Getting Fit!!!

[steph21]

does anyone have any good tips on how to get your horse fit quickly!
Im doing a hunter trial on saturday and shes not that fit, im giong to be hunting this season and want to get her ready for the five hours that im planing on being out!

help!!!!

 

[Oaksflight]

No short cuts to getting a horse fit quickly. Just exercise at least once a day, twice if possible. Lots of hill work, and perhaps long canters if you've got nearby gallops or fields suitable?

 

[Maesfen]

There are no quick fixes for this, it's not a plug in and go situation at all, they don't run on batteries!

Forgive me for being frank but that is one of the most irresponsible questions that's been asked on here for a long time. If you knew you were going to be hunting this season then you should have prepared better and had the horse in steady work far earlier than this otherwise you are just being cruel to your horse to expect it to cope.

Long, slow steady work is necessary to build up muscles and strengthen legs and if you don't put the slow work in then it is very likely your horse won't stay as sound as it should have done; you might even do irreperable damage to it. Please take it slowly and build up gradually if you want a sound fit horse at the end of the season that looks and feels as good as it should do at the start of the season. From start to finish of getting your horse fit for hunting, it should take a minimum of 10 weeks unless you can exercise twice a day in which case it might be shortened by a couple of weeks, no more.

I don't mean to sound harsh but it is your horse's welfare we are on about; if you haven't the time to get him fit enough then don't take him until he is. I'm sure a lot of people would tell you the same (but they will probably be nicer about it, sorry!)

 

[H's mum]

..is this a wind up?

... you're never going to get an unfit horse fit intime for saturday - it's unwise to take him to a hunter trial if he's not up to it
Kate x

 

[katiekate]

Don't mean to be mean, but you shouldn't really even be asking that question. Trying to take short cuts in fittening your horse can lead to injury and then it'll take you even longer to get out and about. Pushing a horse too quickly will laso lead to him resenting you - he'll be tired, achey and crabby - just as you would be if someone asked you to run a marathon without training properly first!

You might miss a couple of months' worth of events, but in the long term, your horse will be happier and healthier. What's more important?

 

[Noodlejaffa]

I spend the first three months of the year getting my horses fit for eventing. It's a long process that requires hard work, dedication and time.

I would NEVER run any horse at a hunter trial if it was unfit and I wouldn't even consider hunting.

The welfare of my horses comes first - everything else just has to wait.

 

[Scoopy]

Surely this is a big wind up

.

Please someone tell me this is a troll ?

 

[Oaksflight]

I presumed she meant her horse was quite fit, but not fit enough for hunting!

Obviously not!!

 

[Tempi]

please tell me shes having us on........surely noone can think you can get a horse fit in two days............

 

[LEC]

Must be a wind up!
It is the equivelent of asking you to run a 10km road race - do you think you would be prepared in 2 days? Daft question.

 

[_jetset_]

He he... this post just made me laugh so much!

 

[KJJ]

*shakes head*

Do your horse a favour and withdraw your entry and do some proper work with her to strengthen, muscles/tendons etc before hammering round an XC/HT course and doing long term damage.

Ok...

*breaths*

When you say your horse is quite unfit... WHAT do you do with it now? i.e how many times a week do you ride? A what point does your horse become tired -after 1hr of medium paced work e.g walking/trotting and steady canters?

Give some more background to explain current fitness and work regime...

 

[severnmiles]

Its such a shame when people think this way.

The committee I am on run two hunter trials and one unaff horse trials and out of the horses who go around the big course I can honesly say I can count the fit ones on one hand, and those are the one who compete BE.

The amount that come across the finish line on their knees sweating buckets and panting like a dog is worrying.

Seriously, I'd withdraw your horse, do your 6 weeks road work (which you should just get in unless your opening meet is as early as ours), start off hunting for a couple of hours and then build it up when his/her fitness improves. Then think about hunter trials next March/April time.

 

[pottamus]

I think everyone has already answered the question really! But to give you some idea AbbyBabby12...I started my boy off on 15 mile endurance rides this year, which consist of mainly trot work with some canters but nothing much...I went through 12 weeks of fittening in order to get him ready starting at walk and building up so that the majority of our rides were in trot. I was out at 5am in the morning in order to cover the distances required to build him up to the 15 miles planned.
Even after doing these sorts of rides every week throughout the summer I would say he is not fit enough for a HT, if only because we do hardly any canter work. So I know he would not cope with extended canters that a HT demands...never mind the jumping part!
You need to take things slowly and perhaps tell us the level your horse is currently at...in order to gain better/more constructive advice

 

[Twinkle Twinkle]

l have been working all summer to improve my ponies fitness and stamina and l still think he has a couple of weeks to go yet before l would take him hunting.