The times they are a-changing ...
Jazz has been very interesting the last two days. We thought that he was firm in the canter changes because he loved doing them so much. So we stopped him from doing them, and there is no doubt that he, or he and I, got out of practice. I think it was more him than me.
I tried them again today. I didn't tire him with anything else first, we just warmed up in a nice relaxed trot and canter, then did canter/walk to sit him down. Then tried changes on the diagonal. He was either late behind or not changing at all. I had to focus hard on not tensing up myself, because he was beginning to get frustrated and back off the bit. I worked on keeping my seat loose, to the extent that I realised that my thighs were actually off the saddle! My lower leg was on, though, and with no hold with my thighs, I was sat as deep as I can sit.
I got a workmanlike (correct but unenthusiastic) one from right lead to left, then we had a relax on a long rein. Then I tried left to right but he wasn't getting it at all on the diagonal, or only in front and very unbalanced. So I put him in counter canter and came round the short side and asked for a change on the long side. I thought he did a much better effort, though still late behind, but he did change behind rather than stay disunited.
So I tried one more, and my timing was spot on, with a tiny touch with the whip to change the back end, and the change was absolutely superb. Full of expression, with a big skip and super balance. We stopped then with big pats!
Funny, but the sleeper I put out on the arena edge more than a week ago is still causing Jazz some issues. And do you know - the harder the piece of work he is being asked to do, the more scary the sleeper is! Now isn't than strange ? :-) ?
Big hurrah, Radar was sound enough to ride out on the road. He is still 1/10 lame on a soft surface, but on the hard road he is very nearly perfect in trot, and perfect in walk. The infection is in the side of his frog, a tiny hole that can't be seen, but can be smelt! He also reacts if you poke it with a hoofpick. His feet are now a radically different shape than they were, and even with all this wet weather they were clacking on the road for all the world as if he had a set of shoes on. I suspect this issue with his frog was dead rubbish inside his foot from where they were terribly spread, which reached the surface and got in contact with bugs that made it rot. It happened with Tetley at about the same stage after taking his shoes off, and their feet are very similar.
Anyway, we went out for half an hour, the heavens opened, the rain drove into the front of my coat, ran down the front onto the pommel, into the seat - and there I was sat in a pool of water. Oh well, at least I got a ride in!
C
posted by cptrayes @ 3:28 PM
4 comments
4 Comments:
Glad to hear that Radar is better. I'm so impressed that you have got him going without shoes so quickly.
I had mine without shoes, and had a trimmer but just never quite got to the 100% state, so I'm afraid I had his shoes put back on for the summer and have them off in the winter and use hoof boots for hacking on the roads. I suppose it was a combination of the sort of horse he is and the conditions he is in. I don't have any arena so he is either in a grass field or out on the roads. I was probably not confident enough and kept him in boots when he might have been better without. When he stops doing shows I might have them off again in future.
Ah, miserable rain. We were lucky today and it was dry, though it threatened. By the way, in the arena, Tetley acts just like Jazz. When I demand more of him he finds lots of things to spook at that he doesn't even notice when relaxing. It's a dead give away and makes me laugh.
Ah, the monsters get so much bigger when you have to work! How many times did that white chair cause Tucker to spook...until I finally just moved it out of sheer frustration. *sigh* Worse, though, is that the more of an issue you make out of the sleepers the bigger they become in Jazz's eyes. So, if you can relax and ignore them, and perhaps focus Jazz on something else at that point...go past in shoulder in, etc. the less of a deal me may make of them....or not. (Could get Tucker to go past the chair just fine, but if I crossed the diagonal heading towards the chair, it was shut down time.)
The flying change takes a while to really establish. Actually the layoff and the now required "remedial" work should help cement it. I do like your relaxed approach to recovering it, though. Good move to keep his mind calm about the whole effort.
Glad Radar seems better. Fortunately, you have the experience and knowledge to deal with his hoof issues, so I'm pretty confident you have it all under control.
Sorry about the rain. Can't help there. I hate getting soggy like that during a ride.
Judith the musts for the trim are that his frog must touch the floor and his outer hoof wall must not. If your trimmer had that right, then sole sensitivity after that (after a period of "wearing in" of course) is almost always due to grass sugars. Something like 80% of horses appear to have a sensitivity to grass, which is masked by shoes. Jazz is particularly sensitive and unable to cope with daytime grass. Radar is a rock-stomper!
It is a laugh, isn't it ML? Such naughty boys!
I was sat in a puddle Jean - not pleasant :-)))
C
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