Stage 2 - Fittening Program
Posted: 18 Nov 2011, 10:43 pm
Stage 2 - Fittening Program
How to relate condition, feeding and progressive exercise in order to get a horse fit for light work!
Factors affecting length of programme
- Goal
- Age
- Previous level of training or fitness
- Length of rest
- Temperament
- Soundness (old injuries, TPR etc)
Approximate time required for fittening programme
- 8 weeks for hunting
- 12 weeks for novice eventing
- 16 weeks for 3 day eventing
Getting a horse up from grass
- Shoeing
- Teeth
- Vaccinations - Influenza and tetanus
- Fetch in daily over a period of a week or so and give small feed. Build up to keeping in at night
- Worm
- Clip
- Blood test ?
- Grooming and strapping
- Tack and fitting
Programme split into three phases
- Preliminary
- Development
- Fast
There then must be retention
- Retention
Preliminary
3 - 5 weeks walking
1/2 hour building upto 2 hours including some short slow trots
80% Forage to 20% Concentrate
Development
3 - 5 weeks upto 2 hours daily
Longer trots, slow canters, school work, suppling and gymnastic exercises including jumping
50% Forage to 50% Concentrate
Fast
3 - 5 weeks
Longer canters upto 12 minutes, short gallops, interval training, school work and jump training
40% Forage to 60% Concentrate
Retention
Keep fresh, reduce road work, pipe openers, hacking out
Regular competitions or hunting
Keep diet light, fresh and tempting
Turn out to grass for 2 hours per day
First competition to coincide with end of Fast phase prior to retention!
Roughing Off, (approximately two weeks)
- Check field
- Decrease rugs and blankets gradually
- Reduce concentrate and work and increase forage
- Light grooming only
- Turn out for longer periods each day. Finally turning out fully on mildest day possible
- Remove shoes
How to relate condition, feeding and progressive exercise in order to get a horse fit for light work!
Factors affecting length of programme
- Goal
- Age
- Previous level of training or fitness
- Length of rest
- Temperament
- Soundness (old injuries, TPR etc)
Approximate time required for fittening programme
- 8 weeks for hunting
- 12 weeks for novice eventing
- 16 weeks for 3 day eventing
Getting a horse up from grass
- Shoeing
- Teeth
- Vaccinations - Influenza and tetanus
- Fetch in daily over a period of a week or so and give small feed. Build up to keeping in at night
- Worm
- Clip
- Blood test ?
- Grooming and strapping
- Tack and fitting
Programme split into three phases
- Preliminary
- Development
- Fast
There then must be retention
- Retention
Preliminary
3 - 5 weeks walking
1/2 hour building upto 2 hours including some short slow trots
80% Forage to 20% Concentrate
Development
3 - 5 weeks upto 2 hours daily
Longer trots, slow canters, school work, suppling and gymnastic exercises including jumping
50% Forage to 50% Concentrate
Fast
3 - 5 weeks
Longer canters upto 12 minutes, short gallops, interval training, school work and jump training
40% Forage to 60% Concentrate
Retention
Keep fresh, reduce road work, pipe openers, hacking out
Regular competitions or hunting
Keep diet light, fresh and tempting
Turn out to grass for 2 hours per day
First competition to coincide with end of Fast phase prior to retention!
Roughing Off, (approximately two weeks)
- Check field
- Decrease rugs and blankets gradually
- Reduce concentrate and work and increase forage
- Light grooming only
- Turn out for longer periods each day. Finally turning out fully on mildest day possible
- Remove shoes