All in one piece this morning.
Radar is fine this morning. The two tiny scratches on his chest are healed over with a nice healthy scab. His legs are fine too. But he is clearly mentally completed exhausted! He walked into the yard this morning and continued in a straight line instead of turning left into his stable - and walked straight into Jazz's. Jazz followed him in and Radar stood there like a dork wondering where he was.
Then when they went into the barn, he walked into the end of the open gate, and on going through the barn door he hit his head on the side. I have never known a horse with so little awareness of his own body!
This afternoon Jazz and I went out for a relaxing little hack. Whoever would have thought that we would have been talking about taking Jazz out hacking to relax, and out hunting to have a stress-free day if Radar doesn't progress quickly enough to give us a fun day soon.
C
ps Radar isn't as fat as he looks in yesterday's photos. Out of nerves he is standing with his bottom tucked in, and he has a huge depth of girth as well. He's really very fit!
posted by cptrayes @ 5:34 PM
19 comments
19 Comments:
OK, Ok, I thought he looked a little round, but then again, he is a big boy. Toby once walked into a tree because he was daydreaming. Not a big tree, fortunately, and he was embarrassed about it. Give Radar a year at your place and he'll start to develop some sense of self-preservation.
See, a nice quiet, relaxing hack on a well trained dressage horse can make your day! *BWG* Glad Jazz is filling the bill.
What's going on with the Button training? Shouldn't he have mastered another trick by now? *lol*
I don't "do" fat horses. In fact I have been criticized more than once by people who think I keep my horses too thin. It's just how he was standing.
Button is a bit slow to learn a second trick, and I've got rather bored of our lack of progress and given up for the moment.
C
I am glad you posted today. I wanted to hear that you were still ok! I too thought Radar was a bit, well not fat, but definitely in good flesh.
I'm absolutely fine ML. I don't even ache anywhere, I can hardly believe it. Radar has the hugest ribcage I've ever seen - his girth is four inches longer than Tetley's was.
C
i just thought he looked well muscled...
and it's amazing how many people keep their horses overweight....
Gulp, I've just caught up on your weekend's adventures. I'll second thoughts for your well being, but knowing you have a very high pain threshold, as long as nothings broken, you usually are OK aren't you!!
Good luck with your bitting challenges, that sounds pretty terrifying to me, but I can see the exhilaration of his speed at the same time. Would you consider a gag? I have to say from what you have written that would be what I'd be after for my next outing, especially as you say they are usually worse on their second outing.
I thoroughly congratulate your thirst for excitement though Caroline, awesome bravery.
Tracey B
Blimey it sounded like a rather wild day of it yesterday! Im planing on taking Ali hunting a couple of times soon I might rethink after reading that!:0
Who would have thought Jazz would be more sensible of the two in that situation.
Hopefully Radar bucks the trend and improves on the 2nd time out!
Amazing and cruel too Claire, if you see some of the fat ones panting their way around event courses these days :-(
Bitting is the big issue Tracey - he won't go forward into the pelham, so he won't jump in it. I have to stop his head going up (martingale, but which - running or standing). I have to be able to stop him (gag action with or without curb). But I also need to be able to go into a fence with a good firm contact, which he likes. My thoughts at the moment are with a pelham with two reins, with a running martingale on each set of reins, with the curb chain padded up because he reacts too strongly to it. I'm planning a test on Tuesday when he has some energy back!
The thirst for excitement, unfortunately, is more often a curse than a gift.
Nicola he behaved exactly as I had expected Jazz to!
C.
Is the pelham a rubber one? If not, have you tried the rubber, or an elastic/covered curb chain. I would prefer a standing martingale so it would stop his head going too high, and I found that a horse can get their heads up in a running martingale as the rings just slide along the reins. With a standing it is a definite stop and no further and you keep the direct rein.
Would a double work? Then you could ride on the snaffle mostly and have the curb for insurance.
Mmmm, good thoughts. The pelham is metal, no port, like his snaffle bit. I did wonder about putting double stops on the reins, so that the rings stayed in front of the rubber and off the bit as well. I'm going out tomorrow equipped with another strap to turn one of the runnings into a standing and see what that does.
Did you never find the standing stopped them using their head to balance in a bad landing??? That worries me a bit.
I was hoping the pelham will work as a double with two reins because he's never had two bits in his mouth and he's not the brightest spark and I'm worried about giving him too much to think about. He's got a huuuuuge tongue too, so it could be a bit crowded in there! :-)
C
Adding to pelham thoughts, Hector has a straight bar rubber pelham and leather curb chain - anything metal provokes wild head tossing and backing off, anything lesser and I have no brakes. That combo seems to work well both for him and Charlie, fwiw.
I'd be twitchy about jumping in a standing martingale, but it might be worth a try if you could avoid jumps for a day or so - if made a big difference to Jacko as he didn't like the rein pressure of a running martingale. Now he's learnt his job he is back in a running and fine in it.
Standing martingale - I've never heard of any problems so long as it is fitted correctly and not too short, and there is a rubber to keep the slack above the neckstrap part and not dangling round their legs. I thought it had to come into action when the head got too high, above the withers, although I would have to consult the Manual of Horsemanship to be sure.
My horse had the irritating habit of throwing up his head and rushing out hunting and having to quue for a fence which is quite common, and it prevented me getting banged iin the nose, but it didn't affect his jumping at all. You can tell the force as he stretched the noseband. He was 9 when I bought him so it was well entrenched by then. It was different eventing as the running worked out as we weren't stopping and starting like out hunting so the head-up wasn't really an issue.
A standing martingale used to be pretty standard for hunting youngsters and show jumping, until it got abused and fitted so short the horses coudn't extend their necks, often in Pony Club (one grey BSJA horse comes to mind). Are they still allowed in BSJA?
Nic you might remember that I always used a piece of stirrup leather as a curb until Jazz snapped one of them and bolted and it was a chain for him from then on. But you have made me think that I should go back to one for Radar, who I think is like Hector. I have wrapped the chain in fybagee and tape until it's like a thick sausage, but after what you've written I'll try the leather instead.
"Up the neck into the throat and down to the noseband" was what I learned for the length of a standing, from the PC manual, I believe, not that I was ever in the PC! I think BSJA still allow them but they are out of fashion in SJ right now. When one of the Whittakers has one on, everyone will use them again :-)
I saw a hunter put one on on Saturday that was so short the horse had to stay in an outline (of sorts!) but then again I've seen its mouth bleed in a pelham and chain and running one, it pulls so hard.
My strategy tomorrow is to do one run under control. If that goes OK, next run I'll let him go - and by gum he'll go all right! - and attempt to pull him up after 100 yards. If I succeed, I've got the right kit. If I can circle too, I've really got the right kit. If it doesn't work I'll change a running to a standing and see if that helps. If not, bring him home and think again and ask for more ideas!
C
PS: Had another thought (!)...worst case scenario it stems from Hill Farmer in his pedigree - who is Ghost's sire, and Ghost is the one horse I can't take out hunting - once in company bolts, tanks, refuses to be behind, sticks his head in your face and is an absolute nightmare... :-) G also has the huge, thick tongue, but unlike R never really learnt to tolerate bits of any kind LOL I'm sure R will NOT be like that on Saturday, however :-)
I'm not aware of any Hill Farmer in him Nic. I don't think Cavalier is related, is he? And the rest of his parentage is a mystery except maybe his mother was by Cruising. Ghost is a one-off - please???
C
Nic I posted a response to your post on yesterday's!
C
My mistake, I thought you said there was some Hill Farmer in him when you got him - I am deluded ;-) Sorry about the scattered comments - stream of consciousness stuff (!)
Just checked - no, I am not deluded after all - a first surely!! - on 27th March you posted:
"His breeding is Hill Farmer cross Shire on the mother's side"
Good luck!!!!! On the plus side, he may stay as sound as he is now till his twenties ;-)
Well b*gg*r me! I forgot all about that. You aren't a lawyer for nothing, are you :-)))) ??? Alf told me when I saw him last month that his father was a Shire x colt by Cavalier , in fact the whole story swings around every time I speak to him! Why, for example, did a horse who was at a stud for sale from December to March come with a sweet itch rug?
C
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