Jenna Goldby's blog

On my return from Italy, I stepped straight in to my new job role as the administrator for the Events and Activities team. It was a manic week to start as it was slap-bang in the middle of the Easter holidays; however it was great for me to be able to see firsthand the events that we hold during holidays at the Sanctuary.

It is my last day at Il Rifugio degli Asinelli (IRDA) here in Italy and hopes of a dry day have been dashed!

I carried out a long session with Margherita going over all of the things we have learnt this week. Catching work in the field, groomed all over including in-between lags, belly, mane and tail, picking out all four feet, checking her eyes, ears and teeth, and ‘walk on’, ‘stand’ and ‘back’ commands.

On the last few days, misty mornings have given way to sunny afternoons, which has really helped the bog out the front of the stables to start too dry out. Unfortunately I woke this morning to heavy rain and when I arrived to start working with the mules, the bog now resembles a pond!

Today I decided to start clicker training Biclo in the hope that it would focus his mind. He did very well and learnt quickly, and it also stopped him from testing my pockets for treats!

When training equines, I use a technique called ‘shaping’ to alter the animals behaviour. It involves pushing the animal to the edge of their comfort zone and then slowly and steadily pushing the boundary further by using positive reinforcement.

On 19th February 2013 our rescue centre in Italy, Il Rifugio Degli Asinelli (IRDA), worked on a joint rescue with the Italian authorities, Italian Horse Protection and the National Board for Animal Protection where 104 animals were rescued from Colleferro near Rome.