Oh Boll)(*&(*&^&^%&^%&^*&(*(cks
£44 entry fee
£10 start fee
hours of preparation polishing boots and plaiting up
5.30 am alarm call
6.30 start
three hours return travel
£40 diesel
And the dressage arena was full of huge and razor sharp flints, Tia trod on one just as she was going up the centre line and we had to retire unsound. What a hopeless palaver. I am, needless to say feeling extremely frustrated with my day. There isn't another Intro competition for over four weeks, it's four weeks since my last, and my season is in ruins.
Look at this! These were everywhere in the warm-up area, which she coped with, and in the actual dressage arenas too. The shod horses with numb feet didn't seem to be noticing them, but I just couldn't get away with it with a horse so shortly out of shoes.
With the winter finishing so late and not being trained up for the start of the season; then events cancelled due to rain, then the showjumping hiatus we are about where I expected to be at the end of May. I don't have a hope now of getting Tia really proficient at Intro this season. Tetley is ready soundness wise but it would be unfair to do more than the odd local thing and training with him because he is so not match-fit after a year's layoff.
I like Tia a lot, and she is a really smart looking horse with a terribly sweet nature. But we are a temperament mismatch and riding Caddy seriously has brought that out so it stares me in the face. He makes a best guess where she won't even try unless she knows what you want and that she can do it. She is a sensitive mare, and my riding is physically fine but mentally just not up to riding a horse which worries about getting things perfect. So I have reduced her price to £4,500, which is what I think she is really worth now, and changed her category to all-rounder from eventer. My next entry would have to go in the post by the 11th and if I haven't had a rethink by then I will not be sending it.
What a year! Smartie, Tetley... I must just remember that Tia was a distress purchase bought as a last-minute stand-in and that she has done a wonderful job for me. It's time to count blessings, of which I have a bucketload, but I'm sure a bottle of wine is going to help with that.
C.
posted by cptrayes @ 6:36 PM
8 comments
8 Comments:
Ouch, poor Tia. Around here, most of our riders would not tolerate such bad footing for long. The bigger shows have "footing reports" you can file and people don't tend to go to competitions where the footing is bad. And, shod or not, it is not fair to expect a horse to perform in such conditions. Yuck.
I experience sympathy pains as I have had so bad rides myself because of footing....only because my PJ could not cope with grass. Even good grass would cause him to slip and then he'd pull back and not perform. I finally discovered using studs in his shoes was the solution, but not after having a number of horrid rides.
I hope Tia's lameness was shortlived, and not a true bruise. My horses have taken quite a few lame steps after hitting a stone, and then, after the sting wears off, they are OK. It would be enough to get dismissed from the ring too. Keeping my fingers crossed that's Tia's problem.
You sound as if you are making some wise choices with your gang. I have never really felt comfortable with mares myself as my personality does not match well with them. The boys seem so much more accepting of my riding. Someone out there will adore her and "click" with her personality.
Wish I could make things better for you. I had a show season like that last year when Tucker had an occult abscess in his hoof. Took all season to sort it out and I wasted several hundred dollars in show fees along the way. It hurts. I am aching for your frustration.
Ouch, poor Tia. Around here, most of our riders would not tolerate such bad footing for long. The bigger shows have "footing reports" you can file and people don't tend to go to competitions where the footing is bad. And, shod or not, it is not fair to expect a horse to perform in such conditions. Yuck.
I experience sympathy pains as I have had so bad rides myself because of footing....only because my PJ could not cope with grass. Even good grass would cause him to slip and then he'd pull back and not perform. I finally discovered using studs in his shoes was the solution, but not after having a number of horrid rides.
I hope Tia's lameness was shortlived, and not a true bruise. My horses have taken quite a few lame steps after hitting a stone, and then, after the sting wears off, they are OK. It would be enough to get dismissed from the ring too. Keeping my fingers crossed that's Tia's problem.
You sound as if you are making some wise choices with your gang. I have never really felt comfortable with mares myself as my personality does not match well with them. The boys seem so much more accepting of my riding. Someone out there will adore her and "click" with her personality.
Wish I could make things better for you. I had a show season like that last year when Tucker had an occult abscess in his hoof. Took all season to sort it out and I wasted several hundred dollars in show fees along the way. It hurts. I am aching for your frustration.
How did that post twice? I only posted once. It wasn't that important! *G*
Did the wine work?
It helped the first time I read it and the second Jean, thankyou. The wine was nice, took the edge off.
i'd complain to BE - no horse can be expected to do dressage in that sort of going, shod or barefoot. ridiculous!
Poor Tia. That must have been painfull. Even a shod horse will get a stonebruise!!!
I would definetely complaint :-(
Well I do not know about mare being mare. Linda behaves a bit like a stallion, she is a tomboy :-D, so I get on well with her. But in the past I have better feeling with boys.
Caroline, you are an experienced horsemwoman. You ough to follow your gut feeling! You know best!
[QUOTE] He makes a best guess where she won't even try unless she knows what you want and that she can do it. She is a sensitive mare, and my riding is physically fine but mentally just not up to riding a horse which worries about getting things perfect.[/QUOTE]
This bit could be about Bebe and even though I love her to bits it drives me completely and absolutely nuts a lot of the time. It is so hard to work with a horse that doesn't offer you anything if they're not sure what you actually want, as opposed to one who throws things at you in the hopes that one of the things is correct. I've been told many times that other people couldn't cope, and there are times when I wonder so I can understand completely why you've decided to lower Tias price and change her advertisement a bit.
I'd have complained loudly and repeatedly about the footing, that's shocking! I wouldn't have been happy regardless of shod or not.
Thanks guys, your support is a real help. Can't help feeling down today, but Tia is fine. She is sound but she looks, not surprisingly, as if all four feet are a bit achey. You know, standing with her front feet back a bit and her back feet forward a bit. Nothing drastic that won't be right in a day or two.
C
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