Horse Training
Tidbits on Horse Training
Thoroughbred Racehorses
Training Schedule
Unfortunately, there are no hard and fast rules on horse training.
Generally the best idea is to tailor your training schedule to
each individual runner. Most trainers at major tracks train 6 days
out of seven, with the horse hand walked or hung on a hotwalker on
the remaining day. If their horse isn't as sound as he should be,
some trainers do less galloping and more walking between races.
As a general rule of thumb, the more exercise the horse gets, the
fitter he will be, and the better he will run. But days off are
important for muscle rebuilding. Any time the muscle is seriously
stressed, a day or so off will allow time for the system to
recuperate and rebuild fresh tissue. Sometimes days off are good
for a horse's mental condition as well. After a strong racing
effort, or even after a hard workout, most trainers will give a
horse a day or two off, depending on how he comes back after the
race. The horse will usually let you know when he is ready to
return to training.
Claimers
There are several different types of races, but most of the races
run today are claiming races. A claiming race is a race where you
enter your horse for a specific dollar amount, and anyone who
meets certain criteria (different tracks have different rules
about who is eligible to claim) can put the amount of the claim
into an account with the horseman's bookkeeper and claim (buy)
your horse.
For example: If you put your horse into a $10,000 claiming race, a
qualified person can put $10,000 into their account with the
bookkeeper, and then on race day they fill out a claim slip, which
has their name, the horse's name and sex, and the race info on it,
then they put it into a locked box in the Racing Secretary's
office. After the race, the box is opened, and any claim slips
inside are read. If your horse has a claim slip filed, then you
get the $10,000, but the claimant gets the horse. If there is more
than one claim in on a horse, numbered pills corresponding to the
number of claim slips are put into a bottle, which is then shaken,
and a single number rolled out. The claim slip that matches that
number gets the horse. Everybody else gets their money back. You
don't know prior to the box being opened if there is a claim on
your horse. Any purse money earned in the race belongs to the
original owner, regardless of whether or not the horse is claimed.
The idea is that claiming keeps people honest, and allows lesser
quality horses to compete equally. If all races were just open to
everyone, then the same horses would win every time, since people
with stakes horses would use cheaper races for workouts, just to
earn easy money. But with claiming, you only enter your horse for
a price that you feel is reasonable to lose him. So stakes horses
aren't going to run against $15,000 claimers, since someone would
claim the stake horse for a mere $15,000 if he were entered. The
idea is to run your horse for the highest claiming amount that he
can compete well at. That way you make the most money, but nobody
else is likely to claim him, because he is already competing at
his highest level. Most people claim because they feel that the
horse can compete at higher levels than the current owner is
running him at, so they feel they are getting a higher quality
horse for a bargain price.
Claiming is a little risky, though, since you don't get to vet the
horse prior to putting in a claim, and the horse actually belongs
to you the minute the gates open, so if anything happens to the
horse, you still lose the money. Also, many times the previous
trainer knows any quirks that the horse has, and it can takes a
new trainer quite some time to figure out a new horse.
Injured Horse Training
Horses coming back off injuries require more careful handling when
returning to training. Especially when they were on stall rest,
since studies have shown that horses begin to lose bone mass after
only 30 days on stall rest, which can lead to catastrophic
fracture if not brought back properly.
If the horse was just resting up, then he can start back by
jogging at first, slowly progressing to an easy gallop of a mile
or so. How fast he progresses depends on how unfit he got while
laid off, and how easy a horse he is to get fit. Just like people,
some horses seem to get far more out of their workouts then
others, so they get fit much faster. Gradually pick up the
distance to around 1-1/2 to 2 miles, then slowly up the speed.
When he is galloping that distance at a good clip without tiring,
you can start him on some easy works. How long each step takes
will just depend on your horse. Generally a horse coming back off
a rest can be ready to run again in 60 to 90 days, depending on
how long he was off, and how fit he stayed during his layoff.
Feeding also depends on the individual horse. Most racehorses do
quite well on a good 14% feed, along with the appropriate vitamins
and minerals. I am a big believer in the product Source as well,
which contains various micronutrients that usually aren't found in
commercial feed mixes. Always feed good quality hay along with the
horse's feed. The type of hay isn't nearly as important as the
quality. Orchard grass, timothy, alfalfa, even peanut hay will
work, as long as the quality is high. The Horse magazine and
website is a good place to look for information regarding feeding
the high performance horse, and it has some really good articles
about training methods and tips about avoiding various types of
injury as well.
Two Year Olds
There are, as you have pointed out, both pros and cons to the
early conditioning of two year olds. Done properly, with careful
attention to undue stress on the young body, early conditioning is
very beneficial. Done improperly, it can lead to permanent serious
damage.
A two year old horse could be compared to a 14 - 16 year old
human. At three, he could be compared to a 25 year old or so.
Human athletes are well aware of the problems associated with
waiting too late in life to train for a particular discipline, and
so it is with horses. Young bone, tendon and muscle is far more
resilient than it will be at a later age. Just as most world class
athletes have to begin training at a young age in order to
maximize their potential, so do horses.
Studies done by The Animal Health Trust in England have shown that
by age three, tendon and cartilage development in the horse has
basically stopped. As a two year old, you can increase tendon and
cartilage strength and resilience with proper conditioning, but by
three, all changes tend to become degenerative, rather than
adaptive. Bone development is much the same. Dr. Nunamaker at New
Bolton Center did the definitive study on shin development in the
young horse several years ago, which showed that proper training
methods in the young horse could completely prevent the incidence
of tiny microfractures of the cannon bone, known as "bucked
shins". This is very important, because bucked shins can
often lead to saucer fracture leter in life. Young bone adapts and
grows stronger more easily in response to stress than bone in an
older horse. Older horses have a greater risk of fracture, instead
of remodeling in response to the stresses of training and racing.
Oddly enough, the New Bolton study showed that proper bone
conditioning was achieved by adding speed early on in the training
process, as opposed to long slow mileage. The bone only develops
to withstand the amount of strain put on it by training, so by
giving the young horse long slow gallops, the bone never develops
enough to withstand speed work. The key is to add short bursts of
speed at the end of the gallop a few times a week during early
training, and gradually increase the amount of work done at speed
as training progresses.
As with anything else, too much of a good thing is detrimental.
Too much stress on young growing bone and tendon will cause them
to fail, and result in fracture or worse. Careful attention to any
signs of overwork is essential, and a light racing schedule as a
two year old is certainly in order, if you want the horse to
continue running well into adulthood.
I'm sorry that I don't have time to look up any reference
materials for you, but a search on Dr. Nunamaker, New Bolton
Center, and the Animal Health Trust should likely come up with
something helpful. The University of California at UC Davis often
has some great stuff, and often a search if the archives of The
Horse magazine will be helpful, as regards new research.
Colts
Your mare cannot actually "teach" your partner's colt to
be a stallion. Hormones will do that for him, or they won't. If a
colt is going to be studdish and rank, he'll start being difficult
about it regardless of whether or not there is a mare nearby.
Simply having a mare close to him doesn't automatically mean that
he'll turn into a raging monster. As an example, we currently have
a gorgeous three year old colt right now, who is the most laid
back fellow you'll ever want to meet. The fillies love him, and
tease to him constantly, but he pays zero attention. He's
friendly, but very well behaved, no snorting, screaming, nothing.
It just isn't in his nature.
Conversely, many breeding stallions are perfectly behaved
regardless of what else is going on around them, simply because
they have been trained that breeding has a time and a place, and
that sort of behavior isn't tolerated anywhere else. My late Arab
stallion was one of those. He was an absolute gem. A great
breeder, but when you were leading him or riding him, you could
take him straight through a field of open mares, and he wouldn't
twitch. A perfect gentleman, and an absolute joy. He is greatly
missed.
My advice would be to just deal with any problems as they happen.
If the colt starts getting difficult, or starts running the fence
near the mare, then you can try to train him out of it, or you can
just geld him. A nervous, studdish colt wouldn't be much use at
the races, anyway, trust me. I've said before that I prefer to
leave my colts intact as long as they behave, but I don't cut them
any slack if they prove unable to handle the hormonal rush. A good
gelding is far preferable to a bad colt.
Is this colt out by himself? He might be better adjusted if he had
a buddy or two. Horses are herd animals, and maybe he's hanging
out by the mare more often out of loneliness, as much as anything.
Gelding
If the colt is modestly bred, I wouldn't count on breeding him, no
matter how stellar his racing career. That is not to say that it
couldn't happen, but it isn't likely enough to let it weigh into
your racing decisions, and traditionally speaking, poorly bred
runners usually make mediocre sires, regardless of racing ability.
As far as gelding your baby goes, I personally would wait. I
wouldn't really expect an 11 month old to have dropped yet, and
there is plenty of time for it. It especially wouldn't worry me
since he hasn't dropped on either side, since it is almost unheard
of for a horse to retain both testicles. If neither has yet
descended, I'd think it more likely he's just a late bloomer.
A properly handled colt will rarely get to be too difficult to
handle due to testosterone alone, and gelding actually does affect
growth patterns, although it is very minimal. Testosterone causes
growth plates to close, so gelding early will usually get you a
(slightly) taller, more streamlined gelding, whereas waiting will
usually result in a bit more muscle mass. I like more muscle on my
horses, so I usually wait to geld until they prove to me that they
need it.
Gelding a cryptorchid is always a more difficult and more
expensive procedure than gelding a horse who has dropped, since it
involves actual surgery, and laying the horse down under general
anesthesia. I wouldn't rush into it before I absolutely had to.
I also find it easier to geld in cooler weather while the horse is
in early training, as the exercise makes it easier to keep the
swelling down, and the flies aren't out in force. I hate managing
the aftercare when a gelding is on just pasture.
A lot also depends on the horse's temperament. Some horses really
do need that added bit of testosterone to make them aggressive
when they run. Most don't, but there are a few of them out there
who are so laid back they could care less, until that bit of added
aggression kicks in. You'll have to be the judge of that, since
you know the horse best.
Now, having said all that, there are a couple of things that you
can try, just to set your mind at ease. A small dose of ace will
often cause a horse to drop as he relaxes. It may not stick, but
if he can drop at all, then they are located below the iniguial
ring, and they will drop eventually on his own. Another, more
expensive thing to try is using small doses of hCG or GnRH to make
him drop. I don't remember the exact dosage, or even if you can
try it at this young an age, as we rarely worried about it until
into their two year old year, but your vet should know.
Again, my choice would be to wait awhile before rushing into
surgery.
Trainer License
The rules on getting a trainer's license vary from state to state,
but as a rule, all states require that an applicant pass a written
test and a barn test. The written test is usually 100 questions
covering race conditions, general care, routine veterinary
questions and rules and regulations. The barn test usually
includes putting on bandages, bridle, saddle, tongue tie, and
other practical skills.
Some states, and I believe that NY is one, require an applicant to
be licensed on the track for a minimum period of time before being
allowed to take the trainer's test.
Much of this
information is quoted from
Stephanie Frost
Thoroughbred trainer for 20 years, a thoroughbred farm owner and
Thoroughbred breeder. Owner of Alchemy Bloodstock, a full service
bloodstock agency, specializing in locating quality racing and
breeding stock for clients, and representing clients at various
Thoroughbred sales. Alchemy Bloodstock has been instrumental in
the purchase and training of several graded stakes horses, as well
as many extremely profitable sales horses.
www.alchemybloodstock.com |
