Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Training...and Colt Starting

I admit it, I am incapable of not training every horses I ride. I borrow one for a local trail ride and I spend the trail ride teaching him to slow his walk and put his head down, I borrow one for a fun day and I have no fun, because I have to teach it to stop on its hindquarters and not kick out when asked to speed up....I am even afraid to ride other peoples horses as I already know I won't enjoy riding, because the horse rides different then I am use too. I give up!

Anyways, I am done ranting now....so lets get to the point of this post, and that would be colt starting. I would like to know what everybody does with there colts to keep from getting killed??

I perfer to start two year olds, BUT I never work a two year old very hard. I like to start getting the colts use to things when they are yearlings, meaning saddleing, bridleing, a little lungeing, desensitizing and just the basic ground work up until their two year old year. Then I will slowly start to back them and then eventually riding in the round pen. The reason I go slow into riding is for the saftey of the horse and myself, beacause I am alone and have no help in starting my colts. After I feel that I can stop, turn, go forward, I have good flexetion, and have taught the one rein stop, I will start to take the colt outside, on short trail rides. After about a month of this type of riding I start to pick up the pace and start to do a few local shows, and by the 3rd month there are a couple of trail rides I go on with them. I have never had a colt start bucking or just generally freak out on any of the trail rides I take them on. The most any colt has ever done was jump sideways and stop.

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