starting 2 year olds

Question
Hi Jenny,
I have a 2 1/2 yo Quarter Horse gelding, who I bought after being broken in for eight weeks. He is a very well put together fellow and going well. My question is how much work can I give him?? I am a member of Athra (Trail riding group)and am unsure of how much riding would be too much for such a young horse. Some of the rides are 5 & 6 hrs with some mountainous terrain. Also considering he has a conformation fault being he is slightly calf kneed. The vet tells me it will not be a problem to him. If you could advise me on how much and how often I should be riding him it would be much appreciated!!
Kind Regards,
Roxanne

Answer
Hi Roxanne,

Your young horse sounds lovely!  
I would consider long 'back country' trail rides with mountainous terrain to be too much for this age of horse.  I would spend this season schooling and building muscle on the flat.  I usually work my 'babies' 2-3 times a week, for around an hour each time for the first 4 months of under saddle work.  Keep in mind that you don't have to work them hard physically to get the maximum learning mentally....ie- work on lateral movements (off leg) and bending/suppling at a walk/trot and the occasional canter. Practice haunch turns and forehand turns, sidepassing, etc....all these things will come in handy when you're out on the long trail rides at a later date!  From 4 months to 6 months under saddle, if your horse is staying sound and sane, progress to 5 days a week for about an hour a day.  

In my personal experience, a horse with calf knees will need to be monitored carefully throughout the training to make sure there is no soreness.  Calf kneed conformation puts the back of the knee joint under a tremendous amount of stress during hard work.  Can you work with a GOOD blacksmith to help this horse with orthopaedic shoeing?  I had a 2 yr old horse that was moderately calf kneed, and we kept her in a very slight reverse wedge pad to give her stretching ligaments and tendons a chance to work with less stress.  Please keep in communication with your vet and blacksmith while training your horse.  It is always best to be safe than sorry!

I hope this helps & good luck!