How do the Irish start their horses?

[Pink Gorilla]

I know there’s not a one size fits all and every horseman/woman will have slightly different methods. But what’s the general step by step plan? Is long lining done, or not? Lunging or not? The vet said they don’t trot up their horses when he was doing the trot up stage for my new boy’s pre-purchase vetting. Do they back and ride them away on hacks, the hunt field, or in an arena first etc etc?? I’ve heard they tend to take them hunting before schooling? Just trying to understand what training he may have done before coming to me. He’s very well mannered and level headed, that’s for sure!

 

[Goldenstar]

Quickly that’s my experience .
Get the saddle on get the boy on send it to the hounds .

 

[AdorableAlice]

Breed it, leave on the bog for 3 years, catch it, tack it up and hunt it. Sell to an English buyer at 4 years old for a lot of money.

 

[paddi22]

I know there’s not a one size fits all and every horseman/woman will have slightly different methods. But what’s the general step by step plan? Is long lining done, or not? Lunging or not? The vet said they don’t trot up their horses when he was doing the trot up stage for my new boy’s pre-purchase vetting. Do they back and ride them away on hacks, the hunt field, or in an arena first etc etc?? I’ve heard they tend to take them hunting before schooling? Just trying to understand what training he may have done before coming to me. He’s very well mannered and level headed, that’s for sure!

it's honestly like saying 'how do the English start their horses'. there is a huge different between breeders and their disciplines. any of the mid to higher end dealers near here I know long line and lunge. that is mad to say they don't trot horses up, I haven't heard that one before. the more rough and ready horse sellers near me would tend to hack for a while and then school xc and hunt. but they don't run the legs off them hunting, the would focus them on 'this is a ditch hunt', 'this is a drain hunt' and school them that way. but I could pick ten dealers horse producers near me and they all do it different ways. as a rule around here though ifs they sell them for hunting or very young then they wouldn't see much arena work, maybe just starting them jumping. but if you buy a young horse you kind of feel yourself how much schooling/arena work they have had. my neighbours sell amazing huntsman horses to England who are stunning and would jump the moon, but I doubt they'd manage a 20 metre circle in an arena, purely down to schooling time.

 

[Pink Gorilla]

Breed it, leave on the bog for 3 years, catch it, tack it up and hunt it. Sell to an English buyer at 4 years old for a lot of money.

Haha yes this sounds likely ?

 

[spacefaer]

We've bought quite a few young Irish horses and they've all been well produced with good mouths, forward going, good hacks. They haven't spent a lot of time in the school but I don't want or need young horses that have been circled to un- soundness in an arena.

Any that have a hunting have seen hounds and been out for a couple of hours a few days times - hunting over there is not like it is over here with long days and lots of jumping.

They've been long reined round the lanes, taken out in company and alone round the farm and popped over logs etc. A much better education than the nappy arena sick youngsters I've been offered over here.

 

[MissMay]

We break alot and we start with lunging and long lining for as long as they need to figure the basic commands out and get some strength
throw a rider up on the lunge
then we ride in fields or hacking for the summer little bit of roads and around farms to see machinery
get cubbing
few half hunts under their belt tonget them going forward, learn their feet, into water over ditches and how to have manners in company
lots of little breaks and dont do much in bad weather have to save the legs

and only that winter so about 8 months after breaking do they go into an artificial surface in an arena and start popping fences. its given them time to figure their feet, build strength and gain world experience before asking them to work in a small space

most people i know would have the same routine so by the time we are ready to sell horse is exposed to alot and pretty quiet soft in mouth and minimal hard work on legs but still has hunted, road work, schools, jumps etc
we sell through word of mouth quick and easy so works great for us

 

[oldie48]

We've had three youngsters from Ireland all bought over by a third party to sell on. They all understood the basics, had manners on the ground, met traffic, etc knew where their feet were and were dead easy to school on but they had all had some work here before being sold. TBH they were all lovely young unspoilt horses with super temperaments and enough talent to be really useful. Not one of them had ever been given a polo though and one was a bit wormy. They had all been hunted (or so I was told).