If You Can't Be Bothered To Wait For Your Youngster To Mature..

legyield

legyield

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before you decide to ride it, should you really have one in the first place?

As some of you may know I have a youngster, Tia, who is still classed as a yearling. She turns 2 in June but is nowhere near mature and I wouldn't DREAM of riding her or anything just yet. We placed a saddle on her back for about 5 seconds to see her reaction, and she's only had a bit in her mouth once. I know I could probably be doing more with her but she's happy enough living out and enjoying her time as a youngster.

When Tia came up the country from Bodin Moor she was stuck to another youngster's side. They both ended up at our yard and they only got split up at the end of the summer last year when I moved Tia. Anyway I've kept in contact with the owner of the other youngster; she's a similar age to me and we spoke a lot with our youngsters being best buddies.
She was never very well informed about horses to be honest and I sometimes wondered whether she was actually ready for a youngster. She was very naive when it came to her youngster... she got away with a lot, her owner didn't know what to do about it and her youngster had turned into a bit of a devil. She didn't know about worming, was unconcerned by the farrier the continuously made her youngster foot sore, couldn't understand why we needed to poo pick the field.. the list goes on.

Now since I moved Tia she has moved her youngster to live on an alpaca farm. She posts photos regularly to Facebook of her and I've been actually quite horrified over the past few weeks (apparently I'm the only one, every comment on the photos have been big cheers for her).
It began with her saying she'd been lunging her youngster. I cringed a bit at that as I know how bad it is for the joints for such a young horse. She then posted a picture of her in a new saddle, which clearly doesn't fit but "it's fine because it was only £20". More damage I thought. The final horror came when she posted a photo of her sat on her 1 year 10 month old cob, who clearly is still very immature, in an ill-fitting saddle wearing no hat.

I just can't get over it! Cobs are slow maturing a lot of the time anyway so to be even sitting on a youngster at this stage.. I'm just flabbergasted. Pick up any decent equestrian book and it will tell you that the last thing you want to be doing is riding your not-quite-two-year-old. It wouldn't surprise me if the next photo was of her schooling her in draw reins.
I know this post must make me sound like an interfering b**ch but it generally isn't in my nature to judge how other people do their horses. What's right for one person isn't necessarily right for another. It's just hit very close to home -- if you can't be bothered to wait, why did you buy a yearling? Isn't it one of the first things you learn when you get a youngster that they need time to mature physically AND mentally before you ask too much of them?
I haven't said anything to her and I don't know if I should. I get the feeling she will just ignore my advice anyway, as she always did. Sorry for the long post - has seriously hit a nerve with me!
 
I recently saw on facebook, a tall lady backing her 6 month old filly, it made me feel sick, also no hat = prat.
 
Agree entirely, youngsters should be left to be youngsters. Handling them well for a short time or lightly backing at the end of the 3rd year & turning away is one thing but I too don't get the rush some people are in. They should buy an older one if they want to be riding & lunging.
 
Maybe she just doesn't know any better?

Could you try saying something like oh I've just read this book or article about youngsters, found it very helpful and informative maybe you'd like to give it a read.... Or buy her a copy of Birth to backing and post it to her!

If she does know what she's doing is wrong then I suggest you just kick her off your Facebook.
If she's not going to listen to advice and stop what she's doing then its only going to upset you seeing the pics when there's nothing you can do.
 
I know the feeling- when I went looking for an unbacked 3 yr old all I kept seeing was adverts saying 'rising 3, lightly backed last year'. I honestly don't know why people continue to do this. It seems the bigger the horse the earlier they think they can get on (although seen photos of shetlands backed as yearlings because they 'looked grown up'). Also gets me when people feel that in order to sell their yearling/2/3yo they need to show it loose jumping about 3ft- jumping that high is surely just as bad for their legs as being ridden?
I backed my boy at 4, lightly jumped him, and won't be doing anything major until he's 5. Sometimes its hard to wait, but if its for the good of the horse then its worth it.
 
Totally agree.. There are lots of people who get young horses & even start jumping them at 3 with no real flat work to build muscles etc then they wonder why they have a lame horse or why they aren't standing up to the tiny 10 metre circles they are cantering round in with the horses head as high in the air as poss
 
I am sure a lot of novice owners cannot see the immaturity of their horses.

I had the local young farmers practising their stock judging last weekend on my yard. I put 4 horses out for them one of which was my yearling (this month) filly 3/4 draught 1/4 cob, who is very strong and mature looking.

The three others were mature riding horses. It was surprising that a good amount of the young people looking at the horses thought the yearling was 3 or 4 years old.
 
Somone on my FB did pretty much the same thing (pony over weight, really badly fitted saddle on a just 3yo, mounting from the ground when already quite big on the pony and at 3yo!) and then complained about the awfulness of jump racing. So I deleted them :)
 
facebook is bad for horses!!!!!! i'm always seeing pictures of people on youngsters, people showing off doing stupid things and one stomach churning vid of an 8 yr old on an 18hh horse which took off with her round the arena with her flopping around on top like a rag doll and all the comments were how wonderful a rider she was, how brave, how funny, how gawjuss (hate that with a passion:mad:) Few people write what they really think as they know it will just get them deleted and 150 of the posters friends giving them abuse:rolleyes: people use fb to fuel their egos, they only have friends who they know will agree with them so that they can justify their idiotic actions:rolleyes:
I've been unfriended by someone and although nothing was said i'm pretty sure it was because i didn't agree with something she was doing horsewise, i tried to be upset but TBH i was just grateful;)
 
I agree, I thought very seriously about getting a baby so I could "start from scratch" but the fact was I wanted to ride NOW and didnt want to fanny about with turning away and worrying about when growth plates would fuse or bum-highness etc.

Therefore I bought a 6 year old who had the brain of a 3 year old! Best of both worlds.

Or worst of both worlds depending on how you look at it! :D
 
I agree with all of you. I have an actual 2, turned 2 in April. I will admit to having devious thoughts this morning. She is in a group with the 2 I ride. I leave them in the sacrifice paddock as it's easy to get them in and out while riding. Then they all go out to the big field.

Anyway, she took it in her head today to escape while I was putting one in. It was bold and deliberate! LOL! She proceeded to jump onto the muck pit so she could launch off and propell herself into the arena. Had a blast kicking tires, bucking, kicking, galloping over ground poles. In general her version of fun! I will admit to utterings of, well if you want a job Cupcake, we can give you one. She also loves dive bombing the ones I'm riding either in the adjacent arena or field. Fortunately mine know under saddle is not playtime. At any rate she is happy being a bold baby. She actually does have manners, but hey, she is a baby.

I also delete people whom just annoy me with stupid horse practices.

Terri
 
I have just turned 2 in Feb and just turned 3 on Sunday Cleveland Bay boys.. They are 14.3 and 15.2 and I'd rather eat my own eyeballs than get on them.. Sad thing is that the 2yo would be more than happy to take anything I asked of him now..

I always buy Clevelands and wouldn't even dream of getting on them til 4.. They might be big but mature late.. Even if they didn't, I never would before 4, that's my preference for my horses.. I sat on my 12yo CB at 4 and started riding him properly at 5.5 and did his sister at 6-7.. Both have been fab..

My welsh A was ride and drive and in appalling condition as a yearling and was actually removed from travellers in the South East by the police..

I firmly believe horses should be treated as individuals but I don't agree with snatching away their babyhood for the sake of impatience in the slightest.. At the least they face extraordinary stress on their developing bodies as we all know, even as fully mature adults, never mind babies..
 
People doing too much with horses whilst they're still growing is a massive bugbear of mine.

My boy turned 5 last month and is currently having a very quiet time work wise precisely because he is having a growth spurt.
 
I agree also. An old friend of mine really disapointed me a few weeks back. We both do natural horsemanship and I saw a picture of her sat on her just 2 year old. She said it was ok as he was bareback and bridleless so no harm caused!

I love the idea of backing my own horse, so much so I bit the bullet a couple of months ago. I got an 8 year old, unbroken broodmare. Best of both worlds! She is doing fab. I'm taking it slowly and treating her as if she is a youngster, but without too much pressure of causing her any damage.

Another good friend of mine has a yearling (this april) She has decided that she may sell him as she wants to ride him. I am very worried she will do something silly as he has had a massive growth spurt recently and you wouldn't think he was only one. I will be keeping a firm eye on them...
 
The division seems to be those who want a horse right now, & those who want the right horse with a good length working life.

Just backing my 4 yr old to be lightly ridden away this year....;)
 
This is a huge bugbear of mine too. There are several people at our yard who insist on riding their babies, one is old enough to know better and the other is only a teenager herself but everyone else just congratulates them for ring their just turned 2 year olds in full tack, bouncing around in sitting trot and even over poles. I have to keep my mouth shut and not interfere or id get far too carried away! My own youngster was long reined at three and a half, had a saddle put on at almost four and was backed bareback at four and a half as I didn't have a saddle that fitted at the time. She was ridden lightly and hacked until she was five and then started schooling properly. Only in the last six months have we picked up canter and now, as a just turned six year old we are starting to jump. She hasn't put a foot out of place or played up out if anything other that excitement once and I thoroughly believe its because shes also had time to mature mentally and hasn't been rushed into work quickly.
 
I think people are just in a rush to progress their horses as we are constantly bombarded with news items in the horsey press of 'ZX FlipFlop 312 wins Grand Prix at 8 years old' or the such like. I wonder if its self-induced pressure (as well as stupidity). My Warmblood was one such 'Wonder Horse' who has had to be retired as it blew his brains so badly that I couldnt get him over the thrashing he had as a youngster, despite going back to basics numerous times. He was at Medium level by 6, went wibble and ended up on the knackers yard. I bought him as a project and he is still very much loved despite haveing to be retired with what I can only descibe as stress.

People also comment on my TB mare and when am I going to get a move on with her - she's just turned 5 and is so butt-high its untrue so I just potter her about until the front end catches up. Having been raced at 2 I think she deserves a break!

Interestingly, the Warmblood and TB move beautifully and are stunning to look at. My IDX on the other hand is no oil painting and has terrible paces, but jumps like a machine (which is handy, given thats his job). I have never had anybody make any comments about him and how I should be progressing him. I think horses need to be left to develop at their own pace, and there are no hard and fast rules. Sadly I think people buy youngsters as a cheaper option and they get pushed too far, too fast and then you end up with the problem horses we have all heard about.
 
Totally agree!

It's a big bug bare of mine too... especially when I see horses that have only just been broken out jumping big classes waaay before they are ready!!

I'm selling a 4 year old at the moment... he's been broken and does the basics.. walk, trot, canter and is now about ready to start doing a bit more. However, I have had countless people enquiring about him but asking why I've not had him out competing or at training sessions yet.. and what's wrong with him?? HE'S 4 not 6!!!!!!!!!
 
I witnessed this at Clitheroe auction last month, one sellers descriptions stating that his yearlings / 2 yrs olds were backed and broken sometimes jumped, this was shocking enough but the poor things (approx. 8 of them) were so thin you could see the bones clearly sticking out.
Some people complained, 1 lady was very vocal with her oppinions at the ring side :O) but the deeler sood there with no shame.
Babies need to be babies and allowed to grow and play, I am all for youngsters experiancing things but think of their joints and their sanity.
How many times have people here come across 6 yr olds that are burnt out or refuse to school because they have already had 4yrs of doing nothing but run round in circlse with their heads on their chests.

Look at me ranting..... I never rant.

I have a 3 yr old coloured she is just in the process of being broken, she has stearing and brakes and can walk in a straight line following my big lad out on a hack 1/2 hr at the most once a week, with some leading over poles, mats, round cones etc in the field, this is plenty for her and she will be turned away over winter and come back again next spring.
 
Agree 100%. There are loads of people on this forum who are guilty of this too. It's just ignorance. 3 weeks ago my riding horse went lame (Vet suspected DDFT). I briefly flirted with backing my just turned 3 year old.... and then started looking for a riding horse to buy. She's cow hocked and the damage I would have done would have been irreprable (sp). Babies need to be babies and the lessons they learn in the fields from their peers are key to long term psychological welfare and happiness.
 
Mind you, I might just be jealous that I couldn't do anything with mine its entire 3yo year as it was constantly broken :mad:
 
I have a just turned 3 (yesterday :) ) TB x DWB standing at 16.1hh. Ive had her since she was 8 months old and she has spent her time stuffing her face and growing....BUT I had to lunge her when she started to suffer with Locking stifle at not quite 2 yrs old. This was on vets instruction. Now I would use the entire school rather than keep her on a circle and it was for no longr than 10 mins maybe twice a week....although one 'helpful' vet told my friends mum I should be lunging her everyday for 10 mins.....Um NO came to mind.

Im planning on backing my girl this summer just teaching the basics and hopefully to go out on short hacks, then she will have the winter off and come back when she is 4 to start again :)

I think it depends greatly on the horse itself taking in to consideration its mental and physical maturity as well as age.
 
I think 'too much of a rush' is about right.
In our area, folk are buying imported WB about 5 yr old, which the Dutch or Germans don't want any more. After about 6 months of living in a box being dragged out to do a bit of 'dressage', a suspensory ligament operation follows, finally and irrevocablely knackered by about 6. Time to look for another.
The disposable horse.
 
I have a youngster, he's 2 next month.

A few months back due to personal circumstances i had to put both of my horses up for sale.
You wouldn't believe the amount of people asking me if he'd been lunged, long reined ect!! The reason being as he's big, well that's what i assumed anyway! One lady rang me and asked if he'd been backed, i replied, erm no he's rising 2!! she then asked, well can i ask why you haven't bothered backing him yet as your going to have trouble backing him when he's fully grown!! couldn't believe it! (he will mature to 17.2 ish)
Any way i found a way of keeping them, thank god so removed them from the market.
 
In my last yard a lady bought a very expensive 2yo QH backed and fit to ride (so she said) ....we were all horrified...it was 14.2 she weighed approx 12-13stone..... and then she put an ebay bought western saddle on it (weighing about 2 stone)...so a 2yo was immediately carrying 14+ stone and was being hacked...at speed and lunged hard.

She said he was fit to canter 30 minutes on the lunge...I was mortified, I found it hard to speak...and well didn't as I didn't wish to have anything to do with her.

2 years later he is 4 and lame, having nerve blocks and back trouble....what a surprise....poor horse...some people should not own horses!
 
I did have to start a 2yo I bought on the advice of a team of vets. She was also a stifle locker and was grossly overweight when I bought her. Obviously we didn't go to town on her. We did a lot of in hand walking and I lightly rode her. Pretty much starving her and the winter meant she could then be off til spring. What I did though was stay out of the arena as much as possible and did trails and hills. She's 11 and still jumping in the States.

I can't look at my little Cupcake and think of riding her at this stage. No way! She doesn't have any issues anyway and I want to keep it that way!

Terri
 
Completely agree. One of mine has just turned two and both looks and acts like a baby - his back-half is still way higher in the air than his withers and his little back doesn't look like it could take someone sat on it yet. He basically still looks so very immature - I wouldn't dream of sitting on him or doing anything to him until he's at least three, and most probably as a late three year old as he is so immature. I don't like lunging at all until they are far older (5+) and only on occasions as I don't think its good for their legs. I actually bought a youngster as i'm not so fussed with the riding side of things so I'm happy to watch him learn how to be a good boy by standing nicely, tying up, picking his feet up and maintaining his good manners.
 
Theres someone on myy facebook who thinks shes the best horse woman ever. She backed her tiny youngster on its 3rd birthday. The poor thing did not look ready at all, she's doing far too much already.
 
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