Teaching riding doesn't only involve teaching people, but also horses :)
I must say that I'm happy not having to do the stable work (mucking out, fetching horses, brushing etc etc). It gives me time to focus on what Iove to do, which is teaching and riding and developing Tsamadhi's Riding school. Today I has super lessons! We were doing a jumping exercises with trotting poles, 2 jumps and canter poles, placed on an oval practising turns. Tasselberry, that arrived Aug 2010 after growing up at Kaapsehoop, being a trail riding horse, have taken some time to develop and gain strength. He's got quite a big head, and likes to lay in your hands if u allow him to. Ever since he arrived he's been a bit dif to turn and get him used to working on his own and not follow. These 2 habbits were obviously created by his past life as a trail horse. He'll be 7 this year so he's still got a lot of time to learn! Today he worked SO well with Tomas, did the exercise- without thinking twice about it! :) (even if a little wrong from time to time he really tried his hardest!). Being a shire x he is not always the quickest with his feet- but what he lacks of in lightness he gains in heart- and when he picks up his legs he can fly over 1 m as if it's nothing! :)
Then we have Simango- that arrived at the same time as Tasselberry. He's a friesan x thouroughbred gelding, 5 years old, that I'm working on together with another lady. He's got nice big movements but has been difficult lately. He'd been stopping not wanting to move forward with the other lady, and gave her some BIG kicks, showing clear discomfort/ unwillingness to work. So I decided I should ride him too . I found I needed 15 min to get him to really stretch and move forward in the walk, and allowed him the time needed for him to loosen up. I have a slight feeling he's a bit tight somewhere on the left back, which is causing his unwillingness to work before stretching.So far he hasn't protested much with me, and is learning to move forward and stretch. Today he started of great and was happily moving forward in the walk, but had started something new in the trot, which was moving forward but curling up and and not wanting to stretch, yet he was moving well forward. After 30 min I finally managed to get him to lengthen his neck and stretch! :)
Storm- my 3 yeard old thouroughbred mare, in foal to Ferro's son has been showing great improvements every day. Every day I work with her I'm waiting to see her cheeky side, and not willing to work side, as I had been told by my instructor she wasn't easy. But no, I'm certain that if one horse clicks with me, it's her! I LOVE HER personality, always doing everything to work with me. Ears happily moving around, and often pricked forward, in a curious way. Interested in life without being spooky or nervous. She comes up to me and stops, respectfully with a slight distance, lowering he, with her bum as straight away from me as it can be. Even the lunging that she stopped a few times on , either refusing to move forward or throwing herself backwards- which I felt was a sign of nervousness and previous bad handling from the racetrack, she's stopped doing. When she cantered on both sides without doing a perfect circle I decided to stop our work. Whenever I introduce something new and it goes well I stop, even if after 2 min of work, and gradually,daily increase what I ask and for how long, until I can work normally with a horse for as long as I want.
Next week I'm closing 2011's last breakdowns of what's owed, and starting with the first bills of 2012. A less enjoyfull job I have, but necessary.