Those of you who hunt (re. fittness)

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spotty_pony

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Just wondering what those of you who hunt do to keep your horse's who hunt fit enough? Do you do canter work? Also, is it a good idea to canter out on hacks even if the ground is wet to get them used to it?

Any advice much appreciated!
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Once mine are up to hunting fitness they actually do pretty little else! They hunt twice a week, and get hacked out once a week (fast hack of at least an hour, with a good bit of road work in steady trot, and at least 2 good canters up hill on field or track), and if I can drag myself to it we'll go indoor show jumping one night too.

Cantering in wet ground... how wet is wet? is the horse prone to tendon problems? is it sticky clay or just wet field? IMO it depends so much on where you are and the horse I couldn't give you a straight answer... Mine both canter where they're told, but they're used to it, we have sloshy mud not sticky mud and neither have ever had a tendon problem.
 
Yes they should be kept fit if you are going to hunt - IMO it doesn't matter whether you hunt twice a week or once a month, the horse should be fit enough to look after himself and you and enjoy the day.

I do canter on hacks, and I canter over rough wet ground but I am sensible about this and the safety of my horse comes first. It is a good idea to do regular canter work and to get your horse used to different types of footing but no matter what you do you will always go over ground whilst out hunting that you would have reservations about on a hack!
 
Thank you both of you!

jenhunt - Yes the ground I am thinking of is just wet with water lying on top, not sticky clay mud. My horse has never had a tendon problem and is easy to stop so if the ground gets worse I can pull him up and stop. I just wanted to make sure it was acceptable to canter in wet fields... I cantered in one today and thought should I be doing this, that's why I'm just wondering what everyone on here thinks.

sfoers - Yes I agree, my horse's safety comes first too, and some of the ground we go across out hunting makes me cringe and I would never canter over it when I was just on a hack.
 
if you're cantering in fields that aren't yours.... please keep to the edge! there's no need to upset farmers!

otherwise, the only other thing i would add is to wipe pig oil over your horse's legs to help prevent mud fever!

I hope you have fun!
 
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