very wobbly youngster

McNally

McNally

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As some may know (because i was in such a panic about it at the time ;-))
Last summer i was given a 3 yr old, having never been even slightly interested in breaking or bringing on a baby i was forced to give it a try!
Its been a slow process due to my own illness and he had a lameness problem that dragged on a bit (nothing serious) then there was snow etc and we were stable bound for ages....
Anyway he is now hacking out daily in company I have worked on him seeing everything and getting as much hacking experience as possible. He is proving to be a very safe little horse- Is for my daughter who is 11.

The problems i am currently finding are...
1, his complete inability to walk in a straight line! Is this normal babyness? I know he needs proper schooling but we dont have a school and the fields are so wet (altho' drying nicely now)
2, When i take a contact he sticks his head up and tries to evade. He is very very busy with his mouth and this worries my daughter a bit. Its worse in company when he gets a bit excited and wants to be up front all the time- I find it hard to get him to settle behind.
3, The ground around us has been so awful we haven't cantered yet- hows best to introduce cantering under saddle to a youngster? I assume its usually done in the school much earlier on!

Any advice and tips on the above would be great!
 
I think it all comes down to that he just needs more time/training. Sometimes it will take awhile for them to find their legs, but that is where schooling helps. ;)
My guess is for the cantering, get him cantering on the lunge line, and then introduce the rider on the lunge line so you can use your voice while they apply the aides. This is what a friend and I did with her horse. He knew pretty much what he was doing but just needed the added confidence from a rider, and then we were able to also work on adjusting his speed too. He was very heavy and fast on the forehand, and the lunge line/rider combination helped him slow down.
 
Is he teething? Between three and four was when ours have had the most changes in their mouths.

Re the straightness, he's probably still finding his feet so to speak with a rider on board and working on his own balance. There are some great exercises you can do in hand to help build up the right muscles to help them carry their rider and to get them understanding many of the aids and lateral movements before these are asked for under saddle.

He's still on very young so I'd be tempted to just ride him a little bit and then turn him away again to let him grow and mature mentally and physically.
 
Hi
I think the straightness is just due to being a baby and lack of schooling. My youngster finds it hard to walk in a straight line out hacking, although hes better in a school.
As for being busy in his mouth, id get a dentist to check him. They need checking quite frequently at this age. Maybe he needs a change in the type of bit hes in. Not harsher, but just a change.
With cantering. It did help mine to learn to canter to voice command on the lunge. Then when he was ridden he was given the voice aid as well as leg aid, and he knew what was expected. If you cant lunge, can he go for a hack with a safe friend and learn to canter behind them ?
Kx
 
Aww he's still only a baby. my youngsters will be 3 in May and he's so busy looking around at whats going on that he constantly trips me up and is all over the place with his legs...

Unfortunatly it is a long slow process (if you want to get it right) i wouldn't ask to much of him. Lots and lots of walking/hacking.

His balance will come with time. Its not something you can rush..

Also depends on what breed he is... some of the larger breeds don't stop growing until around 5...!!
 
Ok thanks, I thought he was a bit behind- I keep speaking to people who's horses were jumping by 4 and thought i must be doing it wrong!
His teeth are not long checked. He had his wolf teeth removed at Christmas- will he need doing again?
I am in absolutely no hurry with him, just wanted to be sure we are on track!
He was turned away for a bit after backing- not sure how long just went on the advice of my y/o.
I find it quite difficult as my y/o and daughter are supposed to be "very highly experienced" in everything it seems and keeps giving advice some of which i know to be wrong but lack the confidence i guess to say "no i'm doing it this way" as its my first time.
I'm perfectly happy to just keep pootling around and he seems to be enjoying it all aswell.
He will be 4 in May
 
As for breed- His passport says welsh X but his old owners said Connie X which to me looks more likely. He is currently 14.3hh- Will he still be growing do you think?
 
Sounds fairly normal to me.

I think they are all quite wobbly at first, I'd keep taking it slowly given his age. Maybe by 4 and a little bit he will be jumping like some of his peers, once they get it, it all seems to come really quickly.

His teeth should be ok till they're checked 6 months after the last time they were done but if you're concerned it would probably be worth a check. How about his back? Has that and his saddle been checked lately? My current baby is outgrowing saddles every 3-4 months at present!

Evading is to be expected, he has a metal bar in his mouth, who wouldn't!! Apply some leg as you use your hands and he should push together a bit easier, if not, (a lot of people disagree with training aids) I like a soft training aid like a bungee to just help him remember that he isn't meant to put his head up too high. The bungee allows him to stretch down for a rest and being stretchy allows him to move quite naturally but keeps his head in an approximation of where you would like it. Should be used quite loosly to begin and only for 5-10 mins until he has some muscle. They are really inexpensive.

If you really have nowhere enclosed to canter I would try it an a nice straight level stretch of grass out, gently aim for a few strides so that he doesn't get too carried away. I did my little mare initially with no school and she was fine. Enclosed space is better as you can get him balanced on the lunge without you on his back first. (hence in a straight line if you only have 'out' to do it in.)

Is there a reason why he can't just hack in front for a bit? It indicates to me that he is confident on his surroundings and a very brave little man to want to be in front. Maybe if you have space he could hack next to someone for a little bit so he doesn't feel left behind. When he has a little more experience he could go behind.

At end of day he's still only 3, taking it slowly is spot on, nothing to worry about from your post, stand your ground with the critics and do it your way. You can take advice on board where it makes sense but don't worry about your boy being backward, my little girl wasn't physically mature enough to start til she was 4!!
 
Agree with Faracat RE: growing.

For me, at 3, I would continue pootling during the summer, I probably wouldnt even be doing that much trot tbh. Then I would turn away for the winter and bring back properly at 4.

With my girl, who will be 2 in June, this year we're doing some showing and some in hand school stuff (walking over poles, trotting long sides etc), and I'm getting her used to being leaned over - whilst supporting my weight on useful fences!

Next summer (so she'll be 2-3) we'll be doing some long reining, and in July/August/September I may begin to sit on her depending on how shes looking. But thats all it will be, a sit, and maybe a potter round the fields with someone holding her.

Summer after (so she'll be 3-4) she'll be ridden in a pootley fashion most of the summer, walk, bit of trot, perhaps an introduction to canter in long straight lines but maybe not.

It'll only be the summer after (when she'll be 4-5) that I will be riding her properly, lunging occasionally, starting to do longer hacks etc. xxx
 
Perfect thank you- makes me feel much better!
I do let him go in front, very often. He is more than happy to lead the way even places we have never been before.In fact he really marches out!
I have also taken him just down the road and back alone with no real problem.We even passed a tractor with a hedge cutter admittedly sideways and with a lot of encouragement but my 10yr old wouldnt have passed it! Nothing much phases him!
His saddle is being checked next week actually- he has changed from baby shape to proper pony recently and i can see the saddle is not fitting as well as i would like it to now.

I am quite excited by this pony I really think he's going to be fabulous. My daughter has had 3 lovely ponies but all very old and unable to do much so this is really the opportunity she deserves
 
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