Light and supple

Show your cob at his best with help from Katie Jerram-Hunnable

FAT, LAZY AND in need of a lot of chivvying doesn’t have to be a cob’s default setting. “There’s no reason why a cob shouldn’t be light and flexible, working in self-carriage. It’s all in the training,” explains leading British showing producer Katie Jerram-Hunnable. “Just like any horse, if he’s slow off the leg, then there are exercises you can do to help with this. Don’t accept your horse being lazy, no matter what his breed.” Six-year-old Bowadarrow Fred (Nigel), is a perfect stamp of a maxi cob, with good conformation and movement, and he’s already qualified for Horse of the Year Show in October. Life with Nigel, however, hasn’t been plain sailing. “When we got him, he hated human contact. He was fine with other horses, but was truly frightened of us,” says Katie. “He was difficult in his stable, and this transferred into his behaviour when we were breaking him in as a five-year-old. I allocated him to working pupil Angus Rowe, who spent lots of time with him and also helped with the breaking in process.”

Building trust

Angus spent time just being in the stable with Nigel and also did long-reining with him to help build trust. Because Nigel also bucked and reared, he was initially worked with an Ardell Safety Rider strapped to the saddle. This mimics a mounted rider and meant Nigel could get used to being ridden without putting Angus in danger. This strategy did the trick, Nigel turned a corner and his problems are a thing of the past. Nigel is pictured here in his show bridle, which gives him a sharper outline. For day to day training, he always wears a snaffle. “If you’re training a cob, try these four exercises, all designed to get him working forwards with suppleness and lightness in the hand. They also build in variety so he doesn’t get bored,” advises Katie.