AliG had some seriousy road work exposure today!Rode out with Jo along the lane then back along the main road.
The first tester was along the lane passing the police training the dog's in the field, 3vans and barking dogs to deal with,AliG led Sandy past(who was spooking and napping) he appeared to want to climb into the van at one point much to the policemen's amusement!
No sooner had we passed them then the bin men's wagon approached so I tucked Ali onto the verge, its a narrow lane, and he didnt flacker infact walked on before it was past us as if to say what are we hanging around for.
Got onto the busy road and the first thing we saw was a large tractor heading towards him,I tucked him on the path and he let it pass without reaction.Im being extra carefull so as not to give him a bad experience he's not reacting but I want to make sure he is still extremely green really.He seemed unfazed by the actual cars,which were passing fast,he had one spook at a big piece of plastic on the verge but it was a little jump sideways certainly no Polo type spin.He did have three little ear pinning episodes I gave him a sharp tap on the shoulder told him to get on and used the reins putting him at and angle to put him off balance incase he went up.He responded well and didnt escalate it at all,he was quite hurried and along the road until he got to the point he recognised.
So im now 99.9% certain the behaviour is due to him being outside his comfort zone and being a bit worried even though he hides it well!
We are going out again tomorrow but in the opposite direction with less roadwork and coming back up the bridleway track which hopefully he'll enjoy.
Managed to give them both a couple of hours without their rugs on which they loved particularly Polo who was head to foot in mud.
He very clingy at the minute as soon as he hears my voice he's at the gate so I think he's feeling a bit put out that AliG's getting more of my attention.
Hopefully when the physio comes he'll be able to help and I can start rding him again..he looks so fantastic its almost feels a crime to be talking about retirement....
2 comments:
You've had a long term relationship with Polo. I shouldn't wonder if he did feel a little left out.
AliG is quite a brave boy. I don't think I currently own a horse that would accept all of those distractions without blowing up.
The traffic does scare me, though. However, I guess your roads are not what mine is. 18 wheelers--big lorries with trailers(we call them tractor trailers--going by at 50 mph. There are warehouses at either end of my road and the truckers use my road all the time. I'd never dare ride a horse along it.
Well done with the road training. Your confidence is obviously helping him a lot.
C
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