First time horse owner looking for help.?

Question

I’m getting my first horse soon, and I’m really nervous. I feel like I don’t know anything and need to know more. I’m not horse stupid; I took two years of riding lessons and am pretty much a horse natural. I’ve been around them my whole life, so don’t worry about the horse being in bad hands.

I just want to know anything you can tell me. Maybe things you wish people had told you before you got on the horse.

Also, I want to ride bare back, trails, and just around. I’m not doing anything fancy with the horse like shows or jumping. What saddle and discipline should I be looking into? <-- !!! I really need advise on that.] What age do you suggest? [I don’t like slow horses, I like to gallop and need a horse that can keep up with me, so I no oldies. But what age, really :p]

I’m an beginner-intermediate rider, if that helps.

i don't have a trainer to turn to, so don't tell me to ask them.

So, what tips do you have for me?

Answer 1

If you want to do trail rides and galloping, then a western horse and saddle would be fine. But lets say that you decide to jump, then you need an English saddle. You can trail ride and gallop in an English saddle as well though. Unless you want to buy both English and western saddles, before you buy a western one, make sure you won&#039;t want to jump in the future.

Answer 2

I prefer English, by far. But then again, I ride Dressage. Personally, if I were you, I&#039;d look into a stock horse, since they normally have nice dispositions. However, make sure not to buy a horse that was broken to saddle at a young age [under 3]. These horses WILL end up having major issues later in life with leg problems. They may be nice now, but not later when you&#039;re paying all the vet bills. Horses SHOULD be able to be ridden into their twenties, but it is increasingly rare because people are less patient about waiting with training.

Also, make sure to bring someone knowledgable along with you when you&#039;re looking who can honestly look over the horse an unbiased opinion.

Answer 3

I&#039;ve been riding for ten years, and i STILL wasn&#039;t prepared for getting my horse last year. So make sure you have people to ask about things if you need help.

I&#039;d suggest looking for horses for sale with the words &quot;all around&quot; in the disciplines. You probably want a smooth horse, like more of a western horse if you aren&#039;t going to do jumping and want to ride bareback.

Get a western work saddle, and you probably want a mellow horse that way you will be able to relax and have fun on trails.

But just because a horse is mellow doesn&#039;t mean it will be slow. Just get something easy going so you don&#039;t have to deal with annoying quirks and spooky issues.

Probably get a horse that is 10+ so it is fully trained and a little less hyper. You&#039;d be suprised, lesson horses are alot different than horses you own, because lesson horses are burnt out on what they do.

Also, make sure you ask the owner selling the horse if they think it would be the right horse for you, and don&#039;t get discouraged if you cant find one right away.

Answer 4

ride whatever you took lessons doing. and as for people that are telling you to ride western, and saying &quot;english is disgusting&quot;... it&#039;s just a saddle. i&#039;ve barrel raced and trail ridden in my stubben, then i&#039;ve also competed level 3 jumpers in it. it depends on the horse, and what you and your wallet are up for.

oldies make the best first horses. just make sure you vet it thoroughly. my first horse was 16 when i got her, and we were galloping and jumping around like idiots well into her 20&#039;s when i finally retired her after getting my paint.

all horses are different. have fun with finding the right horse, and good luck!

Answer 5

You&#039;re way ahead of where I was when I got my first horse.  What you don&#039;t know, you&#039;ll learn.  Look for a horse that is already trained and experienced on trails...it&#039;s not easy to train a good trail horse, and you&#039;ll get a lot more fun out of it if you buy the right horse to begin with.  The youngest I&#039;d go is about 8 years old...by then, they have some sense, but plenty of youthful qualities.  Saddles are subjective choices...you&#039;ll have to decide that one.  I prefer western for trails...but that&#039;s me.  Ride the horse before you buy, have a prepurchase vet exam, and try out a few  horses (or more) before you choose one.

Check out the area stables so you know the costs, trails available, etc.  Also figure on vet, farrier, and other additional ongoing costs.  Then add a whole bunch more money to what you figure and it&#039;ll be right!!!

Answer 6

Don&#039;t rush into buying the first horse you see, take your time and find the perfect horse for you. Look around for the best prices. If your looking for just a pleasure horse I would suggest th Western discipline . Especially if your not interested in shows or competitions. Also I would also look around for an older more experienced horse. So may be a horse between the ages of 10-15 years of age. My best tip would be  to take it slow, you don&#039;t want to rush into the wrong horse.

Good Luck :D

Answer 7

Definetly western riding... I suggest a 8-12 year old horse (middle aged)! Not anything younger than 6... I know from experence that you dont put a young horse with a young person....THEY WONT LEARN TOGETHER! To gain your new horses trust everyday or everytime you see him/her give &#039;em a treat or if they love to be scratched find their sweet spot you want the horse to know that you are friends! If you like speed I recommend barrel racing... you have NO CLUE how much fun it is!

And just becuz a horse is old doesn&#039;t mean it is slow! I have a 22 year old thoroughbred named Lori and she is faster than you can imagine... she was a race horse and won almost every race she ran! She won a ton of money! And she was starved 2 times in her life by cruel people before we owned her and we have had her for 15 years, she hasn&#039;t slowed down AT ALL! You need to be less picky!

Take it from me, I have been riding since I was 3!

Answer 8

I just got my first horse last December so I&#039;m new too.  But I ride english saddleseat. The age I think for you would  be 6-10 years old but it depends on the horse&#039;s training. I hope you have a great with your horse.

Answer 9

I was kind of like you when I got my first horse.  I had taken a few years of lessons, and leased a horse from a neighbor to use during the summer for 4-H.  Even though I didn&#039;t want an &quot;oldie&quot;, I also didn&#039;t want a problem horse, or a green horse that I would need help with.  I looked for horses between the ages of 8-12.  If you think about it, lots of people ride their horses to the age of 30 and older.  So if a horse is 10 years old, it has 8 years of riding experience, so it should know its job, but its still in the prime of its life.  I also looked for horses considered &quot;kid safe&quot; so I knew I didn&#039;t have to worry about longeing it before I rode all the time, and it didn&#039;t buck and rear.  I also looked for a gelding, so I didn&#039;t have hormone issues to worry about.  I chose a breed, like a breeding stock paint, paint, appy, or Quarter Horse that is known for being level headed, but also is athletic.  I started out with western lessons, so I looked for a western horse.

So, if I were you, I&#039;d go for something like:

Gelding

8-12 years old (or close to that range)

over 15 hands (since you&#039;re still growing)

Kid Broke

Has been trail ridden

Ties, stands for farrier, etc

Trailer loads well

Breeds like Paint, Quarter Horse, etc

Then look at stuff like colors, etc

I actually made a big checklist, and took it with me to look at horses.  I looked at a dozen before I settled on my horse (I got a 11 yr old dark chestnut gelding that was 15.2 hands, and had been used on trails, barrels, western, english, etc and had been a lesson horse...I had him for quite awhile)

Answer 10

well i prefer western. i don&#039;t know i just think English i just plain disgusting no offense to anyone.   but anyways for age it really depends on the breed of horse.  Like I have a 25 year old Arabian mare and when we take all the other horses on a trail ride or riding lesson she will neigh, run, jump, and throw her tail and head up into the air like as if she were still a young filly.  Plus she is more experienced so if you want a fast but more experienced horse that can keep up with you i would get an old experienced Arabian mare or gelding.

Answer 11

You said you&#039;ve been riding for 2 years. Ride the way that you rode in those 2 years. If you rode english, buy an english saddle. If you rode western, buy a western saddle. And if you&#039;ve been around horses your whole life, why are you a beginner / intermediate rider? (I&#039;m assuming your above age 10 - 15.) And, again, if you&#039;ve been around horses your whole life, how is this your first horse? I&#039;m not really understanding this...two years if riding doesn&#039;t count as a life of being around horses. Am I missing something important here? Anyway, here are some good starter sets:

ENGLISH:

http://www.horse.com/English-Tack/Englis...

http://www.rods.com/p/722,152_Complete-E...

WESTERN:

http://www.horse.com/Western-Tack/Wester...

Answer 12

1. Always work with the horse for a while before purchasing. Our first horse&#039;s owner let us try him out at our stable, caring for and riding him, before we decided to actually purchase him. This is the only surefire way to know that you and your horse will get along, as well as letting you note any vices or riding issues that may occur.

2. If I were you, I would consider the help of an agent.  An agent is typically someone who owns or trains at a stable in the area (pick a reputable one you feel you can trust). It can be costly, but they help you find local horses to suit your needs and generally have more connections to help you search for your horse. They also have a lot of knowledge of  what suits specific riders, so they can tell you any potential problems that may occur or help you pick a certain breed and discipline.

3. Always have a vet check before buying! Veterinarians can often pick up easily-hidden problems, like bone or muscular problems with the legs, via methods like X-rays that you will not be able to do yourself. This helps make certain that you are getting a healthy horse and are not paying full price for one that comes with problems.

4. A horse&#039;s personality depends on its age, breed, training, treatment, and overall temperament. Some horses are naturally slower their entire lives. Some older horses are still full of spunk and want to run. Though you might be best looking at faster breeds, like thoroughbreds and quarter horses, it&#039;s impossible to generalize for every horse out there. For your first horse, though, even if you are an intermediate rider, it&#039;s best to get one at least slightly older (none of the young 4-5 year olds), as you&#039;ll be learning the ropes of having a horse slowly and are more likely to find a stable trail horse in one with a few more years on it. It sounds to me like you want a horse that&#039;s ready now for you to ride it. Younger horses will typically take more training before they can be the reliable pleasure horse you&#039;re looking for.

5. Get to know the horse! You know what riding level you&#039;re capable of and want. You also know when you &quot;click&quot; with a certain person or animal. Just because a horse suits your riding needs doesn&#039;t necessarily mean it&#039;s the correct one. Find one that suits your needs and gets along with you as well. An attentive person can usually tell when they&#039;ve found the &quot;right one.&quot; It just seems to feel correct.

6. Make sure the horse is suited for the facilities you&#039;re providing. Some horses want to be outside all day, with only a lean-to for poor weather. Some love being outside, but they can&#039;t stand poor weather and then must come in. Some horses only like being out for a short time, to stretch their legs, and then they&#039;re ready to head back to their stalls. If you are keeping the horse solo on your own property, you again must try things out first to see if the horse can handle it. Some do fine having an entire barn to themselves, but some horses, being herd animals, can&#039;t handle it and become nervous, spooky, confused, and stressed.

Answer 13

1. ask someone who knows about horse&#039;s in you&#039;re area, you dont have to go to a trainer if you dont want to (i would but i&#039;m not you) but you can go to someone who has a horse/knows more and have a chat with them. go hang out for a day and see what they use and get their advice.

2. for trail i&#039;d get a used saddle, english/western doesnt matter as long as it&#039;s comfty for you.  go to a used tack store, they do have good deals if you look.

3. do any discipline that floats you&#039;re boat, if you choose something more then trail you will/should someday get a few lessons to get the basics down.

4.what age horse? well, if it&#039;s for kicking around, and you dont want to train it/breed it, i&#039;d go for a slightly older horse, just because they&#039;ve seen more in life and not as jumpy if they&#039;ve been trail rode before. i&#039;d suggest about 15 ish, it&#039;s not too old, my horse was 16 when i got him, and i had hard time keeping up with him, he was a show jumper and had alot of engery. so dont excluded old horses b/c you dont think they can keep up with you.

i think you already know what you&#039;re looking for, you&#039;re just unsure and want someone to tell you you&#039;re on the right path.

you may be on the right path, you have ideas already form, and that&#039;s a good thing, so just look for a horse that suits you&#039;re needs, and get a second opinion on the horse&#039;s you&#039;re looking at as well as the equipment.

Answer 14

Kate H - why is english riding &#039;disgusting&#039;?! Weird!

I&#039;d say get a nice calm 8-10 year old who knows what they are doing.  General purpose englishsaddle and snaffle bit.

Look on horsemart.co.uk for local possibilities and good luck!

Answer 15

I agree with Shadow.

Also, horses don&#039;t &quot;slow down&quot; very much as they age. We fostered a 23 year old morgan named Merrial who was just a fire cracker. All she wanted to do was go, go, go. She had heart and spunk.

Being new to owning horses, I would probably not get anything too young. Everything they experience is new and often times scary to them.

I think it would be best if you got yourself a nice, well trained mare or gelding between 7 and 15 who has had lots of experiences.

Once you become more confidente as a rider, you will discover what &quot;fits&quot; you. But just becasue the horse s older, doesn&#039;t mean he&#039;s less active. He&#039;s just wiser. :)

As for tack, I would go to a tack store and just try out different saddles, see what is the most comfortable. I ride western, but not becasue I like it over english, it&#039;s just what I learned and it has always worked for me. Also, riding bareback in the winter keeps you warmer. :) I wouldn&#039;t actually buy a saddle, though, until you get your horse. You don&#039;t want a saddle that is too small and pinches the horses withers. (My big apendix / morgan needs full quarter horse bars.)

I personally like the neoprene cinches or the thick cotton ones. I don&#039;t much care for rope cinches. They can pinch the horses belly. But I know some people who use them all the time without problem, so it is whatever you and your new horse prefer.

As far as bits go, talk to the owner. What does your new horse usually ride with? What is he used to?

Good luck and have fun!!! Welcome to horseownership!!! It&#039;s a lot of responsibility, but extremely rewarding. :):)

Answer 16

Get a western saddle. Western Bridle, and cinch