Breaking a horse to drive???

[chapsgal]

After recent debate with me selling my horse, Im now thinking of keeping him and breaking him to drive.

I havent driven but have helped/been involved with breaking others belonging to friends etc, who race trotters.

Being pregnant, Im not able to ride (due to early complications) so I think driving would still give me the chance to do something with him, keep him and not have to sell!

Any advice or professional breaker links appreciated!:D

[antonia :)]

What if you try lunging him in a roller then gradually moving onto a full harness. Just a suggestion as i have driven horses. www.equineworld.com could helps as has info on everything.

[chapsgal]

Yeh Ive done that, hes been lunged in a roller and a pessoa, so isnt bothered by anything around his hocks...

thanks for that, I'll go and have a look at the site! :D

[lisae]

not to be the wet blanket here but starting a horse into driving can be a hazardous occupation if done too fast, or without plenty of hands to help through all the stages.... if it were me with the pregnancy issue I would not worry about having horse stand around for a few months, and then re-commence his education when not so much is at risk.... :o

[Alfies-slave]

Sounds like a good idea. Firstly contact the BDS and have some lessons. You can do this whilst you are pregnant!

Not every riding horse makes a good beginners driving horse. Unless the horse in question is 110% bombproof and unflapable think hard! Honestly assess your horses temperament.

Driving is wonderful, but when things go wrong they can go dreadfuly wrong. Something that would be a minor incident with a ridden horse can be disasterous with a driven horse.

There is no reason why you could not break the horse o drive yourself. The BDS sell many good books on the subject. Take it slowly and have plenty of helpers. The helpers don't have to be horsey, just people who can follow instructions and not get in a flap.

[chapsgal]

Thanks for the advice.

I wouldnt even contemplate this right now unless my horse was safe..he is a gem with ALL traffic (hacked and led down dual carriageways & country lanes) NOTHING phases him, he has a fantastic trainable attitude an unflappable nature.

I think this could be good for him. He has recently been on trial and has come back really messed up I dont know what has happened. In the past he has had people putting unecessary gadgets on him to combat his forward going ways, and it took me years to get him out of that.

This is a way of giving him a break from 'hard schooling' and learning something new. Plus I like to just potter with him!

[jinglejoys]

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y190/jinglejoys/cid_001e01c702cbb9e4e1707a1a8351you.jpg

Go for it!Take pleanty of time.How is he with things being dragged around behind him?Also what's he like with seeing driven horses?:)

[Wally]

A forward going horse for a driving horse is great.....if you are a driver with many years experience under your belt. A forward going driving horse for beginning with can be really scary!

Having said that my pair were weird, one was a very difficult riding horse who was very forward going, but in harness was a plod, and the other was the other way around, but in harness, together, they worked well and ironed out their differences.

If I were you I'd be very careul trainign a horse to harness whilst pregnant, it can get a bit exciting some times, better get him off to a trainer to do the scary bits then you can take him from there.

But I really do advise getting some lessons so you know the dos and don'ts, as these are true lifesavers, they'll stop you getting into a situation where poo can happen.