[Vand]

Well , maybe you would see the point of open bridles if a branch off the ground hit one of your horses in the butt & they took off.

However, if the horse saw it coming maybe it would not do the flight thing & just continue to the landing.

Joel: I agree with your logic except that if a team is well-trained and the driver is in control, they shouldn’t take off when they’re surprised (blinders or no blinders).

We were recently at an event that involved antique tractors as well as horses. When lined up for a little “parade,” the tractor directly behind me backfired. All the horses (including the 3 abreast I was driving) jumped; but no one took off. They were in blinders; but with a scary sound like that, I’m convinced blinders or no blinders, they would have run had it not been for their training.

PistolPete: Your team is a little young and it may take a few years yet for their brains to grow in.;) I would start them in blinders (just to help them focus on the task at hand and not be so distracted by all the pretty birds and trees and whatnot). If you have an older horse that can be hooked with the youngsters, do so. An older, more experienced horse will give your youngsters some confidence. If not, it helps if you can have someone there to help you (for safety sake).

Ground drive your youngsters with nothing hooked to their tugs, then have someone bring the double-tree over. Have them shake the double-tree a little and make some noise with it while you hold the lines and talk in a calming voice to your team. Drive them on grass, then maybe on some dirt (so it makes a little more noise) and finally on gravel. Always keep training sessions short for a team this young and don’t have them pull any actual weight until they’re at least 3 years old. End on a positive note and don’t try to rush anything. Also, be aware of your own feelings. If you’re nervous (about the gravel or whatever), they’ll be nervous too.

[Vand]

Old Kat,
There could possibly be an issue with the tugs rubbing/irritating your horse or harness fit or something else like that; but some of what you’re describing sounds like your Maggie-horse is just feeling good and likes to go. One of our mares is like that. Once she knows it’s time to work, she does this gorgeous charger prance (pretty to look at, not pretty to drive when you’re fingers are going numb). She’s done it since she was a baby and her momma did it too. There’s a few things we did to change the situation. When I’m taking her plowing, I don’t want her dragging me around all day, so I take her out the day before, hook her to a sled or training tire and work her for a couple of hours. After a while, she is considerably less “prancy” and is more apt to give my hands a break. If you horse doesn’t seem to offer to bolt, this may just be a quirk on her part. Still, keep even pressure on the lines and talk her down (ie: “easy Maggie, etc”).

With any driving horse, you don’t want to drive on a loose line necessarily. While you don’t want to be hanging on your horse’s mouth, you do want contact at all times. If she’s dragging on your hands, you may need to have her bitted down a notch (what kind of bit do you use?). We use a copper-mouth curb bit with butterfly sides (so we can go down a notch if we need more leverage on a particular horse). This is a fairly mild bit; but it’s also got enough “umph” to get the job done with the stronger-mouthed horses. With Sadie, I usually have her bitted down one notch.

With riding horses, you do often want the horse to sit nicely behind the bit; but with driving, you need to have that contact with your horse since you’re not sitting on them communicating directly. If your horse jumps and you have lots of slack in the lines, they have that much further momentum to get running.

If your other horse doesn’t seem to be feeding off her anxiety or excitement, just keep working them slowly and let her get used to things.

[Vand]

Hi There,

We usually have one Shire foal a year. For the past few years, when the baby is 3 years old, we start driving. Usually, they are hitched single and learn to ground drive, and then we hitch them with an older/experienced horse and they do all sorts of farm chores. When they are 4 years old, I take them plowing.

They always start out as my land horse (I use a 14″ walking plow) while the older/experienced horse goes in the furrow. They go plow neighbor’s fields, the garden, whatever and then we take them to several plowing competitions throughout the year. The exposure baby gets to the furrow that year is when we’re finishing out our land and by walking next to the furrow horse.

The following year, the experienced horse stays home and the baby (now 5) becomes the furrow horse while a new 4 year old is hitched with them as the land horse. Usually, I walk the new furrow horse next to the furrow for a few passes (just dragging the plow on it’s side) and then ask them to step over and get in the furrow. They usually step over it a few times and then figure out to walk inside. You may have to have a helper guide them down into the furrow the first few times. It takes several passes of just walking up and down the field with the team; but the new furrow horse learns his/her job fairly quickly. Every time I get my youngster in the furrow, I tell them, “get down in there.” Pretty soon, I pull my team up next to the furrow, tell the furrow-horse the command, and he/she automatically just steps in. It’s also a handy command for if they accidentally step out mid-row.

The biggest thing is to have a horse that is driving nicely before you take them plowing. We do a lot of driving on a training tire and just put miles on them. When the bottom of your tire is ripped to shreds and worn out, you’ve got broke horses. When plowing with youngsters, it’s important to give them breaks and keep them feeling good. I usually work them on the training tire for several weeks before plowing. It helps them build muscle and get used to a load before being asked to pull a plow. I’ve taken youngsters to plowing competitions for the past few years in our area and won every time.

[Vand]

We slide a leather disk (with a slot cut through the middle that the line fits through) onto the line infront of the buckle. That way, when the buckle reaches the hame ring, it can’t fit through and doesn’t get stuck. When training colts or unruly client’s horses, this simple addition has proved to be a lifesaver.:)

[Vand]

We also use the command “one step.” Usually, we teach it to younger horses by pairing them with an older horse who knows the command already. We use a lot of different horse-drawn farm equipment and the “one step” command is invaluable. Our horses will step side to side, forward or backward. It comes in very handy when backing a piece of equipment into a narrow space (like a loading dock). The horses have to be able to move and adjust the tongue to get the equipment backed straight.

The way to teach it is to have a very solid “whoa” on your horse. That way you can ask your horse to step up, and when they move a step, instantly stop them with a “whoa.” Pretty soon, they will know to just move up one step when you ask for it rather than start walking.

[Vand]

Thank you for the welcome Carl, Bob, and Scott.

We have fun with them and it’s definitely a way of life and a passion for us rather than a hobby.

Bob…it’s very possible your horse was one of ours. We sold a horse down to the Salem area recently and before that, hadn’t sold a horse for abotu 6 or 7 years. So if you’ve had your horse for a while, it’s possible he/she came from our farm.

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