when are u backing your 4 or rising 4 year olds?

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rowy

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My rising 4 year old is 4 in may and am trying to decided when I should back him. Am planning on doing young dressage classes with him so I think I may start in march.

so have any of you started now?
 
did mine last summer and she was well matured and 16.1 and if she was left to this yr would have been more opinionated than she was then. she has been ridden for 20mins every other day hacking and bit of schooling and has been to a couple of shows to walk and trot around and i the arena for walk and trot round, done a session x-country schooling and loved it and ended up jumping 2ft 6 course at end and thought it a blast. she has since had 2 months off and is now back in work but walking for 10-20 mins every other day if that.
 
Mine will be 4 in March, Last year I sat on him in the school and just stayed in walk learning go, stop and turn and went for a few short walks down the road, over winter he has just been lunged and hacked (me riding my other pony and leading him).
I will be starting riding him again once we have lighter evenings, we do have lights in the school and even tough they are good there not the best so thought I will wait.
 
Mine's 4 in May.

He was lightly backed at 3.5 for very short little walks with my tiny mother on board. He has probabaly had an hour all told being sat on. He knows how to walk, trot, stop, steer and move away from the leg and that's all he needs at the moment.

I'm now working on getting him fitter inhand before he does any more riding work, and he won't be 'ridden' for more than 10min or so until this autumn (4.5yrs)
 
Ours is 4 in May she is just doing little bits here and there we first sat on her in July and she's doing a little bit in walk, trot and canter now but she hasn't done any polework, jumping or hacking yet; the latter of the three is something we should probably be getting on with but the weather is stopping us atm. She is going to an indoor arena every 2 or 3 weeks to get her seeing things and she is hopefully going to her first PC rally on the flat in a few weeks time :).
 
There is usually no harm in backing them as early as coming 3 (providing they are physically/mentally mature enough) and as long as it's introduced slowly and sessions are kept to a minimum.
Once started undersaddle you can work on responsiveness to the aids and the concept of forward without actually starting any vigorous rountine. You can accomplish tons at a walk and jog a couple times a week. Sometimes I'll put them back out for another season to mature, it makes training smoother, IMO.
Then by the time they are 4 or so you can start asking them to work on contact and begin suppling exercises, light lateral work and long-low stretching.
This is my rough guideline.... there are always horses that require more time to develop.
 
I have recently bought two 4yo's in Ireland. Both were backed in the summer of their 3rd year and then turned away and brought back into work toward the end of the year when they were worked lightly. We are hacking them, doing short sessions in the arena focusing on rhythm and a baby outline and they both her their first jump with us on Sat over half a dozen fences each.
 
measles said:
Both were backed in the summer of their 3rd year and then turned away and brought back into work toward the end of the year when they were worked lightly. We are hacking them, doing short sessions in the arena focusing on rhythm and a baby outline
Click to expand...

This, plus ours has just started jumping too, small single fences at the mo :)
 
Mine is four in March and was backed again (raced as a 2 yr old) last summer, she did hacking mainly and popped little twigs and logs while out hacking, she schooled for about two days.
Otherwise all straight lines.
Turned away last October and today she has her shoes back on and the work starts again. She has flat work clinic booked in for March and she also has XC schooling in April.
She is very mature in her body and mind.
Young dressage classes are my aim this year too.

I'd say back yours now if he is happy and strong enough in the body....some mature later than others.
 
Mine is 4 in June. He was backed late last summer, walk, trot and a couple of canters in the school, just teaching him to go forward. He was then turned away for the winter. I have just recently started taking him out for walks in hand on the roads, tacking him up and sitting on him to get him used to it all again. He's taken to it very well, and is SO much easier then last year (so far). I won't bring him in to ridden work until end of March though because I need to be able to ride him in the evenings and at the moment I could only do so at the weekends. Although I can't wait to get back on him and riding, I don't see there's any rush. I also aim for some dressage tests this year!!
 
I have an AAxWB who will be 4 at the end of April. I bred her so did all the basic stuff gradually. I started lungeing and longreining at the end of last summer and actually sat on her (twice) at the beginning of October. In the middle of November she went off to a professional yard to be brought on as, hopefully, an eventer. Because of the awful weather they couldn't do a lot with her until a month ago but she is now apparently "hacking out beautifully". :)
 
My mare will also be 4 in May. I have only had her a couple of weeks so we have just started backing. So far she has been sat on 3 times and we had our first little canter today. I hope to get out hacking next week, but it has been so windy this week, I am waiting for it to calm down. Hopefully she will be ready to go SJ this summer
 
My girl is 4 at the start of April. She was backed over christmas. We are currently lightly schooling her at the moment with large circles turns and getting her to go forward. I didn't want to back her any later as she is rather opinionated.
 
Mine are 4 in July. Both were lightly backed last summer. I'm intending to bring one in in the next few weeks, get her lunging/long reinging and then she'll go to be professionally broken for a few weeks, then back and she'll start doing a bit of everything, then hopefully sold in the summer. While the first has been sent away the other will then come in.
 
Thanks :)
I should have said, i did lightly back him last spring (sat on him a few times and walked and jogged) and then sent him away to be backed where he was walk, trotted and cantered and hacked lightly. He was only ridden a few times a week for 2 months (may and june) and then was turned away 1st of july so has been off a fair while!
i cant wait to get back on him but havent a menage yet but am hopefully having one put in in march if planning goes to plan so hopefully can begin then! doesnt sound too early from what all you are saying! :)
 
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