Bella is my current loan pony, although her real name is actually Pickle! Stats wise she is completely black, 15.2 hh 5 years old and her breed is a native mix I’ve been told. However she is very fine and may have a little thoroughbred in her, giving her some nice paces although she is a little unbalanced in the canter. However being 5 years old she is the youngest horse I have ever ridden, so I am excited to help in her training as well as gain some more experience riding younger horses. Her training so far is a little behind for a horse of her age, as she has only just began her jumping work, and cannot work over her back and down into her neck for long periods of time, although I must acknowledge she does try her best!

My first ride on her I put her through her paces not asking for any bend or contact and keeping a very light rein, it was a little nerve-wracking having her owner Beth there to watch me however she was pleased with the way I was riding her. She responded well to aids and turns at the lightest touch as she is very sensitive to the hand, you can tell her age as when I did ask for canter she did sometimes struggle with the transitions, and was very excitable after doing a little canter work!

She is also currently at my local yard which is perfect location wise, in a field with two other horses who are currently retired. I am a little undecided with having several horses in one field, as they often become rather reliant on each other, making catching one horse very difficult when you have another trying to also come out of the field. However catching Bella is relatively easy to catch, but she is usually brought into the stable with one of the other horses which I am concerned about as she can easily become reliable upon that other horse coming with her. Furthermore, the location of the field is surrounded by some farming equipment, which although is dangerous enough as it is, is made a little more difficult when leading two horses.

So currently my plans for Bella is to try and experiment with a few things such as bringing her in on her own, so that she isn’t as reliant on the other horse coming in with her so she doesn’t get separation anxiety. I also found when riding her that she does not like to stand still when waiting to open a gate or cross a road etc, so there are some elements to work on there in regards to basic training. She is certainly a talented horse who has lots to give!