Dora is a Show Pony x Welsh B.
her show name is...
Fingerpost Pandora not quite sure if I like it, but I got to put up with it!!
Her Grand Sire is Cathertson Night Safe and her sire is Bunbury Mahogany.
(Will confirm this, as there is a bit of speculation.... )
Thursday 27 May 2010
Wednesday 26 May 2010
Who am I, and who is Dora?
Right guys,
Hi there! This is my blog to document my time with Dora.
First things first, Who am I?
Well I'm Lianne, Been riding from the age of 9, have owned my own horses in the past, but presently I ride for a lovely family in Dorset, who have 4 ponies, from 10hh to 14.2 hh. There is Sky, who is the perfect first pony, then there is Dora a 13hh lump of gorgeousness , maestro the games master pony, and tempo a grey 14.2hh jumper who is practically scared of her own shadow. I have been riding for this family for about 6 months now, and I have to say that it is a match made in heaven! They have faith in my riding, and have slowly helped build my confidence back after my teenage years with a nuts horse! Not only do I feel confident riding, I am confident in my abilities to improve, this leads me on to Dora.
Dora is as mentioned before, a 7 year old 13hh bay pony, I'm not quite sure what breed she is, i will update with that ASAP. I only met her the other day, and i have to say i fell in love with her straight away, and she is such a stunner!
Although she is 7 years old, she was broken then left for 3 years as a field companion, so she is really green, and at the present time, not suitable for a child to ride, that is where I come in. My aim of the next 6 months is to get her to a standard where she can be sold on as either a show pony, or a pony suitable for pony club. So I'm to ride her ( Yes ok she is 13hh and i'm an adult, but weighing in at 8 stone her owner has decided that i'll be fine to ride her as im not too heavy, its only my long legs that makes us look silly!) and get her to this level.
I will not pretend to know much about serious riding, and competitive riding as I dont. So it is going to be a learning curve on both sides, I have an aim to get her to walk, trot, canter with a nice outline and using her hind legs well, and also to jump about 1 - 2 foot. I know at present that she is fine in walk and trot, but I have yet to try canter, let alone jump her. She also has no shape to her, and I know that I'm not going push for that for a while. She currently rides in a snaffle with no flash etc, and I plan to keep it that way.
The few times I have ridden her I have kept a real loose contact, and she has not rushed or taken off with me, which is a good sign! She does have her moments of "I'm not going that way!" where she tries to go against the direction I want to go, but I have opened my reign out to the side, and she conforms after a second or so.
There are some things I need help with, so please leave comments (constructive please, no negatives!)
- She chews her bit like no tomorrow, and I mean she really chomps on it, its the right size and right position, but im not sure why she does it and if its a problem?
- Any good books on schooling you would recommend?
- Im a bit concerned that im trying to get her to be child friendly, but I don't know how! Do I need to ride her like a child would? how would I achieve this outcome? I understand that having a child to do this would be better suited, but we have a feeling that once she is settled, she may turn into a pain. I may be speculating here, but the owner does not want a child on her yet.
- how do I convince my lovely owner of Dora to buy a new saddle that doesn't bruise me every time I ride???!!!!
Will try to update every week!
Ta x
Hi there! This is my blog to document my time with Dora.
First things first, Who am I?
Well I'm Lianne, Been riding from the age of 9, have owned my own horses in the past, but presently I ride for a lovely family in Dorset, who have 4 ponies, from 10hh to 14.2 hh. There is Sky, who is the perfect first pony, then there is Dora a 13hh lump of gorgeousness , maestro the games master pony, and tempo a grey 14.2hh jumper who is practically scared of her own shadow. I have been riding for this family for about 6 months now, and I have to say that it is a match made in heaven! They have faith in my riding, and have slowly helped build my confidence back after my teenage years with a nuts horse! Not only do I feel confident riding, I am confident in my abilities to improve, this leads me on to Dora.
Dora is as mentioned before, a 7 year old 13hh bay pony, I'm not quite sure what breed she is, i will update with that ASAP. I only met her the other day, and i have to say i fell in love with her straight away, and she is such a stunner!
Although she is 7 years old, she was broken then left for 3 years as a field companion, so she is really green, and at the present time, not suitable for a child to ride, that is where I come in. My aim of the next 6 months is to get her to a standard where she can be sold on as either a show pony, or a pony suitable for pony club. So I'm to ride her ( Yes ok she is 13hh and i'm an adult, but weighing in at 8 stone her owner has decided that i'll be fine to ride her as im not too heavy, its only my long legs that makes us look silly!) and get her to this level.
I will not pretend to know much about serious riding, and competitive riding as I dont. So it is going to be a learning curve on both sides, I have an aim to get her to walk, trot, canter with a nice outline and using her hind legs well, and also to jump about 1 - 2 foot. I know at present that she is fine in walk and trot, but I have yet to try canter, let alone jump her. She also has no shape to her, and I know that I'm not going push for that for a while. She currently rides in a snaffle with no flash etc, and I plan to keep it that way.
The few times I have ridden her I have kept a real loose contact, and she has not rushed or taken off with me, which is a good sign! She does have her moments of "I'm not going that way!" where she tries to go against the direction I want to go, but I have opened my reign out to the side, and she conforms after a second or so.
There are some things I need help with, so please leave comments (constructive please, no negatives!)
- She chews her bit like no tomorrow, and I mean she really chomps on it, its the right size and right position, but im not sure why she does it and if its a problem?
- Any good books on schooling you would recommend?
- Im a bit concerned that im trying to get her to be child friendly, but I don't know how! Do I need to ride her like a child would? how would I achieve this outcome? I understand that having a child to do this would be better suited, but we have a feeling that once she is settled, she may turn into a pain. I may be speculating here, but the owner does not want a child on her yet.
- how do I convince my lovely owner of Dora to buy a new saddle that doesn't bruise me every time I ride???!!!!
Will try to update every week!
Ta x
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