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ohdear!!
12 Jun 2008 12:33
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A topic close to my heart, should we be doing road work (trotting on the roads) with our beloved warmbloods?
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15 Jun 2008 22:59
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I trot my warmblood on the roads as I feel it really does help strengthen their legs. I don't do any long extended periods but do trot in moderation.
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Fiona Price
15 Jun 2008 23:24
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I think it's the same question whatever discipline you compete in or breed of horse. I event and take the view that out hacking I only trot up hills, slowly, in balance, soft, long and low. It's terrific fitness and takes concussion out of the front end. It's also remarkably hard for horse and rider to do well. Walking downhill again, the same idea. A real workout. I wouldn't do this more than once a week, maybe once every two weeks, in conjunction with other fitness work, if I am stabled near a suitable hill which isn't always the case. At the moment, I'm not, so to avoid excessive fitness concussion, I take my horse swimming each week. Horses for courses, if you'll excuse the pun!
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Diana
16 Jun 2008 22:20
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I have never trotted a dressage horse on the roads but I used to make sure that I hacked out quite a lot to rest Dutchie and also to keep his legs in hard condition. The rest of the time we trained on a geltrack surface.
He had suspected navicular before I started to ride him so had eggbars but he was never lame in the four years I competed and trained him. I think being turned out in good weather also helped him stay fit without too much concussion.
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rachyrooster
19 Jun 2008 10:44
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I’ve got nothing against trotting on the roads, unless there’s a ‘medical’ reason not to. I don’t have my own school so my warmblood gets ridden mainly in fields and on roads. In the winter when it’s muddy everywhere trotting him on the road is his main fitness work. He seems to survive!
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caroline
14 Jul 2008 12:26
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Allegedly some of the highest instances of navicular disease occur with horses within the Mounted Police and horses used by the military for parade work on hard ground. The views on why this is vary, but do seem to centre on the cause being a lot of concussive work on roads/parade grounds. I personally think trotting on the road should ONLY be done by exception and then in a very slow, balanced way. I only do it with my horses to escape downpours of rain, traffic etc. Having seen first hand what running on roads can do to human legs (with purpose made trainers on the end of them, let alone heavy metal shoes at the bottom of spindly legs supporting a disproportionately massive body!!).......seems like a no brainer to me....I tend not to do stuff with my horses just because "it has always been done that way". It pays to question and research even conventional wisdom on such matters and then to take a considered view. I still get it wrong sometimes but less and less as the years go on.
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Sarahos
15 Jul 2008 08:46
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I agree, it does seem irrational to work horses on hard ground unnecessarily, but so much of what we do with our horses is unreasonable if you think about it! Making large horses do tiny circles and the like can't be good for their joints etc. either. I think we have to use a combination of judgement and consideration to the horse's ‘job’ to decide how we work any horse.
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bluepony
22 Aug 2008 17:43
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How nice to see Caroline take such a sensible view and buck the trend of "the old way of doing things"! Trotting on roads is jarring and pointless! A small amount of concussion does indeed promote the growth of new bone cells, but it need not be on tarmaced roads!
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