Not Always Plain Sailing! - First Time Driving Out with a Young Cob Filly

[@bethany7518]

Such horsemanship, some things can't be taught to a man, that man has been given a gift. Just so beautiful to watch.

[@Aimee0206]

I'm surprised at how calm Cloud stayed! Practically had a horse jump on top of him and he just kept on trotting. He's a testament to your hard work, Barry!

[@barryhook2]

That's the mark of a good schoolmaster right there :)

[@alex_nemo_]

​@@barryhook2give her carrots. 😅

[@jmmarshall5492]

If I were a horse, I'd want Barry to be my trainer. Such calmness bringing out the best in her.

[@elvissgrandma3215]

Big learning step for this youngster. She did so very well overall. Barry, your method of pairing a youngster with a safe, experienced horse replicates the true gypsy (not the wannabe copycats who bring gypsies into disrepute) traditional way of gradually introducing foals into work alongside their dam without causing trauma or fear to either.

[@barryhook2]

We do find that another horse can can calm a student much better than any human can - even if they trust the human, there's something about a calm horse that we can't fully replicate.

[@wendydavies1301]

I love how calm you are and kind to the horses, and they listen out all the time flicking an ear back. I love it. I can't ride anymore and have thought about getting a pony about 14h just to drive. If I think long and hard, though, I talk myself out of it. It would be lovely to have a camper van and a trailor that will take a small cart and the pony and travel to Scotland and all over the country and go shopping on the carriage and outside pub meals and a good nose bag with a hay bag so the pony can have thier tea while I am eating mine. Wow, that would be really fun. The only thing is finding sites that have field hire as well. You have inspired me to make some enquiries. Thank you. 😊

[@applegreentech]

Love these videos and it’s sweet to hear him baby talk to them

[@sheilahackney5149]

You sir are a true horseman. Very few of your caliber around today. A joy to watch.

[@dove-1234]

Storm is the equine version of Barry, he did not react to Pennys bucking when the strap touched her hock. He kept calm and kept his line. Wonderful team and no wonder Penny has hooked on th Rhi she has a natural gift with horses. A joy to watch thankyou for sharing;.

[@louisecassidy5991]

So Storm is Barry's coacher/babysitter, fellow with calm vibes, very good traveller. Well, your horse is a mirror of your soul, why they are so alike.

[@wilmapascha2996]

They both look qui8te happy in front of that wagon.

[@carolewilliams2232]

Thank you for this video young horse looks like she’s doing just fine running with your daddy the way you talk to your horses you kind, gentle person❤

[@sarahmarks7082]

Slow, steady progress with Penny and Cloud is worth his weight in platinum 🤩 I got the strong sense that Cloud was talking to Penny during this drive and saying ' are you listening to me? Calm down! Stay focused! '

[@barryhook2]

He certainly is :)

[@janw491]

I needed this today (nov 8) Mr. Hook is so soothing in this very turbulent week

[@barryhook2]

You are very welcome :)

[@SlickMick-g2k]

Good stepping together ❤️

[@brigitasehgal2937]

I must say that vehicle drivers were all very sensible, which definitely helps. Thanks for the ride, she probably learned a lot from that drive.

[@TsukiOverKnots]

finally!! a thumbnail that isn't clickbait

[@latioselatias]

Such a beautiful day ❤

[@AndreaDingbatt]

If people spend a bit more time watching 'herd dynamics' it would be valuable time, well spent!! It gives us more of an understanding of how they communicate with each other, often I think that training horses is often teaching translation!! Thank you Rhi, Barry and team as always!! Namasté 🙏 🕊️ 💞 🌟 Andréa and Critters. ...XxX....

[@californiadreamer2580]

Yes the replay seems to show the outside trace tighten up against her lower rear leg. Good girl, she recovered her composure quickly ❤

[@TerriReuserHVR90]

I LOVE the description of "ground work." That is precisely what it is -- teaching and they are learning every single moment from the time one shows up at the gate or pen or stall to how you leave them. Similarly maybe "training" should be thought of that as well. I've wondered often is some misunderstand that when a horse goes home, it doesn't mean the horse is "fixed." IMO, "training" and "groundwork" never stops and I remember hearing a hundred years ago: "you are either training or untraining" your horse." It seems to me that unless the owner/rider/driver changes or is more consistent, then the horse can easily slip back to old behaviour. When I started out with my pony, she did exactly what this horse did at 12:00 -- I just kept her going forward. Knowing that pony as well as I did, I knew to over-react would have been disaster and may have made things worse the next time out. All the prep in the world can't always stop the oddball things from happening. Leave on a positive. Love the videos and the chats from the carriage seat. Doesn't get any more real than that.

[@barryhook2]

Absolutely - panicking and overreacting never helps anything!

[@voxmomvoxmom3067]

Barry,you have nerves of steel!

[@nelltaylor8171]

Fantastic horseman. ❤

[@user-go3xz5zi7i]

Dear Mr. Hook, I think you’re wonderful! I’d love to shake your hand Sir. Neandra in NW Florida

[@ClaraTaylor-te7mj]

Great video and the countryside around you looks beautiful 👍🐴

[@mrsjanhannah]

Its a few years since i last drove my Welsh section d, he is gone now my little love. Some horses just love this activity and he was one of them. We used to level the paddock with a pallet every couple of days. Yes "breaking" is a silly word to use. If you gentle them each day they will do anything for you well thats my method anyway.

[@raflm1677]

Calm down, calm down, calm down, Barry, you know how to manage your time on the marathon bench, as well as putting your professional stamp on it with the horses.

[@ummno3703]

that thumbnail is crazy

[@juliawilliams4443]

Lovely, thank you!

[@MauricioMol-z8d]

The best, Champion

[@lillycanny]

Yes please tell us Cloud's story, Barry!

[@barryhook2]

You can hear snippets of it across the channel, but one day we will try tell it all in one go for you all as its own separate video.

[@Oakleaf700]

4:57 sounds like they are trotting in step..lovely.

[@barryhook2]

Cloud is very good at matching his students :)

[@Oakleaf700]

@@barryhook2 He's a star- like Barry's lovely old Grey horse who was an equally good teacher. You are a good team.

[@EX5DD]

I'm interested as to why Penny is on the offside and not Cloud on her first outing? Cloud is a star to keep concentrating on the job in hand despite the jumpy novice.

[@PasoPedro09]

I was wondering that as well, but little miss Penny did a great job all-in-all even with her little episode. Cloud was a big champ not being bothered at all with Penny being upset. And Berry, your calmness and true leadership is a testimony to being kind, patient and focused on the job at hand really makes all the difference in the world to these horses. Penny recovered beautifully and you can see her growing with confidence. She looked very happy! Job well done!

[@pixie706]

The mare must have been well accustomed to traffic previously

[@louisecassidy5991]

Cloud can hold her, prevent her from jumping into the ditch. He would know exactly where on the road is the line of travel, Barry can concentrate on the filly, Cloud is never gonna jump off the road.

[@barryhook2]

We always have our new horses on the offside facing the traffic whether they are used to traffic or not. If they can 'hide' behind the schoolmaster then traffic doesn't get any less scary for them as time goes on. If they start right up against the white line and get used to being that close to traffic, running in the middle of the road as a single horse later will be no trouble to them. Plus as someone said below, if they push into the schoolmaster he will hold them up and not leave the road. If for some reason he was to (slipped etc.) then we are only going off the road into a hedge or ditch, which is not ideal but much less dangerous than if a student was to accidentally push the schoolmaster into oncoming traffic, if they spooked away from the gutter if they were put to on the nearside. They all of course do run nearside too before going single if they are started in a pair.

[@barryhook2]

She happened to be OK with traffic, but we always start our student on the offside regardless of whether they are used to traffic or not.

[@crowznest438]

Wish I could smell the horse sweat and leather.

[@barryhook2]

It is a very good smell!

[@reneeszoo]

Absolutely love your videos and love how you treat the horses. Can I get some advice for a mare who dislikes the crupper? I adopted her mid August for a trail driving horse. She raced as a pacer and was an Amish buggy horse. She had a serious tear from giving birth that was left untreated for who knows how long. Her previous owner had it corrected and it is healed. She will allow me to lift her tail when unharnessed but clamps it tight if she sees a crupper. She balks and leaps sideways when ground driven with a crupper and is sensible without one.

[@barryhook2]

It sounds like the crupper is causing her discomfort from her previous injury - either physically or perhaps mentally. If you've tried padding the crupper with something soft, greasing it very well with Vaseline or similar and she is still uncomfortable, consider if you need to use one. If she drives well without one and you can manage to do so, then it may be kinder to allow her to drive without. Perhaps look into a harness which does not use a crupper if you are concerned about using a cruppered harness without it.

[@debtompkins5363]

and how do you deal when/with a bad auto driver who scares a horse into jumping into traffic................ ????? had an idiot buzz by from behind and lay on the horn, horse leaped into road (no place else to go) was amazing we didn't get run over... scared the heck outa me, driver roared away, horse settled pretty good... course he didn't know how close we all were to dead or mangled

[@jolandameivogel9006]

A real psychopath. 25 years a go a very good horseman was killed by a car driver who almost run over the front legs of the horses, the 4 horses in front of the marathonwagen, run away and the horseman fall of between the horses in front of the marathonwagen and was killed. The man was around 60 years old working with horses his whole life. The driver of the car was never found. In the Netherlands a lot of car drivers having a lot of fun scar horses, no fun riding our horse on the road near a big city.

[@Mitmacher]

@@jolandameivogel9006 At the beginning, car-drivers asked if they could also use the roads. Today they do so as if the streets belonged only to them. One day soon, artificial intelligence will take the steering wheel out of humans' hands. Then all that's left is the "carriage line"(Despair). "If you give the devil your little finger, he takes the whole hand." Some can sing a lament of it, what happened to them after the wedding. ---

[@beverley232]

Cloud is a good un!

[@arnhemseptember2009]

Clearly a "trace-touch moment". Just ignore it and go on is the best way of not to really upsetting the horse. She has learned a lot from that single moment.

[@barryhook2]

Absolutely - don't make a big fuss about it and she will realise it wasn't a big deal and she needn't have overreacted quite so much haha

[@erika7674]

' ... and on we go ... '. ☺

[@Mitmacher]

It probably wasn't obvious that the horse was charging up with stress, like a battery, only to discharge itself in a short circuit, as he understandably always seemed tense on his first ride. Or not? And what could you have done if you had seen the discharge coming?

[@firstnamelastname-uq9hr]

Looked as bad as a fly bite, thankgoodness she never put her leg over the trace.

[@barryhook2]

Always a possibility, however weather conditions make it less likely on this occasion.

[@pixie706]

The advantage of a bit of long reining with harness on accostoms a horse to being touched on the legs and sides but obviously Barrie doesnt approve of it

[@barryhook2]

It's not a case of not approving, we just do things differently here. We do get a horse accustomed to being touched on the legs and sides before we put them to, however horses being horses, sometimes this doesnt always been they won't react at some point. Barry doesn't do long reining anymore as he hasn't got the knees for it! However if you have a look on our channel, there's a few long reining videos and videos of us chain harrowing, logging etc.

[@michelleburstrom2548]

Why the biting?

[@AngelaGibbs-ue8ox]

Wish that this video had subtitles I can't understand what he is saying

[@TammySaj-zm6kr]

It's smooth sailing ⛵️ not plain 😅

[@barryhook2]

Can be either!

[@willnellen9028]

Could it have been a horsefly or maybe wasp that might have made Penny do this weird jumpthing?

[@barryhook2]

Always a possibility, but conditions (temperature, time of year etc.) make it less likely in this situation.

[@carolinehops]

Maybe she got bit by a horse fly barry ,

[@Oakleaf700]

Possibly..those things can definitely make a horse leap. It was hard to tell from the video {For me anyway} what had upset her. Cloud was a star ''sister..just keep on'' - just ignored her, as did Barry. Barry would know more than any of us as he was there.

[@barryhook2]

Always a possibility! Weather conditions and time of year make it less likely on this occasion but you never know!

[@Oakleaf700]

@@barryhook2 That was quite an extreme reaction for just a horse fly- but as you know , young horses can see something we can't and go ''up in the air with a sideways leap'' in milliseconds, leaving the rider thinking ''what was THAT about?''

[@kerstinengelhardt1993]

Those horses didn't work together. Looks like the paint was scared of the brown snapping at it agitating all the time without being corrected.

[@barryhook2]

If you watch the whole video, you'll see that they did actually work together well once they got going. We would not expect them to 'work together' from the outset, as this was Penny's first time in and she is not supposed to be doing much of the work, that's why we have the other horse who is black (not brown) and his name is Cloud. He is one of our schoolmasters - a highly trained horse we use to train others. He very rarely even opens his mouth at another horse, so no - the piebald filly is not scared of him however she is doing something entirely new to her and is more likely to look to him for guidance. Cloud rarely needs correcting. He is very good at his job. Any putting of his head over the pole is to teach Penny where she should be on the road. Hope that clears things up.

[@BarryBobbins]

How do you get them fit enough for this? It’s a lot of work for them.

[@louisecassidy5991]

Trick is the first time in she's not fit, comes in weary but not winded, but if the first drive, or ride, is long and steady, then you persist daily, you got instant horse. They can take much more than most people think.

[@barryhook2]

Gradual increase of workload - just as with yourself if you were training for a marathon!

[@PrincessNottingham]

Why did she buck and kick? Looked really scarey xx

[@barryhook2]

She had a sensitive or 'ticklish' spot on that leg and the trace touched it. Not sure why, but we worked on desensitising that area and she has not done it again since. First drive 'wobbles' are fairly common (although not often as explosive!) as everything is new to the horse no matter how much preparation you put in before putting them to.

[@barryhook2]

She had a sensitive spot on the outside of that leg and the trace touching it probably surprised her. There are many other reasons it could be, but that is Barry's guess. We desensitised her to touching there and she never had had the problem again thankfully.

[@Channelinterrupted]

Why was the black horse in the other horse's face seemingly annoying her? The black horse is in the white horses space no?

[@Channelinterrupted]

Just the beginning parts . I'm new here and noticed that right away. ❤

[@barryhook2]

The black horse is Cloud, he's our schoolmaster. He puts his head into he space to move her over and teach her where she should be on the road, as this is Penny's first time driving on the road. She might be a little annoyed by him invading her space, but more likely as he is more dominant than her she will take guidance from him. Welcome to the channel!

[@agnessenga3450]

2 Things I never will do even how good the young horse is, Never let a very young horse pull and be ridden, second starting to keep very short good training, like 5 till 10 minutes is more then enough, it should be only good memories neven overdoing it and get the pressure off even if they do enjoy the work. Your video is over 20 minutes and not even back home...it's not strange if something will happen, just lucky if it's going well

[@barryhook2]

Penny turned three this summer (we do not take them for training until after their third birthday) and by this point of her training we had put in a lot of groundwork to prepare her for this. She is going for a drive alongside a schoolmaster who is there to do the bulk of the work - we have them adjusted so that she can be brought out of draft if we think she is tiring and Cloud can pull us home no trouble with her walking beside. Everyone does things differently, this is how we do it. There is always an element of luck with horses, but experience also plays into it a lot.

[@agnessenga3450]

@@barryhook2 Okay now i understand, we never would call a 3 year old a filly, it's a nice age

[@ngc4486diane]

u could include rope work in your ground work as in pressure and release if u think she had a serve reaction to pressure, look at steve young horsemanship for more info. And yes u stayed nice and calm and so did your other horse, she needs a halo.

[@TerriReuserHVR90]

I'm kind of tired of ALL of that. Those guys don't think about "ground work" as being how Barry described it. If they do think about it, it sure hasn't translated to their audiences. I've watched all that morph for more than 40 years. It became about the "show" and not about the ultimate goal. I've heard some of Barry's thoughts on some of that stuff and couldn't have agreed more. There is a reason trainers like Barry do or don't do something.

[@Oakleaf700]

@@TerriReuserHVR90 I do like Barry's very common sense practical methods . No gimmicks.

[@Solitude11-11]

No

[@TerriReuserHVR90]

@@Oakleaf700 As do the horses, I'm sure. 😉

[@Oakleaf700]

@@TerriReuserHVR90 I bet they do! If I were a horse, I'd like Barry and Cloud by my side.

[@heidihamilton7433]

That other horse doesn’t like her and she knows it, try a different horse

[@barryhook2]

Cloud doesn't mind anyone up alongside him - he's at work so whether he likes the other horse or not he behaves himself - and Penny ran independently from him the entire time she worked pair. They worked well together.

[@Oakleaf700]

Barry has an innate ability - an inner calm and no nonsense. It's a shame the Youngs Brewery horses are no longer part of the scene in SW London. Mum still lives there, and misses seeing them outside Hare and Hounds and other places. {Barry used to work there {Youngs}I think?

[@barryhook2]

He did indeed work for Youngs!

[@Oakleaf700]

@@barryhook2 That was a wonderful place. Like going back in time. I was lucky to be driven around and back to the Stables {no health and safety rules like now} - the Driver and Groom left me perched high on the driver's seat with a half pint of lemonade while they nipped inside Hare and Hounds- However, they were careful to furl the reins around the hames {I was 14!}