Amount of exercise for a 5 year old.

[Rich1969]

Hi Everyone,

Could I get some advice on how much and what kind of exercise/training we should be doing with our 5 year old mare (Irish Sports) and should exercise be reduced while mud fever is present? Many thanks. Richard

 

[Polos Mum]

Hi, loads of good books on the subject of training youngsters that would be worth a read. Pippa Funnel has one, Ingrid Klimke's one her Dad input into too

More recent science into their development suggests very little ridden work (which I know is controversial)
Short spells of light work
varied - in and out of school
riding and leading,
long reining out and about

If she is sore on the mud fever then yes I'd take it easy. or you'll train her that work causes pain.

 

[Rich1969]

Hi, loads of good books on the subject of training youngsters that would be worth a read. Pippa Funnel has one, Ingrid Klimke's one her Dad input into too

More recent science into their development suggests very little ridden work (which I know is controversial)
Short spells of light work
varied - in and out of school
riding and leading,
long reining out and about

If she is sore on the mud fever then yes I'd take it easy. or you'll train her that work causes pain.

Many thanks, much appreciated

 

[ycbm]

It really depends on the individual horse Richard. Some 5 year olds are ready for a lot more work than others. And there is absolutely zero research which will help with the decision how much to work young horses. In the UK it has been tradition to back and ride lightly at 3, do more work at 4, and at 5 a horse is considered old enough to compete in British Eventing horse trials.

You need some genuinely expert eyes on the ground who see the horse in person. You will find some quite extreme opinions on forums.
.

 

[ycbm]

More recent science into their development suggests very little ridden work (which I know is controversial)

Well you're right that's controversial. The science may show that the skeleton does not mature until later than was thought but I'm not aware of any suggestions which have been scientifically tested which indicate anything about the age the horse should work at.

Excepting perhaps some work in young TBs which showed that it was positively beneficial to bone density to do fast work when young.
.

 

[ycbm]

Regarding the mud fever I would only stop work if the horse is unsound. Particularly so if the mud fever means the horse is not being turned out.
.

 

[Rich1969]

It really depends on the individual horse Richard. Some 5 year olds are ready for a lot more work than others. And there is absolutely zero research which will help with the decision how much to work young horses. In the UK it has been tradition to back and ride lightly at 3, do more work at 4, and at 5 a horse is considered old enough to compete in British Eventing horse trials.

You need some genuinely expert eyes on the ground who see the horse in person. You will find some quite extreme opinions on forums.
.

Hi thanks for your reply much appreciated. It is quite an open ended question.

 

[Rich1969]

Many thanks, much appreciated

Thanks for the reading recommendations.

 

[Sprogladite01]

My ISH mare was 5 when I bought her last July and I started her off gently - not so much in terms of frequency of work but more in that the work we did was very low intensity. We did 3 or 4 short walk hacks a week (20 to 30 mins), lunged maybe once every couple of weeks, and in the school once or maybe twice a week depending on what else we had done (was usually once). In the school we did (and still do) a mixture of ridden and in hand work in walk and trot, we are building up to short canters now she doesn't feel like an octopus with eight legs when I ride lol. I have built her up slowly and she is now stronger, more supple and more balanced. I've kept her ticking over this winter and plan to really get cracking with her over summer, when she'll be 6, nearly 7. I figure I have her for the rest of my life, so what's the rush?

 

[Rich1969]

My ISH mare was 5 when I bought her last July and I started her off gently - not so much in terms of frequency of work but more in that the work we did was very low intensity. We did 3 or 4 short walk hacks a week (20 to 30 mins), lunged maybe once every couple of weeks, and in the school once or maybe twice a week depending on what else we had done (was usually once). In the school we did (and still do) a mixture of ridden and in hand work in walk and trot, we are building up to short canters now she doesn't feel like an octopus with eight legs when I ride lol. I have built her up slowly and she is now stronger, more supple and more balanced. I've kept her ticking over this winter and plan to really get cracking with her over summer, when she'll be 6, nearly 7. I figure I have her for the rest of my life, so what's the rush?

Hi thanks for your reply much appreciated. Did you jump her at all?

 

[ycbm]

Richard you aren't going to be helped by whether individuals on the forum have or have not jumped their own 5 year old. Lots and lots of people jump 5 year olds. The BE rules say a 5 year old can do dressage, show jump and cross country with the jumps up to 1m, all on the same day (and assume that the horse had been in training at home to get to that stage). Many showjumpers jump a lot higher than that at 5.

Yours may, or may not, be ready to jump.
.

 

[bonny]

A lot depends on how fit your horse is and what they have done previously ?

 

[Sprogladite01]

Hi thanks for your reply much appreciated. Did you jump her at all?

I haven't yet, mostly because I feel she isn't physically ready. She's still quite gangly, a bit clumsy and is still growing. Our strategy for now is to get some muscle on her, school her over summer, and reassess according to how she's progressing.

That's not to say I wouldn't jump a youngster - just that mine is too immature currently (in my opinion).

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

If the horse is for you & for the foreseeable future then take your time & be gentle. If you do this then your horse will build up stamina & perform well. There are many pro riders who compete on 4 years olds which I think is terrible yet British Show Jumping put on classes for them to compete in. Sometimes I believe that British Show Jumping are more interested in the revenue they can bring in rather that the health of the horses.

 

[Rich1969]

Richard you aren't going to be helped by whether individuals on the forum have or have not jumped their own 5 year old. Lots and lots of people jump 5 year olds. The BE rules say a 5 year old can do dressage, show jump and cross country with the jumps up to 1m, all on the same day (and assume that the horse had been in training at home to get to that stage). Many showjumpers jump a lot higher than that at 5.

Yours may, or may not, be ready to jump.
.

Hi again thanks for the reply. Ours is jumping 70 now and we are looking to start small shows later in the year. I understand it totally depends on the horse and the work that has been done previously

 

[Timelyattraction]

I think you’re best getting a trainer for regular lessons for your daughter if you haven’t already. That way you can ask for professional help from someone that can assess the horse in real life, they will be able to tell you what the horse is ready for. How old is your daughter out of interest?