Consistencey is the Key...

Leg densitisation is going very well. I have been using a leadrope folded in half and gently swinging it against Faith’s legs so that she is no longer so alarmed at the feeling of things bumping against her legs (rug straps for instance).

I have had to be really spot on with my timing though, as we have done so much work on foot handling, that Faith will lift her foot at the slightest tap on her upper leg. So initially it was a bit of a challenge to ensure that I was clicking the foot being on the ground, rather than the foot being in the air. Faith learns so incredibly fast that it is easy to teach her the ‘wrong’ thing with a bit of bad timing, but she is also pretty forgiving, and is so eager to learn and do the right thing that mistakes are relatively easy to correct. It is testament to the intelligence of her breed that within a couple of days she can effortlessly distinguish between a tap as a cue to lift her leg, and an accidental tap with a rope. It just goes to show really how incredibly tuned in to our body language and intent horses really are, and how they view what we are doing as a whole rather than just the concentrated aspects.

I shall continue to develop this work to get her used to a rope dangling around her feet etc., as no doubt at some point I shall drop the leadrope/longlines, or fall off and the reins will come over her head etc., and I don’t want her to be alarmed by that.

The last few days had really highlighted to me the importance of consistency in training with young horses. I am sure that our little hiatus with rugs has been partly due to the fact that for a couple of weeks I had really taken Faith’s good behaviour for granted, and was doing very little with her apart from changing rugs and giving her a flick with the brush. She had become quite grumpy with me, and wouldn’t stand still for brushing etc. which I had put down to the sudden cold spell we were having. However, since I have been making the extra effort to go back to doing 15-20 mins or so with her each evening, she has gone back to being amenable and rock steady in the stable, and seems to be happier in herself. So that is definitely a lesson learned on my part. I have to say it is also heartmeltingly lovely to think that she does place some kind of real value on the time we spend together, even if it is just having a chat and a fuss, and practicing foot handling or having a good scratch.