to get him into the trailer in the first place. They might have read the books, watched the DVDs, listened to the experts, but when they come to try it with their own horse, it just doesn't work! Working as part of the team at the Monty Roberts demonstrations in the UK, I regularly hear people say 'I've tried everything, but nothing works'. I say to them 'If you gave your horse to Monty to work with, do you think he'd be able to get it in the trailer?'. The answer, of course, is yes. So it's not that nothing works, it's that we don't know the answer.
If you're in the horse world then you're in luck, the Intelligent Horsemanship Recommended Associates can come and work with you and your horse to give you individualised advice to help you get back on the right track. In the meantime... 'quiet down cobwebs, dust go to sleep, I'm rocking my baby, and babies don't keep'.

A new approach...

One of my favourite phrases is 'To teach is to touch a life'. Every so often I hear from someone I've worked with, and I'm reminded just how true this is.

'I was moved to write to you as I so enjoy getting your helpful hints and I particularly like this one:

"If you don't have good balance and core stability when you are on your horse, your hands will not be able to be soft in relation to his mouth."

I have fully understood the meaning of this after many lessons with Julian Marczak who has solely worked on my seat (6 months of weekly lessons on the lunge) and then my hands, both on my own horse and his school masters. I am enjoying my riding SO much more now that I really appreciate how to 'feel' the horse's mouth with a gentle sponging effect when wishing to request more flexion or a change of pace or direction. Horses go so much better for me and the achievement of harmony between horse and rider is wonderful.

I first met you when you delivered a massage course at my friend C's home a couple of years ago. Your visit and fantastic massage teaching marked a change in my approach to horses. My horse was the only one who showed some discomfort upon massaging the longissimus dorsi that day and upon your recommendation I had her saddle checked. It was indeed pinching her, to my shame and horror. Since then I have been so much more attentive to my dear trusting horse's every comfort, purchasing more comfortable saddles, bridle headpiece and noseband and engaging a local physio for a six monthly check as well as regular home massage as you showed us. I enjoys all human contact and nickers every time myself or my daughter appear whether hungry or not. She makes herself understood at all times now that I am more attuned to her needs. We now ride her in nothing more than a snaffle with a cavesson noseband.

With many thanks from a happy rider and horse,

T'

Another favourite phrase is 'Smile and the world smiles with you'.  This might not be the case with horses, but certainly your horse work is improved if you are smiling while you are working (or playing, depending on how you view your time with your horse!).  It's difficult to act harshly or impatiently if you have a true grin on your face - try it sometime soon!

Dealing with yard politics

I've been told that the best decisions are often the hardest ones to make, and as the tears well up yet again, that's certainly ringing true for me this morning. For the first time in many years I'm without a horse to look after. Thankfully it's not for the saddest of reasons, although 2 elderly horses on my yard have gone that way in the past week :-( In my case, Bell has gone to live in her (rather excellent) retirement home. She was always on loan to me, and her owners Carol and Don have a lovely farm in the Chilterns where she can be turned out with her old friend Poppy, in a huge field with the most wonderful view, with a warm stable whenever she needs it, and she'll be doted on twice a day by Carol. I was feeling torn between spending time with Bell and spending time with Philip (who was 4 months old last week!), which meant that I permanently felt guilty, didn't enjoy my time with Bell, and she didn't get the quality attention she deserves. Philip hated sitting in the pushchair or being in the sling while I poo picked, so I'd end up rocking him to sleep so I had enough time to quickly hay, feed and do her field, and if I was lucky I'd be done before he woke up. I felt as though I was losing almost an entire morning every day just trying to 'get things done that have to be done' rather than making the most of the time we have. I can't see things getting any easier once I'm back at work, probably until he goes to school (and even then we haven't completely ruled out homeschooling!). So after much soul searching I decided it was best for all of us if Bell went backto live with Carol (I realise how lucky I am to have had this option). There are some Shetlands at the yard that Philip and I can play with, they're much more his size! And several kind friends have said that I can ride their horses whenever I want to. So I really am a very lucky lady!
People's attitudes to my decision have been interesting, and my emotions towards those attitudes even more so (thankfully Carol and Don, with several grandchildren, have been incredibly understanding). I imagine it must be similar to when one person on a yard makes a decision about how to work with their horse (for example, to follow Intelligent Horsemanship or Parelli, or to retire a horse from competition, or to stop riding their horse completely), and they experience a variety of reactions from the other liveries. Most people, especially mothers, have been very supportive, and for that I am very grateful. Some, usually not mothers, are bemused as to why I would feel the need to consider such a choice. Others, who have worked through it themselves and come out the other side, tell how they managed without having to decide one or the other (baby or horse). What's surprised me most is the feeling I can't get rid of that says 'How come those mums could do it and I can't?'.
It's essential to remember, of course, that every person and every horse is an individual. Usually if I delve deeper I hear 'My baby would alway be asleep by the time I'd pushed him from the car to the field' or 'I didn't actually do anything with my horse for the first 2 or 3 years', or something similar. Philip definitely isn't asleep by the time I get to the field, and Bell's 20 so if she's going to do nothing for a while she's better off in a big field with her friend. But why do I even feel the need to justify my decision?!
I've spent a lot of time over the years as a physio and IH Recommended Associate telling people it's fine to make the decisions they want to make, that they have the right to do so, and to try to rise above the yard politics that might cause them to doubt themselves. One horse who sticks in my mind more than most from that point of view is L, with her lovely owner J. L was a young 4yo mare who had never been the quietest to stand to mount, but had got significantly worse. I saw her regularly for maintenance physio, and I found that she was getting more sore at the same time as she was getting more difficult to ride. She was always better for a few days after her physio, but within 3 or 4 months she was bucking and prancing for the first 5 minutes of every ride, which was totally uncharacteristic of her. She was then fine for the rest of the ride, and so the general consensus of opinion on the yard was that she was being naughty and that J should get after her and make her behave herself. J wanted to give the vet a call, and I supported her in this decision, and eventually she decided to go against the majority and stick up for her own horse and her own beliefs. It wasn't easy, but she was very glad she did - L turned out to have early hock arthritis and after an injection to relieve the pain her 'bad' behaviour stopped instantly and completely!
So back to the title of this post - dealing with yard politics. You know your horse better than most others. Trust your instinct and stand up for your rights. You don't have to justify your decisions to anyone except yourself and your horse. And don't be surprised if there are tears along the way, because the best decisions are often the hardest ones to make.

Real life story - HHH Brain or Pain January 2013

Real life story - HHH Brain or Pain January 2013

Hi Sue

I always enjoy reading your newsletters and thought I would let you know that I have recently decided to try my quirky pony without the flash noseband he has worn for years after a very reputable instructor recommended it. One of the reasons for this change was that he often did things to make it hard for me to do up the drop part (putting his head down, barging me, shaking his head etc). I also decided to give it a try as I am always looking at everything to try to improve things with him. Well, I have found removal of the drop part has helped him relax his jaw and he goes better and more consistently. He is now in a Neueschule Verbindend snaffle and cavesson noseband and this seems to suit him really well. I think the original reason for needing the flash noseband was because he was trying to evade a bit that didn’t suit him. I tried many snaffle variations and gradually ended up at the Verbindend after finding that a lozenge snaffle was better for him than a French link!

I have been riding this pony 10 years and have had the most amazing journey of discovery along the way as to how I can improve him. He was virtually unrideable when I started. He fractured a stifle as a 6 year  old and never really got back into work after that, until I met him! He’d had no physio of any sort either, bless him. He is also very croup-high and I suspect had been passed along from home to home due to his quirky nature (definitely not a kids pony!). We have been through badly fitting saddles (3 bad saddlers in a row who let us down) and many instructors who said he wasn’t worth bothering with, but now I have the most wonderful pony to ride and I feel I have learned far more from him than I could ever learn from an “undamaged” pony! It’s been an amazing journey and one day I may write it all down for others to gain from too.

There have been so many discoveries along the way that it would take a book to capture them all. I have mixed a bit of everything in to solve the puzzle and build the relationship (natural horsemanship, advice from instructors, things from magazines and lately working on my own body balance and core strength with pilates (the normal sort of class, not specifically equestrian focused)) and it just keeps getting better and better! I came so close to giving up so many times and am so glad I didn’t. He actually belongs to friends but they have said that he is really mine, which is so kind. They loved him as a character, but were at a loss as to what to do with him and were trying to sell him when I came along.

It is interesting to know that he used to trip so badly, even on a good surface, that that was the main thing about him that knocked my confidence. He’d go right down on his knees. He rarely trips at all now. He’s coup-high so naturally on the forehand and that was a big part of the problem. A good instructor helped me build up his back muscles, which were very weak. The better fitting saddle has helped to put my weight in a better place, and allowed his shoulder muscles to develop better too. I used to look down (subconsciously) because I was looking to see what he may trip over, and this was putting more weight on the forehand, so when the tripping reduced I felt more confident to sit back and look ahead and out (the pilates helped with that too). I never fell off him, but I went down with him over the years 3 times when he basically fell on the forehand at speed and kind of cart-wheeled (hence loss of confidence)! Due to this I used to avoid any rough or heavy ground – this in turn meant he couldn’t work on any such ground because of lack of practice! Now I embrace any challenging underfoot conditions to help build our partnership and his co-ordination! Of course, I do so with knee boots on him if the ground is hard or surfaced.

Nice to share this with someone who understands.

Tight nosebands - response from a British Dressage judge

Tight nosebands - response from a British Dressage judge

A recent comment of mine in a HHH e-newsletter prompted several responses full of emotion.  The conversation below is between myself and a British Dressage judge in relation to this subject.

My initial comment: "I'm feeling quite distressed about the amount of horses whose jaws are jammed shut with what I consider to be excessive nosebands, along with a considerable amount of metal in their mouths. I've seen so many times the dramatic changes to a horse's comfort levels and way of going when I work to free up his tongue and jaw muscles, that the opposite must be true - if you fix his jaw or his tongue, you reduce his ability to perform. I need to read more around this so that I can produce an article on it - the anecdotal evidence is clear to me, but I need more! What are your thoughts?"

BD judge: "I agree re nosebands being on too tight. I raise this regularly with BD where others are also concerned about it, ... Having had a horse who has had significant back and other pain I can say his mouth opening / resistance to contact seems to be directly related to how his back is - nothing to do with the bit or  mouth. The more pain he is in, the more he opens his mouth / resists the bit. I think that mouth opening / resistance in the mouth is often related to stress, physical or mental. What this means to me is that it is completely wrong to be able to strap a horse's mouth shut; we should be looking for the cause of the problem. I recently emailed BD after a picture of an extremely tight noseband featured in their latest magazine and they were grateful for the feedback ...
Unfortunately I disagree on performance. A lot of horses seem to work very well with their mouths strapped shut. I see this often when writing or judging at dressage competitions. I have even seen it [on the winner of a National competition] last April where I felt the noseband was tight to the point of almost certain discomfort. Personally, I was drawn to the mouth and would have marked it down but the judges had this horse as the clear winner. As yet, at least, as judges, we are not being trained to consider the tightness of nosebands. On the other hand there are also horses with evident physical problems - stiffnesses, etc who go with a still mouth that isn't strapped shut!
I hope these anecdotes are helpful. BD have looked at a way of checking whether the nosebands is too tight - someone invented a handy device that would control against the size of fingers (e.g. should you be able to measure fit by, say, one finger's width being allowed inside) ..."
My response: "Thank you very much for your feedback.  It's good to know that there is concern about this at the level of judging.  Unfortunately on the performance side of things there is no way of knowing how well those horses could go without their mouth / nose strapped shut - my guess would be that ultimately they have the potential to go even better than they currently are.  However, removing the restrictive noseband would of course change things so much for them that they would initially go less well, I'm sure, and so it would be a study that would be virtually impossible to carry out (for many reasons)."

BD judge: "Yes I agree horses could / should go better without their mouths strapped shut. I guess they are just all different and at the moment in judging you can neglect the mouth because it is strapped shut. It would be interesting to judge a class then judge the same class with nosebands removed! "


My response: "I suspect that the horse's behaviour would not be ideal initially with the nosebands removed because they would be better able to express their opinions!  A client of mine did her college study on dressage tests with bits and then in bitless bridles, I think it was 3 combinations of horse and rider judged with bit and then without on one day, and then without followed by with on the next day.  The results were inconclusive, but of course changing a horse's normal tack would be likely to lead to a lower score unless they'd been schooled extensively in both sets of tack, I would think.  It's a good start though."