Maturation Rates on Horses – Interesting Article

Posted on June 11, 2010 by RaeOfLight

I had a friend send me the link to this article months ago and I never got around to reading it until today. It’s long and doesn’t focus specifically on Morgans, and I’m only about half way through it, but so far it’s definitely worth the read! Fortunately I don’t think the culture in Morgans encourages very young riding like with some other breeds/disciplines. But I think often over-anxious owners, and maybe even trainers, can take a horse along too quickly which can ultimately be detrimental to it’s health.  I’m also posting a link to this under Resources for future reference.

Link to article

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2 Responses to Maturation Rates on Horses – Interesting Article

  1. RaeOfLight says:
    June 11, 2010 at 11:57 am

    An additional comment: I’ve heard mention of specific bloodlines being known to be low in the back. Perhaps it’s just that these horses are more susceptible to slipping if they’re ridden before they’re mature. Maybe that too is a bad thing, but we should keep in mind that it’s a developmental issue, not a conformational flaw. And as such, if we’re aware and sensitive to that developmental issue we can prevent it from being a problem.

  2. Jenny Van Oel says:
    June 14, 2010 at 10:34 pm

    Sometimes I feel like everyone is in such a hurry to win, win, win. I heard somewhere that the average age for a world champion western horse is around 8-11. No rushing :)

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