It's been a while since I've posted. In that time, I had an equine chiro out to look at Lic re: her bucking, and general pissiness at times. Well, I have to say... really, it didn't help much. According to the chiro, the was out in her withers, lumbar, and pelvis, and really tense in her shoulders from compensating. Adjustments were made, and it was fine for a couple days.. I lightly lunged her, owing to me being busy at work. Then, she came up with lumbar back pain- her lumbar spine had slipped back out, and now her muscles were really tense.
The chiro was unable to came back out in a reasonable time frame, so I took Lic to the vet. (Lucky her, she got to have her teeth floated too!) The vet said he's not a big fan of chiro's, because in his opinion, they muck about with things that aren't necessarily meant to be changed. So, basically, he told me that Lic is what she is, and to get a batter saddle pad to keep the pressure off of that area. So.. huh. I'd be interested to hear thoughts on your guy's horses, back issues, experiences with chiro's, etc. She still has the little bump on her lumbar spine, but the soft tissue swelling and tension has diminished, and she doesn't seem ouchy there other than being sensitive to grooming... but then again, she is kind of sensitive all over to grooming. Anyway, long story short, trainer and vet said just leave it alone since she's not showing any obvious lameness, and not sore after riding. I did order a Cavallo pad, one of the built-up ones, because my saddle is slightly too wide in front and tips a little bit. I'm hoping the better pad material and fit might improve her performance a bit.
So, between bad weather and Lic being sore, we made only intermittent progress this month. We worked on de-spooking, manners while lungeing, and ground poles. Just yesterday, the trainer had her sidepassing over poles under saddle! I was so flippin' proud of my little mare, I don't think she's ever sidepassed with a rider. I saw her working it out in her head... I love my trainer, because if Lic is just being a shit, she gets after her (in fact, she had a come-to-Jesus meeting the other day for bucking) but if there's genuinely a problem, she just eases through it. She just talked soothingly- it's okay, you and do it, move your hind, now move your front- until we got the sidepass. Lic was a little confused, and she gets mad when she gets confused, but the trainer pushed just enough to get her to think and not blow up.
We are hoping to finally get her cantering this month, the weather didn't allow for a whole lot of consistency last month. My trainer says she still has some balance and confidence issues to work on, hence lots of pole work and lateral work. Plus, doing things that make her think but aren't necessarily physically beyond her reach is so good for her... if she's thinking, she can't be a bitch!
Last year with Lic, I had a horse that was hard for me to handle... I was green and not used to a horse that would BUCK to get out of work. I went through trainers, I bought books, I made some progress one my own. I went from being practically unable to ride the horse to able to ride her on trails... but since I've been working with my trainer, I realize a lot of that was still on her terms, and I needed to step up and really learn how to ride a young horse.
Since working with my wonderful trainer, my horse will now settle in and do arena work just fine. She moves off the leg. She learned that "MOVE OUT" really means move out, and while she still has hissy fits at times, she doesn't win. I have learned a more effective leg and seat position, so I can deliver consistent cues.
This year, I plan to keep up with the trainer. We'll see how this month goes. Regardless, even after I take her out of full-time training, I plan to keep up with lessons. I want to take Lic to a local show this year, even if it is a lame walk-jog class. Yes, even if I get my ass kicked by a bunch of ten-year-olds. I've never been to a horse show, and Lic's jog is SO comfy. I don't care if she's not a peanut roller, her jog is truly a pleasure to ride. Hopefully her lope will be comfy as well. I enjoy cantering, but since I can't get her to lope in an arena, all I've experienced is a fast, fun, "Whee!" canter. And I can't get that all the time... I'd say 60% of the time she lugs around on her front end at the canter... so we have work to do.
I plan to really enjoy our wonderful trails around here. I plan to go horse camping, and go out on more "real" trail rides- she does great on the long trail rides, 5-6 hours doesn't faze her. She might be a chunk but she's in good shape.
And I plan to improve my own riding, so I can be more effective, and more confident. I don't want to get bucked off anymore! It sucks! I would love to get to the point where I'm more comfortable riding Lic bareback... I rode her around the yard in nothing but a halter the other day, and she was great... I want to expand on that.
Anyway, sorry to ramble! Feel free to share your plans for the new year!
Let's Get to It
4 years ago
A lot of traditional vets, and many trainers, are hostile to chiro, although I'm fortunate that my vet is very welcoming to it. My chiropractor is also a vet, which I prefer. Chiro has made an amazing difference to my mare, although it took a fair amount of time and a number of treatments before we made any significant progress. It's also common for initial chiro not to stick - the horse's body is used to being in the wrong position so it reverts. Horses can be forced to work through pain, and many will put up with a lot to do what we want, but I always rule out all pain issues before assuming that I've got a training issue. Bucking, unless it's just a very fresh horse being exuberant, is almost always a pain issue (unless a horse was bred to buck - there are bucking lines), since it's an enormous expenditure of energy for a horse and not lightly done.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your goals for the year!