Starting youngsters

[mustangdara]

I am woundering at what age most of you start your horses.
MY filly will be 2 in june and I am tying to dicide if i sould wait until she is 3 it start her. I know kigers are slower growing than other horses, and i am in on hurry it start riding her.
what i am thinking is just do fundemental stuff with her and not do any riding un til she is older...i figure there is tons of ground work to play around with.
What do you guys do?[/img]

[Michelle Clarke]

Definately not until they are three and some we wait until three and a half or closer to four...depends on how physically mature but also mentally. Some horses we start working with and they are just such babis in their maturity and putting them back out to pasture for another three months or so makes a huge difference in the training later on.

Even at three we don't do any collection, hard stops or ride long hours. At about four and a half, we start them on an actual "job"... even though their knees may close at three, their spine does not fuse until five or so. Here in Texas, it is not uncommon for folks to start horses at 18 months old...it is just a shame in my opinion and many have dipped backs and blown tendons. I recentally looked at a young horse for someone and they had been riding it since it was a yearling - terrible back and swollen, soft tendons on the front legs.

You're right though...plenty of fun ground work you can be doing!!!

[fantasykiger]

I started Wickee under saddle the spring going into her 4th year, she was born in the summer. But I started her training way before that, lots of ground stuff and ground driving and ponying her on trail rides. When I was bored with that, we would work on at liberty routines. She liked the attention enjoyed learning new things, in hand obsticle courses and stuff. She did so much growing up between 2 and 4, I can not imagine what would have occured had I added the weight and work of a rider during that time.

[DianneC]

I started Bravo at two, mostly natural horsemanship ground work with very, very light saddle work...walk trot only and a light rider. He was very mature for a two year old mentally and was starting to get his own stallion agenda and testing his limits. I wanted some manners on him. Then I waited until he was four to really get him going. That worked out well and he is the best minded, even tempered stallion you can imagine. Even a little better than his dad, Chinook.

[Michelle Clarke]

Dianne, good point on the stallion manners! All of our potential stallion prospects get different treatment to get behaviors under control early. We usually start working with them in the summer of their second year and instead of being out in the herd 24/7, we stall them at night coming into fall of that same year. That way they get daily handling and learn to be more sociable in different situations. I usually start them then about now of their third year. With all the crappy weather, I've been behind with Gringo, but hope to get a good jump start the next few weeks. I'm not too concerned, as even though Gringo started his manhood attitude early, he has always been super tractable; even more so than Desi. Desi and I had quite a few tussles over the mares before he behaved like a gentleman! If Gringo is by a fence flirting with girls, I can go in the pen and call him over and he'll turn away and come right too me. He's really a good boy.

They have to be going good under saddle to earn the breeding privelage...plus we have a rule that after each time we breed them, they get tied then ridden. That way they don't get too full of themselves - it's made a big difference with the young studs. After a few breeding seasons, we don't need to do that anymore.

[desperatehorsewife]

Backing a two year old isn't the issue. It's the hard repetitive work that some people throw at them. You can have just as many issues working a yearling into the ground in the round pen.

I've started a number of two year olds, but always light work. Fifteen to twenty minutes 4 days a week isn't going to hurt anyone...unless they've already got some masked condition that is brought on by light work. And I would imagine that if that's the case, you're probably wanting to deal with it sooner rather than later anyway, and certainly cull it from any breeding program.

Of course, there's no harm in waiting if you've got others to play with and ride in the meantime

[stlkigers]

OK...So give me some feedback on what you all do with your 2-3 yr olds??

My gelding is almost 3....We've longlined him, lunged him, ponied him with and without a rider...With the rider we've just walked....We've done ALOT of pony work with him down the trails without a rider, and now I'm just wanting an idea of what all you guys do with your new colts....

I'd LOVE to hear what your guys' routine is with the newbees to riding....

Thanks,

Angela

[desperatehorsewife]

Um, well...I competed at the makeover with Steve Holt!, if that's any help? ;D We went trail riding & worked the hydra bull. Then I put Katie on him and she's jumping 2' jumps.

Again...it's not the riding, it's the extent of it that breaks a horse down. If Katie did nothing but pound over jumps, big or small, it would be an issue. But once or twice a week she'll go over two or three, then it's back to light work, circles, half passes, turning on the forehand or hindquarters, and a trail ride thrown in for fun. Most rides are under an hour, four to six rides a week.

[lilnagy]

I have had a ball preparing my young ones to show in Trail In Hand classes. They learn to go over under and through anything I can invent for them to do, as well as refine their groundwork skills like side pasing, yielding fore hand and hind, backing through ground poles, etc. In addition to the training they get for the obstacle course itelf, going to a show is a great experience for them. I lead them up and down, so they see lots of people and other horses. A show is crash course for my youngsters in meeting and greeting strangers. People always want to ask about them and pet them. I look on youtube at horses competing in trail courses to get an idea of fun things to add to the routine. And, as you mentioned, ponying. I like to do lots of that. I think they learn alot from going along next to a quiet horse. Hope that helps!

[stlkigers]

Thanks Lil....I do have to brag and say my little guy went to a in-hand trail course class at a show and got 2nd out of over 15 horses.....We've been to a couple shows; I tend to haul him everywhere I go just for the exposure....even a couple parelli play days (though I don't really do parelli, I do love the fun stuff that barn has to play with, and all the different trailers to practice loading into).

And Tracey, miss smarty pants, of course I wasn't talking about Steve Holt! or Sandy....Girl those EMM horses just are on insane schedules...And as for the hydra bull I'd LOVE to try that....just about a year down the road.....BTW, sounds like Tika is very into you(shielding you from the weather?!); has she found a permanent home on the Rancho with you???

If you guys could have any clinician tapes for colt starting/making of a riding horse, who's would it be??? Anyone have a favorite or two???

Thanks,

Angela

[DianneC]

Gee Angela, once you decide you could get hooked up with GiddyupFlixs and get them on loan. I like Leslie Desmond, not that I can grasp it all, but it makes me think. The farrier came last Saturday and I experimented with how little I could do to keep the other horses from "helping". It was surprising how little it took, well, except for Teanna.

[stlkigers]

Funny you mentioned GiddyupFlix...just recommended them to someone else who wanted to see all the Dennis Reis stuff, but didn't want to pay the huge amount for something they may or may not like....

I've neve watched Leslie Desmond at all, heard some good things about her though....I'll have to check her out....Thanks Dianne!!!

Angela

[desperatehorsewife]

Angela, you silly girl! You don't need to do it in 90 days. You simply asked what I do with 3 year olds! I take a couple extra months, but do the same thing ;D

Oh, Miss Tika...she tried to kill City Boy while I was at Color Fest, the naughty girl. Guess she thought he had some major life insurance policy that would set her up for life, eh? Charged him the first day but he stood his ground so she backed off. Second day she charged but didn't turn back, came right at him and reared and struck out. Thankfully he was on the opposite side of the fence. She actually hit the rails on her way down Hims was not a happy husband. So the beautiful Wadatika must learn to mind her manners when her momma is not around...something that's very difficult to do when you're the lead mare and have no respect for anyone but momma (or am I the foal? Sometimes this relationship confuses me...)

[stlkigers]

I think I might have to check out Leslie Desmond...thanks for the recommendation Dianne!