Light work

[Andy Carson]

I have had a young Belgian/Perch cross mare that I have had for about a year now. Over the last year, I have tried to find lots of different types of work to get her in shape and get myself more experience for farm work that should begin this spring. We have skidded firewood, pulled a spring tooth and spike tooth harrow, used a slip scoop to do some light landscaping, and spent some time on the forecart. The bulk of her time (probably 75%) has been spent pulling a weighted stoneboat. She have done an admirable job at most of this work EXCEPT when the job is light. When the work is really light (such as harrowing the arena or walking with the forecart) she will start out well behaved and after about a half hour she’ll start to get “naughty” as she looks for a way to apply her muscle and finds that she just runs into the bit. I am somewhat sympathetic to her desire to work and have tried to find ways to make innately easy jobs hard, but it’s not always possible. I am tempted to get a pony to do jobs that are too easy for her, but wonder if I would be avoiding an important part of her training. I have heard horses can be “ruined” by constantly pulling too light of loads, but it also seems important to develop self control and discipline. I would appreciate your thoughts.

[Vand]

Country Mouse–

Yes, it is possible she’s just getting bored and wants to do something that’s harder for her; but you’re right in that she needs to learn self-control and if you want a well-rounded horse, she needs to be able to do all different kinds of work (light and heavy).

I would be interested to know what kind of bit you’re using–if only because if she’s getting bored and pushing through the bit, it may take a different style of bit to keep her from doing that. If she learns that she can’t push through the bit when she gets her “naughty-pants” on, she should eventually figure out that she has to behave, no matter what kind of work she’s doing.

Still, there are those horses who like to work hard and aren’t really cut out for certain kinds of work. True, they should still do it and behave themselves; but they may definitely have a preference. We have one mare who loves farm work (plowing, skidding, harrowing, mowing); but hate-hate-hates the show ring. She has been shown and she does fine; but she’s miserable the whole time. Does that make sense? Basically, your mare needs to learn to do the light work and behave while doing it; but eventually, if you want to get a pony for the smaller jobs, it might make everyone happier.

Hope that helps.

[Donn Hewes]

I don’t believe light work ever ruined a horse. Say you got in the cart and said to the horse, “I need to go to town” it is only five miles each way – we should be home for lunch. It is no longer light work, it is just work. I am guessing that what the horse is reacting to is not the light work so much as work with out much purpose.

Some good work horses it is not easy to make them relax. It is either a flaw in their training or a flaw in their temperament. I just keep looking for ways to help them relax. Some times these horses are very in tune with how relaxed the people are. When you are focused on a slip scrap or something, you probably appear relaxed to them.

Of course, I am totally guessing here. There are many possibilities with out seeing the animal and how it is really reacting to what is being asked for.

[Gabe Ayers]

I think some horses may get bored with light stuff particularly if it is in a circle or doesn’t leave evidence of the previous pass. When pulling the chain harrow it isn’t long before they see the impact from their last lick, but that isn’t really light work.

I know I get bored from just driving around empty, which in itself may be conveyed to the horse or perceived by the horse.

Maybe they are destination oriented and think they are “going somewhere”, like when the boss mare decides the other side of the hill it the best grazing spot for now and herd moves behind or in front her, from her signals?

Where does a horse think it is going, when we drive it aimlessly? Maybe the resistance flips a switch that they are doing something more than just wandering about? I guess riding them adds the load of the rider which is a certain resistance and presents a much closer contact of signals.

I have never been able to drive them for the sake of driving them after they learn enough signals to be controlled. The next step is do something with them, I just don’t have time for any less to justify my having them.

I guess my excuse for having more than I can work myself is to have them in case anyone comes along that wants one of their own. They often do.

So think up something for that horse to be doing. Hook that drag and drag the pastures spreading the droppings/manure from the toilet areas while out there. Get a one horse mower and clip weeds, maybe a one horse sized v-plow and move some snow, or knock the ridge out of the middle of the driveway. Stockpile firewood for the coming winters?

Good question, lots of things about the horses that are not real easy, but most are in some way fun, even if just trying to figure out what they are thinking and why they are doing what they are doing – good or bad.

~

[Andy Carson]

Yes, meaningfull work is what the farm is all about. I have spent a year working with my horse mostly to make sure I was serious and this wasn’t a passing fancy of mine. It’s hard to explain all the little reasons I think that she gets bored with light work, but I am very sure that what the problem is. The problem has only goten worse since she has gotten more and more in shape. I suppose that re-harrowing an already smooth arena is innately boring, but pulling the forecart empty doesn’t have to be. It is like pulling teeth to get her to only walk with the cart though, and when i let her trot, she is in shear joy. I had an older Belgian before my current horse that was happy and well behaved walking with an empty forecart for hours, but she wouldn’t pull half the load my new horse will. Maybe that desire to work hard often comes with the downside that they are sometimes not content and relaxed with light jobs. I thought I would ask the more experienced people if thier truly ambitous (and maybe hotter) horses often find it hard to relax with jobs that do not tax them physically. It this was a common in horse of this temperment, I will not spend tons of time trying to put a square peg in a round hole… Especially when there are plenty or “round pegs” out there that are cheap, easy to keep, and would love to be relied upon for only light work.

[Donn Hewes]

I once had a neighbor who had a pair of halflingers that were all ways a little “up”. he use to trot them up and down the drive way first thing every time he hooked them up, “just to help them relax”. It never worked. In fact most everything he did, didn’t help them relax. It was his temperament that was the problem, I would say.

[mitchmaine]

hey donn, i’d say that the folks who can’t relax always bring it out in their horses. for sure. but like you i’m sure, i’ve had horses that wouldn’t relax and those you couldn’t wake up and didn’t treat them any different. so you have to think then that it’s not just the teamster? what do you think?

[Carl Russell]

One thing I have noticed about light work is that we often take it for granted and miss the opportunity to treat it like “real” work. By this I am referring to cadence. I find that just because it is light work does not mean that the horse should be expected to go, and go, and go, and go. I have found one of the best ways to get a horse to relax …. is to let them relax. In other words, let them work, and while they are still working in an acceptable manner, allow them to stop and rest… just a few breaths.

This however is not quite the same as insisting that they work at a walk. This has to do with teamster intent. This mare may be getting bored, or maybe she want to work, but these are not necessary components of your thought process. It really doesn’t matter what she thinks, she should work at the rate that you want.

I have a mare that is the hardest working horse I have ever had. She will RUN with as much as you can put behind her… and with her ears up..she loves it… but not me. I only use a straight bar bit, and there are times when I need to work it to help her remember that it is a walk that I expect. I don’t need extra leverage, or a harsher bit… it just comes down to being ahead of the horse and if she starts to ramp it up, I just remind her to walk. And having a consistent working cadence is a big part of ensuring that she walks with a load on a light line.

AND, one of my mentors always said “A mare won’t go until she wants to go. And when she wants to go, she goes like hell”. So there may be some element to the psychological make-up, but the bottom line is that she needs to walk… and she absolutely can.

Carl

[Andy Carson]

Thanks for all the thoughts and good suggestions. In the future, I will be less tolerant of her misbehaving under light loads as this seems to be a very reasonable expectation. I didn’t mean to imply that I am dissatisfied with my horse in general, as my feeling are actually quite the opposite, I’ve very proud of her and my progress. She has vastly exceded my expectations for over 90% of what I do with her, and in all jobs that I concider to be medium and heavy work. She has actually shocked me with the amount of work a single horse is capable of doing, especially after she got in shape. Often times I wonder if I ought to be asking a single to pull this much or this long, but as long as she’s not going to hurt herself, I’ll let her do what she loves. In all honesty, this is is where my heart is, and I’m sure she knows that. Although I am relatively new to working draft horses, this horse is the second draft I’ve had. They couldn’t have had more different temperments. My first draft, an older Belgian, was perfectly content and relaxed to walk with light loads like an empty forecart for hours without even a hint of “naughtiness”. My old horse wouldn’t pull half the load my new horse will, but I have directed at least one horse pulling light loads with good results in the past. Honestly, though, I have to admit I am proud of my new horses desire to pull hard and have been very sympathic to her misbeving under light loads (at least in the past). Many times, I am honestly thinking “A pony could do this job” and “Yeah, I know, this is boring.” Sometimes, when the load is light and involves lots of tight turns (like harrowing the arena), I am thinking “this is like asking a powerlifter to dance ballet.” Now that I am thinking about this, I suppose it is silly to think she would not put up on my thoughts and feelings. I’ll have to try to put on a front, but my heart is not really into light work like this and I don’t think hers is either (maybe just because mine isn’t). If I look at is a training drill, I can probably be more engaged, maybe see how straight I can make the lines… It’s probably better that I find some real work, though. Frozen ground and snow puts a damper on many things for me and leads to projects that are not real work, but really more of a training excersice so she’s not out of shape when spring comes. At any rate, thanks again for all your feedback.

[grey]

If I approach my horse feeling pity for putting her in a position I know she will not enjoy (paste deworming day, for instance), she will feel that softness in me and translate it as a lack of firmness and resolve. She will rebel and act up, hoping that I will relent and not follow through with the unpleasantness. I have to steel my resolve and go into the task with a firmness of spirit that says, “And now we will do this until it is done.”

This particular mare of mine will take advantage of any softness and make you regret ever having felt it. One needn’t be mean with her, just firm. I think that the softness actually disgusts this horse. She is on the top rung of the social ladder and has no respect for a soft spirit who tries to tell her what to do.

[Carl Russell]

grey;14693 wrote:

If I approach my horse feeling pity for putting her in a position I know she will not enjoy (paste deworming day, for instance), she will feel that softness in me and translate it as a lack of firmness and resolve. She will rebel and act up, hoping that I will relent and not follow through with the unpleasantness. I have to steel my resolve and go into the task with a firmness of spirit that says, “And now we will do this until it is done.”

This particular mare of mine will take advantage of any softness and make you regret ever having felt it. One needn’t be mean with her, just firm. I think that the softness actually disgusts this horse. She is on the top rung of the social ladder and has no respect for a soft spirit who tries to tell her what to do.

Well said.
Carl

[Andy Carson]

Thanks for all your advice, I thought I would write an update. I tried many of your suggestions, figured out which work in our situtation, and our work with the harrow has improved alot. I didn’t get a chance to work on the forecart yet, but the harrow is more important for me anyway. For her, the most effective solution was to act as much as possible like she was pulling a heavy load that she is used to. Over the last few days, I was able to really compare the differences in my techniques and expectations with heavy loads compared to light loads. I was suprized at how many differences there were when I took a step back and really looked closely at the two situations. For some reason, I tended to use less line pressure on a light load and asked her to respond quicker than if she was pulling a heavy load. I also tended to ask her to turn tighter and quicker than I would ask if she was pulling something heavy. Additionally, I did not give her any breaks. Incorporating all these changes made her more content with the harrow and I suspect will help in other aspects too. I think she’s still a little bored, but I think I was wrong that the boredom was leading to the misbehavior. Maybe it sounds obvious as I write this now, but it’s great to have people to help figure these problems out with. Thanks again.
-Andy

[TBigLug]

Glad to hear the situation’s improving. I’m late to the party but I’ll add my two cents. I think everyone was spot on in that the horse was getting bored by not seeing progress. I also believe they’re right that they should still be expected to do the work whether they like it or not. I had a big horse that did this to me. He was a team horse so I would split up his work by woprking him single, working him in his team, switching sides, doing something differant, etc. Maybe your solution could be the opposite of get a smaller horse. Maybe you just need another big horse! I’m always looking for a new excuse. Something else I did with him was I gave him regular breaks even though he didn’t need them. Kinda a rest from the boredom moreso than the work.

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