Heather Andrew RowanDales Equestrian

17/09/2024

If I didn't clip my own horses myself I'd ask Natalie to do them. I thoroughly recommend her if your horses are turning into woolly mamoths 😁🦣

🌟 Natalie is offering her expert clipping services this winter to you all. Please give her a call or text to book. She’s already booking up fast. 🌟

Prices:
£20- trace
£25 - blanket
£40 - full/half head
£55 - full/whole head/legs off

Please get in touch if you are after anything specific. She looks forward to hearing from you. 🐴

Contact: 07908 502815

Fuel/travel charges may apply.

11/09/2024

We had sunshine and enthusiasm in equal measure this morning for a great jumping session with a dedicated young woman and her horse.

When I met them a few months ago her horse had been struggling with feeling anxious and tense at times, mainly around separation anxiety from other horses and spookiness when it was windy. She's been physically cleared and receives the best of care so we knew it was behavioural, not physical.

When her rider had been trying to regain her mare's focus her mare had been demonstrating some undesirable behaviours with the result that they were talking *at* each other rather than *to* each other.

This mainly showed up in a tendency for her mare to do balanced and controlled half rears when the direction she wanted to go in was shut down, even though her rider gave her an opening to move in a different direction and to move freely forward.

If she was presented to a jump she would hurtle into the fences in a rather out of control way. This was rather detrimental to both horse and riders mental and physical confidence, soundness and sanity!

In this type of situation I've seen whips taken to horses and been advised to do the same myself when having lessons. I've also seen horses raced round SJ courses with this kind of braced and worried body, with shoulders dropping every which way, point and FIRE technique in action.

This harms the horse's body and mind and can be quite dangerous once the heights and course builder's questions start to become higher and more complex.

I prefer to ride and train in a different way.

To open a conversation.

To use techniques that keep everyone safe and that work *with* a horse's personality.

Keeping them engaged in a positive way rather than either shutting them down so they go mentally internal or explode upwards or outwards.

Over the last few months we've used various techniques to find the ones that work for this specific partnership. This rider has done many hours of dedicated practice, I'm hoping she feels very proud of herself.

We have broken down all the elements of her goal into tiny steps that her mare can cope with.

Teaching her mare the basic alphabet again, at a better level, giving her a more solid foundation.

As a result this morning's ride, that previously would have involved half rears or braced and unbalanced carting of my rider into fences, was calm, controlled and fun for both horse and rider.

We could work on bringing up the revs in the canter whilst balancing and holding the clutch.

Power without flat out speed.

Bounce /jump within the trot and canter with neither party feeling the need to brace or become anxious.

It was a conversation between two partners working in harmony, helping each other to have fun over some jumps.

Our basic exercise was

* trot poles
* trot poles into a small cross pole
* trot poles into an upright
* canter poles into an upright

There was much adjusting of distances as the pair explored bringing up the life and energy, maintaining trot to canter, canter to trot. Sending on and bringing back using the rider's body and balance to bring balance and collection to her horse.

We finished with calmly cantering into this first fence and then finding balance straight away to jump a second, unrelated distance, fence on a curve.

We finished with a happy horse who had stayed engaged, taken part in the conversation at every stage and used her body and mind in a way that helped her feel better at the end of the ride than she did at the start and *that* is the whole aim.

Huge thanks to this partnership for giving kind permission to share their lesson.

06/09/2024

TREC GB are doing a great job of sharing our teams progress as they compete in the Netherlands.

True athletes in the peak of fitness covering large distances and tackling obstacles that need high level dressage and jumping skills as well as a good bond and great trust between horse and rider.

I can't compete any more but I still love how supportive of the horse TREC is.

01/09/2024

Do you go into the arena without a clear plan as to what you're doing and why?

Do you struggle to decide which exercises will help whatever it is that you're working towards?

If this is you why not sit down and have a beverage of choice ☕ with me?

We can review and write down:

* Your ultimate dreams
* Why they're important to you and your horse
* What measures you can use to know you're on the right track to achieving them
* How you can work towards them through lots of micro goals
* Identify specific exercises and activities that make up being able to do the big thing you want to do

I've just done this with a rider who wanted to capture all of this, especially before winter, so that she could keep clear in her mind what she could do on any given day, regardless of the weather. Helping to give her a guide when her brain was tired or the weather was bad and dispiriting.

When you have one of these plans there's no such thing as bad weather as you'll always have something you can do to make positive changes, even if you only have 10 to 20mins.

We identified exercises that could be done in the stable, in hand or under saddle, both in the arena and out hacking, that would help keep her elderly boy mentally and physically engaged and active.

We also discussed barriers to achieving this and put plans in place to help when these arose.

If this sounds interesting I only charge £12, and a coffee 😉, for up to 90 minutes to talk all this through and for you to write it all down.

28/08/2024

When riders and RowanDales met at Barrow Farm Equestrian and had fun with TREC related XC obstacles.



Music: New Horizons. Musician: Rafael Krux https://filmmusic.io/song/5458-new-horizons-
License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

28/08/2024

So what happened when three riders and their coach met at Barrow Farm Equestrian for a TREC related XC obstacles clinic?

This was a day of mares and about:

* having a constant conversation between you and your horse
* maintaining both horse and riders mental and physical balance
* having the right power and speed for different obstacles

All three riders had mentioned they wanted to improve their confidence jumping, particularly with XC. All three exceeded their original goals for the session.

Some of the things we tackled:

* rushing into fences, tense and braced
* threatening to, or actually, rearing and launching at jumps
* plodding into a fence and stumbling or pausing rather than stepping cleanly over it
* a horse deciding to take control and going, "I've got this, get out the way and GALLOP!"
* a horse tucking her head behind the vertical after a fence and either head snaking or bucking

The reason behind all of these behaviours was different for each horse.

Everyone worked with:

* a great, forward thinking, positive attitude
* support for each other
* to show their horses a calmer and more settled way

Which resulted in horses being calmer and safer and everyone having more fun.

For one rider and her horse we had the goal of finding the balance between, 'brain dead boring' and, 'out of control' so XC could still be exciting for both of them but also safe. 😊 🏇

We started by riding in the field, in and around the fences looking at:

* stability and position of the lower leg
* riding in a half or light seat
* using leg aids or body position to send the horses on or bring them back within each pace

Each rider also practised:

* the feel of a forward enough walk, trot or canter so they could go over the jump safely
* how to rapidly transition between different speeds and power within a given pace

This gave them the experience and feel for:

* moving fluently forward
* riding without tension or anxiety
* meaning the horses didn't feel they needed to either be in complete control or show tension related behaviours

In TREC, jumps can be stepped over from a walk, especially at level 1 and some of the level 2 heights.

It's also a good idea to introduce horses to XC in a calm and mindful walk, especially when it's been a little too adrenalin fuelled in the past.

We took time to work on simply going over some of the smaller obstacles at walk or even in hand when necessary, to help the horses realise they could have fun and be listening to their riders and relaxed all at the same time. 😁

One rider found that adjusting her lower leg position slightly, and using it to slow the pace when her mare became too fast, worked for her.

Another rider couldn't achieve that lower leg position yet but found that adjusting her body balance from dressage seat, to light seat to jump seat helped her and her horse feel more in control and able to maintain two way, communication.

Another rider found that adjusting her eye line, softening her hand position and maintaining a calmer and firmer mental mindset was the key to having her mare also calm, relaxed and quietly jumping then coming back to a halt or away into a relaxed canter rather than jumping and then losing her mind.

I think all three riders should feel proud of what they achieved:

* changing established thoughts about what they should and shouldn't do
* being willing to try new things even if it felt weird to them (proprioception is a funny thing 😉)
* actually jumping even though feeling anxious and a little bit queasy
* being prepared to dial down the adrenalin for a while to help their horse

So, in summary, we started with three mares who, for various reasons, all took control, rushed or sometimes felt the need to use undesirable behaviours either before or after the fence. Each horse had a different reason for this. Each rider needed different solutions and adjustments of both thoughts and body.

They all succeeded, made big changes, improved both their own and their horse's confidence and relaxation and, most importantly had fun doing it.

21/08/2024

I used this wording about spooking in a group lesson just the other day. My approach to it is the same as described below. Let them review the situation, quietly and confidently tell them that they're safe and then praise like mad when they pluck up the confidence to go by the spooky thing. The longer you wait the first time this happens with a new horse the shorter you wait in the long term until you don't have to wait at all, just feel the hesitation, reassure and your horse will keep going.

Imagine being out on a walk, seeing something you're scared of, you turn to your friend to ask for help and they start shouting at you, pulling you around and hitting you with a whip....

If we are the calm leaders our horses need us to be they learn to look to us when evaluating situations. If we do things that cause them even more fear or pain in that moment they're going to view both the situation, and us, as scary and unsafe.

15/08/2024

Do you fancy some Friday evening fun?

My aim for the clinics at Inspire is to have you laughing, jumping up and down and shouting with excitement at having jumped XC fences. 🥇

To give this some context, a few years ago my life changed dramatically: emotionally, mentally and physically. This left me, to be polite, a bit of a wreck. 🙁

My other horses and, now, Hamish have been a large part of my recovery.

It's taken a decade, a new, bionic hip, learning to manage a central nervous system disorder and working through PTSD but, this summer, I started trailering Hamish out to visit friends and then, on Monday of this week, we went to Inspire.

These are all things I've done a lot more of in the past, even having the honour, previously, of representing Scotland in the TREC nationals and UK championship.

However, it's a different experience when your body and brain feel like strangers and you have to learn how to drive them all over again.

Hamish has also not done much XC, so we took it slowly and practiced our TREC in hand jumping first 🤣 but then we did our first XC jumps together. 😁💖

If you also want to feel confident walking, trotting and cantering around a gently undulating, open field and conquer any physical or mental issues that are blocking you from XC jumping then sign up and come for some Friday evening fun.

Bookings are open and you get 90mins for just £25 to make it as accessible as possible for those that are new, or feeling novice, with XC fences.

https://calendly.com/heatherandrew/inspire-clinic

Send a message to learn more

11/08/2024

Are you going out and about to clinics and events at the moment? If so, check the temperature and humidity and adjust your plans accordingly. I'll be adusting workloads depending on these factors, plus horse and rider fitness, at the upcoming clinics.

As an example, I'm planning to take Hamish out tomorrow. The forecast, for when we're meant to be active, is 24°C (75°F) and the humidity is predicted to be 75%. Add these together and you get 149, right on the edge of too hot.

Hamish has already started growing his winter coat and has a rather fuzzy underlayer. Check your own horse for this as many are the same right now. Today, if all goes to plan :D, I'll give Hamish a tracer clip. I'll monitor the weather conditions, make sure I have slosh and drinking water to hand and reduce what I'd hoped to do. I'll also have some rehydrating mash available which I've used before and know he likes to eat.

When the summer heatwaves roll around you may find yourself wondering "how hot is too hot to ride a horse in the UK?" Learn all you need to know.

07/08/2024

BOOKINGS NOW LIVE!

Inspire Confidence Clinics
https://calendly.com/heatherandrew/inspire-confidence-clinic

Barrow Farm TREC Clinic
https://calendly.com/heatherandrew/barrow-trec-clinic

Are you anxious about riding in wide-open fields?

Do you pray for no XC obstacles in the TREC PTV phase?

Does the thought of off-road hacking and countryside obstacles leave you feeling a mixture of 😱 and🤢 with a tiny bit 💩 thrown in for good measure?

If you want to:

* start enjoying an exhilarating canter around the fields, in balance and harmony with your horse

* look forward to going over a TREC-related XC obstacle and feeling the rush of elation and achievement

* feel safer hacking out and enjoying the beautiful Somerset scenery

then sign up for one of three clinics I have running over the next month at two, professional and easily accessible XC venues: Inspire near Weare, and Barrow Farm Equestrian near Witham Friary.

Rider Confidence evenings at Inspire: Friday 16th and Friday 30th August
Inspire is designed to Inspire people to try XC for the first time and improve their skills over well-built, temporary XC fences. Perfect for those who want to feel more confident and in balance riding round open grassland and building up to popping over a small XC fence, some as small as 30cm. £25 for 90 minutes in groups of 3

TREC course riding day at Barrow Farm Equestrian: Sunday 25th August
Barrow Farm is a permanent Cross Country training ground, with fences ranging from 50cm to 90cm, including TREC-related obstacles like ditches, steps & water. A TREC course typical of a summer competition will be laid out and riders will have the chance to practise individual obstacles, including the water complex, before riding a small course. £40 for 90mins on course in groups of 4

Bookings open later this evening. Please follow the page and sign up for notifications about this post to be the first to gain access to the booking form.