Learn more about our horse training; subscribe to our Carriage Driving Video Library at www.horsedrawnpromotions.com/cdvl
Discussing this young 3yo chestnut mare and why we have broken her lightly to carriage drive and advised she goes home to mature, before coming back for a refresher course when she is 4.
We talk about the harness training we have done with this mare and why we feel she needs to have a break from driving. This is not true for every 3yo, and in certain cases it is best to teach them as 3yos, keep them in light driven work and only start a full driving career when they are 4, rather than leave them til they are 4 before breaking them to harness initially. However Seren is still growing, so rather than push her on and risk making her sour, we advised that she did not finish the whole course of training, but went home to finish maturing physically and mentally.
We also talk about why we don't believe in breaking harness horses as yearlings, and what you can do to teach yearlings and youngsters before breaking them to harness. Young horses need to be handled and integrated into our environment in a kind and considerate manner, which better prepares them for life in general, but they are still developing and growing. Sometimes you may see a fully grown horse on the outside, but in its head it is very much a youngster, so this also needs to be taken into consideration during the training plan.
