IT has been a while since I updated this blog, and it has mainly because up until this week nothing much has occurred.
We did attend EEFDG evening dressage on the 27 July 2011 and was surprised and over the moon to get a very positive test sheet with a score of 61%. Very encouraging, and obviously looked way better than it felt as it felt terrible, She felt sluggish and against my hand. Looking at the photos from the day I am not convinced she is comfortable in her mouth, so dentist has been booked.
Well, D day, or should I say Y day has also been and gone. The Yogi clinic, as always was a valuable learning day, and Ru as usual, did her superstar and baggage performance in one act!.
We started on x pole grids, and Ru in her in evitable style chose to jump to the left of the cross. Typical! That won us a chastising. As more and more jumps went in she did get the hang of it, and after a cheeky duck out at the first (que more telling off) she barrelled down them. Yogi had us do it a number of times, and the last two times seemed to come together for us and we got a much coveted “well done, excellent”
By now the day had heated up further and the indoor school at Brook Farm was becoming more and more like a sauna, the horses and riders were drenched. At this point we started to work individually, as this gave the horses time to recover. My friends horse, however, was really suffering, and eventually she had to sit it out. I was amazed at Ru, as despite the heat she was not labouring, wet yes, but her recovery times were very good.
The individual sessions involved two uprights and two spreads. We managed the uprights fine, the tight turn was difficult, but the fact I am riding shorter and sitting up sooner, ( a big problem) meant that although we ground to a halt we could do the turn and get into canter for the next turn to the upright. Then it was on to the spread… our nemesis. Despite riding positively, or so I thought, and feeling like we had a good stride ( well she was locked on to the jump anyway) Ru did one of her dirty stops. Oh lord the berating we got. It was one of those that makes you feel like a sheepish school child . When we represented Ru was not given an option of refusing as she ended up with a bit of lunge whip encouragement. Over and over we went on these spreads until Ru stopped messing and popped them without batting an eyelid. We then went over the full course and did them all clear, I was delighted and got the coveted well done and a round of applause from the spectators. Apparently she had looked hard work!
Home, and she didn’t travel too well, so has bashed her hock again. A quick hose down and then it was time for those blasted front shoes to come off.
I have been considering barefoot for sometime, and after what I felt was not the best shoeing last time around was pushed into action. After much research I had decided that the best way to go about this transition this was the via the Rockley farm “celery” approach, since Ru was so sore after the last trim. Perhaps not the best way but she walked away, over stones sound.
Whoopee. How long this will last is unknown as she still has to go through the hardening off/ transition period. Her heels and frogs still need to get used to being out of shoes. So I guess watch this space.
