How would you describe your horses work level?

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moneypit1

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Fly is just back from having his pastern joint medicated and Delphi is my mare who had 5 years off after having two foals. She came back into work in June. Both of them are ridden 6 times a week, both for an hour hack a day and competed every other weekend on average. (jumping). Each Friday they are schooled on a surface. I would class this as moderate work. Bearing in mind that in two months or so they will be stabled 24/7. At the moment they are brought in at 6am and turned back out after exercise around 6pm. What is your horses routine in winter and how would you classify their workload?
 
Currently my boy is out 24/7. Will soon be in at night tho. He will be turned out at 5,30am and brought in to be ridden in the eve then stabled. I would say he is in light work. Hacked for hour+ once a week, schooled 4 times a week including lesson, lunged once a week. Competed sometimes 3 times a month, sometimes not at all.
 
I am a teacher so over the summer both of mine were ridden 6 times a week.

Now I am back at school and heading into winter, I am in winter routine mode. They are currently out 24/7 but will be in at night when the weather or clocks turn, whichever first.

Zac is my 9 yr old PBA and he is hacked or competed (dressage or jumping or both) Sat and Sun, schooled Tue and Fri nights.

Ori is my 4 year old Anglo, she was backed in March. She is hacked Sat and Sun, schooled on Monday in the school and has an hour's jumping lesson on a Wednesday in the school.

I would class both of mine as in light work xx
 
One of my boys (the one I hunt) is ridden 5-6 times per week. This is either nearly/all hacking usually anything between 1-3 hours each time. I include hill work, and a quite a bit of trot and canter work (+ a bit of jumping if we come across anything suitable!) I would say he is in moderate work.

My other boy is ridden on average around four times per week (about two hacks anything between 1-2 and a half hours each time, and either two schooling sessions or one schooling and one jumping session) I would say he is in light work.

:)
 
My veteran Sov, has gone from being hacked out or schooled or shown, 6 days a week to being off all summer due to my health and is now back in light work three times a week and she will be getting less once we finish show season due to her retiring.

Mony is ridden four times a week at the moment, Star is 6 times a week and both are competing too. They do quite hard work but Mony is a veteran too so will be downing her workload this year at the end of the season too.
 
No different to any other time of the year really....more hard work if anything as the hacking gets swapped for intense lunge work!
 
moneypit1 said:
Fly is just back from having his pastern joint medicated and Delphi is my mare who had 5 years off after having two foals. She came back into work in June. Both of them are ridden 6 times a week, both for an hour hack a day and competed every other weekend on average. (jumping). Each Friday they are schooled on a surface. I would class this as moderate work. Bearing in mind that in two months or so they will be stabled 24/7. At the moment they are brought in at 6am and turned back out after exercise around 6pm. What is your horses routine in winter and how would you classify their workload?
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I went to a nutritionists talk and she said that a lot of us overestimate the level of work that our horses are in. She said this is how they should be classified based on energy requirements.

Maintenence - hacking for up to an hour every day (walk/trot/canter) plus schooling for up to half an hour twice a week.
Light - hacking for up to 2 hours every day plus schooling for up to 45 minutes twice a week, horses competeing up to intro level equivalent BE.
Light/moderate - Hacking for up to 2 hours every day plus intensive schooling for up and hour twice times a week, horses competing up to prenovice level equivalent BE
Moderate - Hacking for up to 2 hours every day plus intensive schooling for up and hour more than 3 times a week, horses competing up to novice/intermediate level equivalent BE, preparation work for endurance <20 miles
Moderate/heavy - Intensive schooling every day for 1 hour or more, horses competing up to advanced level BE, Preparation for endurance >20 but <50 miles
Heavy - Endurance >50 miles prep, racehorses

Now be honest with yourself - how much 'work' does your horse really get?
 
My new chap is ridden by me 3 week days and both sat and sun. We start competitions in 6 weeks so this would be Saturdays mainly. He is schooled 4 days and hacked one day (this varies) - he was unfit when I bought him and he is in moderate work at the mo as not fit enough to work really hard... this should increase over the next few weeks - weather permitting.

Blitz

Oh I forgot, mum rides him out with her mate once a week to... but they just potter round the lanes chatting - hardly energetic.
 
Binky01 said:
No different to any other time of the year really....more hard work if anything as the hacking gets swapped for intense lunge work!
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Can you describe intense lunge work please. I ask because I cannot always exercise my two enough but would have time for lunging. Any ideas to make it interesting too would be useful
 
My boy is stabled year round and out in the field juring the day most days as he cant be left alone as he goes loopy!! Id say he is in moderate work as hes rode 6 days a week consisting of 1hr schooling 2-3 days a week, 1hr jumping 1 day a week, 40 min lunging sess, and 2 hr hack once a week and the odd show at the weekend.
 
Daisy2 said:
Can you describe intense lunge work please. I ask because I cannot always exercise my two enough but would have time for lunging. Any ideas to make it interesting too would be useful
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Sorry I might have made it sound a bit strong lol! I just tend to think of my lunge sessions as proper schooling workouts to work on particular areas each time. About 30 minutes or so in total, half of a ridden schooling session time.
I'll to start with work them obviously 'loose' to stretchand warm up walk/trot/canter. But then usually from there on in, it's in a bungee really working on getting him stretching and promoting him engaging and working correctly, stretching through back etc. Do spirals in to a 5m circle, to really get his inside hind underneathe him and getting him crossing it under himself properly. Then getting him to 'leg yield' out of the spirals also. Both reins, walk trot and canter [though go down to about 10m in canter, 5m in trot]. Collected trot when in the 5m circle, working towards medium trot when back out on a 20m. Then tighten the bungee a bit more [have it a bit more loose to start with] and raise it higher on the roller and really get him up and into the bridle more and powering on. Same again, spirals, direct transitions, flexing either way etc.
With my lad in particular, on his right rein he tends to bring his quarters in a bit and look to the left and reluctant to flex to the right. So for the right rein I work to correct this by doing a bit of 'SJ' inspired lunging by popping the lunge through the middle hole on the roller and then to the bit on the inside. This then stops him being crooked, and he starts working really softly and bending correctly, and then like this also, you can work to doing a lot more bending exercises etc for whatever your horse in particular needs to work on.
Then for the last 5 minutes, once he is working consistantly correctly, everything is taken off and lunged 'freely'...and should be, if I've done it right, he'll go around working the exact same regardless. Unlike the laid back giraffe which entered 30 mins previously :p
Sometimes pop in raised trot poles and vary the distance for them - collected, working, medium, etc. And raised to encourage more lift :)

So nothing 'new' or inventing a third wheel lol....just treating it as a proper schooling session to work on suppleness, etc....rather than a quick 15 min run around lol :) For my lad, lunging is the key to him as he's not naturally bendy or supple inclined and does him the world of good....but he can go nicely when he remembers how lol! Usually in winter end up doing it about 3 or 4 times a week, sometimes with a ride session the same day too after.
 
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Ok well thats something for me to work on. Firstly I lunge in a a rope halter and lunge line and we basically do cirlces, lots of transitions and change of direction and perhaps a small jump just to add a little zest, which he normally stumbles over lol. I am not experienced enough to use the rollers etc as I would not want to do the wrong thing and would not be sure of what to ask or look for. I sound like a right turnip. We do lots of hacking and zero schooling with a little ground work thrown in for good measure. Perhaps I will ask a local instructor to come a give me some lessons in acheiving what you have described, something new to learn and work on over the winter. Thanks
 
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