Ex racehorse

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keekee

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I lost my beautiful mare back in Jan to an awful freak accident it was so hard to lose a close friend but with time the pain eased but my love for owning a horse was still so strong I don't have £10000,s but we are comfortable and I can afford to look after a horse to a high standard so I messaged a few friends to ask if anyone knew of a horse looking for a good home pretty flexible on size breed age ect one friend came back to me with a 16,2 7yo of the flat track tb 😬 I asked for pics and videos he looked nice and if things worked out could be a real ladies horse the people were keen to find him a good home but in no rush to regime him so I asked if he could b turned away for a couple weeks hoping he would mellow all I needed to do was arrange transport and away we go 😀 Well he arrived last thurs and today I got on him and took him for our first short hack he was good really but very jigjoggy and fidgity lots of head shaking and threatened to buck a couple times I just tried to relax and talk to him but now I'm wondering if I made a huge mistake iv young children at home and will he ever mellow please if anyone has been here help me!!!
 
Has he had any retraining or is he just out of racing, if the latter you probably need to take a few steps back and treat him as a real baby in some ways, he will still be very fit if he was in training a couple of weeks out will have allowed him to start to relax but will not have made any difference to his fitness or energy levels.

I would go back to basics, establish some boundaries, he will probably have very good manners on the ground but now needs to learn how to relax, walk quietly and get the galloping mentality out of his mind, it may take a while but the fact you could get on, many are tricky unless you get legged up, go out for a hack and get back safely means there is a nice horse there that just needs to understand his life is going to be very different from now on, I have one here who is now really switched off most of the time, it takes a while for them to realise but most will given half a chance.
 
has he just finished racing? Is he still racing fit?

Back in the old days, racehorses used to be turned away for a year to unwind and become horses again, and allow any niggling injuries to settle.

I would stick him in the field for a bit - let him get less fit and spend some time on the ground, getting to know him.
 
If he is 2 weeks off the track the he will stillness pretty much race fit. 2 or 3pieces of work away from going back on the track.

The first few days after a couple of weeks off will always be the worst. Give a few days to settle under saddle again of you don't turn him away for 4+ weeks then you will probably find he is fine.
 
Wow, I think you've got a really lovely horse but he needs time to settle into a completely different way of life. If you have the time and patience I bet he'll repay you lots of times over. I'd also get help with someone used to retraining racehorses, it doesn't sound as if you've paid a lot for him and a bit of money invested in his future will pay huge dividends. People seem to think all TBs are completely nuts, they are not, some of them are the loveliest horses ever but your horse has to learn about a different world. Good luck with him!
 
He has been turned away since March out 24/7 I can tell in the short time iv been with him that he is very genuin and sweet he just needs to chill and unwind I think I might try some long reining lots of grooming and cuddles he dose deserve a chance plus I'm falling for him xx
 
If you're experienced enough to buy unseen, an off the track tb, and no vetting - I'm sure you'll do just fine.
 
I got myself a 4 year old ex racehorse who was 2 weeks off the track. Lots of people where telling me to keep him in work keep riding and start retraining straight away. Wish I hadn't listened to them as 2 years later he is only just starting to mellow in general (not so much under saddle but he isn't dangerous). I know this is partly his age but I think ex racehorse really need a decent amount of time to try and forget as much as possible from their racing days to put them in a really good place where there brain is fresh to absorb retraining. My advice would agree with everyone else and turn him away for at least the rest of summer!

Good luck :) x
 
If he has been out since March then he is probably just happy to be back in work. I wouldn't worry, most racers are like this after their holidays so we usually chuck the boys up.on them in the school for a few days to get their backs down and then on day 3 they are usually back to their normal selves as a Racehorse. Just kick on. I wouldn't worry about doing too much lunging and long lining as that just gets the beggars half fit before you get back on them!

I find most object to girthing up for the first time in a while so I bring mine back into work bareback but I know my horses, I wouldn't even consider or recommend doing this with an unknown horse.

Good luck, I am.sure you have a good egg there who is just happy to be doing something again.
 
I bought 2 ex racehorses at Ascot. Neither had been racing but both were racing fit when I bought them. I think it took me a year to properly retrain and turn them around as I am not a pro. Both turned out to be really nice and fun horses and both ended up being 2 of the easiest horses I have owned to ride and care for. Mine were big lads (NH horses) and I just went back to basics. Basic feed, lots of turnout, hacking in company and advice (such as the legging up). I found some things out for myself, such as 1 horse was used to walking down the middle of the road because that's where he was put when going to the gallops. Really basic tack in terms of bitting but just treated them like green 4 year olds with little under their belts. Worked for me. If I got back on a horse that hadn't been ridden for 3 months, I would expect some lively behaviour as well so would probably have started with long reining then light lunging before getting on.
 
I used to rice a few ex racers for people and loved them :D they did have issues but they were lovely, easy going horses. They just seemed to have the right attitude. But these had been out of racing for a few years so quite different.
I think you may be expecting too much. This horse has had only a few months off and you're now thinking you can just get on.. Personally I would do a lot of work before getting on his back. Groundwork, lunging etc. I think you basically need to treat him like an unbroken baby and take it back to basics. The more time you take now the better he will turn out (in my opinion!).
 
I don't say this lightly and I'm certainly not saying it to be mean...it doesn't matter how experienced a rider you are, if you've little experience with straight off the track racers (which this horse is with very little turnaway time and no retraining done), you please, please need to get some help in.

It's a time that can totally shape the future of this horse and be the difference between a lovely riding horse and one that ends up at the sales after going through 10 homes, all trying to fix it.

These horses aren't special in any way, they don't need wrapping up in cotton wool, but they are totally institutionalised and a few months in a field won't help that. They yearn for and thrive on routine, most will need consideration/treatment for gastric ulcers. They can physically cope with pretty much anything but mentally they are extremely vulnerable.

People often liken ottb's to young and green horses. I think they are world's apart. A young horse learns the new language we teach them and what we expect from them. An ottb learns the language a race trainer teaches, they become indoctrinated in it so there's nothing else they know, then we come along and have to ask them to wipe the slate clean and start again! It's a big big ask for horses that can get very fit, very quickly and scare the wits out of unsuspecting new owners who don't understand the needs of the horse.

You, especially as you have a family to consider, need to be safe. Don't think that the horse will settle after a few rides. It might, many do. However, many get fitter and more problematic if their energy isn't directed properly.

My top tips would be...

Research and find someone local who is experienced in retraining racehorses. It doesn't mean you're not a great rider...it just means you're prepared to do the best for the horse. I've ridden since I was 3...I backed and broke Welshies full to the brim with attitude as a kid, but I had to get help with my first ex racer as if I hadn't swallowed my pride, I'd have ruined a perfectly good horse.

Cut all hard feed if you're giving any. The only exception would be for a low starch, low sugar, preferably 100% alfalfa chaff with nothing added and feed half a scoop 10 minutes before riding or turnout (buffers stomach acid) and just feed that, grass and hay. You don't need any extra energy going in and if you need to help it with weight gain, add micronised linseed but don't rush it.

Keep a routine with the horse so that it can find security in knowing what's going on.

Don't expect it to know anything about normal riding...it has to learn a whole new language, so start with the simple a, b, c's to build it's confidence.

I wish you the best of luck and I'm very sorry you lost your beloved horse. Just please, please err on the side of caution and understand what an incredibly important time this is for this horse and your safety and get some help. Anyone having to ask advice about retraining ex racers should in my opinion spend more time shadowing someone experienced before attempting it alone.
 
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GG you would be surprised at how easily they can adapt. Especially ones that have been turfed out in a field 24/7 with no stabling routine.

It depends what yard the horse has come from as to how much it knows but contrary to popular belief we don't ride with our stirrups up round our ears the whole time, we don't spend our whole lives off their backs. Quite the opposite. Long stirrups means chill time, pull them up a few holes.means lob away easy oasy canter, jack them up.means fast work. Same with a contact. The more of a hold you take the faster they expect to go. Most racehorses will have walked, trotted and cantered round a school in a group, either when breaking or as part of their daily routine.

They don't just leave the box, gallop then go back in and do nothing in-between. They can also cope perfectly well without a set routine once they learn that the routine is no routine at all. I hate horses that always do the same things at the same times every day as they just expect it and it annoys me.
 
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EKW said:
GG you would be surprised at how easily they can adapt. Especially ones that have been turfed out in a field 24/7 with no stabling routine.

It depends what yard the horse has come from as to how much it knows but contrary to popular belief we don't ride with our stirrups up round our ears the whole time, we don't spend our whole lives off their backs. Quite the opposite. Long stirrups means chill time, pull them up a few holes.means lob away easy oasy canter, jack them up.means fast work. Same with a contact. The more of a hold you take the faster they expect to go. Most racehorses will have walked, trotted and cantered round a school in a group, either when breaking or as part of their daily routine.

They don't just leave the box, gallop then go back in and do nothing in-between. They can also cope perfectly well without a set routine once they learn that the routine is no routine at all. I hate horses that always do the same things at the same times every day as they just expect it and it annoys me.
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I'm well aware of that having had and retrained a fair few myself. Like I said, they can be really easy, but they can be challenging as well and as much as an experienced person can find it really straightforward to take on an ottb, it can become a nightmare for horse and rider if it goes wrong.

As you say, the more of a hold you take, the faster they expect to go usually...not everyone knows that...but learning it from someone else can be really helpful.

I'm like you, I hate set routines, I think it adds to stress for horses rather than take it away but it's largely irrelevant what we would do...my post is purely aimed at giving the OP food for thought on the basis of safety, that's it.
 
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