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Veteran
Posts: 160
 
| Looking for drills to do with my 3 year old, not planning on putting her on barrels til next year. She has a great woah, collects nicely in all 3 gates just looking for different drills so when she goes to barrels its easy. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 1094
Location: Idahome | Find a good hanful of tires and lope circles. You can set them up in all different ways and places and just lope circles. I have found that the pattern is a piece of cake once they have loped lots of circles around tires. I think that Heather Smith on Facebook has posted a lot of different exercises you can do without making it about the pattern. If you can, cattle work is also really good for colts. |
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 Balance Beam and more...
Posts: 11511
 
Location: 31 lengths farms | IMO there is nothing better for a horse than putting them on cows, teaches them rate, teaches them to use themselves, teaches them to think for themselves yet accept input from the rider. Doesn't have to be cutting training per say, just the act of following a cow (make sure it isnt' a super fresh cow and make sure it is one that honors a horse for their first experiences ) around a round pen and learning to rate them is better than just about any drill we can teach them ourselves. |
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 Accident Prone
Posts: 22277
Location: 100 miles from Nowhere, AR | run n rate - 2015-08-14 12:11 PM IMO there is nothing better for a horse than putting them on cows, teaches them rate, teaches them to use themselves, teaches them to think for themselves yet accept input from the rider. Doesn't have to be cutting training per say, just the act of following a cow (make sure it isnt' a super fresh cow and make sure it is one that honors a horse for their first experiences ) around a round pen and learning to rate them is better than just about any drill we can teach them ourselves.
This made me giggle because I used my 5 year old to put up the escaped donkey for the first time last night. He spends a lot of time pastured with her and she aggravates the crap out of him, so no surprise, he turned back and ran hell for leather right under her nose. I was impressed and grateful that she didn't buck or run off after him like I thought she might. She jumped to follow, but came right back to me when I picked her up and said whoa. This is the one that almost bucked me off last winter, and I've just now gotten enough confidence back that I'm saddling and stepping right on her without soaking, ponying, or round penning first.
Back to the original question, there are a lot of movements I want them to learn: lateral stuff, shoulder in/out, counter-arcing, half-halts, 2-track, move forward into the bridle, wrap around my inside leg, balance and know where their feet are. Rather than drill them so much, I use obstacle courses, hills, and riding in the woods. With a little creativity, you can find or set up a situation that makes the desired movement more natural, which makes it more fun for you both. |
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Miracle in the Making
Posts: 4013
| get them broke but stay out of the arena go do something on them go trailriding you can do a lot just trailride like she said lateral counter giving nose
make it fun |
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 No Tune in a Bucket
Posts: 2935
Location: Texas | I saw a video of a someone loping circles of the round bales in the pasture. Any kind of object that you can make into an obstable course works. |
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 Veteran
Posts: 253
Location: Canada | I like them them to walk, trot, lope 30 metre circles. And turning on the forehand, turn on the haunches. Then I do a brief lesson in cattle work. |
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Veteran
Posts: 160
| She does 2 track, counter bend, does a ton of lateral work i was just trying to think of fun things that are productive to do. I think i have hubby just about talked into getting a few calfs to work, if they dont become PETS :/ lol. Last week i totally was loping around round bales, pushing her hind end over and under herself, backing around them, it was a awesome drill to do but now they have all been stored or sold. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 725
| I know this isn't really related to a drill to help her when she starts on barrels, but it's always fun to rope a barrel and dally, and drag it around, and eventually small tree branches if you're doing yard work. It's fun to give them little jobs.. |
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 Take a Picture
Posts: 12842
| Martha Josey has a new book out that has drills in it. You might look into it.
Heather Smith has several volumes of nothing but drills. THE FIRST 51 BARREL RACING EXCERCISES is the one that I have. Good diagrams
Edited by streakysox 2015-08-14 11:31 PM
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 Veteran
Posts: 133
Location: texas | work on flying lead changes, circles, circles, circles! keep him soft and supple while doing circles! do figure 8's, roll backs(will teach him to get on his butt and turns, just as if he was turning a barrel) but also long trail rides to keep his mind off of the pattern crap and what not! also i agree working with cows is great too, it teaches him how to use his body properly and rate as well! good luck! just be patient and it will come together perfectly  |
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