re-breaking to drive ??? suggestions plz :)

[JAGER BOMB :)]

my boy is good at riding he is very responsive and i dont have to use my leg he does it all through voice (although he cant grasp canter) he was used as a trotter for a year or so when he was a bit younger (well before i bought him) and then was broken to ride. he paces , and like i said finds it very hard to canter but i am working on it and the work we have done so far seems to be working (he did half a circuit yesterday before he started pacing again) so i am happy he will learn.

i would love to start driving him again to... get him in a little cart so even if i dont feel like riding i can harness him up and drive him.

i have started long-lining him for longer periods and taking him into different / and bigger fields ect to get him used to it again and so far he is going well...

what is the next stage??

i have drove before so not novice at it, but never started a horse back again to drive so im a bit inexperienced on this bit, so would just like to know what would my next step be??

xxx

 

[Silent Knight]

You need to long rein him with his harness on, then with harness and an old tyre fastened to the traces (quick release knot and a safe distance from hocks) and have someone with you to detatch the tyre should he not be happy. The tension of the tyre and the noise will give you an indication of his reaction to dragging a noisy cart without being hitched up.

 

[JAGER BOMB :)]

You need to long rein him with his harness on, then with harness and an old tyre fastened to the traces (quick release knot and a safe distance from hocks) and have someone with you to detatch the tyre should he not be happy. The tension of the tyre and the noise will give you an indication of his reaction to dragging a noisy cart without being hitched up.

thanks

will start putting his harness on then when i next do it. will he get confussed between his ridden work and driving work? he is pretty intellegent but i dont want to confusse him xx

 

[soltydog]

You need to get him used to being lunged in all driving tack especially at canter. As if he had a spook in the cart and took off at canter they tend to start bucking with the breaching strap if newly broken. You dont want this to happen with cart fixed behind, its not good. Ecpecially with 2 dogs chasing you!!

 

[tazzle]

another thing to consider is that pacing /trotting is very different to "normal" driving. He has been used to "go" and especially as he is still pacing rather than cantering you might find that he will be more liable to got back into racing mode when in the vehicle ( even if she showed no sign of it long lining). Personally I would like to see with his longlining that he is totally relaxed and responsive going forward, round in circles, backing up in walk and trot before putting him even with the tyre. You could try canter too as he might find that easier than with a ride on board. This may take some time depends long too he raced for....... My friend has an ex pacer and he is still very unbalnaced in canter (when she manages to get him to do it) and she has had him for many years now.


The physical harness is different, the headset is different and the vehicles are different so it will almost like him having to learn a totally new skill , which might not be a bad thing as it might lessen the association of driving just being fast stuff / pacing.

will he get confussed between his ridden work and driving work? he is pretty intellegent but i dont want to confusse him xx

most of the driven horses / pones I know are ride and drive and a lot of the schooling work for DT comps is done ridden ...... so normally not a problem. However since he is already having to relearn ridden stuff and then maybe undo some of his previous driving behaviours I might consider doing just one or the other with him at least for a few weeks.

Not so much for confusion but just that introducing the driving work might be a bit of a learning curve for him and he migh get mentally tired. Of course I could be wrong and he could sail it .... just considering what might be going on for him


The other thing I would consider is a refreasher for you if you have not drioven for a while or not introduced a horse to harness. There are a lot of safety considerations and hints / tips that might not occur to you but an observer seeing oyu "in the flesh" might spot. I got some craking tips when we were doing it that dont always get mentioned in books, its things people have passed on down . Same when it comes to chosing a vehicle.



eg first important tip ....... make sure before attaching harness that horse is completely ok with lines, straps etc bouncing off body, thrown around over and under body and around / through legs ... even having them pulled around the legs especially the back ones. Ensure horses default behaviour when this happens is to stop / stand still !

reason : when (not if ) a strap breaks, a trace comes loose, you drop a rein or the horse gets a leg over the traces ... horse will NOT panic and everyone far more likely to escape injury

have fun