Would a cart like this be suitable for breaking a pony to cart?
Not sure if it’s still available but it was very reasonably priced last I inquired.
Looks too ‘spensive to wreck 1st time out. Grant it, I haven’t broken one to cart just yet but when I do (within the year) I’ll be going with an easy entry from Pequea carriage shop in Narvon, PA. I tried to find a pic. It’s out there, but couldn’t find it just now.
I used a similar cart in the past to do the first hitching and training. I believe you need a sound cart and harness in every stage of training/driving. But its especially in the initial stages of being driven.
Please make sure you do every conceivable form of ground work before you hitch. I do the following when I think a horse is close to being hitched
- put weight on the breastcollar so I or my helper is “pulled” along. (a tire, a sled, or a human pulling back. Use whatever will put pressure on the traces so the horse gets used to pulling something, but is safe for you and your horse)
- put weight on the britching
- use poles so that the horse is turned into them and feel the pressure as they would with shafts
- have a helper pull the cart along behind the horse, so the horse can get used to the noise of the cart
- put the horse between the shafts and have a helper pull the cart, but let the horse push against the shafts as we turn
- hitch the horse and ground drive while the horse is hitched
Only after all this do I consider getting in the cart. Even then I have a helper with a long leadline or lunge line in case of emergencies.
I’ve never had an issue with the horse or cart doing it this way. But as someone said, my horses are “broke to death before they’re hitched”. :>
Make certain whatever cart you get is completely sound and safe. What the cart looks like doesn’t matter … just that its sound, safe, and correctly fits your horse. This is not the time to cut coroners on safety and fit.
Good luck to you!
It’s not what I’d ever use for putting novice horses to harness. Looks positively dangerous for that purpose:
Too difficult to mount and dismount! What happens if you need to get on or off in a hurry!
No back step! Where do your “assisters” go. What if you need to drive the novice horse from the ground or back step?
Wood shafts etc! Wayyyyy too breakable for putting horses to harness
Wooden wheels! A bit limiting for where you could take it to give the novice horse varied experience. (But then I do use mine cross country.)
Lacks adaptability! It’s not got any adjustment in it. So you can’t balance it or alter it for different size horses.
[QUOTE=Thomas_1;4687031]
It’s not what I’d ever use for putting novice horses to harness. Looks positively dangerous for that purpose:
Too difficult to mount and dismount! What happens if you need to get on or off in a hurry!
No back step! Where do your “assisters” go. What if you need to drive the novice horse from the ground or back step?
Wood shafts etc! Wayyyyy too breakable for putting horses to harness
Wooden wheels! A bit limiting for where you could take it to give the novice horse varied experience. (But then I do use mine cross country.)
Lacks adaptability! It’s not got any adjustment in it. So you can’t balance it or alter it for different size horses.[/QUOTE]
I considered a lot of those points but still wanted to ask. I’m just having a terrible time finding something to use as a breaking cart that doesn’t cost more than I have and that will fit him and not be too heavy. I’m just going to look for an old jog cart I think just to get him started. I just need one of those carts like Cartfall just purchased .
Thomas I can’t tell you how many jog and racing bike shafts we broke many moons ago before they made metal shafts.
Something more like this would be preferable for first putting a horse to.
[QUOTE=nightmoves;4687177]
I’m just going to look for an old jog cart I think just to get him started. I just need one of those carts like Cartfall just purchased .
Thomas I can’t tell you how many jog and racing bike shafts we broke many moons ago before they made metal shafts.[/QUOTE]
You should be able to find a cheap pipe cart like what I call my woods cart–it is a used (pre-owned) Pioneer/Frontier pipe cart I bought slighty wrecked for 300 bucks. Changed out the wheels for same amount and have used it seriously hacking around the woods for almost 10 years now. That or if there is a Standarbred track somewhere close, go get a jog cart–not a racing bike. I know down here there are folks who don;t want to take them back north. A jog cart is perfect for the first hitch.
I am curious why you broke so many shaft putting horses to carts. Because we did a lot of ground work, by time we got to putting a horse in the cart, it was a non-issue. Not slamming here, just curious.
I too had a horse that we hitched based on a previous owner’s–oh year he drives–that wrecked 4 pairs of those wimpy wire wheels that come on the pipe carts before we gave up and decided he didn;t really drive.
I know that wasn’t directed at me but I’ve put a heck of a lot of horses to harness and I’ve broken wooden shafts.
Trust me the horses are produce are prepared very well. A lot have accused me of “over preparing”.
Whole range of reasons why shafts broke but break they did.
Including just hurredly and carelessly bouncing one down when quickly unharnessing and being stepped on! But I’ve also had a shaft rammed into a gatepost in the old days before I decided to build metal vehicles.
Now if you’re just doing a single horse once in a lifetime then it might be that you’ll be lucky but to buy a vehicle for putting to. Might as well get what suits the purpose.
I am curious why you broke so many shaft putting horses to carts. Because we did a lot of ground work, by time we got to putting a horse in the cart, it was a non-issue. Not slamming here, just curious.
Well we started in racing Standardbreds over 25 years ago. Preparing them with a lot of the proper ground work just wasn’t the way things were done especially when you are breaking them at the racetrack in the middle of Chicago. Over the years of course we perfected our methods especially once we got to the farm. We still never drug anything behind them they went straight from ground work to the jog cart BUT they also spent a lot of time getting used to the shafts touching them and the cart bouncing around before we took them out. Sometimes my husband would ground drive around the track and I would run around them with the lightweight race bike just to get them used to seeing the cart behind and around them. Neighbors probably thought we were nuts. He made it part of the routine in the ground driving process to pull the cart up over them and move it back and forth to get used to the shafts on their sides. We had great luck with this method and by the time we were ready to hitch and go my husband could usually drive them right out the barn without me having to have a line on them. I only actually got run over by the cart one time. LOL
Funny story we had a filly that would stand like a statue everyday for a few minutes before she would step off with the cart on her. One day for some dumb reason I got in front of her and that was the day she decided to run out the barn. Caught us both by surprise and I became a human speed bump. Filly managed to step over me but not the cart. We still laugh about that one. You live and learn.
[QUOTE=Thomas_1;4687421]
Something more like this would be preferable for first putting a horse to.
http://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/showthread.php?t=244577[/QUOTE]
That’s the cart I want but it comes with a price tag of about 1700 and then I still need to get a show cart. Was hoping to find something used for breaking that didn’t cost quite so much and that other cart was $500 AND the right size. I’m thinking it would almost be cheaper for me to send him off to be broke than to invest in a breaking cart at this point.
Any suggestions for a driving trainer near Ocala, FL for a pony stallion. I would prefer a woman or a man that’s not going to rough him up any because he has been mishandled by a man previously.
Get one second hand rather than new.
But hey, that’s a new one on me! Thought I’d heard it all before 
But I’ve never come across anyone yet who got a horse put to harness by a trainer because it was cheaper than buying a vehicle. Trust me it’s not!
If you sent him here it would cost you a heck of a lot more than $1200. Even assuming you lived just down the road.
How big a pony are your talking about? If it is Hackney Pony sized (12-13 hands) you should be able to find a used pony sized jog cart for a reasonable price (under $500). Jerald, Houghton, Pennsbury and a few brands, search using those barnd names and jog cart or bike. If you have a larger pony you probably won’t find a jog cart as jog carts tend to be made either for Hackney Ponies or for horses.
[QUOTE=Thomas_1;4687826]
Get one second hand rather than new.
But hey, that’s a new one on me! Thought I’d heard it all before
But I’ve never come across anyone yet who got a horse put to harness by a trainer because it was cheaper than buying a vehicle. Trust me it’s not!
If you sent him here it would cost you a heck of a lot more than $1200. Even assuming you lived just down the road.[/QUOTE] Well he could go for a couple of months for that and probably doesn’t need that much. He’s already broke to ride, I ground drove him all over the place all last summer. In a month I would certainly think someone could get him started to a cart and it’s not like I’m a total novice with a horse and need him to be kid broke.
I’ve been trying to find a used cart and all I come across here in FL are mini and horse size. He’s 12.3 hands. I could find those easy entry all day long with the flimsy little wire wheels but I don’t want one of those.
[QUOTE=nightmoves;4687648]
That’s the cart I want but it comes with a price tag of about 1700 and then I still need to get a show cart. Was hoping to find something used for breaking that didn’t cost quite so much and that other cart was $500 AND the right size. I’m thinking it would almost be cheaper for me to send him off to be broke than to invest in a breaking cart at this point.
Any suggestions for a driving trainer near Ocala, FL for a pony stallion. I would prefer a woman or a man that’s not going to rough him up any because he has been mishandled by a man previously.[/QUOTE]
check your PM
I did cartfall but it says I have zero messages:)
try again— I was a little slow finding the numbers.:lol:
