Training horses to carriage drive! (our method!)

[@whistlebare]

Lovely to see the babies having fun with mum, not even realising that they are at school!

[@thomasmadsenhanks8335]

Hello how are you😊

[@jobond3317]

So pleased to see long tails. Beautiful

[@debrachambers2032]

Brilliant video, so professionally produced. It was great to meet all of the horses and learn a little bit about them all.

[@hitchinfarm]

Thanks! Hopefully now getting the knack of video editing 😂

[@TedNLouTherapy-cs8ly]

What a wonderful family, I am looking into learning to drive next year once I have found my Clydesdale I am here in West Sussex and would love to join the clinics you hold. Thank you new subscriber and I’ll be in touch 🎄💕🤩

[@irenecoermann2439]

Interesting! Looking forward to more videos. Beautiful horses, would love to learn more about their breeds.

[@hitchinfarm]

Thanks we'll do a video to introduce the full herd soon

[@thomasmadsenhanks8335]

Hello how are you😊

[@tommycarlier9617]

How lovely to introduce them early and gently like this!

[@hitchinfarm]

Thank you! Slow and steady wins the race!

[@martineb8185]

Vos chevaux sont MAGNIFIQUES 👍👍👍❤❤❤

[@hitchinfarm]

Thanks 😁

[@seriously749]

What do you do if the youngster becomes afraid or doesn’t want to go forward? I have a neighbor who uses a method like this-but they drag the babies if they won’t walk or become afraid. It’s horrifying.

[@hitchinfarm]

Eurghhh grim, we haven't actually encountered that as a problem. However we teach them loads of groundwork first particularly pressure and release excerises, so they understand how the halter works. We also are careful to pair them up with another horse that they like to make the whole thing a pleasent experience. If they start getting tired and dropping back that's just because you have overdone it and you need to go home. We don't generally take them far at all to start with.

[@klauskarbaumer6302]

I like to see that you drive your horses without blinders. In the long run they will be less excitable and more more reliable.

[@jessicalindsey2616]

I hope you make a video about the stallion edict training. I have a 2.5 yr old stud colt that I am training to ride and want to eventually train to dive and pull carriages and do farm work. I pony him while I ride my mare and he will try to bite her in the neck or haunches. I try to move him away but I’m not sure how to do that in a harness and driving situation.

[@hitchinfarm]

We have been thinking about doing that. I will try to make one soon

[@jessicalindsey2616]

@@hitchinfarm Thank you. Your videos are exceptional and I have been enjoying them a lot.

[@averynagy-macarthur6635]

Who is the person/technique you mention doing connection work? I couldn't catch it from the video. I really like how you emphasize setting your horses up to succeed in their training.

[@hitchinfarm]

Warwick schiller

[@jessabelllaify]

Can I ask why you don't use blinkers? I am in the process of training my Shetland to drive and interested in learning about everyone's different approaches.

[@hitchinfarm]

No Blinkers?! 👀 We're often asked why we don't use Blinkers? Our horses are trained without Blinkers as they do a number of different jobs, like Ploughing and forestry. Forestry in particular can be in crampt and hazardous places and it's helpful to you and your horse if they can see where they are going! If a horse is introduced to work in stages and gets used to seeing different things behind them in a way they feel comfortable with, there is no reason to use blinkers, and restrict one of your horses senses. If a blinkered horse manages to rub off its bridle and see its carriage for the first time it can be quite a surprise! This can have very dangerous results! Some of the horses we have trained are more comfortable with Blinkers on, and that's ok too!

[@rissross6120]

I shadow a harness breaker in Australia who also is big on having new breakers on the side of the cart. Is there a reason you don’t use a pullback collar and only a head stall?

[@hitchinfarm]

A head stall is as gentle as possible to give a good experience. But it's also very effective

[@rissross6120]

@@hitchinfarm I appreciate the reply. It’s fantastic to see it work when done in different ways. I look forward to watching more of your videos to learn and compare methods.