Health & Nutrition Starting Your 2-Year-Old To The Field


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Contributed by Frankie Gaytan


Before you tack up, now would be a good time to evaluate your horse’s condition. I want my 2 year olds to be at a good weight, but not fat. These are babies; they are still developing. Obesity is hard on a young horse’s hocks and knees and then you add the rider’s weight and you will run into problems. Feed lots of coastal hay and only enough grain to meet his nutritional needs. I don’t need to fight energy for 15 minutes from an over grained horse. I also monitor that he drinks well. When he starts leaving the ranch, I will know right away if he isn’t settling in properly. I also still want the young horses to receive turnout time; it helps with their mind and body. Be sure and take a good hard look at your horse every few weeks to make sure he’s maintaining his weight and hasn’t gotten too skinny or gained too much weight and adjust your feed program accordingly. You have been diligent in the arena. Your horse is walking and jogging his figure 8


exercises. You can stop riding and your horse actually stops and takes a step or two back. He stays relaxed and happy to just stand there. It’s time to head to the field. Don’t assume that you will have the same horse in the field as you have in the


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Your Goal: A relaxed young horse walking back to the barn.


arena. It’s going to be a new experience and he’s going to want to look around. Now is not the time to creep slowly into the field on high alert. If you are sitting stiff looking around for something for him to spook at . . . guess what, he’s going to follow your lead. Going to the field with a 2 year old is not a weekend trail ride! It is training and you should approach it that way. As in the arena, the key to success is to keep his feet moving. So let’s TROT in the field. I don’t mean a slow jog that gives him time to spook and slam his feet to a stop, I mean LONG TROT! Make sure your rear is in the saddle, a little behind the motion, and your legs are pushing him for- ward just in case you get an unexpected hard stop. You should maintain soft con- tact and encourage your horse to collect. Don’t forget to release! An added bonus to asking to collect and release is that your horse will be busy focusing on you and not his surroundings. The only time you are going to allow him to stop is after he is listening and relaxing (just like in the arena) and then you simply take your legs off and do your stop, step back lesson and then let him sit there for a few minutes. So, unless you ask him for a stop, your horse should be long trotting! Be sure you trot over limbs on the ground, through ditches, up and down hills and around the herd. As your horse gains confidence in the field you can even work on the same exercises you did in the arena.


As with all sessions, 10 to 15 minutes of quality ride time. When you’ve hit a stopping point, then instead of dismounting you can walk your horse back to the arena just letting him relax. It is so good for a young horse to know when he is done with his work for that day. Questions? Email Frankie Gaytan at horsestotrain@gmail.com. w


SouthWest Horse Trader August 2018


Make sure your rear is in the saddle, a little behind the motion, and your legs are pushing him forward just in case you get an unexpected hard stop.


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