[CharlyBonifaz]

they were made to kick FORWARD to disengage for a reason. You may have to get it out of gear to control an animal that reacts badly.

being a novice, I was advised, just as you condition the horses, to practise running the equipment my own self by hooking it to a tractor, have that one run slowly by someone else and practise……

[CharlyBonifaz]

I suspect this applies to mules and donkeys, too

and to oxen
😉
I definitely expect mine to move their butts and come over……wish my car would do so 😀

[CharlyBonifaz]

let me start with your second question:

Would any breed do for training?

in principle “yes”, sort of depending on what you want to use them for

which oxen breeds do you have in Germany

for example:
Fleckvieh
Pinzgauer
rotes Höhenvieh
Braunvieh
Schwarzbunte
rätisches Grauvieh
google for pictures of these breeds, quite a number of them belong to local livestock breeds at risk of dying out; they are specifically being used, hoping that these old breeds have conserved their traits for workability better

[CharlyBonifaz]

welcome 🙂

I would try oxen and mules too.

can recommend oxen 😀 just too much fun

[CharlyBonifaz]

I would like to know about tricks that make the work easier for the animals ( and consequently for the teamster); I’d like to know pros and cons for a variety of machines designed for the same job, pros and cons of various hitching methods in various situations; just someone pointing out my mistakes would already be a big help…..
Have fun!

[CharlyBonifaz]

The trouble is….Reno has completely stolen my heart.

Perfect 😉
just takes a couple of days, and they can sneak in on that one……
there’s little chance to prevent it, too
dangerous

wish you a long teamwork together :rolleyes:

[CharlyBonifaz]

I am going to let the vet check this out next week as well.

if you call one out, maybe have him turn some bloodsamples in, check for liver problems, thyroid…..etc.

linseed oilcake, though that is not something that is routinely stocked in our local feed stores.

would they have sunflower seeds?
elke

[CharlyBonifaz]

I was aware that horse size came into play and it does in my case (just my luck). That is where I think I confuse myself and the headaches start. If you have an easy way to figure my way through that I would really appreciate it.

don’t know if it easy but I’ll try:
your given measurements (as I understood) were:
Stubline (inner line) 8 inches longer than draftline (outer line)

horsesize differs?
try to imagine your team from above:

big horses need more space in between them, they move with a greater distance towards each other, so the stublines have to give: make them longer 1 or 2 inches in relation to the outer line
(identical to longer evener/yoke for horses that need more room as mentioned before, and your clue there was: 1 inch more stubline for every 2 inches of longer evener)

smaller horses need less space in between, so they move closer to each other, you can shorten the stublines for an inch or 2 in relation to your outer line (these horses can also work on a shorter evener)

since I’m not sure what your lines look like, I assume the inner lines are hooked onto the outer lines, so they are of definite length but can be moved up and down (forwards and backwards on) the outer/draftline

so in order to increase the difference between inner and outer line in the case of big horses, move the stubline 1 inch or 2 further forwards on the outer line; in the case of smaller horses move the stubline back an inch or two

does it make sense now?
doesn’t have anything to do with how much line you have in your hand when driving them.

I’d also like to see a picture of a line spreader…..
elke

[CharlyBonifaz]

shoeing commands:

front feet:
touch the one you want with finger and say “up”: he’ll place it in my hand
hind feet:
same command, but I have to bow down and put the lifted leg on my knee

trained from babytimes

cattle flat out will run into problems with gas in their rumen (cannot eructate in this position); so I need to either give them a break where they can at least sit, or I have to hurry the shoeing…..

[CharlyBonifaz]

I would not even want to appear in public in the USA with a cattle controlled by a ring in its nose.

spent some time in Texas Longhorn country and found quite a number of them controlled by a nose-peg while being ridden.
Worked just fine……
as always: one has to use these aids sensibly

[CharlyBonifaz]

Thanks!
elke

[CharlyBonifaz]

Jason,
been looking at the pictures in the article;
as seen on the last picture:
there is another leather belt below the traces running from the hames back to the rigging’s ring; what’s the use for this?
curious
elke

[CharlyBonifaz]

😉 …… and here I thought we were the only ones able to complicate things…..
elke

[CharlyBonifaz]

I was told, if on the road, to have the stronger/more powerful horse on the left; if anything happens you’d rather want to be in a ditch than oncoming traffic
since you want an easygoing, unnervous, calm, unafraid horse in this position as well, here is your first “however”….
a lot of different reasons that all make sense 😀
elke

[CharlyBonifaz]

hallo,

If anyone experiences any difficulties please let me know although I expect smooth sailing.

http://www.draftanimalpower.com/

won’t work at least from over here; withdrawal symptoms were bad enough, so I googled for you 😉

http://www.draftanimalpower.com/forumdisplay.php?f=4
is that going to be the permanent address?

and pictures on the front page don’t work yet; am probably just too impatient…..
elke

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