Taima is finally feeling better! He's been back in work for a little while now and should be finished up with his "month" of training right around Christmas time.
As far as being a dressage horse - he still needs a lot of work. He's very dull to leg yielding, but he's got the energy and potential to learn. He can finally GO and hold it, and has great gaits. And of course, he'll have to learn how to collect himself, sooner or later.
But right now he's learning to just listen, to go, to stop, and to have patience. He's becoming a lot more solid as a simple riding mount.
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Sunday, November 20, 2011
11/20/2011
Just a quick update for those of you who like to keep up with these blogs.
Taima wasn't acting quite right, so the vet was called out and it was discovered that he had an iron deficiency that was making him just a little bit off of his game. He's had lots of time off on new supplements and is starting to look and feel much better.
Training updates will resume shortly. :)
Taima wasn't acting quite right, so the vet was called out and it was discovered that he had an iron deficiency that was making him just a little bit off of his game. He's had lots of time off on new supplements and is starting to look and feel much better.
Training updates will resume shortly. :)
Sunday, October 23, 2011
10/23/2011
Yesterday I rode Taima - actual riding, not just sitting around on him. He did fine. I guess my only complaint was that he was like a stone pillar. He didn't want to move at all... he was not bad about it... he was just stubborn. So we stuck to walking for the day. I didn't want our first ride to become a huge fight.
Today there wasn't much difference in his willingness to move. He just doesn't want to. I'm not sure what is going on in his head, considering his last ride (before coming to me) was apparently exactly the opposite - go go go. I had a friend come out and help me to get those feet moving, by having the friend lunge while I rode.
After a bit of help he started moving out a bit better, but still so stiff and stuck, like. Tomorrow we will move from the round pen to the arena and see if it makes any difference. Got to get those feet moving or we'll get nowhere!
Today there wasn't much difference in his willingness to move. He just doesn't want to. I'm not sure what is going on in his head, considering his last ride (before coming to me) was apparently exactly the opposite - go go go. I had a friend come out and help me to get those feet moving, by having the friend lunge while I rode.
After a bit of help he started moving out a bit better, but still so stiff and stuck, like. Tomorrow we will move from the round pen to the arena and see if it makes any difference. Got to get those feet moving or we'll get nowhere!
Friday, October 21, 2011
10/21/2011
Taima arrived at Cedar Springs on October 16th. He had the day to settle in and our first session was the following morning.
Taima has had previous training but has had some bad times in his life, which makes him uneasy and untrusting, as well as unpredictable. So he has come to me for some work on trust, and to build reliability.
I took him back to basics for starters, but of course moved much faster than I would have with a green horse. Round pen work is always a must, whether they know it or not. That is where trust is established.
He takes everything in stride. His previous issues with a back cinch seem obsolete... he didn't bat an eye whether I left it loose or made it tight. Now, when I say tight I actually mean just snug - but one of my biggest pet peeves is seeing people riding with loose, draped back cinches. Sure, they don't serve any purpose of keeping the saddle on and therefore do not need to be cinched tight, but do you know how many horses get their back feet stuck in a back cinch when kicking at flies? It is a really messy situation. Please, make them snug!
Taima ground drives fine. He does require a tighter bridle than I like on most horses - he's very good at getting his tongue over the bit. Saddling is no issue at all, and he has so far been lunged in both the english and western saddles without batting an eyelash.
He did have one blow up in the roundpen, but I don't know what the trigger was. It was hard, but not aggressive or really serious. I think it was just a 'get it out of my system' sort of thing.
(Forgive the bounciness of this one - hard to video and work at the same time!)
Today I sat on him for the first time and he was fine with it for the first minute or so. And then he got really nervous, or irritated... I really can't tell which. Its possible that the cause of this was a man nearby... because of his history. But its hard to say. I cut it short, after making him relax and stand for a moment longer, because I didn't want to push him and cause a fight.
(Bouncing english stirrups not a problem, even when they hit the fence. Good sign!)
We will see what tomorrow brings!
(Taima and my mare Babe are buddies, even if she is a bully at times.)
Taima has had previous training but has had some bad times in his life, which makes him uneasy and untrusting, as well as unpredictable. So he has come to me for some work on trust, and to build reliability.
I took him back to basics for starters, but of course moved much faster than I would have with a green horse. Round pen work is always a must, whether they know it or not. That is where trust is established.
He takes everything in stride. His previous issues with a back cinch seem obsolete... he didn't bat an eye whether I left it loose or made it tight. Now, when I say tight I actually mean just snug - but one of my biggest pet peeves is seeing people riding with loose, draped back cinches. Sure, they don't serve any purpose of keeping the saddle on and therefore do not need to be cinched tight, but do you know how many horses get their back feet stuck in a back cinch when kicking at flies? It is a really messy situation. Please, make them snug!
Taima ground drives fine. He does require a tighter bridle than I like on most horses - he's very good at getting his tongue over the bit. Saddling is no issue at all, and he has so far been lunged in both the english and western saddles without batting an eyelash.
He did have one blow up in the roundpen, but I don't know what the trigger was. It was hard, but not aggressive or really serious. I think it was just a 'get it out of my system' sort of thing.
(Forgive the bounciness of this one - hard to video and work at the same time!)
Today I sat on him for the first time and he was fine with it for the first minute or so. And then he got really nervous, or irritated... I really can't tell which. Its possible that the cause of this was a man nearby... because of his history. But its hard to say. I cut it short, after making him relax and stand for a moment longer, because I didn't want to push him and cause a fight.
(Bouncing english stirrups not a problem, even when they hit the fence. Good sign!)
We will see what tomorrow brings!
(Taima and my mare Babe are buddies, even if she is a bully at times.)
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