{"id":21729,"date":"2025-11-07T01:00:51","date_gmt":"2025-11-07T08:00:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/?p=21729"},"modified":"2025-11-07T08:04:23","modified_gmt":"2025-11-07T15:04:23","slug":"fall-and-winter-colt-starts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2025\/11\/07\/fall-and-winter-colt-starts\/","title":{"rendered":"Fall and Winter Colt Starts"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Patty Wilber<\/em><\/p>\n

Fall is sliding into winter,<\/strong> although, honestly, it’s been in the 60s, so it doesn’t really feel like winter is on the way.\u00a0 The 30-day forecast does suggest that highs will be in the 40s starting around the 20th of this month.\u00a0 Apparently, we are going to pretty much skip the 50s.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

To prepare the house,<\/strong> we’ve cleaned the filters in the minisplits, the wood furnace, and the propane furnace. We had the propane furnace serviced. I am sure all you true Northerners are laughing at how many heat sources we have.\u00a0 Hey!\u00a0 It gets cold here!\u00a0 It snows!\u00a0 We have had big snows September to May! Which brings me back to my topic: Fall and Winter Colt Starts.<\/p>\n

I just got a new guy<\/strong> that is technically a restart, as he had been ridden a little…\u00a0 I am getting two more “barely halter-broke” geldings in a week or two and have a super cool show dude coming in January-ish.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Katie’s boy Clemente. Is he cute, or what? He is gaining confidence quickly!<\/p><\/div>\n

Yep, it can be a bit cold in winter,<\/strong> but hey, summer is hot, and spring can be extremely windy.\u00a0 Fall is usually kind of perfect… But why would I take on horses just as temperatures are falling?<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. I love colt starting,<\/strong> and it is a strength of mine. So, if I have a spot and someone wants to send a horse, I want to take it.<\/li>\n
  2. Twenty-five F and sunny<\/strong> is actually great riding weather, and our weather is often not that cold (there was one week once where every day was below zero, but that was an anomaly).\u00a0 According to Weather US<\/a>, the November high temperature average is 52F; December, 41.9F; January, 42.1F; February, 46.9F, and we have something like 282 days of sun (more than 20 per month).<\/li>\n
  3. I wear warm clothes.<\/strong> I don’t have an indoor arena, and wind can make it feel colder (you know “42, but feels like -10”), but I bought some insulated coveralls last year for the first time (they are nice!) and I often have a lightweight windbreaker to cut the wind as one of my base layers, so I stay warm enough.\u00a0 If I get too cold, I can come in and stand by the wood furnace, the regular furnace, or the minisplits!!<\/li>\n
  4. Horses are well adapted to cold,<\/strong> mine all live outside (not in stalls), and most become easy to catch, which I take to mean they enjoy our sessions.<\/li>\n
  5. The “no drama” program means<\/strong> I don’t end up with super sweaty colts that I have to worry about cooling out.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    I’d rather the weather stay in the 60s with gentle breezes<\/strong>, but I’m prepared to start colts in all weather, and now that I am retired from the college, I can pick the best parts of the day, too!<\/p>\n

    Happy Friday!<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    By Patty Wilber Fall is sliding into winter, although, honestly, it’s been in the 60s, so it doesn’t really feel like winter is on the way.\u00a0 The 30-day forecast does suggest that highs will be in the 40s starting around … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[91],"tags":[89,100,23,158],"class_list":["post-21729","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-write-horse","tag-horses","tag-new-mexico","tag-riding","tag-the-write-horse"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pb2lc3-5Et","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":13789,"url":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2016\/09\/16\/winter-is-coming-but-fall-is-first\/","url_meta":{"origin":21729,"position":0},"title":"Winter is Coming (but Fall is First)!","author":"BlogPatty","date":"1609.16","format":false,"excerpt":"By Patty Wilber It is State Fair time in NM,\u00a0and that means our\u00a0horses have all noticed that Winter is Coming and are starting to hair up (just in time for the show!) LT's sleek\u00a0gold grows a\u00a0dark brown tint on her face and neck as the undercoat comes in and Indy's\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "The Write Horse"","block_context":{"text":"The Write Horse","link":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/category\/the-write-horse\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"20160914_073241","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/20160914_073241-300x257.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":20648,"url":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2024\/03\/22\/spring-2024\/","url_meta":{"origin":21729,"position":1},"title":"Spring! 2024!","author":"BlogPatty","date":"2403.22","format":false,"excerpt":"By Patty Wilber Spring is a season I always like! Daylight Savings has begun in our fair state, and while there are always articles about how terrible setting the clocks forward and back is for everyone, I just cannot agree.\u00a0 I don't have trouble adjusting my internal clock to the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "The Write Horse"","block_context":{"text":"The Write Horse","link":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/category\/the-write-horse\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/20240318_095544.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/20240318_095544.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/20240318_095544.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/20240318_095544.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/20240318_095544.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":21989,"url":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2026\/03\/06\/colt-starting-musings\/","url_meta":{"origin":21729,"position":2},"title":"Colt Starting Musings","author":"BlogPatty","date":"2603.06","format":false,"excerpt":"By Patty Wilber I have been seeing Facebook posts that are kind of disparaging to colt starters, as if that's a lowly job that one should leave behind as soon as possible to move on to something more advanced, and I got my tender little nose out of joint since\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "The Write Horse"","block_context":{"text":"The Write Horse","link":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/category\/the-write-horse\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260206_133511-EDIT-1-scaled-e1772775732172.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260206_133511-EDIT-1-scaled-e1772775732172.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/20260206_133511-EDIT-1-scaled-e1772775732172.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17169,"url":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2019\/09\/19\/end-of-the-show-season\/","url_meta":{"origin":21729,"position":3},"title":"End of the show season","author":"BlogPatty","date":"1909.19","format":false,"excerpt":"By Patty Wilber So, Spring is usually the time we think of for new beginnings, with longer days and sprouting greenery, but from my horse training point of view, Fall is a new start.\u00a0 Fall for me is colt starting. Yes, the title is the \"End of the show season\"\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "The Write Horse"","block_context":{"text":"The Write Horse","link":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/category\/the-write-horse\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/DSC_9663.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/DSC_9663.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/DSC_9663.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15754,"url":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2018\/07\/27\/colt-starting-as-you-age\/","url_meta":{"origin":21729,"position":4},"title":"Colt Starting","author":"BlogPatty","date":"1807.27","format":false,"excerpt":"Chapter 17 of Callie's Star coming soon!! By Patty Wilber I like starting horses.\u00a0 At least I think I like it. I have a had a bunch of easy ones over the years and a few rough ones more recently, and it made me question myself. Maybe I have lost\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "The Write Horse"","block_context":{"text":"The Write Horse","link":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/category\/the-write-horse\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Question marks! https:\/\/pixabay.com\/en\/road-sign-attention-right-of-way-63983\/","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/road-sign-63983_960_720.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":13933,"url":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2016\/10\/28\/should-i-pull-my-horses-shoes-for-the-winter\/","url_meta":{"origin":21729,"position":5},"title":"Should I Pull my Horse’s Shoes for the Winter?","author":"BlogPatty","date":"1610.28","format":false,"excerpt":"By Patty Wilber The answer is...drum roll please... Maybe. That's kind of anti-climactic,\u00a0huh? And why winter? \u00a0That is since many people don't ride as much when it is cold. Advantages to some shoe-less time include increased wall thickness and sole depth, expansion of the heels, increased circulation in the foot\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "The Write Horse"","block_context":{"text":"The Write Horse","link":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/category\/the-write-horse\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"20161027_080813-1","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/20161027_080813-1-300x169.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21729","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21729"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21729\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21735,"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21729\/revisions\/21735"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21729"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21729"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21729"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}