Milha - Introduction

I think I will extend the scope of this blog to Milha, my friend F.'s mare which I mentionned in a previous post. Milha is an 8 years Hanoverian-type bay mare, strongly built with good topline, strong hindquarters and deep, wide chest. Her head is rather heavy, and the throat lash thick. Her limbs are strong and clean, but she is coon-footed, and toed-in which entails paddling out especially on the right hand side. She arrived one year ago, and had been used as broodmare before, with minimal breaking. Her walk was ok, she had a good, comfortable trot but her canter was a problem: disorderly, rushing, and very difficult on the right foot . She was far above the bit, with neck upward and head almost horizontal. Her temper is usually ok, but can be strongly influenced by her hormones; in such cases she may turn difficult in stable. Her strength requires a proper blend of kindness and firmness. Her owner has developed a very good, special relationship with her. As can be seen , she is very well taken care of , and quite fit. Like Pacha she is on a half-boarding regime, which implies that she is ridden in group lessons too. Our first objective was to address the above the bit issue, and we worked her round and low during most of the past year, recognising that this did not apply necessarily to the group lessons. It worked fine, although she has gone through ovarian problems which made her unrideable several times in Spring and Summer. These health issues have been put under better control by the vet, but she needs treatment against her very strong seasons. They however have perturbated the training, with stints of restiveness (kicking against the leg) and lack of forwardness. We are now starting the second phase of her training, viz. elevating the neck again but this time with a correct placer. She puts too much weight on the forehand, which shows especially at canter which is still often problematic, despite significant improvement due in particular to working outdoor where she can stretch herself more easily.