Young horse training shouldn't be spectacular! It shouldn't be flashy paces and 'on the bit'. Correct training of a young horse is not spectacular, it is not flashy and it shouldn't be all about poll flexion. Correct young horse training takes time and is fundamental to the longevity of their body’s health.

I like the saying "It takes the time it takes" but in the case of working with young horses it's more appropriate to say "it takes the time THEY need".

Whilst all horses mature skeletally in the same time frame, every young horse is an individual when it comes to their mental maturity to cope with the learning experience and also when their bodies are going through growth spurts. Knowing when your young horse is mentally 'ready' to start and physically level enough to support the rider’s weight is more important than following the conventional norm of starting your horse under saddle at 3 or 4.

With one of my youngsters her body resembled a sway backed camel at rising 4, due to a huge growth spurt and as a naturally sensitive type she was not ready mentally to back. Instead, I spent time teaching her things she could succeed in: learning the process of lunging, bitting and wearing tack. She learnt about moving her shoulders, moving her quarters, reinback, basic transitions, and changing the rein, inhand and on the lunge often using a cavesson only. The aim of that process was to instil some basics, some trusting experiences whilst her body and brain matured. Don’t feel pressurised by what your yard owner or well-meaning friends think, look at your horse, listen to your horse, are they ready physically or mentally to begin carrying you?

Recently a client brought along her lovely young horse for his first clinic.  This young horse was under saddle but the work we did was not spectacular or flashy, to any passing onlooker the work we were doing would have looked ‘different’, at odds to what is perceived ‘normal’.

However, the type of training I was imparting on this combination was fundamental to the health of this young horse and his riding longevity. EVERY young horse should be granted that opportunity.  Remember, it shouldn’t look flashy and your young horse should not be moving with their crest the highest point and their nose behind the vertical!  

Young horse training should be about teaching the basic language of aids, what our hands mean, what our weight means, what our legs mean. This enables you to develop your young horses: balance, relaxation and impulsion; teaching the horse how to move their bodies in a way that helps them feel good; in a way that helps them understand how to move on a curved line or straight line in balance; in a way that helps them build trust in the questions asked by their humans; in a way that protects their body from dysfunctional movement; in a way that enables them to be confident and relaxed in the work asked of them.

Ditch the gadgets, ditch the 'driving from behind', ditch the 'get him on the bit', learn how to train your young horse without these methods. Train for longevity - train for methodical, solid, foundation level training of your young horse. Use training methods that protect your horse from poor, training-induced-pathology. Use training methods that develop functional, healthy, happy horses. Explore the benefits of French Classical Training and principles of the School of Legerete, you and your young horse may benefit from that.

Give your youngster the RIGHT training techniques and the time THEY need during this important stage of learning and you will be rewarded in the long term with a confident, trusting riding companion. There are never any guarantees with soundness, but a young horse started with my preferred training techniques has a much better chance of remaining a sound riding horse than those who are not granted that gift.

By Kat Layfield thinkingequitation@gmail.com