Horse owners?

[Zach]

I'm looking for a little advice from anyone who owns horses and hunts/packs with them in high country. What breeds are best to look at?

I'm kinda new to horses, and to be honest 2 of my daughters know more about riding than I do thanks to their school. My oldest daughter, 17, rides very well and has helped out at horse camp for new riders. She can teach me, prolly cheaper and better, than paying for lessons.

We've been kicking around the idea of buying a horse and I thought if I could combine 2 uses that would be great.

So from all you horse guys out there, what are your thoughts/suggestions/ideas?

Thanks,
Zach

 

[Lawnboy]

Probably lots of opinions from the horse guys but here's my experience. I'm not as concerned about breed as about how well they are broke. Hunting horses are different from arena horses in their breaking. I look for horses that are used to crossing water and logs. I try to make sure they are used to ropes being hung and dangled all over them. Will they handle a rope going under their tail. For the most part I would look for horses that claim to be "ranch broke". They usually have been exposed to the majority of the situations you would find out in the hills. There are some great horses out there that do well in the valley and arena but once in the hills they can explode at all the new things they are seeing. Seeing stumps, big multi colored boulders ect.. will send some horses into orbit.
I'm no Clint Anderson so I'm learning that it's worth it's weight in gold to find ones that are broke to hunting situations.

 

[spook12]

Make sure your insurance is paid up! Not if but when..........

 

[cowboy]

Three things I look for in buying a horse.
1-attitude, 2-attitude,3-attitude

I don't care what breed they are or if they are pink. When you are coming out 3 hours after dark they all look the same but you'll remember what they acted like

 

[1-Shot-1-kill]

I own 3 horse,..a thouroughb red,..BlackJack,..an american saddlebred,.Patches,..and a paint,..Star.
you have to understand that horses are social animals,..if you get just one,..then keep it at a boarding facility for horses,..
What ever you plan on doing from the back of a horse,..you must practice practice practice.
I use vocal commands and body language both from the ground and on the horses back.
Now I do not hunt with my horses,..they are more like pets to me... got them trained to do different things for show,, like shake hands,..run in a circle around me and stop where they started,..answer me when I call their name or ask them if they want a treat,..sit like a dog,..still working on the fetch me a beer trick its taken 4 years of repetition to get to this point,..its almost a full time job training a horse to react the way you want it to in a given situation,..the toughest is to get the horse to trust you 100% once you gain that,..life gets allot easier when it comes to training them to " not spook" if an animal bolts from a bed if you happen to come up on it on a trail,..seen allot of relatively new riders land on the ground more then once from that instence,..the list goes on from standing when you drop the riegns to not bolting if they smell a preditor,..and 99% of the what if's will be checked once the horse trusts you.
be ready for the 1%..always.
if you purchase a pre-trained horse for a specific purpose,..or 2,..I suggest you get a horse at least 5 years old,..ask the seller if you can spend some time with the horse prior to purchase,..if the seller lets you,..take the horse to unfamiliar ground,..reason..don't ride this horse at the place where it knows every inch of ground,..any bad habits a horse might have will come to the surface on new ground,..you should be able to lift any foot of the horse without them trying to fight you,..I always talk in a calm voice when Im touching my horses,..and always tell them if they've done good,..
.
If you have little training experience, but want to train the horse yourself,..talk to someone who has experience and get some pointers,..start with just you and the horse,..no one else,..no distractions,...pick a training choice,..one thing at a time,..when you and the horse have that one thing down to a science,..then move to the next item on the list,..do not try to teach them more then one thing at a time,..both you and the horse will end up frustrated and sometimes worse off then before you started,..simple is always better,..at first,.because your horse is not the only one in class,..you are there too and the horse will pick up on your body language and sense your emotion first ,..NEVER hit your horse if it does wrong,..or shout at it,...remember your trying to gain the horses trust during training and after when your not training,..giving them grain or treats doesnt come into the picture to coax them into doing anything,..it's not a tool,..although some might say different,..not until they do what you ask without bribery ,..then a treat is good at the end of the session...you dont want the horse to think that its time to eat everytime your standing in front of it.
excuse me for going on and on,..horses are a big responsibility,..if your new to the prospect,..I would suggest maybe a month or 2 of week ends taking care of a horse at a boarding stable before purchasing one,..so there are no surprizes after the purchase and demeanor is worth its weight in gold,..not all "pretty horses" are good horses gelding or mare,..don't get a stud.

good luck ~!

 

[Zach]

1S-1K, great advice. Same with everyone else.

A little more info. My 2 oldest daughters go to a very small private school. In fact there are only 10 students, unless you count the animals, then it goes up to about 20+. The school is on 80 acres & the family that runs it has been in the horse business for a while. My daughters care for "their" horse on a daily basis during school & my oldest assists extra times. The family that runs the school will also be advising me.
The place where the horse would stay would be at my inlaws where they have close to 200 acres. They also have stables as this was part of a working cattle ranch at 1 time. They have a renter who has 2 mules on the property and he also happens to be a ferrier.
I'm not sure what I'm getting into but I've got a lot of support around me.

 

[NVLongbow]

Some good points made by Lawnboy, Cowboy and 1-shot. I might add, it's nice when you own the kind that are easy to catch.

Spook is also correct. Their brain is small and their body is big. Given enough time packing with them, it's not if you'll have a wreck; but when. That goes with the 1% of the time that 1-shot mentioned.

But after using them in the mountains you will also realize why folks hung horse thieves in the old days and why energy was measured in horse power.

Been around or owned all kinds and mixes since I was old enough to remember. Try a bunch of them before you buy.

 

[1-Shot-1-kill]

Sounds like your pretty serious about this Zach,..and sounds like you've got a good place to board the horse,..that much ground you shouldnt have to buy any hay,..which here,..5x5 bails are fast approach $80.00 a bail due to no rain this summer for good clean horse hay.
other things to concider with your choice,..how much weight you'll be putting on the horse ,..paints or quarters are stout,..and can handle rough terrain with a load, but can jar your teeth loose at a trot,..the saddlebreds are smooth in any gear,..from a trot to a fast gait to full run,..,..wouldnt even concider a thoroughbred for rough terrian myself,..but flat out they will get you there fast
your ferrier friend can give you a heads up on coggins and other enoculations concerning riding your horse at other horse related interactions,..here to ride on comminity trails on managed outtings,,we have to have our coggins shots to date and carry proof of it on our person.
I use a wormer every month with my horses and I change brands every couple months mostly so they dont get use to one specific brand,..each brand has it's advantages and percentages of ingredience some more of one ingredient then the other,...
If possibly I'd take your ferrier friend with you when you go to look at a horse for purchase,..he will recognize and issues with a horses stance,..soft frog etc

 

[dan.kirkpatrick]

lawn boy has good points on his post,,,personally I prefer a well broke gelding as ive had a few but each breed doesnt really matter that much,its the actual horse and how well its trained,,,I have a qtrhorse,a mustang adopted through the blm,and have had a morgan,,,all good trail horses but each has there own good and bad traits,,,the right mule may also make for a good huntin horse.

 

[DRAFTSTUD]

Excellent points everyone. I can't add anything except to add that the perfect Horse might be a Mule. John

 

[2rocky]

All good points presented above and I can think of nothing to add.

 

[powderburn]

,..the toughest is to get the horse to trust you 100% once you gain that,..life gets allot easier when it comes to training them to " not spook"

I always talk in a calm voice when Im touching my horses,..and always tell them if they've done good,..
NEVER hit your horse if it does wrong,..or shout at it,...remember your trying to gain the horses trust excuse me for going on and on,..horses are a big responsibility,..if your new to the prospect,..I would suggest maybe a month or 2 of week ends taking care of a horse at a boarding stable before purchasing one,..so there are no surprizes after the purchase and demeanor is worth its weight in gold,..not all "pretty horses" are good horses gelding or mare,..don't get a stud.

good luck ~!

Lots of sage advice from all but some of this advice sets the basics of good ground work.
A horse can read you like an open book and how you behave and present yourself around them will determine they're responce and attitude towards you. We are lucky enough to be able to ride pretty much on a wim most days. 100 miles on a horse will begin to mold him and a thousand miles he will almost respond to your thoughts. What ever you do be consistant in your handling and always reward correct behavior.
Our horses are exposed to about everything that the high country can throw at them and when they encounter a new or questioning environment we will dismount and act like we're taking a break and let them soak up the experience. Or we'll reasure them in nice calm voice and rub their neck or scratch they're ears and move on. Much like letting them check out Grizz tracks, ground riegning or pushing a couple strays down to the guys doing the community roundup. You'll see Teeters ears as he's focused on the cows and when I give low comands he's intent on my voice command. We use Quater horses, Quarab's, Tenuvian's and some other asortted mixes. An old cowboy once told me always look for wide set and soft eye's. He also said always use a riding helmet with a new horse your head ain't as hard as mine.

 

[Zach]

Thanks All!

I'm going to do my research over the winter. Talk to my friend, the ferrier, and get his advice. Also see if I can start spending time at my kids school and be around their horses more.

Thanks again everyone!
Zach

 

[Deleted member 20812]

Don't buy a stupid horse. And I don't mean this as a smart ass comment. If they can't stand tied without continually jacking around, that should be a red flag. If they pull back when tied that should be red flag.

I prefer geldings, my preference. Mares can be a real pain with geldings around, but that is a generalization.

When you go to buy, I prefer to catch and saddle the horse myself so I can watch his behavior. Be careful of horses that are advertised as "bomb proof", cause lots of times they aren't.

Horses are expensive and a lot of work, but lots of fun too.

 

[ismith]

A good mountain horse is worth his weight in gold. Im partial to Morgans and Quarter Horses.

 

[Slam]

Unless your picking up a mule (not for the uninitiated) stay with a gelding as stated above. Mares make great trail horses but they come into heat...and for some reason that heat cycle will correspond with hunt dates. A mare in heat can be a real pain the ass if you have geldings along..and she will be focusing on things other than putting her feet in the right place which can raise the level of excitement real fast. Not to mention what your male horses are focusing on...even if the equipement has been rendered useless!

Stay with a gelding.

 

[Deleted member 20812]

Unless your picking up a mule (not for the uninitiated) stay with a gelding as stated above. Mares make great trail horses but they come into heat...and for some reason that heat cycle will correspond with hunt dates. A mare in heat can be a real pain the ass if you have geldings along..and she will be focusing on things other than putting her feet in the right place which can raise the level of excitement real fast. Not to mention what your male horses are focusing on...even if the equipement has been rendered useless!

Stay with a gelding.

Exactly my experience. My theory is that mares are good for making more geldings, and that's about it. Nothing like a mare coming in or out of heat trying to kick the snot out of Romeo the gelding who is putting his nose up her fanny.

 

[Lawnboy]

Man we must just be lucky with the mares that we have. I've seen them in heat in the corral but never anything out of the ordinary while hunting. Might be pure luck. We have 2 mares and 2 geldings. As far as a generalization I think you guys might be spot on but I would still pick the horse with the best attitude,training, temperment regardless of sex or breed or color and even looks.

 

[Deleted member 20812]

I would still pick the horse with the best attitude,training, temperment regardless of sex or breed or color and even looks.

Yes x 100. My best pack horse was a 14 hand paint gelding that had a short round back. I could load anything on him, and take him anywhere.

 

[Slam]

One other thing to look for.....assuming you are not real good at getting your leg up high from a standing position....look fora horse under 16 hands. A couple of inches can make a difference in ease of getting aboard. Otherwise you'll be like me, always looking for a big rock or positioning the nag downhill for the mount. Flat country can make for inelegant mounts!