I am SO excited. Finally took the plunge and brought home a young (4 y.o.) OTTB gelding. He’s been restarted and has a lovely, quiet, brave mind. However, he’s been ridden VERY inconsistently over the last year, so I’m basically starting from scratch. Obviously I’m working with a trainer, but I will spend a lot of time working him on my own, too (groundwork, flatwork, etc). From those of you experienced with OTTBs, what’s your best regimen for bringing one along? What do you practice on the ground? What do you practice in the saddle? What’s your focus for the first week, first month, first six months? Thanks in advance!
There are some excellent books on the topic. Don’t have a time frame- let your horse determine that.
1 Like
Get your trainer to set up a flat work routine for you to repeat at home. Practice with your trainer until you can do the exercises correctly. From my experience OTTBs thrive on routine-I think it’s part of their signature work ethic. As your horse progresses, you will expand the work.
Then, quiet hacks out of the arena to build on the confidence the routine creates.
1 Like
On the ground, basic manners, cross tying. I don’t do much lunging unless the horse has a specific need for it; lunging skills with OTTBs are highly variable, some learned it well when they were started, others didn’t. But nearly all of them will be unbalanced and weak on 20m circles (esp at canter!) so I don’t do much (if any) lunging in the first few months.
The first month is about developing a base of fitness, communication, and “job training” (ie, you are not a racehorse anymore). Typically ridden 5x a week, a lot of hacking/trails and a bit of arena work, mostly walk/trot explaining how to use the body and what lateral aids mean. Ask for a canter transition each way, canter just enough to find a happy rhythm on a big gentle circle, then trot.
Some people avoid the canter altogether, waiting until the horse is more balanced and educated at trot. However I’ve found this can build “canter anxiety” in horse or rider, and it’s better just to fumble through a limited amount of canter work each day (knowing it will be rough in the beginning) with minimal expectations and a “no big deal” attitude.
Each ride builds on the last, teaching about consistent contact, rhythm, yielding off the leg, etc. I may start work over poles soon, and hop over a few low fenced to see what I’ve got (talent? Aptitude?) But I’ve learned after many restarts, put in a solid 3-6 months of flatwork, improving balance, transitions, straightness, and the jumping will come along very quickly. 
5 Likes
Don’t be in a hurry. Like you said, groundwork so you can control each section of his body, he learns to move nicely away from pressure. Light lunging. Mostly walk, some trot. Eventually add floppy side reins. Walk under saddle, working on steering, brakes, circles, serpentines, etc… all at the walk. Add trot when it’s easy. By then you should have a pretty adjustable and happy partner who understand leg aids, steering, seat, etc… And can begin to specialize.
Congrats! Definitely echo the sentiments re: groundwork. You can do almost everything from the ground that you would work on mounted: disengaging the hindquarters/shoulders, shoulder-in, leg yields, etc.
Once he’s comfortable in side reins, I would recommend ground driving to help learn contact, straightness and steering.
