Do You Ride Horses? V.4

[ξƞçɧαƞtєđ]

ChicknsRock: I've already told you how to post bareback- build up your muscles. If you are really committed to Tanka and to better improve your riding, then you need to start working on your physical strength as well. Have you tried /any/ of the exercises I've told you to? Especially the sitting against the wall one? The key to posting bareback is to have good core and calve muscles. And I am siding with everyone else- if you don't have money for a trainer, then you don't have money for a horse, especially one that is untrained and sick. One of my number one pet peeves is when people ask for advice, and when they get it, they don't try it out- not even once. You need to get serious about this- or find Tanka a new trainer. It is not fair to him. And English riding isn't irrelevant to anyone. You do understand that everything you horse does and everything you ever do with your horse is all linked back to dressage which happens to be a English event. You need to understand this if you are going to get anywhere in the equine industry and if you plan to properly train Tanka. And you never answered the question about whether or not you have any connections to family members or friends that would possibly help you out with Tanka and do all the things you seem to not want to do yourself.

stirrupirons: *dies*...I want those breeches. XD I have terrible fashion sense when it comes to matching things (hense why Sky's western blanket has like, 5 different shades of blue plus white and black thrown into the mix so it doesn't take much effort to find a good show shirt to go along with it. XD) But I can definitely see where you're coming from with it looking killer with a light blue shirt and brown or black belt. And congrats on the possible horse lease! What's his name? Possibly any pictures to share??? XD I love love love clyde crosses. And at being 17hh, I'll finally have someone to relate to who regularly rides a horse that tall. XD *squeee*

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Sky, as promised, had a day off today. Tomorrow I'm going to lunge him and if the weather is good, I'm gonna go for a ride and work on some cantering bareback in the arena- I've only done it a few times and one time, I'm pretty sure he broke into a gallop a few strides before I was able to slow him again. XD He sure loves going fast. lol. Can't wait and I'll be sure to tell you all how it goes. I would ride down the road, but I can't use stirrups with how bad my foot has gotten- I can barely where shoes and today I bumped my foot on a stair ledge, and it felt like it was getting stabbed repeatedly. It's bruised and swollen, but I'm still praying it's just a bad strain and nothing a little ice won't fix. Why does Sky have to be so dang heavy??? XD

[prissyshoo22]

ChicknsRock: Tanka got sick off of wormer???...Get another vet. Simple as that. If given the wormer properly and within the proper time range, nothing about the medicine should cause you animal any sort of pain or illness. And why on earth would not feeding him oats help? Sure, I don't feed Sky oats as they are high in protein and are a high source of energy, but I don't see how taking away apart of his feed would help and if anything, it would hurt. Please tell me you weaned him off of it instead of just one day deciding to not put oats in his food? If you all of a sudden alter a horse's diet, it can cause severe consequences such as colic and other medical issues far worse then him just seeming off. As for it being risky to post at a trot, I don't understand that. I've seen little kids (ages 5 and up) post at a trot in the show ring. I don't understand how you think posting at a trot (which is the very basics of English riding, that and finding your diagonal), is any more risky then it is you riding Tanka at all. Like I said and as others have said, you strike us all as a timid rider- getting scared when Tanka breaks into a trot and then not even wanting to post...I really would like to see you on a more broke horse and see Tanka be trained by a much more confident and experienced trainer. But seeing as you'll probably ignore that advice...is there anyone in your family that has horse experience enough to help you out and do all of the "scary" things for you? Whether you want to or not, if you are training Tanka, then you'll need to put your fears aside for his sake so he gets experience in that line of riding.

prissyshoo22: If you are asking for the basics in horse training, you shouldn't be training a horse. Sorry, but that is how I see it. Training a horse isn't something that you can just one day decide to do. It takes years of training yourself before you can consider it. I've been riding since I was 6 years old and not until I was 10 did I begin to help my trainer break her thoroughbred filly. And that, looking back, was a stretch but I had help through it with my trainer to coach and guide me. I am agreeing with Hime on this, find someone else to at least help you. There is no such thing as "oh, we'll learn together". No. Just no. If you are training a horse, you need far more experience, confidence, and upright strength to train a animal. And if it is an Arabian (I've had far more then enough experience with that breed), that horse is going to be even more energetic and lively then most because of them being hot-blooded like thoroughbreds. Get help.

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THE WHOLE RODEO WAS A FLIPPIN' JOKE! We left for the rodeo at 6pm like the owner of the rodeo told us to do so we could get some practice in before everyone started getting there when it started at 8pm...but when we got there, we were turned away and told we had to wait like everyone else before we could use the arena so the only practice we got was at the grand opening at 8pm when everyone was cantering their horses in the arena once or twice before exiting. The place was so unorganized it was a laughing stock. We were all down by the trailers, a good ride to the arena when we were told to quickly tack up in drill team gear because we were on in five minutes. So we tacked up, got on and rode in at 8:45pm...we did not perform until 10:00pm. We sat there, waiting for over 2 hours. And when we'd ask when we going to perform (cause both the people and the horses were getting anxious), we'd get a snappy reply from the women at the counter or the judge- there was no use talking to the owner as he was walking around the place as drunk as a skunk and was more interested in making sly comments a 50+ year old man should NOT make towards high school girls and their 25 year old coach. Every time we'd ask the ladies, we'd get a different answer; "10 minute from now"...ok, you said that 20 minutes ago. "After five more bull rides"...ok, you said that 10 bulls ago. " After the sheep run"...ok, the sheep run ended ten minutes ago. Finally, she yelled at my trainer and said "You'll get in there when you get in there." That ticked us all off. Then they started shooting off firecrackers and gun shots, which luckily, didn't spook Sky, but that wasn't said enough for other horses. And the bull rides were horrific. The first guy in left in an ambulance, another girl got kicked and stepped on 4 times before getting dragged out by 4 guys, I saw 3 rodeo clowns get trampled, saw countless guys get charged, and saw two cowboys get gored from the bulls that still had their horns- they left in an ambulance too. And then two bulls got loose into the arena and it took them around 45 minutes to catch them. They first tried people on horseback and lassos- the big white bull charged the horse, broke the girth, and sent the animal and rider flying and onto their side. The horse ran out, the rider got trampled and got a few chest-fulls of the bulls polled head, and he was dragged out too. The horse was last seen by me limping severely towards the trailer. They then tried rodeo clowns and just trying to herd the bulls. That's when I lost track of how many people flew up in the air or got sent to the ground with a hoof in the chest or leg. SO THEN they tried using a blue heeler dog to try and herd them back into the shoots- luckily the dog didn't get hurt, but it was not working. So then they get this bright idea to come in with a forklift, lasso a bull, and tie the bull to the forklift to drag him back to the shoots. The white bull (the more aggressive one- the black one was a bit more skittish then aggressive but he still nailed some people too), was jumping, leaping, charging, and within a few seconds, broke the rope, leaped straight upwards, hit his skull on the forklift's spears, and fell to the ground unconscious. He woke up a few minutes later. It was ridiculous. After a few more attempts, they were finally able to get the bulls into the shoots and even then, they were still charging the corral gates. After that, they still wouldn't let us perform- they sent in more bull riders. And then they had their precious sheep run. And then WE were told to hurry up and get a move on from the judge (who was completely rude), to get to the gates. By this time, Sky and everyone else was hyped up. One girl on my team was crying because of everything that was going on and she has a fear of cows and bulls and seeing all this, had already given her two meltdowns prior. While we were lined up, the bulls kept charging at us from their pens that were no more then a foot away. And Sky just wanted to get this over with and go home. We finally got into the ring and we did probably one of the BEST performances we've done. Haha- I was surprised too, but we did pretty dang good for having to wait four hours. We then promptly told the judge (because again, the owner of the place was drunk off his butt...will withhold any more powerful words I could have used there) that we would not be showing up again for tomorrow scheduled performance. I don't think Sky has ever loaded that good into the trailer- he was racing me to get in when it is usually me in front and coaxing him in. XD And I might have a broken foot- not too sure. At the beginning of the time there, Sky stepped on my foot and wouldn't get off until about 15 seconds of pushing as he had caught sight of the sheep and hadn't ever seen them before so he was in a trance so to speak. We did have a few rearing episodes from him as well- but I can't really blame him for having them at such a horrible place. He did so well throughout the day and take the rearing, he was a angel. He got some extra grain last night and today is his day off for a job well done.

Thanks for the advice and I will get help with training c:

[Nocte Luna]

I have yet another question. And it's a little bit of a weird question, actually...

What colors go well with this (the light chestnut in the middle)

coat color?

[Fortunea]

I miss a jumping day as I'm on holiday. :c They're doing a mini-competition, and I'm on holiday when it's on. So someone else will ride Tinker. xc He kept bolting at jumps and wouldn't stop after them. He just kept cantering around at top speed. Silly pony. So I just put the cross down to the lowest and made him trot over it to finish. I also cantered him over a pole - he didn't jump!
I also got someone to pull Tinker's mane. It's really short but it looks a lot neater.

[val.]

[ @Nocte Luna

i use to ride a chesnut, and i found gray/grayish blue is a nice color but, if you get it too bright, it contrasts with the horse's pelt. red is also good and lavender too. c: lovely horse <3

@stirrupirons

omg i want those breeches <33 they are so dang-- just, woah >.<

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gracie is at my barn now! yay! she was sooooo good loading on and off the trailer oh my gosh. and the care giver said "she doesn't trailer well." i'm going to go rub it in her face now cx

anyway, i started to change gracie from oat hay to grass hay. the stupid caregiver was giving basically STRAW to eat! i was so mad i just wanted to unleash my hidden beast on her -.-
again going off topic, gracie is getting acquainted with her new stall and the gelding next door named mickey. they had some disputes but at first they were nice to each other. lol, mickey tried to bite gracie through the fence and she kicked the fence and he backed away. that's my girl c;

the flies were so annoying, i put on her fly mask and sprayed her down with some fly spray but they still were biting. i was thinking of putting her fly blanket on but it was extremely hot yesterday and i decided not too.

is there a good brand of fly spray i can use? i need to buy some more anyway :3 ]

[nila_]

Well I don't really post here, but eh, why not.
I went on vacation for a week - which was fun, except that meant a week away from riding!
However I did get to stop at a Dover Saddlery and get some new riding pants.

I take lessons for showing as well as trail riding. I usually ride an Arabian gelding named Raja.
Now that I'm back at home I'm hoping that I can go riding soon.

[jjossie]

i love jumping horses too!!

[Hime]

@Enchanted: Oh my god... o_o Seriously girl, good job seeing that through. I would have walked out much sooner than that. At least your rutine went well and you could walk out with pride. XD
Hopefully your foot isn't broken though... :c Though by the sound of it might indeed be broken, so maybe you should go have it checked out...

@Kleinconi: You totally should start riding as a hobby if you are enjoying it.

@Stirrupirons: I admit, not my color choice, but I checked out the other colors and by the general look of them: me like. ;D If I ever go to US, I'm spending all my money on breeches... XD
Carefull with the saddle shopping, might not be worth to get one until you actually have your own horse...The eventer sounds cool how ever. Has he been shown a lot? Also how old he is?

@prissyhoo22: You can probably do basic leading excersise by yourself, if the horse is at least basic halter trained. ^^ Training is lot about reading the horse, building trust and respect and not crossing the line where the horse becomes nervous/tense or scared.

@Nocte Luna: Hmmmm... Bright colors, or maybe brighter toned pastels? Heta's similar colored and I like light blue, red and purple on her. I think certain shade of turqoise would look nice on her as well, but don't have anything I could use as a 'tester'. Green might be nice contrasting color as well, if there's reddish vibe on the coat. Dark blue or dark green might also work.
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So had slight change of plans, didn't ride on Saturday as just when I was getting up in the morning I heard thunder. Luckily it didn't come full on and we just had couple light showers. During the party it only rained for like 2 minutes and not very hard. So once again we had decent weather at the party. c: Last year it was supposed to rain as well, but it didn't. I did worm Heta though, now that I finally remembered to bring the wormer tube with me...
Party was fine, not that many people this year and they didn't stay super late(like we called it a night around midnight), still the people had fun and it was nice to see those who live elsewhere. We actually had a task where we were divided into groups and given bale strings and were told to build something useful out of them. XD Our group suprisingly won with our creation(R's kids original idea, which kinda went wild): the child/horse/goat/dog lasso/leash /jumping rope. Suprising victory since one group made a small hay net and other made a swing. But it was very even and there were only like one vote differances.
I got to do little stable work, took Heta in and checked out the waters with M later on the evening. And also got to hold/watch L's hyper overly people friendly dog for couple minutes before people started arriving. Super sweet and pretty dog, but so so so hyper with people around. XD
As said before I got to stay the night there where the campers usually sleep. I thought it would be kinda cold there, but it was actually really cosy and warm. Well, little chilly in the morning, but not bad at all.

Sunday morning was beautiful and sunny. Little chilly in the shadow, but hot in the sun. Heta was maybe tad confused why I was there that early and why did she had to go to work right after her morning hay. XD I had to take a trail ride since they were having round pen on the arena and training sessions that day. I would have wanted to stay over and watch, especially as R was planning on working with their young super pretty mare, but had plans with my friends so couldn't. :c Maybe next time... And if the mare is actually getting back to work, then I'll be seeing her some other day.
Heta was being kinda lazy on the trails, like she was wanting to turn back home alot on one trail and not really eager to go away from home. So I think I'm taking the whip with me next time. Or then it was the time of the ride that made her like that... We also saw a trotter(or random horse driven), from afar though. We were in the forest coming to the road and I heard a weird noise coming somewhere from the road/forest on the other side, like chop chop chop kind of. I though they were chopping some woods there again, but then Heta lifted her head high and perked up her ears. I couldn't really see anything, so that was kinda weird as usually with weird noises she's not like that until there's some visual of the source. Then the horse trotted pass a thinner part of the woods where the path connects to the road and all made sense, as Heta probably smelled the horse and recognized the sound before I could see it. XD It was still weird as I've never seen a horse driven there before. Judging from the tracks it left, it had apparently trotted along the road towards our stable, and then at some point turned around and headed back. Not sure where excatly as we went to another road before the tracks ended... I just hope the driver is the smart kind and understands to slow down to walk if they ever pass other horses while out there. Heta has spooked at trotters her fair share at collage, usually when they came from behind... -__-

[Psychopath.]

This is Fonze, the 17.1hh shire x that I regularly ride! He is a bit moody, but will pop some nice sized jumps. The only problem with him is that as soon as you do jump position he will buck! I do love him though c:

image.jpg (179.76 KiB) Viewed 98 times

[wickedbvnes]

i got a new saddle, finally!
it's an amazing, comfy leather trailmaster all purpose saddle in havana brown
its beautiful to ride in omg