Backing 3/4yr olds

TheMule

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An exciting day on Monday... I went to visit my boy at my trainer's yard to go out for a little hack. I rode one of hers whilst she rode mine out, I think she said it was his first ride out without being led. On the way back we decided to swap so I got my first little go... it felt very surreal! He was so good but it probably helped that he was so tired from his first big boy excursion. As we turned down the lane to go back to the yard, we ran into the local farmer who was herding a couple of bulls running frantically down the road. Not what I envisaged we would bump into on my first ride, but he stood there calmly whilst they disappeared round the corner. All good experience for him I guess!

The cheesy grin says it all.

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Congratulations! It's just the best feeling, isn’t it? Looks like he's taking it all in his stride
 

ahml100

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An exciting day on Monday... I went to visit my boy at my trainer's yard to go out for a little hack. I rode one of hers whilst she rode mine out, I think she said it was his first ride out without being led. On the way back we decided to swap so I got my first little go... it felt very surreal! He was so good but it probably helped that he was so tired from his first big boy excursion. As we turned down the lane to go back to the yard, we ran into the local farmer who was herding a couple of bulls running frantically down the road. Not what I envisaged we would bump into on my first ride, but he stood there calmly whilst they disappeared round the corner. All good experience for him I guess!

The cheesy grin says it all.

View attachment 72176

It is such a wonderful feeling! Your boys looks very sweet and kind
 

ahml100

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Layla has been doing some baby jumping again, first time after her break she’s so bold , I’m so pleased
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She looks lovely!totally agree with TM I also thought her attitude looked very genuine.
 

ycbm

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Mine's just busy growing at the moment. I'm hoping he levels up enough to sit on when the weather finally breaks and we get some summer, but the plan is that he's going to be mostly a companion until he's 4 next year.


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lannerch

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Brilliant Lannerch! She looks to have a great attitude, bold and sensible, and scopey too, lovely mare.
That lovely mare was not so lovely today I foolishly turned her around out on a hack last Sunday because she napping because she was terrified of crossing a canal bridge. She did the canal bridge the next day with company no problem .
But today I rode her on a hack alone and she now thinks if she plants and refuses to go forward we will turn round and go home. Got her going but it was a battle, most of the way round. I was at my wits end, Young horses are great levellers and her halo has definitely slipped !
 

Northern

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It’s getting colder here and Bella is lovely and fuzzy with her shiny winter coat and the lovely layer of mud she regularly gets over it ?

We’ve not done an awful lot lately, just taking it easy. I had a body worker out to see her the other week and since then she’s been much more willing to move forward for me. Follow up visit is tomorrow, hopefully she’ll enjoy that ?

Had our first saddle fit this morning. She behaved super well apart from trying to chew everything ? happily the saddle setup I’ve backed her in will do nicely for now, good to have confirmation of that from a pro. Did ride her in a lovely dressage saddle, she went super and I loved it. Now to ponder over whether I should invest in one, it’s fully adjustable so should last her a few years. I’ll sleep over it a few nights, of course she has expensive taste ?

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I’ve also recently been playing with a friends new youngster. Different kettle of fish, red hot and smart Anglo Arab. So far we’ve established that barging through me and rearing is unacceptable. We’ve come to an understanding about picking out feet as well. She’s done one session of long reining and has had a bridle on with me. Picks things up very quickly but likes to veto things quickly too ? such a fun little pony. She’s just 2 at the moment, and spends most of her time eating grass.

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Glad to see everyone elses youngsters looking so well!
 

daffy44

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Another arena hire today for my 4yr old, and I'm very pleased, couldnt be easier to load, travel, tack up etc, he is very surprised when he gets to a new place, but still behaves well, which is very nice. No walking in hand first this time, just got on and he was fine, his stamina is improving at home, but today, away from home he did hit that wall and go from feeling jolly to feeling knackered at warp speed! I'm assuming its combination of traveling taking some energy, and an adrenaline crash, but its part of the job with youngsters, it just means I need to remember to canter earlier in the session so we have some energy to play with. No pictures I'm afraid as I was by myself, but I did take a picture of him at home the other day, and I'm pleased with how he is developing, he is a horse that will take some time, but I feel its all going in the right direction.
 

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Asha

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Layla has been doing some baby jumping again, first time after her break she’s so bold , I’m so pleased
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shes cracking, lovely pop on her.

Well done daffy44, it makes life so much easier when you have one thats easy to take out and about. He looks and sounds lovely.

Frank is off to his first comp tomorrow . Just an intro A and a course of small jumps. Hes taken things in his stride so far, so hoping this is just another add on for him.
 

Asha

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Very proud of Frank today , so much for him to look at . Travelled well , warmed up lovely and did a nice first test . He found the flowers very scary but once he realised they weren’t going to eat him he got on with the job. He got 162 points which had him in second place.

The jumping was not quite as successful on paper as he was eliminated, but that’s only because he had a couple of stops . There was an awful lot for him to look at . But he flew over them all and grew in confidence as he went round . So he finished the day very pleased with himself .

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lannerch

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That lovely mare was not so lovely today I foolishly turned her around out on a hack last Sunday because she napping because she was terrified of crossing a canal bridge. She did the canal bridge the next day with company no problem .
But today I rode her on a hack alone and she now thinks if she plants and refuses to go forward we will turn round and go home. Got her going but it was a battle, most of the way round. I was at my wits end, Young horses are great levellers and her halo has definitely slipped !

Well the battle seems to have been won happy to report the halo is back and she’s back to being a gem ?
 
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TheMule

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Another arena hire today for my 4yr old, and I'm very pleased, couldnt be easier to load, travel, tack up etc, he is very surprised when he gets to a new place, but still behaves well, which is very nice. No walking in hand first this time, just got on and he was fine, his stamina is improving at home, but today, away from home he did hit that wall and go from feeling jolly to feeling knackered at warp speed! I'm assuming its combination of traveling taking some energy, and an adrenaline crash, but its part of the job with youngsters, it just means I need to remember to canter earlier in the session so we have some energy to play with. No pictures I'm afraid as I was by myself, but I did take a picture of him at home the other day, and I'm pleased with how he is developing, he is a horse that will take some time, but I feel its all going in the right direction.

He's a really nice stamp of a horse- he'll look super when he's done filling out his frame completely too
 

daffy44

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He's a really nice stamp of a horse- he'll look super when he's done filling out his frame completely too
Thank you TM, thats what I am hoping for, hes just a big, empty frame at the moment, but I'm very pleased with how he is starting to develop, thats what I mean when I say he'll take time, I dont think he'll look great until hes 7 or 8.

Lannerch, well done for the win! Boundary testing is an essential part of riding youngsters, just keep winning, it sounds like you are doing a great job.

Asha, Frank is a star! I always think the first few outings are all about building confidence and giving positive experiences, and it sounds like you did exactly that, I'm sure Frank will come on a lot from today.
 

Palindrome

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IMG_6111.JPG

Looking all grown up, this is the "got treats?" face.
I was hoping to get back on board today for a little hack but my hacking buddy bailed on me, should I go on my own? I might give it a try.
 

Asha

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Thanks Lannerch & daffy44. Agree wholeheartedly, the stops where just baby moments at the beginning of the course . Fortunately Kelsall let him carry on and he sailed over the rest of the course . So a week of chilling out for him now .

lovely photo palindrome . Hope you have a nice hack
 

lannerch

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Thanks Lannerch & daffy44. Agree wholeheartedly, the stops where just baby moments at the beginning of the course . Fortunately Kelsall let him carry on and he sailed over the rest of the course . So a week of chilling out for him now .

lovely photo palindrome . Hope you have a nice hack
Your local to me then asha, I’m not ready for Kelsall yet but it will be a regular visit when I am.
 

lannerch

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View attachment 72713

Looking all grown up, this is the "got treats?" face.
I was hoping to get back on board today for a little hack but my hacking buddy bailed on me, should I go on my own? I might give it a try.
Did you give it a go, i always hack my young ones out ASAP by themselves so they grow up thinking it’s normal and that way I am not tied to rely on other people.
 

Palindrome

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Did you give it a go, i always hack my young ones out ASAP by themselves so they grow up thinking it’s normal and that way I am not tied to rely on other people.

No, I chickened out, she seemed a bit scared of the saddle (she stood still to be tacked up but had a loose poo) so I decided to go for a walk in hand instead. She has been ridden 3-4 times and then had a break so it is still very new for her. Next time :)
 

lannerch

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No, I chickened out, she seemed a bit scared of the saddle (she stood still to be tacked up but had a loose poo) so I decided to go for a walk in hand instead. She has been ridden 3-4 times and then had a break so it is still very new for her. Next time :)
Tomorrow is another day ?
 

ahml100

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Had a lovely time on bank holiday Monday watching my trainer rider Jamie. It is the first time I have seen him ridden in the school. Goes without saying very green, but travelling nicely and slowly getting the idea.

Had a quick lunge first, my trainer doesn’t always do this but sometimes his trot can be quite tight so she finds giving him a quick lunge just helps relaxes.

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Surprisingly, for his size he does find the canter very easy on the lunge. He hasn’t yet been cantered under saddle as my trainer still thinks he needs a little more time to become more established before moving up.

Once on board, the focus was on walk and trot. He was walked over poles on the ground. They were too short for him, but as it was walk we didn’t bother changing. But instead used it as an opportunity for him to work out the brain to hooves network!

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Asha

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Your local to me then asha, I’m not ready for Kelsall yet but it will be a regular visit when I am.

Im just on the outskirts of Nantwich whereabouts are you ?

Its a very impressive site now with all the new facilities, im hoping they do a few clinics as would quite like to go on Pip.

If i'm honest , if i had seen the new facilities before I wouldnt have taken Frank for his first outing. I should have hired the outdoor before we went.
 

lannerch

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Im just on the outskirts of Nantwich whereabouts are you ?

Its a very impressive site now with all the new facilities, im hoping they do a few clinics as would quite like to go on Pip.

If i'm honest , if i had seen the new facilities before I wouldnt have taken Frank for his first outing. I should have hired the outdoor before we went.
Layla is at marbury , I live just outside Whitchurch so very local .
 

RachelFerd

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Isaac, my 4yo, is making progress. His primary talent at the moment is hacking - he loves hacking both in company and alone and has graduated to having little canters where the ground is appropriate.

I've been struggling with contact/bitting slightly - he had the dentist last week who confirmed that there's nothing serious going on - so back to the cycle of trying to find a bit he's happy-ish with.

We haven't done much in the way of jumping, other than regularly popping a jump on the lunge, but we did have a quick play around some mini showjumps that we put out on the field last week because the ground was so good. His second time being ridden in the big field and he did think it was quite fun (bouncy!!) but he settled and was well behaved popping around some tiny stuff. He could definitely get a bit hot-headed, so just trying to keep it all very slow, boring and calm - although the bit was another one to go in the discard pile!!

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TheMule

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He
Isaac, my 4yo, is making progress. His primary talent at the moment is hacking - he loves hacking both in company and alone and has graduated to having little canters where the ground is appropriate.

I've been struggling with contact/bitting slightly - he had the dentist last week who confirmed that there's nothing serious going on - so back to the cycle of trying to find a bit he's happy-ish with.

We haven't done much in the way of jumping, other than regularly popping a jump on the lunge, but we did have a quick play around some mini showjumps that we put out on the field last week because the ground was so good. His second time being ridden in the big field and he did think it was quite fun (bouncy!!) but he settled and was well behaved popping around some tiny stuff. He could definitely get a bit hot-headed, so just trying to keep it all very slow, boring and calm - although the bit was another one to go in the discard pile!!

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He's jumping really well now- super behind!
 
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