Do you give your horse a day off? And why?

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Grumpymoo

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As title really. Do you bother with giving your horse a day off and what are your reasons for doing it or not doing it?

Thanks
 
yes my horse has days off, he will get at least one off after doing something like a sponsored ride, and then if we're just doing normal things like hacking and schooling, he'll get two days off a week, I like giving him a break and he's had a previous injury to his front feet so he needs regular breaks :) I also find its good for their mental state :)
 
Al's crew has a day off each week, generally. Mostly because Al is working too many jobs to ride all of them every day! But equally, it gives them a little downtime and a day to just mooch about the field and relax a bit more.
 
I generally ride mine 3 days then day off, but like them to have been ridden 5 times in previous 7 days.

Longest am happy to give them off in a row is 2 days, ride in every weather except snow or hard frost as road to slippy :(
 
Yes mine gets two days a week off. If leading up to a competition then one day off. We like a break from each other :) plus I have loads of other demands on my time. I am almost as obsessive about my monster garden as I am about the horses :o
 
I'm at sixth form so unfortunately only ride at weekends. Only a month left though until my year off from studying so he'll then be in full work, only getting 1 day off a week.
 
Mine always get a day off, when they're competing, it's always a small hack the day after to make sure they aren't stiff, and then a day off the next day, same with very long hacks. Days off give muscles time to heal from being 'torn' when worked, and therefore, the muscle mass increases, it's the same for humans too :)
 
Oz is Schooled Monday, Wednesday, Friday and hacked Saturday and Sunday. If I have a lesson on the weekend I like to have a light hack the day after. I like to give a couple of days off a week so he can absorb what's been asked of him and it means he has some time to stretch himself and ease out any tightness. It's also a good way to build good quality muscle.
 
Depends on weather, time contraints, whether he needs a day off, etc.

Some weeks yes, other weeks no. His last run (day off being yesterday) was about 18 days worked to no ill effects. Having said that, he's not worked hard everyday. Some days it is just a mooch round the block, which keeps him ticking over but also doubles as downtime.

He does get a day off if we've done anything particularly strenuous.
 
Yes, I try and give my lovely horse at least 2 free days a week (though try not to do them in a row) She's an older horse, a bit arthritic, quite overweight but we're working on it.


She's in high demand as a boyfriend/mum/gran/non-horseyfriend horse who can safely take a total novice out on a hack (in company of more experienced riders of course) some days I might ride her in the morning and then someone else take her in the evening (generally for a slow plod), she doesn't mind that as long as she gets her treat/dinner afterwards! :) I tend to give her the day after off in those cases.

She can sometimes get a bit out of breath and is arthritic, I am told by her old owner who used her as a riding school horse that regular work is best for her because the more weight she loses the fitter she gets the less these problems bother her, so I try my best to provide that for her, no way I could keep her in enough work on my own to do it though!
 
Mine youngster is exercised 4 times a week, 3 lightly ridden and 1 lunge.

I don't want to do to much to soon with her and we are taking things slow. I don't want to put to much pressure on her at the moment.

Once she has grown up a bit she will still get at least 1 day off and I like to give them a little holiday every year as well.
 
From March - October the ponies always get Mondays off, and usually if they play mid week they'll have a day off, or just go for a walk, the next day.

Then they are off from October to the end of February on their long holiday, which I really think they deserve. Of course, it does mean they are all loony when they come back into work in the spring though...!
 
Mine either gets 1 day off a week or a short, easy hack instead. He needs more exercise than I can give him for weight management during the summer :rolleyes: Over the winter however he is ridden 2/3 times a week gently just to keep him ticking over.
 
Depends on how busy I am and what we have been doing.

Sometimes he will get a day off, sometimes he will not have a day off for a couple of weeks. But he has an easy day once a week - all day in the field, and then bareback despooking or groundwork.

He is at his happiest when he is lots of work and I don't think playing football with me in the school can be called work really!:rolleyes:
 
Mine get 2 days off a week because on those days I work 13 hours a day so dont have time to ride - they would get at least 1 day off otherwise because everyone deserves a day off
 
Stuff the horses, I have a day off.

The horses live the life of Riley, full maid service and interesting, varied, unstressful work. Pah ! They're on a permanent activity holiday.
 
My horse gets one or two days off a week - he is better in consistent work i.e. nicer to ride and handle, and we are working on building up muscle and fitness so he has a varied work schedule, generally 2x lunges a week, 2x schooling sessions and 2x hacks a week, never the same thing two days running. His days off are dictated by my work schedule, he generally has a Wednesday off at the moment and another day in the week sometimes. I do think he needs a day off each week though to process what he's done, esp. in terms of schooling.
 
Mine has between 1 & 4 days off a week! Depends on work,weather etc etc when he was young I had to work him 6-7 days a week just to keep him vaguely sensible! I'm loving it now he's older,sensible & due to various reasons not competing any more as now if I don't feel like riding I don't but equally I can get on after he's been off for days & hack out which years ago even 2 days off would've meant 2 weeks of lunging & working in school before I dared to hack out! He had loves being turned out & just mooching about the field. I hacked yest after he'd been off for 3 days & he was really bouncy & on his toes but in a nice way.
 
In winter, our ponies are worked gently one or 2 days a week (at weekends) just to keep them ticking over. In the summer, they are ridden 3 or at most 4 days a week. Our horse is ridden 3-5 days a week all year round. The time off is largely due to lack of time on our part. Our ponies live out, in hilly fields, so can mooch around keeping themselves fit. Our horse is stabled at night in winter and daughter likes her to be fit enough for low level competing so she needs to work more often than the ponies.
 
no, i dont tend to give taz a day off he only does about 40 minutes to an hour of work per day and then spends the other 23 eating and not doing much and he is not asked to work overlh hard, the only time he gets a day off is if i have had a long day of lectures and i cant be bothered riding but otherwise no
 
Mine are normaly worked 4 times a week each, twice in week then at weekend, as with a young child I don't always have the time to do all in one day so I just alternate days one works one day the other does the next & at weekends I have a sharer for one of mine so both get ridden Sat & Sun. :)
 
Mine is worked 6 days a week all year round bar a holiday. Just cos I think its nice for him. I feel very guilty if he has more than 1 day of for some reason
 
I was already planning a day off for Sid yesterday and when i got there he was so sound sleep he didnt hear me arrive or mess around outside his stable. When he did wake up he was all bleary!

We have done a lot of things over the last couple of weeks and although everyday is a different activity so using different muscles / brain power he got stressed at a show on Sunday waiting in the trailer so needed R&R yesterday.
 
Nightmare before Christmas said:
Yeah. He is young and rest is important for bone remodeling ect
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Agreed. And I think of them as athletes, so after a hard lesson, or a competition they may be muscle sore, so am happy to give them time off. Also, thinking of their soundness long term I like to give rests from schooling as much as possible, actually. I think these regular breaks are important for the longevity of competition horses, and if they are being worked correctly they don't need to be worked constantly to keep them going.

I try and work in chunks of days, as I tend to find their education progresses better that way, so a few days of work (culminating in a lesson or comp if its the season) then a few days rest, so maybe 3 - 5 days work, then 2 - 3 days off depending on what they have on. I also try and give them regular breaks of 2 - 6 weeks as I think it is important to let them relax and 'be horses' from time to time.

And then all of this needs to fit around that the weather is doing, and my other commitments.
 
Yes,the ponies have Tuesdays off.No particular reason,just think they need a day off just to rest and mooch about.Tuesdays is when my eldest has Brownies,so if we did ride,we'd have to rush to get finished in time.In the holidays it doesn't matter so much and their day off can get moved around.

Also have days off after hunting,shows ect,otherwise they are ridden 6 days a week.
 
I tend to only ride at weekends and once or twice during the week due to my time constraints, my pony is young and lives out so it gives him plenty or time to grow and mature and he always comes back well after any time off.
 
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