What are your rising 5 year olds doing?

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littlen

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Question in title really!

Struggling to get mine out anywhere and I'm worrying that I'm not doing enough with her.

A year hacking is good for her isn't it?
 
We are hacking and doing a bit of schooling. Hopefully I will take mine to a small agricultural show this weekend for experience of showground...an in hand class...maybe novice ridden. Hacking is great experience - at the end of the day your pony is yours to do as much or as little with as you want. Enjoy whatever you are doing!
 
Mine has just turned 5 and we are doing almost exactly the same as Midlifecrisis. Plenty of hacking, a little bit of schooling. We have done a couple of trips to hire schools recently and are going to try our first in-hand show this weekend. We also have our first lesson booked for 13th June. There would have been no point rushing my mare, she wasn't ready for anything until now. Agree hacking is invaluable, gets the horse out seeing things and developing it's confidence. We still struggle occasionally with napping as we do it all on our own, but she's way better and I can see her confidence growing.

I don't think you're doing anything wrong, as said above, just enjoy her.
 
Mine is recovering from a cough at the moment (his flu vacc unfortunately triggered a dip in his immune system), so we are only hacking... Its silage season though, so recent hacking has been rather exciting and I think its really good for him to see all the machinery.

Once he is completely better, I hope to do some lessons, and a couple of connie ridden classes at local shows just to get him out and about.

I don't think some hacking and some 'life education' is a bad way to proceed with a 5yo especially if immature physically.

Fiona
 
Mine is currently hopping around on 3 legs :( her annual pus party I think...

However normally she is doing a bit of hacking and schooling, with the odd dressage outing.
 
Mine is doing a bit of everything but not pushing her too far. She is much stronger than she was last year and much more mentally ready to take more but she has learned that she has a mind of her own also, so need to keep her mind busy :D
 
Don't currently have a 5 year old, but when I did, they were out at Prelim/Novice a couple of times over the summer, worked on a small movie for 4 days (nothing exciting, but got to see all the sights), did their first public display and continued schooling 3 days a week at sort of Nov/Elem bits and pieces. Don't do hacking on the roads, but we always toddled around the farm as a warm up anyway. She's 6 now and is going like a bomb :-)
 
Mine is being prehabed for his KS op, if he wasn't he'd be mainly hacking and exploring the world, very rarely going in the school as I do most of my schooling out hacking and gently being prepared for Autumn hunting.
 
We are still in baby mode.
I have no transport so it's too hard to get her out as hire is over £100 per day so we haven't done much.

I'm a bit worried when she does go out she will explode as I've left it too late but hopefully not. Is it that unusual to start competing later than normal?

It seems friends 3-4 year olds have done more than mine but she's so immature!
 
My 4 year old is mostly hacking out alone and in company. We have a lesson once a week and school once a week. We haven't been 'out' much at all, a show and a bit of dressage just so she can have a look. I'd like to take her out more to some beach/forest rides, just to get her used to travelling and seeing different places.

I think what you're doing sounds right, hacking will get her used to seeing all sorts. Plenty of time for shows etc later.
 
Mine is turning five at the end of the year, and is off the track. He's had quite a bit of time off over the last 6 months or so but is finally back in full work. We do some hacking, some schooling, and a bit of light jumping. Try to school once or twice a week, hack once or twice but he isn't great to hack, and jump once a fortnight. If he isn't jumping we'll do an extra hack/school or lunge depending on time and what he's been up to.

Been getting him out and about as well as I can without my own transport, so he's done a few registered Prelim shows. Gone to stand around at a couple of jumping shows, and joined the warm up for an eventing clinic (but we quickly vacated when people started flying around over solid jumps!). Had one or two outings to the XC schooling venue where he's mostly just had a nice long fast canter and popped over a log then hacked back.

Plan is to do his first novice test in a few months, and get out to some tiny jumping shows where he can literally just canter around and have a look at everything and it won't matter if it's messy or he's spooky etc. Maybe 60cm with a view to 80cm next year or at the tail end of the year.
 
My ID 5 yo is hacking , a bit of schooling. Done some farm rides and one dressage competition. She's popping a small course (60cm) confidently at home .

My other 5 yo is hacking , schooling , farm rides etc. But has just done her first BSJA outing (85cm) class. Plus she's done a combined training . Al going well so far
 
When Bill was 5 at this point in the year he had done 3 intros and just moved up to pre novice eventing. Intro was too easy for him so was able to move up earlier than planned.
He also did the pc intermediate champs as a 5 year old and came 3rd, that was his last event of the season in August. He did turn out to be a bit of a superstar :D

He did 3 intros (march-april), 3 pre novices (may/June/July) and then the champs as a 5 year old in August. He then spent the rest of the year playing at home/hacking/holidays :)
Between the events we did some county showing also to give him an all-round education. He was never really pushed beyond his mind/abilities (the champs were the most difficult but he found it very easy and better than I expected!) and we stopped after champs as he didn't need to do anymore. I appreciate not all 5 year olds are like him but he really is just such a superstar!
 
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Mine is schooling 3 times a week, jumping once a week ( only started jumping 4 weeks ago so still popping small stuff) last year was a bit of a write off for him due to me having private and work stress so we are a bit behind where I wanted to be. Plan is to go out to other yards in the next couple of months foe schooling and maybe jumping clinics, first dressage competition mid August. Would also like to get in a couple of x country training in before winter hits...possibly our first jumping show Sept/Oct
 
My little 4 year old TB is going great guns :) She's been out and competed in two events so far (at baby level ;)), which included staying overnight in a yard at both events. She took everything in her stride and was incredibly chilled, couldn't have been more pleased! She's been chucked out for five weeks now. About ready to start back with the occasional dressage and jumping lessons, but mostly relaxed hacking out to get to know the world (maybe we can find some friends to do that with!) and perhaps some more fun cross country training rides.
 
My little Arab has been backed now for 8 weeks. We're just hacking...5 times a week. We've mainly been going alone, but she's just the same alone as in company...absolutely bombproof. Taken everything in her stride. We've done lots and lots of road work. She's seen all kinds of traffic from cement mixers to buses and skip lorries, gazillions of cyclists. We've been out for hacks in the trailer too. We've discovered canter this week and she's worked out that's quite a lot of fun 😁. She's been absolutely perfect!!!! I will brave the school at some point....maybe 😁





It's very tiring being such a clever baby!
 
Oh Gryff, she is absolutely gorgeous!! Are there anymore where she came from?
 
DabDab said:
Oh Gryff, she is absolutely gorgeous!! Are there anymore where she came from?
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Haha...she's quite sweet, isn't she. She has done a fabulous job of mending my broken heart after suddenly losing my horse of a lifetime, last summer.
Thank you, both.
 
Gryff your baby is beautiful!

Mines discovered she can head shake and rein snatch today as flies were buzzing around her, nothing but trouble but I do love her!
 
there's no rush! never worry that you're not doing enough! my horse was lame for most of his 5th year, so now he's 7 he's probably at a similar level of the average 5 year old, because it took a long time for him to get over his pain memory! but he's a great horse, so I think its been good to do it slowly.
 
Mine is an ex racer who came off the track last year, he's just turned 5 and we are hacking, schooling and now regular lesson but I've love to get him out this summer!
 
I think Skylla is in a secret plot to get out of all work and just do this:

F1685129-861C-40A8-BC22-6E1B708A53BA_zpsfqqsxf1j.jpg


From hopping on three legs on tues, we are now fine? No abscess has blown and she's feeling smug!

6BB3BFE6-4C5C-4EB2-9CE6-E3415330CF05_zpszsakr60u.jpg


I'm super impressed with how far along some are, and equally relieved there are plenty of less precocious (talented :lol:;)) ones out there too.
 
Cortez said:
Don't currently have a 5 year old, but when I did, they were out at Prelim/Novice a couple of times over the summer, worked on a small movie for 4 days (nothing exciting, but got to see all the sights), did their first public display and continued schooling 3 days a week at sort of Nov/Elem bits and pieces. Don't do hacking on the roads, but we always toddled around the farm as a warm up anyway. She's 6 now and is going like a bomb :-)
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Same without the film set and I did hacking about 4x week.
 
Mines doing a mixture of hacking and schooling, just started canter out hacking and a tiny bit in the school and will look at doing some little grids soon. He's got a travelling issue which I'm working on at snails pace or he would be boxing out for some hacks and doing some in hand shows. He has been with me about three months and would be doing more under saddle but he arrived so weak and under nourished we had weeks and weeks of walk work on the long lines to do first.

He's a bit of a quirky one but really seems to be mellowing at the moment. And very handsome!

 
Mine's not even been backed yet, mainly due to my health issues. However she went out inhand as a 2 and 3 year old, has had tack on, been longreined etc. I just need to sit on her!
 
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