At 20:32:22 on 26.09.09, PonyPower wrote:
Went to meet some Parelli people today, and take a look at the play ranch that has been built near Trowbridge. Amazing!!! Pony stayed at home, so I hung around and watched for the afternoon. They also rated Anderson, and Monty. Only downer was getting back to the yard and once again being told what I should do with my pony to overcome her trailer phobia...send her away apparently. There is absolutely no point in my doing this even to the person they suggested until I get my own transport. He has already told me that I need to get my own transport to keep the work that he does instilled. Streuwth!!!!

At 20:55:08 on 27.09.09, plodalong wrote:
where is trowbridge, that place souns amazing,I like Clinton Anderson,he appears on rural tv and uses methods similar to parelli,i havnt read any of his books,i think if you are interested in natural horsesmanship,then have a look at everybody Mark Rashid,Kelly marks and take the bits that work for you,I like the seven games because Bo and i have a lot of fun,Bo appears to enjoy the liberty stuff.he will play the stick to me game really well.He already knew how to play that game he would have played it with his very first playmate,HIS MOTHER,it was me who needed to learn,once you have learned the basics of the games then move on or the seven games become the seven tortures,use you imagination,there may only be seven but there are hundreds of ways to make them interesting,i say to myself what can i ask Bo to do today,can i get him to back into a hoola hoop,can i get him to put one foot in it can he back into the field,can i drive him along the lane with only one rope,use your imagination,i found a good book called 100 horsemans excercises to do with your horse,its written by Rio Barret,she tells you about playing with tarps and cones then asking your horse to go under and over things ,all these things will build the bond and increase ponys confidence, you may find with increased confidence in you will come confidence in her enviroment and mabey the trailer will come by itself its not about the trailer,cones tarps or pedastals its about confidence,instead of leadind try driving let pony go first ahead of you .if she wont stand on a pedastal with confidence then you cant expect her to stand on a trailer ramp with confidence or cross a wooden brige with confidence you will soon be playing off line and your pony will just want to be with you .Who told you to buy a trailer? you are now in the savvy club,try looking on line and see if there is any footage on trailer loading and is there a forum where you can ask questions and get sensible answers.dont let loading worry you Bo wouldnt load when i first started with him but he wont get out of the trailer now,take heart ,it will come together for you both.

At 22:00:37 on 27.09.09, PonyPower wrote:
Hiya, They were talking about Clinton Andersens riding with confidence series of DVD's. I had Tim Piper out the week after our accident in the trailer (friends offer to take me to a show, ended in disaster with partition pole smacking her for miles and she ended up with bruised ribs and flank). Its also when the trouble with the farrier started, cos she couldn't lift her leg high enough for him due to the bruising so he hit her in the guts with the rasp. We are now barefoot. I spent a month doing NH exercises and feeding morning and evening in the trailer (hired for the duration). Tim came out twice to help me work with her...she was so terrified she was shaking, now she just doesn't like them, so we are getting there slowly. The YO insists on doing the rope round the breast bar and lunge line round the bum and winch her in, which I stand back from, I just hope she doesn't learn to resist it. She's very strong especially in her neck but doesn't use it against you, only notices when she panicks and goes into survival mode. She used to self load as a baby...you couldn't get the ramp down fast enough, so that in itself is upsetting. Trowbridge is in Wiltshire, about 50 minutes drive from me. I'll have a look for that book on 100 horsemans exercises. I played with her on the other side of the fence this evening, running up and down.. she was hilarious. She put on a bit of a display at first, all high spirits, then just trotted with her ear to me. Gave me a real boost. I'm going to play it by ear when I get my horsevan. Start with getting her used to it and then short outings to friends yards, gradually building up to longer trips and weekends away riding all those wonderful trails in the Brecons, and up where you are. I thin Scotland might be a bit too far to go though. Best thing about her is I know I can ride her anywhere.

At 22:21:34 on 27.09.09, plodalong wrote:
i am on a diy yard so please forgive and correct me if i get this wrong.your yard owner forces your already frightened horse into a trailer using lunge lines around her bum and you stand by and let this happen,just think about this,your pony isnt afraid that the trailer will cause him some harm or hurt him Your pony is terrified that once in the trailer she will die,now imagine how you would resist if you thought that your life was in mortal danger,would you go into the trailer?If you dont like this practice then surely you have a right to stop it and ask the yo not to handle your horse anymore. and if my farrier had ever hit my horse anywhere with the rasp then he would never again get anywhere near him.is there somewhere this practice could be reported?if your horse was punished because she was in pain by a person you were paying for his services and i hope that you asked him to stop and jabbed him with the bloody rasp.thats awful.

At 23:23:13 on 27.09.09, PonyPower wrote:
The farrier has moved to Oz. And believe it or not the Woshipful wotzit of farriers state that the owner should make sure the horse is safe to shoe. She kicked out at him because she was in pain, so he whacked her, if he'd done it again I was going to be bring my feet and fists into play, he never shod her again. Untoil that day she was the perfect pony to shoe. With her it only takes one bad incident and your goose is cooked. What is funny, is that when she was being shod, she was still considered to be the best behaved on the yard. My YO thinks this is perfectly acceptable way to load, and tbh if I am to go anywhere, its the only way to get there. Hence only the two outings this year. Pony is easier about the 3.5t things...carrot entices her in and while she becomes more alert, with me standing there with her, she is reasonably accepting of it. I'd rather not put her through it at all, which is why I doubt we are going to go anywhere until next spring now, when I get my own and will be telling everyone to go away when I am working with her on it (hope the farmer doesn't mind me parking it in one of the dairy fields). I have accepted it as it doesn't seem to be physically hurting her, and tbh, the lunge around her bum is not held tight, she doesn't get any rope burns, she loads in a fairly short time and the YO also stuffs her full of treats once she's loaded, I think I made it sound worse than it is. Its also common practice from what I have seen, and I've seen worse as well. Obviously I would rather she just walked straight in all nice and calm, but I doubt I will ever get that back (I live in hope), but who knows. As I now live in a place where hacking to venues is not an option, its something we will have to endure and then tackle.

At 22:54:16 on 28.09.09, plodalong wrote:
hope he farrier in question will get his comeuppance one day.lol.i hope your dreams come true,and they will if you work at them,dont doubt yourself if you feel that pony will never load and she will pick up on your negativity then she wont go in,try having a really good positive feeling,dont look at her.and take a deep relaxing breath,and who knows after playing for a while,im talking weeks for confidence.and you may get first the nose,then the neck and later the feet.keep on keeping it natural.

At 14:44:20 on 28.10.09, NMH wrote:
Can you tell me the name of the Trowbridge place, Ponypower? It's close to me & I'd love to do Parelli when my 3 year old is up & going next year- or before if I've time.

At 10:41:16 on 29.10.09, NMH wrote:
I think it's so true you need your own trailer & to practise quietly on your own, building the trust. I've had a couple of horses who were dreadful, one of whom had had an awful experience in a trailer too, but I got round it in the end with daily practice, no force, & lots of food & TIME!! Both in the end would load reliably with me on my own, stand for me to go round the back & put up the bar before being tied. It is very stressful, & that's for the owner!! goodness knows what it's like for the horse, when it's done any other way; but I don't see any chance without frequent practice so I think you're right Ponypower to leave it till you have your own trailer. It must be attached to a vehicle tho' when you practice, a moving trailer is a big turn-off !!

At 10:46:41 on 29.10.09, PonyPower wrote:
He he he....I'm on the hunt for a 3.5T "Tansy traveller". There are some decent tracks round the farm as well so I can drive it to a more remote field...hack up to it and then play in splendid isolation.

At 11:59:10 on 29.10.09, Flicka wrote:
Hi PonyPower-making your horse a see saw can really help with getting them to trust going into and traveling in a trailer. I did it the other day and it was great fun. Just make sure the wood can take your pony's weight!! I did it on a Horse Listening course and I'm pretty sure Kelly Marks uses one too. Good luck with getting a trailer-really is the best way doing it without pressure from other people!!