Phyllis from West Yorkshire asks:
My husband and I bought a 7 yr old 15.3hh Warmblood x Lippizaner in Feb 09. We have been told he is more like a 4 year old. Soon after we bought him he got an infection on his sheath. He spent a week at Ledston Equine Clinic and lost loads of weight.
Long story but we were then told that he had a bad back which has been treated but we have been told that my husband (14 stone approx) is too heavy to ride him. I am a 60 yr old novice rider with a confidence problem. I’m finding it difficult to carry out the training myself, especially during the winter months. I use the small indoor school at the livery yard and although he is quite well behaved but to be honest on occasions he scares me.
He is stabled full time at the moment and turned out with another horse for brief exercise in the outdoor school. With the weather the way it is at the moment, would it be best for me to wait until spring to arrange training with you as I feel it may be difficult for me to carry on with
the training whilst he is as lively as he is at the moment?
Melanie’s Response
Hi there Phyllys. Happy New Year. I could not agree more in your stopping working your horse. It is an impossible time of year at the best of times without having a horse that pressures you on top. There is much to gain and very little to lose, in waiting for the conditions to become consistently more favorable.
I have , for my part, stopped working 2 of my youngsters. They are not suited to being picked up and put back down again. There fore the wise choice is to simply wait. That way I have not created problems or tensions by trying to keep them in work. I do hope I have been of some help. Do not let anyone tell you that you have made the wrong choice. We all choose what is right for us.
All my horses go out for virtually the whole day……that way I keep them all sensible. All I can advise is as much turn out as poss and the least amount of time stood in. My 5 year old is now turned out full time (as of last week). I am not cruel; she is well fed, well rugged and has the permanent company of the others that live out full time. Everyone needs to remember that a horse is a horse at the end of the day and extremely well equipped
This blog was posted on Tuesday, January 12th, 2010
