Is there a 'best' time to back/break in....

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GinGin2

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My baby will be 3 in June 2008. I am in no rush to back him as hes for life so time etc is not an issue. I am thinking along the lines of continuing with his ground work and not back him until early 2009 just before he's 4.

Any advice/opinions on this. Is there a good time of year to do it, a bad time of year. Is 4 just right, too late... etc

Thanks in advance for the advice...
 
I think it depends very much on the individual horse. If your horse is a breed / type that is slow to mature, I think it is better to break them at 4, rather than rush into things too early. It's good that you are doing lots of groundwork with him, so he should maintain respect for you and you can build up a great bond and trust between you.

In any case, I wouldn't want to be breaking a youngerster in rain storms and high winds!
 
my boy is also 3 in june and ill be breaking him in April - maybe before as he is a big strong colt !!! i will then turn him away for the summer and bring him back in October !!

it really depends how your horse is and when you think they will be ready xx

be careful of breaking colts in early spring though when the mares come into season 1!
 
spring before their 4 th birthday......
some are rising 4 others maybe 3 1/2
over the winter leading up to that, they are rollered, long-lined, have full tack on...
 
When they're four (you need to make sure growth plates in knees have closed) they take care of them until they're fully mature at between 5.5 and 8 years

I like doing it during spring and summer cos I like working in warm-ish weather!
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i think high summer, hot days when they're less likely to be naughty, quite seriously. backing youngsters on sharp, windy days is not funny at all... those are the days when established horses can think it's fun to have a bit of a jump around with you.
my 2 fillies will be 3 in July 08, and i'm planning on backing the stronger one before then, the bigger, weaker one around then i think, maybe in May/June if the weather's really nice.
i do my very early backing in the stable though, as that's how i was taught and i've found it safer and easier... so far... but as soon as i get on in the arena, i don't want a cold wind up a youngster's tail, that's for sure!
it depends how big and strong the youngster is and is going to be, and how much the backer weighs, too. one of my fillies is built like a brick privy, leg at each corner, strong short back. i could get on her now and i doubt she'd notice, and i'm over 10 stone. the other is taller, much leggier and weaker and it would be unfair to put my weight on her now. if i was 7 stone, i might though.
there is a school of thought that it's better to back when they're slightly weak than to wait until they're a full 4 and very big and strong... but i think just as many buck and play up because they're weak and can't handle the weight, as because they're big and strong enough mentally and physically to do something about it! hope that makes sense!
 
My boy is 3/4 tb x 1/4 shire. Unless he grows rapidly in the next 6 months I definitely don't think he'll be physically right at 3. He's very leggy and lean and I think the shire part of him needs to catch up. I think my feeling to see how he is in Spring 2009 before his 4th bday in June is a good plan then...

I take him out on the roads and he's fine with traffic. He's ok at long-reining although I don't do it very often at the moment. He accepted the bit first time without any drama, and I have put a saddle on his back to see how he was...I don't think he even noticed. He is fine with a surcingle/roller.
 
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he he im so glad i only weigh 7 stone !!!

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sorry meant to quote someone from above who said if she weighed 7 stone she would be able to break her horse in !!! what im trying to say is i guess im lucky in some way as i can do my boy slightly early (as he is a colt) and not worry about putting to much pressure on his back !!
 
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My boy is 3/4 tb x 1/4 shire. Unless he grows rapidly in the next 6 months I definitely don't think he'll be physically right at 3. He's very leggy and lean and I think the shire part of him needs to catch up. I think my feeling to see how he is in Spring 2009 before his 4th bday in June is a good plan then...

I take him out on the roads and he's fine with traffic. He's ok at long-reining although I don't do it very often at the moment. He accepted the bit first time without any drama, and I have put a saddle on his back to see how he was...I don't think he even noticed. He is fine with a surcingle/roller.

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Any chance of a picture of your boy? I'm interested because my girl is half Shire, half TB...she's built like a tank...but at the same time is very immature for her age...
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Thanks GinGin
He's a nice type...much more to the TB than mine...(she's a hairy heavy beast). He also looks quite young...like mine...so I'm only going to break mine in the spring when she's four.
Wish I could return the favour, but I don't know how to do pictures...
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btw, i should have clarified, i was talking about light backing work only, sitting up there for at most 5-10 mins, almost all at walk (if i'm given the choice!) at that young an age (3 ish), literally just making sure the young horse is happy to have me sitting on his back and amble around nicely, do a little bit of start/stop/steer.
i don't start any longer ridden work, schooling or whatever until the year when they are 4... these are future eventers, tb x id x wb types, to make 16hh+.
 
I think very late 3 / early 4 is the best time to back IMO. Although I think its good to do other stuff before then like groundwork (ie. basics like leading over tarpolin, going to in-hand shows etc.). Depends on your facilities when you want to back, but I like doing it in the summer because I only have a paddock to work in so practically its easier! And also they're calmer in nice weather (ie. no wind to get up their bums or coldness to make them sharp).
 
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I think very late 3 / early 4 is the best time to back IMO. Although I think its good to do other stuff before then like groundwork (ie. basics like leading over tarpolin, going to in-hand shows etc.). Depends on your facilities when you want to back, but I like doing it in the summer because I only have a paddock to work in so practically its easier! And also they're calmer in nice weather (ie. no wind to get up their bums or coldness to make them sharp).

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we've agreed TWICE this week, MM.....
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do you want me to tell you how to or has someone already tried.. would love to see pics of yours!

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They're all on OH's computer...and he's in bed with manflu...at least he's not making the house untidy
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If you don't mind, if he survives, I'll get the photos and ask you to help me with them later?
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IMHO good ground work is 95% of backing and breaking in a horse - you can bomb proof them, put saddle blankets etc on their backs, lead them out in traffic etc and it all helps with their education.
As for the actual backing I think it depends on the horse. When I got my first youngster we had hundreds of people giving us advice and it ended up with both of us being unhappy. With my second youngster I paid much more attention to her temperament, growth etc and ended up backing her when she was three - I would literally just get on her for two mins then get off again once or twice a month until she was four when we started 'work'. I've had several youngsters now and one of them didn't end up in proper work until he was nearly seven because he was such a baby nothing apart from time made him mature. The earliest I backed a horse was 2, but it was a large colt with attitude and everyone felt it would be safer to do it while he was still smallish.
I was really lucky with my first and second youngsters that my vet and back person were really happy to spend time with me teaching me all about backs so I could make better judgements on their growth.
 
I don't think there is an "age" which suits all horses; it always comes down to when they are mentally and physically ready for it. I always back during the winter and will back mine from anywhere between 2 and 4 years old.
 
I bought my youngster just backed 2 weeks prior at 3.5yo. However we both seemed to struggle with his work as he was very mentally immature. As luck?!? would have it I became preganat and decided to turn him away for the summer. He is now being proffessionally schooled and looked after as I'm about to give birth in about 2 weeks!! The change in him both pysically and menatlly over the last 7 months is amazing. He's gone from Mr Stress Head to Mr Chilled so in some ways it was a blessing in disguise.

This is him when I went to buy him 1 year ago (sorry about the quality taken from video):
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This was him last week. 1 Week into his schooling after not being ridden since April!

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He looks great!!!

Phoenix has yet to show any signs of stress about ANYTHING so fingers crossed he stays that way for backing.
 
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