Why oh why dont people let foals be babies

[windand rain]

Was out and about today and was horrified to see someone trying to lunge her 8 month old competition horse foal. Fortunately for the baby it totally misunderstood what was happening and it had a hooley on the end of the lunge line at which point she gave up. So sad

 

[mynutmeg]

omg! My 7 month old ..... stands in a field, eats haylage, feed and gets his feet picked out and lead about - thats it!!

 

[ridefast]

Hmm, lunging is a bit extreme, but my last 8 month old was walking around the village, meeting dogs, humans, cyclists, traffic, learning to behave on the road, bridleways and fields. I don't see the benefit in working young horses hard, but I also don't see the benefit in leaving them in a field for years when there are plenty of learning opportunities. That 8 month old is now 4 years old and as bombproof as you can get, nothing phases him

 

[Echo Bravo]

As Ridefast says, Manneres makeuth the horse and child.

 

[ridefast]

As Ridefast says, Manneres makeuth the horse and child.

Like

 

[Clodagh]

My now rising 4 has spent 95% of his life in the field mooching around with his mates. He is the easiest, most well mannered horse and phased by nothing. So I agree that less is more with youngsters.

 

[YorksG]

I'm all for youngsters learning about the world, but the ideaa of lunging at that age is pretty awful! A friend was recently offered a school to teach her 10 month old to long line, she gracefully decined

 

[twiggy2]

mine went for grass track walks around the farm from the age of 2,before that nothing and she is great with pretty much everything we meet she is now 6

 

[MadBlackLab]

Hmm, lunging is a bit extreme, but my last 8 month old was walking around the village, meeting dogs, humans, cyclists, traffic, learning to behave on the road, bridleways and fields. I don't see the benefit in working young horses hard, but I also don't see the benefit in leaving them in a field for years when there are plenty of learning opportunities. That 8 month old is now 4 years old and as bombproof as you can get, nothing phases him

this is good.

Lungeing is too much even at 2 years old I still think its too much

 

[mynutmeg]

I'm all for youngsters learning about the world, but the ideaa of lunging at that age is pretty awful! A friend was recently offered a school to teach her 10 month old to long line, she gracefully decined

We started long lining my sister's tb youngster at about 18 months, but only straight lines - getting them out and about in hand is a great way to teach them about life but lunging before 3 (at the earliest) is just asking for joint problems

 

[Tiddlypom]

Was out and about today and was horrified to see someone trying to lunge her 8 month old competition horse foal.

If she carries on like that, the foal will be mentally and physically knackered .

As others posters say, there is no harm in doing some basic groundwork, but only within reason bearing in mind the age of the foal.

 

[HihoGinger]

Hmm, lunging is a bit extreme, but my last 8 month old was walking around the village, meeting dogs, humans, cyclists, traffic, learning to behave on the road, bridleways and fields. I don't see the benefit in working young horses hard, but I also don't see the benefit in leaving them in a field for years when there are plenty of learning opportunities. That 8 month old is now 4 years old and as bombproof as you can get, nothing phases him

That's what we did with my Anglo Arab bubba donkeys years ago. She went out for walks with mum first, and then on her own. Saw loads, but had no questions asked of her as such.
She was so easy to back and break, it was ridiculous, and smashing on the roads.

 

[Shantara]

My 3yr old Shetty doesn't do a lot at the moment (Mainly because I can't leave Ned alone and I have no help) but at his old home he got out and about in-hand (obviously) and he's pretty darn good! I managed to take him out a few times when my friend was here and he's still very good if not better!

His only real problem is person space...which I am working on!

 

[EffyCorsten]

Bloody hell that's mad such a baby!

My ID is 18months we started basic groundwork around 15 months and started going out for walks he's very clever and brave but still has a baby brain I wouldn't dare lunge him it would blow his mind.

The little cob on the other hand is the same age but has only just started to get having his feet picked up!

 

[Dry Rot]

Hmm, lunging is a bit extreme, but my last 8 month old was walking around the village, meeting dogs, humans, cyclists, traffic, learning to behave on the road, bridleways and fields. I don't see the benefit in working young horses hard, but I also don't see the benefit in leaving them in a field for years when there are plenty of learning opportunities. That 8 month old is now 4 years old and as bombproof as you can get, nothing phases him

Another one who agrees with this.

My two six month old foals are self loading into the trailer every day where they find a couple of handfuls of hard feed. That is accustoming them to walking on strange surfaces and to regard the trailer as a place they want to be. Apart from that, they are handled daily and led around briefly (yielding to pressure) but not much more. Oh, desensitising stuff, of course, I almost forgot that! Immune to umbrellas and plastic bags on sticks, Radio 1, etc!

 

[showingmadfilly]

Was out and about today and was horrified to see someone trying to lunge her 8 month old competition horse foal. Fortunately for the baby it totally misunderstood what was happening and it had a hooley on the end of the lunge line at which point she gave up. So sad

I don't agree with doing anything so young, I've got a coming 3yr old who I've still not touched. She's in, fed and well looked after but would never lunge her yet.

 

[sport horse]

I have been breeding for nearly 50 years. Never do anything with them until 3 years of age except pick up feet for farrier etc and lead in and out of field. Until that age joints are not developed enough to stand up to lunging or indeed any circle work. Nor would I risk taking one out on a road - not only for the foal but also for the other road users.

Never had any problem backing, riding away and have produced age group winners in their respective disciplines over many years.

Let the youngsters grow up natually and slowly

 

[Daytona]

I have been breeding for nearly 50 years. Never do anything with them until 3 years of age except pick up feet for farrier etc and lead in and out of field. Until that age joints are not developed enough to stand up to lunging or indeed any circle work. Nor would I risk taking one out on a road - not only for the foal but also for the other road users.

Never had any problem backing, riding away and have produced age group winners in their respective disciplines over many years.

Let the youngsters grow up natually and slowly

Totally agree with this, just leave them alone , they don't need to be out walking about as babies, they need to be in the field with horses, learning to be a horse.

 

[dianchi]

Personally I prefer to expose them to lots when they are young, went to her first show at 5 weeks, and BEF at three months. County show as a yearling, and ponied out with mum on the roads.
She will be three next year in the summer I will back her, then into work when she is 4.

She is more likely to go upto things looking for food than scared-which I prefer!

 

[Dry Rot]

Totally agree with this, just leave them alone , they don't need to be out walking about as babies, they need to be in the field with horses, learning to be a horse.

I don't see why they shouldn't do both. There are things we (and other animals) learn when we are young that stick for life and to me missing this period just seems a waste.

(With over 60 years of training experience!).

 

[Arizahn]

Mine just turned 18 months and we have done some loose schooling in the arena to get him used to the exciting objects there - by loose schooling see let him wander about and sniff everything, teach him to approach humans politely and halt when told to etc - for the past three months. Literarally ten minutes once a week. He seems to enjoy the interaction.

He had learnt to load and travel before I bought him. He walks in hand, has his feet picked up regularly (work in progress), and will stand tied up. Knows about rugs (doesn't need one) and can be brushed down, etc. Is perfect for the vet, still getting to know the farrier but never nasty with anyone. Has encountered sheep, cows, donkeys, dogs, children and traffic en route to and from field. Getting very good with gates, and is polite in his stable when in. Safe to work around in the field too, which is great.

We are currently getting him used to the idea of walking around at the end of a lunge line by clipping it to his headcollar and slowly moving further away from him whilst we walk around the school. He isn't sure about this yet and stops once you are more than two feet away from him. But it means he isn't bothered by the experience. We only do a few minutes of this each week, and no small circles or trotting.

I will be bitting him next year and hope to start long lining him in the summer when he turns two. We won't do any proper lunge work beyond walk until he is three. And whilst I plan to show him in hand and do some light trapping over the interim, he will not be backed until he is at least four, more likely six.

I run every new idea by my vet, farrier, and YO before starting it, so he is not being rushed! He spends 90% of his time out in the field with other horses and is quite happy.

 

[tallyho!]

Agree with dry rot. How do you know the foal was in training to be shown as a yearling? Lots of people show yearlings if they are competition horses and if so, it's better to introduce a few basics at this young age as long as it's done properly. I hope the lady you saw knew what she was doing. If she really was lunging as a means to keep on doing so then I would disagree.

I showed my yearling and you teach the basics in short lessons for a couple of months once a week up until the show. That's eight very short lessons. Then after the show, she was turned out with a herd in huge acreage and brought in once winter stabling starts. That's it. When it comes to backing, it will be an easy job as she will have already learnt some basic commands which are the foundation blocks to to being a good calm ridden horse.

I do think babies should just be babies if they are not show horses but some horses are given a career and it helps them to be calm and safe if you do things early on and well.

 

[Roasted Chestnuts]

I think there is a big difference to doing inhand yearling showing and lunging a baby.

I would show any youngster I had, good education for them, but I would never lunge anything under three and also never longline anything under three. Wouldnt sit on anything under four either if it were mine.

 

[Inthesticks]

I have a 2 1/2 year old, she is having her feet done, living out, eating hay and learning horse from my other horses. She has done a couple of sessions of agility training in her field, max 30-40 mins.. basically meeting strange things but still within the comfort of her paddock and with her field mates. She see's the hunt come through weekly, hounds actually through the field, has sheep in with her during the spring, cattle and pigs next door, tractor come in her field to harrow/poo pick..

I think this is truly enough for her until she is 3 1/2 to 4.

 

[monkeybum13]

I wish more babies were allowed to be babies. I really don't like seeing youngsters stuck in stables on yards that don't allow all year round turnout and when they do get to go out there are no horses of a similar age.

My boy was on a stud farm until he was 3 when he was then broken in and brought on by my trainer and is now with me. He has the most beautiful manners and lovely personality because he was allowed to be a horse and do baby horse things when he was young. He is only 4 and is one of the most well mannered horses you will come across.

 

[paulineh]

I bought my boy as a yearling and up until then he had not done anything. Once he had settled in I started to teach him by walking him out around the lanes and into the woods. Up and down the hills and across the river/ ford. We met everything from other horses to big lorries and tractors. I always took the dogs with me so he got use to them too.

As a two year old I showed him inhand so he learnt to travel intend trailer and behave around other horses. Also this taught him everything that went on at an event.

He is now 17 and an advanced endurance horse. He is calm and well mannered where ever he goes.

I believe that youngsters should learn from an early age,but I would never think about lunging or even long reining anything under three.

 

[Ellies_mum2]

A lady I know lead her (not small) daughter around on their 18 month old Sec A and actually posted the video of it on FB The saddle used belonged to her other horse and was so long on the poor things back that it was on his rump. I queried how old the pony was and was told quite cheerfully that he was 18 months old and was going to be a cracking pony later on. I had to say that I felt that they were wrong to be riding a baby and one thing lead to another and now she won't speak to me or even look at me lol. I stand by what I said though and would say it again.

My own youngster was lead out in hand from about a year old and saw traffic etc and is pretty laid back about a lot of things and is now backed aged 5 and ridden mostly by my 13 yr old son as he is a lot lighter than me

 

[soloequestrian]

I worked with a youngster years ago who had been weaned early and then kept on his own in a field until he was four. He was a bit tricky to handle but actually turned into a very nice riding horse - responsive, biddable and incredibly well balanced. By that rationale, I could claim that social isolation during the formative years will produce a useful horse. I'm sure (and I would hope) that no-one would actually agree with this, but my point is that there are many ways to do things and the fact that the end result is reasonable or good doesn't necessarily mean that the method is the only one or the best one. Growing up in a safe field with lots of food on tap is not actually normal for foals in an evolutionary sense - in the wild they would be exposed to many more stimuli, including predators, and would move much larger distances on a daily basis to find food. Speaking to people who have experience of foals that have grown up in a feral environment, they are much sharper and learn faster than those who have had more coddled upbringings which hints at better brain development. So why not lunge young animals? Does anyone have any evidence that it is harmful, any more than it might be harmful to an older unfit horse? Why not expose youngsters to lots of different experiences? It all helps with both future confidence and also current brain development. Why not long rein? Why only go in straight lines? What is so special about the age of three? Surely a horse that has been gently introduced to all the things that will be expected of it later in life is likely to find those things easier? And what about skeletal and hoof development? Structures develop according to how they are used, so surely during the biggest period of development, it makes sense to expose the foal to the types of environment, particularly surface, that it will be expected to work on later in life - that would include both school surfaces and things like metalled roads and stony tracks.
People may well have had great success with methods that involve minimal training, but that is no reason to necessarily think that training at a young age is a bad thing.

 

[Dry Rot]

Just to clarify, I agree about not lunging youngsters. Basically, my rule would be to only do what youngsters accept without protest and if they can be encouraged to do something new with a handful of feed or a scratch, that can't be bad.

Here are some examples of the early training that I find works. Obviously, everything is done in small increments and there is never any compulsion. The first pony was a 2yo and was lightly backed soon after this by a small experienced rider but sessions were limited to about 15 minutes.

 

[windand rain]

love that method Dry rot and yes I do that sort of things with my babies too
My gripe was she was obvious.y going to lunge this foal on her own with the foal in the school with a lunge line on it and lunge whip in the other hand made me think there was little doubt She then tried to get it to go round at which point it totally failed to understand had no guidance and bronked and reared on the end of the line having run to the end when she waved the whip at it. So yes she was definitely intending to lunge it. I also agree that showing in hand is a great education
Oh and dry rot I would love a grulla highland filly if you ever breed one