4 mos old filly..how hard could it be?

[Bec]

I agree with most here. I think you should look for a nice, quiet, older horse that has been there, done that. Not necessarily a dead head, but one that will take care of you and any other riders. We found a really nice 14 year old quarter horse for my 5 year old daughter. She is about 15hh and is perfect for her. My daughters previous horse was 17.2 and gorgeous, but was 5 years old and still had more training to do. He will make a great kids horse in the future, just wasn't perfect for beginners. He still had a bit of a mind of his own and was easily influenced by the other horses around him....if they turned, he turned..if they spooked, he spooked.
Our new horse is great. A little older and was a lesson horse for most of her life. She has very much life left and is perfect to move up on as well. Her previous owner owned her for 10 years, showed her successfully....but also began on her when she was 10!
I think if you want to get another horse, you should look for one similar.
I have a 9 month old mini and she is a handful. I always tell my hubby, I couldn't imagine handling a regular sized foal! She has been handled since birth, but is still a baby in her mind and does baby things...like rear up and try to jump on you when you are walking! Now in her mind, she is just playing. If a regular sized foal tried that, I would have been seriously hurt long ago. Babies just do these things, don't know why, they just do!
I think that baby is beautiful, but probably not a good idea for right now.

 

[jvls1942]

delete

 

[CountryMom]

Quote:
Jim,
I was not the one to post about your post, but I wanted to throw some things out to help you understand something.

First, there is a difference in a safely well trained horse and a horse that is trained for cutting. I have one that has been in training (yes, I also train, but don't specialize in cutting training for many reasons including time and set up) that I have sunk over 2 years into and $24,000. And I can tell you that of the three cutting horses we own, not one of them would I ever dream of putting a beginning rider on. Not that they do not obey every command and ride like a dream, but they obey too well. Most cutters would loose a beginning rider with their stops alone. We won't even talk about their turns.

As I said in my very first post, yes we all have to start somewhere. However, a dream buster for sure when a horse injures you or dumps you on your ...... If you get my meaning. And then there is the horse's outcome. I had one a year ago that charged people and could not be caught. She was muscled around by what some call a cowboy (really a inexperienced red neck) and knew very little at 10 years old, but abuse and inexperienced riders. Once I did get her under saddle I discovered she knew how to muscle around in a neck rein, but had absolutely no stop. She loved to drop her shoulder - never been trained how to control her shoulders, and was very good at bucking when she didn't get her way. Obviously why this horse was a rescue. She was clueless on how to transition from any gait to another - not easy for anyone to ride when she bucks inbetween, and had not a clue of reverse. That was all under saddle mind you and I can't even tell you what she was like on the ground to keep this short enough. She was spoiled with treats and nipped every chance she got.

Her owners had a lot of experience in English riding and hunter jumper and could not ride or handle this mare. She scared the woman to death and ran off the young girl she was purchased for. I had to start from the ground up. She is now under saddle and as safe as her temperment will allow. She transitions between all her gaits, controls her temper, and has a stop to die for. Oh and reverse, well, she has done that many a time back to the barn when she wanted to run home. She discovered that it wasn't so fun to want to go home to the barn and her pasture buddy.

This is just one instance of a horse that has been ruined by someone who didn't have the experience and skipped steps that needed to be ingrained for horse training. And it took a year for her owners to actually rider her from the time I took her on. Mind you, experience horse riders.

Think of horse training as a length of chain links all connected back to each other to make a circle. Each link represents a step in training. What happens if one step is missed? Exactly, the circle falls apart.

It all boils down to your ability to communicate and to read the horse. Not to humanize it either. Your response to a horse is not necessarily that of others. Not everyone is cut out to be a horse trainer - or to raise the youngins. If there are fear issues - even if this poster thinks they are resolved, a green baby is going to test that to every limit. One good fall, kick, bite or injury could ultimately ruin any chance a person of beginning experience has to advance or possibly the future of horse ownership.

I do not advice not getting the baby out of lack of experience. I really think this person needs to learn more before they take on such a challange. Not many people really know the love of riding a wonderfully trained horse. Sometimes a horse of age and experience is a better teacher than all the books and TV shows on the market. And some of those TV trainers are only out for a buck.

Safety should be a number one importance here. Life is too short to be ruled by inexperience that will result in injury of first off the human and secondly the animal. Chances should be taken only when all factors are weighted and the chancee is fully aware of the possibilities. No one wants to put themselves in danger .... unless they have some weird complex! LOLOL

You have to start somewhere and a baby and a beginner isn't always the answer.

 

[Heather08]

Quote:
These are not people to put your trust in by any means!

Look else where. Get maybe involved with a local horse club and find some folks involved in some sort of competitive event .

 

[Madfarmer]

I haven't read all the posts in this thread, so I may be repeating what others have told you. Horse training is a skill that can be learned by the average person. It isn't rocket science. Yes, horses can be dangerous. Always be aware of that. That said, there's plenty of good information to help you. Most "professional" trainers are rip-off artists. Unless you have a certified John Lyons or TTEAM (Linda-Tellington-Jones) trainer available, skip it and do it yourself. You WILL nead a 60' round pen for best results. Good horses are starving or going to the killers every day. If you can turn one into a good citizen, you're a saint!

Madfarmer

 

[monarc23]

Just some of my own experiences to share with ya. I know theres people saying*not a good idea* (they have their reasons for this), or *sure, but...* (they also have their reasons for this), and the ones that say *oh just go for it* (those ones are too carefree for my liking ha ha ha)!


When we first were looking into horses I was 13, my dream had ALWAYS been to have a horse. So my mom glued herself to horse people and we made great friends along the way. I joined 4h, showed my moms friends horses who'd been there done that.

The first ever horse I rode was a miniaure horse (a large mini). I still to this day cannot believe I hung on! For a mini he was powerful and he took off with me on him like a flash. All through this field. I then learned over time the reason I stayed on so well is he was galloping...dunno about all you guys but other than the walk, galloping is like a cake walk.

So easy to stay on---well unless the horse is crazy and does some quick 360 turn lol!

Then my moms friend started putting me on her giant draft mare Terpintine, who I learned all my other skills from riding western. I learned what it takes to get a lazy horse moving, when to be considerate to their needs, when to really pay attention where you're making your horse move etc.

Soon after that my moms friend said we were ready to start looking for a dead broke pony. So we adopted a pony from people just down the road that we had no idea even owned a pony. He was full of spunk and deffinatly not deadbroke like my moms friend had advised us get. BUT at that point I was more than just a begginer and did really well with him. My brother fell off on him though and has never ridden a horse since.

After that, my mom rehomed him and decided it was time to get me a HORSE horse.....then came Rusty, a gorgeous 18 year old quarter horse. She had an attitude, but as long as you didn't ask her, she'd go trail riding slow with you on her, BUT if you asked her to go fast.....no mistake about it she'd take off. I dreamed of doing barrols with her and everything but my momgot paranoid and soon after sold her and eventually my mom bought herself a pony and I had nothing.

So we went to an auction and we came home with a miniature, just gelded 2 year old he was a class B mini. I named him Little Dude and other than leading, he was pretty much a wildboy who still thought he ewas a studly and would squeal anytime he saw my moms mare (who we were keeping him away from since he was JUSt gelded, and because of quarentine).

He wanted NADA to do with me, bit me, kicked me, stepped on me, fought the lead anything to get away. Once his hormones wore off (took a while). And his quarentine was over I started working with him. Learned a great deal from RFD Tv actually, and the horse whisperer eppisodes I watched.

I gained his trust through lunging work (you technically dont need a round pen, but it's deffinatly agood idea to have one or atleast have the area you're working in fenced off so if the horse gets loose it doesnt just leave lol)!

Little Dude was bought for $300, by the time my mom made me sell him (when he was 5 years old), I sold him for $1,500. He was what i learned to train a baby from and I did pretty well...however, make note, he was a mini....nothing like training a stronger bigger, harder kicking, harder biting horse would be.

I had him not only trained for show, cart, rear up on command, pony rides, playing dead, pawing the ground on command, sitting on his bum, laying in water etc. I learned what it took to make a horse trust you so much it will go even where it's terrified of going (like over noisy bridges, over grates etc).

training a horse takes love, pacience, dertermination, dertermination, DETERMINATION. If you give up, the horse will know it and react accordingly (normally negitively).

Which I will get to now. My friend who I adopted a young dog out to a few years ago contacted me, last year saying she was making payments on a young colt. My first question to her was "have you had experiences with colts before?" Her answer "no." "well, okay have you had experiences with horses before?" Her answer "no."

Here, she thought because most people buy puppies and kittens to mold them into what htey want that it was the same for horses.....can be if you're just naturally tallented at horse training I guess but for most people...no i'd say it's deffinatly a bad bad idea lol!

Anywho....since she was already making payments and was deadset on this boy, I sent her several youtube videos that showed the proper training techniques, i explained everything to her...and soon she was like "wow.....i didnt realize how much was involved, im sre i can do it though, i wish you were closer I'd have you come train him for me!" Sadly i wasnt close....

She got him a few weeks later, and a few months later she messaged me and asked me if i wanted her colt. I asked her why....here, anytime she tried to work with him, and he got snotty with her, she gave in even just slightly...and it got to the point where if she came near him he'd pin his ears backa nd go after her teeth and hoof. She didn't get him gelded either so he was testosterone city.

She had her vet come out because one day he tore into his neck being a spaz, and he yelled at her for thinking getting a colt was the way to go...I would have yelled at her too, but i didnt have the heart.....but i knew in my heart that this would happen and it did.

Now i dont knwo where that colt is as i havent talked to her in a while (we talk only occationallyshe's a busy person)....but it saddens me, im not sure if slaughter houses are back up and running for horses but i can almost bet that several of those are youngsters that soemone thought they could train, and couldnt, and who got the better of htem, so they sold them at auction and were deemed too wild for pet, so went to the slaugther house. Just breaks my heart. Really does.

You can only learn through experience, but im telling you and anyone considering, glue yourself at the hip to someone who isn't out ot make a buck on you, who is passionate about horses....someone who'd rather take time out of their day to help a newbie to young horses, to insure that the future young horse has a good start in life.


Our one neighbor obviously had dreams of horses....so the first thing he did when he bought his home was put up electric fence, and bought the first gorgeous horse he came across. Just so happened to be a yearling quarter horse....he knew nothing of horses. He got the horse brought home for him, he walked the horse out, the trailor left, he opened the gait and let the yearling loose in the fence. Never showed the yearling the fence line...and the poor yearling ran righ tinto old barbed wire distroying tendons in his back legs and everything. The neighbor after finnally getting the horse up and out of the mess locked him in the barn for over a year before selling him to God knows where.

So you have experience with "been there done that " horses that's wonderful, now you need some experience with youngsters. I'm not saying do what I did, go out and get a mini, BUT lol, I can say that it did help learning on somethign small before going to something big. Believe me minis aren't easy, they are fun and enjoyable but they need just as much training as the bigguns.

My advice is get help from someone who cares, not someone who sees dollar signs because you'll find a lot of those out there. But theres those rare people who want the best for horses and want to help newbies. I am greatful everyday for how my mom did things, because i learned a great deal.

I dont have any horses now, butI hope to some day again if we get enough land at our first house.

I plan to start out with a broke gelding and once i get unrusty again, I want to get a weanling to train up the way i see fit.

And to who ever said waht's the worst that can go wrong training up a youngster? A lot. A lot. Injuries to both horse and human, escapes, a horse that absolutely hates humans (seen one of those...talk about terrifying), a horse that knows just about every trick in the book to psych out a person.


Theres that saying, and who ever said it was wise, very wise.

"...fall off a horse get right back on...." same with training, dont give up until it works.

Always end training sessions positively, but with the horse under your control.