> > Thinking back to when Orri started bolting--I'm wondering if maybe > that was his 'coping mechanism' when he was at a threshold. >
I searched through the messages to find Orri's first incident of bolting. Was it the time with the tractor in the arena? To me that incident seemed like a shy and not a lack of understanding on Orri's part. In any case, it sounds like you are able to get him under control again in a short time. My friend has an Andalusian gelding with an extremely strong flight response. Her solution was to just relax and let him go until he stopped on his own (if she could do it safely) and if she could for see a potential freak-out (i.e. plastic bag blowing across the trail) she prepared herself and him by slowing down or stopping and letting him have a look. Eventually he got to the point where his flight response required shorter and shorter distances. Part of training is exploring thresholds. You may never know what triggers the bolting, but you can visualize what you will do during a bolt- relax, keep breathing, make a circle if you can do it safely, half-halts, etc. - when you are back in control, return to your exercise, but change direction and see if he understands better on his other side. > And--maybe it's not a threshold thing about the training, but a > threshold thing about putting up with my blundering around like the > novice I am. In attempting to do your owning training, you are doing a great job. We all make mistakes and we learn and move on. -Kristen
