Trotting on pavement - what are the rules?

[Yip]

How much trotting on hard trail surfaces and pavement is ok for the horse’s legs?

Is there a point in fitness when it is not ok to trot on these surfaces?

Does fitness have anything to do with it at all? Assuming the horse is breathing comfortably for the gait.

Steel shoes? Fronts? Front & rear?

I am guessing most people don’t drive barefoot horses, but I don’t know that.

Is there a major difference in trotting while being driven vs. ridden, aside from the added weight/balance?

A friend from another board was asking about a group of horses that were trotted extensively over hard trails and roads (logging, unpaved) and wondered if that would seriously hurt their legs.

I thought I remembered reading somewhere that trotting on hard surfaces like pavement were actually good for the horse’s legs somehow. Did I dream that?

Thanks for whatever you can tell me.

Wendy

[mares_tails]

rules?

The main rule is that each horse is an individual, and you need to adjust your “rules” to the individual.

[Ashemont]

I trot my barefoot ponies down the road all the time. No extended trot, but a slow or working one. I was dubious about it at first but have now found that it doesn’t bother them at all - it’s just another ‘footing’.

My horses are now barefoot, too, and Bill trotted them on the roads - and the roads were WET! They were quite surefooted and didn’t slip at all. When I took the reins I also trotted on the road going back to the barn. Their hooves were fine - no chips or cracks.

I wouldn’t want to trot hard on any hard surface but they all seem quite willing to go be it an asphalt road or packed stone dust or clay. I think you just need to pay attention to your horses and their feet. Our horses were having some hoof problems - chipping, cracking, etc. - and they had difficulty holding shoes on. One of the NH-type farriers had an article about most horses he sees with poor hooves lacking Zinc and Copper. I know our soil is deficient in these minerals so I bought a bag of ZinPro (it’s what the feed companies add to their feeds) as I didn’t want a supplement with all kinds of other stuff in it. I’m happy to say that all of our animals now have good hard hooves and we’re actually going barefoot

[Thomas_1]

My driving horses routinely trot 5 to 8 miles on the roads every time they go out.

Likewise when they’re ridden. I’ve quite a few riding horses unshod but none of the drivers are. (I’ve one that has front shod only but that’s hardly doing a great deal. Just started it’s training)

You might want to read this which I posted on the FAQ section post 7 and re shoes and driving horses:

http://www.chronicleforums.com/Forum/showthread.php?p=3974459&highlight=studs#post3974459

[pricestory]

It is good for all horses, ridden or driven to walk and trot on hard surfaces, within reason, of course. It helps build stronger tendons and bones, just like it does for us. Too much can hurt but I always start my pony when coming back into work with lots of walks down the pavement. She does wear shoes all round. We worked in the beginning without shoes but she was wearing down her feet faster than she grows them. It was a shame because she has wonderful feet, just didn’t grow fast enough for the work.

[Yip]

Thanks, everyone.

Do you see any additional joint problems with your horses after trotting on hard surfaces? I mean, above the regular joint problems horses can get as they age.

[Thomas_1]

Absolutely not.

I tend to be a “keeper” of horses. Having invested a lot of time and trouble in training them to get them how I want and need them, it’s very rare I let them go. I’ve never ever had a horse with secondary joint disease or having to have things like joint injections or with ring bone or splints etc etc etc. Mind you mine all tend to die when they’re about 30 ish!

To be less flippant what you need to do is ensure your horse is fit and healthy and that the work programme is progressive and appropriate to build and strengthen the supporting structures. So … you don’t take your horse trotting for 8 miles to get it fit.

Rather you get your horse fit so you can take it trotting for 8 miles.

There’s a subtle difference.

If you are interested in a fitness programme for a driving horse that will take it from lay off to peak fitness to say do a combined event then if you go to this link you can obtain details of how to get that:
http://www.chronicleforums.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=104176

[LostFarmer]

"So … you don’t take your horse trotting for 8 miles to get it fit.

Rather you get your horse fit so you can take it trotting for 8 miles.

There’s a subtle difference."

Thomas, You must stop posting this stuff. I completely agree with you and that can’t be good for either of our reputations.

Yip you have been given good advice on bringing a horse into shape. I am a firm believer that conditioning and training are as important as the conformation of the horse. A horse that is brought into condition with a careful feed and exercise program will me able to handle most conditions over time.

Rant on! (please do not read if you don’t want to hear LF go off.)
Most horses have problems because of lack of fitness and feed programs. I mean too much or too good of feed and too little fitness. Horses are grazers they are not fat stock at a livestock show. Rare is the horse that needs anything but hay and a good salt and mineral block. That means very few need grain or hard feed. A little in the barn is not a big deal as barn bait but not the huge regimens that most horses are on. A horse that is brought into condition over time and kept there is capable of 25 to 30 miles a day without undue stress. I think nothing of taking my ponies on a 25 mile trail ride or a 12 mile trot to town and back with the buggy. They are damp at 6 miles but rarely lathered up. But I built them up to that with constant and varied conditioning. Horses are not hot house flowers. That need constant pampering. This is something that feed stores and tack salesman have taught us. It makes us feel good, but is harmful to the horse. LF

[Ashemont]

Amen, LF!!! Part of the reason I have enjoyed such success with my Polish Driving Ponies is that I DRIVE them… almost daily…different conditions… and I don’t stop just because they break a sweat! They love their job and are always eager to go so I know I’m not hurting them. And it’s always so nice to just sail through the vet checks at competitions

[Thomas_1]

[QUOTE=LostFarmer;4175515]

Thomas, You must stop posting this stuff. I completely agree with you and that can’t be good for either of our reputations. :D[/QUOTE]Trouble is you just never believe me when I keep saying that we’ve more in common than you might think ;):yes:

Yip you have been given good advice on bringing a horse into shape. I am a firm believer that conditioning and training are as important as the conformation of the horse. A horse that is brought into condition with a careful feed and exercise program will me able to handle most conditions over time.
Can’t fault a word of that but then I’m also extremely opinionated about horses that aren’t kept in good hard condition and kept by owners that really would be better off having a lawn mower!

I think nothing of taking my ponies on a 25 mile trail ride or a 12 mile trot to town and back with the buggy.
Mine tend to do a varied programme with rides out, driving, schooling, interval training etc etc but 12 miles would be well within their scope.

They are damp at 6 miles but rarely lathered up.
I’ve a few that are profuse sweaters and that I have to ensure stay cool. But they’re not sweating because they’re nackered or even tired. That’s just the way they are. So they’re respiratory and pulse rate, and recovery time is absolutely fine but they do sweat a bit and hence I have to carefully manage that and how they’re cooled down.

Another pet hate of mine is folks that have horses all booted up with (supposed) tendon supports and goodness knows what! And often just to go for a little tootle down the drive and back!!!

[Yip]

Thomas and all, I wasn’t asking about my own horses. A friend on another board saw people trotting for distances on hard surfaces on a trail ride she went on and thought it was cruel and unhealthy to do that to a horse. I told her driven horses are trotted on pavement all the time and I would ask the experts why and how it is perfectly fine to do it.

We appreciate your replies. People are learning, and that group is open minded and loves to learn.

LF, I agree with you! I am an adult beginner and have only been into horses for 7 years. I knew nothing except what I had read in books over a lifetime. So I came in on the culture that says horses are very delicate and sensative and hurt easily, and we should always be inside their minds because if we know how they feel we can better understand and train them. Same hogwash psycho-babble as raising spoiled, entitled kids who run the household. It’s been hard for me to separate fact from fiction. That’s why I love this board. Your posters are working horses the way they were meant to be worked - and you have happy, healthy horses. You are the first to show me the other side of the psycho-babble. Thomas, being British, has a vast background in horses where there was no psycho-babble, just centuries of using horses. You’ve been a great help in grounding me.

Thomas, I am going to buy your fitness program when I’m ready, probably in the fall. You’re doing good work for others in need.

Wendy

[Thomas_1]

[QUOTE=Yip;4175807]
Thomas and all, I wasn’t asking about my own horses. A friend on another board saw people trotting for distances on hard surfaces on a trail ride she went on and thought it was cruel and unhealthy to do that to a horse. [/QUOTE] What a pillock!

I told her driven horses are trotted on pavement all the time and I would ask the experts why and how it is perfectly fine to do it.
My riding horses do a heck of a lot of road work too. That’s pretty much common place in the UK. We’ve a lot of off-road riding but access is always via little roads and tracks and when the horses are needing just basic exercise and a run out then that consists of a quick circuit round the triangle and which is precisely 6 miles. (First and last half mile at walk and the middle 5 miles at a good brisk working trot)

So I came in on the culture that says horses are very delicate and sensative and hurt easily, and we should always be inside their minds because if we know how they feel we can better understand and train them.
mmmmm well I sort of can see how that can be correct BUT misinterpreted and not taken correctly.

I also think that horses are intrinsically sensitive and responsive and can be accident prone and as a trainer it’s best to understand how they’re thinking so you can get the best out of them.

But I don’t think for one minute that means you treat them like a fluffy toy poodle or can’t do anything with them. For sure it doesn’t mean you can’t trot a horse out on hard surface… PROVIDING you don’t leave the poor sod in a field for 3 weeks and let it stuff it’s face and get fat and then because YOU have time go take it for a 10 mile trot.

Now THAT would be akin to taking a fat couch potato on a half marathon run!

Thomas, I am going to buy your fitness program when I’m ready, probably in the fall. You’re doing good work for others in need.
Why wait till later when you can have it now :winkgrin: You could also get the fly repellent for the summer months when the little blighters are at their worst.

[Yip]

What a pillock!

LOL! I stated that right in my original post!

BUT, to your defense, you know I’ll be heading in that direction anyway and would have asked later, at some point.

Why wait till later when you can have it now You could also get the fly repellent for the summer months when the little blighters are at their worst.

And quite the salesman, too, I see, LOL! OK, next pay I’ll bite. Today’s pay we have to write a fat check so our granddaughter can go to a Christian horse camp in VA the first week of July. We sent her last summer too and found it very rewarding for all involved.

Wendy