Not to be forgotten

Hopping back into 2017 for a moment to address what the heck happened with Vodka. While Roman was basically on vacation at the end of August, Vodka was a different situation. I was only on him for about a month, but I saw major improvements in the quality of his gaits, softness, and consistency.

"Treat lady, come back"
Tack definitely made a difference in how he went. He had been ridden in a poorly fit saddle for quite some time prior to me even trying him out. During said trial, he crow hopped and kicked out going into the canter, expecting a saddle to pinch his withers. While I swapped between the Dressage and close contact saddles, I still noticed that he was much more comfortable in the Dressage saddle. At one point, I even tried out a different girth because he was just a touch too opinionated with the anatomical one.

A lot better than where we started
Conclusion: sensitive horse does better when you consider his sensitivities.

Vodka was like Roman in that when it came to giving to the bit, he would over do it, under do it, and everything in between, and it was just a matter of getting the right timing so that he would learn to be more consistent. He did get significantly more consistent.

Lots of decent screenshots available
He actually had lipstick during our last two real rides. On the very last one, he gave me a beautiful canter. I'm talking so good I almost forgot what horse I was on.


Our last ride was just a bareback one. I rode both of the boys bareback at a walk before I had to go back to school, and Vodka was a solid citizen, as is to be expected. The future with him is a bit less grim; after Miss El moved, all the boarders went to the farm down the road. Both properties are owned by the same person, and I shave about 60 seconds off my commute. Since I have no idea what I'm doing with my life post graduation, I might go home and start leasing him for real if the option is there. I guess I'll know more when I actually get my shit together.

I'll never have my shit together :)
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Comments

  1. L.WilliamsJanuary 16, 2018 at 1:19 PM

    ooo do you graduate this year?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dave MillerAugust 26, 2018 at 7:20 AM

    Hi there

    Ive just done an infographic on the full schedule of events for the World Equestrian Games in Tyron this September.
    It's yours to use if you want too
    Below is the link to it
    http://clear-round.com/index.php/2018/08/25/weg-tryon-2018-schedule/
    Hope it's useful

    Cheers
    Dave

    ReplyDelete
  3. Dave MillerSeptember 1, 2018 at 1:10 PM

    Hi there

    I've just done an infographic on a 7 step maintenance plan for your horses legs. It's simple and cost effective, but yet works very well.
    Below is the link to it, I'm happy for you to post it on your blog if you like, but it's yours to use as you please.
    http://clear-round.com/index.php/2018/09/01/horses-legs-maintenance/

    Cheers
    Dave

    ReplyDelete

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