Chapeau's story as written by Kathy Serio, an ArcEquine Agent
Chapeau is an 8yr old Dutch warmblood, by Indoctro, out of an Indorado mare, that I imported from Holland.
Here is his some of his story:
Chapeau definitely hasn't been the easiest horse in the world over the last few years, but we have learned A LOT by listening to him. I'm proud to have been able to bring him this far, from an unbroken 2 yr old stallion, to today...
Even the "breaking" process wasn't without problems, as he used to have fear issues with people "above him". You couldn't pat him if you were sitting on him, and say good boy, and God forbid if you forgot WHO you were on, and swatted a fly, you'd be a goner- NEVER bucking, just rearing. He had a late start at 4 1/2 yrs of age, as he seemed immature.
I came off backwards from him at least 5 times while he stood straight up in fear (and sometimes anger)...and when I tried to wrap my arms around his neck to push him down, he'd freak out more and spin while rearing, more afraid of me above him than anything.
He was the ride you couldn't "mount" nor "dismount"! He was afraid of his own hair falling on him when being body clipped....I had to twitch him to fly spray him for 3 weeks when he came from Holland. He hurt his leg immediately, and needed it to be wrapped, and we had to twitch him to re-bandage.
He's been tough, we held in and made it work. Those days are over, although a few quirks remain...He STILL hates any spray bottle and no hosing face.
He hates to be rushed and man handled to do anything, but he will do anything and behave for his favorite person, his vet, Leah Patipa Beccar Varela, but if someone else goes in and tries to twitch him and rush him- look out- you'll be face planted by front feet. I've learned he hated to be rushed into a "handy hunter" class too- the first few handy classes I picked up the canter, quickly and he reared straight up....now we are ok with that. He is also the slowest walker in the world and doesn't like to be hurried at all.
Once, a few years ago, I brought him for Tommy Serio, to ride- he was green broke. At the flying change he took off like a bat out of hell because Tommy's reading glasses fell on him from up above him, out of his pocket. Tommy hated him, Chapeau knew it, (he is wicked smart) and hated him back....
His very first schooling show, I showed him in a German Martingale (not allowed in the Hunter Ring, but I wasn't taking it off!) - he kicked out at every lead change and reared at the flower boxes blowing in the wind as he cantered by sideways. It was a long road to hoe....
Two years ago we couldn't get him around the arena -at HOME-without spinning and rearing every few strides, although he did jump OUT of the arena, then back in. Re-castration surgery for adhesions helped that a little bit though! I do think it has been a lot of "trust" and consistency"....I never gave up and always loved him, as he was all I had. Now, he almost "looks for me" when he's worried.
From 4 1/2 to 6 years of age, he simply could NOT canter around an arena. He'd have his head straight in the air and start screaming if you cantered more than 3 times around the arena, or attempted to take a feel of his mouth, he'd become VERY distressed. We scoped him, nada. This might have been related to adhesions from castration.....I always gave him the benefit of the doubt and looked to "pain" as his issue.
The one thing he liked to do and was never worried about was jumping. We started jumping and hoped the canter would improve over time and slowly this has happened....
You could trail ride him all day long from Day 1- afraid of nothing- but the work ethic was far from stellar....if you pushed him too much, he'd scream like he was dying (really, not just a "neigh", he'd SCREAM!). He STILL screams when he hits the 15 minute mark on a lunge line.
In September 2014, I bought a 3rd ArcEquine machine and used it specifically for Chapeau. My husband received it at his farm in VA, I have a full time job selling Adequan in Florida and Georgia, so I drove up to meet him at a horse show. I hadn't ridden in about 3 weeks- the longest ever. I got on the day before to school and it was odd but I had to grab a little mane in the warm up ring, as my husband, my trainer, was setting the jumps bigger and bigger. A fellow trainer walked over and asked about him- how he was bred, because his knees were to his eyeballs. Chapeau has always been scopey, although he can still jump a little "belly low". After we walked back to the barn, my husband said the only thing different he did with him while I was in Florida, was put the machine on him for the week prior. Of course, like many men (!), he didn't read the directions and thought I said P1+++ and P4+++. This was the setting he was on and he jumped amazing- used his neck, his shoulder and his back better- really tried hard. We had the best score ever- an 87 - and won the class. The judge came out of the booth and said it was the best handy round he had seen in a long while.
We then read the directions and started back at the P1+++ and P2+++ and didn't see nearly the same result, but I wanted to give it a good try. I then switched to P1+++ and P3+++ , late December, early January, after a few weeks out of the machine, since we were shipping to Florida December 1st. Just last week I went back to the P1+++ and P4+++ and again, a different horse, jumping so much better. I put it on him at night and he was sleeping when I arrived at 6:00am. I got him up to ride in the ring for 5 mins and put the machine back on him. Again, he laid down and ate. About 2 hours later, I got him up for a 10 minute lunge, bathed him, then put the machine back on until his 2:30pm class. The video is below......
FINALLY,
He seems to be confident, yet without being "TOO" confident.
Letting me ride him, instead of vice versa....
Listening to me, instead of "thinking for the both of us"...
"Responding" quietly, not "REACTING".....
He finished in 4th place at The Winter Equestrian Festival, in Wellington FL, behind 3 horses that were purchased for a million dollars each......!!
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