I can't believe I've not updated this since the Luso show. Xaile had a week or so off after the show as he had worked hard and I got swine flu!!! I've only ridden lightly since then as my back has been very sore after my fall from Clover- riding was fine, but getting off was agony and afterwards was terrible. I felt that I'd probably be riding very badly as I'd be tense and protecting it.
So I have ridden him about once or twice a week since then just to remind us both how it works. Appart from that I've been lunging him (shock horror in side reins to help with his concept of a contact) and playing at some natural horsemanship stuff.
The lunging has been going really well and he has been begining to really stretch down into the contact. The natural stuff has been interesting. He loves playing games and so has enjoyed it. However I have been finding it almost impossible to get him to yeild his shoulders. Whatever I do he just leans them into me. Eventually I convince him to move over by aking him to lift his leg on the side by me and then asking him to move over and then he seems to understand, but I have to do this each time. Very strange. Everything else has been great and he follows me round like a little shadow what ever I do.
Having the time off riding has given me a bit of time to think about things and I have become completely convinced that he's not totally happy with the bit I've had him in- a NS loose ring lozenge. When left alone with it he tends to grab one side of it and chew at it streching hishead down and sideways. Ridden he just never seems to settle with it in his mouth. The dressage rider at our yard says that it's because he's not getting any consistency from my hands, but this doesn't explain why he behaves the same on the lunge does it? So I've thought long and hard about it and I think that he's not enjoying the amount of moving parts in it. I think it's making him feel insecure, he tries to get a grip on it and can't. I don't think he wants to lean on it, just know where he stands with it.
I tried to get an appointment with a bitting person who has done an excellent job for other people on the yard, but I've haven't been able to get hold of her so I've had to think it through myself. I decided that he might prefer a hanging cheek- he like's his portuguese pelham and this will sit in his mouth more like that. It will also be more stable in him mouth than the loose ring snaffle. I also think he doesn't like the joints in the snaffle I had him in so I was thinking of getting him a plain mullen mouth bit, but then I thought this might just encourage him to lean if that's what he wanted. So..... I opted for a myler, with hanging cheeks and a mullen mouthpiece with a jointed barrel in the middle that allows the two sides to swivel. I was very pleased to find one on ebay that didn't cost the earth.
Today was out first chance to try it out. I put his bridle on while I groomed him to give him a chance to get used to it. At first he was surprised by it and fiddled with it a lot, but he settled to it better than the other one I think. One thing I did notice was that it did make his mouth very wet, much wetter than normal and I'm not entirely sure this is a good thing.
I then lunged him briefly as he hasn't been ridden for a couple of days (I was retaking my Lorry test, and passed YAY!!). I always lunge in a cavesson, but it still gave him a chance to continue getting used to it. I decided not to use side reins as it was his first time with the bit. He seemed very settled in him mouth which was promising. I asked for lots and lots of transitions and we even masted walk to canter on the lunge for the first time.
Then on I got. At first steering seemed a little strange and I had to slightly exagerate what I was asking for, but only once circuit of the school and we got the hang of it. He was much less chompy on it than the previous bit, I think this is a good thing, but the dressage bloke seems to like the chomping (I think it gets in the way with clear communication). Then we started more serious work. He felt more even on both sides of the bit and there was a lot more in my hands, but he wasn't leaning. He wasn't working very consistently though, he'd give me a few lovely strides then hollow, then a few more lovely strides. The lovely bits got longer though as the session progressed. One thing was a little strange though, occasionally he'd shake he head, you know like when they're free and they're about to go hooning around the field. It was very windy though and his mane was all over then place and may have been irritating him, I think I'll plait it on simillar days in the future. We ended on a great note with some lovely supple and forward figures of 8.
I felt that he went very nicely in the new bit, but I'd like to see it looks like f what rom the ground so I'm going to try to get some video this week.
There were a few moments of sun when I went to turn him our again so I thought I'd take some pics of him in the field, but as soon as we got there the clouds reappeared and it started raining very quickly so I didn't get very many.
