Maca and Gema – Chapter 1

I would like to introduce you to Macareno and Gema… this is their story, which they have very kindly allowed me to share. Maca is not a Spanish Mustang.

Maca is Apaches partner in crime and Gema is his human. To say she is fearless is an understatement, when I first met her, you would never have guess that she had been riding for just 2 years and this was her first horse. I am not going to share her age but to give you an idea she has just retired!

While Pablo recovered from his injury and Apache “rested”, Gema and Maca began building a strong relationship.

It was obvious that these two loved each other and watching them together was a pleasure.

 

Gema had a hunger to learn and combined with Macas ability meant that they progressed quickly through their formal riding lessons. Soon they began going out on trail rides in the local countryside, not exactly uneventful as on one occasion she ended up on the floor after a gallop, but in true Gema style she got up and brushed herself off got back on and rode home.

I had spoken a few times to Gema, but it was on one of those trail rides where I got to know her and Maca better. She asked if Charlie and I wanted to join them one day, and I thought it a great opportunity to take advantage of her knowledge of the area. They made great trail buddies, and it was fantastic to get out and about with them. As we enjoyed our ride we chatted about technique and different horsemanship methods. I do tend to go on a bit when it comes to training and preparing the horse, and in turn preparing the human!

I have learnt there is little point in insisting or pushing, but happy to answer any questions and if it resonates even better. So when Pablo asked if I work with him and Apache, I was super happy that Gema also wanted me to spend time with her and Maca.

When working with any horse/human partnership, I like to have a plan, based primarily on what the horse needs but also listening to what the human wants. Sometimes this is not the same thing and usually my first session is getting these two things lined up with each other! Luckily in this case Gema was more than happy to go with what ever Maca needed. Where to start? I needed to know as much as possible about him and his past, never easy and usually you have to rely on the work you do in the first weeks to fill in the gaps.

But here is what we did know.

Maca is a big beautiful 16 year old bay gelding of unknown breed, it is suspected he has been a competition horse at some point in the past and you can see that there is a classical base to his movements. On the surface he is well trained and steady, not difficult to catch, lead, tack or ride.

 

However, while doing all this he is never truly relaxed, his head is high leaving his back tense and hollow and his focus somewhere else. When Gema said he found putting his head down difficult, this sounded a quiet but persistent alarm bell in me. I gently pointed out that his difficulties were man made, and something that had been created long before he came to live with her, as it manifested during work. Lets face it he found grazing quite easy and was very good at it.

Considering we knew very little of his past I started on the basics; I wanted to see and feel where he was at. One of my principles is based on what you do one side you need to be able to do on the other, to ensure balance both physically and emotionally and the very first step with any horse is to see if they are happy to lead on the right and left. As expected Maca was great on the left but nearly impossible on the right. It worried him to be asked even for the simplest movement, swinging his hind out and raising his head, but we persevered and managed to get a couple of good steps forward, giving him plenty of rest in-between.

I moved on to a little gentle, left and right lateral flexion, he was incredibly stiff and found it very hard to bend his neck without moving out in a circle. He had very little flex in him and seemed confused by the task. My third and final request was for him to disengage his hind. I was after a soft smooth movement, with him stepping under. The first step he gave me was a huge side pass; I expect it was more of a controlled spook! I continued to move and finally he did disengage his hind, but boy was it fast. He was obviously expecting a bigger and probably much sharper ask than I was giving him, I remained steady, never running to catch up with him but maintaining an even pace and always with a soft energy.

I wanted him to come down to me and realise that I represented a calm and gentle space somewhere he could share, where work was something to enjoy and relax into. Before very long I was getting a perfect movement, rhythmic and even both on the left and right, with a lower more relaxed head carriage. It was beautiful and showed what a difference softness could make.

After spending a little time with him, it was clear that there were some quite worrying holes in his preparation. I feel that he has, at best, been rushed in his training and never been given time to find a truly relaxed and comfortable place, emotionally or physically. He is a master at hiding his anxiety, and his gentle nature has meant that his need to please out weighed any expression of frustration.

The good news is he is in the care of Gema, who only wants the best for him, and who is willing to rebuild his foundation. What a wonderful future they have together, and one I can’t wait to share with you.

I left Gema with her homework for them both, work on getting balance in the simple task of leading, right and left. Not to think of it as “right and wrong side” but just the other side. Seems a nothing ask but believe me it is harder than you think especially if you have an older horse that has never been prepared on both sides. Have you tried it lately?

Don’t forget to like our Windchaser Ranch Facebook page to keep up to date with all the news