Preparing for a Parade

[MajorClementine]

Last year when Clementine was in driving training we told my son that hopefully we would be able to drive her in the local parade this year. Well it's getting closer and closer and I want to make sure we've run her through the paces. She is not a reactionary horse and takes most things in stride. She does throw small fits when she doesn't want to do something but gets over it quickly when she realized you aren't giving in to her and she moves on. She has a good whoa and is willing to stand as long as I ask her to. We live in a pretty rural area so even driving her on the roads doesn't expose her to much traffic. The only busy road is the state highway into town and the shoulder is not suitable for driving her on. Talk about scary!

So I'm wondering, if rather than driving her, if we "decorate" her and lead her in the parade to get used to all the hustle and bustle this year...will that be better? Will she even remember it come next year?

What can I do while driving her at home and around town to give us the best possible chance at the parade? Also, there is an open class show nearby in the fall... is there anything extra she needs to be used to before going to that?

 

[Marsha Cassada]

I've done many parades. What I have found is that horses are natural followers. Once the horse knows what he is to follow, he is comfortable. The bicycles, unicycles, children rushing around are the hardest things. Even the sirens and fire engine horns are not that distracting.

Do take her! Have someone walk with you, by all means, but it sounds as though she is ready.

The only thing I ever had trouble with was black tar lines across the street! My horse used to think they were Grand Canyons, I guess. I had a terrible time getting him to step over them. Once he was actually in the parade, however, he went fine. Also, if there are very steep hills on the route, be prepared for that. The parades go slowly; someone walking beside her will give you confidence the first time. If you can have someone ride a bicycle around her, honk a few horns, go near her with a noisy lawn mower--that would be helpful.

I carry a lists of contacts, because people always want to know where to get a miniature, where did I get my cart and harness.

 

[MajorClementine]

I took her to the parking lot of our event center today to try her out somewhere she has never been. It also has a hill up to the Event Center and then back down. She hasn't done much in the way of hills so it was good for her. At first she didn't want to go down the hill after she got about half way but we worked our way through it and then did it several times. I drove her as did my dad, who has driven her once before, then my mom and husband both took a turn. Neither of them had ever driven her before and she was an angel. She does "skitter" to the side a step or two going from pavement to dirt or next to a man hole cover but only the first time around. And she doesn't shy way away from them. I was really happy with her today and I was feeling a little more confident about taking her. After reading your post I think I will take her and have my husband walk with us. My 4 year old son wants to ride with me so I will feel a lot better about that if my husband is right there as well. She is already used to kids running around, dogs, a remote control truck driving under her, and a ball being bounced off of her. However, bicycles she may not be used to. Thank you for that suggestion. That is something to work on before the parade for sure.

 

[MajorClementine]

As part of our parade prep I drove Clementine up the highway a bit to a cul de sac where some of my son's friends live. She has never been out the driveway at my grandfather's place (where she and Major living), on the highway, or in that neighborhood. She did everything I asked her to. We walked down the long dirt drive avoiding the potholes leftover from winter, then "whoa-ed" at the end of the drive facing the highway to wait for traffic. She stood rock solid. When it was clear we trotted up the highway to the cul de sac. Once there we stopped at the friends house and gave each of their 3 kids rides around the neighborhood. Then we gave them all a second ride. I thought it would be good for her to have kids running up to her while hitched to get used to it before the parade. She did really really well.

I'm feeling more and more confident in her and myself. I'm not saying she is bomb proof but we are understanding each other. I know how she is going to react and can be prepared for it. She seems to trust me and do what I ask her to without question. This friday we are trailering her across town to "Grandma Night" where all the young cousins get together each week and going to give them rides as well.

Also, she is good with other people driving her. My husband, Mom, and Dad have all driven her and she is great for them as well. She seems to really enjoy her time pulling the cart. Whenever I show up with the halter she walks right over and drops her nose in and stands well for harnessing and hitching.

One small problem is the belly band is rubbing her right behind her leg on one side. It is fine on the other side and I can't figure out the exact problem. I was thinking of making a shearling wrap to put on the belly band where it is rubbing to help remedy the problem.

 

[BSharpRanch]

Perhaps the wrap strap on that side is a bit tighter, not allowing the saddle the move correctly. Check the wraps and breeching even.

 

[Performancemini]

We usually walk ours the first time or two. 'Course, you get get a little 'mobbed' at times if you get too close to the curbs. The first times we drive we usually have one adult at the head with a lead attached for safety-just in case.

 

[MajorClementine]

We drove again on Friday and I checked to make sure the wrap straps and everything were even. That may have been it because we didn't have any rubbing this time.

I took 7 cousins and grandma and grandpa for short rides in a new neighborhood and Clementine did great. The only time we have any problem is when we are whoa-ed for a long time when we first get hitched. She is ready to go. She doesn't get nasty but she tosses her head and will stomp her front foot to let me know she isn't happy. I know parades have a lot of waiting right at first so to remedy this problem I plan on hitching her at home and driving her up to the parade line-up area (a couple of blocks from my house is all). Then, since I'll know most of the people in the parade, I'll drive her around the back roads by the line up area and have someone a few spots ahead of me in the parade give me a call when they start moving. If she is just not up for it or starts acting up I can just take her down a side street and home. The parade route is steps from my front door at one point.

I am having someone walk with us since I'll have my 4 year old with me. In case something happens I want someone to be able to grab my son and keep an eye on him while I work with the horse.

 

[Foxhaven]

If you are stopped for a long time in the parade, you can practice pivots.

 

[MajorClementine]

If you are stopped for a long time in the parade, you can practice pivots.

Oh I like that idea! Give her something to do rather than just stand there. Thanks!

We went for a drive again on Sunday. I drove her from the barn but up through a new neighborhood. I took the overcheck off and worked on adjusting the harness a little bit for better balance of the cart. She did fantastic. She seems like she would go all day if I asked her too. She seemed to be more comfortable on Sunday as well. I'm thinking it's because I got things balanced a little better. She does tend to go for a bite of grass if she we are just standing but I'd rather correct that with training (correcting it when it happens) than with a device. How many of you use a check?

I also drove her again yesterday evening. We went to a new area again. There was a pretty steep downhill at the beginning and you could tell she was not as comfortable with that but she did well. She settled in quickly. We drove back to the barn and then, just so she doesn't think she is done every time we get back and go "barn sour" on me, we went back out after standing for a bit. We drove back through a small neighborhood we've been in before that is aways full of kids. Sure enough a couple of kids were riding bikes. I knew them both so I asked them to ride circles around us while we went at a walk. Clementine didn't even blink! Then we had to stop so a group of little girls could pet her. She stood rock steady.

When we headed back the right trace popped off (gotta secure those better, I searched for ideas on the forum and have some good ones to try). She didn't freak. She let me "whoa" her and put it back on. Then we were off again.

Hopefully we'll get 2 more drives in before the parade on Saturday.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Sounds as though you have a wonderful driving horse!

Good idea to ask the children to ride their bikes around her, and to practice going down a hill.

Usually there isn't much time during a parade to get impatient, but waiting for it to start can be a problem. We do drive in circles then if my horse is fidgety.

 

[MajorClementine]

Lucky for us the woman who organizes this parade is a horsewoman. She put the emergency vehicles and flags first followed by the local royalty girls and then the horses. She didn't want a bunch of horses standing around for an hour or more. We are #14 out of 85 entries so I'm feeling pretty good about that.

It's so much fun to drive Clementine. You can tell that she enjoys it and that's what makes it so great. Whenever she sees me with her halter she walks right over and sticks her nose in. I wasn't sure about her driving potential at first because she was such a snotty filly sometimes. However, I think that little bit of sass is what makes her a good driving horse. She doesn't let much bother her. Hopefully that will hold true during the parade. I'm excited and nervous at the same time. Hopefully I will be able to keep the nervousness to myself so it doesn't transfer to her...

 

[MajorClementine]

Today we did a practice run. We got harnessed and hitched at the house then drove from the house to the parade staging area. We went and found our number on the street. I'm feeling really good about tomorrow. The festival here id's Friday and Saturday so there were huge crowds and tons of traffic today. She drove calm and steady abd listened to all my verbal cues. Whoas were quick and steady. Lots of kids wanting to hi and approach us as well. Also a young girl in a wheel chair. She was fine with all of it. Today my husband walked with us just in case. I'm glad we did a practice run today because i am on my own tomorrow. Hubby works for sheriff's office so he has to help shut the streets down. But all the guys he works with are keeping an eye out for us and will grab my son if there is an upset with the horse so i can concentrate on that without having to worry about my 4 year old (who will be wearing his helmet). Sometimes living in a small town is a good thing. Help is only steps away.

 

[MajorClementine]

Whew... we made it. Standing in the staging area wasn't a favorite for Clementine but she did very well considering we stood for 30 minutes. There was a little foot stomping and head bobbing but other than that we were good.

Once we got going she was a little nervous about the rushes of children coming out to get the candy from the float in front of us but I just had her stand and let that float get a little farther ahead of us. This also gave her a chance to see the kids better. After that she was a champ. She kept it at a nice walk for me and stopped when asked. We were doing good until... the drone.

Yup, someone was flying a drone over the parade and buzzed it right over our heads. I never thought to desensitize her to drones. She spooked and backed a bit and was working it out when they flew if back over from behind. Lovely. She spooked again but never tried to bolt. I just talked to her and asked her to "walk on" and she straightened up and off we went. She was pretty nervous for a bit after that but she listened to everything I asked her to do. I felt in control the whole time even though I knew she was a little keyed up.

After the parade we took a nice long drive through the neighborhood to get home. By the time we got home she was relaxed and quiet again. I'm going to take her out again tomorrow afternoon when town is back to it's usually sleepy self. A little reward for both of us after the crazy parade.

I did have a team of drafts behind me that had a lot of extra hands with them. They offered assistance if I needed it so even though we didn't have anyone to walk with us a couple members of their group kept a close eye on us and were ready to stand at her head if we needed them. I made sure to thank them after the parade.

This picture is right after our little "drone incident". You can see the gal in the white shirt and straw hat behind us keeping an eye out to see if we need her help. Gotta love the driving community!

 

[Marsha Cassada]

A drone!!

Congratulations! You all did great!

 

[Peggy Porter]

I can't believe you didn't practice for a drone! Lol! It sounds like you have a great relationship with your horse. Congratulations on a successful parade!

 

[MajorClementine]

Right? We tried to expose her to everything we could think of. Duh? A drone. I mean, why wouldn't someone be flying a drone right over horses heads? Makes total sense to me...

I gotta tell you the steady draft team behind us wasn't to thrilled about the drone either. They did quite a bit of dancing when it came flying overhead. Nothing ugly but you could tell they were uncomfortable. I'm guessing that there will be a "No Drones" rule in the parade next year. The Parade Commissioner came and told us how happy they were to have us in the parade this year and commented on the drone. They said it confirmed their feelings of it being a safety issue. Gee, glad I could clear that up for them. Hey you live and you learn. No one was hurt

My older brother has a drone and you can bet I'll be asking him to bring it over. We will be working on desensitizing to it because you keep seeing them in more and more places and if we continue to do parades I'm sure we'll run into another one somewhere.