workload for a 4yo?

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kez1001

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apologies if this has been done lots of times before but i was just wondering how much work you all give your four year olds per week and what do you do each session?

thanks in advance for any advice/info given?
 
I just rode mine for shorter sessions and worked on his confidence - we took him out quite a bit to do pc intro tests, 2ft jumping etc. At home he was hacked and schooled a little (he was really unbalanced until he was 4.5!).
I think what you do depends on the horse but make sure that the work is varied and doesn't push him too far. Good luck :)
 
thanks just wary of doing too much - this is the first horse i have had of this age. aim was to try and do something different each session with him e.g lunge/ride/jump/hack etc how many days per week? i was only going to do every other day? hmmm decisions going to go and do some reading. Just want to give him the best possible start, he isnt a complete baby, did a 4yo BE event this year but has only been getting ridden a couple of times a week since and i only got him on three days ago. I am not a novice i just wanted to know what others do with their 4yo :)
 
Sounds like he's done a lot already for a four year old.

It always depends on what type of horse they are - our 4yr old 12h section A grew up long before our 4yr old 17h ISH. I like them to be babies at 4, doing mostly easy schooling and hacking out, but sounds like he is well past that stage. There is no rush really, unless you're aimed at Badminton.

If you're riding a lot, and they start throwing tantrums you need to take the work load down a bit, if you're not riding them much and you get tantrums, you need to up the work load a bit! Its a fine line. The horse will tell you, but you've got to read the signs properly.

If you're quite novice, work under the advice of an instructor that you trust.
 
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