I'll never have a Welshie.... Oh, hello Oscar!

[KP nut]

Time for our new chap to have a diary..... Zak did a fabulous job teaching my girls to ride. Unfortunately he was also rather too good at getting them off as well when he was of a mind to end work for the day. So he has a new job with more experienced riders, and seems very happy. We still see him every day and he remains best friends with Cally. Of course he has not put a hoof wrong since the accident but if he threw them again badly after so many warnings I would never forgive myself. Yes riding is risky but you choose how risky. Especially with kids, Anyway 'nuff said about all that.....

...... Meet Oscar. A 13.2 Welsh section C. He is a talented, fun loving, go-getting sort of a pony that meets life head on with enthusiasm and a dollop of pony-cheekiness. Manners are very lacking - everyone is used as a head scratching post. He is incredibly greedy and would sell his soul for a carrot or 6. He loves to jump and he loves to play in the field. He is very active and inquisitive, and standing still is not really his thing! Though he stands under saddle well. It's just on the ground that he is keen to be on the move all the time.

Twin 2 has joined some lessons and it is Zak all over again - Zak was a kick along when we got him, and the RI just yelled 'Kick, kick, BOOT HIM' until I got so frustrated that I took them out of lessons and taught them myself until they had Zak beautifully responsive to them. (He is now the most popular pony in the RS as he is so light off the leg and breezes into canter effortlessly with barely a squeeze).

This time we have the opposite problem - now it's 'PULL PULL," And Oscar was taking exception to this treatment. I've ridden him and he is wonderfully responsive to seat and weight aids and he is very sensitive in his mouth. So much so that Twin 1 has been riding him round the arena, with her cast still on, on a loose rein bringing him up to trot and back to halt without using the rein at all! So once again I've pulled twin 2 out of lessons for now till she learns how to press his buttons, then they can re-join. He's only ever had one rider so this is a new partnership and they need to get used to each other. And to be fair to the RI, she does not have time in a group lesson to address a problem individually so he needs to be listening well to them before he goes in group lessons I think.

Oscar's old owner (who has her own schooling yard, events to a high level, broke Oscar herself and taught her daughter to ride him) is coming to give a private lesson tonight so that he is ridden in the way he is used to, so that should really help.

Some pics.....

 

[CharliesAngel]

oh he is gorgeous, what a handsome chap! All the best with him.

 

[KP nut]

Brilliant lesson tonight. As soon as Twin 2 got on he was snatching at the rein and putting his head down. Instructor asked her just to let him have his head and walk round the arena on a loose rein. He calmed very quickly. Then she changed the rein and rode some figure eights with minimal contact. Then she gathered her reins and had a very light contact. By now he was in a natural outline and did not object to a contact. Then they walked, trotted, changed gait within the trot and cantered on both reins all very effortless and very soft. RI advised me to trust my instincts and said he had never had anyone pulling on him before so this is not the way to go.
Twin 2 was beaming at the end. He is a lovely pony.

 

[newforest]

He sounds a little like my lass. You don't need the reins. She is seat, weight and voice.
Her downward transitions are spot on usually and her upwards need a little bit if encouragement I have accidentally taught canter to halt.
I also start all sessions on a long rein then change to light contact.
I did a have a rider on who pulled to slow her and she just pulled back.

 

[KP nut]

Oscar rejoined lessons for a week, which he found jolly exciting and responded with rather too much enthusiasm! RI was getting twin 2 to canter 3 strides then halt repeatedly. The next time they rode after that lesson he just started bunny hopping when asked for canter. A much more experienced rider hopped on and he cantered on the spot on both reins till she asked 'does he know how to canter?!"YES!!! So I hopped on and he gave a series of impressive bucks and farts then cantered on nicely. I was feeling a bit overwhelmed thinking oh crikey how can my kids ride THIS, but on reflection I think canter-halt was just confusing him and his bunny hopping was his totally genuine efforts to both canter and not move forward at the same time. And the bucking/farting was self expression! Bless his ginger socks. Anyway I have pulled them out of lessons again and they are having lessons with me or with his old owner only for now and when ridden in the way that suits him, he has been fine. I have also started riding him regularly myself. I was initially hoping to avoid this as I have 2 others to school but hey ho. It won't be forever - just till the kids can get w/t/c easily, safely and reliably without hanging on or confusing him or worrying if he moves a bit quicker than they are used to. It seems he needs both sensitivity and clarity. So soft, quiet riding but with very clear direction. I have to admit that I am having a real blast riding him. He is FANTASTIC. If he were a hand higher I'd be nicking him!! He is so light and responsive and has so much enthusiasm that I find myself laughing out loud sometimes. If he is listening to me, all that sensitivity and energy and enthusiasm is available to me and he performs beautifully. But if he is not listening to the rider then it spills out in unwanted ways and he is distractible and silly. If he could talk I imagine he'd be like an exuberant kid: "what are we doing NOW mum!!" So it's our job to keep him thinking and working forward. Without clear direction he'll make up his own mind about what to pay attention to and how to have fun.

 

[Jane&Ziggy]

What an exciting pony! You can see it in his face, he looks so keen and cheerful, like an equine spaniel

 

[newforest]

Just my random thoughts but I would rather have the RI ride him and teach the twins how to as well. That's the whole point of lessons, then they learn how to deal with whatever is going on.
If you step in and resolve it, then give him back they haven't worked through it, they still haven't learnt the feel needed.
It may take a little time for them to work out how much seat they need to get the transition. That's what a new partnership is all about.

 

[KP nut]

Great day today. Hacked him out on the roads and he was fab. Then tonight the twin who broke her arm rode him really positively and confidently and he went beautifully for her. W/t/c on both reins then a little cross pole course. No more bunny hopping or head tossing, hurray!

 

[KP nut]

Oscar Bootcamp.....
Overdue update. Well it;s been an interesting journey so far with a lots of ups but quite a few 'downs' too!

Oscar came from a very skilled 10 year old and he had lived with her since he was 2 and been broken in by her highly skilled mum. He behaved impeccably on the viewing and for about a week with us. And then it began to gradually go wrong! We'd have 2-3 great rides then he'd be silly. Over time the 'silly' rides began to outnumber the good ones! It's sometimes hard to see the wood for the trees but looking back I think I can see the small steps that led to a bigger problem.

Firstly there were his ground manners. I was teaching the girls that he had to stop when they stopped and they should be able to lead him on a loose lead rope. I noticed that when they stopped he would stop, but then he would oh-so-casually take a step sideways making them move over a couple of steps. He did it every time. I know some people doubt the significance of the 'who is moving whose feet' ideas but I have become convinced that this was highly significant for Oscar. He was demonstrating to his own satisfaction that these little people could be moved out of his way if he wanted. Having established who was in charge on the ground, he began to pull them around more often. As they were caring for him more or less independently I had not realised the extent to which his manners had deteriorated.

Then came work under saddle. He has only ever been ridden well. So he was not used to being ridden by nervous riders. It became clear that he needs competent riding. He is lively so every so often there will be a moment when he jogs a little, or spooks, or breaks into canter when not asked eg on the approach to a jump or even trotting poles. The girls inevitably responded to this by taking their leg off and holding on too tight to his mouth. This had the effect of shortening his stride, making him bracey and choppy, lifting his head, snatching at the rein and making him more tense. So they would also get more tense and eventually stop riding altogether and he would grind to a halt. He quickly learned that a bit of silly buggers would lead to a nice break! He also would not stand so when they legged each other up he would walk off immediately and they were scared to 'upset and annoy' him so would not make him stand but would let him walk off.

We had some great rides with him - the highlights being the 2 SJ shows we took him to where he jumped the X-pole class and the 50cm and went clear, being placed in every class.





But unfortunately his behaviour became more unpredictable, and finally just before Christmas he bucked twin 2 off in an impressive display of pony acrobatics - apparently the first time in his life he has done this. We had a 'What To Do About Oscar' conference and he went to boot-camp! Under the very helpful guidance of his former owner - whose daughter rode him for us and who is still giving the girls lessons, we decided Oscar needed a zero tolerance approach to EVERYTHING. Every single interaction. He needs to stand still, wait for his hay, wait for tacking, wait for mounting, wait for instructions to move, react instantly to aids, back up, move over and generally be a model citizen at all times! At the same time I had a long chat with the girls that basically said you HAVE to ride him properly. Being tentative is understandable but will make him worse. He needs you to keep your leg on and RIDE him. Our new mantra is keep calm and kick on! Well in the 3-4 weeks since then he is a transformed character. The girls are riding better, they won't take any nonsense from him on the ground and he has accepted his new status happily.
I think it is really interesting how quickly doing the wrong things can lead to problems with a pony's behaviour and how so much 'naughty' behaviour is to do with the riding and handling and not the pony.
Onwards and upwards! (Hopefully)

 

[Jane&Ziggy]

How interesting that he interpreted hesitation and tentative riding as weakness. Well done for sorting it!

 

[KP nut]

Gosh this diary has been very neglected! Right where were we....

After 'boot-camp' the twins were told they had to RIDE him. He is not the sort of pony who will look after passengers. Twin 1 (who broke her arm) just couldn't do it. She was too scared and she said she wanted to sell him. Twin 2, on the other hand, wanted to persevere. At some stage they were going to get a pony each, if they stuck with it - so along came Lisa which was exactly who Twin 1 needed at the time.

Twin 2 worked really hard and learnt how to ride him properly and it all settled down again. Oscar is still Oscarish at times, but that's fine. She knows she needs to give him direction and clarity. We never did go back to group RS lessons. I taught her myself mainly, with a lesson every few weeks from his old owner and once they were confident enough we started going to pony club rallies.

Twin 2 absolutely adores him. Here are some pics for you to enjoy!!

 

[KP nut]

And a few more.....

 

[Prjsmk]

Brilliant pictures, its very good that you worked out what went wrong and persevered and didnt just sell him on, its paid off. Hes very handsome too! Look forward to hearing more about him

 

[KP nut]

Thanks but he now lives in Devon! My daughter had him for 2 years but sold him at the end of this season when almost outgrown. She could have done the winter with him but would probably not have been able to compete him next year so it made sense to get to know her new pony over the winter in preparation for the event season next year.

So Oscar now belongs to 5 kids ranging in age from 12-2 so they will have him for a long time I hope. We really miss him. He's a fab pony.

If you read the full diary you might be interested in what became of Zak... sadly his good behaviour with better riders did not last and he started throwing everyone off, no matter how good they were. So he was retired from the RS to take up a life of leisure. He then went intermittently then chronically lame and was PTS when vets could find no explanation or solution.

I always believed that there was something 'wrong' with Zak because his Jekyl and Hyde behaviour made no sense. But I was told by lots of people that it was just my daughters' inexperience. Whereas I believed there was nothing 'wrong' with Oscar that confident riding wouldn't sort. A lesson in trusting your own instincts I guess......

I have stopped keeping diaries now. But is was fun to see and read this one again! So thanks for posting. x