My horses usually get ridden very little in Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb, nor in July and Aug. It has never caused a problem. They are at home, and mostly on 24 x 7 turnout.
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Oh got it! We have it in a couple of locations, and I mentioned on my other thread I’ve been chatting with an eventer friend. She has this setup, it is really cool.
I also have a couple of friends with retirement / rehab / 24/7 turnout situations that are close to home and that would be very much like “bringing them home”, just around the corner, and they offer a few boarding slots and they do full care. For riders that travel and stuff like that.
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It’s not unusual for horses to have a month or two off over the winter. If you’re boarding you may run into issues with barns requiring lessons or training, so you’d either have to make arrangements or pay the minimum even if you aren’t using the services.
I don’t think your overall plan is a very good one though, for several reasons. I wouldn’t buy a horse I was only planning to ride half the year, especially a young one. I think you’re really underestimating the impact taking ~6 months off every year is going to have on your riding ability. You’re not going to have the fitness or feel needed to give a young horse clear, consistent training, and it’ll be more dangerous for you to try if you’re out of practice. If you’re serious about switching disciplines this is all even more of a bad idea since you’ll be learning new things yourself which will set you back even further.
The program you’re describing is also not typical for eventing. You can find full training, but it probably isn’t going to be at a fun ammy-friendly barn like what you’ve described wanting. Eventers tend to be pretty self-sufficient and most barns are going to be geared towards people doing most of their own riding. Honestly you sound like someone who is in a place in their life to really benefit from a more standard H/J program where you have a little more help balancing everything else going on in your life and still enjoying your riding when you can. Based on this and your other thread I just don’t think eventing is going to be a good fit for you.
Sorry but this is not a good reason to buy a young horse, it’s a reason to be more selective about what horse you buy and get better advice while shopping. Your mare sounds great but that’s no guarantee you’ll get another great experience, and you were also in a very different place with that horse than you are now. It’s also really not a good idea if you want to train this horse in a discipline you’ve never tried yourself, that’s not fair to either of you and likely to create the baggage you want to avoid.
I know you’ve been through the ringer recently but I think you need to slow way down or you’re just going to find yourself in another bad situation. You’re thinking with your emotions right now, not your brain. You haven’t even tried eventing yet and you’ve already pinned your hopes on this eventing barn and a green prospect you haven’t even met yet. You’re setting yourself up for disappointment. Take things one step at a time and be willing to adjust as much as needed until you find a situation that feels right, even if it means deviating from the plan you had in your head.
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I hear you, and you’re not wrong. I’m just exploring ideas - trying to figure out if “winter off” - either turned out or in full care and training - is even attainable. I do realized I’m going to be stretched waayyy too thin the older my son gets and the more competitive he is in his sport to try and continue to ride winters through that. I’m not sure I want to be totally done with horses until he moves out (10 years off) so I’m mentally poking around.
One plus, the trainer I’m looking at, while an eventer, she trains jumpers, XC, and dressage and riders are welcome to do one only, or two, or all disciplines depending on what you need or want. When she had my mare, it was just dressage and jumping in the arena. So that’s where my brain was going.
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If you’re just looking to do low-level jumpers and flatwork and aren’t that worried about showing you’ll have more options. I would still be careful to make long-term decisions like buying a horse that are so dependent on a specific program to make it work for you - this barn may be great, but what happens if it closes down or you have to leave for some reason?
I would really recommend planning to find something to lease or part-lease next year instead of buying. I know you said it isn’t common in your area but once you’re a known quantity in a barn things tend to come out of the woodwork, and bringing in an outside full lease is always an option without the long-term responsibility of buying. Don’t let your recent experience sour you on leasing in general. If you’re set on buying, buy a little older. Buy something that you could offer up for a lease or for the trainer to use in lessons during the winter while you’re busy. The kind of horse other people would always be happy to ride for you if you can’t, and one that you could safely hop on and hack with no drama after a few weeks away. A young horse is not a good fit for your life right now, you want the known quantity that you can enjoy stress-free while you have other things going on.
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You are right, I’m a little (a lot) nervous about leasing. But trainer let me know she will have 3, 6, and 12+ month leases available for me when I am ready, no strings and no pressure to do events I don’t want to, and 0 pressure to show.
I would LOVE something that I could offer up to someone else to ride or trainer to use in the winter. Love it. So maybe middle of the road ish - not a baby, but something in the 8-10 range that I’d keep in her program.
So maybe break --> lease for spring + fall + break in winter --> consider a purchase.
Maybe I can find someone with a kid in summer sports and we can switch seasons, that would be cool.
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You said you’re a planner - just remember that horses have a funny way of wrecking even the best, most realistic plans made with the broadest strokes. What you have are some pretty stringent plans that @dmveventer did a lovely job of explaining why you should consider them carefully. Not that they can’t or won’t work! I just think you’re still pretty emotional and wrapped up in all of this, and your injury has you anchored down doing a lot of thinking. Thinking can be good or VERY bad 
.
My advice would be to pump the brakes, get off all the horse sale sites and pages (that’s how you end up with an impulse purchase horse… ask me how I know), and let your doctor and your body determine when you should get back in the saddle. Then you can see what barns and programs are available that may fit your lifestyle, take some lessons, and get to know your physical and mental state in the saddle. That can be the hardest part of riding again after a break/injury/kid… you want to get right back where you were but it’s often just not that easy or immediate. Better to start slow.
There is nothing wrong with spectating with friends or maybe volunteering, but don’t try to force things! Even if that means taking a horse break entirely. I would wipe that timeline clean, focus on rehab and PT, enjoy the extra time with friends and family, maybe go jump judge!
I wish you a speedy recovery!
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Agree, and I’m in a work travel situation through about October that prevents me (lol I know I know) from making any big splash landings back into horse world. I am strictly a spectator when the stars align and I’m around, for now.
I think I AM going to impulse buy some skis on end of year sale 
I’ve had my eye on some nice junior sized race skis for a clinic I’m planning on taking next season ….
Yes, I’m hopeless lol
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Maybe it’s just me but I’m not going to want to lease a horse only through the crappy winter months. I’d want a full year.
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FWIW Cudo has been off every winter since I bought him in 2018. All my guys are. They all come back fine. We can’t do 24/7 turnout, but they have 12 hours + out a day.
No harm, no foul and they look great.
Em
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Another PNW resident here. Years ago I leased a wonderful old guy. He was the ultimate schoolmaster - He had been to Madison Square Garden back in the day, etc., etc. We would turn him out in the winter. I’d ride my trainers sale horses and anything else available because I needed the lessons, and he didn’t. We’d bring the old man back in the spring and show in the warmer weather. He loved it. He didn’t need any schooling at all, just some fitness work when he came back, and the winter off agreed with him. (He actually had to be fed outside because he refused to go in his stall the first couple of days of his vacation!). If you can find a horse like that, it would be perfect for you!
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Yes to everything else but no to this. My $0.02 is that a young horse, a green horse, a project horse, etc, is a black box. It could work out, or it couldn’t. If you are a pro, if you have your own farm, if you have other horses that check off other boxes so you don’t need one horse to check (most of) them all, it’s a different equation. For someone in your shoes, it’s a bad equation 
. I know if and when I get my next horse, I won’t be considering anything under 10, and with a saintly disposition on top of that. I fully believe what others here have pointed out about young horses: they can be angelic from 3-5, then completely lose the plot ages 6-7, and they may or may not ever come back around or ever go back to being the “right amount of horse” for an amateur. For someone in a position to own multiple horses, or with a viable exit strategy going into the partnership, it’s an okay gamble. But I think for anyone else, it’s flirting with disaster!
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Just wanted to chime in that I agree with everyone saying I wouldn’t be looking at a young horse in your shoes. I know you had a lovely horse you got as a 4 year old and were able to develop. But every horse is different, and young horses in particular are still somewhat volatile as they grow and mature and learn their own strength. For every story where it works out, I’ve seen about 50 where the amateur ends up over faced, over horsed, and scared.
If I were you, especially based on your other post, I’d be looking for a horse that’s sensible and reliable. Probably one that’s older and experienced. You want a known quantity to get your own confidence back. I’d also probably look at leasing for a bit. And then when you have your sea legs back and a schedule that could accommodate a young horse (or a willingness to put a horse in full training if you don’t feel comfortable riding through green moments), then look at getting something younger. Maybe.
I think so many people discount older horses. My personal horse right now is 14. I am fortunate that my husband and I own a sales business and we get some truly nice youngsters in. But my hands down favorite to ride is my “old man.” He’s still doing the 1.20m with no need to step down. He’s beautifully trained, responsive, and I know exactly what I’m in for with every ride. It’s fun. The other horses are work to some extent. With him, I can really just enjoy everything we’re doing. I’ve let other ammies ride him from time to time, and they say the same thing. He’s fun. He’s easy. He’s predictable. When you have a lot going on in life (and it sounds like you do), riding a horse you can rely on is a major perk. Plus, he’s got years ahead of him still. People forget that. Horses don’t fall apart in their teens if you maintain them. You can still have plenty of time to enjoy them.
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THIS. And this is a huge reason that I think a green horse is a risky choice for OP.
I have a lovely, kind, super chill 5 year old. He is a different horse every. single. day. under saddle. He’s learning, and I can’t schlep around on him like I can my older horse who knows his job! He doesn’t have the years of experience and understanding of the expectations that come with being a riding horse. I have to have my brain on, and I’ve realized that sometimes it’s better to skip a ride if I’m tired or super distracted rather than use the ride as a decompression tool. It is hard to focus on yourself (fitness, confidence, position) when you have to focus on a greenie, and it can be a wild ride of ups and downs.
I think, OP, you’re very much wanting to get back to your comfort zone of your old mare. That’s understandable, but think about who you were as a rider when you first had her - how much time and other commitments did you have? Be careful not to gloss over the tough spots you had with the lenses of nostalgia. A green horse is fun and rewarding IF you have the right one, the right skills, the right help, and the right amount of time. Taking 6 months off a year is really not conducive to having fun with a green horse. You’re likely to feel as if you have owned 6 different horses, and you may not like all of them or find learning to ride the “new” version very easy.
Lastly, don’t count on someone wanting to lease your horse through the winter and rainy season just to give it back in April-May when things finally get nice outside and the shows kick into high gear. Easier to find a summer lease for yourself.
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So much depends on their personality. I’ll share my experience. I bought a greenish horse but he knew his job. He had turned 6 but had 6 months or so off for an OCD surgery prior to me buying him. (I also keep him at home).
Since 2021, when he was turning 7, he basically gets the winter off (like I did when I was a kid on the east coast). It is not that I NEVER ride him, we go on long walks, work on lateral moves, trailer out for a dressage lesson MAYBE once a month if it isn’t freezing, raining, gross 
I do not stress out about riding, getting off the property for lessons etc.
The first year I did this, both his jumper and dressage trainer commented in the spring - wow- what have YOU been doing he is amazing! He also keeps his fitness relatively well, gets lots of turnout etc.
I am not saying he is perfect, but turning 10 ,his a-hole moments in the spring have zero to do with what he has done or lack thereof all winter. He is fit enough I showed him last weekend and he won his division- against horses that had an indoor and trained all winter. For this show we go to every spring, I have honestly found he is no worst for wear or more ill behaved than the horses that go alllllll winter long.
He is NOT a horse that you would think would work in this type of conditioning program. He was bred to be a 1.50 jumper and he has that attitude 5% of the time, but it does not correlate with his work schedule. By now, he definitely knows his job, has the temperment that I can hack him down my drive in frozen weather, if my ring is muddy etc. He was not as finished when I started this but it worked.
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This is fair! “Greenish” and “just came off the track/from the colt breaker” are two different things!
I wouldn’t put OP off of something that’s “green” in the sense that it doesn’t have show mileage or needs a bit of finishing. But I WOULD put her off something 3-4 years old starting fresh.
YMMV, as always.
OP, I was thinking about this thread again yesterday, as I was hacking around my 7 y/o mare, who also gets the winter off.
This is the second year I’ve noticed I don’t benefit from the riding break, at least not physically. Last year I noticed my dang left ankle didn’t want to flex as deep as my right when I first got back into riding, and I would get this muscle fatigue in my foot after ~25m in in the saddle. This year it’s worse. I’m pretty fit - I play hockey 2x a week year round, walk daily, run once a week, and do other physical hobbies that keep my body in shape, but as you get older, your mileage catches up with you.
As far as who would lease a horse in the winter vs summer, I think you could find your person. A few years ago, I was looking for an arrangement like this to keep in riding shape over the winter while my horses got the winter off. No indoor for me at home, so leasing someone else’s well kept horse Nov-Feb was a win/win for me. There are lots of barns that go south for the winter but leave behind their non-compete horses, who would benefit from this arrangement.
As far as buying green/young/off the track… that all depends on the horse you get. I’ve owned two TBs where your situation would have been perfect for them. But I’ve also owned several other OTTBs that would not have thrived in that program. Depends on the personality of the horse in front of you, not the age and breed.
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Agree 100%.
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I rode year round in CA. Since moving to the Mid- West my horses usually get Jan-mid Feb( sometimes longer) off due to it just being nasty out or compromised footing. Most all my horses have done well on that type of schedule and come right back where we left off ( mind wise) after a week or so.
It can depend on the horse and some do better when worked consistently but it really doesn’t hurt either of you to give it a try.
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I am also in the PNW and ski in the winter. First of all, as many have said, many horses are just fine with a few months off. Im at a half training barn, 3x per week. I purchased a horse that’s just a good boy, so when I’m taking weekends off all winter, I just have someone hack him. So then I can ride once or twice a week for the heavy ski months and then take off the weekends with no concern. I stay in riding shape, my horse is fit, and I have no qualms skiing when then snow is good. The precursor is that I bought a good sort, anyone is thrilled to hop on him. Doesn’t mean you can’t get a younger horse, but it is sooooo easy with the right horse
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