Bringing your horse back to work

Bringing your horse back to work

There are many reasons why your horse could have had some time off, ranging from horse injury, arenas and bridle tracks being flooded or personal circumstances for you as the rider. For whatever reason, if your horse has had time off from being ridden it’s important to bring them back into work slowly and correctly. This gives the horse’s muscles time to adapt and build up their fitness to reduce the risk of equine injuries.

Here, International event rider, Lucinda Green MBE interviews Petplan Equine Ambassador and Vet Juliette Edmonds on the best routine to follow when bringing a horse back into work. From personal experience and veterinary science they discuss the equine groundwork before getting on board, health checks for your horse, the amount and type of work your horse should do in the first 4 to 6 weeks and how to move on and increase fitness going forward.

Part 1: Groundwork

Part 2: Getting On Board

Part 3: Moving Forwards and Increasing Fitness

The videos provide guidance on best practice when bringing a horse back into work, but do not consider each individual circumstance. Should your horse have had time off through illness or injury your vet will provide specific guidance on a programme for your horse. If your horses time off is for any other reason we always recommend discussing your horse’s welfare with your vet when you are going to bring them back into work.

Many thanks to Lucinda and Juliette for their support in developing these videos.