Article #1

COLT STARTING
What Can You Expect in Sixty Days?

This is the time of year when all the colts and fillies are turning two and three. Have you considered when and where you are going to enroll your “youngster” in school?  Many years ago Robert Fulghum wrote a book entitled, “All I Really Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten” which became an instant classic. His theory was that the early education of a child is really the foundation of life skills that everything else is built upon. Regardless of your equine discipline, the foundation your colt receives will determine how well they perform, once in advanced training.

Starting horses has almost become a lost art. There are many fine horsemen who train and show horses successfully, yet starting the young horse has become just a necessary evil that must be dealt with prior to the “real” training process. Often this job is relegated to a less experienced assistant or the colt is sent away for a “Horse Breaker” to remove the bucks. If gold buckles were awarded for colt starting, perhaps more attention and care would be administered to the process.

Let’s suppose your colt has been with a reputable trainer for a few weeks. It’s probably time to visit, watch your colt work, and get your trainer's evaluation of his progress. There are some basic maneuvers that the trainer should be able to demonstrate with your horse. Whether you would be able to accomplish these things depends totally on your experience and horsemanship skills. Young horses demand a great deal of direction and support. If your colt does not feel leadership coming from you, you will not get the smooth responses you witnessed with your trainer riding him.

It’s important to know what your trainer's policy is in regard to getting both you and your horse together.  If your colt will be continuing his education with another trainer this is not as important. However, if you are planning to take this horse home, to ride yourself, it would be valuable to spend time with your horse and trainer before leaving his facility.

• Is your trainer willing to spend this time with you?
• Will he or she demonstrate how the colt responds in different situations?
• When the trainer feels the colt is safe enough, will you be given some lessons with your colt, helping the two of you get together?
• Are these lessons included in the monthly training price, or is there an additional fee? 
• You’ll want precise answers to these questions in advance.

Generally speaking, green horses and green riders are not a very good combination for success. I recommend that experienced riders should handle green horses, and experienced horses are better suited for green riders.

The following is a realistic list of expectations for a sixty day training program.

Your Colt Should:

• Lead and follow respectfully. 
• Be able to be tied and stand tied.
• Be able to pick up all four feet well enough to be trimmed or shod.
• Readily enter and exit a horse trailer. 
• Be able to be saddled without a fight, and bridled without being evasive or pulling away.
• Be able to be lunged both directions and standstill for mounting.
• Be ridden at the walk, trot, and canter in both directions.  Transitions through these gaits should be fairly smooth.
• Be able to stop and back up.
• Be learning to yield away from leg pressure for lateral movement.
• Be able to be ridden outside as well as inside the confines of an arena.

Allow me to stress that I am talking about the majority of horses, most of the time. I recognize that each horse is an individual and there are exceptions to every rule. Some colts will progress faster. Others will need more time. Some colts are naturally quiet and gentle while others are sensitive and high strung. Yet there are some basic principles that most colts should understand at the end of a sixty day foundation.

Finding a trainer who understands young horses and enjoys working with them is the key to success. Do not discount this essential time in their development. Build a proper foundation and it will last a lifetime!

Article #2

I recently walked by a building site which had a picture posted of the projected edifice. As I observed the large mounds of dirt, ditches, culverts, and pipelines, I couldn’t imagine how this chaotic scene would one day resemble the architect’s picture. Yet, experience tells me that it will all come together as envisioned. One step at a time!

I’ve felt the same way when I’ve stepped into the round pen with a new two or three year old colt to start. How will this thousand pounds of skittish, spooky, and wild horse power ever develop into a gentle, willing, and compliant equine partner? Now that I’ve been through this transformation hundreds, if not thousands, of times, I know the answer. One step at a time!

Step one: I need to get their attention. Pressure and Release; I’ll move my colt around the round pen at the trot and lope in both directions. When it’s my idea, I’ll release the pressure and see if the colt will stop and look at me. This is where I establish leadership.

Step two: Dancing Partners; Can I direct his feet on the end of a lead rope? Can I send him left and right in a twenty foot circle? Will he back away when I wiggle the lead? Can I disengage his hind quarters with his inside foot crossing over his outside foot? I need to control his feet. I must be able to direct his movement while handling him on the ground.

Step three: Desensitize; All of my body movement and all of my equipment can easily be seen as a threat to my colt. I need to desensitize him to these things. That means putting my hands all over my colt’s body. I’ll begin to rub with rhythm. This rhythm is critical. The consistency and rhythm we bring in our body language is vital in helping the colt get comfortable and accepting. I’ll swing the end of my lead rope over his back a number of times. I’m careful not to let the end spank him on the other side and I’ll do it all with rhythm.

Now my body. Can I hop up on both sides of my colt? I’ll lay over my colts back and continue rubbing. What if he starts to move away? I’ll simply tip his nose to me and disengage his hindquarters. Now I’ll start again. No, this exercise is not for the inexperienced couch potato! If you’re going to be a colt starter you’d better be mentally and physically up to the challenge.

Step four: Saddling; How can I prepare my colt for this experience? I will often place the lead rope around my colt’s girth, snug it up with my hand, and ask the colt to move his feet. These are little things that will help my colt grasp the “big picture.” Now I’ll rub the saddle pad all over his body as I have previously executed with my hands, rope, and body. Again, everything should be administered on both sides. Next, I’ll set the saddle on his back. This is where you need to have feel, timing, and balance. A colt might spook and your saddle can end up on the ground pretty quick. Now you have a leery colt who is convinced that he shouldn’t have that “dead cow” strapped to his back. I smoothly snug up my cinches. Most of my colts will hump up and buck a little (or a lot) when first saddled. That’s O.K. A puppy would do the same thing if you tied a ribbon to his tail. If the saddle or ribbon stays on, they’ll soon get comfortable and ignore it.

Now this article is not intended to be a comprehensive “how to” manual for you to follow. I’ve simply described the steps (in very general and abbreviated terms) I take in preparing my colts for their first ride.

Sometimes I’ll accomplish all of this in thirty minutes. With other colts it might take days. This is not a speed event. Like the old horseman said, “Take the time it takes and it will take less time!”

It’s a lot for them to digest and we’ve a long way to go. Yet, we’ll get there, “One step at a time!”

Next month – Mounting Up and Riding Off
 

Last month, I discussed the preparation necessary before you climb aboard your colt for the first time. Before mounting, I need to have my colt comfortable wearing the saddle and moving out through the full range of motion with it on.

Free lunging in the round pen is great preparation. You could also pony your colt off of another horse, or turn him loose in a larger pen or arena and move him around. Just remember, the saddle feels different at the walk, trot, and lope. Your colt needs to experience these transitions multiple times before mounting.

I ride my colts two or three times in a halter and lead initially. Then I transition into a snaffle bit. In these first few rides I really don’t care where they go and I’m not trying to steer them very much. Also, if my colt gets scared and starts to buck, I don’t want to pull back on the reins and a bit in an effort to survive the wreck. This would probably scare my colt even more.

Before climbing all the way on, I’ll step up half way, rub my colt on his neck and rump and then step down. I’ll do this on both sides (left and right). Now I’ll step half way up, tip his nose toward me, chirp or cluck and encourage this colt to step his hind quarters over. I want my colt to realize he can move his feet with me on top. I’m also teaching him the concept of lateral flexion (with his head and neck) and disengagement of the hind quarters. This will be a good “emergency brake” if things start to fall apart; I’ll do this multiple times on both sides. I’m preparing my colt for what I’ll do when I’m all the way up. Once in the saddle I’ll encourage my colt to take one or two forward steps directly after moving his hindquarters out of the way. This is my goal at this stage of the game, forward momentum.

When people think of riding a colt for the first time, they’re concerned about how they will be able to control and stop the colt. My biggest concern is; how can I get him to move. I need forward impulsion and I need to start getting it right away. That’s where an assistant in the pen can really be helpful. Not just anyone will do. Don’t ask uncle Charlie to come help just because he’s available yet doesn’t know anything about young horses. Uncle Charlie might end up getting you killed! You’ll need someone who can free lunge you and your colt safely.

As my helper is moving the colt around the pen, I’ll try to rub my colt all over and get him really comfortable with the whole experience. Remember the full range of motion concept? The quicker my colt learns to walk, trot, and lope with me on his back, the less of a big deal it will be.

The biggest confusion that riders face with their colts is the idea of pushing on the brake and the gas peddle at the same time. If you try to steer and guide them too much at this early stage, you’ll hinder the colt’s ability to get comfortable moving forward. I tell my students, “I don’t care where they go. I just need them to go!” If you start “micro-managing” and trying to direct your colt too much too soon, you’ll run into problems and probably create confusion and a bad attitude in your colt. Following someone on a saddle horse can be a big help once you leave the round pen. Horses are natural followers. You’ll be surprised how your colt will move forward and “line out” when he has someone else to follow. This technique can become a crutch if over used. Your colt needs to venture out on his own flight path before long.

During these early rides you’ll not see me pulling back on both reins at the same time to either slow down or stop my colt. Using one rein at a time and doing a lot of bending exercises will help create suppleness and not allow my colt to get bracy and still. I’m also careful to not use too much leg early on. A lot of squeezing and kicking can create a cranky, sullen colt with pinned back ears and a ringing tail. Rather, I’ll slap my leg or spank behind to encourage forward motion. I’ll create some kind of energy with my voice and body and then get soft when my colt moves forward.

As I mentioned last month, these few paragraphs are not meant to be comprehensive and complete. This is simply a small window into the colt starting process that I follow. If you are up to the challenge of colt starting, great! If not, find a competent trainer to lay a proper foundation on your youngster. It will be a relatively small investment in the twenty plus year relationship you can enjoy with your equine partner.

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