I don’t know what the deal is with this horse. Suffice to say, I don’t have a simple horse. She’s as complex as a spiderweb, and about as sticky too. I’m damned if I do, damned if I don’t, and it makes me look like a manic-depressive, indecisive idiot.
Suddenly, she’s doing great as a dressage horse. Because her natural inclination is to pull the rider around the arena, and, let’s face it, I’m a dressage rider, I school her in dressage between the days Special K jumps her.
I should mention that I got her a new saddle. It’s a sad little Wintec dressage saddle, but it’s actually been somewhat of a miracle worker. I know some people that have gotten their USDF silver medals using a Wintec, so I’m guessing they can’t be that bad. Either way, for Nicole, it’s been about as useful as an orthopedic shoe. As explained to me by 2 different massage therapists and a saddle fitter, the Neidersuss hits her back in such a way that it causes her to invert. Since the Neidersuss doesn’t really fit me either, away it goes.
The change was instantaneous; she stopped inverting at the canter, and her trot-canter transitions have become, most days, rounder. She is also more willing to bend; she has stopped resisting the bit in leg yields and half passes.
Remember when I was tearing my hair out about her crappy canter? I actually got irritated yesterday because I couldn’t get good canter-walk transitions (walk-canter is ok). I had to remind myself that even 4 months ago I was ready to throw myself off the nearest cherry blossom tree because of her canter. The crappy canter seems to be a thing of the past, for the most part.
Additionally, I’ve found a barn with a Grand Prix schoolmaster for lessons, about 10 min away from Nicole’s barn. I’m trying to take 2-3 lessons a week. I’m still looking to lease horse that I can compete (higher than Nicole can), but in the mean time, I like the people at the Grand Prix barn, and I like the horse. Maybe they can help me with Nicole, but I’m not sure Nicole can be helped at this point.
Monday, March 31, 2008
The Bi-Curious Dressage Horse: March 24, 2008
I haven’t written in a while because I’m not exactly sure how to write about what’s been going on, and my viewpoint changes day to day, making any ideas committed to paper obsolete upon publication.
About a month ago, after a horrendous ride indoors, I had just had it with Nicole and her tension. I’d tried to be accommodating with her door phobia, but after being limited to a 20m circle in the center of the arena, and with mare moments escalating to dangerous proportions despite my “how can I serve thee” mindset, I just couldn’t continue riding her and staying sane myself.
Ultimately, I ride dressage because I like the sport; my riding doesn’t revolve around a single animal. In other words, the point isn’t to have a horse, the point is to ride dressage. I’ve never made any excuses about this; I didn’t grow up dreaming about horses, or asking my daddy to buy me a pony so I could have something to love and hold. That just didn’t happen.
I’ve tried everything to determine Nicole’s issue: herbal remedies, massages, new saddles, etc, and things have not changed. Having ruled out physical discomfort, my final recourse was heavy antipsychotic medication, as recommended by the vet. I can’t get on the bandwagon with that, as it seems too extreme for the situation. The horse has a screw loose, but I don’t like the idea of putting her on antipsychotics. I think they mess with the animal’s quality of life, and anyway, I can’t compete her if she has them in her system. She isn’t endangering herself or people (just me, and undersaddle), and if I have to drug my horse to get her to do dressage, what’s the point?
So after being patient with her antics, and finally realizing that the horse just isn’t interested and doesn’t have the temperament for dressage, I tried jumping her. And the lightbulb came on. She has made it quite clear that jumping is her interest, and is what makes her feel good about herself.
Q: What does the very-much-dressage rider do with a horse uninterested in dressage, and excited about a discipline in which said rider has no interest?
That’s been the question that has kept me away from the written word for a while. How do begin to relate the thoughts and summarize the path that has led me here?
Nicole’s training lately has become a mixture of dressage and show jumping. Show jumping being simply dressage with obstacles, I’ve been continuing to rider her as a dressage horse in between the times Special K can come jump her for me.
The end result is a much happier horse who is now somewhat willing to train dressage. Ultimately, though, I plan to let her go forth and conquer as a show jumper.
This has left me with some decisions: do I buy a new dressage horse, lease a dressage horse, just take schoolmaster lessons, what? One thing is for certain – however I acquire a dressage horse, it will be trained.
This hasn’t been resolved. I’ve looked at some horses to buy, but today’s thinking is that leasing or paying for schoolmaster lessons may be a better idea. New Trainer (where we moved last October) has a horse potentially for lease for me to try tomorrow. On Friday, I’m visiting a barn with a schoolmaster available for lessons. Each is about equally as cost efficient, and certainly more cost efficient than buying a horse. The upside to buying a horse is that I would have something to compete and I wouldn’t have to ask anyone or get permission, etc. The downsides to buying a new horse are obvious.
About a month ago, after a horrendous ride indoors, I had just had it with Nicole and her tension. I’d tried to be accommodating with her door phobia, but after being limited to a 20m circle in the center of the arena, and with mare moments escalating to dangerous proportions despite my “how can I serve thee” mindset, I just couldn’t continue riding her and staying sane myself.
Ultimately, I ride dressage because I like the sport; my riding doesn’t revolve around a single animal. In other words, the point isn’t to have a horse, the point is to ride dressage. I’ve never made any excuses about this; I didn’t grow up dreaming about horses, or asking my daddy to buy me a pony so I could have something to love and hold. That just didn’t happen.
I’ve tried everything to determine Nicole’s issue: herbal remedies, massages, new saddles, etc, and things have not changed. Having ruled out physical discomfort, my final recourse was heavy antipsychotic medication, as recommended by the vet. I can’t get on the bandwagon with that, as it seems too extreme for the situation. The horse has a screw loose, but I don’t like the idea of putting her on antipsychotics. I think they mess with the animal’s quality of life, and anyway, I can’t compete her if she has them in her system. She isn’t endangering herself or people (just me, and undersaddle), and if I have to drug my horse to get her to do dressage, what’s the point?
So after being patient with her antics, and finally realizing that the horse just isn’t interested and doesn’t have the temperament for dressage, I tried jumping her. And the lightbulb came on. She has made it quite clear that jumping is her interest, and is what makes her feel good about herself.
Q: What does the very-much-dressage rider do with a horse uninterested in dressage, and excited about a discipline in which said rider has no interest?
That’s been the question that has kept me away from the written word for a while. How do begin to relate the thoughts and summarize the path that has led me here?
Nicole’s training lately has become a mixture of dressage and show jumping. Show jumping being simply dressage with obstacles, I’ve been continuing to rider her as a dressage horse in between the times Special K can come jump her for me.
The end result is a much happier horse who is now somewhat willing to train dressage. Ultimately, though, I plan to let her go forth and conquer as a show jumper.
This has left me with some decisions: do I buy a new dressage horse, lease a dressage horse, just take schoolmaster lessons, what? One thing is for certain – however I acquire a dressage horse, it will be trained.
This hasn’t been resolved. I’ve looked at some horses to buy, but today’s thinking is that leasing or paying for schoolmaster lessons may be a better idea. New Trainer (where we moved last October) has a horse potentially for lease for me to try tomorrow. On Friday, I’m visiting a barn with a schoolmaster available for lessons. Each is about equally as cost efficient, and certainly more cost efficient than buying a horse. The upside to buying a horse is that I would have something to compete and I wouldn’t have to ask anyone or get permission, etc. The downsides to buying a new horse are obvious.
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