Feeling so discouraged. Kal has been at his new yard for a month now. He is much happier being in his stable now, ties up nicely, stands still to be groomed and tacked up, is affectionate, relaxed and is generally a nice person to be around.
Except.
He is still VERY antsy in the school . . . very looky, quite spooky, sharp. And I can't hack him . . . he is so backwards thinking, very sticky, very nervous and anxious to go back to the safety of the yard. Because of our disastrous hack, I am very nervous and he totally feeds off me . . . he is VERY bonded to me now that I am the only person who handles him . . . he is even sticky when we go out with someone else on the ground. When we were at our previous yard we hacked out alone all the time with NO issues . . . I can't figure out why he's so unsure at the yard.
In addition, with all the hooleying and rearing he did after we moved him, he tweaked his back and began going disunited behind in canter on the left rein . . . as I lost my job money is tight so before I got the back man out to him, I rested him . . . dramatic improvement but it's yet another reason for me not to ride and it's getting me down.
Before I bought him, I was confident in walk/trot/canter . . . would jump if pushed, competent at low-level lateral work (leg yield, shoulder-in) could ride simple changes and a flying change on a well-trained horse. I was happy to ride in the outdoor, indoor school or a field.
When we bought him, I spent alot of time getting to know him, was comfortable with him in the school and out hacking . . . with the help of my instructor we improved his balance (he came to us very green), worked on getting him to lighten his forehand (quarter turns and lots of bending) and yield his hindquarters. I was loose-schooling him over jumps and a friend jumped him in a couple of times - he was good as gold and always very chilled (he only spooked in the school once in five months).
I feel like we've gone backwards. I haven't ridden properly for at least two months. I know I just need to get a grip, but I'm really struggling. I suffer from depression and it's all just getting to me. All I'm managing to do with him at the moment is bring him in, groom him, feed him, reapply fly spray and sunscreen and then turn him back out. He loves it, but he's losing all that lovely muscle we had worked so hard to build up . . . and the longer I don't ride, the harder it is for me to actually get on and do it.
I'm thinking that today I might take him for a walk in hand after I've lunged him . . . he's a donkey when led . . . but I know I should get on him.
Oh, and when I went up to the yard on Saturday, I learned that he and his fieldmate got into a kicking match . . . as no'one saw it happen we don't know what went on . . . whether it was aggressive or whether it was play that got out of hand . . . but poor Danny (fieldmate) came off much worse and the vet had to be called. I felt terrible (had a little cry while I poo picked). It seems so out of character for Kal to be a bully though . . . at his previous yard he went out of his way not to kick other horses - even when they tried to mount him. I know he's playful . . . and he's much younger and fitter than Danny (and bigger), so the play could have gotten out of hand. Before this, he and Danny were often grazing side-by-side or standing nose-to-tail. Sigh.
How do I get out of this nasty rut?
Cookies if you got this far . . .
N
Except.
He is still VERY antsy in the school . . . very looky, quite spooky, sharp. And I can't hack him . . . he is so backwards thinking, very sticky, very nervous and anxious to go back to the safety of the yard. Because of our disastrous hack, I am very nervous and he totally feeds off me . . . he is VERY bonded to me now that I am the only person who handles him . . . he is even sticky when we go out with someone else on the ground. When we were at our previous yard we hacked out alone all the time with NO issues . . . I can't figure out why he's so unsure at the yard.
In addition, with all the hooleying and rearing he did after we moved him, he tweaked his back and began going disunited behind in canter on the left rein . . . as I lost my job money is tight so before I got the back man out to him, I rested him . . . dramatic improvement but it's yet another reason for me not to ride and it's getting me down.
Before I bought him, I was confident in walk/trot/canter . . . would jump if pushed, competent at low-level lateral work (leg yield, shoulder-in) could ride simple changes and a flying change on a well-trained horse. I was happy to ride in the outdoor, indoor school or a field.
When we bought him, I spent alot of time getting to know him, was comfortable with him in the school and out hacking . . . with the help of my instructor we improved his balance (he came to us very green), worked on getting him to lighten his forehand (quarter turns and lots of bending) and yield his hindquarters. I was loose-schooling him over jumps and a friend jumped him in a couple of times - he was good as gold and always very chilled (he only spooked in the school once in five months).
I feel like we've gone backwards. I haven't ridden properly for at least two months. I know I just need to get a grip, but I'm really struggling. I suffer from depression and it's all just getting to me. All I'm managing to do with him at the moment is bring him in, groom him, feed him, reapply fly spray and sunscreen and then turn him back out. He loves it, but he's losing all that lovely muscle we had worked so hard to build up . . . and the longer I don't ride, the harder it is for me to actually get on and do it.
I'm thinking that today I might take him for a walk in hand after I've lunged him . . . he's a donkey when led . . . but I know I should get on him.
Oh, and when I went up to the yard on Saturday, I learned that he and his fieldmate got into a kicking match . . . as no'one saw it happen we don't know what went on . . . whether it was aggressive or whether it was play that got out of hand . . . but poor Danny (fieldmate) came off much worse and the vet had to be called. I felt terrible (had a little cry while I poo picked). It seems so out of character for Kal to be a bully though . . . at his previous yard he went out of his way not to kick other horses - even when they tried to mount him. I know he's playful . . . and he's much younger and fitter than Danny (and bigger), so the play could have gotten out of hand. Before this, he and Danny were often grazing side-by-side or standing nose-to-tail. Sigh.
How do I get out of this nasty rut?
Cookies if you got this far . . .
N