How often do you drive?

[Grace67]

How often do you drive your minis? Daily? Weekly? Every few weeks? Depends on the season? When you don't drive what do you work on with them?

 

[hobbyhorse23]

As often as I can, since I need to condition for show and CDE. Unfortunately with Washington weather that may be only once a month in the winter! I'm also limited on where I can drive so don't get out nearly as often as I would if I lived near great trails, quiet farm roads or had an indoor arena. Still, my goal would be three or four times a week per horse (I have two) if I had the weather and the time.

When we're stuck in the barn for seven months out of the year I go back and work on any foundation skills they're weak on, teach them new things like halter or showmanship, and do a LOT of trick work. Winter is our time to build up the things that take patience or lots of long slow incremental work and get them solid. Come spring we're ready to switch gears and go back into driving, refreshed and better educated.

Leia

 

[fourluckyhorseshoes]

Do you think driving 5-6 days a week is too much? Of course it wouldn't be intense arena work everyday, but at least 1 trail drive a week?

 

[Field-of-Dreams]

Sunny is one I can drag out and go, even if he hasn't been driven in weeks. Pinkie is pretty much the same. Of course, during show season they are worked to get in shape and stay that way, but we mostly round pen them for that.

Newbies get driven every other day or so with round pen work thrown in.

 

[New mini]

I drive in an indoor arena and drive at least 5 days a week 6 if I can get into the arena. I board at a farm that has all larger horses and they are not used to a mini and carriage. Lance does well at that schedule. He is well conditioned and loves to get out and do something. If I can not drive I usually take him out for a walk and a good grooming. Of course he is turned out eeryday except Sun too.

 

[shorthorsemom]

not near enough this year, but hope to change that in the near future.

 

[Sandee]

Not often enough. I use a golf cart to condition my minis. Two of them are really good about it but one hates being BEHIND anything and "forced" to work. He runs up and bites the golf cart.

I'm in my 60s and afraid I use my age as an excuse when mostly it's me that's "out of shape".

I would love to work my horses at least every other day either in harness or the round pen but then there's reality!

 

[Performancemini]

Another "not often enough" here. No indoor, no outdoor; just our pasture/paddocks and the yard. So, in the summer-basically weekly. In the winter they are mainly "dormant". We did play with pulling a plastic toboggan sled behind a few this winter (in the paddock and on a longeline). My husband rigged up "shafts" with thin, pliable PVC pipes. The green horse did the best and he is skittish-go figure. The horse with 3 seasons under his belt wanted to get away. Our 19 year old mare thought she wouldn't the first circle; then decided ' what the heck-humans are nuts' and drove well on it. We enjoy shows and trail driving in the nicer 3 seasons. We have two who enjoy the trails very much.

 

[Jules]

Still ground driving here, lol, but between 3-5 times a week.

Mainly on the road, but sometimes on a nearby trail. Yesterday we went to a new housing estate that is being built as there was heavy machinery, bunting and bright signs to navigate and desensitize him.

 

[Farina]

Howoften I drive the hrse depends on the horse. A green horse would drve any other day, some expirenced one once and twice a week with round pen work, long reining and so on n between. Some horses I drive every day for trainng for CDE's.

It depends on your horse and your goals.

 

[disneyhorse]

I'm one who feels that a horse can't work "too much" as long as the conditioning process and resulting feed program is fair.

That said, life gets in the way for me to drive as much as I'd like!

 

[Katiean]

Not enough as it is about 25 miles round trip to the boarding facility. I try to get there at least once a week.

 

[rbrown]

When I had my horses at home, I drove Kandy every day, for at least 45 minutes, usually a lot longer. I had so much fun with her, and we were both in great shape

Now, very sadly, I'm living in Boston and boarding my girls... takes me an hour just to get to the barn (between gas and tolls, I'm spending over $10 a trip, and that really adds up for my starving college student budget!!), and I'm student teaching and finishing college and working odd jobs every week to pay board/vet/etc bills, so I'm driving maaaaybe three times a week on a good week. This isn't ideal for me, because Skippy really needs to be driven way more often, but I keep telling myself that it's the best I can do right now.

The good news is that this summer I'm working where my horses are, so I'll hopefully be driving every day!

 

[Leeana]

When weather and time is not working agianst me. Back in the fall, we drove about 3x a week. Right now our main driving horse is just a pleasure/trail horse that I am putting miles on to be grandpa safe for my dad. Over winter I may have drove her 5x or so. Right now we are getting back into a normal swing of things, and will be driving/working 3-4x a week.

 

[tifflunn]

We drive outside, no arena weather permiting- I usually get 3 drives in a week - this year I am working 2 so maybe probably be 3x weekly just driving 2 in same day

 

[Helicopter]

About once every year.

Then I wonder why my super sweet, super fat, super unfilt little mare never gets any better.

Wanders up the road like a drunken sailor then heads for home in a dead straight line.

Having said that we've been out twice this week.