Week 22

Week 22, Dallas has had a few big weeks leading up to her first competition and following up what we learnt at the clinic. She’s had a lot of flat work and a bit of obstacle work and a trail ride every could of days to keep her happy! She went to her first one day competition last weekend which was an extreme cowboy race, we got there and her little eyes where nearly popping out of her head she had so many new things to look at and take in, she definitely wasn’t a fan of the flappy tarps and flags and of course it was a windy day. I went into the event hoping that she would complete one obstacle and had a good go at everything and I would be happy, but she did better than that she completed 6 obstacles once I got her through the start flags, and had a go at the other 4 obstacles so I couldn’t be happier with her efforts.

Week 19, we had a great week Dallas went to her first clinic along with my good horse. She took it all in her stride I only took her just for an outing I had no expectations of her at all I just wanted her to get used to the other horses riding around her and a new environment and people but she actually did better then that and did some of the dry work lesson and worked the mechanical cow. At first she was very scared of the mechanical cow she would watch it but wouldn’t go near it and by the second day she was working it like a pro! Her turns where great she wasn’t rushed at all, still a little scared but so much better then I thought she would be. The clinic was with Phil Webb and he loved her, he wanted to get a photo with her but she was not keen on that idea still very stranger danger. She has had lost the the rest of the week off but she deserved it I was so proud of her efforts on the weekend. Her coat is starting to glow and so is her personality she’s just getting better every day! 

Week 17, this week has been much the same as the last few except Dallas decided that she would run feral in the paddock and give herself a cut under her belly just where the girth sits. I think she likes seeing me struggle riding bareback! Lots of slow work working on softness and getting her to use her body properly, we did a day on the obstacles which she enjoys. Hoping that her cut will heal quickly as we are meant to be going to a clinic next weekend and I can’t wait to get her out and about.

Week 16, Dallas has had another pretty easy week. I thought that longer days meant that I would have heaps more time to ride my horses but instead I seem to be just shoeing more horses every day. Shes had a few flat work sessions still just focusing on her using her body properly while staying calm and a few trail rides, shes also had another visit from the chiropractor as she gets a bit stif and sore through the neck and shoulders. We where meant to be packing up and going to our first clinic this weekend but it has sadly been postponed due to the rain coming. 

Week 15, Dallas has had a pretty easy week this week she got away with only having 2 rides as it is crazy season being a farrier but that’s ok I think she’s deserved a few days off as she’s going so well and trying her hardest. She’s feeling good after her pulse therapy session, I took her out for a trail ride after she had almost a week off and she was full of beans but didn’t put a foot wrong and then the next day we did a flat work session, I’m working on getting her more balanced and supple. She’s doing great but when she gets a bit confused she get rushy so lots of slow basic work to keep her calm. Her winter fluff is starting to come out and the belly isn’t as saggy she’s starting to look really good!

Week 14, much better weather time week! Managed to fit a few trail rides in this week and we did a flat work session through the middle of the week focusing on body control and getting her to slow down and start to use her body properly, she’s actually starting to hold a circle instead of doing hexagons. She moves her hind quarters and shoulders very well and flexes, her spins are coming along and we put it all together this week and got a side pass each way without her being to confused. She is also starting to collect while moving forward. Dallas got a much deserved Pulse therapy session at the end of this week which was good for her because she was well out of her comfort zone she had to stand in a shed out of the rain away from the other horses and meet another new person, she didn’t know what to do when the pulse machine started but she loved it by the end of it. Can’t wait for longer days so I can hopefully have some more time with her.

Week 13, at the start of the week I took Dallas to the local pony club grounds before the weather got bad she went really well, we did some arena work and then caught up with some friends that where going to jump the cross country course so I took Dallas around with them as she hadn’t ridden with more than one horse before. I just followed them around at the start until she was comfortable with the other horses jumping around her and by the end we went over a few little jumps. She’s still walking on the float like a champion and travelling really well. The rest of the week in between rain we just had a few trail rides up the bush and did a day on the obstacles. 

Week 12, unfortunately this week has been crazy with work so she had had most of the week off which won’t hurt her because she’s done so much in her short career as a ridden horse. She has just had a ride out in the bush one day, a short flat work session which she needs a lot more of but is doing very well considering the amount she has done and has now had her second laying down lesson. Once she works out how to lay down she more then happy to stay down as long as she can to get out of more work. She has so much hair falling out of her and she gets fed better then any of my other horses, hay in the morning and a bucket of hard feed at night with all of her minerals in it, so I can’t wait to see her summer coat come through. 

 Week 11, we have had the best weather and the days are very slowly getting long. This week we have been back to the local pony club grounds and worked on her flat work and a little bit of jumping and just exploring new things. I started working with the stock whip this week with Dallas which she has taken like an absolute champion, it took her about 15 mins to work out that it wasn’t going to hurt her and that it was just a sound on the ground to me being able to ride her around bareback in a halter cracking it off her and she stayed very relaxed. So happy with how she is learning to relax and think things through now instead of freaking out and bailing. A few trail rides up the bush this week to keep her happy as that is her favourite thing to do. Oh and she had destroyed her brand new rug already!  

We have had some beautiful weather the ground is starting to dry up and grass starting to grow. At the start of the week Dallas got her first ever rug a cotton to try and keep some mud off the little pig that she is, she also got her first set of shoes as she was starting to go foot sore out on the bush tracks. She was perfect to shoe and handled getting a rug very well. She’s had a few trail rides this week which she loves she just marches out, her ears don't miss anything. Wednesday afternoon it was nearly dark when I got home so I just jumped on her bareback with a halter on and went for a quick ride around the paddocks. We have also done a little bit on the obstacles this week and body control as well which she is going really well with.

Week 9 started off a lot slow with a wet weekend that she got to have off and then Monday I jumped on her after having a full week off and she was perfect it probably did her good to have a week off actually and refresh. 

After her ride around the farm on Monday she had a much deserved chiropractor treatment, she wasn’t sure of the new person at the start but she warmed to him very quickly when she started to feel better through the treatment. 

She needed a few days off after the treatment for the best recovery and then we were back into it on Thursday just trail riding getting her out and keeping her relaxed and enjoying work, she’s been really good on her own and taking in new things well. 

Lots of slow body control work as well to further her education, flexing, moving her hind quarters, moving her shoulders and we keep working on her stop and backing up. 

She has recovered perfectly after getting a hoof abscess and eating like a Queen, more and more personality coming out every day as she relaxes more and is comfortable with her new every day life.

Week 8 started off great Dallas had her first trip in the float she loaded and travelled like an absolute champion, I took her to the local pony club grounds as it was too wet to do any flat work at my place and they have great arenas and cross country course there. 

So her first time out and she wasn’t too worried at all, I rode her on the arena and couldn’t have asked anymore than what she gave me for her first time doing flat work and first time out and about, then I took her for a ride around the cross country course not jumping but just letting her take everything in and explore. 

She then had her first hose down which she wasn’t impressed with at the start but put up with it in the end, then she walked straight back on the float no worries at all. 

But since then due to the horrible weather I haven’t been able to ride her and she also got a hoof abscess which I had to wrap for a few days and was able to cut out today so she’s feeling much better now. 

Hopefully the weather we’ll be kind to us next week and we can get back into it.

 This week we have had some pretty bad weather but we have got a few rides in between and we have just had to face the rain a few times. 

Dallas had her first ride out on her own and handled it so well she has had 3 rides up the bush and through the paddocks on her own now and she is really relaxed and comfortable out on a ride. 

We had a day of playing in the obstacles again and lots of body control which she is taking in very well, she’s getting softer and more willing every ride. 

At the start of the week I still had her in the halter but she is back in the bridle now and taking to it a lot better. This mate just keeps impressing me more and more every day, she’s sensitive and alert of everything but anything nasty that she had in her hasn’t shown for weeks now. 

Dallas has had a great week with now 6 rides under saddle and a few rest days to take everything in. She has surprised me so much this week, her third ride was straight out of the round yard through the paddocks and up the bush where she couldn’t be happier! Super relaxed lead the way without blinking an eyelid, up and down hills under trees over fallen trees, through deer wallows and past the machinery shed. We have been doing lots of basics getting body control under saddle keeping her soft and is moving her hind quarters when she’s asked to and just starting to get the idea of moving her shoulders. Yesterday she did the obstacle course for the first time under saddle and tried her heart out, although she had done all of these obstacles on the ground they were very scary without me on the ground next to her helping her through but we worked through it and she did all of the obstacles under saddle! She has also been fantastic to catch this week I was leaving the halter on her in the paddock to make it easy to catch her but she’s been halter free all week and we haven’t had a problem, she now runs up to her bucket of feed every night and if I’m lucky she will nicker out to me when she can see me walking around.

Week 5, time really does fly when your having fun! Dallas has had a few days off since my last update due to work but I have had a really good week with her this week, we have had some beautiful days and we are making the most of them,  she’s coming out of her shell more and more every day, she’s more confident and relaxed and starting to admit that she’s enjoying being a spoilt domestic horse. 

Same as last week I have spent a lot of time going over everything, mouthing, riding her bareback in the halter keeping her soft, lots of ground work and obstacles, exploring around with my other horse, and the big thing this week has been getting her comfortable with the saddle and relaxed enough for me to ride her in a saddle. And we ticked that box this week she’s now had two rides under saddle and with her bridle and she has been great! 

Everything we have done on the ground still paying off, she’s moving forward well, stopping backing up, moving her hind quarters when asked and staying nice and soft, she’s always listening and thinking. 

Now to get her out and about and let her enjoy being a ridden horse.

Week 3, Dallas had her first ride bareback which went great all the ground work leading up to it really paid off! Already knowing through ground work that a click meant to move her feet and she knew how to move her hind quarters and her shoulders, I spent hours getting her soft in the halter so that when I got on her she would give to the pressure on her nose and follow her nose. And she did exactly that she stayed soft she worked out how to move forward and stay soft even when she was confused she stayed soft and listened. Super happy with her efforts this week 

Since then she has had many bareback rides, I am mouthing her with the bridal while I keep riding her in a halter. She’s happy with the roller and getting better with the saddle, I have just been leading her around the farm off my other horses to get her to relax with the saddle on and stretch out. This week we have been doing some obstacles which she seems to enjoy, I started with leading her over everything and now I can send her towards an obstacle on a long lead and let her make the decision of doing the obstacle or going around and she always picks the obstacle, she’s very cleaver and she’s getting much better at problem solving and dealing with situations that she doesn't like.

Dallas has come a long way on week 3, I’ve been working very hard at gaining more and more trust with Dallas and getting her comfortable with me, at the start of the week she let me have my first sit on her bareback. She’s still weary and watching my every move but she stood there and took it all in handled it like a gem. 

She had become comfortable with the pressure of the rope around her girth area so I moved onto the roller which she handled well and now into the saddle. She has had the bridle on a few times just getting used to the bit in her mouth now that her teeth have been done and I just keep working on her flexing and giving to pressure in the halter. She’s getting softer every day and understanding how to stay soft while moving her feet as well. 

I have been leading her off another horse while she’s saddled getting her to relax and stretch out while taking in new places and new things to look at. I've also been laying over her and moving her hind end just to get her used to my weight over her as she moves.

You can follow Hayley and Dallas here: https://m.facebook.com/Hayley-Hinton-Austrailan-brumby-challenge-trainer-2020-112976883802577/?ref=bookmarks 

 Week two with VBA Dallas has been a big week! 

She has been upgraded to a paddock and gets a bucket of hard feed every night like the big horses, and she had been pretty good to catch. 

She’s had her feet trimmed and was better behaved than most broken in horses I do. She’s also had her teeth done which she handled very well and I’m glad I got her teeth done because she had a few issues there. I like getting all of these things done before starting any horse to rule out any problems and give them their best shot at starting their ridden career. 

Dallas is a very sensitive and reactive horse which can be hard at the start but normally can be very rewarding in the end, she is very smart and works things out quickly.

I’ve been introducing new things to her and getting her comfortable with me being above her, starting to lay my weight over her. She’s had the saddle cloth on, a rope around her girth area getting used to pressure around her because girthing her up, pool noodle all over her, 

she’s been soft in the halter learning flexion and to give to pressure.  

She’s so much more relaxed and her personality is coming through more every day.

Week one with VBA Dallas has been a lot of fun and she has impressed me a lot with how far she has come is such a short period of time, I have been focusing on getting her comfortable with being caught and letting me pat her all over. Iv been able to get control of her feet and establish basic body control. 

She’s leading well with me on the ground and off another horse, she’s getting used to me being above her when she’s being lead off another horse which will help her when I go to get on her.

I started my week doing a lot of join up getting her comfortable with me while teaching her to face up as well as the start of me being able to move her feet, 

I caught her off my other horse at first and then started working with her on the ground. She started off being very uncomfortable with me on her off side but we have worked through that and she is much happier with me on both sides. 

She’s a very smart mare she’s always thinking which makes it very rewarding working with her. She’s always keeping her eye on me and that makes it easy for me to keep her interested.