21 year old horse too old?

Question

HI, well i have a very energetic appaloosa gelding who is 21. People who see him guess he is 10 when we ride basic dressage.

do you think i can teach him to do a little jumping? when i say a little i mean like 6 inches to 1 foot probably.

Do you think he can do pole bending or barrel racing? He loves to run, and loves poles bending the most.

I dont want to over do him, but i do think he is willing to learn, and he rides like a young horse, so why not?

What do you think?

Can i teach him this or is he too old?

Answer 1

go for it, if he acts young his body must be cable of doing young things, i know many horse over 20 who jump, once i knew a horse, about 30 years old and still jump a foot to a foot and a half, because she loved jumping so much. i now know a pony, about 12.3hh, about 24/25 years old, jumps 2 1/2 foot which ease. ur horse will be fine to do some jumping

Answer 2

if he is healthy and sound, you can do anything within reason that he is willing to do!

Answer 3

It all depends on him.

how he behaves.

From what you say, he sounds like he should be able too.

Softly Softly is a very famous english event h**e who is 19 and still not retired from eventing!

it all depends on the horse and if he is up to barrel racing, sure, teach him.

You will have to look out for Arthritus now and again though because fast or strenous sports may bring it on faster but if you check him regulalry (two or three times monthly) as long as nothing shows up, he should be fine.

Answer 4

Sure, you can teach him this, but you need to proceed with caution.  Any animal that is not fit for performance may have irreversible injuries if asked to exert themselves beyond their capabilities.  That said, I've known some really high energy, competitive horses in the 20 to 25 years category.

You'll need to start slow and watch for signs from your horse for soreness, pinched nerves, etc.

Good luck.

Answer 5

just make sure you are very careful and are not over working him...pay attention to things like if he starts coughing or is getting stiff and limps

Answer 6

before my barrel horse died at age 32, he was running championships at about 28 years old and he looked like he was about 7, very stocky, fat, shinny and extremely healthy looking--he also loved to run and every time i would get him near cows or if there was barrels in sight he would start prancing around and crow hoping with his ears up and focused

if you dont work him too hard and give him good breaks then he should be fine

Answer 7

Well, My horse is 18 and I know that a little younger than what your horse is, but we still jump 3 ft courses! He loves to jump and shows no signs of soreness...just have a careful eye if he starts to look the next day...then I probly wouldnt

Answer 8

of course, i ride a 20 year old who acts like 8 and charges around. We jumped 3 foot the other day. But she is extremely fit

Just watch him to see if he gets tired or out of breath, 1 foot should be perfectly fine.

Answer 9

Go for it.  As long as he is fit and healthy, there is no reason you shouldn't do stuff like that.  Just be careful not to do too much.

Answer 10

I have a mare that is 23 that can jump 2ft courses. Just be alert for signs that he is being over worked.

Answer 11

There is no set age of a horse being "too old"

It depends completely on the horse's attitude and energy level

My pony is 21 years old, he loves to trot and canter, I jump 2ft with him at shows.

My friend's pony is 22 years old, but he absolutely loves jumping. He clears the jumps like a spring and always speeds up when he's heading towards the next one.

I think you could definately teach your horse to do some new things. As long as he's willing to and has the energy :)

Good luck!

Answer 12

I don't think he's too old for you to have fun with him.  the jumping should be fine as long as he's not having major arthritis or any stiffness.  

Pole bending should be fine, don't push him too hard through them.  Barrels are okay... as long as your not going at the full gallop and "barreling" around them lol.  reason is the stress on his joints and stuff.  

You can teach him, have fun.  As long as he's still "young at heart" you shouldn't need to retire him... that's the big part.

anyways...  hope this helps.

should be fine, just careful!

Answer 13

all the lessons horses at my barn were 15-30 years old

i wouldn't make a 30 year old jump of course

but my lesson horse was 22 and he jumped 2 feet perfectly! but no more and it was only once a week!

he acted like a crazy hyper 10 year old too and when i first saw him i thought he was 10! haha

best thing you can do is have a vet check him and his soundess, kinda like a pre-purchase vet check but not really

don't worry your horse will let you know when he's had enough lol

have fun and happy trails!

Answer 14

he's definitely not too old. jumping should be fine for him, along with barrels and poles. i know a 20 y.o. that i game with that also goes to nationals. if he is physically able to do all that, which it sounds like he's very capable of, then go right ahead!

Answer 15

I don't see any reason for him not to jump small stuff. Basically if he is getting stiff and sore after then don't do it, if he is enjoying it then go ahead.

Answer 16

yes, but not too much, no more than a foot, like u said, yes, he can do barrels and poles, last year, i used a 22 year old 4 time barrel racing champion that was skinny in barrels, poles, down and back, goat tying, and steer daubing, my best barrel time was 16 seconds, a couple of times, and 26 in poles, i also got the belt buckle in down and back, and she did awesome, just be careful, dont run him to much unless u are competing, or if u dont compete and u just ride at home, if u only ride at home, only RUN him full bore once in a while, u should be fine, i have been riding for almost 6 years, and am experienced enough to know, just, be careful, and make sure he doesnt have any health problems, or things could be bad!!!  hope this helps!!!!

Answer 17

as long as the horse is sound and you take extra care while teaching to watch for sings of soreness, other then that a horse isnt dead at the age of 21. . . i've seen horses up to the age of 30 being ridden and having fun(they had better owners that took care of em)

good luck

Answer 18

21 is actually not to old. I know many horses in their late 20's that still compete like 7 year olds! I even know a horse that is 31 and still barrel races competitively. If he is up for the training, go ahead and try it! You can most definitely teach him to jump, but no more than 2.5 feet at his age. This is because as a horse grows older his bones and muscles get weaker. If you are asking him to leap more than 2-3 ft at this age he will gain arthritis and will not be rideable hardly at all. IF he already knows how to barrel race/pole bend he can continue running for many more years. However, if he does not already know how I suggest you do not try to teach him only because it takes at least 5 years of training until you are eligible to compete. By that time he will be about 27, and might not have as much running left. He can do Dressage for at least 10 more years, but barrel racing and pole bending is all about speed- you don't want to push him to hard at this point.

If you really want to barrel race, buy a new horse that has already had 5+ critical years of training.

I do not know the health, height, strength or anything else about your horse, so I can not honestly tell you if you can, or can't train him to do more. Go ahead and start him on the jumping and see how he handles it. If he jumps happily, and is eager for more then go right ahead and jump him. Just be sure you listen to him and check his legs for soreness every week. Good Luck- Have Fun!

Answer 19

well I'm not sure if you can teach him alot of things at that age but you might want to send him to a pro. Horses naturally know how to jump that high. My horse jumped a 2 ft. log (because we had no other way to get to the other side.) He had never been trained to jump and he did fine, it was the way his body was shaped. I tumbled off his neck and landed into a bush of blackberries. So the next day we BOTH had sore necks. I think you can still teach him barrel racing, jumping and maybe 3-day events but be careful if you do over work him he might get mad and buck or throw fits.