Riding young mare in foal?

Mac09 · 10-31-2009, 09:24 PM

Hi,

Just wanting some thoughts/advice as to whether or not it would be advisable to ride a young mare whilst in foal. I have a young mare who has just turned 3 years old. What we would like to do, is put her foal in the next month or so and then lightly break her in, in early 2010, give her a little bit of light work for as long as she is comfortable, nothing major just basic dressage & trial riding work & then let her foal out as a 4 yr old. My vet reckons I could put her in foal, break her in & potentially work her until say 7 months then let her foal out. Some people have told me that they have ridden their mares right up until they have foaled nearly but my concern is whether by breaking her in & starting light work would "potentially" harm her pregnancy?...

Any advice would be appreciated.

The mare is already very well handled & has had most of the ground work done on her in preparation for breaking. She has had someone sit on her bareback on occasions before & can lunge etc so her breaking would basically be work on the lunge in the round yard with the gear then be backed properly & go from there with the basic light work. We would do the breaking work at home where she's comfortable so she wouldn't have to contend with changing environments.

EquineAlberta · 11-01-2009, 12:51 AM

It is reasonibly common for warmblood mares to be bred as three year olds, then have 2-3 months training, and given the rest of the time off.

I would be leary of working the horse for longer than that as the added weight of the developing baby and the rider wll put strain on her spine, and will put more strain on her growing joints. As well, it is a GREEN and growing horse, so less balanced, and the growing belly will make it even harder for the horse to find her balance, which may make her reluctant to be ridden.

Keep in mind too that mares develop their pregnancy differently...some pack on the pounds soon after conception, so if that happens you may have to stop working the horse at all, as you will be putting a lot of extra strain on the spine and joints.

Karen

theoldbear · 11-01-2009, 06:27 AM

We had a young mare bred for the first time (though I think she was four, coming five, rather than three coming four) that we literally rode up to a week before she foaled. But she was nearly seventeen hands, almost fifteen hundred pounds, and my wife, who rode her, weighs about 115 pounds. No hard workouts, just gentle pasture riding.

dunamovin · 11-01-2009, 07:39 AM

Since most breeds are not fully developed until five she is still very much a baby (teenager) herself. Her own bones and muscles are still growing and changing. I would not want to put the extra strain on her by riding her very much. I would do very, very light riding for the first four months. Concentrate on flexiblility, lead changes and listening to the rider. A lot of dressage training can be done on the ground too.

Mac · 11-01-2009, 09:04 AM

Why not train her first before breeding her? It would be less stressful on her.

BabyMay · 11-01-2009, 12:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mac

Why not train her first before breeding her? It would be less stressful on her.

I agree with you.

Horselady44 · 11-01-2009, 03:33 PM

I also gotta agree with starting her first. If you were just riding her then ya you could ride her for a good 4-5 months or so before her foaling...but starting her and this being her first foal(or atleast I hope it is!!!) then I would def wait on breeding her and start her training first....or breed her...and then after she foals start her...but I think I would start her first. Training can be stressful on a horse(depending on the training sessions and the trainers techniques) And for such a young mare and this being her first baby...they can lose the baby just from stress...so just be careful. If it were me, I would def get a good foundation on her training before breeding. Cant you breed her in the spring and start her right now? I guess around here they always breed about April or May...No one breeds in Oct/Nov...

jacksydneyellen · 11-01-2009, 04:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Horselady44

Cant you breed her in the spring and start her right now? I guess around here they always breed about April or May...No one breeds in Oct/Nov...

I think that it is spring, she is in Australia.

singing tree · 11-01-2009, 06:30 PM

You forget that this horse is in Australia. Their seasons are backwards

Clippity-Clop · 11-01-2009, 07:24 PM

I talked to both my trainer and my vet before putting my pregnant 4 year old under saddle training. I actually asked my vet before I bred the mare because I knew I wanted her put under saddle before she reached 5 years old. Both agreed that she would be fine and not be in any worse health for the training - possibly better health from the exercise.

We don't push our newly broke horses beyond walk/trot anyway for the first year for the most part because we want them to be well used to carrying a rider before moving beyond that. Our mare was 5 months pregnant when she began training and is doing great. We will ride her up to about a month before birth but only lightly. Just enough to keep her training fresh and then continue to ride around the pasture about a month or so after birth with baby following along.

Horselady44 · 11-01-2009, 07:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by singing tree

You forget that this horse is in Australia. Their seasons are backwards

Silly me!

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10-31-2009, 09:24 PM
Mac09 Newborn Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Australia Posts: 1	Riding young mare in foal? Hi, Just wanting some thoughts/advice as to whether or not it would be advisable to ride a young mare whilst in foal. I have a young mare who has just turned 3 years old. What we would like to do, is put her foal in the next month or so and then lightly break her in, in early 2010, give her a little bit of light work for as long as she is comfortable, nothing major just basic dressage & trial riding work & then let her foal out as a 4 yr old. My vet reckons I could put her in foal, break her in & potentially work her until say 7 months then let her foal out. Some people have told me that they have ridden their mares right up until they have foaled nearly but my concern is whether by breaking her in & starting light work would "potentially" harm her pregnancy?... Any advice would be appreciated. The mare is already very well handled & has had most of the ground work done on her in preparation for breaking. She has had someone sit on her bareback on occasions before & can lunge etc so her breaking would basically be work on the lunge in the round yard with the gear then be backed properly & go from there with the basic light work. We would do the breaking work at home where she's comfortable so she wouldn't have to contend with changing environments.

11-01-2009, 12:51 AM
EquineAlberta Kid Safe Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 6,004	It is reasonibly common for warmblood mares to be bred as three year olds, then have 2-3 months training, and given the rest of the time off. I would be leary of working the horse for longer than that as the added weight of the developing baby and the rider wll put strain on her spine, and will put more strain on her growing joints. As well, it is a GREEN and growing horse, so less balanced, and the growing belly will make it even harder for the horse to find her balance, which may make her reluctant to be ridden. Keep in mind too that mares develop their pregnancy differently...some pack on the pounds soon after conception, so if that happens you may have to stop working the horse at all, as you will be putting a lot of extra strain on the spine and joints. Karen __________________ New Hillside Website The Art of Praise

11-01-2009, 06:27 AM
theoldbear Yearling Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Arcadia, Florida Posts: 771	We had a young mare bred for the first time (though I think she was four, coming five, rather than three coming four) that we literally rode up to a week before she foaled. But she was nearly seventeen hands, almost fifteen hundred pounds, and my wife, who rode her, weighs about 115 pounds. No hard workouts, just gentle pasture riding.

11-01-2009, 07:39 AM
dunamovin Halter broke Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: where the blacktop ends Posts: 181	Since most breeds are not fully developed until five she is still very much a baby (teenager) herself. Her own bones and muscles are still growing and changing. I would not want to put the extra strain on her by riding her very much. I would do very, very light riding for the first four months. Concentrate on flexiblility, lead changes and listening to the rider. A lot of dressage training can be done on the ground too.

11-01-2009, 09:04 AM
Mac Newborn Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 18	Why not train her first before breeding her? It would be less stressful on her.

11-01-2009, 03:33 PM
Horselady44 Started Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Montana Posts: 2,395	I also gotta agree with starting her first. If you were just riding her then ya you could ride her for a good 4-5 months or so before her foaling...but starting her and this being her first foal(or atleast I hope it is!!!) then I would def wait on breeding her and start her training first....or breed her...and then after she foals start her...but I think I would start her first. Training can be stressful on a horse(depending on the training sessions and the trainers techniques) And for such a young mare and this being her first baby...they can lose the baby just from stress...so just be careful. If it were me, I would def get a good foundation on her training before breeding. Cant you breed her in the spring and start her right now? I guess around here they always breed about April or May...No one breeds in Oct/Nov... __________________ A happy horse equals a happy rider!

11-01-2009, 06:30 PM
singing tree Long Yearling Join Date: May 2009 Location: Hartville, Ohio Posts: 1,025	You forget that this horse is in Australia. Their seasons are backwards

11-01-2009, 07:24 PM
Clippity-Clop Coming two Join Date: Feb 2007 Posts: 1,662	I talked to both my trainer and my vet before putting my pregnant 4 year old under saddle training. I actually asked my vet before I bred the mare because I knew I wanted her put under saddle before she reached 5 years old. Both agreed that she would be fine and not be in any worse health for the training - possibly better health from the exercise. We don't push our newly broke horses beyond walk/trot anyway for the first year for the most part because we want them to be well used to carrying a rider before moving beyond that. Our mare was 5 months pregnant when she began training and is doing great. We will ride her up to about a month before birth but only lightly. Just enough to keep her training fresh and then continue to ride around the pasture about a month or so after birth with baby following along. __________________