Breaking/Backing businesses.

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countrybumpkin85

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How much experience would you like someone to have if they were running a busines breaking, backing and problem horse solving?
What age would you feel confident them being from and how much riding experience?
I only ask as I saw an advert recently that I was shocked at how much experience and the persons age yet was backing horses for people (paid). I have over 20 years riding experience/stable management and assistened in a few backings.......I would feel like I was cheeting someone out of thier money if I started a backing business.
I personally know some fantastic young riders who do a brilliant job breaking horses, but they're under the supervision of their parent who has 40-50 years of experience.
 
This is the best way I can explain this. Starting horses is a skill set like any other riding type. Reed Kessler was on the US Olympic team at 18. She had the ability. Most 18 yo's don't.

I broke 10 warmbloods in KY as a second job one summer. The owners took a chance on a 23 yo. I did what I'd said I'd do and they were very surprised. Gave me a bonus to boot they were so happy with the job. I also increased the value on these horses.

There are probably younger people out there that have learned from family or who spent more time on breaking yards than say general riding that could be pretty good. So the best way to know is by asking for contact with previous clients and go out to see the yard and meet the person. You can tell a lot about how they view horses by the way things are kept. Things don't have to be big and fancy. Just look around. If they aren't open to you coming when you want, within reason, then I would be suspicious. But those things have nothing to do with age.

Good and bad in all skills with horses. Don't let age be a deciding factor. Let the horses do the talking.

Terri
 
I know a young lass who has enough experience and confidence to break and school troubled horses. I would be willing to pay her if i needed a horse starting that i wasn't sure about doing myself and she is only just 18 and working on a showjumping/dealers yard, so rides alot of horses daily.
I was helping a lady starting youngsters when i was 13, so no age is nothing to do with it. I have always enjoyed starting them off and have done my own 3 by myself.
 
I learned how to start horses when I wanted to learn to gallop racehorses. We had 120 youngsters to start every year. I learned from one of the best horseman. I was fortunate. Also not often you learn on 1 million dollar yearlings. We all had partners and we were well supervised to make sure the horses were being done properly. I spent 3 years on the farm learning from the ground up. So yeah I had a great learning opportunity and many horses to learn from.

Terri
 
I have always been involved with starting horses, as we always had plenty of youngstock about. I worked with horses professionally and broke a few youngsters while doing that from about the age of twenty.

I will say though, that there are good and bad in all age groups, but I have found that with age comes experience and I think also patience and more sympathetic handling. There are no hard and fast rules though, so I'd want to see someone handling horses in a manner that sat well with me above all.
 
As the above have said, its all about experience, someone of 35 may not of had as much experience as say a 23y/o who's been working on a breaker yards since age 18 for example. I'm 20 next month, I've been very fortunate to be given horses to break all through my childhood, often 'problem' ones aka. little s***s! Since age 14 working on top yards gaining as much experience as possible in all areas, and extremely lucky to have had a wealth of experience on hand to learn from the best, I was given the babies to break in, including owners who sent their horses to me to break upon reccomendation from others. I've now just branched out on my own with horses being sent due to good results on the last ones produced for the owner.
I think go see for yourself, see the set up, see how things are done and judge for yourself, but don't dis-regard someone without seeing them personally.
 
I have broken and backed many many horses and get everyone's problem horses to school up.
I started off assisting people and being the jockey for smaller ponies but i now do it on my own, i have backed all kinds of horses and schooled all sorts from naughty ponies to hot headed ex racers for people. I broke my own cob in who is now off being a show cob (sold him on) and also schooled up my own rather hot ex racehorse who was sadly pts.
I'm 17, i don't advertise myself and only ride for people who have found me through word of mouth.
 
If people are attracted to someone unqualified or young its because they are cheap.
To be honest you get what you pay for and if you can't afford to send to a professional yard don't get a youngster.
I have seen dome cowboys spring up, the video footage on my other thread is a good example at people playing at the idea of being professional.
Has anyone considered insurance, if you charge for a service you need to be insured.
Nothing wrong with being young per se, everyone starts somewhere, but teenagers breaking horses concern me when I have been around horses longer than than they have had hot dinners.
 
Broke first pony at age 13 (with help from mother), was a great learning curve. Although not in the course of business, pony was sold on eventually after I hit 5'11! At just turned 23, I now have 2 ex-racers that I retrained myself (got 1st one at age 16) and have assisted other people with backing/breaking/schooling, I just much prefer a challenge to a schoolmaster!
 
If they have proven skills and experience as well as the facilities and insurance cover then I see no issues

If you are trying to justify the actions of your friend who produces trick ponies then no matter how good they really are I wouldn't send either of my two youngsters to them!
 
Why are useless people young? Some people grow up in breaking yards. Some have gone to work at starting yards. If your experience has been starting and schooling greenies age shouldn't be a factor. What do your hot dinners have to do with anything? Again it's a skill set you know like riding upper level horses is a skill set. Of course we get in lots of reschoolers too from people who think it's not a skill set and they screw it up.

Terri
 
The point I was trying to make I admit not that well sorry, is that if young people back horses fine, when I was younger I did the same. I was light and so did all the little ponies.
The difference was I was not charging money for this service. When money changes hands you need to have insurance and be certain when your dealing with the public that you are fully covered.
 
I agree with Terri. I have a friend who is a regular on here, who has produced many fabulous horses & ponies for both herself and others. She has shown to county level, competes in dressage and eventing successfully and is the same age as myself. And as far as I'm aware she doesn't teach other peoples' ponies 'tricks'. I have never really done much in the way of competing but have always had green horses from a young age, coupled with a supportive, experienced mum, natural ability and a good understanding goes further than age imho.
 
The young man that backed my filly was 19 and i would recomend him to anyone i had a 'problem' horse nightmare tempremental so and so who needed the right kind of handling to get anything out of her. this young man was calm and quiet has a seat solid as a rock he never moves flaps or does anything no matter what my cabbage pot threw at him and he got a really nice tune out of this filly on his first session. Quiet voice kind hands and a good seat are what i look for along with a calm and confident manner and all though only 19 and over 10years yonger than myself (and ive been working with horses for 18years) i would have this young lad train my horses over myself anyday as my riding is not super he even gives me lessons onces hes backed them for me.
 
Well I Never said:
Hot_Toddy7, that's the type of person I would look for.

Not the type of people who do this-
http://www.flickr.com/photos/equine_elements/8671300987/
Click to expand...

I don't think that has anything to do with age, from what I had gathered from the other thread, her mother condones this behaviour and will be much older than the person in that photo.

I agree with Terri and don't think age is a factor. I think people have to be very realistic with their experience and knowledge when it comes to horses and business, the problems often arise when people have inflated opinions of their own capabilities. I am very happy to get on quirky and young horses for schooling, however I would never contemplate backing and breaking a horse as my experience starts and ends with watching other people who are much more skilled.
 
As I am small and light I have always been the one riding problem ponies, green ponies, and breaking in ponies. I've never found it difficult, it's something that just comes naturally to me, I know when a horse is ready to move on and when one needs to spend more time on something. I don't think I'm experienced, another thousand horses and I'll maybe consider myself experienced enough to start charging. I'm learning all the time and the way I backed horses last year is not the way I would back them this year. I am yet to school a horse to grand prix or take a horse eventing at any level, what I am good at is producing happy confident horses that will hack out alone and in company, are near bombproof in traffic, safe and sane at shows and fun rides, basically I can produce a good allrounder. I'm only 23 and have had to work all this out on my own for the most part, even when doing it for other people it's always been here's the horse, get on with it. I don't think age should come into it at all.
 
Ill be sending my youngster to a producer to be broken... And the producers kids will be doing most of the breaking.... Aged from 10 up to 17 year olds oh and theres a girl whos about 23 and they've been everywhere.... Hoys rihs Olympia, you name it they've done it!
 
Run To Earth I don't think that has anything to do with age, from what I had gathered from the other thread, her mother condones this behaviour and will be much older than the person in that photo.

Common sense would be a priority and who is supervising, or not in some cases. Watching how they ride and handle their own either puts me off or would be worthy of a phone call.
 
I'm 27 now started riding anything and everything I could from a young age as came from non horsey family started riding godmothers ponies who threw everyone off. I learnt to sit quiet be
patient and when to act when to not. When to correct and when to reward.
Helped back a lot of ponies and went
on to back bigger horses from age of
13. I do now break in horses or start
them whichever u prefer and people do
pay me. I am insured but I have been
doing this a few years now. I charge
because no matter how much ground
work u do u can never be 100% on how
an animal will react u can only do ur
vest to ensure its prepared as fully as
can be. All people I have broken horse. For have returned to me. I don't consider age to be any relevence I had more experience at 18 than many have at 40 this is not a competition there aremany oolder people who break horses just as well but to say young people shouldnt break horses isn't right. Inexperienced people shouldn't. I agree with equil. Ireland it's all about your life skills. I Learn something different from every horse I break and that's how it should be they are all different and as long as the person is understanding and has experience and knowlege to read a horse if someone likes how they treat and teach their horses why should they not be paid.its up to person paying at end of the day. People do make mistakes taking on more than they can handle but if they seek help from someone more knowledgable and pay them for it that isn't a bad thing. So no age is irrelevant experience is the key and no one with anything to hide breaking or backing wise would mind spending time with someone to explain and letting them see how they work
 
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