Some photos...

...from my recent photoshoots






These are of Jade and Baz. He was so gorgeous and a pleasure to be around. Really sweet and he kept hanging his tongue out of his mouth





This is Magpie, also known as Mr Pie, from a shoot I did with his owner Yvonne. Absolutely stunning cob, with bags of personality, and as steady as you like, although he wasn't keen on the sound of the camera shutter!!

Sue x

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More headaches...

...and they are not going away.  I have been given some new meds to take to help with the headaches, but they haven't kicked in yet.  I am sleeping sooooooo much at the moment too.  I am due back at the doctors in a couple of weeks, and if they haven't subsided I will be asking to be referred for a further scan.

Parelli is going well. My study buddy Andy is a great help with just getting my confidence up.  Between him Katherine and myself, we have made some great progress.

But I had to have the vet out at the weekend for Hunter as he was showing signs of colic.  He seems to be improving now, but we are keeping a close eye on him.

Lara is doing well and looking fabulous, as always

I have had a couple of photo shoots recently, which have gone really well.  I have more lined up over the next couple of months, and an exciting weekend shoot which I hope will help promote my business.  Looking forward to it :)

Sue x

More Parelli ...

Yesterday we took Hunter into the school again for some more Parelli.  He got a bit spooked on the way down by various things, including a wheelbarrow, feedbag and a jumpy mare.  But with a bit of persuasion and by not rushing him, he got into the school.

Once there, my friend Katherine worked him for me, playing some of the 7 games, but concentrating mainly on the driving game and friendly game.  He was fab and really focused so at the end he had a good groom which he loves, and he strutted back to his paddock with confidence!

I really think the Parelli is the right way to go with him - I'm sure we will have setbacks, that's life - but he seems to respond really well, settles well and seems to enjoy the sessions so far.  Another session tomorrow and I shall be taking the lead for that one.

I should explain that Katherine works at the yard where my horses are liveried, and she also lives near me.  She helps with the morning feed and poo-picking for Hunter and helps me enormously with his handling.  She was also the one I came to rely on when Lara was so poorly recently.  She's a really good friend and is often mistaken for my daughter!

My headaches are still bad - I have one now which I've had since the night before last.  I'm still sleeping about 8-9 hours at night and usually another 3 or so during the day.  I've also lost weight - nearly a stone - which I'm not complaining about!  I'm back at the doctors on Monday so I shall see what she says.  I'm really hoping that she will give me the ok to begin working from home again, just a few hours a day to ease myself in gradually.

In the meantime I am making the most of being able to sleep as much as I can :)

Sue x

It was all going so well.....

I had Hunter in the indoor school as planned and had the saddle and bridle all ready.   I did some Parelli with him which went brilliantly and then he got spooked by a noise outside .  And we couldn't calm him at all.  So we took him back to his paddock and I did the only thing I could - burst into tears.  You see I want a horse that I can hack on, and know that when I am on him, everything will be fine.  What was explained to me yesterday, though, was that Hunter will be that horse, it is me that needs sorting out!  He is scared of lots of stuff (Right Brain Extrovert) and his first reaction is "I'M OUT OF HERE AND QUICK".  So I have to learn to be the calming one, to say it's ok because I'm here, and you really don't need to freak out cos it'll be fine.  I need to show him that I am the leader, and he needs to accept me as his leader.  Cue more Parelli .....

So yesterday, Andy from the yard who has been doing Parelli for years, very kindly offered to help me in the school.  He watched me with Hunter and explained what his reactions were all about.  And that was only on the walk down from the paddock to the school.  Yes Hunter was scared, but Andy earned his trust and even his friendship, and it was fascinating to watch.  Andy demo'd some of the 7 games, and then I had a go.  Some success, some not so successful, but he was giving me the confidence to try.  And Hunter was fabulous.  I really felt like we were learning together. By the end of an hour or so I could drive Hunter to a specific place in the school, for example the mounting block, and then get him to stand still by it and also to touch it with his nose (playing "sniff it"), and then move on to the next place, say a tarp on the ground, and to place a foot on it.

I got tangled up in the rope, I dropped the carrot stick which Hunter then stood on so I had to "porcupine" him to move his foot.  I even got a knot in my unknottable carrot stick!

It's amazing what you can learn about a horse by observing him too.  We had already learnt that he
had probably been ear-twitched due to his reaction when we first tried touching his head.  But gradually he came to accept us gently touching him and we have also discovered his itchy spot at the base of one of his ears.  Rub that spot just right and his head drops and his eye rolls and I swear he smiles !

We also learnt yesterday that he has probably been whipped quite severely in the past as he was terrified of the carrot stick.  But gradually and gently he is learning that we are not going to hurt him with it, and he accepted it, slowly at first but then more and more, as part of the Friendly game

So from a starting point yesterday morning of "I'm not sure that he's the right horse for me" I now know that I can become the right owner for him.  It's all about seeing things from his point of view, understanding him and gaining his trust.

Andy has said he will continue to help me with him on a weekly basis, and I will continue to practise and to build the relationship with Hunter as much and as often as I possibly can.

Sue x

Bank Holiday Weekend...

...and the sun is still shining!

Yesterday Jono rode Lara for the first time in months.  We are getting her back into work slowly and he is the lightest one, and it's him she knows best so he will be riding her and gradually building her up again.  It was so lovely to see her being ridden, and on such a beautiful day.

We've been up to see Hunter this morning, he stood stock still while I took his rug off which is a first!

This afternoon I will be taking him in the indoor school again and repeating the Parelli games we did on Friday.  He did them brilliantly on Friday - really tried and was listening to what I was asking him.  I was so pleased I can't begin to tell you!  If we have another good session today, I am planning to ride him briefly, only in walk, which will be the first time since my last fall.

Stuart's airplane ( the motor glider) is all done now- it had a major service over the winter and has now got its C of A, so guess where he is now!

So I am relaxing with my feet up now, and looking forward to getting to the yard later.

Oh and I have two bookings for equestrian photoshoots which I am very pleased about.

Enjoy the Bank Holiday

Sue x

The sun is still shining....

...and today's plan is to get Hunter in the indoor school this afternoon so we can work on the Parelli 7 games, then take him to his new stable (he's not been in a stable since I got him - he's had a field shelter in his paddock), and I want to get him used to being tied up outside the stable, and we will give him a nice groom.  He adores being groomed, so I am hoping that, although he may be nervous about going round to a new area of the yard, once there he will settle while we groom him.  This should make it a positive experience for him.  I'm not going to put him in the stable yet - I think that will be a step too far and will have a negative impact.

I've been learning about the Parelli way - seeing things from the horse's point of view - and it is so interesting.  If you have never heard of it have a look at Parelli.com and see what you think.   There is a guy at the yard where my horses are liveried who follows the Parelli Natural Horsemanship way, and it is fascinating to see the progress he has made with his horse.  A few of us are now doing this (I am the most recent addition so I'm picking everyone's brains) and it's a fantastic way to build a relationship with your horse.  I'm finding it particularly invaluable since I had my fall - I'm concentrating on groundwork now before I get back on him.

Of the 7 games, today I am planning (although this may change) to do : Friendly, Porcupine, Driving and Yo-Yo.  We've done these before, apart from Driving, so much of it will be reinforcing what we know and getting the understanding and relationship growing.

Looking forward to it :)

Sue x

Another photo...

...of Hunter, in the sunshine this time. Still eating.....




Sue x

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Oh, what a beautiful morning

After the prolonged winter it's now lovely, sunny and (almost) warm.

My horses have spent much of the last couple of weeks naked, and the dogs are snoozing in the sunshine.

I am so lucky to live here in Norfolk, UK.  We have lived in many places, both in the UK and abroad, and we are not originally from East Anglia.  But it has a "pull" for us, a kind of charm, that made us return, even when we were living in New Zealand.

So, do you know what, I'm going to boil the kettle for a coffee, and sit in the garden and enjoy this sunshine.

Hope the sun is shining on you wherever you are

Sue x