Buck is a rescue cob who Amy backed by herself. She trained him to be an amazing, confident hack and they enjoy going on lots of adventures together. However she felt a bit stumped in the school.
Buck would feel nappy and reluctant to go forward, it felt like really hard work as he was always falling out through the shoulder, and he would brace his neck resulting in a very stuffy, uncomfortable gait. The more she asked him to go forwards the worse it would get. 😫
On seeking advice Amy (who chooses to ride bitless) was told she needed to get him “in an outline” and without bitting him she would never achieve this. 🙄
What we actually needed to do is help Buck gently, progressively improve his straightness and show him how to work in a healthier posture so he could develop his balance and carry a rider more easily.
After a winter of mainly hacking and groundwork, the schooling field has finally dried up and we have been able to do regular sessions over the last few weeks. For the first time Amy feels like Buck is carrying her forward in the trot, he is able to put some length in the neck and take the rein out instead of coming back at her.
We live in a fast-paced world where we are always looking for that quick-fix and lots of people are looking to sell it to us. But nothing will get you further than time, patience and the right sort of training.
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