What will you do with your rising 4 year olds in the spring?

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tangosmum

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Just deciding what to do with my rising 4 year old come the spring.

Backed last summer and rode round the menage in a walk and trot. Then turned away the last 10 weeks.

I am thinking about just hacking all spring and summer and then turning away for 3 months next winter (dec, jan and feb)

what would you do. My baby is 4 in june.
 
That's more or less what I did last year with mine. He was backed in March 2009 and turned 4 in May 2009.

We also did some lessons later in the Summer.

We did one W&T dressage test in September - we went for the experience not the score.

We went to 2 local shows as 'spectators' to soak up some atmosphere without the pressure.

eta: He has been 'on holiday' since 1st December. I'll start walking him out in Feb and get back on later that month. We do some ground work on the week-ends.
 
My plan was to send her back for re-backing Feb time then poodle around and let her get life experience of shows, hacking etc BUT horsey had another idea emergency op Saturday from puncture wound in frog causing coffin joint and navicular bursa infection now on box rest for 3 months then 3 months field rest then might be able to start in mid summer if she has come sound!!! Horses do test you but I love her
 
I've been teaching Bailey to lunge and long rein since November time; been practisnig leaning etc and lunging with tack, side reins etc. We also took him out for his first in hand hack round the village accompanied by his friend.

I will be continuing with this and sitting on him before handing him over to my YO at the beginning of March who will start his ridden education. The plan is then to lightly hack and school him over Spring and Summer, perhaps get out to some shows for experience, keep the work going consistently into next year and prgoress from there :)
 
Lady is an ex race horse so broken at 18 months, raced as a two year old 2009. We got her retired in July 2009.

Turned away until Spring 2010, she then hacked mostly, did some in hand shows and a county one, to get her out and about seeing things and being relaxed about them.
She did 3 stressage W&T test and came 1st, 2nd and then 1st...Sooo pleased.:D

She hadn't done any schooling in a school or in boards, just out hacking and in big field.

End of the summer (Oct) adult camp were we did a few of the lessons, jumped coloured poles, well trotted over them. about 1ft high, whole course though.
Jumped water tray.
Jumped simulated corner.

Did a mini XC schooling session over about half a foot little log, tyres, ditch and steps.

October turned away for 4 months.

In four weeks she'll come back into work. She has a flat work clinic in March, again to get her in the trailer and out.

Clear Round Show jumping or clear round poles in April and a Dressage test W&T. May first bank holiday she has a mini HT to do. Really small to get her seeing it all.
She then has a BE80(t) at the end of September.

Mind you all this is subject to how she comes back into work. She hasn't softened too much, she gallops around the field all day playing so might actually be fitter than when I put her in the field!!!! Just got to harden the legs up. keeping in walk may be an issue!!!
 
My baby is 4 in June too. He was backed and lightly schooled in the menage last summer mainly in walk and trot, with a couple of canters. I then turned him away in September, all the way up until now. I've also been debating what to do with him in the Spring. I think I shall bring him slowly back in to work and just do some hacking and light schooling as there's no rush.
 
Harry is rising 4 this year (4 is September). He will be going to be backed at the beginning of April, then I'm planning on hacking him out over the Spring/Summer and see how he's going. If he's happy, I'll carry on through the winter and then start schooling next Spring but all depends how he reacts to it all.

Hopefully we'll be doing some more showing this year but no ridden showing, just in hand, all good for their confidence and getting use to being out and about :)
 
Mine will be getting backed, then will be hacked out over summer. Started her long reining last year, lead out on quiet roads and been to a couple of shows to see the sights. This year she has been introduced to lunging and now wears full tack, she will also do a few more shows. Although I have taken things slowly with her, she is proving to be a very quick learner.
 
I've got two at the moment, one has had the winter off and has had 2 weeks lungeing and free schooling - he'll be coming back into work next week so gonna put tack on him and start again. The other's been in work ever since she was backed as she loves it and acting like an old pro so hoping to get her out to some show jumping shows as well as doing a bit of hacking and see how she reacts!
 
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