[drivingpairs] accidents waiting to happen

So, which of the following would be your choice for what to do to give them
some confidence? (or perhaps none of them)
a.  ground drive them individually extensively, and in new situations,
making sure they are light and responsive. or
b.  have the trainer take them individually to drive them single for a
while. or
c.  continue driving them as a pair in familiar territory.
d.  take turns hitching the mare and the gelding to the old mare for a
while.

Sorry, Olive, if I was on your case, but your original post did sound a lot 
different than the background you are giving us now. I think all of the above 
sounds good to me, personally I would do item c and d and with good help. The 
ponies need to be relaxed, straight, and responsive to you and you need to 
have your own confidence that you know what you are doing and can handle them 
and then you should be fine.  
> 
> BTW, I use a mullen mouth glory bit with a curb strap for the ponies.  They
> seem comfortable in it, although the mare can get strong with it (for
> example when heading home).  They do have periods of time while in harness
> when they are relaxed, tails loose and heads lowered.  I have been
> encouraging them (especially the mare as she likes to hurry and do all the
> pulling) to relax as much as possible.

Your bitting sounds fine too, just keep working on relaxation and don't let 
her get strong on the way home. If she does, make her walk and try to get her 
to relax again.
Good luck and all the best
Hardy (and yes, I do remember you from Indiana and that actually was quite a 
nice pair, much different than the picture I had in mind from your other 
post. So I'm sorry, seems I had the wrong picture).



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