Mel Peacock

06/01/2023

What a special year this is being Quantum Savvy's 30th Anniversary!

I started studying with Quantum Savvy back in 2000 and on completing Level 3 in 2004, I began teaching as an entry level instructor and started horse training soon after.

There have been many roads travelled and I have met so many wonderful people and horses through Quantum Savvy and I am very proud to be a part of the Quantum Savvy Team!

Happy Anniversary Quantum Savvy!!🥳

Lots of huge exciting and special things ahead in 2023 as we celebrate 30 years of bringing horsemanship to the world. Congratulations Shane and Meredith on reaching this massive milestone and your continued commitment and dedication to helping horse owners to live their dreams with horses, to helping horses be better understood and living their best lives through mutual understanding

Stay tuned for what we have in store throughout this milestone year as our celebrations continue right through 2023.

01/04/2022

Our Victorian World's Biggest Play Day 2022 last weekend!

With the theme Bogans and Beanies we had a lot of fun and surprisingly fit very easily into the role 😳🤭

🎉Congratulations to Jennifer Renouf for first prize in best dressed Bogan and Adele Marshall who came runner up.

Please enjoy the photos from the day.

20/03/2022

After nearly 12 months I've made it back to Brisbane area for some more horse training and what a line up I've had! Some extremes on size from very large to very small and a few in between.
🐎🐴

06/01/2022

Please join me in congratulating Melissa Carey and her horse Katana for completing their Module 1 - Leadership!!!

Melissa is from Shailer Park in QLD, Australia and had been working diligently through her homework cards and assignments. With only a couple of live lessons with me, Melissa has been relying predominantly on the Voice Over Video Coaching to help her with moving forward with her horse.

What an inspiration! Well done Melissa!

31/12/2021

A good day for cooling off with the 🐎 and 🐕

Wishing you all a safe and Happy New Year!
I hope to see much more of everyone on 2022!

14/12/2021

Getting some Brumy time in this week!

The Discovery Channel might have Shark Week but here we have Brumby week... actually for the next 10 days I am super excited to be able to host Mel Peacock for horse training. Between the two of us we'll have 7 brumbies who will get the next layer of their education, from the halter training check lists right thru to first rides and impulsion check lists, including a couple with some challenges. Hopefully I may even be able to give you a glimpse of some higher level brumbies doing their thing too. We will be doing our best to give you as many updates as possible so we can share their progress, and remember some of these guys are looking for their forever homes. So stay tuned for more on Brumby Week!

16/11/2021

Congratulations to Meredith Shaw and her horse Dolly for completing their Module 3 (Liberty) in the Quantum Savvy Foundation Programme!

13/10/2021

We got the next layer down yesterday just in time for a nice 14mm of rain to fall on it. Next is the sand and I'll be able to start using it!

31/07/2021

As promised here is how Quest is dealing with going over the ramp now after the work we have done through the week.

This has been a huge breakthrough for Quest - he has such a huge personal space bubble that I was actually starting to think I would never be able to walk him forward across the ramp and stop and stand on it. The squeeze was just too much for him!

I had to do a lot of soul searching to find an answer to help this boy out. Breaking things down was one part of it, but I also had to find what he needed from me to make him feel safe in this situation and as a result I had to step up another notch in my own leadership....and look at the difference!!

Not only is he standing on the ramp, but I am able to throw the string over his back as well!

(Check out the moment at the end where he checks to see if that camera is still on :) )

30/07/2021

The recent lockdown meant I had to take a break with Quest, but this week I was back into it. I did film how he is going today but before I show that, I have put together a few snippets of how Quest reacted to his first introductions to the float.

Quest is a 5YO Warmblood who had little handling before I met him. I found him to be one of the most skeptical horses I have come across and it's been quite a journey just to get to where I could walk up to him, put a halter on and lead him around, let alone ask him to go onto a float!

This guy has a real fear of the float. Not because he has had bad experience with it, but because he had spent most of his life living in the one place with not a lot of exposure to new experiences and does not know what the heck the float is!

This video isn't exactly his first moments with the float. The first time he saw it he completely freaked and I had to do quite a lot of work just to get within 10 meters of it, but it does give you an idea of how he feels about it and why I have to break things down more for him so he can build his confidence with it.

22/07/2021

I often get asked 'What do I do with my horses"? And the answer to that I always go ...er...!

I do find it difficult to explain what I actually do because I feel that the expected answer would be 'I compete in such and such a discipline' and while I have taken part in various events over the years I don't feel that competing in a discipline is what I 'do' with my horse, but rather taking part in an event would be an end result of what I actually do.

You see I am a student of Horsemanship and I have devoted my life to being the best I can be for my horse. And That's it!

What keeps me going out and playing with my horses is the desire to help my horse feel safe and enjoy their time with me (and me with them :) ).

If I can achieve this with an animal that has natural instincts to flee from us humans then I will know that I am on the right track with them, and being able to do amazing things with them is the result of having that amazing relationship with them.

20/07/2021

While lockdown continues I am catching up with some trimming jobs at home.

Eclipse is up today and after 2 months of walking around in mud, check out how healthy her frogs are. All 4 feet are like the one in this picture.

Got to be happy with that!👌😊

17/07/2021

Quest"s float training is on hold while we are in lockdown, my lesson weekend in Ballarat is rescheduled to next month and it is so wet here my own horses are in limbo too.

All I can do is look at my arena base and dream about when it will be ready to use! Which incidentally I'm pretty happy with how it is draining. At least I got this done at the right time it literally has not stopped raining since so it should be well settled in by the time the next layer is ready to go down.👏🥳🐎

16/07/2021

This is a video I did back in 2009 when I was in Broken Hill. It is an oldie but I've had so many people tell me how much they enjoyed it and it brings back so many memories for me so I thought I would share it here.

I took Dolly out to a creek bed on Stephens Creek just out of Broken Hill just because it was such a beautiful spot!

We'd never been there before so I did a short warm up online to make sure Dolly was OK then hopped on her for a ba****ck and bridle less ride.

This was a huge test for our foundations, communication and relationship to go to an open area and ride her like this and when I think back to the very first trail ride I had on Dolly where she completely lost it and bolted on me (I had a bridle and saddle then), I feel very proud of how far we have come together.

https://youtu.be/8lqqILLv-vs

This is a short clip of Dolly and myself having a bit of fun in the creek bed of Stephens Creek, just near Broken Hill. We really tested out our Foundations ...

14/07/2021

Making a start with this sweet girl to prepare her for weaning.

She has a nervous disposition already so it's important that she is comfortable with humans and we develop her confidence before she is separated from Mum.

12/07/2021

Quest is getting more confident with this task and starting to put both back feet on the ramp. Just got to work on staying there and relaxing. The other side is much more challenging for him but the better this side gets, the easier the other side will come.

I am finding that encouraging Quest to think about where he is putting his feet has been really good for helping him to learn to control his emotions.

09/07/2021

Step 2 of helping Quest feel more comfortable with the float....

Asking him to walk across the ramp has always been very quick and he tries very hard to avoid putting his back feet on it. Again this is something that has only slightly improved and has never become consistent for him.

Looking for a way to break things down for Quest, I started ask him sideways towards the ramp until he can put his back feet on it. This video is the first time I tried this with him and I got a couple of really nice tries on that side. When I did the other side Quest found it much harder. Unfortunately I didn't video this, but let's see how it goes in a couple of days.

08/07/2021

This is Quest. I have been working with him for a while introducing him to life with humans. He's not a very brave horse and needs to build his confidence with everything.

He is going onto the float but his fear is just too great at this stage so shutting him in is out of the question and he is finding it difficult to relax in there.

It's time to start thinking laterally on how I can help him feel more at ease with the float and, noting how claustrophobic he is around the back half of his body I tried asking him to stand alongside the float.

2 days ago he was unable to stop and stand 4 meters from the float No wonder he was struggling with going into it!

Today he stepped sideways right next to it and looking pretty cool about it too.

Building confidence is finding things that will stretch a horse without pushing them too far so that they can work through it. 👌

28/06/2021

I am super proud to announce a congratulations to Ashlin Bernaldo from Mildura Victoria and her horse Eadie for having just passed their Skills Check which completes their Leadership Module 1 in the Quantum Savvy Foundation Programme!!

Ashlin is 11 Years Old and has been focusing on developing her horsemanship and her relationship with her horse Eadie over the last 12 months or so. Every time I visit Mildura I see huge improvements in her confidence and her skills with her horse and already she has a Blue Tick(pass) for the next Module - Confidence with the Mounting Assignment and is well on her way to developing her confidence with trotting and cantering her horse.

I am so excited for the future with these two!

Super Well Done Ashlin!!

19/06/2021

Plenty of light bulb moments in our Positive Reflexes Workshop today.

Great to see everyone working on achieving effortless yields and developing their forward with their horses, then bringing those newfound skills into their riding.

Well done ladies!

07/05/2021

Check put these little beauties!

Quantum Savvy Ba****ck Pads hot off the press.

We have the regular ones that are comfy and allows plenty of feel and a slightly thicker one that offers more comfort for the rider on those high withered horses.

Message me if you would like to order one now.

04/05/2021

I am really excited to be able to offer Horse Training and Private Lessons in SE QLD next week!

I will be in the Park Ridge area from 9th - 18th May and can help you with any issue you might be having with your horse from helping your horse float load to improving your horses impulsion under saddle. This 10 day block of training is also perfect if your horse has had a break from riding and you are worried about getting back on yourself, I can take your horse through his paces and make sure he is good to go.

Private Lessons will be available from 12.30 - 5.30pm each day.

Please message me to find out more or phone 0429873120.