Elk Haven Equestrian Center

08/02/2026

Bought this many many years ago for our children now grandchildren are using it to fish. Although the river otter may have cleaned them out.

07/31/2026

Her job was to wash the sidewalk…?

07/29/2026

This five year old just did round the world! A lead about, washed and braided a tail , practice groundwork of backing and circling at walk and trot complete with appropriate hand signals and demanded she lead Butters to put him away! Guess I lost my pony!

07/24/2026

Butters has a new friend for at least a month. He gets so lonesome with 20 other horses to play with! What a smoozer he is....

07/24/2026

If you didn't know before....

07/24/2026

To say I have a thing for pole work is an understatement... the exercises have so many remarkable benefits to the horse but perhaps I was forgetting to emphasis the "riding" of the exercise is as important as the exercise itself.... great read.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻'𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲. 🐴

Polework has a habit of exposing the things that were already missing.

A horse that stays round and soft on the flat but rushes, tightens or inverts over poles isn't suddenly becoming a different horse. The poles have simply highlighted a weakness in their balance, reactions or understanding. That's why I don't see poles as something to get through. I see them as an opportunity to improve the quality of the work.

If the horse speeds up, I ask them to slow down. If they lose their softness, I ask for it back. If they can't stay relaxed in trot, I'll walk over the poles first until they understand that the exercise doesn't change the standard I'm expecting. The goal is never just to get from one side of the poles to the other. The goal is to go over them with the same rhythm, balance and freedom that you had on the approach. 🎯

When riders tell me they're struggling to keep a soft contact over poles, I don't tell them to soften their hands. I ask why they're having to hold in the first place. Once the horse learns to stay balanced and wait for the rider, the contact becomes softer because the horse is allowing it to be.

𝗗𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗲𝘀. 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲, 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺. ✅

07/11/2026

I have done this simple exercise to check on flexibility...it was interesting the results I received from the ponies...With Butters (aka Gumby) his nose moved as well...think of the game Crack the Whip- the end moves much more than the initial point. Enzo moved slightly through his back and ended at shoulders. No surprises here! Just a quick test of your suppling.

07/08/2026

I like this one for Butters, Dutch and Enzo~

😼🤓 Wednesdays Whirlies! 🤓😼

🔷 12 poles - Two sets of fans set with working trot line a little further in from the inside track, so you can still travel around the back of each fan.
👉 Be strategic in where you set your fans. If you set them roughly where I have in the graphic it gives the rider a little more time to organise their turn. If you set them so the last two poles of the fan are sending the ride line straight onto the diagonal -- it can be harder in the sense of nailing the diagonal line but easier in setting the horse up for the exercise explained below.

⁉️ What Are We Schooling?

🤨 Well... a lot of riders struggle to train a lengthened trot across a diagonal line. The kids start needing this by about grade 3 pony club, so does HRCAV and EA introduces it through novice tests.

🤨 However - a lot of the time green riders cant get the lengthen, they just get speed. The lengthen has to come from behind, not just a big, fast, wild stretch all round. I like using little fans like these in the corners to help riders activate their horses hind, naturally use half halts and set their horses up with balance to push out of the turn and across the diagonal. This is a good exercise for horses who don't have naturally big gaits at trot or who are a little tight through their hind quarter. Sometimes they improve in three laps... sometimes it takes a few days.

👉 Teaching a horse to lengthen can be a little about proprioception too. Sometimes they don't realise they can actually lengthen or purely don't understand what is being asked. This little exercise can help the ones who are more 'stuck' in their trot than others. (Slow trotting up steep hills can also help train a lengthened trot where is appears it doesn't exist!)

✅ Even if you're not training lengthening across the diagonal, this is still a great exercise for improving the horse's suppleness, riders ability to hold a line, use of eyes, ride a rhythm and improves the horses strength.

😼 Another option is to come off the fan in trot, execute a canter, canter across the diagonal and trot before the next corner. It causes this exercise to become an epic push power exercise for strength training.

NB: While the bottom circle of arrows doesn't join the diagonal line.. its supposed to. My AI hallucinated a bit but you get the idea.

✅ If you need more help with your pole work then grab my 50 pole pattern PDF (with better graphics 😂) here 👉 https://www.amlequestriancoaching.com.au/50polepdf

✅ If you want a 20 day pole work program to build your horse up and improve their movement then click here 👉 https://www.amlequestriancoaching.com.au/20-day-horse-movement-challenge

07/03/2026

Nice light

07/02/2026

weekend work

🐴 Looking for a simple exercise to improve balance, bending and collection?

You don't need fancy equipment for this one – just a few poles and a little space.

This exercise is a great way to encourage:
• Correct bending through the body
• Better engagement of the hindquarters
• More balanced, even circles
• Improved coordination and suppleness
• A horse that stays focused on the job

A few tips for setting it up:

➡️ If you're working with a young or inexperienced horse, start with the poles further apart to make the exercise easy and confidence-building.

➡️ As your horse becomes stronger and more balanced, gradually reduce the spacing to increase the challenge.

➡️ More experienced combinations can ride it in trot, encouraging a more forward stride on the straight sections before collecting again through the circles.

Exercises like this don't need to be complicated to be effective. Sometimes the simplest setups can make a real difference to your horse's balance, flexibility and way of going.

Happy riding! 🐴

🌐 www.sonovettherapy.com.au