Get them “Ready” with the Basics When you begin working with a young/horse or pony there is no rush.  You need to teach them the basics of being handled; wearing harness, steering, and backing up, etc., and build a strong trust/bond with them.  They do not need to look like they are going to a horse show at this stage.  They may not have the best carriage or motion at this point but you shouldn’t worry about that just yet.  Make sure they have a good sense of steering and are strong enough in long lines before you worry about...

Establish Trust and Confidence When God (or whatever your higher being of choice is) created horses he made them “fear runners”, meaning when they are scared their flight instinct comes into play.  I suggest you take extra time in your first encounters (petting, brushing, even feeding peppermints) with a colt to establish a trust bond so they are aware you are not a threat to them and will not put them in danger.  Once this is established a vast majority of colts will relax and be willing to learn and progress in your training program.  Throughout your training with each...

Olof Larsson is the Manager and Trainer at Chester Weber’s Live Oak Farm Driving Division in Ocala Florida. The Swedish born driver and trainer has been an integral part of Live Oak and Team Weber’s outstanding success the last 10 years. Olof and his wife Stacey also own and operate Hidden Acres Dressage in Ocala where they develop and show all levels of dressage show horses. Read Olof’s three key points on how to best select a horse to fit into a world class competition four in hand team. Temperament Temperament is very important when it comes to selecting a...

Springwater Farm is located in Stockton, New Jersey, between New York City and Philadelphia. Springwater is known for its breeding and training program of Arabian and Half-Arabian horses and has consistently produces National winners in English, Western, Hunter, and Halter. Johnny and Christine Ryan manage the highly acclaimed Springwater Farms training program. First and foremost all of the following steps will take place in a fully enclosed bull pen. Step number one: The first thing we do is familiarize our horse with the surcingle and bit. We will use a plain smooth snaffle that is wrapped with Guardtex or latex....

The River’s Edge has produced many World Champion Morgans in performance, equitation, and in hand performance.  Bob Kellert and Mary Cockriel are choosing the topic of in hand performance to demonstrate Ready-Set-Show. These trainers both agree that it takes many hours of patience to produce a World champion in hand horse!  According to Bob Kellert, the in hand performance horse like the performance horse has to have heart and the knowing of pizzazz in their heart that they (the horse) have something to show off in attitude! The READY part of an in hand horse is in the conditioning of...