# Advice on daily care of a yearling



## Kaida (13 November 2013)

Hello!!  I'm a fairly new member and this is my first thread so if I get anything wrong, many apologies.

To the meat of it: I am getting my first yearling and have a bit of a quandary about the *best* way to look after him.  He is a colt and will not be gelded initially.  I know the words *yearling* and *not gelded* get a lot of people excited so:

I have had six horses from three year olds and have backed them myself and ridden away.  I have dealt with a lot of foals, yearlings, stallions etc.  One horse I was heavily involved with as a yearling I still have today, and he's now 13.  I am hoping to breed from this horse hence keeping him entire - HOWEVER if he proves not to have the right temperament I will geld him without hesitation.  He has the breeding, conformation etc at this age although again, if he doesn't mature to a horse it would be worthwhile to breed from he will be gelded.  I don't want to keep him entire just for the hell of it!

So now you're probably saying "so why is she asking for help".  Well, until last year I had a LOT of turnout - around 50 acres, split across six big fields very well fenced and hedged and away from each other.  I would have put colt out with the gelding group to learn about horse life, and bring him in a couple of times a week to handle him.  Unfortunately, I moved to a lovely yard around a year ago but there isn't a lot of turnout - as in, I have six horses and YO allows them turned out in pairs for around 2/3 hours a day.  Not YO fault - basically we have a barn each but share the same turnout - as there really isn't much!  She does have another field a couple of miles away where I could turn him out, but it's accessed by main roads (we are talking dual carriageways) and therefore wouldn't be able to bring him OR whoever I choose to be his companion home regularly.

I want to ensure he is handled a couple/few times a week but in the past have always had youngsters living out with a group of older horses to teach them 'horse' life and manners and am concerned about the effect of either: keeping him at the yard with limited turnout - yes, he will still get a few hours a day with a variety of companions who will put him in his place without damaging him or going too far, but he would have to be in the stable every night...OR leaving him out in a field I can't practically get to every day, with very little handling on a daily basis.  What is my best option or am I just worrying too much??

I have a further complication.  My groom (I have six horses...and work full time.  I'm not running a massive yard!) has also chosen this year to have her first yearling and has a similar background to me.  Unfortunately her first yearling is a filly, who I obviously can't turn out with him!  So I am trying to work out what is best for both of them...at the moment I'm thinking a two week on/two week off rotation, so I would have the colt out in the other field for two weeks with a companion while the filly is being kept in, and having 2/3 hours turnout a week, and then swap them over.  I want them both to be handled enough - leading properly, picking up feet, ground manners, going for walks on the lanes to meet new things etc (obviously over time - not on the same day!) but equally hear a lot about the dangers of over-handling horses, especically colts, and making them very pushy.  There is also the consideration that I will be competing my other horses this year and although two weeks off won't be the end of the world for any of them, it will interrupt the training regieme...not a problem for the filly as I have a retired mare who can go out with her, but my geldings are all in work 5 days a week...and one, when out of work for more than two days (they all get at least one day off a week), becomes incredibly difficult to ride for at least a week afterwards so really it would 3 weeks off for him, and another really enjoys his work, and when out of work starts being difficult - breaking out of fields, charging around etc if he's turned out for more than two solid days.  My third gelding is not a suitable companion, so either I buy another horse as a companion for him, or take the hit with training on gelding #1...(in an ideal world, with loads of turnout on site, I would put all three out and bring in one of the boys at a time to ride...but I'm not in the ideal world!)

Am I needlessly worrying - I'm sure plenty of youngsters grow up being kept in overnight?  For the record, I have been looking for another yard for several months but in the area I live (South Somerset) they are few and far between, especially with good turnout and an arena and minimum 6 stables..!  So I'm kinda stuck where I am now...

Apologies for the length of this post!! Any advice welcomed...


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## Maesfen (13 November 2013)

Personally, in the situation you're in, I'd be thinking about sending him away to live at a stud where he can be with other youngsters (colts) the same age as him.  There's no rush to keep him handled, they don't forget their first lessons so as long as he still has the farrier etc then he's not going to come to any harm from not handling him.  Over handling colts can turn into a nightmare if things aren't consistent so turning him away to mature and develop with company his own age will help him a lot.  It also gives you a chance to assess him properly and not be rushed into gelding him (although I'm the first to say there are already far too many stallions about of all types) especially when it means they have to live a pretty solitary life once older when the snip would make life so much more pleasant for him and easier for you.


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## Kaida (13 November 2013)

Thank you - that's a great idea and I will start scoping out local studs to see if they would be willing to take in an outsider. I agree about gelding - he's getting the snip unless he ticks every single box but for his breed their grading is at 3 so ideally I would like to get him to that before gelding. If he isn't graded premier then he will be gelded, and if at any point before that I feel his temperament isn't right then off they come!

Thank you for that idea, I really appreciate it. Keen to avoid over handling!


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## TangoCurly (14 November 2013)

Look at it this way.  If you were to read this post from another person on this board, would you think it was a good set up for the colt?

I agree that looking for a stud to keep him at would be a good idea.  Try HenryHorn on this board, she runs a fantastic stud not too far from you (albeit in Devon) where the care would be fantastic.


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## Kaida (14 November 2013)

Thank you - I am looking around for somewhere more local but will try them if not.

Just to clarify, I did have a local place I was due to rent with 20 acres of turnout so this wouldn't have been an issue.  Sadly it fell through as they have now decided to sell instead of rent out so I have 4 weeks to sort something else out which is getting a little short notice!  A couple of local small studs have told me it will be fine to keep him in at night but I just couldn't see it myself - prefer to have them out in a herd - so thought I'd put the question to you guys to see if I was over-worrying.  I'm glad to see my gut instinct was correct and am looking up local studs now


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## Maesfen (14 November 2013)

Because of the ground here (clay) I have to have mine in at night over winter but they are always turned out each and all day to play and graze - much to hubby's annoyance as he hates to see the land cut up!  If I had free draining land I would love them out 24/7 but that's not going to happen; you just have to make the most of what you have so it's not that I'm against youngsters being in at night, I'm not but the small amount of turnout yours would be getting where you are now would be a big no-no, it's not fair on a young horse that isn't even being worked to break up their monotony although I know older horses can cope with it, I feel you would be causing problems for yourself doing that with a young colt, it's asking him to misbehave which he would do simply by being so bored and fed up and who could blame him; why give him that excuse and have to iron out problems later when turning him away for the winter could be his saviour.


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