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 Post subject: Toys and obstacles
PostPosted: Tue Nov 20, 2012 8:52 am 
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Location: Vienna, Austria
Here's an extreme teeter-totter (not for the faint-hearted):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=spzHQxsAgQQ

The woman behind this is Nina Steigerwald - you can watch her other obstacles and fitness training on her YouTube channel:
http://www.youtube.com/user/clicksforhorses/videos?flow=grid&view=0

There's lot of inspiration there for building toys for horses...

Here are some toys and obstacles (I will add any suggestions from further down the thread):
  • pedestal (several smaller pedestals can be used as stepping stones - very nice and challenging)
  • seesaw (small for two legs or in mountain goat, large for all fours)
  • foam bars (to walk over, sidestep, jump, backing up along a path, carrying, pushing over, throwing,...)
  • pool noodles (similar to foam bars, but also used for targeting, forming hoops to go through)
  • cones (slalom, picking up, pushing over, putting up, stacking, ...)
  • dog toys for fetching, my favourites are: wubba kong (for throwing), catch-ball (for fetching)
  • juggling scarves (for catching out of the air)
  • juggling rings (preferably those air filled, made of rubber)
  • tarps

Links:
-------------
If anyone has further ideas or suggestions, please post them here and I will add them to the list...

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Volker

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 Post subject: Re: Toys and obstacles
PostPosted: Tue Nov 05, 2013 8:11 am 

Joined: Thu Sep 22, 2011 7:24 pm
Posts: 131
I just saw a few video's, they look so much fun!
The seesaw, the round table.
:sun:


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 Post subject: Re: Toys and obstacles
PostPosted: Tue Nov 12, 2013 3:52 pm 
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Joined: Thu May 17, 2007 11:57 am
Posts: 1983
Location: provincie Utrecht
extreme it is for sure...wow...


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 Post subject: Toy's
PostPosted: Sun Jan 26, 2014 7:16 pm 
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Joined: Mon Jun 24, 2013 7:00 am
Posts: 567
Location: Scotland
I have found a blue print for a pedastal and a seesaw but are there any other '' Toy's '' We can play with :bounce:

cheers

:sun:


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 Post subject: Re: Toys and obstacles
PostPosted: Sun Jan 26, 2014 9:22 pm 
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Location: Dresden, Germany
Ali, there are several people here who play with toys, so I am sure you will get some great suggestions. At our pasture we don't have real toys, we just use the things that are there anyway. For example, we have lots of branches and they can be used in so many different ways, for jumping, moving over them forwards, backwards and sideways, putting front or hind hooves on them, and so on.

Here is a link to Volker's seesaw construction plan, and a thread about horse agility which might also give you some inspiration. :f:


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 Post subject: Re: Toys and obstacles
PostPosted: Mon Jan 27, 2014 1:31 pm 
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Joined: Mon Jun 24, 2013 7:00 am
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Location: Scotland
Thanks Romy :f: I had a good look for similar thread before i posted a new one , but just couldnt find one :blonde:


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 Post subject: Re: Toys and obstacles
PostPosted: Mon Jan 27, 2014 3:05 pm 
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Oh there are loads of toys! :yes: Basically everything is a toy that you give a playful purpose ;), which is really the most important thing. Think like a child would see an object and you can make a game out of almost anything - especially out in a forest!

I added the toys and obstacles that I can think of off the top of my head to the very first posting in this thread. If anyone has further ideas or suggestions, please post them here and I will add them to the list...

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Volker

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 Post subject: Re: Toys and obstacles
PostPosted: Mon Jan 27, 2014 6:17 pm 
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Joined: Mon Jun 24, 2013 7:00 am
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Location: Scotland
Thanks volker :thumleft:

I was also thinking of building a narrow bridge for them to walk over
I found this link -http://stalecheerios.com/blog/horse-training/new-horse-obstacle-cours/ its mostly desentisising stuff but i love the ''poolnoodle gate'' :funny:


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 Post subject: Re: Toys and obstacles
PostPosted: Tue Jan 28, 2014 9:57 pm 
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Joined: Mon Jun 24, 2013 7:00 am
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Location: Scotland
@ volker ; what sort of timber did you use to make your teeter toter ?

many thanks


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 Post subject: Re: Toys and obstacles
PostPosted: Tue Jan 28, 2014 11:49 pm 
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Location: Vienna, Austria
Hmm, I'm really no expert in construction material - I just took what I found then. It was massive pieces of wood (about 3cm thick). The problem was that it was very heavy, almost too heavy for one person to move.
Later I built one out of a lighter wood from the hardware store, but it didn't last five minutes. So the choice of wood is indeed important, but I'm no expert - sorry :sad:. I think that a high quality plywood would be the best choice regarding weight-sturdiness ratio, but I could be wrong.
If someone has a better answer to this question, I'd be also very interested ;).

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Volker

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 Post subject: Re: Toys and obstacles
PostPosted: Wed Feb 12, 2014 9:20 pm 
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Joined: Mon Jun 24, 2013 7:00 am
Posts: 567
Location: Scotland
I found some more links :)
- http://www.kbrhorse.net/tra/course11.html - I like the hola hoop you could heighten it to make it a jump .
- http://www.kbrhorse.net/tra/course32.html - If you have a mess about on that sight you will find a few other things.
cheers :f:


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