Starting a 3 Year Old Horse Under Saddle

Next week we will begin the process of starting the 3 year olds under saddle. Last year they began learning about working on a lunge line, a little bit of long lining, and free jumping. During the winter months we did not work with them, they had a break to go outside and continue growing and just be a horse. Now they will start coming in again to have a refresher course and then a 1 week "boot camp" of 20 - 30 minute sessions.

Each day will start on the lunge line or with long lines. On the lunge they will start going with a saddle on their back and we will start letting the stirrups loose to flap around on their sides. They are wearing a bridle now and we will start using a "neck stretcher" to teach them about contact. This device is a long stretchy cord that goes over their poll, down thru the bit rings and back to the saddle. It is not used to tie their head down or force them into a frame, but rather to give them the feel of a connection to their mouth that gives. They can pull without feeling trapped and learn to find a comfortable connection with the bit.

If they are being worked with long lines these are connected to the bit and then thru the stirrups with the trainer standing several feet behind holding the lines like they would hold the reins. It is best to stand slightly to the inside of the horse so they can see you, otherwise they will get nervous about what is happening. We usually use voice commands they already learned on the lunge line and start out asking them to walk. If they don't move forward we then cluck and ask again, if there is still no forward movement we will touch them on the rump with a long whip and repeat the command again. Sometimes they will go forward faster than you want, but usually if they were responding well to the voice commands on the lunge, they catch on pretty quick. Using the long lines like reins, the trainer will take hold of the horses mouth with a light steady contact. We begin teaching them to steer, to stop, to move sideways, and to back up with the trainer following on the ground behind them. Once they are comfortable doing this at the walk we will ask for a little trot. This requires a very fit trainer and usually after a few minutes they will move out to the side of the horse while lengthening the outside rein to wrap around the horse's rump. This puts the horse on a circle around the trainer with a inside rein for bending the horse and an outside rein for moving them forward into the bit.

At the end of each session the trainer starts mounting exercises. At first this would simply be putting a mounting block next to the horse, standing on it, and patting on the saddle. If the horse is comfortable with this, the next day we would move on to a couple of seconds of the trainer laying over the horse's back gradually building up to being led while the trainer is laying over his back. Finally, the trainer sits in the saddle. The first time we do not usually ask the horse to move, we just want him to stand quietly a few minutes. There is always someone on the ground holding the horse with a line. Both the trainer and handler are doing a lot of praising, scratching, and petting. Usually by the end of the week the trainer is sitting in the saddle and the handler is leading the horse around the arena for a few minutes. That is the end of "boot camp".

The weeks that follow will consist of 20 - 30 minute sessions 3 - 4 times a week starting with lunging or long lining and ending with the trainer in the saddle. We slowly progress from walking under saddle to trotting and cantering. Each horse is different, some are there in a month and others need more time to get comfortable with each new lesson. The most important part of each stage of the young horse's education is that he feels safe and comfortable and has learned that he can trust people "Many a happy colt makes a fine horse" - Proverb, Unknown Origin

Above is a picture of one of our horses at his first show in the fall of his 3 year old year.

In Memory of Porsche

A year ago today I wrote about my mare, Porsche, in the blog Porsches and Horses. She was also featured in a blog about a "spring garden" and breeding mares last year. She was in foal with a colt by Festrausch, a Westfalen stallion owned by Hilltop Farms, Inc. I was seriously considering keeping her for myself after she foaled and returned to work under saddle because she had wonderful gaits and an even better attitude. She was one of my favorite horses. She was beautiful, sweet, and kind, with large soft eyes, and was gentle with people and horses alike.

On January 3, 2009 we had to euthanize Porsche to end the suffering she was enduring due to a reaction her body had to antibiotics she had been on to treat a persistent case of pneumonia. This not only ended the life of my beautiful mare but also her unborn colt - he was too young to save. Now all I have are her ashes, a piece of her mane, and the pictures and memories of our short time together.

It has taken me a while to be able to write this, and it is very, very hard. I think that this was supposed to be the day, though. When I went back to find the blog I first wrote about her, I was surprised and pleased to find that I wrote it exactly one year ago. I think she is telling me something!

The grieving process for a horse is just like that for a human, dog, cat, or whatever else you have lost who was a significant relationship in your life. It is especially hard when they are taken young and suddenly. I searched online for some help in dealing with this and found some good websites and books. I liked the idea of creating a memoriam and so that is what I am doing.

I am making a tribute to Porsche on Squidoo. I have created several lenses on Squidoo and like that it is easy and fun and that you can have any money you make go to the charity(ies) of your choice. So I am making one in her memory that will send money to several horse rescue groups and help people who are grieving the loss of a horse with links to websites and other sources of comfort. The process is therapeutic and helps me with recalling the good memories and it feels like she lives on with this tribute. When it is finished I will post a link so you can visit if you like.

No one's death comes to pass without making some impression, and those close to the deceased inherit part of the liberated soul and become richer in their humaneness. Hermann Broch

Horse Information on Squidoo

I have been busy making lenses on Squidoo lately about my horses and breeding and training warmblood horses. It is a lot of fun and I am getting a lot of traffic lately. It is a great way for me to write about things I love and share it with lots of other people. It also makes money for me and if I want charities of my choice. There is lots of information there if you care to check it out. Hope to see you there!
Breeding and Training Warmblood Horses
My Dutch Warmblood Stallion
Importing a Warmblood Stallion
Successful Foal Raising
Do You Like Horses?

Recording Horse Health and Information

It is very important to keep up with all the various wormings, shots, farrier visits, and breeding information on all the horses. Until now I had been relying on my Outlook task reminders and calender, but with the number of horses now in my care I decided that that was not enough. For one thing, I am not the only one caring for them anymore. I need to have some way for every person to see and/or to log what happens to each horse. In this day of computers, it would seem that that would be the way to go, but the information needs to be available in the barn where the horses are. I don't think I want to risk my laptop in that environment.

So I came up with a book for each horse. I purchased 1" binders that have a label on the spine. The name of the horse is on the label and inside there are five dividers: Information, Worming, Farrier, Medical, and Breeding.

The Information section has a sheet I made up with the horse's name(s), DOB, sex, color, breed, sire and dam, owner information, and a table to record height and weight. Behind that are copies of important papers stored in sheet protectors. I keep the originals in my office. These might be registration papers, coggins, approval papers, awards, or anything else that I think might be useful.

The Worming section has a schedule I designed so that the type of wormer and date given could be recorded as well as results and dates of fecal testing. While it is true that most of the horses get the same wormer at the same time, there are a few variations and I think it is a good idea to have a record on each horse.

The Farrier section is just a worksheet to record the date of the farrier visit, whether it was a trim or shoes (and#), and a place for notes. This is good for the farrier, especially if he is working on something specific on a horse, and also for the vet.

The Medical section has a page for recording immunizations, and another for general medical information. This way there is a history for you and the vet and if a horse is sick and needs monitoring it is a good place for each person to record temp, medication, or anything else that should be kept track of on that horse. Instructions from the vet, lab results, and other medical info is filed behind the medical information sheet with the most recent first.

The Breeding section is a worksheet to record all the findings necessary for breeding so that a history can be kept for future reference. I also keep the breeding chart the vet uses in a sheet protector so that I don't have to transcribe all his notes onto my worksheet. Any additional information from the vet, labs, or breeding stations are filed behind this.

Over the years I think this will become a valuable source in the care and breeding of my horses and if I sell any it will be a great tool for the new owner and her vet and farrier.