Baby Horse

[Deefa]

Hi, just wanted a few opinions really!
I have bought a 4yr old welsh cob who, i hope in the furure will make a nice ride for me on the hunt field aswell as a hack etc. As my 15yrs old welsh is far to highly srung to take out.

How would you say the best way to introduce them to it is? Should i try and get to some hound excersizes before i go on a faster paced hunt? Also should i wait untill he is older first?

 

[Honeybee]

If you can pop along 2the hound excursuses go for it!!
The way it works with our hunt is it starts out with nice easy hunts and gets harder…
I started hunting my 3year old two years a go and she has not looked back.

Good luck and enjoy xx

 

[RunToEarth]

I have taken three year olds out, but it depends how grown up he is. I think you should go to the early autumn hunt meets and introduce him gently- the meets are designed to gradually get hounds fitter and ready for the open season, along with horses, so to begin with they will only be an hour or so, and not too strenuous- but have the atmosphere you need to get the horses used to.

 

[icemaiden113]

Wow an hour or two! Whish our cub hunting was as short as that!!
The best thing to do with young horses is get out on hound excersise, then cub hunt then after opening meet! By the time they get to that they are normally pro's! My youngster got used to the sounds very quickly by living here at the kennels!

 

[tormor]

hound exercise go for it. its how my horse learnt to trot and canter with someone on. he had only ever been sat on in a school before!

 

[Orangehorse]

Have you a friend with an older well mannered horse that could give your horse a good example for a few times.

Best to introduce quietly and gradually increase the time out.
Might even mean coming home soon after the meet at first, so the horse does not start to anticipate lots of galloping and jumping right from the start. I think the Pony Club does a Training the Young Horse that covers introducing a young horse to the hunting field.

 

[Deefa]

thanks guys, thats really helpful!