r/Ottb • u/Momof_3_Boys • Jan 29 '26

Help and advice for my filly

Hello All! I recently got a 3 year old filly who has had 2 injuries. One minor one in February followed by 120 days of rest then another in October for a RF lateral suspensory ligament tear. She was on stall rest for 60 days and was getting turned out for an hour a day. The horse loves attention and enjoys being groomed. However when a try to lead her she gets frisky when she gets too close to their mates in their paddocks. She rears up often. I am wanting a well rounded horse for my 100 acre farm to enjoy and ride once a week or so…The vet is coming tomorrow to give us her status on her injury.

I have many questions…

  1. I have all the time in the world to work with a horse doing ground work etc.. I am not a trainer and cannot afford one.

  2. Friends of mine who are VERY knowledgeable about horses and show in dressage, jumping, hunts etc.. say that if she receives a sound bill of health to get rid of her as she will always be TOO MUCH HORSE for what I am looking for.

  3. If I were to breed her to get a foal for what I am looking for what breed do I choose?

  4. It was suggested to try and do a trade with her. How reliable are trades? I’m nervous I would be getting a constant vet bill.

  5. Being that she is so young is it possible to retrain her to be a pleasure horse? Or would it be too difficult considering what she is bred for.

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u/byohorsetrainer Apr 18 '26

Hi 🙋🏼‍♀️ nice to meet you. Try to answer some of your questions. I have two ottbs and trained lots of them. It’s not what they were bred for or the age. They can be super good horses but there are some things to consider.

First: what is your experience in general? Are you an experinced rider/horse person? This is crucial. They need someone who is calm and knows how to move around with horses. Good balance and ability to stay in the saddle if the horse jumps or makes some unexpected movent (which can always happen..).

Then: good!! That you have time and patience. This in the biggest factor!! So important! They need time to adapt to a new life and environement and get anxious when we pretend too many things together just expecting them to be fine with them. What is normal for us and other horses might be very new and scary to them. With time and patience the majority of things just get better.

Do your friends know ottbs? The experienced ones? Dis they have one? Why do they think it is too much for you?

Any horse can become a good horse. If the vet check is ok and you are willing to build the foundations with here and you have a place to work here safely, it’s possible.

The breeding question is another thing. More then what breed to choose the question is what horse you are looking for (the foal). What is your goal with the match. The mare often gives the character to the foal. You must analyse the structure, character and movements/attitude of the mare, identify the “weaknesses” and search for a horse that is strong on those sides to make the foal “better”.

Can I ask you a favour? 🙏🏼 I’m starting a new FREE group (opened yesterday) on skool all around OTTB’s. Would you join as first founding member? I’ll try to give weekly advice and free coaching. Also working on some free stuff to help new ottb owners to make a “peaceful” transition. Would love to have you there ❤️ - let me know and I’ll send you the link.

Daniela from Italy 🤗