# Update: Feeling Better About Mylie!



## lupinfarm (Mar 11, 2010)

on Mylie...

I know the nice weather brings out the spunk in most horses with Spring and Summer on the way but I'm so sick and tired of feeling like I'm never getting anywhere with Mylie. Daina isn't supposed to be here until the end of May and Mylie has just done a reverse and turned back into the horse she was when I first got her. She doesn't run like a lunatic as much, but she's flighty and won't let me touch her again! I'm the first to admit I'm so way in over my head, and this would all be great and I would just shut up and stop complaining if I knew for sure that Daina was going to come. 

Sometimes I just don't trust her to keep her word. She's supposed to come in May, but I'll believe it when she's pulling up my driveway. 

If Daina doesn't come in May, I will have to start looking for a new home for Mylie -- not that anyone would want a semi-wild, flighty, 5 year old who you can't get near enough to even brush her. She looks like a mud pit right now, which makes me feel bad because I should be able to at least brush her and make her look nice but I can't even look at her without her spooking. And I begged my dad to buy her for me. She was perfect when I saw her at her last place, stood still, I picked up her feet, touched her, poked her, proded and she did absolutely nothing. A 6 year old was playing by her feet happily and Mylie was "sharing" her hay with the little girl. She got here and all of a sudden she's a different horse. I don't think they drugged her, It's just HER. When I spoke to her first trainer he said that there is no way she was drugged, this was just Mylie who had not been touched in a year. 

I'm just SO frustrated with her!! I want this to work out so badly, and if I could just DO something with her she'd be perfect for me. All I want to do is freaking brush my horse!! 

Sorry guys, I'm just so annoyed with myself, and frustrated with my horse, and worried that Daina won't come in May and she'll just sit until I can find someone crazy enough to buy her.


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## michickenwrangler (Mar 11, 2010)

I'm sorry. If I remember correctly, you had a problem with her hooves a little while ago.

Is it just spring fever? Can you lunge her to take some of the vinegar out of her? Spend time with her? Is she on turnout? Do you think she might be getting too much grain? Have her teeth been floated? Has her old owner given you any clue why she could be acting this way? What was different about her home/routine/handling there that you are or aren't doing?

Maybe look for another trainer? Look into doing Parelli or Clinton Anderson or some other system?

Good luck and keep us updated.


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## lupinfarm (Mar 11, 2010)

> Is it just spring fever? Can you lunge her to take some of the vinegar out of her? Spend time with her?


It could be spring fever, we've had a nice warm week, most days at about 13 Degrees Celcius all day long and sunny, compared to the -20 Celcius we had through January that's positively balmy. I can't lunge her, we don't have the roundpen yet and the field is really muddy. The mud is actually part of what worries me. Recently she's started this loopy running whenever I throw hay to the pony (Mylie already has hay by the time I do the pony) and on the mud, it wouldn't take much for her to slip and go right through the fence like she did when she slipped on the ice. 






> Is she on turnout?


She's on 24/7 turnout in a good sized paddock. At her last place though she was in a barnyard and I suspect it was so she couldn't build up a good run and get herself all worked up. I didn't ask at the time because it was fall and it's very common for people to throw their horses in a small barnyard in the muddy seasons.



> Do you think she might be getting too much grain?


She only gets the recommended amount of Equalizer daily so I have have something for her to "bond" wit me over. I = Good things, Good things = Feeding time, Brushing time, treats, etc. And a scoop of Vita B-1 daily which does seem to work a little to calm her nerves a bit. 




> Have her teeth been floated?


Her teeth were likely floated last year, and she hasn't been ridden and has no trouble eating all her yummy breakfast and dinner. She will have her teeth floated in May though, a long with the pony.



> Has her old owner given you any clue why she could be acting this way? What was different about her home/routine/handling there that you are or aren't doing?


Unfortunately her old owner was in way over her head even more than me. After Mylie's stint at the trainers (30 days of solid work, and she was coming around really well under saddle but needed at least 30 more days to really make a difference) her old owners did nothing with her. She was just left to get fat in a field all year long. She's been here since October so we have a nice scheduale now and she knows when she's getting fed, and so on. 



> Maybe look for another trainer? Look into doing Parelli or Clinton Anderson or some other system?


If Daina doesn't end up coming, and I'm desperately hoping she does, I  have looked at sending her to a Natural Horsemanship Trainer about an hour east of here. We don't have Clinton Anderson practitioners really, but a lot of the western trainers go by his ideas and training methods anyway. I'm not really into Parelli, and love Clinton Anderson. If I can afford it, I'd be looking at sending her back to her first trainer for 60 days but he is up at around $750/month and can only train December-March because of the show season.


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## ducks4you (Mar 12, 2010)

"Cider" was 6, and totally unbroken when Clinton Anderson re-trained her.  I watched the whole series.


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## Chickerdoodle13 (Mar 12, 2010)

Don't give up yet! At least not until you get your round pen! It sounds like Mylie would be a different horse after a week of round penning. 

I'd hate to see you give up, but I don't want to see you get hurt either. Keep searching for a local trainer and maybe you'll get lucky! However, don't wear yourself out over a more wild horse. Uncooperative horses wear people out really quickly and I wouldn't want to see you lose interest in horses because of that!

Let me know if there's anything I can help you with. Email me or if you have AIM I'd love to chat. I can't remember if we traded info or not. Sometimes it just helps to talk as I've been in a similar situation as you so I can definitely relate.


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## michickenwrangler (Mar 12, 2010)

You may have to look for another trainer. Try www.arabianhorses.org Even though this is an Arab site, you can still find lists of Arab Horse Mentors and trainers through the website. Ontario is in Region 18, NY is region 16. I imagine in Ontario, many of these trainers will work with other horses too.

Where I board is a TWH barn but the trainer will accept other breeds though she is most familiar with TWHs and Spotted Saddle Horses.


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## lupinfarm (Mar 12, 2010)

Thanks so much guys! I spoke to Daina today and she still says she's coming out. We'll see what happens though. Mylie was calmer today, and you've all made me feel tons better. Mylie has so much potential, I'm just personally ill-equipped to deal with her at this time. I don't really want to sell her, honestly. The problem with me is I'm a great rider, fantastic and calm in the saddle but I can be a total wreck on the ground. lol. Not a great thing, but thats how it's always been.


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## Beekissed (Mar 13, 2010)

This guy's methods are fascinating and might help you work this horse in a round pen:

http://www.montyroberts.com/


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## freemotion (Mar 14, 2010)

I saw Monty Roberts in person twice and he is amazing!!!!  Read his autobiography to get an idea of how he thinks.  It is worth reading even for the non-horse-person, as he is a fascinating man and a gift to this world.  IMHO.


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## lupinfarm (Mar 14, 2010)

Thanks so much guys. I'm feeling ten times better, and I know Mylie is just a big baby. Realistically, she's only 5 and being a Friesian cross not only is she sensitive but she's also just a big 2 year old!  Did you know she's grown? Yep... she was 15.2hh when I bought her, and now she's more like 16hh, could even end up at 16.1hh and she is super athletic. A "run in the park" for her is small beans, she picks up her right lead freely, and does these gorgeous flying lead changes in the pasture. 

I truly am in love


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## michickenwrangler (Mar 14, 2010)

I'm a firm believer that "horses need jobs" and if they're not worked with consistently, they develop problems. If you can't ride much during the winter (understandable) maybe work on teaching her tricks or other ground work stuff, obstacles in hand, lateral moves in hand, things like that.

Good luck


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## lupinfarm (Mar 15, 2010)

Ducks4you, your inbox is full! So I'm posting my reply to your very lengthly (lol) message...

Thanks for the advice. 

 I spoke to my trainer/coach today! She was talking about how Mylie is the kind of horse that will need to be worked daily, and have a daily routine, with daily brushing and grooming and lunging before being worked because she is the type of horse that has been bred to work, and that work is a relaxing thing for her. We had another big draft cross that was just like Mylie, and that was super true of him as well. He was worked for an hour in the arena daily, plus he got lunged before being worked for 10 minutes, and had a nice cool-out hack afterwards. 

We spoke about getting a roundpen, and how long she'll be staying and when she's coming and about getting in a natural horsemanship trainer for a few 3-hour sessions with Mylie before she comes to help me out. I don't think Mylie exactly disrespects me, she's very respectful of me in the field, she is still a bit too pushy at the gate for *my* liking at feeding time but we're working on that. I feel a hundred times better after speaking to Daina about Mylie, and I'm going to be looking at round pens again in April so I can round pen Mylie, and get her putting all that energy and boredom into something productive. She has mounds of potential, she really is an incredible animal, but she's bored, and bored + smart + young = naughty. This all fits in with what her previous trainer said about her, and Daina talked about boosting my confidence with a lot of our exercises. 

I never expected to be able to do this by myself. I'm a rider not a skilled trainer. I do believe that training is a daily, hourly, etc. thing. The problem with finding something that was already broke and all that was that I couldn't find anything for years that would be the right height, age, training, and bulkyness. I'm a tall gal, and for the most part 15.3hh-16.2hh is what I need. I've been looking on and off for the past 5 years for something suitable, but nothing ever clicked with me. When I first saw Mylie, something just felt right about her. I decided to look for a young, relatively untrained horse, because I knew Daina would come out. After talking to Daina, I'm not really upset about Mylie's behaviour anymore. She has really settled down in the last few days and I don't think I'm ready to sell her. I love her too much! I knew this wouldn't be push button, and come together all at once but when I was talking to Daina she said when she does help me get her back into work, her attitude should do a complete turn around. She's seen so many horses like Mylie, and within a week or 2 of being worked solidly they turn around totally. I think if I'd been able to work her this winter, things would be different. Its so very true of her though, after she's done her run around like a loonytoon she's calm and sedate and just chills lol. She has so much energy to burn, but no outlet. 

michickenwrangler, You're so right... she needs a job, and she isn't a horse that can sit around all winter and do nothing. She's the type of horse that has been bred to work.


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## ksalvagno (Mar 15, 2010)

Glad you are feeling better about Mylie. Hopefully things will work out just fine.

I guess they are just like Border Collies and LGD's. They need a job to do or they will "find" a job to do.


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## lupinfarm (Mar 15, 2010)

ksalvagno said:
			
		

> Glad you are feeling better about Mylie. Hopefully things will work out just fine.
> 
> I guess they are just like Border Collies and LGD's. They need a job to do or they will "find" a job to do.


haha that is entirely right. I realized what Mylie is doing when she runs. I can't believe i didn't think about it earlier. She's round-pen trained, as in join up and all that jazz. She's *trying* to join up. She runs around a few times in one direction, haults at me and only me all the time, spins on the spot and changes directions. Sound familiar? lol


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