08.28.06

Young girl gets first horseback ride!

Posted in Horses for the horse crazy at 12:06 am by petArtist Cmoses

AUG. 28
Thanks for coming up.  It was a lot of fun.  John, Jamie & Emily had a blast, too!  I think we’ve gotten Emily addicted.  I think riding would be a great thing for her and she’d do really well. 
 

Sitting high and pretty– Emily on 3 yr.old Gilford

Doe this girl even notice it’s raining?

Grinning from ear to ear!

Gil is a great horse, and I think any issues he may have had with his canter before were related to his being inexperienced, unbalanced, and uncomfortable in his own skin.  The walk and trot are your foundation, and once you establish the basics at those gaits it should translate into the canter fairly easily… as we witnessed this weekend.  I was very pleased with Gil, and even excited to see he had a frisky side, too!  I was beginning to think he was just too perfect!  I’ve had a lot of fun working with him.
 
Def. send the Orvus [horse shampoo,] I’ll give him another bath next weekend… to see if I can get him cleaned up more.  I haven’t felt that he’s gotten that clean with what I’ve been using.  Fly mask will be good too.
EM

Not ANOTHER bath!

AUG. 29
I went to visit Gil yesterday, but didn’t ride him.  The weather was cool still, and he was a little on edge€¦ but good.  I groomed him really well, and trimmed the fronts of his feet.  I also clipped his chin and muzzle and he was totally fine.  Didn’t phase him at all, except when it tickled. 

I’m going to ask [the barn owner] to separate him from the other horses€¦ he had some small cuts on his face, and a welt on his neck (looked like a swollen bug bite, but hard to be sure.)  Poor Gil.
EM

EMAIL TO EM FROM DAD, AUG. 29
Em,
It was fun riding Gilford on Saturday and Sunday. I was so paranoid about cantering him since he tried to buck me off every time I tried to make him go while he was here. I can only trot so far since I am lousy at posting. You€™ve done a good job with him and he is turning out to be a great guy.
dad

EM’S REPLY:
Dad,
I’m glad you both came down.  I had a lot of fun, and it was nice to see that some of the work I have been doing with Gil translates when the both of you are on him.  That’s the goal!  Sometimes when a horse bucks when you’re riding him (especially when transitioning between gaits) it means that they’re confused or uncomfortable with what you’re asking them to do.  The walk and trot are the foundation gaits for any horse, and once those are developed, it should translate fairly easily into the canter… as we saw this weekend. 

I think Gil was just unbalanced and unstable and probably unsure of what to do with himself.  If you are asking him in a field, or on a trail.. he’s likely to be even more unbalanced because he would not have a ring, or circle or corner to support him (riding rings can come in handy every once in a while!).  I’ve been teaching him how to move properly, to support himself efficiently and to be smoother in his gaits and transitions.  It was nice to see that even though I had only cantered him once (and it was pretty rough), that we were able to get through it easily.  He has only bucked on me once, the very first time I asked him to canter. 
 
Having Gil around has been great, and it reminds me of what I have been missing for so long.  I’ll be sad when he leaves…
EM

BACKGROUND:
Gilford, our 3 yr. old Arabian/percheron, was started to ride and drive at age 2. We have boarded him for August near our daughter Emmie, who grew up riding and schooling horses through 4H and Pony Club, open showing and the Arabian show circuit. Training descriptions are from Emmie’s Emails reporting her progress, working with Gilford under saddle and doing prep work for his upcoming American Warmblood Society inspection.
__________________
Connie Moses, petArtist– self-built website: PortraitsWithHorses.com
(horse and pet portraits)

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