How old should a horse be before you try Join Up?
I'm going to be buying a young horse, and I'm very into Natural Horsemanship. The thing is, all horses that I've trained this way have been older, at least 5 years old.
How old should a horse be before I try Join Up with them? Or does it matter? I don't want to confuse the horse by trying too soon, but I thought if you start the bond of trust sooner, the better. But I don't want to rush anything.
Anyone know?
When they start breathing.
The earlier they're handled and the more consistent the handling the better they'll be. Doing nothing for a year then working them on it just allows a years' worth of training that could have been done to pass.
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February 25th, 2009 at 5:58 am
i would wait til it's about a year old just because of the control nad confusion issues but otherwise I'd say go ahead and I like natural horsemanship too!
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February 25th, 2009 at 6:33 am
i think a year oldr
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February 25th, 2009 at 6:44 am
When they start breathing.
The earlier they're handled and the more consistent the handling the better they'll be. Doing nothing for a year then working them on it just allows a years' worth of training that could have been done to pass.
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experience
February 25th, 2009 at 7:02 am
Wait until u think ur horse is confident enough to be joined up with a herd.
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February 25th, 2009 at 7:34 am
horses natural pecking order instincts are there from birth, thats why youll see young foals 'chomping' at adult horses out of submission.
i was working with my colt on joining up slowly even as a three month old, but not in a traditional way, i guess. by the time he was weaned at around 5 months, he didnt even care about his mom and followed me around like a puppy. first time i took him in a round pen was at about 10 months and join up was achieved almost instantly from such a background of build up.
before taking a youngster in a roundpen, however, remember its bad for young joints and tendons to be worked hard in a small circle.
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February 25th, 2009 at 7:59 am
In my opinion, the sooner the better. Try starting off just getting to know the horse, then, as your relationship grows stronger, try Join Up. Don't worry if the horse doesn't get it at first, not all horses do. Just stick to it, and if you think the horse isn't ready, just give him some time, eventually he'll get it.
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