Equine Transformation: Dusty Rivers Q-Wood and Mikaela Pohlner

This article is from the January 2020 Horse Deals magazine.

Tell us about Dusty Rivers Q-Wood.
Quey is a Quarter Horse, Paint gelding bred in 2010 from Dusty Rivers Stud. His sire is Pepewood and his dam is Leo’s Clover Queen. He stands at 15hh.

How and when did Quey come into your life?
In 2013, whilst I was working under Damian Todd, Damian purchased Quey and he arrived unbroken. Under careful instruction, I brought Quey in and began handling him and breaking him in through a natural horsemanship approach.

What was his condition, temperament and training like on arrival?
On arrival, Dusty Rivers Stud had done a fantastic job establishing basic handling. Quey had a fantastic temperament, although slightly uncertain of new situations, he was more than accepting. His condition was typical of a young horse, great bodyweight but lacking the muscle and topline of a ridden horse. As he was completely unbroken, there was lots for him to learn!

What potential did you see in him?
Initially, Quey was just like any other horse I had handled. However, I was excited to be training my first horse from scratch! As he progressed, I began to discover how special he was and how quickly he learned and immediately began to form a bond.

What did you do with him in the first month?
In the first month, Quey was mouthed and backed. We began establishing basic ridden aids and exposed him to many new situations, which he learned to become accepting of. We had a few setbacks typical of a smart young horse, but through instruction we progressed. One morning when we arrived out to where he was kept, he saw me coming down to collect him from the paddock and galloped up to the gate to meet me. He repeated this every morning and I quickly fell in love with him. It’s safe to say we purchased Quey after this.

How did he progress over six months?
He began to develop muscle and learn how to use his body. We continued to develop his education and eventually brought Quey home once I felt I was confident with continuing his education. We floated Quey out to Damian’s for after school lessons and continued to work out there over the weekends.

What was your first ride like?
I was quite nervous as it was the first time I had given a horse its first ride. I knew I had done the training safely and correctly under Damian’s instruction and during my first ride with Quey, it was evident that the training had paid off. Quey was extremely green and unsure of ridden aids, however during the first ride he kept a very trainable mind.

What was his first outing and how did he cope?
His first outing was at my local pony club muster. We floated my other horse along with him and set up a familiar and inviting situation for a successful first outing. Quey responded well and although the occasional spook at new and exciting things, he coped brilliantly.

How did he respond to each new step in his training towards medium dressage?
As Quey is a Quarter Horse, many dressage movements were quite a challenge for him to handle. I myself had never ridden or educated a horse to medium level movements before, so I had to learn with him. Although it was a longer process than most purpose-bred horses, Quey’s training to progress to medium level was steady. Dedicated and invested coaches and many hours of practice helped us achieve our current level of training. He currently competes at elementary level and although there is still plenty to learn and improve on, I’m proud of where we are at.

At times Quey can get flustered and unsure when new things are tough, but approaching situations differently and making them more familiar makes new training attainable.

How would you best describe his personality?
Very much an extrovert. He loves attention and is pretty cheeky at times. He also is a very cool and calm influence and is reliable and consistent in new situations.

Does he have any special needs?
Plenty of pats and scratches and a surprising amount of treats! One thing he needs with his four white socks and a white nose is plenty of shampoo and a good flymask and sunscreen.

What are your greatest achievements to date?
Attending our first National Championships. We attended the 2019 PCA National Titles in Sydney and won both the hack and rider classes. To train him to be competitive at a National level has to be our greatest achievement so far. We also managed to take out Champion at the 2019 State Formal Gymkhana Championship, winning our first State rug together.

What’s been the biggest challenge with Quey?
Training him in a way in which he understands. Not knowing how to do most movements myself and Quey not knowing these either is probably the most challenging aspect. Having helpful and knowledgable coaches which you understand were the key to overcoming this.

Another huge challenge is that we had our first major accident a week out from the State Championships and two weeks out from our National Championship debut. Unfortunately during training, we had a substantial fall resulting in a visit to Old Mill Equine. Luckily the team there was fantastic and we managed to take Quey to both major events and produce some of our best results to date.

What is Quey up to today?
Quey is completing his final competitions for the year before he will enjoy a short break before we return to training for a big 2020. Competition-wise he is currently competing elementary dressage, introductory eventing (EvA80), 80cm showjumping and jumping equitation along with formal gymkhana events.

What was the key to his transformation?
Hard work, consistency and excellent coaches, along with a healthy diet and good horsemanship.

What advice would you give to someone who wants to bring on a young horse and unlock their full potential?
I would advise them to not get discouraged when things don’t go as planned, not to be afraid to seek advice and to focus on yours and your horse’s journey. Most of all, enjoy the learning experiences!

What are your goals with Quey going forward?
In the short term I would love to attend the Young Riders Championships and increase our percentages in elementary up to 70%. In the long term, I would love to see just how far we can go. Training some Grand Prix movements would be an absolute dream.

Would you do it all again?
I would, a hundred times over! There are some things I would certainly approach differently now that I know what I know though. It has been the most rewarding experience and I feel so lucky to have experienced it.

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