Something tells me this will be a common title for articles. I think one of the keys to healing is finally being able to accept that wrongs were done, and that there is still a light at the end of the tunnel. It might not be the same tunnel we thought we started in, but it’ll take us where we need to be headed.
Part of what makes Drummer such a perfect horse to be working with right now is that he also has old scars that sometimes I have to really search deep to find, and sometimes they are just there right in front of me. Since I’ve known him off and on for nearly his entire life, it helps to know where I’m starting from, but it also helps that our most recent scars have been experienced together.
Physical scars are perhaps the easiest of the lot to address. However, when I was riding this week, it occurred to me – embarrassingly late if I’m honest – that just as my spine still has issues and I have tight days, so too does he. Last summer, after turn out, he took off across the arena bucking. After his third buck he stopped, dead lame, and I knew he had somehow managed to pull something. Turned out he also managed to throw his own back out. People are still amazed a horse could do that when I tell them, but we all do have our own special talents…
Now we’ve spent the last six months really working on his “physical therapy”, which includes rub downs, some massage, addressing pressure points, and, finally, just working through things usually via lateral work. For my own physical therapy (most of my issues come from an epic fall off of Myth that cracked two of my lower vertebrae and bruised my kidneys), I use a little tens machine, massage, heat, and stretching (and riding for exercise, LOL). The slow and steady method Drum and I have been using over the last few months has really helped me address where my own posture both in and out of the saddle can create issues with my back problems. And I’ve been well aware of his problems, but it was only this last week that I finally realized that he too would be prone to good days and bad days.
Of course, this wasn’t a completely unheard of concept – I’ve known days he needs more body work, and days where cantering isn’t the best option for either of us – but I finally realized that I needed to tailor our rides to us both. If we’re both having a bad day, maybe we only walk, or do something on the ground instead. This week, the solution was to dial back and put more time and effort into our trot work. He’s finally sound enough to venture back into the outdoor arena, and the deeper, at times more uneven, footing has really helped him give that extra push that has been missing over the last few weeks. We had plateaued and I hadn’t even realized it. The last two rides were wonderful for both of us. We were able to address where we were, and we were able to make gains. Guess it just goes to show that you can teach an old horse – or in this case rider – new tricks.
Like I said, this will probably be a common topic. Drum has his physical and mental hold ups, so do I. But we’re making progress, and each time we ride now, we break down a little bit more.
Until the next lesson.
Haute Ecole* 