Things a young horse should see/do

Jessey

Jessey

Well-Known Member
Dec 20, 2004
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Suffolk, UK
Help me write a list? I like a list 🤪

I’m trying to think of all the things I want to introduce Niko to before I back him, due to my set up some things take a bit more effort (eg stabling) and require planning and others I just forget about.

He’s done all the baby basic handling plus;
✅ bit (needs more)
✅ saddle (needs more)
✅ mounting block/leaning over
✅ bridge
✅ river
✅ cows
✅ small traffic/trailers
✅ garden stuff (lawn mower/strimmer/ leaf blower/wheelie bins etc.)
✅ horse and cart
✅ met horses out
✅ roadworks
✅ dogs

❌ pigs
❌ sheep
❌ saddle bags
❌ splitting off from friends on the trail
❌ lorries/buses
❌ motorbikes
❌ arena mirrors
❌ Indoor arena
❌ outdoor school
❌ high-tie/hobble/corral
❌ busy traffic (up close)
❌ a show
❌ tents
❌ Level crossing
❌ train
❌ umbrellas
❌ drone
❌ tunnel
❌ off roading

This is as much about keeping me occupied until he’s ready to back as for his benefit 😉
 
Flappy maps, especially from above? Or is that too old fashioned now? I still like a good old paper map lol.
 
I expect the horses I hack to tolerate anything we meet. But others on our yard do not.
Not useful but to add to your list
today we met a teeny baby squirrel,
Heavy horses in the distance pulling heavy mower - even if those horses live on the same yard, a working pair in the distance and the red paint on the mower is a fearsome thing. We had our first ever spook and unsolicited canter.
A young hooded crow that would not vacate the path.
As well as UK style dark umbrellas, we meet Japanese sunshades brightly coloured. I was out with YO in my early days and she asked the group of women to lower their sun shades. They didnt understand.
A body protector. I hung mine on the hitching rail while I groomed her this morning (it was so hot) and she sniffed it all over before she was willing to ignore it. I figure she had never seen a bp before except on a rider.
 
Skib said:
I expect the horses I hack to tolerate anything we meet. But others on our yard do not.
Not useful but to add to your list
today we met a teeny baby squirrel,
Heavy horses in the distance pulling heavy mower - even if those horses live on the same yard, a working pair in the distance and the red paint on the mower is a fearsome thing. We had our first ever spook and unsolicited canter.
A young hooded crow that would not vacate the path.
As well as UK style dark umbrellas, we meet Japanese sunshades brightly coloured. I was out with YO in my early days and she asked the group of women to lower their sun shades. They didnt understand.
A body protector. I hung mine on the hitching rail while I groomed her this morning (it was so hot) and she sniffed it all over before she was willing to ignore it. I figure she had never seen a bp before except on a rider.
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He’s seen the horses and carts, that’s about as close as I’m going to get to heavies and a mower, but it does remind me to add tractor to the list.
 
Pushchairs. People with massive backpacks. Ramsey never got over those 2 things! Also runners in big groups.
 
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Definitely backpacks, clothes - jackets, hats, hi-viz, putting on and taking off as well as seen at a distance.

Ice cream vans that play music. Horses are a very convenient height to buy an ice cream from and it entertains the locals
 
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Ladders, preferably being waved about above someone’s head! Belle had a total meltdown at a BT engineer getting his ladders off the top of his van once.
 
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Like ladders waving - One thing that scared my old share out of her wits and I have seen other horses too including Maisie, is those high rise lift things the tree surgeons use when dealing with moth and infestation? Like a stretched up neck of a dinosaur or giraffe. Luckilly where I now ride, the tree people usually arrive a van and I can circuit a parked van without feeling a failure.
 
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We had the army exercising one day. A block of infantry men - a rectangle - with the men in the squad shouting at every step. I remember my young escort waving at them to shut up! They never returned to our part of the tracks,
 
Skib said:
We had the army exercising one day. A block of infantry men - a rectangle - with the men in the squad shouting at every step. I remember my young escort waving at them to shut up! They never returned to our part of the tracks,
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Yes I can take him out around the army training areas, which reminds me we should go by the school at lunchtime too
 
I think if he trusts you, then everything just comes from you saying "it's ok" and off you go.

You can't tick all the boxes, but you can just be there for him so that your relationship is more important than the boggarts that live in the hedge.

I also think that over-stimulating a youngster about everything is not particularly good for them. Slow and steady. Life will throw what life will throw. Your relationship is the important bit - when your horse knows that when the chips are down, they look after you! Every horse should know that. Not today is Thursday and it's time to be introduced to the bin lorry.

But that's just my opinion.
 
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I agree you can do too much, but I’m not doing masses, just a little something every couple of weeks and not always new stuff. He’s a bit of a monkey see, monkey do kind of a guy, but also quite anxious, so I think the more he sees while I’m on the ground it will make it easier for him to cope once I’m on board, he’s certainly much more confident from this approach so far. Unfortunately I’m not likely to have a companion for many early rides so by then I want him to really trust me and that I’m not putting him in a bad situation and trust has to be learnt.
 
Daughter has similar type horse. He looks to her for the reassurance that everything around is fine. He believes her. She doesn't "show him things" - we don't have that easily around, but the work she's has done (just little things) has led to the bigger things being ok.

I wouldn't have a list. I wouldn't tick stuff off. I would just see what life throws at you and how you react will reflect in how your youngster reacts based on the relationship you have.

You can over-think these things.
 
Frances144 said:
Daughter has similar type horse. He looks to her for the reassurance that everything around is fine. He believes her. She doesn't "show him things" - we don't have that easily around, but the work she's has done (just little things) has led to the bigger things being ok.

I wouldn't have a list. I wouldn't tick stuff off. I would just see what life throws at you and how you react will reflect in how your youngster reacts based on the relationship you have.

You can over-think these things.
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One of the reasons I put more thought in is because of my set up and surroundings, if I don’t he’ll never be away from the mare who he always looks to for direction. I don’t have stables, or a yard out of the field, I’m not on a livery so only me around, no machinery or vehicles coming or going. He’d be seeing an awful lot of these things daily on a big yard but he’s not. I had to plan and organise for a man to come and chat near him because he went to pieces if a man spoke near him when he first came to me.
The list is for me not him, I have the memory of a goldfish and like to have lists for inspiration. I don’t plan to March through the list trying to tick everything off as quickly as possible at all and I don’t really think I’m doing much compared to what a lot of people do with 3yo’s, if I took him to a show he’d probably see two dozen new things in a single day.
 
For me the bigger issue is that he learns he can trust you. You can't desensitise against everything, and even if you do you may find he accepts something at home but not when out, but if he trusts you then if he comes across something he isn't happy with he'll turn to you and you'll both be fine.
 
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carthorse said:
For me the bigger issue is that he learns he can trust you. You can't desensitise against everything, and even if you do you may find he accepts something at home but not when out, but if he trusts you then if he comes across something he isn't happy with he'll turn to you and you'll both be fine.
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I believe to learn trust you have to do something occasionally that’s slightly outside of their comfort zone in order to build more trust on a basic foundation.

It’s not about desensitising, it’s about a horse who came with zero experience of anything other than a field where he was turned out, his only interaction with 2 women. When I viewed him It literally took me minutes to even be able to touch his shoulder with the breeder holding him. I’m just letting him see the world before I try to do it on his back.
 
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I’m actually quite offended that anyone that’s read my diary about him thinks I don’t care about building a good and trusting relationship with him.
 
Jessey said:
I’m actually quite offended that anyone that’s read my diary about him thinks I don’t care about building a good and trusting relationship with him.
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That's not what was said, rather that if you have trust then the rest will follow.
 
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