Simply the best-Simon!

What a crazy day! Camaros owner came to visit and rode him for the first time and is very pleased ☺️ another thing I have to share with the world is my awesome farrier husband! Remember the off the track Thoroughbred which was completely lame with seedy toe? Well, he’s had his first ride since the track today with my Adam hubby and it was fantastic! Completely calm and responsive. And just look at that hoof now- such a transformation. Also standing freely and calmly for trimming now as he trusts his farrier.

The Ibalansi Champion-'Rule One'

Our clients Off the track Thoroughbred and Ibalansis Ambassador for OTTBS such a sweetie and a pleasure to ride now. You literally just holding the weight of the reins in your hands

Camaro on his first trail ride

To check if our training of the green Quarter horse Camaro has been done correctly! taking him out on a trail ride with steep up and downhill riding in an area he has never seen before and three crazy dogs running in between him. He did fabulous! Completely calm, relaxed, responsive and sweet.

Hikes and rides during the festive season

We have been quite busy this festive season with a number of wonderful guests visiting us for hiking in our forests and exploring the farm and surroundings on our trusty, well schooled horses.

Ibalansi farrier service

Not only does lara do horse psychology sessions in Cape Town, but Adam also barefoot trims according to the f-balance method! Here’s Augustus, a stunning Percheron, checking out if Adam is doing it correctly

Ayra's Anna

Arya’s Anna, who is here for backing, will be for sale! 
We will be posting more pictures and videos of her conformation and movement during the next week.

ARYA ANNA BY LEGACYS SOCRATES(RUBINSTEIN, SABIO) X PALMIET XX(AL MUFTI)

A SUPER INTELLIGENT MARE TO MATURE AT 17HS, WITH SUPERB CONFORMATION AND TEMPERAMENT.

CURRENTLY BEING BACKED BY LARA FROM IBALANSI SHE IS FOR SALE AT R120000

About her sire
Socrates

Socrates is a tall, Dark Bay, Lusitano X Stallion, currently standing 17.1hh at the age of 4 years. He is by the Portuguese imported, modern Lusitano stallion Sabio out of a Gold Medal German imported Rubinstein mare Rubina. Sabio’s pedigree is already proven in International competition with two competitors in International Rankings.
Socrates follows a new International Dressage breeding trend to incorporate the modern Iberian horse with proven world-class bloodlines. This breed program has been motivated by success of the pure bred and cross-bred Lusitano horses in the International Dressage arena in the past decade – where this breed has shown itself to excel in the collected movements at the highest level of this sport.

Accordingly, Socrates has been bred to incorporate the very best features of the modern Lusitano through his sire Sabio – taller, with longer length of rein, leg and stride. Well proven in Classical Equitation through the centuries in Europe, the Lusitano is a pleasure to own and ride – being super-intelligent, quick to learn, and with a natural elastic aptitude for Dressage movements.
From his Dam line, Socrates has inherited one of the all time great Dressage bloodlines, namely Rubinstein – justifiably called “The Father of Modern Dressage” by some. This pedigree, renowned for the transmission of genetically potent ability , as well as the production of Stallions through each generation – is further complimented by the Dam’s damline carrying the German S line. Through modern representatives, this bloodline is responsible for Anky van Grunsven’s Salinero , Isabel Werth’s Olympic Team medallist Satchmo and the high world-ranked Salieri.

In the South African landscape, Socrates is set to make a major contribution to Sport Horse breeding.
The quick athleticism characteristic of the Lusitano also gives suitability to the jumping sports, and the Lusitano X breed horses show a natural aptitude for eventing – a sport which combines the dressage ability with the sure-footed, quick-thinking and athletic demands.

Backing Rosemary

Because our clients Vlaamperd mare “Rosemary” is just so sweet, we almost forgot posting about her backing progress! After achieving mental and physical balance, mobilization, flexibility and learning the riders aids from the ground in hand, it was time to get on! She was standing perfectly still and relaxed 😎 All the trust building and preparation for mounting had paid off.

The nobility of Nabil

What an exciting day 😃 Nabils mommy came to visit today and had her first ride on him since he came here a few months ago! She couldn’t believe how soft and responsive he is- breathing in and out for transitions, having only the weight of the reins in her hand for a nice posture (and this is all bitless now!!) and full focus and relaxation 💚 she could mount and dismount him for the first time without him freaking out 🐴

Anna gets her first visit from the dentist

Why it is so important to do your horses teeth from a young age...

When the deciduous teeth (baby teeth) of a young horse are not shed and continue to sit on top of the young horses permanent teeth, they are called caps. A failure of the caps to shed can result in the permanent teeth growing in crooked, uneven surfaces on the teeth opposite to the unshed cap, or failure of the permanent tooth to grow in at all. Capping takes place between 2 and a half and 5 years of age

During the first five years of life, the horse's mouth is a busy place. When permanent teeth emerge, they normally push the deciduous teeth out of the way, disrupting the blood supply and causing them to shed.

If the deciduous teeth do not shed, they remain attached to the permanent tooth creating bite problems and discomfort for the horse. In addition, anorexia, infection, and abnormal wear patterns develop that can lead to long-term problems for the horse.

Symptoms:
Difficulty in chewing
Signs of pain during training with a bit
Painful swelling on the upper bridge of the nose
Hard bumps on the lower jaw bone
Dislocated permanent teeth
Sharp enamel points on the deciduous tooth

Welcome RULE ONE

From the race track onto the big truck, then into our box and finally arrived at Ibalansi! Welcome “Rule One”. He’s a breathtakingly beautiful Thoroughbred, been racing for three years and now with us for training 🐴

Memphis visits Ibalansi

Welcome to our clients Nooitgedacht „Memphis“! He’s quite stiff and heavy on his inside shoulder, bending outward. Through clicker training he had learned to put his head down for a forward down stretch- BUT- you only get the back raise effect of the forward down position if the hindquarters are swinging further under. ALSO: a forward down stretch is not supposed to be dragging nose in sand! The old masters called this stretch a “remonte position”, meaning we let the horses find their own balanced position, in which they can use their necks for counter balance. The head should not be lower than the breastbone- otherwise the horses will be on their forehand, not using their backs correctly. 
We are working Memphis on a light slope for him to regain his own balance, forgetting about the cues of “head down”.

Getting to know you...

We had two more horses arriving last week at Ibalansi for training. One of them is a young Warmblood mare “Arya’s Anna” here on the left saying hello to our Warmblood mare “Big River Bends First Class”

Donating to a great cause

We received a heart-warming email from the cart horse association as we donated all the proceeds to their organisation from all who attended our clinic yesterday.
We look forward to continue our efforts to assist them and their cause.☺️

Our first clinic on the farm!

Our first clinic on our farm and all are thoroughly enjoying the clinic on this beautiful Sunday morning!😊

Ibalansi livery and clinics

We offer the rehabilitation of so called “problem behavior” in horses; backing and schooling with classical dressage principles; transition to bitless riding and much more here at Ibalansi in Riversdale. We only take in three horses at a time, to ensure that each clients horse gets the one on one time it needs. Therefore the spots are very limited and booked out far in advance- contact us for more details! 
Horses are allowed freedom of choice here: they choose if they want to live out or inside (5x5 m stables), what they prefer to eat and if they like to be in a small group or alone.
Our monthly package includes grooming and taking temperatures twice daily, concentrates 2-4 times daily, roughage, sessions five times weekly, video updates and barefoot trimming or shoeing.

Rocky graduates from Ibalansi

little Rocket 🚀 is home again! He did so well, developed from a pretty wild child into a lovely youngster! 
Two horses left means two of four total spots available again to new horses who will be arriving in the beginning of November!

Libby graduates!

Libby is home with her proud mommy! All horses that stay at Ibalansi for over two months get a Rosette and Certificate to honor their motivation, and Equine Excellence

horseplay after the rain!

Warm sunny day after some great rain 🌧 we love observing our herds dynamics and take them as example as to how to be a trustworthy friend to them 🐴leadership is not achieved by dominance- it’s achieved by calm, confident and fair treatment. We need to prove our horses that we truly respect them and then they will be willing to play with us.

Ibalansi Horse Transport

Two Friesians transported in two days 🐴 
We treat your horses as if they’re our own. We supply fully packed lucerne nets, tail guards and boots, as well as our super comfy traveling halters with sheepskin all round. Horses are tied with specific panic hooks and our german imported Boeckmann box offers many safety features, such as releasing the chest or butt bar from the outside if a horse gets caught and panicked.

Welcome Libby & Rocket

Libby, our clients percheron/shire cross mare having her first session. She’s very young and quite “in your bubble”, as well as a bit spooky and not looking where she’s going due to lack of focus- so that’s the first thing we’re working on 

Rocket or 'Rocky' as we call him is also here for backing and schooling. He is a young Freisian and has a very friendly/relaxed nature. He is a local from Stillbay and needs a lot of TLC. We support all our clients horses with full livery for their horses and social interaction with our herd outside (interaction with a electrified camp between them for safety of course*). They are groomed twice a day, fed twice a day, temperature checks, night checks, farrier service (if required and granted), dental and full veterinary service available (their is a equine hospital in Riversdale should any horse require medical attention or hospitalization). Quality feed is given to all the horses or clients can supply us with their horses dietary requirements. Ibalansi's 'classroom' is a big custom made 60x40m sand arena where we train, communicate and school your horse/s and our own on a daily basis. We want to give all our guest horses a full 5 star treatment when they visit our farm. Our mission is simply to ensure your horse is comfortable and enjoys his/her schooling and stay at Ibalansi.