What do you think is the right level of work for a 3 year old...

Glad you posted this, my 3yr old cob was taken on a 90 min hack for the first time, rider didn't answer her phone and pony came back dripping, but he is very hairy, told rider 30 mins max in future, no cantering. Will watch this post with interest
 
Depends on the horse and the rider. at this time of year I would expect a 3 1/2 year old horse thats mature enough to walk trot and have short canters out hacking. occasional longer hacks would not be a problem if they were slow but as with everything it would be fine for some horses but not for others
 
Depends on the horse. For the most part with my 3 year olds I teach the basics in the arena (directional, stop and go) and then once these are established I get them out on the trails as soon as possible. I expect them to walk and trot, with short bits of canter here and there. I expect them to go through rivers, lakes and not to spook in the forest if we come across critters. I do take it slowly though, I do a lot of walking so that they can get used to all the sights and smells out there. I take them on quiet lanes to get them familiar with vehicles, none of them have ever bothered about traffic though as they're used to trucks and trailers coming and going on the farm.
 
Faracat said:
... and why?

Is there such a thing as too little? What is too much in your opinion and can too much/too little do any damage?
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IMO, no such thing as too little (aside from things like basic handling and manners, want to get those sorted early). You can't do any damage doing too little, but can easily do damage doing too much.

No 'one size fits all' answer, depends on breed, size, maturity, etc. However I do cringe slightly when I see 3yos jumping with a rider - my general preference is for a 3yo to be backed, shown the basics, perhaps including starting canterwork, and then turned away/time off to start again at 4.
 
Spiritedly said:
Mine doesn't either. Well he goes on walks inhand and has had saddle and bridle on but hasn't had a rider yet as he's still too immature .....and I haven't found anyone brave enough to sit on him :p
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So glad Im not the only one lol. Mine is losing baby teeth, has wolf teeth and is having another growth spurt.....oh and he is a plank :rolleyes3:
 
I think it very much depends on both physical and mental maturity, for some horses I wholeheartedly believe that no ridden work should be carried out at this age, for those that are perhaps mentally mature but not physically I would not push them. A more physically mature horse, I would expect to be able to work to a certain level, but building up slowly as they mentally get used to the work required. With my boy, I started with 10-15 minute hacks, slowly building these up to a max of 1 hr towards the end of his first year. Schooling only really started 6 months in and to start with I would hack for 10 mins warm up, do 10 mins schooling and five mins cool off, over the remaining 6 months I worked this up to 30 mins schooling as a max depending on the work we were doing, although I only ever do a max of 6 circuits of canter work and about six jumps even now he is 4 1/2 and he was backed bang on 3 years. Hacking wise we have this summer done a 2 hrs hacks a week, but only after he had been working for 12 months and again most was at walk i wouldn't go past that for my boy, but what I have found is that whenever I do go for longer than he had been he always sweats the first time and comes back tired, but the second time copes very well with it, but then every horse is different.
 
My 3yr old cob came as a ride and drive, since he is obviously still very much a baby, all we have done is kept him ticking over, reminding him he is rideable, tack him up and ride him up the drive or do a couple of circuits in the arena, perhaps once a week, the rest of the time it's all in hand work or groundwork, improving his manners, expecting him to stand, i was furious at our rider for taking him out for that long and bringing him back dripping wet.
 
My gelding with be 3 in May. He will be backed and ridden out very lightly, building up to 30 minutes max in walk and trot most likely. Although physically he looks very mature, he's a big horse so likely to keep growing for some time. And he's just a big baby mentally.
 
My preference is to leave til 4, then back, ride away, then turn away for a few months to process. I don't like the way that youngsters seem to be backed earlier and earlier these days - they'll be riding horses for 20 years of their lives, so I figure that its only fair that they get to be babies for a good long time at the start of their lives. Plus, there is so much research that proves horses are not physically mature in terms of skeletal growth until much later than you'd think, that I don't really want to add another stress factor into the mix, when they could be concentrating on growing correctly. I'm all for having them out in big fields, in herds, so that they can grow up, condition themselves by regular play, and mature mentally by interacting with other horses, rather than by learning to play human inspired games, and spending far too much time cooped up in stables.
 
Thanks for answering. :)

I asked for two reasons.

Firstly, two very experienced, 'traditional' horsey people have given me very different opinions on my gelding who is 3 years and 8 months old and unbacked (although he does do in-hand training/walks). When he stands next to my chestnut mare, you can see that his knees, hocks, elbows and stifles are pretty much exactly level with hers, but she takes 6ft - 6ft3 rugs and he is in 5ft6 - 5ft9. So his body and neck has lots of growing to do still. The first person with a hunting background thinks that he should have been backed and ridden away by now and kept going over the winter, ready for proper work in the spring. The second person, with a racing background (was a jockey) thinks that he 'looks like a yearling' and that I should probably leave him unbacked until he is five. So hugely different opinions on the same horse.

The second reason was that I saw an advert for a three year old that had low level SJ, Dressage and done an unaffiliated ODE. If I was buying, that level of work would put me off the horse, but I wondered if it was actually more normal than I realised?


Most people have probably read Dr Deb Bennett's article on horse maturing rates, but when I first read it, it really made sense to me and is one of the main reasons why I'm happy to leave my gelding unbacked at the moment.
 
Mine has been backed to short hacks, walk and trot in arena level. He was in work for about 8 weeks from being backed. He is now turned out in the field and will stay there until March or when the weather motivates me, no eariler. It has done him the world of good, he is so much more adult in his outlook, he has always been a nice easy boy to have around but now is not at all toddlerish.
 
I think it depends. Mine always 'lives like a horse', it's not like one day I'll take her out of the field and she'll be locked in a stable and worked every day from then on, so I'm happy to take her out occasionally for an hour at a time to do human things, then return to her horse life, which is as it will always be as long as I own her. So I'll be happy for her to be hacking and driving with a bit of trot and canter when she's 3.
 
nothing until they are at least 4 by birthday and preferably late summer of fourth year. I then expect them to do a bit of everything depending on maturity and mind set. Not inclined to bore them silly going round in circles for a correct walk prefer walk trot canter and gallop first month or so hacking out alone and in company and moving on to jumping and dressage after a few weeks at a low and local level. Keeps them interested and all of mine have done well on it. I of course make sure they are fit by doing a lot of groundwork and walking out first
 
I have a pair of 3yos (one is 3 1/2 now the other a little younger) and they won't be backed until next year. They'll get out on the long-reins come spring, hack over summer, have a fairly lazy winter and then start 'proper' work the year they turn 5. I've had plenty of people say 'haven't you got on them yet?' but I've seen how much they've grown and developed over the last six months and I know there's more of that to come. I want them to be physically and mentally mature before I back them as it will make life much easier for me as well as them and hopefully will give them a good attitude to work and a longer working life.
 
My 3 1/2yr old IDxTB is hacked out anything from 1-3 times a week depending on weather/light/time etc. When we do it can be anything from 10 minutes (last wednesday) to 50/60 mins (sunday). She also occasionally goes in the school (usually when I am on my own at the yard), but this is for no longer than 30 minutes if that. Hacking it is nearly always walking with the odd trot and in the school it's the same but for less time. She has had two periods of non work, 3 weeks in summer and then 4 weeks from mid sept-oct when I was on holiday. I am concious of not over doing it so I take each week as it comes however, after the 4 week break, she was a bit more fiesty so I am hoping to continue with a little bit each week over winter just to keep her ticking over. She also lives out 24/7 with our other 3 yr old & 26yr old although she is boss without trying lol.

I think it depends massively on each horse. Tia seems to be an old head on young shoulders, very mature under saddle and will lead older horses past things out hacking. Sometimes, if she shies from something, all it takes is gentle encouragement from me and she walks on. My previous boy I didn't even entertain the idea of working him over the winter in his 3rd year - he needed to mentally & physically grow up!
 
I treat each one differently.

Daegan was lightly backed about a year ago now when he was 3 1/2 and since then I've ridden him 2-3 times a week for max 20 mins. He's come along very nicely so far and his workload will now be upped slightly over the winter - he was ready to do something though, he was bored and starting to be over boisterous! Freyja on the other hand wasn't ready to have anything done with her at the same age, she was a baby mentally and physically, I sent her away to be backed in June (she turned 4 in April) and I will bring her on slowly over the winter. They were born a month apart.

We also have a 3yo coblet that we are helping with who at 3 1/2 is ready to do something, but at the other end of the spectrum there is a rising 5yo welsh C mare who looks more like a 2yo, we will see how she is by summer :)
 
Backing/ riding youngsters is such a controversial subject. Everyone has their own differing views on what and how it should be done. No two horses are the same and it can be difficult to judge when they are 'ready' to progress, especially for those who do not know the horse. No one will know your youngster better than you, so if you think he's ready for working then work him, if not leave him a few months.

My youngster (warmblood type) was backed and lightly ridden away at 3 and a half, she was walking and trotting out hacking 2-3times a week for a total of about 2months. She was then turned away for the rest of the winter/spring and was brought back in to work as a 4year old and worked all summer 4-5times a week, mostly hacking with 1 schooling session and 1 show a week. She was turned away again at the end of September, others said to keep working her but I knew that she was in need of a break and it's done her the world of good. She has only had a month off so far but she now seems to be getting a little fed up and in need of some work. I will probably give her the rest of this month off and bring her back in to work very lightly around December time.
 
Mine was lightly backed at 3.5; then turned away until late spring of his fourth year. He is still only doing bits and bobs now with a view to doing some proper work in the Spring when he will be 5 (January foal). I am happy to take it slowly as with any luck he will still be with me in his 20's and beyond.
 
Tango wasn't backed until he was 4.5, and that was a brief "here is a rider" thing. He was properly backed this summer aged 5.5, and is now on a holiday after 4 months of work. He'll be back in work properly in January and aimin at 90cm ODEs at the start of the eventing season.
 
Mine will be 3 in may and hopefull will be backing him then :) A few months of gentle hacking untill winter and then let him mature even moe, well thats the plan! Woman who I bought Merlyn off, backed her other D at 2 year old and I have heard a few people suggest I back him now, but hes far too imature!!
 
First time backing my own great experience. Some people told me work 3 times a week for a 3 year old and 4 for a 4 year old. Canter took me about a year to establish properly between 3 and 4 in hindsight I shouldn't have been worried it just came over night. My best advise is to lead out in hand and long line with a friend to help ( never on your own).
 
My 3 and a half year old is most definitely way to immature mentally to do anything yet...still like a toddler in his mindset really. But huge in his body...still more growing to do though by the looks of him :)
 
SatansLittleHelper said:
My 3 and a half year old does nothing yet :o :o :o
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i admit most of the youngsters i have worked with were backed at 2 then turned away to muture before starting again at 4. we used to concentrate more on groundwork and long reining/lunging them and the final part was leaning on them then sitting up and walking a few steps. it depends on the horse i suppose, as long as you think he is mentally and physicaly up for doing more then do so but be ready to back off if he shows signs hes struggling. Good luck :)
 
Mine was lightly backed at 3.5 (literally sat on and led around). I introduced lunging, long-reining and everything before he was 4, at 4 started getting on him myself on the lunge in walk and trot, then sent him away to be ridden on. Now 4.5 and with a professional dressage rider - he is ridden six days a week for roughly half an hour and is walking, trotting and cantering in a consistent outline. The canter isn't amazing yet as he's a big lad with a lot of growing to do, and if I still have him next year he will start doing some jumping as a 5 year old.

ETA: The rider he is with thinks he is a bit behind in his training for his age, so take from that what you will.
 
my 3yr old just does 20 miles walks in hand up the lane and back! he's been long lined up the lane, he is still very bum high and quite babyish so he wont be backed until March, just before he turns 4! then it will just be short bits of 20 mins at a time to keep him interested!
 
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