Exercising weanlings?

[Tammy Breckenridge]

Hi there,

I have 2 weanlings that I would like to show as yearlings next year and Im not sure how much or what kind of exercizing I should do with them. I regularly round pen and drive my gelding for fitting up but Im afraid to much round pen work would harm these little guys joints.

Any advice is helpfull,

Thanks

Tammy Breckenridge

owner of Breckenridge's Little Blue Dash HOF and Jack the miracle foal

 

[Magic]

You're right, round pen work isn't a great idea with weanlings and yearlings. Although, a BIG round pen (sixty feet in diameter or more) would be better for any horse, IMO, than a small one.

Do you have a good-sized area that the youngsters can run around in? If so, you could go out and get them running, "free-lunging", for exercise. Not TOO large an area though, or *you* are more likely to be the one getting most of the exercise, lol! :lol:

I show weanlings and yearlings from time to time, but I just don't like round-penning them, I let them romp and play on their own for exercise (just my personal preference).

 

[nootka]

I show my babies as weanlings and yearlings and on up as long as I have them, but I don't exercise either weanlings or yearlings.

I let them all out to play together and I find they end up in good enough shape that I am proud to bring them in the ring. I am not a professional trainer, just an amateur, but my main concern is that they grow up as straight, sound, and healthy both mentally and physically, as possible, so a ribbon or show is not worth jeopardizing that.

What I DO as far as training is to teach to tie, to lead, to clip and lift their feet for farrier work, etc. but I don't "work" them at all. Once in a while we run around in the pasture as in free lungeing but it's more a game than anything designed to muscle them up.

I know many people condition yearlings but to me it's again still too young and so I rely on the fact that they are out playing w/the weanlings themselves and still growing to keep them in decent shape.

Best wishes!

Liz M.

 

[Miniv]

We never formally exersized weanlings.......but would Free Lunge yearlings in a big corral/arena area, working them very gradually up in time and making sure they went in both directions. We have also always allowed our horses to be out to run and be horses, whether they were being shown or not. Once the show season hit and they were clipped, we would stall them at night.

Hands on training for halter was done 5 to 10 minutes a day because of their short attention span. We also didn't want to sour them to the whole idea. Weanlings we have never really halter trained for show, just taught them about leading and standing with us and to get used to us messing with their legs.

MA

 

[Jill]

I don't think I'd lunge weanlings but if you have a couple together, they will play and exercise themselves quite a lot usually.

This past season, I did lunge my yearling, DunIT, but he's an 02/05 yearling and he is also "mature" physically for his age. When conditioning him, I lunged him in my 40' round pen (footing is just sawdust in mine) for about 15 minutes every other day.

Next season, I plan to show two yearling fillies. I'm undecided as of yet what their conditioning will involve. It seems to me that the 'boys' play and work themselves MUCH more than the 'girls'.