Kids and ponies

[chevalfou]

How to get your kids riding....
(Christophe and Theo riding Misty)

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[chevalfou]

Or like that (father and daugher riding son and mother)

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[chevalfou]

Or like that ? (Christophe on Misty with Theo on Suzie)

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[chevalfou]

Or like that?
Maude, Theo and Elsa on Misty

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[Elaine]

To continue this, I recently came across some really nice ideas from a few friends in the UK about kids & ponies.....

Well, with children who haven't met horses or ponies before, it seems to work well if they meet mine loose in the woodchip paddock. The horses have no distractions like grass and are free to move around so we usually watch them for a while and the boys come up to the fence/gate because they are nosy so that introduces a few ideas about horse behaviour. Watching their ears and so forth. Then I go in and halter one of them and walk around a bit,doing forward and backup. This usually leads to a child volunteering to have a go at the same thing. They love it when the horse walks on for them and stops when they do. I think this gives them confidence from the start that they can have a cooperative relationship. After that,we usually brush and groom,stroking,scratching and touching etc. Then the child gets on bareback with an adult either side. I think children get the feel of a horse really well this way. And I think it works for those who have had one or two more formal lessons too. I think this way gets them focussed away from the "kick and pull" method of communication. I don't let them have reins,either,until they have learned how to balance to stay on at walk and trot (on a lead rein) by holding onto the saddle/mane at first if necessary.

A really important thing I've found with kids is to use their imagination. So, whenever I've let a kid ride one of mine, once I'm fairly happy the kid is balanced up there and not about to fall off, I'll often start out doing a bit of lunging (NH style rather than BHS style) but I'll do stuff like get the kid to imagine it's christmas and be really excited and low and behold the horse goes faster/ into trot as he picks up on the energy (and I explain this to the kid)... and then I ask the kid to imagine he's quiet and still, like a tree and low and behold the horse stops, etc. (.... and of course as my guys all lunge well, if the horse doesn't quite get the hint from the kid, I help out subtly, with my body positioning, in a way that the kid doesn't notice - so the kid gets more confident and then actually the confidence and self belief flows over and the horse does start to listen more to the kid....)

With the older. less confident ones , I tend to get them doing different things to take their mind off worrying. They become so absorbed with the task at hand they forget. They sympathetic ones don't seem to forget to be gentle either. I have had them riding holding hands and doing "horse dancing" a bit like country dancing on horse back. dose do your partner, turn whilst holding hands. or for more advanced- Swap horse without touching the ground. so long as the horses are up for it mind! Lots of getting on and off from all sorts of places. For the very timid and nervous tinies lead rein with flower and fruit picking in the hedge rows. Decorating pony bridle with leaves and flowers picked on the way. You can start the pcking and then they can start bending and reaching to pick them. this is a sneaky way of relaxing the rigid child! that an touching different partsof the horse they are on. All the leading and handling stuff NH style. Then of course there is the agility stuff on the ground and ridden. I do short activities and then ask them about it and or even tell them what they were doing with out realising it. Did you know you did by doing that? - can you do it again?

[intouch]

Just don't tell the council (or your insurers) that you're putting kids up bareback (without hats)!