Obese Person Riding Horse-- is This Fair Price?

Question

I am 225 lbs and 6' tall woman.

Now, to ride a horse it costs $45 an hour for people 220 lbs and over!

If you are below 220, then it's $25 and hours. ISN'T this discrimination?

I'm just five pounds over!

Horse trainers or gurus, is there something you can tell me about horses and how much acceptable weight they can carry, or is it because the risk of injury to the horse??

Answer 1

call the news papers and tv and make a stink over it.  That is horrible discrimination

And it ticks me off to no end. being a 6'2" tall woman at 200 lbs myself.  

Tell them to kiss off and find somewhere else to ride, right after you slap a discriminations suit on them.  This isnt a airline, your not takeing up space someone else could use.  A good old fashioned quarter horse could carry you with no problem at all, provided your not out to cowboy and run like a mad woman over the country side

must stop Or I'll end up ranting

Answer 2

That is total discrimination. It shouldn't matter if you weigh 100lbs or 300lbs, as long as your having fun. That is totally not right to put a price on your weight!! If that ever came up around me I would flip. I was 220lbs when I was pregnant, so just because I was pregnant they would of charged me more? I would flip

Answer 3

It's really not worth getting into - just find another place where they are not looking for every opportunity to rip you off.

Do they charge according to ethnicity as well ?

Sounds like a bunch of asshats. Take your custom and your money elsewhere - I would.

Answer 4

That really is unfair. Any horse riding facility should be able to cater for riders of all abilities, heights and weights. For a ride, they are still only using 1 horse, so it doesn't affect them any more.

Generally, 20% is usually what a horse can carry. Obviously this can vary depending on breed, fitness of horse etc, but it is a general rule. Therefore, you should be riding a horse of about 1125 pounds (or a bit more, because of the saddle), which is about the size of a sturdy, taller horse, which many riding facilities should have a few of depending on it's size, but even the smallest of riding facilities should have one.

Yes, horses can be injured carrying too much, but a horse which would be able to carry your weight is not hard to get hold of, and riding facilities do have them. No good riding place would put someone weighing more than 20% of a horse's weight on a horse, and no good riding facility should be discriminating against weight when they should have horses who can handle it.

Also, if they are charging extra because of greater risk to a horse, and they are putting a rider on a horse unable to carry that much, they obviously don't care about the horses and you shouldn't go there anyway.

Most places should have one fee for one ride. And you should be able to find one. When they meet you they should have a horse able to carry you, or you could mention your weight over the phone (if you don't mind) so they can ensure a horse able to carry you will be available for you. And it shouldn't cost you any extra.

Good luck!

Answer 5

It's bull c**p all the way. I hope you can find someplace else to go.

If this means their worried about the horse getting hurt, is that extra amount going to pay the vet bill or the time off that horse can't be used? No way. These people need a serious wake up call. If they don't want larger people (which your not that big) to ride then they should just have a weight limit, period. I hope you don't put up with it anymore.

Answer 6

A horse can carry 20% of its weight when it's in top shape. This means that a saddle (weighs about 30 pounds since this is a trail riding place probably, with western saddle). So 225+30 = 255. 255 x 5 = 1275. Most trail riding places tend to choose not too tall (because non-riders often feel nervous on taller horses) Quarter Horse types, which would probably weigh between 800-900 pounds on average. This means that for heavier riders, the trail riding places must stock larger horses, which will be unsuitable for many groups of people (smaller riders, such as children, less confident riders etc), cost more to feed and generally cost more to purchase. This horse might need a different fit of saddle, and will have to have conformation suitable to carrying weight.

This can cost a trail riding facility a lot of money, which would be the reason for the price difference. Many facilities will not let a person of a certain weight ride at all, because the horses are simply not suitable and it puts their joints and backs at risk.

I hope this helps. As for the rule, maybe tell them you weigh 220? It's not like they're going to have a scale in the barn!

Wanted to add that the 20% rule applies to horses in excellent physical shape, and that that percentage would be lower for horses in anything less than excellent shape.

Answer 7

It is unfair. . . I'd go more into detail about how mad that makes me, but i dont want to offend anyone.

people are so .....yeah. i'll leave it at that.

horses can carry 20% of their body wieght and not have any problems.

Answer 8

YOU DONT LISTEN TO THESE YOUNG PUPS ON HERE!!!!! you have every right to ride. a quarter horse can carry 3 times his weight. I weigh 250 and 6 foot tall. I have never had any problems!!!!!!! my advice.......GET YOUR OWN HORSE! no one can tell you what to do then. I use to rodeo. I was a bronc and bull rider and they never had any problems throwing my fat butt into the air. so you go out get a horse and have fun. dont listen to anyone but urself!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 9

That does seem like a ridiculous price hike.  I'm not sure if it would be considered discrimination or not, if they can justify the increased price by showing it costs them extra to maintain a horse capable of carrying bigger riders.  I know many places will have an upper weight limit cut off and it is not considered discrimination.  I've never heard of an additional charge - almost double.  If I were you, and you're only 5 lbs over, I'd just tell them you weigh 220.  They probably don't actually weigh people.

Answer 10

A very general guideline is 20% of a horses weight.

Practical Horseman had a very good article about rider's weight and a horse's ability to carry it comfortably. They measured heart rate and other vital signs.

I'll see if I can find the article online.

It does seem unfair to charge you more. Do they actually weigh you before you ride???

On the flip side if they have to keep a larger horse on hand then maybe the feed is costing them more? I don't know, it seems like a cost like that should be absorbed by the barn and the entire lesson program.

UPDATE:

I couldn't find the article online, but it was the June Issue, if you want to try and track it down.

Answer 11

It is utterly ridiculous...there is no justification for it at all, in any way, under any circumstance.  The average 1200 lb horse can carry 240 lbs, and a stocky type can carry more than that.  It costs no more to keep a horse capable of carrying your weight than any other average horse...discrimination?  I think so.

Add....Curtis C...you're so funny!

Answer 12

That doesn't sound fair...

Answer 13

IT'S RIDICULOUS.

Let me tell you, there's a woman I know who's obese, who has done wonders with this colt I know. She takes him to all the big local shows, and they always do wonderfully. He really puts his heart into everything he does for her-- and he's 100% sound!

Go to another place. There's no way they should be raising the price. Sure, you'd have to be on a certain kind of horse because smaller ones might have nagging back problems that wouldn't benefit from more weight, but that's no big deal.  

Answer 14

For a bigger person, you need a bigger horse.  In general, horses can comfortably carry 10-15% of their weight.  You would need a horse that was pushing 2,000 lbs, and oftentimes, those horses are seen as frequently in the average stable.  And due to supply and demand and blah blah blah.  I think making it almost twice the price is a completely insane, but it is also true that there are many places that will not let you ride at all if you are over 200lbs.  Look for somewhere else to ride, as they do not seem like particularly inviting people!

Answer 15

Very much so.. A horse can carry a lot of weight. And that's just the place making a few extra bucks.

Answer 16

That reeks of discrimination!  Time to call the local newspaper.  

Granted, draft cross horses cost twice as much as your regular horse to keep (I watched a neighbor short change the rest of her livestock so that her new Belgium Cross mare would have enough to eat.

I worked on a rental string for several years and they ALWAYS had big horses on hand for bigger riders and there was NEVER an additional charge for a rider's size.  Do they give a discount for a tiny rider and kid renting?  Turnabout is FAIR play!

Answer 17

lol I've never heard of a rule like this.

They may do that because they use a bigger/ taller horse, and they don't have many big horses. However I think you should be able to ride any horse over 16 hands tall. a little 14 hand Arabian is not for you, but you can ride most any other breed w/o hurting it.  

Answer 18

Yes it does seem very unfair. Perhaps you should find another stable to ride at? Try a lesson or two at some stables you think maybe more pleasing and fair to you. You should also ask about the price!

Maybe your current stable is charging you more because you need a larger horse and the larger the animal the more expensive it gets to keep it happy and healthy. Maybe you could negotiate a reasonable price for your lessons? I have actually tried that at a stable I currently ride at and the lesson manager and I settled on a good price for lessons since I thought that the price was unreasonable, but I think it's rare that stables do that.

Maybe the barn you currently ride at is worried about risk of injury to the horses, too. That's also a possibility!

Answer 19

Well.... I can see both sides. Its harder for a horse to carry large amounts of weight, especially a typical lesson pony. The instructor probably doesn't want to risk injury to the horse by letting many heavy people riding it. But since you are only 5 pounds over...