Catalina

Today Catalina showed some real signs of maturity.
She will be 5 in July of next year and when i rode her today she was very focused.
I had not ridden her in a week due to personal things and so by all accounts she should have been very fresh.
There was a horse in the ring lunging and he gave out several big bucks while I was riding Catalina.
She never for a moment took her focus off me and stayed very relaxed throughout the whole thing.

Considering she was a very nervous horse at the start and quite "hot"
a year ago something like that would have set her off and made her quite tense.

Today a bomb could have gone off and she was my horse from start to finish.
She still sneezes when she gets nervous and this is a normal healthy reaction to nerves, however she still needs to learn when she does sneeze not to try and pull the reins out of my hands.

Today was a good day; I also began some work in hand as her piaffe steps will start next year.

young horse thoughts

I read an article recently that stated by the author young horses in America are not as "strong and fit" as the young horses in Europe.
It got me really thinking......
Yes, to have a top young horse that is keeping up with the current standards of being able to do the PSG test by age 7, the horse must be strong enough to handle that test and it's collection and length of time.
However in an effort to keep the lessons age appropriate and not "overdue or over tax" the horse  how as trainers do we achieve this?

In Europe and top barns in the US other fitness tools are used to help with fitness.
Some are hot walkers, tread mills, and water tanks which are useful tools that can be used to strengthen muscles with out making the horse sour or sore from the rider doing too much.

Also some people use hormones to muscle up the young horse and we see this many times with auction horses. I do not recommend that any horse age 7 and under have any growth hormones or steroids.
 However, I have  no problem with mares starting on a hormone to regulate their cycles at any onset of marish behavior.

I would also say that riding a young horse 2 times a day is a wonderful way to  get them very strong and trained quicker as well.
My Dad use to say "you can take a horse out many times a day for short periods and they will learn faster" but you can't do it all at one time.
 Many short periods do get the horse strong and smart! Always remember proper form is vital to the horse developing the proper muscles and a good fitting bridle and saddle.

Stay tuned for more young horse thoughts

Catalina

Hello Readers

Catalina my  4  year old is back to work.
She has been really good and after 2 months off to heal her injury she didn't   forget a thing.
the most wonderful thing is she loves to go to the ring and is so willing and eager to work.
This make me really happy.
She needs to build a lot of muscle and strength this winter and that is my goal, however keep in mind with these young horses the most important thing is that they learn to be aware of their body and learn to be obedient and learn in their mind what is happening .
Strength is huge but knowledge for the young horse is also very important.
when training your young horse remember length and repetition is never as important as correct form. It's important that they mentally understand what is happening and one must always keep the boundaries of manners at the forefront.

Key to remember. the "school master" and Grand Prix Horse that is competitive always have something in common. They know the "rules" and willingly except them.  In the end you want  your horse to fully understand their "job" and really like their job. this is what makes a great competition horse as well as a great school master.

Please feel free to challenge me with your questions and interests in what you want to learn.

Tonya