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T he next part of the process is thebreaking of the yearlings to ride�with a view to turning them intoracehorses� It has becomeunfashionable of late to use the

word ‘breaking’� with terms such as ‘starting’being adopted instead� However� breaking hasbeen normal usage for centuries� and we will stickwith it� though obviously we try our best not to�in any negative sense� break our new investment�What we do want to achieve is a horse capable ofshowing the very best form of which he is capablewhilst being handled by people with a less thanperfect grasp of the plot� The Old Man� as weaddressed my father in his absence� always saidthat he made a mistake with the first yearlingshe broke in forgetting that they were to be riddenby stable lads and trying to make them intoshow hacks� That was �� years ago when the ladswere a lot better trained than those we have now�we should always remember the parameterswithin which we have to operate�

The success of our plan to survive in theracing business will hinge on the viability ofour purchases as frequent and productivecompetitors. This can best be achieved if theyare trained for racing in all senses of that word.As well as being fit, they must also learn howto conduct themselves well both in their racesand throughout every aspect of their dailyroutine. If it were possible to enlist the help ofsome riders with a basic understanding ofcollection and impulsion for the early stages ofour horses’ ridden career then that might provevery beneficial in teaching them to carrythemselves to the best advantage before theirserious training began.

The breaking period is certainly one of themost important stages of a racehorse’s career,although the ease with which the process iscompleted may bear little relation to ultimatesuccess on the racecourse. In fact, manyhorses that sail through this part of theproceedings without a murmur will spendtheir whole lives simply going through themotions in the same way if we are notconstantly alive to that possibility. This maybe even more likely in a big yard and itdemonstrates the sometimes fairly closeresemblance between equine and humanbehaviour. This is not anthropomorphism; ahorse is naturally not human in his thoughtprocesses, but all young things seem to sharea tendency to identify quickly the easiest wayto get along.

Experienced horsemen will recognise thesyndrome whereby an animal that has beenallowed to take things too easy becomesresentful if that regime changes. This is veryevident in many small ponies, most of whichmust presumably have started off quitenormal, otherwise they would never have beenselected as suitable for children, but whichoften become quite evil in their attitude afterbeing allowed too much leeway. In a similarway, many lads from the bigger stables havebecome virtually institutionalised and this canhardly avoid affecting their charges. If anyassumedly quiet horse is seen to becometroublesome with a weaker rider then that ridershould be changed immediately, even if onlyfor a few days, in order to prevent the badbehaviour becoming established.

Most of the yearlings we get today are far

Breaking In Process

“Let your yea be yea, and your nay, nay.” James 5:12

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easier to deal with than they used to be.Unfortunately, this is often not the case withthe homebreds. The sales preparation today isin most cases so well managed that manyyoungsters are nowadays virtually brokenwhen trainers receive them, certainly by thestandards of 30 or 40 years ago. Unfortunately,the skill of the lads who will have to ride themhas been decreasing at a very similar rate. Whatwould happen were today’s riders faced withthe almost untouched intake that was then thenorm is anybody’s guess. Happily that is notthe case, although we are now suffering theeffects of a benign, rather than a vicious, circlein that because awkward horses are nowuncommon the necessary procedures thatallowed them to be handled relatively easilyhave been dropped and very quickly forgotten.

We will try to describe here a basictraditional method based on the assumptionthat the subject is virtually untouched, in thehope that it may prove of interest andinstruction. Obviously this does not meanuntouched in the sense of wild, but it doesimply that the youngster’s education has notyet started. Although many of the proceduresdescribed may seem time-consuming they wereactually designed to be time-saving originally,and it will do no harm for a (not necessarilythe) correct system to be adopted. If theseprocedures are implemented without fail weshould not only have a sensible racehorse, butwill also have benefited from the fact that thisyear’s assistant breaker should havesufficiently absorbed the theory to be able totake over the breaking himself after a couple ofseasons. We are hoping to describe a methodthat should prove equal to any foreseeablesituation, but the need for these procedures tobe adhered to closely cannot be overstressed.Any changes that may prove necessary are notto be made by staff without discussion andinstructions. Using these methods, a reallyexperienced man will handle most situationscomfortably even without an assistant. What

we advocate here is a belt and braces approach,aimed at producing both well-mannered horsesand creating trained and competent personnel.

All yearlings should have their teeth attendedby the vet or by an equine dentist as soon asthey are quiet enough to be handled easily. Allvaccinations should also be reviewed and put inorder, and a worming programme initiated.

The safest and most efficient way toapproach the breaking process is for anexperienced lad, with a helper, to be delegatedto handle all new yearlings for the first fewdays. He can then observe their characters andstart them off in the correct manner. This ismuch safer than allocating yearlings to all andsundry as spares before we know anythingabout them. Two novices together always usedto be regarded as a recipe for disaster. Underour system the yearling will have some basicstable sense before he gets his own lad,although the new groom must be made awareof the routine he is to follow if the foundationis not to be quickly undermined. To this end wecan strongly convey to all staff that there areonly two basic ways of doing things, thesebeing number one, “All the other ways”, andnumber two, “The way you will do it if youwant to stay here!”

The team leader will be aware of the vitalpart played by voice in these proceedings andmust impress this on his assistant. The actualwords used make little difference, as unlike insome other disciplines a racehorse will not beroutinely required to recognise very specificverbal commands, but the tone and inflection ofthe voice are important. Many excellentyearling men will keep up a constantconversation with their pupil, rather like amother with a baby, and although it is ratherone-sided the horse is obviously listening andtaking confidence from his teacher’s voice. It isvery apparent too that the horse is well awareof displeasure, as indicated by a dramaticroughness of tone when he is wilful; however,this correction must always be directly

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Breaking In Process

connected in the horse’s mind to anunacceptable act on his part. He will also beencouraged to greater efforts to please, in thesame way as a dog or a small child, by beingaddressed in a very hearty and enthusiasticmanner. Like a child, his attention can often bedistracted from a potential problem in this way,as long as the handler is thinking ahead.Unfortunately, it can be extremely hard to makethe average stable lad accept this as they seemafraid of sounding silly and so tend to operatein silence unless frequently remindedotherwise. For handlers who are notparticularly aware of the finer points of equinebody language the adoption of constant spokencontact along these lines is a viable alternative;in fact, their own body language may tend toreflect, and so to reinforce, their verbalcommunications, and vice versa.

With luck, however little has been donewith him the horse will be wearing a headcollar when he arrives. It is not uncommon,though, for whoever delivers him to removethis when they drop him off, sometimesleaving us with a distinct impression that ournew inmate has had very little human contactwhen we try to fit a replacement. As a generalrule, all yearlings should wear their headcollars constantly at this stage; adopting thispolicy is much easier than wasting time on theodd horse that is hard to catch.

All work with yearlings must be done in acalm and reassuring manner. We must give animpression that there is nothing to worry about;however, it must also be quite clear that we arein control of the situation. An experienced manwill be able to do this with a minimum of fuss,but the presence of an assistant for the first dayor two can make things go that much moresmoothly, as well as reinforcing safe proceduresin the assistant’s mind. Horses much prefer toknow where they stand, and are better off notlearning any bad habits that may be preventedby the presence of the helper. As a matter ofcourse both should always be on the same side

of the horse in order to avoid it jumping awayfrom one and on to the other.

Initially we will not attempt to tie up ayearling, as he will often have been used tohaving a holder whenever anything was doneto them. If we assume this to be so when wecommence, we will soon form an impression ofwhether or not he is nervous of anyoneworking with him. It is quite common for ayearling never to have had his stable cleaned ortidied when he was in it, and if he has alsonever been tied up we can run into a problemstraight away. With the helper holding,preferably with a shank, it is simple enough toshake up the bedding quietly and generallystraighten his box without starting any greatcommotion. Yearlings tend to make a mess oftheir beds anyway, so we need only get himused to the idea of the fork and the beddingmoving around his legs as we roughly clean thestable. If new shavings need to be added to thebed this should be done with care as this oftencauses alarm initially. The water can also bechanged, if necessary, while a holder is presentas this too may well be outside the horse’sexperience and frighten him.

When his stable is tidy we can see how heresponds to a gentle wipe over with a softdandy brush and a rubber. The sale yearlingsshould all be quite happy with this. If we findone that objects, we don’t need to make anissue of it, but we should simply complete atoken effort with the minimum of excitement.In many cases the improvement overnight willbe considerable, and this will be found to applyto many other aspects of his education. Thenext step might be to see how he is as regardshis feet. We must be quiet but firm; eventhough he may have been shod it is noguarantee that he will be perfect to handle. If heis at all difficult in front we can ignore his hindfeet for today.

It might be as well to introduce a couple oflittle mottos here. The first is adapted from agambling system: “Always stop when you are

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winning.” This might be the most importantsingle thing to remember when dealing withyoung horses, particularly with any difficultanimals. We must always part on a successfulnote, even if we have not achieved all that we hadhoped for. The second maxim is borrowed fromAesop: “More haste, less speed.” Every time weforget either of these mottos when working withyoung horses we are inviting difficulties.

A true horseman will often recognise theneed for a minor change of plan in order tofinish the lesson on a positive note if he sees anapproaching difficulty, and he will instinctivelymake that change. Actually he will take pride inknowing that no audience, and quite probablynot even the horse, would notice there was infact a potential problem. He will also avoidputting himself in situations where adequatetime is unavailable to complete the task in handsafely. This fine judgement, however, is notlearned easily, but only by working with manydifferent animals. Any opportunity to observe atop horseman/showman, or indeed sheepdog orgundog trainer, at work can be very instructive,although the performance may need carefulanalysis in order to obtain maximum instructionfrom it. The one thing all the top animalhandlers do have in common is that they neverever become flustered. They may often, bydistracting the attention of both their subjectand any onlookers from potential difficulties,appear to proceed with great ease in situationsthat threatened to go amiss. The more yearlingswe handle using this system, whether they needall its safeguards or not, the less likely we are toencounter any problems, and the easier we willfind it to deal equally smoothly with anythinguntoward that does arise.

The use of the term ‘horseman’ is not meantto imply a specific gender but is used to denoteany person who, by their acquired skill andknowledge, may be capable of selecting, caringfor, and training the horse to a high level. In amale-dominated sport, many females will neverhave been instructed in breaking procedures,

but, generally speaking, girls may tend to bemore conscientious than lads in faithfullyapplying specified procedures and are wellworth educating in this area.

As the horse settles in to his newsurroundings we constantly assess to whatdegree we can safely move on to the next stage.In most cases he will be unafraid of having hislitter done in a day or two and can then be tiedup. A loop of bale string should be attached tothe back ring of the head collar, to receive thechain and to prevent the head collar beingbroken by the chain if he does fly back inalarm. The string must not, as is sometimesseen, go on the wall ring for the obvious reasonthat the chain will then be flying around hishead if he does get loose. It is essential to haveeverything likely to be required to hand beforetying him up. He must not be left tied up andunattended for an instant at this stage, and ifwe do find we need anything he is to be loosedwhilst we fetch it. Only having left a yearlingfor a few seconds at this stage is not an excuseif he should get loose. The horse need only betied on a long chain at first, so that he doesn’tpanic. Initially we must always keep towardsthe rear of the box so that if he is inclined topull back we can hustle him back up to the frontwall. If we are paying attention this is quiteeasy, as long as we remain behind his girth.The fact that the front half of the box may notget much attention for a day or two is far lessof a problem than a horse that knows he can getloose. After a couple of days, most will be fairlycomfortable with us moving around the boxand will move themselves about as required. Ifhe does have a problem with moving across,and if he does tend to crowd into the cornerlooking back at us, then it is best to get thehelper back to resolve the problem quietlyrather than fluster him. We never get in front ofa yearling when alone with him until we areconfident he won’t take fright and fly back, andinitially we never ever leave him alone when heis tied up. Assuming that he soon settles on the

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Breaking In Process

chain, which he should as he has had no reasonto do anything else, we can continue to wipehim over and handle his feet, again calling on aholder if necessary. When wiping his face heshould always be untied at this stage to avoidalarm. After a couple of weeks we may judgehim ready to be left alone when tied up, but thisshould at first be for a few minutes only and weshould stand silently outside the closed door.After a short time he may become restless andas soon as he shows any inclination to leanback on the chain we must immediately hustlehim up vocally, preferably without him actuallyseeing us. If we do this a couple of times he willprobably think we are always watching and willsettle down. He should then be loosed and thisprocedure should be repeated for two or threedays. It is time well spent to have a horse thatgoes through his life without getting loose inthe stable or breaking a head collar. Yearlingsshould never have their hay in the stable whilstthey are being taught to tie up, so as not totempt them into scraping or getting loose. Thereis no point in chastising an animal on returningto the stable and finding that he is loose or hasbeen scraping his bed. Any correction will onlybe effective if applied when the offence isactually in progress. The success of many of thehorse-tamers of the 19th century was largelybased on various devices which were designedto cause the subject some inconvenience ordiscomfort, automatically and immediately assoon as he erred. Without realising that theman was even involved in the matter, the horseassumed that his own action had caused anunpleasant reaction, and eventually decided notto provoke it. The fact that such procedures fellinto disrepute and disuse was probably becausethe appliances did more harm than good in thehands of those who had failed to graspcompletely the basic theory.

We may occasionally come across a subjectthat has already formed the habit of gettingloose from his tie. Rather than make too muchof the situation, a lunge rein should be run

from his head collar through the ring on thewall so that even when he does run back he hasnot actually escaped when he reaches the backwall and he can soon be manoeuvred back intoposition without any fuss. He should not be leftunattended even using this method. After a fewdays he will normally accept matters quitehappily, and will eventually become quitetrustworthy in this respect.

It is now time to consider the handling ofour yearling outside, which may in fact beconsidered the actual breaking process, theprevious notes having covered stable manners.It is a good idea in most cases to remove theshoes before we start, for the simple reason thatthere is a great tendency to lose them anyway.Most yearlings should have enough growth offoot to go barefoot as the early exercise will alltake place on a soft surface. Although softground tends to make all horses pull off theirshoes by delaying breakover, it causes nodamage to the bare foot. Apart from thedisruption of continually waiting for a farrier torefit the shoe, there is great danger of breakingthe foot and some danger of serious injurythrough a shoe that doesn’t come off cleanly ifwe persist in keeping the yearlings shod at thisstage. After removing the shoes, the footshould have the edges rounded, in the sameway as would a horse being turned out to grass,to prevent them from splitting.

The whole breaking process is muchsimplified by having a properly constructedfenced arena with a suitable surface, andserious consideration should be given toachieving this, preferably at reasonableexpense. The main requirements might be alunging pen of about 45 feet diameter and anadjacent area to do very basic ridden work.Both should have safe surfaces with somedegree of weather resistance. If there is easyaccess to the gallops, so much the better. It isimportant to monitor the condition of thelunging area regularly as the cushion will tendto be thrown continually to the outside. This

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drawback will be largely avoided if horsesbeing lunged are continuously moved aroundthe arena so as not to make a track, rather thanbeing confined to the single circle, as soon asthey are well enough behaved to do so. Thedrainage should be as good as possible, withsome mix of sand and rubber or plastic the bestfooting. This can be reasonably achieved on aself-help basis with a local contractor ratherthan involving specialist schemes. The additionof coarsely chopped car tyres seems a great helpin frosty conditions, and some form of oil orjelly will improve frost resistance although itwill greatly increase the cost. Obviously acovered arena takes a lot of the pressure off thesurface, and extremely competitive quotes areavailable for steel buildings.

To begin at the beginning is the mostsensible approach to breaking, whatever thehistory of a new arrival is said to be. Over alarge number of yearlings much time will besaved by not cutting corners, despiteassurances that others may have alreadycompleted various stages satisfactorily withsome arrivals. It will soon be obvious if a horseis in fact well versed in his education up to acertain point. We can much more easily presson after ensuring for ourselves that a lessonhas been taught and learned than we canresolve a disaster caused by our makingerroneous assumptions.

The first step is the fitting of the bridle andin most cases this is no problem. As ineverything we will adopt a procedure whichassumes an unhandled subject. The type ofbridle to be used needs to be considered.Traditionally, British racehorses have startedtheir education in a ball cheek jointed snafflewith keys to encourage a wet mouth. However,these tend to come in a size that may be toomuch of a mouthful for some yearlings andthere can be a tendency for a horse to get thesebits through his mouth to the extent that thekeys are out at one side, usually the left. Analternative may be one of the sweet-mouth bits

now available. These do not have keys but thedifferent metal is supposed to produce the sameeffect and as these bits tend to come in smallersizes they do appear more comfortable forsmaller horses. Many standard breaking bridlesare also too large and have the alteration holestoo far apart for small yearlings.

When putting bridles on yearlings we shouldalways let them well down to avoid difficulty ingetting over the ears. This takes 20 seconds, butit can often save 20 minutes straight away andwill also avoid creating the ongoing problem ofa horse being nervous about the ears. Once on,the bridle should be adjusted so that the bitbarely wrinkles the corner of the mouth.Because of the unsuitable size of the traditionalbits, the keys are often hanging too low in asmall horse’s mouth, which is far from ideal.The adjustment should be even on both sides. Ifthe holes are too far apart for correct fitting thenextra intermediate holes can easily be added.The traditional bridle has a loop to hold the sidebar close to the cheek-piece and some horsesappear to find this too rigid, but the loop caneasily be dispensed with. If fitting the bridledoes prove difficult, it should be accomplishedwith the aid of our helper and if possible withoutbecoming a major confrontation. It is better touse a humane twitch or sedation rather thanhave a prolonged battle and in this situation thebridle should not be removed after exercise, andsometimes not for several days. The bit can beunbuckled and removed, with the ends of thecheek-pieces left buckled onto the bottom ringof the head collar until the horse has graduallylearned to accept having his head and earshandled. It is not generally appreciated howoften this problem can be created when takingthe bridle off, and for the first few days weshould always let it down before we take it offas well. As previously noted, the head collarstays on at all times, except on the rare occasionwhen some soreness may occur behind the ears.

Yearlings should always wear boots in frontfor exercise in the early stages since they may

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Breaking In Process

be prone to sudden and erratic movementswhen fresh and are likely to become carelesswhen tired. Occasionally we find one thatbrushes behind, in which case a doublethickness of tubular elastic stocking, kept upwith tape, can be used. The tape should not betoo tight and should be fitted close above thejoint. The stockings can easily be washed outand will last a few days. Extra protection can begained by inserting Gamgee between the twolayers of stocking. These cases are often due toweakness, but the balance of the feet should bechecked. The ideal front boot is a simpleneoprene one with Velcro straps incorporatingsome elastic. The elastic seems to have virtuallyeliminated the problem of lost boots, but it mayneed renewing occasionally. When fitting theboots it is essential to be aware of the possibilityof causing a blemish to the tendon as this willdefinitely not enhance any horse’s value, eventhough it usually has no effect on hissoundness. The way to avoid this is to securethe bottom strap snugly, with the boot at thecorrect height on the leg, and then make surethe top strap is slightly more loosely fastened.

The boots must be rigorously brushed, insideand out, between horses to avoid chafing andshould be dried each night and brushed again tosoften them in the morning.

We are at last ready to commence! Thelunge rein should initially be attached to boththe bit and to the back strap of the head collarto prevent too severe an impact on the mouth[1]. The head collar should be adjusted so asnot to pinch the corners of the mouth betweenit and the bit. This method allows some of thepressure to be transferred to the nose and thearguable slight loss of control is not a problemin an enclosed space. The fact that the pressure,should he attempt to get away, is not straighton the yearling’s mouth will be much lessalarming for him.

Once in the arena we can quietly lead thehorse around to let him get his bearings. If heis a little green, whether flighty or reluctant towalk, we can call on our helper to do a littlegentle chasing as required until the horse isleading quietly. When the yearling does get thehang of it we can call it a day. A very flightyhorse should be kept almost pressed againstthe fence until he relaxes. Very occasionally wewill get one that will not lead at any price, andrather than have a major row it might pay to geta pony to walk in front of him which shouldprove a quick and painless solution.

On the second day we can make a start onactually lunging in the round pen with a helper.It is a good idea to have on hand one of the longbut very light lunging whips which are quiteinoffensive, but which greatly extend our rangeof pursuit. This will do away with much rushingabout by the helper. We select the area to be usedand lead him around it a few times following thecircle we intend to describe. If the whip is used itis only to give the horse the sense that he isbeing pursued, not particularly aggressively, butjust enough that he feels that he should keepmoving. Gradually we can give him a little morerein and the assistant can gently pressurise himto keep walking rather than allow him to wonder

[1]

(All breaking photos courtesy of ‘Titch’ D. Coombes.)

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why we have to some extent left him. A naturalprogression will normally see him jogging roundfairly happily in a few minutes, although theremay be one or two fits and starts which we willdo our best to ignore. Of course we keep up aconstant rhetorical conversation with the horsethe whole time we have him out, and that isalways to be taken as read throughout the wholebreaking process. There should be as littlecharging about as possible, and if the horsedoesn’t settle down to a jog after a little while weshould resume leading him, so that the lessonfinishes happily. Funnily enough, some of thesales yearlings are actually much more difficultto lunge than the untouched ones because theyoften think they can do what they like based ontheir experiences before the sale. With these wemay need our helper to join us on the reinsometimes with a horse that may have becomeaccustomed to getting his head straight andgetting away. With these animals we mightprefer to put the rein straight onto the ring of thebit. They can’t actually get away from us in around pen, even though many seem to havebeen accustomed to doing so in their previoushome, and they normally soon settle down.

If the yearling seems to accept things quitereadily we may try him going round clockwise,and we first need to change the rein to the offside.To accomplish this we first take several feet of theend of the lunge and slip it through the ring [2]before we unbuckle it to transfer it to the other

side, so as to have hold of the horse should hebecome startled during the changeover.

It will save time to repeat the leadingprocess around the reverse circle before westart as, possibly because of the equine opticalmechanism by which each eye sees a differentpicture, there is every chance that he will viewthis very similar task with extreme suspicion.We simply repeat the procedure, but we must beprepared for at least a repeat of any difficultieswe encountered going anticlockwise. Theyearlings that have been previously lunged byothers may frequently be very troublesomegoing this way. As before, the object is to resistany excitement and to finish on a positive note.

Depending on the yearling’s reactions weshould now press on with his education asquickly as we can without at all alarming himand causing a setback. The reason for this isthat we cannot absolutely predict the attitudesof those horses still to come, and if there is adifficult one we may need more time to spend onhim. The riding lads will also be more relaxedabout their task as soon as the first ones areridden away successfully. The weather can alsobe unpredictable, and it is not ideal to havemany horses still to break if we do get frozen in.

As soon as he is lunging calmly it is time toget some tack on our pupil. Opinions vary as tothe best method, but this one has been foundsafe and effective. On his return to his box afterexercise we can carefully fit him with a lightroller with a breast girth, such as is worn overpaddock clothing at the races. As this is veryinsubstantial it causes very little objection inmost cases. We keep the bridle on and we firstallow the horse to smell and examine the roller.Next we place the roller, which is folded in half,gently over the withers. When he seemscomfortable with feeling it moving andtouching him, the breast girth can be carefullysecured. There is no need to tuck the strap endsinto the billets at this point. Once the breastgirth is fastened we can lift the doubled up bellyband up and down a few times to let him see

[2]

41

Breaking In Process

and feel it before carefully passing the buckleend over to the off side. We do not throw it overand we try to ensure it does not flap against theoff knee causing him to jump. Whilst keepingthe horse occupied both with voice and bymoving the bit in his mouth, we can reachdown and do up the belly band extremelyloosely [3]; it should not initially come withinthree inches of the horse. With a big horse wemay need a longer roller as we do not want himto plunge and try to get it off if he suddenlybecomes aware of it because there are notenough holes to fit him loosely to start with. Wegive him a turn around the stable and then takethe roller up a hole, and repeat this one hole ata time. This will occupy a little time, but heshould soon be quite content with the rollersecured, so that it is just touching him butwithout feeling tight, and nothing worse willhave been done than putting his back up alittle. This is a far better system than one thatrisks alarming the animal by pulling the roller

up too quickly, from the angles both of safetyand of trust which is vital to the learningprocess. The less crashing and banging theprospective riding lads hear, the better for theirmorale! Once we are satisfied that the roller hasbeen accepted, we can tuck in the ends of allstraps, ensure that the breast girth isreasonably tight but that the belly band isabout half an inch or so from touching himwhen he is standing relaxed, and leave him insoak. We can check now and again thateverything is still in place and we may byevening stable time find he has somehow orother got out of it, but, as long as he hasn’tdestroyed it or eaten it, he should not object tohaving it carefully refitted. Horses that do flinchwhen the roller is put on or off for groomingshould continue to wear it in the stable, eventhough they may have progressed to the saddlefor exercise. Of course, many yearlings willhave worn stable rugs before the sale and willbe unconcerned by the roller; however, theseprocedures assume that the horse has neverworn anything about his body. Always do thebreast girth up first and undo it last; this is anabsolute rule, which also applies to all rugs inall stables at all times.

With most yearlings we can quite easilyupgrade from the paddock roller to the breakingroller, which is much more substantial. As wealready have the light roller fitted we can takehim out to lunge with it on, keeping hisattention so that he does not attempt to plungewhen he comes out into the open. He may alsobe inclined to plunge at first when we start tolunge, but we should avoid this if we let thebelly band out a hole or two for the first fewturns and then quietly take it up, and repeat theprocedure. If this goes smoothly it is time tosubstitute the heavy breaking roller, and againwe take a few turns with it quite loose beforegradually tightening it. This roller feels muchmore restrictive to him but we still wish toavoid him having a go if at all possible. As thechange of rollers takes place with virtually no

[3]

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time lag it is normally easily accomplished.One of the old theories that has stuck in

people’s minds is that horses should beencouraged to struggle and fight in order to “getit out of their system”. This is almost certainlybased on a faulty recollection of an old theory ofcorrecting spoiled horses through the use of someself-punishing appliance. However, particularlyin the absence of anyone competent to apply sucha theory, it seems reasonable to assume that if wedon’t teach our pupil to buck he may in fact neverbuck, which will obviously be an advantage to allconcerned. Trainers need to be aware of theirever-increasing responsibilities under the SafetyAt Work legislation, and to implement the safestpossible procedures.

Once we have the big roller on and havegradually tightened it to the extent that it isquite stable although not yet squeezing him, itis time to add the side reins. Again these will beintroduced in such a way that he will scarcelynotice them at first. Both side reins should beattached to the roller at a length that we judgewill be too long for him to feel them at all evenwith his head right down [4]. They are crossedover the withers and fastened to the bit belowthe lunge rein. After a few turns we can shortenthem slightly, and we repeat this until he isconscious that he has them on, in that he can nolonger get his head right down, but not to wherehe feels he wants to fight them [5]. Anapproximate measurement might be that the

side rein should hang three or four inches belowan imaginary line from the cross on the withersto the bit when the horse is standing normally.After he has become accustomed to them andhas been round both ways a few times we cancall it a day. We should, as always in the earlystages, take care that the clockwise circle is notallowed to become an excuse for excitement.

The horse should if possible be given hisexercise without getting black with sweat and ifthis proves difficult he should be trace clipped.Funnily enough, most yearlings are quite simpleto clip at this stage. To save time and trouble ifthey do show a tendency to kick whist beingclipped, we need trace clip only as far as thestifle. This will save us from trying to make surethe rear view matches whilst also trying to avoidgetting kicked. As long as the neck and belly aredone, that is sufficient. Difficult cases can, ofcourse, be sedated. The fact that, on average,most yearlings prove easier than most olderhorses to clip is indicative of how easily theytend to accept things of which they have noprevious experience, as long as they do notbecome alarmed. This is the prime reason for notwasting time on the breaking process with thoseanimals that progress normally, as familiaritydoes tend to breed contempt if too much time isspent without progressing to the next stage.

It is a good idea to ensure that all yearlingsare quiet with the hose pipe at this stage, inorder to save time in the summer when they

[4] [5]

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Breaking In Process

will be bathed daily after exercise. Obviouslywe will not bathe them in the cold weather, butthey should become accustomed to having theirlegs and feet washed. The hose pipe should becarefully introduced, initially at low pressure, tothe feet and then to the legs and to the girtharea. We must always have an assistant and beprepared to waste a little time at first; however,learning this lesson properly will save hoursover the course of the animal’s career. Thisprocedure should be learnt with a minimum offuss, so as to avoid accidents such as the horseslipping over. In difficult cases two assistantsmay be necessary and sensible use of one of themore humane twitches, a war bridle orcomealong halter, or even of sedation, might beindicated. Once a horse has accepted the hosepipe he is normally sensible with it for life, andin fact it can prove an important lesson inoverall obedience for certain rebellious types.Actually, many old horsemen relied heavily ondesensitising their pupils by obliging them toaccept distasteful situations, therebyemphasising the fact that the horse could notresist the instructions of his handler. Asremarked elsewhere, these practices fell fromgrace because they came to be badly applied bythose who failed to understand their reasoningproperly. The troublesome subjects willinvariably be those horses that have beenaccustomed to resisting their handlers generallybefore we get them, rather than the completelyunhandled ones.

A common injury to horses being lunged,even if they are barefoot, is an overreach on thebulb of the front heel caused by a blow from thehind foot. Any minor flap of skin should beremoved, and the wound should be cleanedthoroughly. Either the ubiquitous blue spray oran antibiotic cream such as Dermobion willnormally prove effective, and the wound shouldbe left open to the air in most cases. The spray isalarming to some horses as the hissing sound itmakes is swiftly followed by a severe stingingsensation, and this can cause much apprehension

at the follow-up treatment. Yearlings seem to takevery little notice of these wounds, although thesame thing might render an older horse quitelame. There will sometimes be chafes caused bythe boots, although these will be kept to aminimum if the boots are religiously cleaned.Dermobion is normally effective in dealing withthem, although a piece of clean lint should beworn under the boot until the leg heals. If a horseshould ever sustain a very serious cut it is wellworth treating it with honey, although it isobviously a very messy remedy; veterinaryadvice should, of course, also be sought.

Although the horse will normally continue towear the roller 24 hours a day at this stage wemust ensure that it does not cause him to chafe,and his girth mark should be removed as well aspossible before the roller is refitted and he isloosed. The roller should be just loose enough toadmit a couple of fingers, about half an inchfrom his body when he is standing normally [6].

[6]

Racing Horses

44

As long as we are quite confident that ourpupil has accepted his lessons so far with goodgrace, we should proceed to the next step, whichis the saddle. However, we must alwaysremember that more haste often means lessspeed. There is no point in rushing if it will meanwe lose time in the end. The only point of tryingto make this fairly rapid progress is to allow moretime for any difficult horses so it is obviously vitalthat we do not create an additional problem byovertaxing our current pupil.

When we do decide to put the saddle on it isimportant to know beforehand exactly how weintend to go about it. We should do this in thestable, not in the open. The bridle and boots arefitted as usual. We should always put the bootson before fitting any tack on yearlings, as it cansave them jumping on us when we are bendingover their legs should they suddenly feel thetack and have a momentary fit of panic. If thishappens when we are standing up it is unlikelythat we will be hurt, but if we are bending downit could easily lead to an injury. This is areminder that no horse should ever have hislegs attended to without first being tied up;accidents from this cause may be infrequent butthey can be extremely serious. As a boy I hadfour or five square inches of bone removed fromthe top of my skull by a very quiet horse calledDan Somers, purely by ignoring this simplestanding instruction and letting him down to eathis evening feed before attending to his knees.

Next, we put on a standing martingale, at along adjustment, and fasten it to the bottom ringof the head collar. With the assistant holding theyearling, or with the lunge attached to the bridleand either held or in a neat coil on the floorbelow the horse’s head – that is to say the horseshould not be tied up for this first saddling – wecan let him inspect and smell the saddle and padin the same way we did with the roller. Using anassistant is safer. The side reins should beattached to the saddle and again should initiallybe left very long and must obviously be level.They should be tied in a loose knot in front ofthe saddle and the buckle ends tucked throughthe near side stirrup, while the other endsshould be under the second girth strap andpointing back out of the way [7]. Both stirrupsmust be tied up, not just run up on the leathers.It is important to insist that the saddle is alsoarranged like this every time it is taken off ayearling in order to prevent problems withputting it on the next horse. Throughout theyearling season, all keepers for attaching sidereins to the girth straps should be securely tiedto the top of the girth straps with string, in orderto avoid time wasted searching for any thosethat fall off when the saddle is being used for anold horse (which would obviously not requirethe side reins themselves). The best type of pador numnah is a soft one that is well worn andpliable. The mock sheepskin ones in the shapeof the saddle do very well. After the horse has

[7] [8]

45

Breaking In Process

been allowed to examine the tack with his nose,we first place the pad on the horse’s withers andlet him feel and see that it will not harm him.When we are sure he is quite happy we let himfeel the saddle as well, making sure that thegirths are folded over the seat and that they willnot alarm him. We now, quickly but withoutrushing, sit the saddle in place on the pad,gently take down the girths, making sure theydon’t touch his legs, pass both girths through

the martingale, and do the girths up loosely. Ifthe old practice of poling young horses, orgently but repeatedly touching them all overwith a light pole, were implemented at thecommencement of breaking they wouldobviously be less sensitive to everything thattouched them subsequently – including thestarting stalls. This is something that is worthyof cautious investigation. If we have anassistant, he attracts the horse’s attention by

[9a]

[9b]

Racing Horses

46

gently moving the bit; if not, we should have thedangling rein over our left arm so as to get holdof him easily if he jumps. Again there must beconstant verbal communication with theyearling, especially at every fresh stage of hiseducation. We now gradually tighten the girthsto the degree that he is used to from his all-dayroller, and we can then give him a turn or twoaround the box. The side reins can now beuntied and secured to the bit, below the lunge asbefore. They are to be crossed over the withersand this cross is under the neck strap of themartingale. It is best to make sure that thesaddle pad is further forward than normal,although the saddle obviously sits in its usualposition, because the pad may tend to workback until the girths are quite tight, causingunwanted hold-ups for readjustment [8].

We are now ready to make a start on themouthing and educating of the horse, both ofwhich may have great bearing on the success orotherwise of his career, and we take him againinto the arena. When he begins to go round thistime he may tend to be aware of the newequipment, but it is not going to restrict him atthe present adjustment and any jumpiness willpass quickly. We want to avoid him trying tofight his way out of the tack due to feelingtrapped. When he has settled down wegradually take up the side reins as before, at thesame time making sure that the girth isreasonably tight so as to avoid losing the pad[9a and 9b]. Then we can shorten themartingale to the point where he cannot quitefeel it when holding his head normally but willbe prevented from raising his head too high.Assuming that all goes smoothly and that helunges quietly in both directions, we will nowpass a second lunge rein over his neck and fixit to the offside of the bit, above the side reinand also through the back strap of the headcollar. It is quite possible to put the second reinaround most yearlings at an earlier stage, butby waiting until all the tack is on before doingso we will have much more control over the

occasional objector.The process of physically putting the rein

round him for the first time is an importantstage and needs careful handling. Once again ahelper can prove beneficial, although an expertmay feel that things can become too crowded asinitially two men and a horse will be occupyinga circle of only 10 or 15 feet in diameter. Wegently work the offside lunge back until it fallsbehind the horse’s quarters, but we must keephis head towards us as he will probably panic tosome degree when he feels it [10, 10a, 10b]. Ifhe does start to run, as long as we keep himtight to us and speak to him, no harm will occurand he will soon relax. More difficult are thosehorses that try to sit down on the lunge and areafraid to go forward as these often tend to keepturning in towards us. The assistant mayinitially need to chase them round but once theyare going forward the problem is soon resolved.As always, we try to avoid the horse chargingabout, and the steadier they go the better. Tochange direction we merely repeat the procedurefrom the off side but we must expect at least thesame degree of difficulty. Once he is going bothways we begin to teach him to turn from onedirection to the other [10c, 10d ,10e] without ushaving to stop him and actually change sides.This is relatively easy in a round pen but at firstwe may need to face him up the fence to stophim [11]. We can then walk across behind himbefore setting him off in the reverse direction.After a few times he will realise what is requiredand will turn easily due to the change ofpressure from the front to the back rein. Whenthe horse has grasped this we can untie theknots in the stirrup leathers in order that theirons gradually come down and start bangingagainst his sides [12]. It may needlessly alarmhim and distract his attention from the businessin hand if we do it any earlier. Once this stage isreached we can alter the attachment of thelunges so that they are buckled directly onto thebit. We should realise that this set-up is moresevere, but he will be ridden straight off the bit

47

Breaking In Process

[10a]

[10]

[10b]

Racing Horses

48

[10d]

[10e]

[10c]

49

Breaking In Process

and he must get used to it beforehand. We nowhave more control should the horse tend to beheavy-headed, which does occur in some thathave previously been lunged. Working straightoff the bit requires a lighter touch because noneof the pressure is absorbed by the head collar,and some horses may be a little sensitive to thechange at first.

There are two difficult situations which oftenarise at this stage. The first is the horse that willnot stop running away from the back lunge; withhim we initially have to use the outside fence as

a brake and if that does not soon work we canuse it to stop him completely and then have theassistant lead him around until he relaxes. Thesecond is when the horse continually kicks theback rein up and over his back. If we cannotprevent this by trapping the rein under his tail(low down, not under the bone where he can

[11] [13]

[13a]

[12]

[13b]

Racing Horses

50

clamp down on it), we may have to run theoutside rein through the stirrup [13]. Thestirrups are let down and a strap is run from oneiron to the other on top of the girth [13a]. Thiswill stop him getting the rein over his back.Unfortunately, if we don’t stop and reverse theattachments of the reins whenever we want tochange direction then some horses will find theindirect pull on the inside rein [13b] very severe.

Very occasionally, and almost always with afilly, we will get a yearling that will not acceptthis back rein procedure at all. The best thing todo is to move on without too muchconfrontation. This will mean she cannot bedriven, but many horses are successfully brokenby other handlers without ever being driven.Prolonged struggling with this type does notnormally produce a happy ending, and weshould avoid it. If we are determined that a pupilthat really objects must have the rein around,then it is best to let her desensitise herself bywearing a piece of lunge rein firmly attached toa roller or in place of the tail string of her rugconstantly, until she accepts that she cannot getrid of it but that she will not be hurt by it. Sheshould have plenty of bedding in her stable soas to avoid slipping over before she accepts thatit will not come off. This attachment shouldinitially be left in place whilst the second rein isused at exercise, in the hope that the secondlunge rein itself (which is purely to enable her tobe mouthed) is scarcely noticed.

Our yearling has now progressed to thestage of lunging in both directions as requiredand next we want to teach him to drive, so as toeducate his mouth. This is an extremelyimportant stage as it will greatly influence theway he conducts himself when ridden. Thepurpose of this part of his education is to teachhim to follow the instructions he receivesthrough the bit, to be steady with other horsesand with traffic, and to stop and stand still asrequired. If he learns these lessons well, life willbe easier for all of us. We will also teach him toback, not because that is a common

requirement normally, but because it is aneffective form of painless correctionoccasionally useful for horses that rear orotherwise misbehave.

As soon as the yearling is used to thesaddle, a light exercise sheet should be added,which should always have a tail string. Thisavoids the problems caused by his first wearingone on a wet and windy day and becomingalarmed by it flapping. Care should always betaken that whenever an exercise sheet or rughas the corners turned up, these are placed ontop of the pad [14]. Now and again we can geta blemish on a horse’s back caused by theweight coming on top of the area where thecorners overlap if they are straight on the back.This is unsightly, uncomfortable, and difficultto get rid of, but it will never happen as long asthe sheet is turned up on top of the pad and the

[14]

[15]

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Breaking In Process

saddle has a proper central channel.If we wish to put a rug on him in the stable

we can basically use the same method as forputting on the saddle. The rug should of coursebe the right size and should initially be foldedin half so that the back edge touches thewithers [15]. Once the horse has been allowedto examine it we can slip it on as easily as the

saddle without alarming him and this carefulmethod should always be used for a few days.It is quite simple to unfold the rug over hisback, but the breast strap must always besecured first. The same procedure for the girthsis followed as before but the flank strap shouldnot come within two or three inches of touchinghis belly. The rug should have a tail string andsome antichew preparation should be applied.Occasionally a particularly nervous horse thathas not had any handling may have to bedesensitised by wearing a rug in order to avoidwasting too much time because he is unusuallyfrightened of the tack. Great care should betaken in fitting and removing the rug initially insuch circumstances, and there must be plentyof bedding to avoid accidents.

The driving process evolves easily from thechange of direction on the lunge. We simply letthe horse walk in the circle whilst initiallywalking level with his hindquarters but a fewfeet to the side [16,16a,16b]. This is very similarto what we have been doing when we lungedhim, and the only problem is to let him know wewant to walk rather than trot. Again we can dothis by use of the outside fence as a brake, buthe will quickly realise what is required. As soonas he seems ready to walk we can leave theround pen for the adjacent open arena, but it issafer to remain in a fairly enclosed area until weare quite confident that our student is relaxedand is responding to the bit. When teaching himto stop we again make use of the fence. Initiallywe let him approach it at 90º so that he has tostop, which makes him associate the stop withthe positive but fairly gentle pressure on the bitand the request, “Whoa”. Immediately he stopsthe pressure on the bit is relaxed and the horseis warmly praised for his cooperation in the toneused to praise dogs and small children. Thesuccess of our whole racing enterprise willlargely depend on the degree of cooperation weget from our horses.

When driving, the horse should walk onfreely and boldly and should be encouraged if

[16]

[16a]

[16b]

Racing Horses

52

necessary with vigorous slaps on his sides withthe lunges as well as a positive voice. The noiseand the movement will have more effect thanthe discomfort, but he must absolutely learn togo purposefully forward on command. Weshould look ahead to anticipate all real orimagined terrors and encourage him to satisfyhimself that there is no danger whenever we doencounter anything that may appear strange tohim. The lunges should be neatly furled at alltimes to allow controlled adjustment, and theirrelative lengths should be subject to constantsubtle change rather in the way the steeringwheel of a car is fed through the hands.Basically, we do not send a left turn signalwithout completely relieving the tension on theright rein, and as soon as he responds to the leftturn he is rewarded by the increased pressurebeing taken off the left rein. When walkingstraight there should be only very light physicalcontact on both reins, while constant verbalcontact continues. It is recommended to walkslightly to one side of the yearling, normally tothe left when travelling straight, but towards theoutside, like a sheepdog, when turning. This isin order that he may see his driver, even thoughthere is constant verbal contact, and so that hecan be easily turned in a circle in an emergency.Should the latter occur, we have simply revertedto a lunging situation and can easily stop himand then set off driving once more.

Many people drive with the lunges throughthe irons as described previously for kickers,but this can cause serious problems if things dogo wrong. Should the horse ever turn to facethe driver through fear of something in hispath, then the rein will be pulling him in theopposite direction and a complete tangle is thelikely outcome. When the reins are not throughthe irons it is much easier to get out of suchminor problems without their escalating. Thedriver is sometimes seen to be running behinda yearling, but this is extremely foolish as theywill have no chance of stopping the horse if hedoes become startled and make a run for it.

The tone of voice is as important as the wordand, although purists maintain that verbalcommands should be absolutely specific, thisdoes not happen in the racing environment. Forexample, “Whoa” is commonly used for bothslowing down and for stopping by racing ladswithout seeming to cause any confusion; “No!”as a corrective does not seem to cause anyconfusion as the sound is so similar and theanticipated result is not dissimilar. The variousrequirements to walk on and trot on, and allacceleration commands are normally conveyed bya click of the tongue or a chirrup. With high ratesof staff turnover, it would prove very difficult toimplement a standard vocabulary. Racehorses areprobably handled by more different people thanany other horses except riding school inmates,and actually cope surprisingly well consideringthat they are also to some degree under constantpressure. Basically, all slow down requests are tobe made in as quiet and as calm a voice aspossible to inspire confidence, whereas speed upinstructions are designed to create excitement. Abrisk, no-nonsense tone should be employedwhen the horse seems to be undecided, andexpressions of displeasure are gruff, sharp andinstantaneous, so as to be obviously relevant tothe offence. It might prove interesting, if thestable jockey were closely involved in riding theyoung horses, for him to experiment with theteaching of “Right” and “Left” to one or two ofhis mounts purely for his own benefit in races.This would only cause problems if attempted withthe general run of lads!

When the horse has mastered the stoplesson we will teach him just two specific verbalinstructions, “Stand” and “Back”. Althoughthis is not the usual racing practice they canboth, on occasion, prove useful. These twolessons will both follow naturally from the stoplesson [17]. To teach the horse to stand wemerely allow him to remain still after he hasstopped, but we relax the pressure on thelunges whilst repeating the instruction,“Stand”, and praising him [17a] until he

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Breaking In Process

accepts that he is not to move. Initially, we canmake use of the fence to prevent his walkingforward. If he moves we simply return him towhere he was. When we do wish him to moveaway we must signal this by a brisk click andby restoring contact through the reins. Theremust be an obvious relaxation in our attitudewhen we are standing. If this lesson is properlylearnt it may prevent difficulties when he is firstridden, and it may later prove useful whensaddling at the races, or in the starting stalls.

The command “Back” is simply “Stand”taken one step further. Initially, it is probablyeasier to have an assistant to gently push thehorse back whilst we exert gentle pressure onthe lunges. Again, the command must beconstantly repeated as he comes back, and thepressure on the bit must be relaxed as soon as hesteps back; at first one or two steps are enough[18, 18a, 18b]. Obviously, the end of the back

lesson leads into the beginning of the standlesson and this should be reinforced verbally.This lesson well learnt can be useful in someloading procedures and in manouevring inconfined spaces, but that is not its primarypurpose. It is most useful simply because horsesdo not like to go backwards and will only do sothemselves if they wish to avoid an even lessattractive alternative. If the reversing procedureis perfectly learnt, we can use it to tackle thesituation when we have a horse that continuallyrefuses to cooperate, simply by offering him theunpleasant option of backing up or of goingquietly about his business. This can beamazingly effective, but success is absolutelydependent on the back lesson having been sowell learned that the horse does not contemplatedisobeying it. This method of correction shouldonly be applied in serious cases and with a goodrider. In fact we should always think in terms ofoffering an uncooperative horse a less attractivealternative rather than punishing him with aview to him thinking that the sensible thing todo is, in effect, be sensible!

After two or three days mastering theselessons, and becoming accustomed to drivingaround the yard and seeing everything there, theyearling is ready to see the outside world. Thisshould not be attempted until we are sure he hasa sound grasp of steering and stopping so as notto be a danger to himself or the rest of the world,and he should have his basic exercise on thelunge before he goes out for a drive. For the firsttrip off the premises an assistant is an advantage,as he can walk beside the horse in order to givehim a little more confidence. He can also takehold of the horse’s head should we meet anythingtoo alarming and allow him to examine it andtouch it with his nose. In most cases, the horsewill not then take any notice of the same obstaclethe next day, even without the helper. In the sameway that we gradually worked away from thefence in the arena, we try not to take the yearlinginto a very open space too suddenly. It is muchsafer to stay by a hedge or a fence for the first day

[17]

[17a]

54

until he gets his bearings, particularly as he isnow likely to see strings of ridden horses, whichhe may regard as most exciting. We shouldremember that after so few lessons he may wellsuffer a relapse in his composure and we shouldalways anticipate such a possibility. Obviously wewill have selected an area with minimal traffic,and that traffic is probably aware of the horses,but we should exercise extreme caution inintroducing him to cars and lorries. It is best tooccupy the middle of the road so as to obligetraffic to stop and then to be effusive in ourthanks rather than to depend upon their goodsense. When passing an approaching vehicle orother horses, we always take the right-hand side.We practise the horse’s new skills constantlyduring the course of the trip; in fact, if we do gettangled up with a string of racehorses, then thestand lesson may prove invaluable.

It is worth remembering that all horses, notjust young ones, are often alarmed by the sight

even of what we would regard as objectsfamiliar to them when such objects appear in anunaccustomed setting.

After the first day or two outside, it will beeasy enough to take a more adventurousattitude and explore the various gates andrailings he will encounter on and around thegallops. It is a good idea to drive him overvarious road markings and on and off anyartificial gallops so he can become familiar withtheir different appearances and the steps up anddown that they involve. If there is anopportunity for him to stand and watch otherhorses cantering, so much the better. This canprove a useful accomplishment in later life as hecan be used as the trainer’s hack when required.

Some methods will have acquainted theyearling with the starting stalls on the gallopsat this point. This does involve some risk ofgetting into a confrontation without having thehelp on hand to resolve it successfully. Given

[18] [18a]

[18b]

Racing Horses

55

Breaking In Process

the long-term importance of stalls manners, wecan hardly regard that as a sensible risk. If wedo have stalls at the home premises, we caneffect an early introduction with enough helpavailable to ensure success.

This part of the curriculum should last abouta week, which may mean we have now investeda total of two weeks in an averagely sensibleanimal. With reasonable luck, another weekwill see the yearling riding quietly and ready tocommence his actual training as a racehorse.

As a general rule we always try to get anyyearling ridden for the first time at thebeginning of the week if possible. If,unavoidably, an individual does happen to firstget backed at the end of the week then heshould go out on Sunday, so as not to riskforgetting his lesson at an early stage. It isremarkable how well many horses seem todigest something new overnight, in the sensethat they will appear much improved next day,but it is also true that to miss a day at anypivotal stage is inviting trouble.

We will make a start on the backing of ourhorse after he has done his full exercise so thathe has already got his back down. We must fit apair of riding reins to the bit, and when the horseis to be ridden they go above the side rein [19].The main control rein always goes on top, so forlunging and driving the lunge should be on top.If possible, all breaking tack should be made to astandard pattern as various items are frequently

broken or lost; if everything is interchangeable,two halves will make a whole. Because of otherhorses’ exercise we may not immediately have asuitable rider available and we may have to leaveour yearling in soak until we do have one. If wedo this we must always be certain he cannot getin a tangle as we don’t want to risk leaving himtied up for any length of time. The stirrups mustbe safely tied up and if the riding reins are fittedthey should be crossed over the withers and theirend placed under the back of the saddle [20].Everything beneath the horse’s neck, that is,reins, side reins and the martingale, should eitherbe caught up inside the throat latch, if it is longenough, or else be gathered together with a shortpiece of string in order to prevent him getting afoot over them [21]. The hay should be taken outof the box so that he does not try to reach it.

When our riding lad does appear, we remove

[19] [20]

[21]

Racing Horses

56

the tie from the reins, take the reins frombehind the saddle and reattach the lunge. Thelad should introduce himself to the horse andshould not be wearing a very bulky jacket orcrackly waterproofs. He must wear his helmet.The top door should be closed to lessendistractions and there should be plenty ofbedding in the middle of the stable.

Holding the horse’s head towards the wall toprevent his jumping forward too violently, wegently lift the lad to lean across the saddle withhis left elbow hooked over the horse’s neck togive him a little purchase. If this results in aviolent plunge, the lad simply slips down and wetry again, talking positively and soothingly to thehorse (and the lad!) all the time. In most cases,if the lad is willing and fairly supple there will belittle difficulty, but the reason for the dress codeis now obvious. We quietly persevere until wecan take one or two turns around the box, thenslip the rider off. This should be repeated untilboth going up and coming down are completelyaccepted. After four or five repeats we cannormally get the lad astride, reminding him tomake sure he goes up cleanly, and to keep hishead down for a short time to avoid visuallyalarming the horse. After one or two lapscrouched over he can gradually straighten up.Throughout this procedure the wall is to be usedas a brake in the event of any charging about.

After a few minutes the lad can allow his newmount to feel his legs against his sides. He canthen pick up the reins and shift his weight aboutin the saddle, although control is still throughthe lunge rein. If we give him a turn in the otherdirection without difficulty we can loose him andlet the lad ride him, both ways, around the boxfor a few minutes whilst we watch from outside.

We always take hold of the horse’s headbefore the lad dismounts as this can easily causealarm, leading to an ongoing bad habit. It is bestto reinforce the mounting lesson several timesbefore we finish for the day. In fact, yearlingsshould always be carefully dismounted and thenremounted a couple of times when they come in

after exercise for the first few days.We have to decide how well each yearling

accepts the lad before going any further, assome will obviously do so quicker than others.A good, though not foolproof, guide is howmuch the horse has his back up. A back stillraised normally foretells a possible explosion,but we cannot guarantee that a relaxed horsewon’t suddenly light up, so we should alwayshope for the best but be prepared for the worst.

A great disadvantage to yearling breakersnowadays is the virtual absence of anyonewilling and able to ride anything remotelychallenging. Previously, the younger lads used tobe mad keen to show that they could do a man’sjob and far from being frightened they mighthave been too bold. Unfortunately, nowadaysthat particular age group seem to assume thatthey have nothing to prove, and tend to be veryshort of the necessary pluck when it is required.This does not imply that we should be looking forcannon fodder but it is indisputable that anyhorse can immediately pick up on nervousness.Many of the problems that do occur would beavoided if the riding lads were more confident,which in turn would naturally lead to the ladsthemselves being more competent. That is whyan absolute and seemingly rather pedanticprocedure is advised, in the hope of giving thelads and the horses more faith in themselves andin each other. The present fashion of riding withonly the tips of the toes in the iron is notrecommended and we should not allow it. Arelatively minor plunge can very often produce aloose horse, when the foot being well home in theiron would have enabled an uneventful recovery.The argument that there is less likelihood ofbecoming hung up is indicative of a defeatistattitude which is of no use in a yearling rider.

As long as the backing went fairly smoothly,the following day should see the yearling riddenin the arena. He should be lunged for 10 or 15minutes so as to take the edge off his naturalfreshness, and the previous day’s backingprocedure repeated exactly. When he has

57

Breaking In Process

completed a few turns of the box with his riderwe can take him out. The girths should bechecked for security but should not be too tight,and the side reins can be shortened slightly. Thelunge is attached and we lead him straight to thearena, making sure his attention is centred onthe leader by voice and by jiggling the bit in hismouth. We will sometimes encounter a littleexcitability when first in the open, but weshould do our best to reach the arena as quicklyand quietly as possible. If a pony is outside thedoor when we come out we are virtually certainof getting to the arena without any fuss, as theyearling will be watching him with greatinterest. The pony referred to can, of course, bea horse in training, just as long as he is quietand will not kick whatever happens. Obviouslyhe must be a male, preferably a gelding. Theobject is to phase in the situation of tacking upthe yearling and mounting him immediately likean old horse, but we should take care toprogress gradually in a manner that does notcreate any unruly habits.

All yearlings should be ridden with one of thelad’s fingers in the neck strap to avoid pulling onthe horse’s mouth in an emergency and to giveextra security. However, as this can tend toproduce one-sidedness in a horse’s mouth, caremust be taken to change the stationary handregularly. This will need constant reminders, butwill also prevent the riders from becoming one-sided in their use of their hands.

Once we get into the arena, assuming theyearling has not really got his back up, we canlead him round the perimeter behind the pony.After a lap or two we tell the pony to jog on andwe follow, being careful not to allow the yearlingto charge about, if possible. It is normally safe toundo the lunge almost immediately and mostyearlings will continue trotting behind the ponywithout registering any change. The lad on thepony must always be aware of where theyearling is and should try to maintain aninvisible contact of not more than one or twolengths, otherwise the pupil may fall behind and

get confused. He will then be very likely to stop.If, on the other hand, the yearling is tending torun all over the pony’s heels, the pony boy mustensure that his mount is not provoked intokicking. He should also be on his guard againsta cheeky colt jumping on the pony. In fact, hemust always remember that the yearling riderdoes not yet have very sophisticated control andthat his own job is to assist as much as possiblewithout unduly risking the pony, which may beneeded for many subsequent missions. Thepony rider should also keep up a cheerful sing-song, both to keep his own mount’s mindoccupied and to reinforce the idea that the ponyis something to follow.

If the yearling does have his back right upwhen we reach the arena it is best to lunge himwith the lad on board for a few minutes beforeturning him loose. If yearlings miss exercise fortwo or three days for any reason, it is as well todo the same thing.

Occasionally the yearling will seem tooconfused to follow the pony, even if he haspreviously done everything perfectly. When thishappens we must improvise. If we run besidehim and the pony comes past from behind hemay join in. If we lunge him and have the ponydrop in in front of him he may get the idea, orif we chase him waving our arms and tossingclods of dirt he will probably, in running awayfrom us, have lapped onto the pony before herealises it. The vocal encouragement shouldalways sound cheerful, like a huntsmanencouraging his hounds. The riding lad must besure that the horse does have his head so thathe can go forward. The side reins will preventhim from getting his head right down to plunge,and if he does shoot forward the rear of thepony will stop him. For the safety of the pony,the benefit of unshod yearlings in this situationis obvious. The lad on the yearling cannot beexpected to take quite such a conscientiousview of the pony’s welfare and will probablyhave little regard for keeping his mount off thatschoolmaster’s back legs. In the unusual case of

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a yearling absolutely refusing to go, we shouldtry to finish on a positive note in some way,even if it is back on the lead rein, and he shouldbe put back on a purely lunging and drivingroutine with emphasis on teaching immediatestart-up on verbal command. It is essential thatyearlings are not overtired by too severeexercise at this stage, despite the wishes of theriders. The very sullen and defiant types at thisstage will normally not prove to be satisfactoryracehorses in the long term.

If the rider can be persuaded to take anattitude of benevolent aggression at this stage,it usually prevents problems in a few days’ timewhen the yearling will have found his ‘sea legs’and may be inclined to take his rider on andrebel to some degree. This does not imply anycruelty, but it does mean that the rider shouldhave no hesitation in making free both with hisheels and on occasion with the buckle end of thereins (whips should never be carried onyearlings, ever) to get his horse going freely oncommand. However, human nature being whatit is, most of our riders will be extremely passiveif we allow them to, being satisfied to settle fora quiet life presently even though they might beasking for trouble in the future. Although it mayappear rather rough, a certain amount ofrousting during the first couple of riddensessions definitely produces the best long-termresults in most horses. As it is currently almostimpossible to find lads who do understand thesematters, we hope our system may teach them aswell as the horses. Obviously, we do not want toabuse any horse, even if only from a commercialpoint of view. However, experience proves that ayearling is far more receptive during the firstlessons as everything is new to him, and itmakes sense to teach him thoroughly the basicsof going where we say and when we say so atthis stage. While appreciating that many mayfind this offensive, it is a fact that the morepassive the regime the higher the percentage ofgraduates that do eventually cause problems.

It is very important in educating young

horses to observe logical processes, as perceivedby the pupil. It is senseless to continue to punishin any way an animal once he is going forward.If the rider maintains a stranglehold throughapprehension then a confusing signal is sent;the horse must always be given enough freedomof his head to enable him to go on when he isrequired to do so. It is also quite illogical,although not uncommon due to fear andapprehension in the rider, to pet a horse whenhe is refusing to go as directed. If any horsedoes get in a state of extreme excitement thestand lesson should be employed rather thanseeming to praise the animal for disobedience.

Unusually nervous yearlings again call for acertain amount of improvisation and cannotalways be subjected to all of our normalmethods. In fact, they may take several extradays to accept each of the above stages. It isbecause we never know when we may have toinvest an enormous amount of time in one ofthis type that we should get on as quickly as isreasonable with the quiet ones. The first rulewith the nervous ones is always take your timeand do not take any liberties at all as they canoften explode. However, because of the extratrouble taken with them, these horses very oftenbecome the best rides in the end. The mostdifficult type of all is the nervous colt that is alsocheeky and above himself, and this type doesrequire extreme caution to achieve a good result.

Those yearlings that appear incapable oflearning normally should be regarded withsuspicion, particularly should similarly afflictedindividuals share a common background eitheras regards breeding or the premises from whichthey were drawn. Any obsessive or erraticbehaviour or apparent stupidity quite possiblyindicates some impairment of their brain orcentral nervous system. These animals areunlikely to race consistently at a respectablelevel. Howard Beissinger confirms, in The NewCare And Training Of The Trotter And Pacer,that to persevere in wasting time with slowlearners is, overall, a sure recipe for disaster in

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Breaking In Process

a racing stable. The number of stupid ones thatwill eventually make the grade will not repaythe extra time spent on these animals as awhole. Symptoms associated with Lyme diseasein humans, as described by sufferer AngelaKnight in The Daily Telegraph on 29 June 1999,include inability to concentrate and impairmentof short-term memory, overacute hearing andjumpy vision. We may see some yearlingswhose behaviour might be well explained werethey suffering similar symptoms. If untreated,these problems can hardly do other thanseverely compromise any hope of meaningfulathletic achievement in a racehorse.

It should be noted that certain diseases maywell be transmittable to humans in a variety ofways, and in the light of some very unpleasantexamples worldwide in recent years this factshould be borne in mind.

When the yearling will follow the ponyhappily around the arena, perhaps doing a fewfigures of eight, we can finish the first riddenlesson. We practise dismounting and mountingthe rider three or four times before putting thehorse away.

The next day our yearling should requireonly a brief lunge before being ridden and, if hehas previously proved sensible to mount, thelad can be put on in the arena without goingback to the stable. We place the horse’s headagainst the fence as a precaution whenmounting and the pony should be standing by.

When he has been going round for a fewminutes with a lead we can send the pony out orto one corner and see how the yearling goes onhis own. If he seems relaxed and steers wellenough in the figures of eight, we can take himoff the premises to see how he reacts. As he hasbeen driven outside on several occasions he willprobably behave well. We should not be toocomplacent, however, and unless we havecomplete faith in both the yearling rider and thepony rider we should go with them on the firsttrip. Once again it is advisable to remain close toany fence or hedge until we see how the land

lies, but as long as the yearling seems calm hewill soon be able to venture into more openterritory and jog in circles to practise steering. Atfirst he should stick close to the pony but after afew minutes he may be taken a short distanceaway to learn to steer rather than follow. Caremust be taken that he is close to the pony if theymeet a string of horses at this stage, as althoughhe may become excited and forget himself hewill tend to follow the pony. Over the next dayshe will be taught to become self-reliant.

Any nearby artificial gallops can be walkedon and off. If this is not practised, long delayscan sometimes result when we have to crossone of these tracks, which might involve a stepof over a foot high, on the way to some distantpart of the gallops. The stand and back lessonsshould be practised before taking him home. Aspreviously stated, it is important not to getyearlings too tired.

After a day or two, the yearling should be fitto be mounted straight away but as he is nolonger being lunged it is advisable to ride himaround the box a few times before goingoutside. The mounting and dismounting afterexercise should continue for a week, or until heis perfect, and if there is ever any question ofnot being perfect the practice should bereinstated, as a horse that is difficult to mountis a nuisance at the races.

This general programme is continued for afew days and by the end of the third week weshould have a fairly civilised embryonicracehorse. He will have had an introduction tohack cantering but this should initially be verysteady, with the lad sitting in the saddle toavoid any danger of excitement. Hopefully hewill have a decent mouth on him and will havelearned his two verbal commands, althoughthese should be reinforced daily for some time.

By now the yearling should be treatedalmost like an old horse in the stable butpatience will still be required. He should not beleft tied up for too long as yet and his hayshould not be in the box when he is tied up so

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a not to tempt him to get loose. The methodused to prevent him from getting loose shouldalso be effective in preventing him fromscraping his bed up when left tied up; he willsoon form the impression that there is alwayssomeone outside watching him. However, thereis absolutely no point in chastising him whenhe is not actually scraping, as often happenspurely because the lad cannot be bothered toadopt the correct procedure. Twenty minutesteaching this lesson over three or four days willsave hours straightening his bed over thecourse of the horse’s career. He should berequired to pick his feet up carefully wheneverhe gets across the stable, initially by havingthem gently tapped with the side, not the point,of the fork.

The turning and figure of eight period is nowlargely behind him and we may think aboutgetting the yearling reshod in front as there willnow be less danger of the shoes getting pulled offat exercise. There is no need for hind shoes atthis point unless they are fitted for a specificpurpose such as to prevent brushing, althoughattention should be given to keeping the hind feetbalanced. We will deal with shoeing elsewhere.

The breaking tack can now be discarded fora plain, jointed snaffle with a bib-runningmartingale. If the sweet mouth was used forbreaking there will be no change of bit. Themartingale will normally be adjusted so that thering almost touches the angle of the jaw and thethroat when the horse is standing normally, butmay be better slightly shorter for the first day ortwo. A bib presents less danger of a horsegetting hold of his martingale, which can causea panic. The side reins should be left on for acouple of days and should go outside the bib[22]. Martingales should not be used withbuckle-on reins unless stops are fitted toprevent the ring lodging on the buckle whichcan cause a panic attack.

It is best not to allow yearlings much hardfeed whilst they are being broken, although theyshould have good hay ad lib. A Timothy mixture

is probably best, but it should be bright in colourand not too hard in texture. Top-class meadowhay of the type seen sometimes as feed for showgoats would be ideal, but does not seem to beavailable; presumably it is carefully made insmall quantities for a specialised market. If theyalso receive a small feed at night, about fourpounds of good oats with some wet bran, or asimilar amount of manufactured mix, it will bequite sufficient until they start to canterproperly. In fact, even this small amount of hardfood can add to the difficulty of breaking someparticularly uncooperative yearlings, and theserebellious ones will come to no harm on hay andwater until they are going quietly.

This breaking regime will not be regarded asfashionable nowadays, and indeed there may bemuch to be said for those systems that are basedon total cooperation between man and horse.They are certainly refreshing in that they haveresurrected knowledge of, and general interestin, equine behaviour worldwide. However theydo tend to be reliant on personnel who are bothknowledgeable and dedicated, and so are oflimited use in a racing environment. Themethod described above may seem, particularlyin its emphasis on minor detail, to be both old-fashioned in its recommendations and boring toread. It is offered as a basis for safely breakingthe vast majority of yearlings under theprevailing conditions. It has produced the mostprolific winning two-year-old in Britain on six occasions.

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