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Crikey @carthorse he really put you through it there. And you say that he got bratty because he wasn't allowed to gallop home? Cheeky monster.

I hope your bruises heal quickly and your blisters don't pop. Epsom salts in the bath methinks, and a medal for bravery!
 
The more I think of it @Jane&Ziggy the more I think he expected a beating once I was on the ground, and that makes the extreme behaviour such as going up at me, constant plunging and general lunacy far more understandable and in keeping with his nature - it was fear based rather than nastiness. I guess he couldn't distinguish between bucking me off and me getting off so panic kicked in . The initial tantrum about not being able to gallop for home was just that, a tantrum, and an element of rider error. I did a lot of work getting him ok to turn round and come back because it wasn't something he was good at, but Friday we were on a track, there was a real autumnal feel to the morning, he'd been bright all week and ultimately I cocked up and forgot he is what he is. Chances are if the byway was in better condition, ie not needing to duck under branches, I'd have stayed on him and while he'd have been sharp things wouldn't have got so out of hand. No one died, and lesson learnt!
 
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I forgot to update on this but it was nearly a week before I could get back on, not only was my ankle sore but arthritis in my knees flared up. But when I did get back on he was fine, which didn't surprise me in the least, and slightly miffed that we only went for a short walk because I was still very sore. We did another more normal length ride but then the weather and a strangles outbreak on a very close yard have put a stop to things. We haven't had a case so aren't in quarantinee but he had the strangle vaccination and reacted to it so has had some time off to get over it. I do love that he's so good to ride after time off, though looking at him a bigger girth may be needed!
 
Four weeks off, and very little work before that - I think he's been ridden twice since Christmas because of weather, holidays and various other reasons. So since today was dry and not icy I decided to ignore the strong and bitterly cold wind and go for a hack. As you do 😂

All I can say is he's an absolute gem of a horse! Yes he stole a steady trot for the length of the high street which is more than I would have asked him to do (my knees aren't entirely happy about that tonight) but it was so steady and calm I let him get on with it, particularlywhen he went straight past flags blowing in the wind. Sometimes with him it's easier to cut him some slack, he won't take the mick and tends to repay it by being good when he'd have good reason not to be.

Reading back through this thread has been interesting. It was only about a year in that I realised just how much of his training was based on fear, and that once that was unpicked how little was actually left. It took time and a lot of thought but now I have a hack who is so trustworthy and willing - if still rather hot! - that I don't think twice about hopping straight on on a cold and windy day after effectively nearly two months off, and he repays that trust by behaving. The one thing I've never been able to properly sort out is the mounting, but I can live with that. Nowadays I actually think it's a crying shame he never sired any foals, when I got him I was lightly stunned he'd been kept entire so long!
 
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C

Thread 'A little fresh'

Ok, "little" is a total understatement, and I'm too unfit and old for this.

I think I said in another thread that I'd been very impressed at how well Luka came back into work after over 2 months off - a bit nappy at the start of rides but even that was merely planting, a poor tactic for a lad who gets bored more quickly that I do.

Today was a different story. He'd had a few days off due to the weather and a dentist visit, but he had been ridden this week and been an absolute saint - maybe this was a oversight he saw fit to correct today! He was tricky to mount, but there's nothing...
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Still looking rather high this morning so tonight he came in for a feed and treatball then went back out with a decent rug on and plenty of hay. His fieldmate is also out, he's started coughing from being stood in with hay so is also better out. Hopefully I'll have a calmer lad in the morning! He was so excited to get back out, it was clearly what he wanted, and if the weather does turn bad again they can always come back in.
 
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Yesterday we went out in very strong winds and a heavy shower and he was remarkably good, disgusted with me but good. Then within a few feet of the yard he got spooked by a friend's parked car (despite the fact that about 10 minutes earlier we'd briefly chatted to her in the car :rolleyes: ). Nothing dramatic, just stopped dead, threw his head and neck up and froze. Another friend was coming towards us in her car so I thought it easiest to just hop off and lead him given he'll always come with me if I get between him and the monster. And that was when I came across a new problem - his massive neck was so high and back I couldn't lean forward to swing my leg over the saddle! He was so focused I couldn't get him to take a treat which would have turned and dropped it slightly, and there was no way he was taking his eyes off it to turn. All I could do was back him up until the car was out of sight, at which point he dropped enough that I could make an undignified scrambling dismount, thank God he didn't object to having his bum used as a push off because he was still too high to lean properly forwards. He did then lead forwards, though I couldn't reach to get the reins over his head so was walking more beside him than in front. He's 14.3 for Heaven's sake, how does a 14.3 tower so high?!

All the years I've been riding I've never come across that problem before!
 
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Copied from heatwave thread so I remember not to worry so much when hot weather is forecast!


Well Luka actually seems to be happy in this heat! It helps his field catches the breeze, but even so it's hot. He's bright as a button, so bright in fact that he's tiring to be around.

Yesterday I got a white fly rug and a friend adjusted it for me. Gave him a quick bath this morning and then hosed him and the rug down. Gave him breakfast then wondered what special kind of Hell I'd created as I led him back to the field flashing legs out, snaking his neck and coiling up ready to explode! He trotted - I think it was trot, it was certainly closer to trot than any other pace - off down the field then had a role before coming back for treats. I straightened the rug then he did the same again and I straightened it again. When I left he was herding the guinea fowl who didn't seem to be enjoying the game as much as he was.

Went back up after I'd gone shopping and was glad I had as he was warmer under the rug than his uncovered neck was, so much for the research saying a white rug is cooler than naked for a dark horse. Got him in, took it off and hosed him down again. Still very active despite my car saying 35c. By the time I got there tonight he was busy fence walking and positively marched me in and out, plus pawing and tapdancing while I went to get his feed. When I first got him there were times when I wondered if he was a direct import from Hell, looking at how he is in the heat I may have been on to something 🤣
 
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@Trewsers he's 14.3!!!! But a very full up 14.3 (built like a brick outhouse and in 6'6" rugs) and with so much presence he comes across as far bigger - people usually go "oh!" when they get to his wither 😂
 
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