I love this phase. Where you expect nothing so are constantly delighted by every new experience that goes well. I try to do everything in hand first before then following up with the same experience ridden. This week I wanted to do a few first with Estrid, she hadn’t traveled in the lorry since we bought her….an oversight on my part, I probably should have done this much sooner. But I have been practice loading her regularly and letting her stand on the box open or closed to get used to it. So I wanted to take her out in the lorry, unload her and re-load her somewhere new, as I feel it’s usually the loading somewhere different when there’s other stuff going on that normally catches people out.
I also wanted to get her used to water, as to my knowledge she’s never been through a river or in a pond. Estrid HATES water, when it rains she’s super cross about it, she hates being cooled off in the hot weather and she only just tolerates being sponged down if she’s sweaty. So I thought going through water might be a bit of a battle.
One evening after work I decided to box her up and go to our local wood, a nice enclosed area that didn’t require going on any road or encountering traffic. Our aims were:
- Load and travel
- Stand on the box
- Stand tied up to the box
- .Listen to commands when walking through the woods
- Go through a river
I must say I was amazed at how well it all went. It’s rare that I ever have a day with horses where every little thing goes right, where I just feel pure joy and accomplishment. She loaded without hesitation, she traveled well, she stood on the box without fuss, she stood tied up to the lorry without pulling back or getting stressed, even when I hid around the corner. She was enthusiastic and forward for our walk listening intently the whole time, but most surprising she went in and out of water with no problem at all.
Beth Endurance 