Where are you at the moment with your horse and where do you want to go?Maybe you do not have a dream with your horse, maybe you are happy right now.
You should just ride a little in the woods and enjoy… ..but… .maybe the horse is a little reluctant to leave the yard, maybe it is a little reluctant when it should have the shoes on, maybe it is not so easy to load if you want to get away with a friend and ride on the beach.There is always something to improve, something to look forward to, little things to work with, you have to have a goal, how small or how big it is.
If you are going to drive to France and do not have a map or gps, how do you find it?
The way to better understanding and better riding is to have a guide and a goal.
When you meet your horse, do you feel how the mood is like, on that particular day?
It is important to know how much to do with it, how much to push it and what job to do with it for the day.
The horse is an individual who also feels mood swings, pain, influences. Think of yourself when you go to work. Some days everything goes well and you get a lot done and some days simply do not work.
Then imagine that the boss comes and scream at you and is generally unpleasant. No nice scenario. Keep in mind that the horse can also feel that way, and it has not chosen to train / compete that day.
Being able to feel your horse and be able to encourage and be nice instead of forcing is an art that I hope that all horse owners will have the opportunity to learn.
For many years I have traveled with horses and driven with them in transport. For the most part, it has gone well and it is fantastic considering that many of them had never been loaded before.
I have always maked sure to have a lot of hay in the transport so the horses had the opportunity to stand and eat. It calms them down and they get other things to think about.
When I drove the horses home from Hungary to Sweden, the whole saddle chamber was stuffed with hay so I was sure it would not end.
I know that many do not dare to put a hay net in the transport, but if you hang it high there is no risk that they put their legs in it. Of course, you should always have a knife on hand so you are prepared. It also keeps the stomach going on them, so less risk of stomach acid. Of course, you should remember to water them often if you travel longer distances.
If you like to join a course about transporting horses(in swedish) please look under courses in Swedish!
In my long horse life I have been through so much, both with myself and with my horses but also others horses. Just loading a horse is one of the most dangerous things we can do if we are not well prepared.
Unfortunately, loading is something you often “forget” until the day when you suddenly have to leave with the horse.
Most people do not jump directly on their horse when they are going to break it in, but unfortunately when it comes to loading, there are not many who have done the exercises that are needed to succeed with a painless loading.
Even if you do not exactly have a trailer standing in the yard, there are ways to train the horse mentally for this in many other good ways. The more you train, the more both horse and man are prepared for, if any unforeseen things happen in connection with you going away with your horse.
It is good to have many tools, because it may also happen that you may have been lucky that the horse just stumbles on and then when you are going home, it refuses to walk in again.
It is important to prevent and ensure that the horse is confident with the situation and also when you are closing the doors. It’s not fun to have a horse hanging over the barrier or worse.
There are some poisonous plants in the pastures around. If you have large pastures, it is almost impossible to remove all poisonous plants and the horse does not eat them in normal cases.
It may be that there is a lack of grass or some plants, it is enough for the horse to touch them.
I have come across Alsike clover and it actually took a long time before I realized that this was what made the horses get scabs on the nose.
I have palomino horses and cremello and many have asked if they are not sensitive to the sun when they are so bright. It is not the color that is sensitive but if they have socks or blazers they can be sensitive right there. Mine usually have white signs and I have been told that it is the sun that makes them get scabs on these places. I have always lubricated with Helosan sun and it has actually helped.
In recent years I have found out that it is Alsikeklöver that causes these places to be affected in connection with the sun, but have never seen it as a big problem before I got it on my foal which became so sensitive so his legs became sore and he later got scars from this.
I have now moved to Hungary and here is very strong sun. But they never get scabs on the nose anymore and it must be because that plant is not here. Does your horse get scabs on the nose? Tomorrow Tuesday 5 juli I will show my horse’s injuries from his rash and talk more about this in the group. If you are not yet a member of the gruop, then please join us. We have always something going on in there Welcome to the Inspiration Group for riders. https://www.facebook.com/groups/836768577129245
Axell’s Baroness is sold! What do you have to do with it, you probably think, it is quite normal that you sell your fillies when they are 3 years old. I actually also feel a little relieved when I know that I will soon have only 4 horses left.
Then I start to examine myself.
I have been a breeder for almost 40 years, is it time to quit? When Baroness leaves, I only have one breeding mare left. The only one in my possession who can carry on the blood that I have bred for most of my life.
When to stop?
When is one too old, when will it be a torment instead of a pleasure?
So much you have gone through, dead foals, accidents and a lot of money and time you have put into it. The little pleasure you have, the short time you have the offspring before it is sold, the stallion that is to be cared for all year and in some cases only used in the spring.
I stand in the choice and the qualifier if I should get my last mare covered or I should ignore it.
Now I no longer have a stallion myself and it feels hard to go through the whole procedure to breed a foal you have to sell. It feels like one’s lifetime deed is over and it’s just accepting.
Now this may sound sad, but I do not feel any sadness, I just reflect if I would have done it differently if I had had a choice. I have had so many beautiful nice horses in my life and I am grateful and do not think I would have wanted it any different
I hope you laugh a little here, because of course you do not, but ….
Buying a new pad for the saddle (horse) is an expression of the fact that you both want well and would like something nice to look at. To want something nice to look at, should not be underestimated, our whole world is built on it.
You choose colors, interior design, husband, horse, yes practically everything based on appearance. It is completely normal that you want something nice to look at.
Then there are different tastes, and it’s great that it’s so, otherwise we would choose the same interior, husband and horse 🙂 When we then have something nice to look at, then we want to use it too, so it will be useful.
When you have then put on the pad on the saddle and saddled the horse and the lump comes back in the stomach when You realize that it is only the rider who is missing.
If you have lost the motivation or courage to ride, you will in that moment, realized that the pads will be dusty dirty and possibly the mice have been eaten it, before you start to ride properly again.
How many nice pads did I not had lying and thinking …. soon I will.
It took many years before I got started again, and have thought that if I had spent that money on getting help instead, it would have looked very different.
I managed after many insecure years to get started with the horse again, and then the pads were not so nice anymore, but ask me if I care 🙂 The horse is still pretty:)
In Sweden, there are many women who rides and it can be pregnancy and childcare that can be the culprit for longer breaks in riding.
You start thinking about what can happen if you fall off and as a mother you do not want to expose your children to something happening to their mother. Pregnancy also causes one’s body to change in many ways.
I generally think that women worry more than men. As a woman, you have already listed all the things that can happen during a riding session before you sit on the horse. Men just sit up and take the beating
During a pregnancy, the hormones play a trick on us and many gain weight and have a hard time getting rid of it again, and if you have a little too much weight with you, it also means that you can become awkward and inflexible.
Have been through this myself and have several acquaintances who have gone so far as to have surgery, because it has been too hard to carry. So it is active women who do not eat much, but the body has reacted like that. Unfortunately, there are also lots of additives in the food that make the body react as it does.
No matter how you turn, you have the back end We want to exercise to get the body going and get rid of the fat but we do not dare to sit on the horse because it has been a long time since you have ridden and you are stiff.Do not be ashamed that you have a little extra kilos.
There has been some debate about how much you can weigh if you are going to ride and I think it is completely absurd. Fat weighs less than muscle, so you can not look and see at people how much they weigh and most horses carry you without problems, because just when you are in that condition, you still do not have the strength to ride much more than a little walk and trot .
When you have started, maybe you get a bleeding tooth and ride more and get rid of more fat and then you might get the urge to compete a little and then you can hope that one gives the other.The main thing is that you get on the horse and get started. It’s a wonderful sport
3 top mistakes, when You want to get rid of Your fear of riding.
We all do different, and we all learned from other people and Our own experiences. I am no different, so I might be wrong!
Though I also maybee worked so much with the problem , fear of riding, so I have seen and heard a lot.
You can choose to take my advices if it will help you, but you can also choose to not. But think about what I am saying, and please write what you think, so I get some other aspects about it and it is always intresting to hear about your oppinion!
Nr 1 mistake to do when you are afraid of riding
An old sign says that the only thing you can do is to get up on the horse emedately if you had fallen off. If the horse has bucked you off and you have hurt yourself, I think it is not a good idea.
You are scared, the horse is scared. The risk would be that You will be stiff in your body and scared to death.
Something made the horse buck you off and you have to find out what did happened, before you are trying to get on him/her again.
When I was a child we often had old millitaries who should teach us how to ride. It was very tough for a young girl. It was hard for the horses too, I think today we know more about horses language, instead off being hard and cruel to them. The fear dont just dissapear because you get ordered to get back on the horse. I agree that action concures fear, but I think the action is going to be more well handeled, than just get up on a scared horse again.
NR2 Big mistakes to do when you are afraid of riding:
Many people tells you that the horse must have respect for you so you have to do it in a hard way. If you have a horse who is scared its the worse thing you could do, to force him trough his fear with a whip.
To be a leader is not the same as to be hard. You will have to teach him/her things before he/she knows he/she kan trust you..
Off cause he cant run over you and he/she cant bite you, but to punish him/her is not the right way to do it. Teach him/her the things you want him/her to do, show him/her the way:)
When I as a young kid was on the riding scool, my trainer punished the horses with a whip when they didnt do as he told them. Unfortunally, I thought it was the right way, because he was my trainer, but later on I saw how wrong this was and found better methods along the way.
Nr 3 big mistakes to do when you are afraid of riding:
Lunge him/her a lot before riding, to get him/her tired. You could lunge him/her when he got his saddle on to see if he is embarrased by the geird, but to lunge him/her to make him/her tired is the wrong way.
He will just get in a better fit if you do this every day, and more difficult to work with in the future. A tired horse dont learn, so you will not solve the problem this way. I love to use long reins, its a lot easyer to keep them calm and you can influence them more this way.
