Maree Young & BBPG Benson

Can’t believe a week has already passed from arriving at the VBA for induction and Brumby allocation for the 2024 CopRice Australian Brumby Challenge!

I was floored to be chosen as one of only 14 trainers to take part in this challenge, and although initially maybe a little overwhelmed, it was great to chat to the other trainers with a similar mindset and ethos regarding training horses.

I was very happy to be allocated BBPG Benson, a striking bay gelding from Barmah National Park. 

I’m estimating his height to be around 14.1-2hh, and his age between 3-5yrs from what I’ve gathered so far.

Observing him in the yards at the VBA, he seemed somewhat quiet and curious, although I suspected maybe internalizing a bit.

Sunday morning was load up day, and he loaded up into the stock crate as nicely as I could hope, and travelled the 5 hrs home exceptionally well.

He also unloaded smoothly into the round yard, and quickly checked in through the rails, with two of my horses present who welcomed him to his new home, and continued to keep him company through the week.

I gave him a full 24 hours to settle in before asking anything of him, only quietly tending to his feed and water, before introducing some simple drawing in techniques on day one of training, to encourage him to come in towards me, 

My aim is to keep the horses curiosity and spirit intact in my interactions, and build a connection based on trust, and avoid triggering fear based responses.

At the end of this week the notable moments for me were, confidently drawing in and following, simple changes of direction through body guidance, taking food from the hand, reaching out to touch me with his nose, and crossing obstacles at liberty.

It might be interesting to some that at this stage, all sessions have been at liberty. With no ropes, halters, or restraints used.

My priority here is building trust, confidence, and a strong partnership with Benson using my own body language and energy, prior to adding any form of tether or lead which will be another totally foreign concept to him. 

I’m stoked to have such a beautiful fella here to work with, who has a really sweet outlook and has so much willingness to connect and “try” about him. 🤗

Update number 2, and 19 days into the 2024 CopRice Australian Brumby Challenge with the sweet BBPG Benson.

In the past two weeks we've spent our time together building a partnership built on trust and safety. And in turn, helping Benson grow in his curiosity and confidence in his training, his surroundings, and myself.

I’ve also had a few quiet days since last Friday, as I went into surgery to get all four of my wisdom teeth removed….so had to take it pretty easy and make sure my recovery went smoothly.🤕

I actually think the timing wasn’t too bad to be honest, as having a few extra days to move slower and quieter around horses doesn’t hurt at all.😉

The foundation I choose to build with Benson at liberty from the start, ensures that when I'm asking a question of him, he doesn’t feel trapped, and has the opportunity to step away if the pressure gets overwhelming, in which case he has always returned back to me for another try.

If a horse feels trapped or restricted with no choice in the matter, it may submit, but its spirit and want to try will likely dim. To me, the spirit of the horse is its heart, soul and beauty, and why they are so admired and revered for the amazing creatures that they are.

Although looking in from the outside, I may move at a lesser pace than others, I really believe that “Taking the time it takes” keeps the integrity of the horse intact, and spirit willing.

On Monday, he wore a halter for the first time, and this was achieved at liberty in the yard, without roping, restraining, or chasing him in order to get it on……and by today, added a long lead line, and began to ask him to follow a soft feel. 

I was super happy with how quickly he picked up on this request, and although at one point he got a fright and took flight for a few laps, he was relatively quickly able to check himself, and return in to me as a place of comfort and safety, which shows exactly why I choose to lay down that trust in the relationship as number one priority.

Although Benson has high sensitivity and flight drive of an authentically wild horse, I'm super proud of how hard this boy works to please, and will approach the gate ears pricked every time I head out to interact with him. 🤗

I quite like working with the more sensitive types as they have so much to teach us and really make sure you fine tune your skills to successfully build a partnership with them, and set us up as better teachers and partners of all the other horses we cross paths with. 😊

We are now a month into the CopRice Australian Brumby Challenge, and at this point really starting to feel a nice connection between us.

Not to be mistaken for obedience, throughout this time the number one priority is to gain his trust and confidence in me, and be interested and willing to try some activities I've suggested to him. 

To achieve this, I’ve diligently watched for every reaction and response to my energy, approach, body motion, and actions. The more self aware you are, the more awareness you have of your surroundings and other beings. Horses are extremely aware, and notice self awareness and congruence.

“Horses know when you know, and they know when you don’t know.”

I’m only human, and certainly not made the perfect moves or communicate my requests as clear as they should be every time, but I thank Benson and his beautiful, sensitive and authentic wild self, to remind me when I do so, and continue to teach me to be a better horsewoman, as each horse who crosses my path teaches me.

In the last fortnight, I've been putting the halter on and off whenever I have had five minutes, and doing the odd lead around, but not every day, and do the rest of our training sessions at liberty. This may generally include haltering while free, getting more used to (and enjoying) body contact/touch on more areas of the body and front legs, attempting obstacles, walking over poles or tarps, and following changes in direction.

I also felt it was a safe time to open up the yard and release him into the bigger paddock outside, and feel my timing was pretty good as he cautiously stepped out, and went for a little trot around to inspect his new area, before dropping his head for a pick of grass. 🐴💗

All our previous preparation and trust building was also shown to have paid off the following day, as I was able to approach him free in the paddock, and halter him with no need of wanting to leave my presence or run off.

Out in this bigger area, we also had more fun exploring play at liberty, running around trees and over poles.......me slipping over in the mud and Benson looking at me on the ground like I got my legs yesterday. Lol 😂

Another exciting milestone this week has been picking up his front legs, which was also done at liberty, free in the paddock......and actually at an unplanned moment, as I was just doing a few leg touches from shoulder to hoof before leaving him with his dinner for the night, but he was so calm about it, I added a gentle squeeze to the lower leg, and got a lovely soft little lift. 👐

To summarise, some of our main milestones in the last month have been ......

*Draw and follow at liberty 

*First touches from Benson to myself, and vice versa 

*Crossing obstacles at liberty

*Haltering at liberty

*Learning feel of, and leading from a line

*Introduction to gentle brushing

*Picking up front feet at liberty 

I'm really falling in love with this special little fella and everything he's offered so far. With horses, I think it can be very easy (and all to common to be honest) to get greedy and ask too much too soon. 

I'm quite happy with where we are at this point in time, and sharing a dialogue with Benson, in that he feels safe to express himself, and also has a strong foundation of trust, and willing to make an effort to “try” when a more difficult question may be asked. 

A little bit more patience early on shows up in the horses physical, mental and emotional state tenfold in the future.

The last 2 weeks seem to have passed in the blink of an eye! We are having quite the dry, mild winter here in South Gippsland so the ground has even started to dry out a bit, normally my place would be ankle deep mud this time of year!

Benson’s confidence and condition is improving day by day, and I’m able to move about quite a bit more relaxed around him, as he is getting less spooky and reactive about activities and movement around him. 

He’s in his own paddock of a night, so he can eat his yummy CopRice dinner and brekky in peace without being bothered by the other horses…..but runs in the big paddock with a herd of 3 others during the day. Benson also discovered the dam and appears he likes the water, as he wandered over to me with a water line halfway up his sides and looking pretty happy with himself, lol.

A very exciting milestone for us the past couple of weeks has been trimming all four hooves! 🙌 As a professional hoof care provider and equine bodyworker I’ve been itching to do his feet since day 1, but wasn’t going to do it until he had complete trust in me to pick up and hold his legs with balance and relaxation in his body.

After doing plenty of work on the ground learning the feel of the rope, and giving to a little pressure, he also picked up learning to tie (usually either a looped line or blocker ring) very quickly, and without any fuss or panic, which is exactly how we want it. I’ve seen a lot of damage done to horses from pull back injuries, so do everything we can in preparation to keep it as calm and experience as possible, and avoid a violent reaction or fight in learning to tie.

On the fun side of things, his foundation of trust and connection, and working with him at liberty from our first interactions…….. he’ll keenly follow me around the open paddock where I’ve set up a mini obstacle course and do it all at liberty. He particularly likes to show off on his little platform, and will go over and stand on it randomly to show anyone watching “look how good I am at this….deserves a treat yeah?” 😅

It's lovely to be able to scratch and groom him all over now with him in a relaxed state, and muscles soft under my hands. And in the last few days have started to introduce him slowly to a saddle pad, letting him first touch and sniff if himself, then folding it up and beginning to bring it to, and onto his body in small step by step increments.

He continues to impress me day by day with his willingness to try new questions, and his sharp mind  working out the answers so quickly. It’s a lovely journey to be on with him. 🤗🐎💞

It's been quite an interesting past 2 weeks.........with a recent revelation answering a few questions I had about Benson, and a some behaviours I'd observed working with him.

From the beginning of our journey working together, I noticed Benson would nearly always put me on his right side, and even when working directly in front of him, such as crossing obstacles .......he would navigate better if I was off centre and to the side to keep him straight.

Up until the last week or so, I just thought his right side was his “preferred” side, and had just been rolling with it generally, until I was working more often in close proximity, and noticed he bumped me with his head a few times whilst I was on his left. 🤔

It was at this point I did my own “menace test” and discovered a lack of response from his left eye! As you might imagine, this concerned me a bit......so had the lovely Jess from Gippsland Veterinary clinic come out within the week to take a look at him and see what we were dealing with.

Long story short, it appears Benson is blind in his left eye.

Until I can get him into the clinic shed for a full diagnosis under sedation in a dark room, the exact cause is as yet unknown, but is unlikely to be treatable. 

I plan to continue working through the brumby challenge with Benson, with the added knowledge of his condition, and will take that information with me as we keep  building on our trust and strengthen our partnership through this journey.

I’m just as happy and honoured to work with Benson as I was on day one, and potentially even more so.....knowing how much he has offered so far, without me being fully aware of what he has been dealing with! And has quite likely  contributed to the high level of flight and sensitivity he's shown. 

Now back to his training and milestones over the past fortnight.....lol😂

Benny's confidence has been growing daily, and we've had our first few walks off property, which he enjoyed, and did his first float loads at liberty.....which I think the outside obstacles set him up beautifully for. 😊 And have been doing further odd days of loading, making the sessions a little longer each time, yet not getting greedy about shutting him inside in a hurry, and making sure he is in a calm and relaxed state moving forward.

Another exciting milestone was familiarisation with the saddle blanket and bareback pad, and girthing up, once again at liberty.......which he did amazingly well with, and with no humping, bucking, or any other behaviours that may show up if the prior preparation may be insufficient.

That was initially the most exciting part of the last fortnight, and probably still is as far as the  good stuff goes........but the eye issue kind of stole the limelight this week, lol.

To begin with, I'll follow up from the last instalment regarding Benson's eye.

After having an initial consult at home, we decided to go ahead and book Benson in for a more thorough consult in at the clinic, where he could be examined in a darkened room under sedation and could also do his dental check up at the same time. 

We'd already been practicing float loading, both at liberty and on the lead, and doing well standing calmly and closing the divider. So, a few days prior to our clinic appointment, went for a practice drive of approx., half hour return. He did really well, travelling very smoothly in the float, and having a good munch on his hay net......and unloading calmly and quietly on our return home.

On our visit to the clinic this past Tuesday, we found the diagnosis for Benson is “a large coliform cataract in the posterior nucleus of his lens, as well as equatorial cataracts in the same lens.”

These cataracts were diagnosed to be congenital, (present since birth) and is causing vision impairment, although possibly seeing variations in light and shadows.

Affected horses tend to have a heightened state of self-preservation, and can be more spooky and reactive, or show hesitancy in unfamiliar situations. 

He also had some very sharp molar caps removed which would have been adding to discomfort, and difficulty with eating. 

In the past week, I also started ponying out Benson off one of my mature horses, which he picked up very quickly, as though he'd been doing it for months! I find this exercise invaluable for all my young or green horses, and teaches guidance from above, while getting plenty of miles of walking, fitness, and exposure under their belt.

In this time, he's also been introduced to a saddle, and tacked up without a single drama, tension, humping or bucking. 👌And again, ponied out with the gear on and going beautifully.

I'm extremely proud of this little fella and his efforts, and even more so finding out about his vision impairment and how well he's done with everything that’s been asked of him.... especially things he may find a little extra challenging or difficult. 💗

The past fortnight have had a few milestones and adventures for the lovely Benson! 

Since his previous vet visit and dental, he's been eating quite a bit better, and feel we are making better ground in regards to getting a bit more condition on.

We've also continued to lead or pony out down the road to continue to build on walking fitness and exposure to light traffic, which he's getting more confident with each day.

Only a few days after our last update, we had a lovely short session after one of our walks, of beginning to mount and hold my weight up in the stirrups. Again, due to a quiet, no fuss approach, and good preparation.....he was a perfect little champ and stayed soft and calm throughout 🤗.

We also have got in a few exciting outings and adventures! 

Firstly, I met up with my good friend Ebony and her youngster at the local cross country course, and we saddled up the boys for a walk around the old race training track, the went for a play around the cross country course. Running and jumping with the boys over logs, ditches, tyres, and up and down banks. The young horses were really enjoying themselves and quickly started to prick their ears and draw in keenly on approach to each obstacle.

Last Sunday I was invited to give a talk to one of the local pony clubs at Mirboo North about the Australian Brumby Challenge and my journey so far with Benson.

As he'd had a few float trips recently, I thought it would be a good opportunity for the kids to meet him face to face, and also give Benny some new exposure to a group of pony clubbers! He was initially a little unsure, but by the end of the talk was showing some lovely relaxation and was happy to be hand fed by the kiddos as well! A great day for everyone 🐎💗

Benson has come along beautifully in the last fortnight.....making great progress with regular saddling and walks out along the road and bush, which he loves!

We also had our first weight bearing in stirrups, and first mounts and sits in the bareback pad, also bridleless. I believe this was a good opportunity to show what can be achieved by prioritising trust and confidence building in the horse before asking bigger questions of them.......which actually then up being “easy” questions due to the previous foundations we have built.

Our first couple of rides were actually out along the quiet, front gravel road along my property....as I feel young, green horses are encouraged to step out into a nice forward walk with a direction and purpose.

As of date, I have had about 5 short rides on Benny, most being of about 5 minute duration, letting him get used to carrying a rider in short spells, and allowing his body to adapt without asking to much mentally or physically.

His 3rdride was a really lovely experience, beginning by walking out on the bush trails in hand with a friend, then getting on for a little 5 minute ride, before another good stretch of in hand walking, followed by another 5 minutes, before a splash in the dam, and real good roll in the sand pit.

This week he's getting a few well earned days off while I take a few days off myself to go to the Deni ute muster.....and while up here was fortunate to catch up with a few ladies from the Barmah Brumby Sanctuary where Benson came from, and learn more about the area where he grew up and lived prior to him coming to me, which was very interesting, and also probably explains his great love of galloping into the dam for a good splash and roll every chance he gets. 😂

It really is amazing how much these wonderful Brumbies can progress in a short amount of time! And also how taking the required time at the beginning of the relationship to lay down a foundation built on patience, trust and safety, pays off tenfold further down the track when we begin to ask bigger or harder questions of them.

Last Saturday we travelled for an outing at Danima Equestrian Centre for an obstacle play day, where Benson got to experience an indoor arena for the first time, as well as exploring a range of obstacles whilst sharing the space with a small group of other horses and handlers. 

We spent the majority of this session in hand, but I did get on for the last 15 minutes of the session for a wander around, and ride through a few of the obstacles he was most confident with. It was also exciting to catch up with fellow Brumby Challenge trainer Blair and her beautiful girl Callisto and have a good chat about our Brums and journeys so far, as well as trading a few happy snaps from the day. 🤗

Just this last week we also made another big trip over to Geelong Royal Show to experience the atmosphere of a big show with lots of horses, carts, people, loudspeakers, sideshows and other stimulus, as well as practicing staying in a stable overnight. 

I drove up the day prior to meet up with another Brumby Challenge trainer and good friend, Erin, and her boy Aztec, for a Brumby play date at another obstacle course at Meredith, which was good fun. Then hung out for an hour or so catching up, before I headed to Geelong showgrounds.

I'll be honest, the Tuesday evening bump in wasn't ideal…….I arrived to find the stables were very small and dark, and my bedding order for the stable never arrived, which left me in a bit of a pickle until one of the staff found me an emergency bale of straw to get me by. To top it all off, even though Benny followed me into the tiny, dark stable……when I went to shut the old split doors, he got a big fright from the noise they made, and tried to jump out over the stable door! 🙈Long story short, he was fine, settled down to eat his dinner and make friends with the pony next door, and was probably less traumatised than I was about the whole ordeal, lol. The next day was far better, with Benny coping amazingly well with the influx of competitors arriving for the first day of the show, getting measured by a very calm and patient show measurer person (a hundred points to that bloke for his calm manner around the brums 👌), and taking part in our very first show event, Led Brumby, alongside fellow Austalian brumby challenge trainers Erin and Kiara.

As of today, I've had about a dozen rides on dear Benson, and he hasn't put a hoof wrong…..although I'm continuously aware and listening to his feedback to help him if he gets stuck, or shows any confusion about what I'm asking….which avoids getting into spots of conflict or stress. We also had our first canter under saddle this past Sunday which felt amazing 🤗Such an amazing little brum 🐎💗

I can't believe we are already in the last fortnight before Equitana!! 😮

And what an amazing journey it has been so far! 

From a wild, flighty, reactive animal…....to a trusting and willing partner in a matter of months, I feel I have progressed somewhat more than I expected I may have by now? Although in saying that, I deliberately didn’t set goals in concrete as I needed to make sure each step was at Bensons own pace, and not pushed hard or flooded to suit my own agenda or expectations.

Early on, when I realised he was quite a sensitive animal whom also had a high flight response, I thought it would likely be after half way, and quite probably ¾ way through the challenge if and when he may possibly be under saddle, and my guess was pretty spot on. Lol.

At the time of writing, he's been under saddle a month……with the early rides only being very short stints, to ensure he didn’t get sore, and also to gradually build up his muscles and strength for riding.

Our rides and/or walks(or “pony hikes” as I like to call them 😅)….have also nearly always been out on the trails or up and down my road, and 90% or more at walking pace. I'm a big believer in walking for conditioning and feel him getting stronger each ride.

Only recently have we really started to introduce working inside an arena, and the smaller circles and turns that come with working in an enclosed space. I’ve also said to a few people, that he now is starting to feel more like a green domestic horse, rather than a horse out of the wild, lol.

This last Monday was probably one of my favourite “Wild to Wonderful” moments so far……heading out for a great trail ride with a friend, and being able to confidently slip off the halter and ride Benny bridleless for a few kms through some beautiful local bush tracks. Was smiling all week after that ride 🤗

Currently we are working on refining the basics skills we do have, without introducing too much new questions, and working on having Benny as prepared as possible for the final showcase at Equitana. 

Its been a truly amazing journey and experience…..and I thank everyone involved for all their hard work organising and running this challenge…….and for inviting me to be part of what I feel is a very special group showcasing some exceptional horsemanship practices built on patience, empathy, and listening to the horses.

Can't wait to reunite with everyone and their amazing Brums at Equitana! See you there! 😀