Breaking in youngsters- any advice on good books to read?

becca1305

becca1305

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I apologise in advance for any spelling mistakes etc as Im using the phone!

Im off to look at an unbacked 4 yr old this wknd & was wondering those of you who have backed before if you had read any books that you found really helpful/ any gems of info that you can offer? :)

I have one horse which I bought just backed - walk, trot and kind of canter and she has become a right cracker :) I had semi-regular lessons to check up on our progress and have dealt with any issues that arised. I also took on an exrace which had been chucked in a field for almost 2yrs and started the basics with him, rebitting, leaning over his back, putting a saddle on to be lunged before sending him to a professional to be backed although I was also involved in this. So anyway point being I do have experience with young/green horses, I know how important experience is & I am confident with taking on a horse which is unbacked having done all but completely unbacked before, and I will have regular sessions with a professional, but I would like to read up on some advice from the pros and hopefully help avoid any silly problems.

So anyone read a book that they really rated? Thanks :)
 
I would recommend "Schooling Young Horses" by Werner Storl. The getting on is the easy part! It's what comes after backing that is key.
 
'Basic Training of the Young Horse' by Ingrid and Reiner Klimke is really good. Covers the actual backing and then concentrates on the first year or so of schooling - which is so important to get right. Richard Maxwell's 'Train Your Young Horse' is also useful. Gives lots of good ideas for getting a youngster used to all the things that they'll encounter as an 'adult'!

ETA: Agree with fatponee about the Pippa Funnell book, forgot to mention it initially. :)
 
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"From birth to backing" by Richard Maxwell has been v useful with my youngster as I bought him unhandled as a 2 year old. Its a bit 'natural horsemanship' which I wasn't keen on before, but it has worked with my young man.
 
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