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RC Conditioning questions..was Re: Pony Power



>Question # 1 is, since it is pretty much in agreement that it takes 3
>years to fully condition a horse (this includes bone and tendons, not
>just cardiovascular system and muscles) are ponies different from this?
>Because if their bones and ligaments can take a shorter conditioning
>time, then 4 1/2 years old might not be too young for a pony to be top
>tenning, no matter what the speed or distance of the ride.
>
I have a couple of questions on this question...(I have my own opinion,
hopefully not incorrect, on these questions, but I'm mostly in hearing
other people's opinions on this subject.)

When it is said that it takes 3 years to fully condition a horse, what is
the definition here of "fully conditioned"?  

Does it mean fully conditioned enough to get BC at the lower distances
without undue stress to any part of the equine's body, or are we talking
about fully conditioned to be able to do 100s?  The former would be my
interpretation since 4 year olds are allowed to compete in LD...and if they
were starting "conditioning" at 3 so that they would be ready for LD at 4,
then that would mean they would have to be at least 6 before they would be
ready for 100s, given that they were on a diligent conditioning regimen.  

Is there a difference in conditioning time between a full grown 4yo that's
just being started, a 4yo that is still expected to gain more height and
body mass, and a 9yo that has reached full growth but has spent most of
their days being an out-of-shape pasture potato?  

How much does the height vs. body mass and weight or cbc vs. body mass and
weight of the horse affect the conditioning time?  What about weight of the
rider?  (ie a horse that's been conditioned by a HW and then competed with
a FW would probably do better than having the factors the other way around.) 

What about terrain?  Is there a difference in conditioning time for tendons
and ligaments between the horse that has to go slow and pick their way thru
a trail (and that's their only option for training) or one that spends most
of their time conditioning in an arena or on a track? 

If the cellular structure of ligaments is the same between horses and
ponies (the definition of pony here being one of an equine shorter than
14.2h,) how then could a pony be better conditioned in less time than a
horse if their weight carrying percentages are the same?  Do actual breed
differences enter into this?  (ie a Welsh pony would condition more quickly
than say a POA...or a tall Arab more quickly than a short TB?) 

Sue  

sbrown@wamedes.com
Tyee Farm
Marysville, Wa.


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