Bursting With Excitement!! CASPER again!! lol

[amby]

Alrighty, I know I haven't been around much recently (casper says so also) so I'll catch you gals and guys up to speed.
Casper and I had a horendous saddle experience on the 18th of Dec. We were working on overcoming this when I got TONS (like 40-60) hours a week at work. So we haven't done much together. It is frustrating because we seemed to move backwards completely instead of forwards.
So an acquaintance of my father's decided to offer to buy my horse. I mentioned it (in a frustrated mood) to the lady at the barn who was going to train casper come February (keep in mind that I HATE HATE HATE the way she handles my boy. But he atleast almost behaves out of fear.) SO anywho, she says if he wants to buy and you don't sell I'll horsewhip you. Sorry to say it like that but you really should get a better horse if you have the chance. I thought she was joking and didn't think much of it.
However a friend with a TB gelding across the aisle heard and was quite livid. Told me about a lady who does wonders with crazy english horses.
And I'm sure saddlebredlover remembers but when I was first searching for a horse (trying to talk myself out of casper) we went over that I have ALWAYS wanted to jump or do some other form of English riding!
So Jayne Ryan is her name. She came out to the barn this afternoon to see him. I prefaced her as to how crazy he is and highstrung and all of this stuff.
She LOVED him!!! Said he's not crazy, just confused and misunderstood and SUPERsensitive!!! She said he was being judged unfairly against a QH standard. He will never be a QH. So then came the talking time about what to do with him. We put him on the lunge and he TROTTED the whole time!! Not a single step of Gaiting!! (little hooray!!) she said if he agrees to jump then we can jump him!!
She said his main problem is ME!! I am too Highstrung at the barn!! I get bonkers. My heart races. I clench my teeth. I stop talking to him and I freeze up!! Once she got him going she said he is kinda lazy. It'll be good for me to learn to mellow!!
So anywho, not sure if I can stay in an English saddle. We'll keep the one we have for now!!
I am just so excited about taking lessons!!
So btw, do any of you girls have any ideas for getting me to CALM DOWN! At the barn??

And SBL and Momma Mel and Precious and everyone who has shown me pictures of jumping gaited horses. Thank-you for beleiveing in him even when I didn't!!

[mysteryhorses]

Maybe you need to get some one to teach your how to relax.

Sounds as though your not feeling confident, when doing what your doing with Casper. Maybe you should just ride for fun and get your confidents up, then start the other stuff.

I train horses my self and I had a lady that was fine riding, but scared when she rode her 16.2hh APHA gelding she had bought from me. So I would allow her to ride my 14.3hh Arabian and I would ride her gelding. After a couple of months of riding my Arabian mare and watching me ride her gelding she decided to try him out again and she really enjoyed riding him and started riding him full time her self and even started riding on her own. At times when she has not ridden him in a bit, then she asks me to ride him for her first. So we would start off with her on one of my Arabians and me on her gelding then mid ride switch. That just seems to be the thing that gets her relaxed and her confidents up.

Good luck with your Casper.

[tinypony]

so glad that you're excited - i think i can relate to your emotions pretty well. i bought mollie in march 2002 and all that summer had a blast with her just goofing around and getting to know her. then, when september of that year rolled around i wanted to get more serious and move to a barn with an indoor and we moved to journey's end (the barn i'm at now). well that winter, i was absolutely PETRIFIED of mollie. she didn't adjust very well to the move and would spook at the tiniest things and just take off and i had no chance stopping her. by january or so, i started riding her outside in her small paddock (about the size of a 20 meter circle) and we slowly but surely got our confidence back. sometimes you just have to start over - it worked for us and hopefully it will work for you!!!! i also know how excited you must be to start taking lessons with a new instructor because i just had the same experience and am LOVING it!!!! good luck!!!!! (and please remember to have fun!)

[brocadosmom]

amber.

I read this after I posted the lengthy message regarding you lameness problem.

I am going to be blunt....WAKE UP!!!....The "trainer" you mentioned doesn't like your horse and doesn't have any respect for you. She obviously never took the time to understand your horse and wants him to do what all the other horses do and she does things the way HER BOOK is written.

Horses and their owners are all individuals and learn things differently. What has worked for 50 horses is not going to work on horse number 51. If that is the person who had the training session the day that your horse was lame again...then shame on her and shame on you. She is probably your problem.

I am honestly not trying to make you feel badly...I am just trying to drive the point home. If trainers can't find a kind word for you as a client/student or your horse is "crazy" in their opinion, then they are not respectful of either one of you. And furthermore, if they don't have the decency to say to you that they don't particularly like your horses personality, then in my opinion they are doing both your horse and you a disservice.

I have trained horses for 30 years and I have had to find thousands of different ways to do things with the horses and even more ways to teach students (young and old) to ride. I have also had to tell a few people that I did not get along with their horse and have referred them to other trainers. It has nothing to do with the horse being a bad animal, we just had personality clashes. All of the horses I sent on to other trainers for that reason became very successful in the show ring, a success that I could not get them to.

This other person who came out and lunged him with you and told you he was just confused is probably right. You are not a quite, confident rider and him being confused...that is a bad combination.

Do things with him you know that you can do and do them well before trying something new...BABY STEPS...they are the fastest way to success. You NEVER NEVER want a horse to behave OUT OF FEAR of any kind. You will NEVER be able to trust a fearful horse, some day they just can't take it anymore. Besides that you are not the person to keep him fearful

Find someone to help you both be happy with you jobs and in your relationship, both on the ground and undersaddle.

Again, I don't want you to think I am out to hurt your feelings, just get you to think about what you are experiencing and saying and question these things. I am sure that is not how you want your relationship with you horse to be forever. It can be so much more.

Good Luck

[traceyclydeowner]

trust me she knows...shehas worked with me for a year and knows me and my horses well..and i gotta tell ya she has a gift and she reads horses unlike anyone i know..i had to make that wake up call 2 years ago with a horrible trainer after a few vet bills that were accidents i had to ask myself what was going on here.and after i caught her punching my clyde in the muzzle because he was wary of being wormed .. to this day my clyde inc has an absolute coronary every time worming comes around so that was enuff 4 me.

[amby]

Yeah, the lady who WAS going to train him HATED him (which coincedentally is why she is not riding him)
The NEW lady LOVES him, and we have set up more appointments.
The lameness is from the turnout situation, not sure what we're going to do about that at the moment.

As for Tuesday January 23
Casper was SOOOO much better.....I worked with him (more like played with him) in the arena in the morning. He had a BLAST.
Then fed him and turned him out (wasn't quite as aggresive as normal towards other horses.)
Then went and lunged him a few minutes ago and the things we worked on yesterday were much better today and we continued with repetition.

Thank-you very much for your advice brocadosmom, I agree wholeheartedly

I was letting the other woman help because she doesn't charge, just runs the barn (teacher at a college barn)

Jayne Ryans is my trainer. She is from England, love my horse, and agrees that he will make a good horse once we get the basics back down.

[brocadosmom]

Good for you...sometimes we just have to listen to our inner voice...that's the voice that knows the truth.

Good luck with your horse.

[lilpondarosamini]

What breed is Casper? He is greorgous. Looks like a walking horse that is the father to a guilding we use to have.

[amby]

Thank-you, I think he's Gorgeous too. That's why I love him so much.
That and he keeps me thinking. LOL
He's a Tennesee Walker x Missouri Foxtrotter.

[twnpnds]

You go girl!!! Every horse deserves a chance. It's up to his owner to find that chance for him. You did good finding a trainer that loves Casper. I think Casper will enjoy jumping once he learns to relax and trust you. Your excitability and lack of confidence confuses him and makes him stress out. So relax and go at whatever you do with a fun attitude. A smile and even a little laughter rubs off. Even on your horse. Good luck!

[cheri]

Every horse is different amber. I have (thankfully) gotten along with every horse I have had the opportunity to work with. Some people and horses just clash, I worked with a trainer on a mare that absolutely despised the trainer and would do anything for me. The trainer would ride her to make sure of the basic idea(over x-rails) and send me up so the mare could enjoy the session. The mare would buck, ignore commands, not go on the bit for the trainer and for me she'd be on the money...light touches, no bucking, eager to go.
Like brocadosmom said, baby steps. Bring your confidence level in him up as you bring his up in you. If you feel uncertain about something keep at it, even if you need to stop and take a breather, and go back fresh.