We've just returned from a series of demonstrations at the Royal Show and despite the weather, we worked with some cracking ponies and horses and really enjoyed ourselves!
Sunday 1st July
Jasmine Jasmine was our first horse of The Royal and we hoped she would kick the demos off with a good demonstration and we were certainly not disappointed. She took in the show ground and all the comings and goings like a little star and had great fun with her new saddle. After a few circuits though she quickly settled and accepted Dan as her first rider with no fuss at all - despite the downpour as he got on!
Nookie Nookie is a gorgeous little chestnut chap who was a sticky loader and had some issues on the ground. We set to work with Nookie on some ground exercises such as the L-shape, using the Dually Halter and he soon became light and responsive on the ground. Once we had established clear boundaries with him on the ground the loading problem practically disappeared and he loaded onto the trailer like a pro.
Harry Harry was our project pony for The Royal and we were going to take our time with him so his first session was short and sweet. He was introduced to the roundpen with an audience and the hubbub of the show, all of which he was nervous about but soon calmed as we set to work with him. We did a small session with some plastic bags which started his education off in a calm and pleasant way.
Basil Basil was competing at The Royal but his owner had put him forward previously because he didn't like to load in his horse box. He had a loveable charcter but was worried about the space around him and the space he had in his box (which was more than big enough for him!). Basil displayed all of the aversion tricks to loading but as soon as he realised he could fit in the box comfortably and go up the ramp safely his confidence levels soared to the point of him trotting into the box, beating the leader in!
George George was a stunning Appalosa who was ready for starting. He was a classic text bok starter, having fun with his first saddle then readily accepting Dan as his first rider with very little fuss.
Secret Secret was our surprise of the day. At 1.30pm a lady came to our stand and asked for our help. She had competed successfully at The Royal, having got a second in her class - but after 2 and a half hours of attempting to load her Cleveland Bay mare with little success, she was desperate for help. Because it was so close to our demo time we offered her the opportunity to enter Secret into the demo. Secret shoed her full non-loading skills to the audience and was pretty ademant that she wasn't going home. After testing us to a high degree she jumped onto the box and we went to work loading and unloading until she walked up the ramp with no problem. After a short time we had her tucked up safely with her donkey travelling companion, ready to head home.
Tuesday 3rd July
Scary Scary is a little Welsh Section C pony who came to us for starting. By this time the ground conditions weren't the best so we didn't make her work or put too much pressure on her. She tried a little buck with her first saddle but happily accepted Dan as her first rider with very little fuss. We then went to work in desensitizing her, working with umbrellas and tarp. Dan also set to work to get Scary used to a young rider by slipping and slidding over her, shifting his weight in the saddle to start her education as a 'bombproof' pony.
Harry Our afternoon slot was filled with Harry, our spooky horse and we carried on the work from the previous day, helping him to understand that everything wasn't out to hurt him. We worked again with the plastic bags and progressed onto the umbrellas and tarp work, all of which Harry thought about but he decided to put his trust in Grant and worked through his phobias. We moved into ridden work and used an aerial with Harry to see what he would be like with something on his back - he was showed signs of not particularly liking it! Afetr some pressure and release work with him we managed to get his heart rate down. Harry showed great nervousness when being mounted so we worked quietly with Harry to get his confidence back, culminating in him being ridden around the pen comfortably - even when the Jousting Team came past!
And now the thanks!
First and foremost we'd like to thank David Barry - The Chief Equine Ring Steward who remained cheery, helpful, pleasant and a complete pleasure to work with - even when conditions were less than favourable. Thank you so much for all that you did for us.
Thank you to the owners who bought their horses, we had great fun working with them all.
A special thank you to Keeley for helping us get ready for the show and making sure we had everything we needed.
Next we'd like to thank the team - Tracy, Mike, Sam, Dani, Ryan, Di, Leanne and Jenny for spending nights in tents and days in mud.
Talking of tents, we'd also like to thank whoever made our tents - they withstood the torrential downpours and rivers that formed around us and made sure we were dry and happy!
A special mention should be made here to the groundstaff at The Royal who did their very best to keep the ground conditions as good as possible and dumped trailerloads of woodchip and straw down for us. They were working under difficult conditions and we appreciate all that was done.
To the lady who sold us sausages on the first night, to the mashpot people, to the people who made funny gingerbread men and women and to the Soupery people who made the most delicious soups known to mankind...
And finally the lady who cause us much mirth who obviously didn't like camping but bought a whole new catchphrase to the group...
Nookie
Secret
