Conditioning A Young Horse - Advice

[JB Eventer]

Hi,

I recently bought a 15hh, 5 year old, Connemara x Welsh mare. The horse was broken to ride for 45 days last year as a four year old and that is the only work she has ever done. She was left in the field for a year since being broken.

I have bought a very spongy / plump little horse. I was riding her about four times a week for the last month. Mostly trying to hack with a bit of schooling and lunging. When the massage therapist came earlier in the week she said that the horse is very very sore from the work. She also pulled a lymphatic vessel in her hind leg last week so I am going to let her rest for the next month while I am travelling and then start again when I get back. She is also very weak on her left side, clearly a right handed horse. I hope to event her in the future.

I have had a five year old horse before but when I got him he had been ridden off and on since he was three years old and was conditioned. I did not think that I was riding my little mare too much but I guess that I need to remember that she has never been in riding condition before and getting to five years old it might take time to get her with some baseline muscles. A bit like me heading into the gym after a long break.

Does anyone have any advice or can recommend articles on how to bring a horse into fitness who basically has no fitness or muscle at all? Advice is appreciated as I am not in a great rush with her and want to develop a good baseline to build on.

Thanks,
Jill

 

[be positive]

What you were doing should have been fine, lots of steady walking out hacking, gradually increasing the time and introducing some short trots, a little lunging or long reining and some basic schooling working to get her building up her strength, using her core muscles, it will take some time but if she is going correctly will improve almost daily.
Plenty of time out in the field moving naturally should also help, do not diet her too strictly as she will need some food to give her the energy to work and develop.
I would suspect that she was tight before you started working her and rather than you causing it, unless you really did do too much, the soreness would have happened whatever you had done.
I like to give youngsters the odd very short, 3 or 4 day break every now and then to have time out but would usually expect them to do something most days to really make a difference to fitness levels.
To help with the weak side pole work would be useful, raised poles once she is ready will get the muscles stronger.