Benney had a good week. After all, what could be better than being reunited with your bestie, Bryn, following a sixteen-month separation.

Following his ‘party’ on the Easter Egg Hunt in mid-April, we have been working on keeping him quiet. To stop him fizzing up every time he has a saddle on and goes for a hack from the yard. Also, as Benney is a very forward going pony. Whenever we are walking him across the yard, we are getting him to walk at the pace we want, and not the one he dictates. We do this by varying the pace, and even making him stop at random intervals.

That work continued on Friday evening.

I started to ride him in the arena, which was shared with Vashti on Celeste and Catherine on Pablo. Despite the other two horses working and passing him, Benney settled very quickly as we walked around. Again, making stops at random places for random intervals. We also did multiple changes of direction to keep him engaged, and to keep out of the way of the other two horses. He has become very responsive to the leg and shifts in the rider's position, so that his reins are just something to hold on to rather than to steer him with in the arena.

Vashti and I then teamed up, and left to go for a hack.

A year ago, just after we moved to Newlands, I went out for a hack with her and Celeste. It was, as Benney would say ‘a bit of a party.’ He was excited with his new surroundings, and on the look out for horse eating predators behind every tree and bush. While we were out, Celeste threw in naughty bucks, which were getting bigger and more agile every time she did one. Full credit to Vashti, all she could do was laugh and smile all the way round.

As far as Benney was concerned, that hack was a ‘party.’ I was just glad to have survived the challenge, and returned to the yard safely.

On Friday we set off into the forest through the gate at Ak Ak Corner. Once through the gate, we decided on our pace. Both of us were happy to do the whole ride at walk as we both had the same intentions for our horses: keep them quiet and settled. Riding upsides each other and swapping lead. We rode all the way to the Lion King Trees, and then back to the farm. No wild bucks from Celeste. No fizzing up by Benney, even when we turned for home heading into the sunset.

On Saturday I turned Bryn out after his lunge session, and brought Benney in for his.

As with Bryn earlier we used the minimum amount of tack. A numnah, roller, bridle without reins, and a lunge line. We lead him across the yard varying his pace and stopping every so often to let him know he had to walk at our pace making him fully aware of who was in charge.

In the arena I walked him around for a few minutes to allow him to stretch, and to get him to start concentrating on the task in hand. He did look out for Bryn a couple of times who was calling him from the field.

Then the session began.

Benney, as they say in sports psychology circles got 'into the zone’ quite quickly. From walk to trot with halts in between. He was really concentrating on us and his work to the extent that he ignored Bryn’s increasingly frequent calls. We asked him to canter, and his transitions were the smoothest we had ever seen him achieve. Once or twice he struck off on the wrong lead, but without interrupting his pace managed to correct himself.

He looked balanced, calm and if he could, he would have been smiling at what he was achieving so effortlessly.

Thea then fitted side reins. Their purpose is to help strengthen the horses back by making them work from behind, raise their backs and lower their heads freely. In no way are they meant to be any form of restraint, or used to force a horse into an artificially over-bent posture.

Benney accepted this additional tack readily. He walked looking very comfortable, and then transitioned into an active working trot effortlessly. It was in this pace that we could see how he was tracking up. His hind feet were just about landing where the fore feet had been. He held his nose slightly ahead of the vertical, and his back looked relaxed. He was comfortable and happy.

This session lasted about forty minutes. It wasn’t spectacular. It wasn’t explosive. It was just a solid, workman like piece of schooling, which was very satisfying and most importantly of all, quiet.

A job well done all round.