 |
Re: [RC] Starting young horses on the trail - Maryanne GabbaniI start young horses all the time, having bred quite a few for my work. I start them at around four but quite honestly I don't consider that they really have a brain until they are about seven. We work slowly so that seeing something spooky is never associated with speed...miles and miles of walking and trotting for the first year or so. Mine have to deal with obstacles and situations that go beyond weird (like having to work their way slowly pack a group of water buffalo while not falling into a canal) and while they have all that down pretty pat by 5 or 6 years old, I can feel a lack of solidity until they are about 7. It isn't that they spook or anything, but they simply aren't sure of themselves. You plan sounds good, but be patient. Some things you just can't rush.
To be perfectly fair, my definition of "trained" includes being ridden by someone who can't really ride, so I'm pickier than usual. Maryanne Stroud Gabbani msgabbani@xxxxxxxxx Egypt Face to Face www.alsorat.com Weblogs: Living In Egypt miloflamingo.blogspot.com Cairo/Giza Daily Photo cairogizadailyphoto.blogspot.com Turn Right At The Sarcophagus haramlik.blogspot.com Da Moose Is Loose (a blog for kids) mstroud.blogspot.com Photos of Egypt: http://www.flickr.com/photos/livinginegypt/ On Mon, Dec 29, 2008 at 9:23 PM, Beth Leggieri <trailyaya@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
|