Backing 3/4yr olds

[DabDab]

Oh I had forgotten about this thread, so apologies for jumping in and posting without being particularly involved before now.

Hetty the baby cobby job continues to be a good egg. I sat on her late last year but not much more than that, and then she's been restarted a couple of weeks ago and now has my OH (who hasn't ridden since childhood) walking about the place on her. We've had a few issues with her just coming to a halt and accidental engagement of reverse gear but all very manageable even for novice/rusty jockey and she's happily pottering around the school, over poles and up and down the lane. Tonight they even managed opening a gate. Which is pretty good since the jockey (who will be her main rider in future) has decided that she requires neither saddle nor bit .

She'll be 4 in August and seems to have got comfortably past the awkward growing phase she had earlier this year so we'll aim to get her hacking in the next few weeks and then just do that for a bit.

 

[Simbapony]

Thank you
Chestnut is Timolin X an ID mare by Welcome Diamond.

Bay pony is full Welsh D, bred at Penstrumbly Stud. He is an absolute angel and has the best personality and so intelligent.



He's about 17.1hh, so pretty big!
I think once fully mature he will be closer to 18hh.
Thankfully he is very light footed and sensitive so you could lead him with a bit of dental floss and he's very in tune to body language and energy which makes him easy to handle... So far

How is the bay bred? I have a Penstrumbly 3 year old and recently sold my other Penstrumbly. Fabulous ponies.

 

[millitiger]

How is the bay bred? I have a Penstrumbly 3 year old and recently sold my other Penstrumbly. Fabulous ponies.

Here is his breeding, I don't know much about Welsh lines but he is the most delightful pony with the BEST personality/ attitude of any horse I have ever known.
He is clever, kind, intelligent and endlessly cheerful!

 

[Ahrena]

He is lovely and I love the sand pit!

My recent update is more about me than the horse. I schooled her yesterday, first time without someone else riding her first. Also a slightly crazy day as lots of kids and dogs running about.

She tried it on a bit - she can be a bit nappy with me in the school and is fine with my more confident friend so it’s definitely me. I had a wobble and almost got my friend on but then I pulled it together and actually started riding. And she was fab.

It’s hard, I used to be so confident but I’m determined to get that back and we are inching along.

 

[Simbapony]

Here is his breeding, I don't know much about Welsh lines but he is the most delightful pony with the BEST personality/ attitude of any horse I have ever known.
He is clever, kind, intelligent and endlessly cheerful!

View attachment 141254

Nice, his dad is brother to mine you won't ho wrong with a Penstrumbly. Here is my three year old Penstrumbly filly

 

[maya2008]

Two of mine now have a rider on (and the 10yo feral one as a bonus). One we are keeping, so will do the odd walk hack until the autumn when we will start to do a little more. One will be backed and sold as she’s too small for us, and the 10yo is already an adult so only restriction is her muscling up.

Out of 3, two have picked which child they want, then demanded they get on and get on with it. The other couldn’t have cared less so long as someone played with her. Luckily, that’s the one who needs to find a new home!

 

[CanteringCarrot]

Edit: nvm

 

[teddy_]

Had my first ride on my girl earlier, and I could not be happier. We even went through a water jump .

Please ignore the feet, she has the farrier this afternoon - they have grown v fast !

 

[Shoei]

Oh this thread has come at the perfect time! I'd planned on sending Raymond this Autumn for breaking, but I think he is a slow to mature KWPN, looking more like a rangy, bum high 2 year old! I've made the decision this week to give him until spring and increase ground work for mental stimulation instead!

Lots of my dressage friends are very keen to get them broken at 3 and that certainly works for some, but I'm glad to see I'm not alone in waiting a little while longer!

 

[GreyDot]

Had my first ride on my girl earlier, and I could not be happier. We even went through a water jump .

Please ignore the feet, she has the farrier this afternoon - they have grown v fast !

She looks lovely!!!

 

[teddy_]

She looks lovely!!!

Thank you! She is such a poppet. Totally electric, but that’s how I like them ️!

 

[IrishMilo]

Had my first ride on my girl earlier, and I could not be happier. We even went through a water jump .

Please ignore the feet, she has the farrier this afternoon - they have grown v fast !

Now that's my type of horse!

 

[CanteringCarrot]

I'm torn.

*Don't read this if you want a happy, fluffy, positive post.*

Started my 3 year old PRE and he's done quite well. He needs to be more forward, and dives in on the left, but he's always been laid back and preferred going to the right if given the option. I'm not so concerned about it. I prefer the left if given the option, so this could work

His canter is lovely and he just has a good natural rhythm. I didn't ride for roughly 2 years leading up to backing him, but hopped on a QH in a western saddle a few times to try to remember how to ride. My issue is that I'm not sure that I have the mental resilience for this, and wonder if anyone has ever found themselves with similar thoughts.

I'm having a hard time with my perfectionist side, and also when he regresses, it sends me into a bit of a spiral that I can reason myself out of over a few days. Which is too long, IMO. I KNOW that training a young horse isn't a straight line upwards, or all that linear at times, so I don't know why it gets to me.

His work ethic is great sometimes, but other times he's always looking for the path that takes the least amount of effort. Which I guess is normal, and I have used it to my advantage before during trailer training. I think whenever we go back a step or when something is not perfect, I beat the ever loving sh*t out of myself and/or over analyze and I don't know how to break the cycle.

So I've put him up for sale and have had a few inquiries, but there are so many idiots out there (I'm an idiot too, don't get me wrong), and I'd feel terrible if I found him in a bad situation later on.

So I have no idea what to do. This isn't helped by the fact that I'm sort of ready to be done with livery yards. Not so much the people, but the practices. Plus the constant time suck of horses. I find it all so stressful. Especially because they can self destruct at any moment and it's always something. Horse needs this feed, horse needs this exercise, horse has done this weird behavior, horse has discovered this new thing, the saddle doesn't fit, horse doesn't like this bit, this thing needs to be cleaned, does horse have this ailment, and so on.

Have any of you ever found yourself floundering along like this? I am not sure what to do or what it is. I guess it's just time to get out of horses, which I'm pretty sure is the solution, just feels unfair to the horse, but sticking with it also feels unfair. I'd probably feel better if I were on my own, on my own land, but that simply is not an option at all.

Pic of said horse and I... I put a better face over mine because the face I was making was...weird

 

[Ahrena]

CC - I have a constant flood of doubts!

I have lost my confidence quite badly over the last few years for various reasons and ending up with a fairly tricky youngster has nearly sent me over the edge a few times. Everytime we had a bad session, it sent me into a spiral of ‘I can’t do this’ and I would put her up for sale for a couple of hours.

I’ve plugged along and now we’re a bit further along the line and it helps me to look back and reflect on how far we’ve come. So even when we have a day where it goes a bit tits up, thanks to the passing of time, I can see we HAVE made progress.

Would some lessons help? Sometimes just having another pair of eyes can be very reassuring that you aren’t doing it all wrong.

He looks lovely!!

 

[DabDab]

I mean, it just sounds like normal baby horse stuff CC, but I'm sure you already know that.
I can't remember how many I've backed...quite a lot...but yet every single time with one of mine I convince myself regularly and often that I am probably completely ruining them. I'm always wrong, they are all fine, better than fine, they're wonderful, easy, sound, fantastic all rounders who fit my life and (distinctly modest) ambitions perfectly. Your youngster looks lovely and I've no doubt that you will turn him into a cracking horse a couple of years down the line. You mither now because you care and it is the way with those that care.

That being said, if you've lost the love for it all then I'm equally sure that you can find a good home for him - it might just be a bit of a long haul being picky enough about buyers to find it.

 

[ycbm]

I'm torn.

*Don't read this if you want a happy, fluffy, positive post.*

Started my 3 year old PRE and he's done quite well. He needs to be more forward, and dives in on the left, but he's always been laid back and preferred going to the right if given the option. I'm not so concerned about it. I prefer the left if given the option, so this could work

His canter is lovely and he just has a good natural rhythm. I didn't ride for roughly 2 years leading up to backing him, but hopped on a QH in a western saddle a few times to try to remember how to ride. My issue is that I'm not sure that I have the mental resilience for this, and wonder if anyone has ever found themselves with similar thoughts.

I'm having a hard time with my perfectionist side, and also when he regresses, it sends me into a bit of a spiral that I can reason myself out of over a few days. Which is too long, IMO. I KNOW that training a young horse isn't a straight line upwards, or all that linear at times, so I don't know why it gets to me.

His work ethic is great sometimes, but other times he's always looking for the path that takes the least amount of effort. Which I guess is normal, and I have used it to my advantage before during trailer training. I think whenever we go back a step or when something is not perfect, I beat the ever loving sh*t out of myself and/or over analyze and I don't know how to break the cycle.

So I've put him up for sale and have had a few inquiries, but there are so many idiots out there (I'm an idiot too, don't get me wrong), and I'd feel terrible if I found him in a bad situation later on.

So I have no idea what to do. This isn't helped by the fact that I'm sort of ready to be done with livery yards. Not so much the people, but the practices. Plus the constant time suck of horses. I find it all so stressful. Especially because they can self destruct at any moment and it's always something. Horse needs this feed, horse needs this exercise, horse has done this weird behavior, horse has discovered this new thing, the saddle doesn't fit, horse doesn't like this bit, this thing needs to be cleaned, does horse have this ailment, and so on.

Have any of you ever found yourself floundering along like this? I am not sure what to do or what it is. I guess it's just time to get out of horses, which I'm pretty sure is the solution, just feels unfair to the horse, but sticking with it also feels unfair. I'd probably feel better if I were on my own, on my own land, but that simply is not an option at all.

Pic of said horse and I... I put a better face over mine because the face I was making was...weird

View attachment 141600

That sounds normal for training a 3 year old but it does sound like you're ready for a break from horses that you would probably really enjoy.

How do you feel if you imagine waving him off when his perfectly matched new owner drives him away?
.

 

[Caol Ila]

I'm torn.

*Don't read this if you want a happy, fluffy, positive post.*

Started my 3 year old PRE and he's done quite well. He needs to be more forward, and dives in on the left, but he's always been laid back and preferred going to the right if given the option. I'm not so concerned about it. I prefer the left if given the option, so this could work

His canter is lovely and he just has a good natural rhythm. I didn't ride for roughly 2 years leading up to backing him, but hopped on a QH in a western saddle a few times to try to remember how to ride. My issue is that I'm not sure that I have the mental resilience for this, and wonder if anyone has ever found themselves with similar thoughts.

I'm having a hard time with my perfectionist side, and also when he regresses, it sends me into a bit of a spiral that I can reason myself out of over a few days. Which is too long, IMO. I KNOW that training a young horse isn't a straight line upwards, or all that linear at times, so I don't know why it gets to me.

His work ethic is great sometimes, but other times he's always looking for the path that takes the least amount of effort. Which I guess is normal, and I have used it to my advantage before during trailer training. I think whenever we go back a step or when something is not perfect, I beat the ever loving sh*t out of myself and/or over analyze and I don't know how to break the cycle.

So I've put him up for sale and have had a few inquiries, but there are so many idiots out there (I'm an idiot too, don't get me wrong), and I'd feel terrible if I found him in a bad situation later on.

So I have no idea what to do. This isn't helped by the fact that I'm sort of ready to be done with livery yards. Not so much the people, but the practices. Plus the constant time suck of horses. I find it all so stressful. Especially because they can self destruct at any moment and it's always something. Horse needs this feed, horse needs this exercise, horse has done this weird behavior, horse has discovered this new thing, the saddle doesn't fit, horse doesn't like this bit, this thing needs to be cleaned, does horse have this ailment, and so on.

Have any of you ever found yourself floundering along like this? I am not sure what to do or what it is. I guess it's just time to get out of horses, which I'm pretty sure is the solution, just feels unfair to the horse, but sticking with it also feels unfair. I'd probably feel better if I were on my own, on my own land, but that simply is not an option at all.

Pic of said horse and I... I put a better face over mine because the face I was making was...weird

View attachment 141600

He looks lovely.

I don't know how to tell you to not be a perfectionist and accept that you will probably balls something up, other than to say just that. But horses are forgiving. Most are more than willing to let you fix whatever you've cocked up. TBH, I only flapped about Hermosa a couple times but mostly plugged on slowly with it. Very slowly. She wasn't forward at all until this year. Now she's found the "go" button, which is nice for me. I dunno... I found it easy to live in the moment, problem solve when I had to, and otherwise plod along with the horse in front of me that day and definitely not thinking, "She should be doing x, y, and z." But I kind of do that anyway with most things. Future problems are problems for future me. Have I taught this horse to canter in the school yet? Nope. Does now me care? Nope (she's getting good at cantering on hacks, though). Now me was very keen on getting her hacking alone, above all else, because my other horse doesn't do that, so that's what we have done. I've been pretty half-arsed with the schooling.

As for the time suck and the constant anxiety about them self destructing and all that.... Maybe those are the bigger questions. That's just owning horses, but if you're starting to resent that or feeling unhappy about it more often than you're happy, yeah, maybe it's time to think about getting out. They are a huge f7*(cking time suck. There's always a constant level of anxiety because we all know things can go wrong very quickly. I think to own them, you have to enjoy them so much that you happily tolerate that stuff. But once that stuff becomes overwhelming and you're not loving the riding, the training, just being with them, then I dunno. I've never been there myself -- I'm still so obsessed that I say "horsey!" whenever I drive past horses grazing in a field, like I'm eight -- but I guess you have to ask, would you miss them if you did not have them?

 

[NR88]

Reading various other posts that you've made over a long period of time, it appears like you are done with horses for now at least. You have had a lot to contend with moving continents and all that is involved with that upheaval.

I think that I recall some similar wobbles with your previous horse before you decided to try to take him with you.

Your posts have sounded very down for a long time and that you have been soured with horses. Understandably so, they can be a hard hobby to maintain.

Selling to a good home sounds like the best plan. Then you can give yourself some proper breathing space and see if you feel more like yourself. Wishing you the best with however you decide to proceed.

 

[CanteringCarrot]

I'm generally a down person, so there's that. Not necessarily an unhappy person, I just have to much information in my brain most of the time, which probably makes no sense, but yeah. I honestly don't understand very positive and constantly happy people. They scare me a bit I can be content, and am most of the time, but am always striving for more.

A lot of it with the horse, is being a livery. I'd be more happy on my own. Even with all of the extra work. I let people ruin things for me by caring too much or putting them before me. Some people are also shite at caring for and understanding these animals and it gets to me at times.

I also don't like where I live, and I can't change being a livery or where I live for another 2 years or more.

With my last horse, I sort of maxed him out and needed to move on to another challenge or more capable mount, but then I realized that we had a good relationship and he was reliable. Even if he'd never get to a certain level. Something to be said for a horse that you just feel comfortable with and put so much training into.

Sometimes I wonder if a holiday would help. Would help with perspective and sourness perhaps. Haven't gone on holiday, aside from a weekend hike here or there, in a few years.

At the core of it all, is probably my anxiety, which I'll never be truly rid of.

That sounds normal for training a 3 year old but it does sound like you're ready for a break from horses that you would probably really enjoy.

How do you feel if you imagine waving him off when his perfectly matched new owner drives him away?
.

Oh I'd cry. I'd be sad and worried for his future and wonder "what if" all day long then try to console myself with the money I've gotten and will save from not having him anymore, but then it'll feel like "blood money" and I'll wonder if it was all worth it. Then I'd be browsing Spanish horse classifies because I'm an absolute imbecile. I can't imagine a perfectly matched new owner for him. Apparently I am extremely arrogant and think that I'm it me, a person that is "horse sour."

Sure, I could say that I'd be delighted, but I need to be honest here. My last horse went to a perfectly matched new owner, and is someone that I already knew. It was the absolute ideal situation, and even still I stress about it from time to time...2 years later.

I am a mess.

Maybe if I sit here focusing on all of his conformation faults, I'll convince myself that he's total crap and he really needs to go and I've got to sell off/donate all of my stuff. Which honestly, feels overwhelming. Did you sell your things in lots? Donate? Hang on to some of it?




Pic of bum high just backed 3 year old to stay relevant

 

[maya2008]

Cc there’s no harm in saying this isn’t for you, and there will be the perfect person for your horse out there. Then you can take a break. If you want, after the break, maybe find something easy and fun. Or perhaps you won’t miss horses and will stay away. I have always had a finished pony alongside my youngsters - makes it more fun and less stressful, reminds you what is them and what is you, and gives you some downtime. The last time I had to back a 3 year old without an older horse alongside, I just had to grit my teeth and get through it. It wasn’t fun (he was a special one, and not even mine, my husband’s!) but we made it through and he turned into a lovely ride. I do feel your pain though, horses are supposed to be fun, and youngsters can just be endless hard work!

 

[DabDab]

Oh I'd cry. I'd be sad and worried for his future and wonder "what if" all day long then try to console myself with the money I've gotten and will save from not having him anymore, but then it'll feel like "blood money" and I'll wonder if it was all worth it. Then I'd be browsing Spanish horse classifies because I'm an absolute imbecile. I can't imagine a perfectly matched new owner for him

Well this is why I simply can't sell a horse anymore...it's not because I think that I am the absolute best owner for them, but because I know there are a lot that are worse. But I sort of accept that when I buy them, and honestly the thought would never enter my head that I had maxed out a horse, because there's always something else to try, so I probably don't have the same perspective. However, lots of people sell horses, and the horses are fine, better than fine.

Either way I would say that you probably need to make a clear decision to either plod on through the baby horse worries, or to sell - I should think that a lot of your current turmoil with it all comes from being in limbo, and that will probably start affect your approach and training of him if left too long.

 

[ycbm]

Maybe if I sit here focusing on all of his conformation faults, I'll convince myself that he's total crap and he really needs to go and I've got to sell off/donate all of my stuff. Which honestly, feels overwhelming. Did you sell your things in lots? Donate? Hang on to some of it?

I gave it all away. The van sold in days, a bootload of supplements went to one HHOer, the bit collection to a friend in return for a charity donation, and all the rest, a SUV boot and back seat full, went to an RDA for them to use or sell. I did it really quickly to shorten the pain of it and to make it so expensive to go back into horse keeping that I would know that it was something I absolutely had to do. I have one GP and one DR WOW and one very expensive girth in the garage, just in case somebody offers me a loan horse I can't refuse.

I know what everyone means about worrying about horses you've sold. There's one with a very distinctive name that I try to follow and I'm so pleased to see in the BE results tables as he might have gone badly wrong in the wrong hands, two others since him I still wonder about. On the other hand I get regular updates about the cob I sold and he has a much better life now than he did with me and is utterly adored.
.

 

[teddy_]

Now that's my type of horse!

Thank you !

She is quite unusual for her pedigree (all hulking great dressage horses from De Niro to Jazz to Flemmingh ) - but I actually spotted her in the barn because she is so athletic and fine!

She does have mild sweet itch, which is why we currently have a half bald face (I have managed to keep her mane and tail, though!) - but I can work with that seeing as she’s such a workmanlike horse .

 

[CanteringCarrot]

Well this is why I simply can't sell a horse anymore...it's not because I think that I am the absolute best owner for them, but because I know there are a lot that are worse. But I sort of accept that when I buy them, and honestly the thought would never enter my head that I had maxed out a horse, because there's always something else to try, so I probably don't have the same perspective. However, lots of people sell horses, and the horses are fine, better than fine.

Either way I would say that you probably need to make a clear decision to either plod on through the baby horse worries, or to sell - I should think that a lot of your current turmoil with it all comes from being in limbo, and that will probably start affect your approach and training of him if left too long.

There is always more to try, but I think I found that horse's limit with jumping (height wise) and Dressage (level wise). Hacking had more possibilities, and we did a lot of that. Working equitation was something we could've explored more, but then I had to sell/leave him, so there was that. I selfishly wanted "more" when it came to dressage, and I truly believe that the "more" that I wanted was unfair to him, and he just would've not held up to it and/or wasn't capable. If I had stuck to lower or mid level stuff, it would not have been an issue, but I was selfishly ambitious.

I think that you're bang on with needing to make a decision. I am bad at making decisions and/or commitments. I'm also get much a "what if" person. So there's that. At the core of it, I wonder if this selling thing is just me trying to find control. Or a feeling of being control, anyway, because as we all know, horses, as a hobby/sport, just has so much to it that is out of control. This stems from some deeper anxiety and PTSD stuff, probably. Which I am self aware of, but I can't seem to take my own advice on I can advise people sensibly all day long, but myself...wellllll.




On a related note, things that may be relevant/interesting:

Someone wants to speak on the phone about the horse and I am dreading it.

A lovely potential home is interested, and I know they could probably do some things better than me, but I'm still hemming and hawing over here. Why? It's a pro that does resale though.

I keep thinking of future problems that may never be problems, and probably need to STFU.

Potential buyers will now find this thread and run away because seller is cray

 

[YourValentine]

There is someone is Colorado whodguve him an excellent home and lots of updates you just might need to hand in to him for a bit longer.

On a more practical note, could you turn him away for a bit to have a bit of a break and see how you feel in 6 months. He is only young. Appreciate finding the right place might be hard from what you've said.

 

[CanteringCarrot]

There is someone is Colorado whodguve him an excellent home and lots of updates you just might need to hand in to him for a bit longer.

On a more practical note, could you turn him away for a bit to have a bit of a break and see how you feel in 6 months. He is only young. Appreciate finding the right place might be hard from what you've said.

Well, he's been turned away until this past March, really. So I moved him to a place with more facilities so we could do more.

What I did think about was taking some pressure off because I seem to be an expert in applying pressure to myself for...reasons both known and unknown .

Now would be the best time of year because they're out from 4:30pm until 9:30/10 am. They come into their stables during the day with their fans on. I think it's a decent period of rest for them. Many doze and/or munch hay. The fields are full sun with smaller shelters, and it gets very hot here. They spend less time out during the winter, from what I hear, so now is a good time to take things easy.

I don't think it would be detrimental? When I backed him I rode everyday for 5 days, and now it's been 2 or 3 days during the week. Sometimes I find the initial consistency over a block of days is helpful. He probably has 10 rides on him. I don't know that he'd regress? I feel like if I got on him a month from now he'd be basically the same, but idk if this is a crucial point where I shouldn't just stop. He would not be completely feral as I'd groom him and whatnot.

I don't know that I want to move him, and they're aren't any options that are good, or even just ok, unless it is 90 min away, which would not be good for my mental state, I imagine.

I spent about 2 years taking it easy, and felt ok, minus livery headaches and general negative feelings about this location in particular. I don't know that it's the actual horse, it's the things surrounding the horse. I don't know if I let all of the "things" influence me too much and lose sight of other things.

Maybe I need a kick up my arse to stop being such a negative sour being. Would be good for me to learn to live in the moment and you would think I'd be better at it by now.

Sorry for the thread hijack, but at the same time, it's useful to talk this out with you all, and could be useful to someone else that may find themselves in a quandary.

He'd probably be a decent fit for the person in Colorado because said person is used to a horse with plenty of personality

 

[Caol Ila]

Every young horse is different. Mine was a bit older than yours, but I never did the turn away thing. That's very British. I hopped on her for like three minutes. Then I hopped on her for like five minutes a couple days later. Then she had like a week or two off me sitting on her (though still long reining and stuff). My OH had almost two weeks off work, so at that point, we rode much more intensively as I had a reliable, consistent ground person who was there every day, and we were able to get her off the lead line and ridden away during that time.

When you're spiralling into negativity, try listing the things that are going well. You got on the baby horse. You didn't die. Baby horse has steering. He's doing things. He's a nice person to handle most of the time.

 

[CanteringCarrot]

Every young horse is different. Mine was a bit older than yours, but I never did the turn away thing. That's very British. I hopped on her for like three minutes. Then I hopped on her for like five minutes a couple days later. Then she had like a week or two off me sitting on her (though still long reining and stuff). My OH had almost two weeks off work, so at that point, we rode much more intensively as I had a reliable, consistent ground person who was there every day, and we were able to get her off the lead line and ridden away during that time.

When you're spiralling into negativity, try listing the things that are going well. You got on the baby horse. You didn't die. Baby horse has steering. He's doing things. He's a nice person to handle most of the time.

Yeah, I need to focus on what's going well, but then my brain will be like, well, xyz could be better. I can usually pull myself out of this type of thinking, but not always.

I actually didn't really ride him on the lead line outside of for like for 2 minutes, maybe. I also can't complain about his general behavior. He's handled a person on his back quite well.


Last night we went down the the huge outdoor school and I got on and walked around. I hadn't ridden him since Sunday, I think. Did a few steps of trot here and there. Some walk halt transitions. Then we were done. Didn't feel like much, but we both left the school feeling fine, which is important.

There are a fair amount of distractions around the outdoor, and it's furthest away from the barn and field where his herdmates are. So I think he did quite well for his first time down there. I did bring the lunge line, but didn't use it, and OH just sat on the mounting block and watched.

I've been riding in my leather side pull but it's feeling a bit primitive at times. He has been long lined in a bit and I kind of want to ride him in a bit to see what it's like and work on his relationship with the bit when there's a rider on his back. He's good with it on the ground.

Bits are annoying though. Some 12.5cm bits are small and then I size up to 13.5 and then the bit is too big. Then 12.5 in one brand works, but not another. He's just been in an eggbutt snaffle, so nothing all that exciting.

I plan to long line him tonight, then ride again tomorrow and do a bit more. He has a lovely canter, but we need a bit more forward and less leaning in to the left.

There's been a plot twist that has made me consider keeping him for now. More on that at another time.

 

[Ahrena]

Sounds like a very successful session to me CC!
Any form of distraction is enough to blow my 4yos mind so he sounds cracking to me.

Another 2p from me, I’m aware from previous posts that horsey life has been tough for you for a while. Is it worth pressing on a bit longer now you’re getting on his back and starting to do the fun stuff? It might start feeling a lot more pleasurable now you’re getting on board.

 

[maya2008]

Cc all we are asking of our 3 year olds is that they go out safely through the countryside - they have a just a few weeks of basic schooling learning the aids and how to be ridden in an enclosed area at backing. Then they go out for gentle walks and the odd trot, 3 times a week or so, and enjoy life. No stress for them or us. We do have sensible ponies for them to ride out with though - would that be an option for you? The young one I found most stressful to back was at a time when we have nothing to nanny him, so more arena time and less easy to get out and about.