Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

Really well put, Rae!  Especially the part about letting an immature 
horse grow up a bit before asking much.  Even though it might not seem 
so at the time, the extra costs involved in just turning a horse out for 
a while are cheap compared to the life long problems that horse is 
likely to cause by being asked for too much too soon.
Laney


Rae wrote:
> I've also sent my horses off to a fellow who specializes in "30 day
> turnovers," and he says a lot of people seem to think that means a fully
> finished horse.  He puts on the basics - mounting, dismounting, right left,
> walk, trot, canter and whoa.  What I get back is a horse I can start
> training, with all the initial "I'm being ridden!!" goobers out of their
> system.  That said, I've had two geldings that took longer than 30 days.
> One, he said he needed another month and at the end of that month, he still
> wouldn't let me ride the horse.  This gelding was too unpredictable and the
> trainer's suggestion was to give up and take him to an auction and cut my
> losses.  I threw the gelding back into the pasture for a couple more years
> to let him grow up mentally and then we tried again last year and he's doing
> VERY well.  
>     With the other gelding, we got hit with rain for 18 of his 30 days
> (trainer has an outdoor arena), then the gelding got sick, so I had to take
> him home until he got well, then back to the trainer.  There were a lot of
> interruptions with the training, so it took him 3 months to finally get his
> "30 days."  He was still green, as I expected, and after several months of
> more training (trail riding, arena lessons, etc) he's gone on to become a
> steady 100 miler who recently passed his 1,000 mile mark.
>    I'd definitely talk to the trainer.  Find out what her evaluation is of
> your boy.  Some horses just mentally have a difficult time grasping that
> it's time to work.  It doesn't mean that they're bad, or that the trainer is
> bad, just that this particular horse needs more time.
>
> Rae 
> Tall C Arabians - Central Region 
> Photos: http://community.webshots.com/user/niepe
>  
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> [mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of heidi@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Sent: Saturday, December 08, 2007 11:15 PM
> To: Burnett,Elly
> Cc: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: RE: [RC] Need quick advice...
>
> > I dropped him off on September 1st for 60 days training, and signed a
> contract that said he'd be doing X, Y and Z at the end of 60 days.  I called
> once a week for an update, and six weeks into the deal the trainer still
> hadn't ridden him (she'd been doing "extensive" groundwork with him).  I was
> more than a little frustrated, since I'd be getting him back in two weeks
> with only a short amount of time under saddle.  I understand the need for a
> good groundwork base, but it seemed like this was a little excessive.  I
> finally got fed up and told her I needed to see what he was doing, and went
> down and was thoroughly impressed with his groundwork and attitude change.
> She wanted to keep him for another month, and we negotiated back and forth
> and I agreed I'd only pay board at the facility so she wouldn't lose any
> money and she would finish him in another 30 days.
>
>
> Although I can see your frustration with the recent delays, keep in mind
> that all horses have their own timetable in training, and there are no
> guarantees that come with magic numbers like "30 days," "60 days," or
> whatever.  What one horse will accomplish in a week another might take a
> month, even with a skilled trainer.
>
> If this situation is not the norm for this trainer (and you said she came
> highly recommended) I would be hesitant to suggest that you are getting a
> run-around.  I'd suggest going back to the people who recommended her to you
> and asking them for more details of their experiences before you get in a
> hurry.  And if the horse is making progress, you might want to persist...
>
> If, on the other hand, this kind of thing turns out to be the norm, then I'd
> agree that you need to look elsewhere.
>
> That said, no horse is "finished" in the time frame you mention--they are
> "started."  You will spend lots of miles and hours and wet saddle blankets
> "finishing" him...  :-)
>
> Heidi
>
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