Anyone have horses or ride??

[NaH2O]

Read this link for an explaination of the different riding styles: English versus Western Riding. Which style of riding you choose will depend on what you want to do? My passion for jumping and eventing steered my way to huntseat/English. I would recommend taking a lesson in both Western and English, and see what you like better.

I also thought you might like this link: A Glossary of Horse Terms

hehehe - I'll see if I can find some old pics of myself on horseback .

 

[Detri]

Hey Nikki. I just read that article. Nice article by the way. What she said in it is excactly what my teacher told me. If I learned to ride English I would have no problem at all learning Western. I so agree with that. Not that western is hard in the first place hehe. My teacher was a polo fanatic, she had 6 horses she trailered 2 times a week to play. After learning to canter <again spelling, sorry> and jump a little, she pushed me right into learning to play polo, great sport. Tough though. As is all horse sports.

Beckmola24, I just wanted to point out. When you went on your trail ride you most likely were in a western style saddle. Just thought of that

 

[Beckmola24]

My stirrups were a little lower like western, but no knob on the saddle. Thanks for the great info! I found a barn that is relatively close to my house and seems to have a good rep. They charge 225 for 5 private hr long lessons. I spent most of last night looking at places w/in driving distance that gave lessons and some of the places can get pretty expensive.

Barbi, or anyone
When I DO get a horse (hopefully) I was giving serious thought to getting a yearling or something like that and training her/him myself along with an experienced trainer. Why do your reccomend getting a well trained before doing that?? Any horse I get, I want to develope a bond with him/her and from what I've seen, horses get sold and passed around a lot which I think would make them less attached to specific people. Wouldn't getting a yearling allow for a better human/horse bond???

 

[Barbie]

Buy a horse you can trust, that you are safe on, so that you can learn how to balance and ride, and what actions cause what reactions in a situation that's as safe as possible. You do NOT get that in training your own horse. As a second project, great, but first YOU need to learn all of those things, rather than attempt to learn how to be confident while you are also trying to teach a horse the same lesson. It's not going to happen, it's a bad idea, not to mention it's danged dangerous and a very common mistake, hence, why I warned not to do it .

Rescued dogs are just as capable of bonding as one you raised from a puppy. Horses are the same way. A good owner, is a good owner, no matter how old they are, and they'll appreciate it. If that "reaction" is very important to you, shop until you find the horse you click with. It won't take as long as you might think. If you know you REALLY want to work with a baby, buy a mare. When you are accomplished enough that you think you're up to the task (and this really IS more than most people realize), have her bred and raise the foal. That gives you plenty of potential to get hurt, but with a somewhat smaller package that first year .

Trust me on this one. I worked in the equine industry for many years. This is a common mistake people make, and can be the one that keeps you from developing a hobby you enjoy. Horses are big, and potentially scary. Get one that builds your confidence first.

Barbie

 

[NaH2O]

Barbi, or anyone
When I DO get a horse (hopefully) I was giving serious thought to getting a yearling or something like that and training her/him myself along with an experienced trainer. Why do your reccomend getting a well trained before doing that?? Any horse I get, I want to develope a bond with him/her and from what I've seen, horses get sold and passed around a lot which I think would make them less attached to specific people. Wouldn't getting a yearling allow for a better human/horse bond???

Big no-no. I couldn't agree with Barbie more. You really want to know what you are doing before you attempt to "train" a horse, too. Otherwise, you have the potential of getting seriously hurt, and for setting that yearling up for some really bad behaviors, too. Nothing like trying to give vaccinations, worm, etc. (make it do something it doesn't want to do) to a horse that has been poorly trained.

If you know you REALLY want to work with a baby, buy a mare. When you are accomplished enough that you think you're up to the task (and this really IS more than most people realize), have her bred and raise the foal. That gives you plenty of potential to get hurt, but with a somewhat smaller package that first year .

Trust me on this one. I worked in the equine industry for many years. This is a common mistake people make, and can be the one that keeps you from developing a hobby you enjoy. Horses are big, and potentially scary. Get one that builds your confidence first.

Me too (worked in industry). You made me chuckle a bit, when you mentioned getting hurt. Even those little ones can give a good strike when you are working with them (blood draws were fun) .....fortunately for me, I was always ready for it. Overly protective mares are a real treat, too .

 

[Detri]

My wife is the actual expert on horses here in my household, we both worked on a Trakehner breeding farm. Though I was a grounds person I also got to learn to work with the horses for when they were short handed. Since we lived on the farm I also did the night feeding and checks. I did got to witness alot of births. They were fantastic. Anyway, we had one yearling that ended up getting an infection from a bad day in the paddock. (He was a little wild, tried to jump the fence and cut his flank open on the post of the fence.) During night feed I had to help my wife, so she could medicate him, he was so spun we had to twitch him. (someone else can explain this. I don't know how to ) Well even with it on, he reared up and my wife went under him. I had to hold him pushing back at the same time and drag my wife out from under his from hooves. Talk about scarey. That is in part why you don't want to buy a young untrained horse as a novice.

My wife is used to seeing the underside of horses as she was the onsite Ferrier. By this I mean they had a Ferrier come in to shoe the horses, while my wife would remove shoes and shape the hoof for the main Ferrier to come and shoe them.

Just remember you are working with an animal that is "ALMOST", not quite but, almost, a ton in wieght for the larger breeds (2000lbs). A "bomb proof" horse is the best case and you will gain more enjoyment from a horse you trust, and that trust you. A 3-5 year old gelding or mare would give you plenty of opertunity to bond. Horses are very loving animals.

 

[Barbie]

I guess I should qualify my remarks here a bit. I trained horses for a few years, and managed a stallion station, when I was fresh out of high school. From there I moved on to a Thoroughbred layup farm and breeding operation where I managed all the health and reproduction ends of things for 270 horses (while maintaining my group of 18 quarter horses at home). Then I moved to KC where I worked for a world class paint horse trainer as the doctor/corporate secretary (the man had issues!).

There are SO many good horses out there, it's not worth your enjoyment or health to take the risk with a young one that may turn out to have a dangerous habit. I've been kicked, bit, smashed in trailers, fallen on, and nearly killed in so many inventive ways that doctors just make a face when they see Xrays of my right foot (you know, the one by the horse!). I've had horses most of my life and to me they clearly speak their intentions in an easy to read language. Sometimes you get time to react to that information, and sometimes you just don't. As someone having to learn how to understand the signals they're giving you, you need a horse that already understands the ones you give it, if that makes sense.

Very few horses will hurt you on purpose. Most just don't even understand their size. That doesn't make you any less hurt though. Horses are a big investment in time and money and worth every bit of it, IMO. None of us are trying to rain on your parade, we've been there, done that, got the Tshirt, k? You'll have way more enjoyment from a horse you can just ENJOY while you learn. Leave the true training for later in life. You know, when you think you might still bounce well enough to get thrown off something a time or two .

Barbie

 

[NaH2O]

I've been kicked, bit, smashed in trailers, fallen on, and nearly killed in so many inventive ways that doctors just make a face when they see Xrays of my right foot (you know, the one by the horse!).

I hear ya (fingers, toes, shins, shoulder bites, upper arm bites, run over, smashed against stall walls, etc etc etc). Getting the wild pasture mares into the stocks was always an interesting endeavor. Somehow, a few would manage to kick the back of the stocks open, right before it latched.....launching me. I was always cautious of my where-abouts, too. Nothing like picking yourself up off the ground with a horse that also went down, and the back feet are pointed at your head. Becky, as Barbie said, none of this is to discourage you, but to encourage you to learn as much as you can. There is nothing wrong with owning a "push button" horse, to teach you about horse behavior, and good horsemanship. After you've been around enough horses, you'll be able to see a look in their eye and know the explosion is coming. I loved going to barns with really gentle horses. A nice big, bright, kind eye, and the sweet nicker when you walk up to the stall. I would much rather have a horse that's been through its paces, and I could enjoy without it being a project when I was a novice horse person, but that's IMO. I'm glad you found a stable to take lessons from. Let us know how things go!

 

[Beckmola24]

Thanks everyone for the really good advice. Y'all put everything in good perspective for me. I didn't think about it in terms of an adopted dog. I personally think adopted pets have an almost "greatful" attitude towards their people and are very loving. I'm just happy walking through barns looking and talking to the horses so getting to ride is even beter For a beginner, would a mare or gelding be better for me (or does it just depend on the horse)??

 

[Detri]

In my opinion it doesn't really matter if you get a gelding or mare. But there are other sides to that. How long has the horse been gelded? And. If it was late was he ever used as a stud? A stallion will have a HUGE attitude. If the gelding was left to long it may have a little of that left in him. I am partial to mares, don't know why, I have just had great relationships with them. I'll never forget this one Brood Mare, her name was Tinker. She used to get excited when she caught wind of me. Only got to ride her once though.

 

[Curtswearing]

I'm personally partial to geldings. I have found that they are more consistent in their moods compared to mares but that's just my experience. One of my clients has a horse ranch. For one of his stallions, the only people who can ride it is him and me. (BTW, don't EVEN consider buying a stallion). There are a number of good monthly horse magazines and it's a good idea to get a subscription to them so you can learn of the pro's/con's of the different breeds. For instance, many of the gaited horses are quite smooth. However, I tend to find a number of the gaited breeds a little more moody as well. (Again, just my experience)

I love horses. One day, I'll have a bunch of them. However, they are not dogs. They truly can't help their size. My wife was on a horse and was told not to allow it to run. I took off and my wife decided to take off to follow ignoring the instructions. The next thing I saw was my wife 10 feet in the air. The reason she was told not to run because the horse was still in training. This particular horse would get extremely excited when allowed to run and would always do one buck before taking off. She is only so-so when it comes to horses and didn't know how to handle it. When my dogs would get excited, the worst thing that happens is that they jump up on you....no massive bruising involved.

Luckily, I've not really had many injuries from horses. I had to pull a piece of broken glass out of a horse's frog one time and got cow-kicked. It hurt like the dickens but the horse didn't intend to harm me. I hurt it's foot, it reacted to pain, and I ended up with a good sized bruise. That's the extent of my injuries over all of the years I've been with horses.

 

[Barbie]

To be honest, for now, what type of horse you want to buy shouldn't even be being considered, IMO. Ride some, figure out what things you like, and build from there. It would be like someone logging on and saying "Hi, I've got a glass box, tell me what to put in it!". You'll need a LOT more information and experience before that decision even SHOULD be looked into. Ride a few types, find out if you want to show, trail ride, have a pasture ornament, or what before you get gung ho getting your sights set on something that may be far from ideal in the long run. Set yourself a realistic goal, like 6 months from now I can BEGIN shopping for a horse. That way you won't run out and buy the first thing that nickers at you over a stall door .

My mare would nicker a good morning to me every day before work. I could yell or whistle for her from anywhere and she'd come to see what was up. If you had the trailer or a halter she'd come right to the gate. If you were just messing with her she'd throw her tail over her back and dance around and show off. You only get one horse like her in a lifetime. Try to make sure you've learned enough to not do you both lasting damage once you find her, k?

Barbie

 

[Beckmola24]

I guess I should clarify myself a bit... I'm not looking into buying a horse, for at least 6 months or longer. I want to learn to ride WELL first and want to learn everything about horses before purchasing anything. I've also made up my mind that I don't want to board a horse. I want to be able to be with it everyday and be it's primary caretaker and I can't accomplish that if it's borded 30 miles away. Right now I live in the city 5 mins away from where the underperforming Texans play football... Not very suitable for a horse It took me months to find the house we bought and I'm sure I'll shop around a long time for a horse. I don't want to buy the first one I see. I'm just trying to get some info and ideas on what types of horses I should learn to ride on. I want to walk into the barn and be able to look around and ask for a specific horse to learn on (after spending time with the horses). I also want to spend some time talking to people in that barn about each horse, so I know their tendancies and personalities. I know it's good to get advice and personal experiences from people so that's why I'm asking all sorts of questions.

Trail riding was so much fun, but I've never done anything else with horses so I have no comparison here. Texas is full of competeitions and Rodeos so I'm sure I have a lot of options. Could someone maybe explain to me the different types of competitions that I could participate in??

Also the reason I'm asking a lot of questions here, is because I've found everyone on RF to be super nice and really appreciate the advice/help.

 

[NaH2O]

Becky - If you go back to some of the links I posted...there is some good info there on different disciplines. Here are some others: Eventing (interesting....I went from loving this sport to loving to compete in human triathlons as an adult ), Dressage, Hunter Jumper (this was my main focus all my life, and competed in college), Barrel Racing, Reigning Horse....these should get you started. I would encourage you to do some web searches, and look back at the links I posted before, like this...it might help with your searches: http://www.equine-world.co.uk/horse_sports/index.htm, http://www.horsekeeping.com/horse-training-care-info.htm, http://equisearch.com/horses_riding_training/sports/ . Basically, all disciplines will have some type of competition. It really will depend on the style of riding you choose, which will ultimately be something you decide for yourself.

Also, your first few lessons, your instructor will probably have a horse in mind for you, as opposed to you picking one out. There are some really bullet proof lesson horses, that help you learn, and allow you to make mistakes on them, without getting tossed off. Let your instructor guide you, and teach you all the basics. How to approach a horse; which side you stand, lead, mount on; the parts of the bridle, saddle, horse's body; how to groom, etc. When I was in high school, I taught some summer camp kids, and the first thing I did was go over the basics from the ground for the first part of the lesson. Anyway, when is your first lesson??

 

[Beckmola24]

Thanks for the info. We had a scare over the weekend so I'm not too sure how much my husband is going to want to ride now... We were on a nice trail with my dad and were just walking since my dad hasn't ridden in a long time. Anyways my husband's horse spooked and took off at a gallop and this was only my husband's 2nd time riding. He couldn't keep him under control and lost his balance and wound up dismounting while the horse was at a gallop. He wasn't hurt, but wasn't too thrilled to say the least. They wound up putting him back on the same horse and he was able to keep him control the 2nd time he spooked. The guides said there have been a lot of deer in the woods and some of the horses really spook when they see them. Needless to say he has a few bruises from yesterday... He says he'll go back but not over the weekend. The place was crowded and they wound up having to put my husband on a horse for more advanced riders (which they shouldn't have done) anyways, he loves one of the 20 yr old geldings they have there so we'll see... is 20 too old for a horse???

I rode an awesome horse yesterday and instantly fell in love with her... I later found out she is a state champion endurance horse. I have a feeling she is way above our price range.... The one my husband wound up on was 85,000. Anyways lessons will start for me after I call around a little and find a good barn...

 

[Detri]

That sucks that happened to your husband. Unfortunately thats the way it is for most riders. Horses can be unpredicatble, but on the same note if you are experienced its not so hard to know when it is going to happen. You get to know your horses actions and can almost react before it gets out of hand.

Besides, your not a real rider till you have been thrown atleast 9 times Kidding. but that was the joke around here.

 

[Alice]

Becky,

I too, grew up with horses - cowgirl/barrel racer here, no english saddles for me - and I can tell you it is much more of a lifestyle than a hobby when you own horses. As reefers, we get much enjoyment from our tanks, but if you are a horse person, they will capture your heart and soul.

Good Luck on your new adventure!

 

[Beckmola24]

Well, I start my first lesson tomorrow afternoon and I'm really excited!! My husband "gave" me riding lessons for our 3rd Anniversary on Tuesday. I got a helmet yesterday and "Horses for Dummies" book and I've been reading on and off all day. Don't want to be totally clueless tomorrow . I've learned a lot from what the book has to say since it's geared for beginners. I am SO excited!!! Have I emphasized that enough??? :lol:

 

[Detri]

Congrats! Let us know how you did.

 

[Beckmola24]

My lesson went very well!! I arrived early so I was able to brush, groom, and bond with my horse (Amir). He is a pretty old Arabian mix and is sweet. I learned how to clean his hooves, what the different brushes are for, and how to put on a halter, bridle, blankets and saddle. They start beginners here with Western, but move to English once the balance is there. During my actual lesson we walked, and trotted while working on stearing. Next lesson, I am being moved to a different horse since Amir is old and sort of lazy (He trots, but doesn't like to keep a steady trot pace... He trots for a few mins and then goes to a walk) lol... I'm really excited for my next lesson. I was told I had good riding skills, but need to work on my posture... I tend to be a sloucher so I really need to tackle that...

I am taking my riding very seriously and really think that this is the beginning of a life-long hobby and passion. I visited aqha.com and found some nice horses for sale in my area I might eat my words about having land before buying a horse. This barn takes GOOD care of their horses and it's really close to my house.... I am eagerly awaiting my next lesson but I might be able to convince my husband to take another trail ride this weekend...