First backing age

[Christa_P]

@Heinz_57

@Bluey

Do what fits you and your horse, but consider that others also may be doing right by theirs, even if they don’t do it as you choose to do with yours?

That works both ways, you know.

@Montanas_Girl

Of course not.

But, what decades of research has failed to produce is any evidence that starting horses at a young age is harmful. A couple of generations of scientists have examined this issue from multiple angles (race records, controlled experiments, etc.), and none have been able to produce any verifiable link between early work and injuries in later life.

I do hope this will continue to be studied from many angles.

Asking legitimately, not trying to be a smartass: If it truly doesn’t hurt anything, why not start them even younger? If 18 months is fine, why not right at a year? Or as soon as they’re weaned?

There was a broke yearling at an auction near me not long ago. Everyone was horrified, even the crowd that starts them the day they turn 2.

There is starting them and giving them age-appropriate work and over-working them and causing problems. Light work at 2, 3 or 4 shouldn’t be an issue. Expecting high level performance and really pushing them is a problem. We need to stop expecting 3 or 4 year olds to look and act like 8 or 9 year olds, but that doesn’t mean let them sit around and do nothing but eat. A kid that plays and gets some focused exercise and learning is going to be way ahead of the kid that sat around and tried to pick up a sport later.

[Montanas_Girl]

@Heinz_57

Asking legitimately, not trying to be a smartass: If it truly doesn’t hurt anything, why not start them even younger? If 18 months is fine, why not right at a year? Or as soon as they’re weaned?

I do start playing with my weanlings and yearlings - they wear saddle pads, surcingles (once they’re big enough for the girth to fit), bridles, etc. They usually don’t have the attention span for more than 5-10 minutes at a time at that young age.

[Amberley]

It depends on the facilities. If they are out on 250 acres of hills and grass with other youngsters they need less to do than if they are being raised in a dry lot 1 acre paddock. It’s important for them to move around a lot from a young age so if they can’t do that in turnout then humans need to intervene and do more work with them. We did a lot of ponying youngsters at one place I worked, which was incredibly good for them in many ways, but it’s something I’d do twice a month not 3 days a week if the facilities were there for them to exercise themselves.

As far as mentally learning to carry stuff on their back, I think any time between 2 and 5 works fine. The later you leave it the more likely you are to meet “I don’t wanna” but the earlier you are the more likely you are to get them anxious or pushy. I think many breeders know their own bloodlines well enough to know what works for them.

The main problem I see these days is young horses who aren’t fit and can’t get fit without injury because they have been couch potatoes their entire lives. I’m semi-convinced their feet and joints don’t grow properly without far, far mor exercise than many youngsters get.

[JB]

Horses were actually designed to run - run pretty fast, and from a standstill. It’s how they escape a suddenly appearing predator.

It’s one thing to properly (!!) start a young 2yo racehorse - riders are light, they’re not sitting heavy on their backs, and movement is forward with big sweeping turns. Their heads aren’t cranked in, they’re not asked to shift weight back in any sort of collection. It’s as conducive to as much bone-building and ligament/tendon strengthening as you can get, without overly stressing growth plates.

The 3yo being trained for fences is putting vertical forces on mostly open growth plates - hocks, stifles, back. By the time they’re cruising around 2’9"+ courses at 4, they’ve put in more than a few fences, and hours and hours and hours of flatwork

Add that many training programs automatically put them in draw reins to, ya know, “round them up”. Add to that, the heavier weight of most riders, especially if they’re in a professional program where a good many of the trainers are men, and they’re not the size of jockeys or exercise riders.

Look at how many barrel horses are running patterns at 3 and 4. Talk about torqueing those open growth plate joints!

Discipline work doesn’t need to start before they’re 5. If it’s a jump that’s just a bit bigger canter stride, no problem. Walking and trotting barrel patterns to learn the pattern, cool

It isn’t as simple as “it’s actually best to start a 2yo in race training”

[skydy]

@Bluey

Other than individual horses, each one may or not be more receptive to work with humans, if you have started horses of all ages, including many feral horses, younger or oder those, there can be a clear general difference with starting a two year old or a four year old in how they approach being guided and helped along.

@Demerara_Stables

I just want to add that the idea that waiting until the horse is older means they’re in some sort of phase where they don’t want to work is a myth. My career has been spent handling and riding horses from weanlings through 8yos, and there simply is not a trend that 5-7yos are more difficult to start. In fact, for the few I’ve started at that age, they’ve been easier because they’ve had 2 extra years of handling.

@endlessclimb

My experience differs. There was a clear difference in work ethic and tractability between one that was started at 2-3-early 4 and the ones who were started 5-6-7-8.

My experience is in line with bluey’s, endlessclimb’s and Montanas Girl. In general, I’ve found the 2 and 3 year olds are easier to back and more amenable to direction.

Some horses are “born broke”. I had a QH filly like that and it wouldn’t have mattered when she was started, she was going to be easy (and she was) but no way would I have waited until 4 or 5 to back my TB horses (weaners when I bought them.)

I don’t have anywhere near the backing and training experience that bluey has, and mine were kept at home, so they were backed at 2.5 to 3, when I knew that I could manage them well.

ETA @Demerara_Stables, When you are bringing up weaners, you’ve already had at least two years of handling before they are backed. If they need more than that, there is an issue.

[CanteringCarrot]

I’ve started a few horses and ridden many a green/just started horse. I’ve also noticed that starting them later (5+) can just be…different.

I know many experienced horse people/trainers that say this too, so I don’t think that it’s complete BS.

Do I think that every horse started at 5+ is going to be more difficult? No. Do I think they’re in a different place mentally and physically than a 3 year old? Yes. So that could have an impact of some sort. To what extent may vary.

[sparkygrace]

I’ve started a number of youngsters. I teach them to longline in the spring when they are three, then get on in the late summer. They are already familiar with contact. Work is maybe three times a week. Walk, halt, turn. Some trot is introduced. After few months, I stop and pick up training the following early spring when they are four. It has worked well for me.

One young horse I bought was unstarted at four. I started him under saddle right away and he progressed very quickly. Another was a rank five year-old stallion. He need lots of ground work (manners) after being gelded, but was super-easy to start under saddle. Not all will be that easy, though.

Kyra Kyrkland wrote an excellent book with the ABCs of starting a young horse. Her techniques work.