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Troubador--training thread: our progress, and questions!

1K views 8 replies 4 participants last post by  LovesMyDunnBoy 
#1 ·
About Troubadour--He's a 5 year old (coming 6, April the 27th) bay Quarter horse. He just came home yesterday, and he turned out to be such a good boy considering I bought him sight unseen! (pictures only)

He was broke western, and knew the basics. Walk/Trot/Lope with a solid back up and stop. He hasn't been ridden in about 10 months, and I won't be able to ride him myself until the 1st when I have access to a saddle. We went out in the round pen, and he worked pretty well for me! He was trying to look out at the other horses, and was convinced he'd die of starvation if he didn't eat that grass, lol!

Anywho, he already improved! At the beginning of the round pen session, he was looking out, ignoring my cues, and I'd have to put the fear of God in him to make him lope! And by the end, when he's lose energy at the trot all I had to do was point and maybe kiss and he'd pick it up for me.

He's also pretty hefty.. I'd put him at about a 5 or so. His diet at his previous home was 1 scoop of whole oats and two flakes of costal hay twice a day plus pasture during the day. I'm taking him off his outs all together, but I don't want to scale down his hay because he's stalled. Stalled with all day turnout other day.

My questions at the moment:

-How to I encourage him to turn into me and not the fence?
-What should I do groundwork wise to prepare him for getting him back under saddle?
-What can I do to get some weight off him and get him into shape?

I should also add, the barn where he is boarded at is 30 minutes away from me.. I'll be lucky to get out there once a week. So all the solutions to the above questions, would have to work around that.

Now about me-- I'm 16, I work and go to school (junior) and I'm paying for all of his care myself. And tes, I DO have an emergency vet plan. I have ridden off and on since 1st grade, friends horses and so on. I have owned about 5 horses total, and worked helping a trainer break colts for awhile. I've owned quite a few green horses, and have struggled but learned a lot. Over this past summer, I took barrel lessons 3 days a week. My trainer is helping me out with this horse as well. I 'm very confident on the ground, and in the saddle. But more so on the ground.

Our goals-- I'm going to try to take at least a weekly barrel lesson with my trainer, and my BO barrel traces and is helping me teach Troubadour once his basic riding is up to date :) I'm hoping we will be ready to go to some playdays by the time in starts back up! We'll be hauling up to my friend's arena where they do roping about every week, so he can get out and get accustomed to the sights and sounds. We'll go out there in the warm up pen and get used to that, we'll push the cattle into the shoot, trail ride when I get the chance. Keeping him fresh and exposing him to as much as I can at the hsame time! :)

I don't expect anyone to read this, but if you did, KUDOS! Lol, now for some pictures :) anyone wanna confo critique him as well?

Same in the picture from the front, he has his legs a bit wider than normal. I do think he has a slight pigeon toe though. (And yes, his feet will be done SOON)
 
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#3 ·
my horses always turned to the fence when i first started them and i don't want to see their butt. i would put them on a lunge line and when asked to turn i would quickly but gently when the inside front leg was off the ground pull them in towards me all while stepping front of their shoulder and pointing for a change of direction. i would keep working him on the ground till you get full respect and attention then start riding around in a round pen or arena then work my way out into a pasture or around the barn. as for weight trot, trot, trot. my girl has lost a ton of her baggage because i had a baby in July and didn't do much riding for a month or two. trotting really dropped the pounds.
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#6 ·
Yeah me too! I'm hoping to move him before too long, a few months hopefully. That way he'll be closer to me. This boarding set up would be great if it was closer. Someone experienced in barrels to help me train him, a round pen an arena, nice stalls and she gives me pleanty of opportunities to work a little board off :) even though I don't HAVE to, it's still nice to save a little money! And there's only one other boarder so I practically have the place to myself :)
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#7 ·
And he did AMAZING! He was SO responsive in the round pen today, so I decided why not? I tried my BOs bridles, he wouldn't flex with the snaffle so I tried the hackamore and he was really soft in his face!

I stood on a plastic barrel to get on him and he was just kinda like "WTF are you doing??" Lol! He was a good boy! Walked right off perfect, turned, stopped, backed up all nice!

Then he got to walk around and explore around the barns when I turned him out and I helped my BO clean a stall out! He was NOSEY! And decided to just trot himself around for no reason lol!

Then we got a bath (I say "we" because I was soaked!) He had to go in the stock, and tied, and stood really nice and calm for his bath! He was a little nervous, but I like his how he reacts when he's nervous. Just lookey, not jumpy!

Then I hooked him up to the hot walker (not on) so he could move around but not roll. He was fine with that.

All in all, I think I lucked out with my $200 horse! :D

Pictures from bath time!







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#8 ·
Yeeee! I'm happy for you! I also had to teach my old mare to turn in in the round pen. When she turned the worng way I would IMMEDIATELY ask for a turn in the other direction, still backing up (my own body) and asking for the inside turn, I would not stop, lots of energy, until she turned in toward me, and then I would completely relax my body energy, let her stop if she wanted to, basically completely stop asking for anything. Then, in a few minutes, I would ask her to start walking or trotting again and ask for the inside turn again. It was a really high energy time when I was asking her to turn in toward me if she did not, and she would turn away from me several times, switching back and forth, but after the first couple of times of getting a release after turning in toward me, she got the idea and started to turn in toward me and did so consistently from there on out. I'm sure there are more qualified trainers out there than I, but this was my experience and I hope it helps you! I hope this made sense!
 
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