Spurs on a youngster and XC queries...

[Solo1]

I'm taking my 4 y.o XC schooling on Sunday and although said mare is very bold and responsive she can pretend to be a little dead to leg in the middle of a field. Is it a crime to pop some roller ball spurs on her? I'll have a helper on the ground to whip them off if anything goes pear shaped...

Also - what's best for introducing youngsters to ditches? She's popping over trapaulin between two poles, do I approach in powerful trot with leg on? Or walk and pop?

Anything I should be looking to do on a first XC schooling session? She's already been in water but not over actual XC jumps, but is not spooky over SJ's or anything. Should I link several fences together or concentrate on singular ones?

Thank you - she's an absolute darling and I'm petrified I'm going to ruin her!

 

[ecrozier]

Walk and pop IMO. Mine has always been stupidly bold about ditches, steps etc, but was advised to start really slow and make sure he knows what he is doing rather than blindly leaping over that sort of thing as whilst that might be fine for a while, eventually that would come unstuck! Then once walking, looking and popping a ditch, then trot etc and then maybe looking for a bigger ditch!
Re spurs, my inclination would be to go without initially and maybe get helper to take them in case? But I'm not overly experienced with young horses so others may correct me!

 

[GeeUp&Go]

Personally id trot over the ditch - i wouldnt ask a baby to walk over a jump. the forward momentum also helps if they have a second thought. My mum took a 5 yo (only backed at 4 as he was a complete weed) in a pairs XC for his first ever show and go at xC. He just followed and got clear (and 2nd out of 44. We were shocked!). He just going in a rhythm and mum let him go and enjoy himself. We never compete at xc (we just go for a good rolling canter and clear)

She wore spurs i think(he is active but needs a bit of driving forwards) as he shouldnt stop if he had someone to follow

If your horse is babyish at xc id start without spurs - so you can give a good kick if needed without hurting them. Also prevents you jabbing them if they do a leap

 

[kirstyhen]

Personally I prefer trot for ditches too, unless you have access to a really small one. I think walk can make them balloon it and get a fright.

 

[kirstyhen]

Just to add, I'd go for a steady trot, with a supporting leg, shoulders back and fingers in a neck strap!

 

[ecrozier]

I guess it depends what the course is like. The first few places I went, the smallest ditches were so tiny and shallow that actually you could walk through them let alone over.... And for roo, trotting/cantering at them encouraged leaps! Whereas coming in walk a few times, he would do more sensibly and actually look at what he was doing. Same with steps, if I canter at them he was liable to leap up the lot in one go (very baby xc course) so had to keep that steady and under control so he actually learned the concept of a step.

 

[kirstyhen]

You see nothing makes Mally balloon, I could have flat out galloped at her first ditch and she would still have popped it sweetly

But when I'm doing new things with youngsters, I usually go for a steady trot, that way they are slow enough that they can work things out, but have enough momentum to keep going.

 

[ecrozier]

Oh roo likes to leap. I have a hilarious picture somewhere of his first go at a solid fence! Incidentally completely agree, steady trot for jumps, would only be ditches/steps down that I would personally want to find such a small insignificant example of that I could confidently walk over them - that might be because I am a wuss though!!

 

[dafthoss]

I like a steady trot thats in front of the leg for first ditches and steps. Let them have a look, hold poop strap and keep your leg on to keep them straight. Mine had a bit of a no I cant at first so had a person on the ground lead him over as he wasnt having any of it from another horse and has never had a problem with them since, possibly helped that his first ditch was the nastiest one in our area so any others are nice now .

 

[PorkChop]

I always been taught to walk through ditches, so that they actually put their feet into them, obviously you need to have access to suitable ditches!

I actually have a couple of very crude, shallow ditches which we had done at home, and we would routinely walk through them at the end of a hack. Also I would ask them to walk through them lengthways and make them stand in them until they were bored.

But once they are completely relaxed about this stage then I would be coming in at a trot.