How a horse changes in 5 years...

frannieuk

frannieuk

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This is a picture of a mare I bought a little over 4 years ago - top pic was last week, and the bottom is the day after she arrived in October 2012 from Holland as a weak 3 1/2 YO. I backed her in the following January and
she was lightly worked throughout her 4yo year, before picking up a field injury and being turned away for the best part of 2 years. I brought her back into work in Feb 16 and she's been in moderate work since, mostly showjumping.

I must admit that this pic has really surprised me - she hasn't gained much in height (more's the pity!) but she's certainly filled out! There is still plenty more muscle to develop, but the more 'structural' changes to her barrel and shoulders are clearly visible.

So what pics do you have of your youngsters-to-adulthood? Similar changes or, like one of my other mares, more subtle?
 
She's lovely :) yes quite a difference to the shoulder isn't there? She looks like such a baby in the early pic.

Mine wasn't a youngster but she was completely let down aged 9 when I got her.
She was ENORMOUS but so, so weak.

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had a job to find a similar stance photo but I think this shows how much stronger she is 2 years later - and a lot straighter, she had got quite pigeon toed while she was off work but is almost completely straight now.

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Billy as a baby, rising 5, but born July so a baby 5! This was morning of his first event in march, 2nd in the intro :D

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And as a 9 year old, admittly a bit more rotund than I'd like :p
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The difference in your girlie's neck!! That crest was huge, wasn't it! She looks great now, and much, much fitter. Very interesting to hear how her action has straightened for being stronger too.
 
And Billy's definitely changed, hasn't he! He's always been one I've followed on HHO and it's nice to see them grow up :) From your pic, he looks like he's changed more behind than my mare?
 
frannieuk said:
The difference in your girlie's neck!! That crest was huge, wasn't it! She looks great now, and much, much fitter. Very interesting to hear how her action has straightened for being stronger too.
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I've never seen such a fat horse, that was actually still healthy. I couldn't get a saddle near her for ages, and then when I did it just wobbled around! She's got a big neck now, but it's ALL muscle. I was so pleased when her action started to straighten up, she was really quite toe-in at the beginning as she had no tone to her front end at all and I was a bit worried whether it would cause a problem.

Billy is lovely, he's really grown into himself hasn't he.
 
frannieuk said:
And Billy's definitely changed, hasn't he! He's always been one I've followed on HHO and it's nice to see them grow up :) From your pic, he looks like he's changed more behind than my mare?
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He's gained a proper bum, with good thigh, not the weedy one he had as a baby :p weird thing is that he never grew any taller, just filled out into himself. Yours has filled out more behind saddle to rump I think, looks great! :D
I've had Billy 7 years this year :eek:
 
I think yours is similar to mine:) I've bought her when she was 6 months old.
She was the ugliest yearling I've ever seen and I have pulled my hair out at what I've got:D

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Even 3 y.o. she still reminded roe deer more than a horse.

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I was comforting myself (and forced all my friends to comfort me as well:D) that she's probably just a "late horse" and it turned out she was:)

5 y.o.

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6 y.o.

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She's turning seven this year and I'm looking forward the future years, we still have work to do:)
 
Svapu said:
I think yours is similar to mine:)

Even 3 y.o. she still reminded roe deer more than a horse.

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She's turning seven this year and I'm looking forward the future years, we still have work to do:)
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She's lovely and very similar to mine - how's yours bred? Mine is KWPN Numero Uno and Lucky Boy lines.
 
frannieuk said:
Fascinating! Yours should jump a bit too :p
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She does, but there's no rider to jump with her properly:)
So I ask (more like bugg:)) my friend from time to time (few times a year) to take her to some fences and last year we tried her at a bit of cross country:)

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This is my four year old over the space of just a few months. Watch how the front end comes up to meet the back. I've tried to get photos from a similar angle to make it easier to spot the changes.

Pre-purchase photo. I spotted her ad in August but I suppose it may have been taken up to a month or two earlier.

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9th September

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23rd September

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28th September (and a camera angle that makes her look very portly).

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22nd October

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Unfortunately she's rugged on every decent picture since, but she's growing and changing all of the time, gaining two inches between August and her last measurement in December.
 
Below is Gracie when I first fell in love with her, and knew their was something special about her. A gangly, rising 3yo. Unhandled but so willing and sweet.

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Gracie last year
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And this is her last year 8 months apart

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Love all of these! It's great to see how they all change, and in different ways - lots of the sport horse types seem to get a great deal more bone and depth as they mature, but the stockier models seem to almost refine themselves in shape rather than generate much more bone (generalising HUGELY here!).
JJS's post shows just how much they change as a 4yo too - definitely endorses why sympathetic training is needed for a youngster!
These are fab, thank you for sharing :)
Oh, and yes Rara - EIGHT years! She's changed quite a bit too and has turned in to a pure white, 17hh chunky warmblood.
 
Not quite youngster up but a career change!

As a 3yo racing in America. Why couldn't he stay this colour?!?

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As a 7yo about 30seconds from his career, and almost life ending injury. He literally tore his tendon into two pieces. It is a miracle that he is alive let alone 100% sound. Yes he has a bit of a banana leg but it's no way near as bad as you would expect. Most judges don't even notice it.

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A year out of racing

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Gray at 12yo 5 years out of racing.

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