What does it mean when a horse is 'hot'?

Question

I have heard the term "That horse is quite hot" numerous times and I am wondering what it means.

Answer 1

People use the word hot in different ways and often lump all definitions into one. If a horse is hot then it can mean several things. It can mean that the horse just has a lot of energy, like a race horse that's getting high energy food. Or it can mean that he is high strung, like he's nervous and overreactes to things. If a person doesn't know how to ride and doesn't understand the horse then they may misunderstand when a horse just has excess energy and say that he's high strung or say that he's hard to handle or uncontrollable when he's just anxious to go  and doesn't want to stand still. Not to say that there aren't horses who are high strung and hard to handle. Some have bad habits, are poorly trained, or have been abused. Keep in mind though that I used to have a quarter horse who would sometimes act hot even when she was in her 30's and when I go riding at my uncles moutain place, the horses will often act hot when it rains and they go a day without being ridden, but it's just excess energy, like when you get supper excited about something you know that's going to happen.

Answer 2

A "hot" horse is a high energy, ready to go-go-go type "A" personality of a horse.

While I wouldn't say every horse that requires an experienced handler is "hot," I would say that every "hot" horse requires an experienced handler.  Hope that helps you.

Answer 3

an easily excitable mount.

Not a good choice for a beginner or intermediate rider.

Answer 4

horses being hot has nothing to do with going into heat.. it is when a hot gets so hyper from constantly running that it always wants to run.. also, i have found that if a horse is REALLY hot, their muscles seem to warm up almost immediantly..

Answer 5

"HOT" means excitable, hyper, energetic, hard to handle or control.

Answer 6

It usually means you've been out riding the horse hard & you bring it back to the stable hot. You should never run a horse hard out on the trails & run it back to the stable, if you went out on a long & hard trail ride you should always walk your horse back to the stable & that will help cool the horse down if your not sure when you get to the stable if your horse is still hot feel the horses chest between the front legs & if it still feels sweaty & hot then you need to walk the horse around to cool its body tempature before putting the horse back in its corral. Also let them go roll in the arena if the horse is kept in a small stall they love a good roll in the dirt after a hard long ride.

Answer 7

Probably the same as in heat which means this is the horse's time to try to make little horses, unfortunately!

Answer 8

In horse terms, the phrase "hot" means that the particular horse is excitable and hyper. Some horses who get like this can become hard to control. Horses who generally get "hot" are mostly hunter/jumper breeds like warmbloods and thoroughbreds.

Answer 9

two meaning....

if someone asks if hes hot it means after he works if his chest is hott your horses needs to be hoses and walked so he wont colic... only when your horses chest is normal or cool can he be put away proberaly

the other is explaing temperment... if your horse is hot then it means he is excited, works big, unpredictable, spooky... the opposite of easy going, slow...

Answer 10

fired up gonna be a FUN RIDE :)

Answer 11

It can mean several things. First, if a horse has been exercising hard and is perspiring or breathing hard, we would say that the horse is "hot" and needs to be cooled down before he can be returned to his stall, fed and watered. This is done by walking the horse quietly until his heart-rate and breathing slows to a normal rate and his skin feels cool to the touch. At racetracks, when you are trying to cool a horse down after his exercise or a race, it's referred to as "hot walking" the horse.

Being hot can also be a reference to the horse's bloodlines. Certain breeds that originated in the Middle East and Centreal Asia, including the Arab and the Barb, and breeds that decended from those eastern horses like thoroughbreds are referred to as "hot blooded horses" (in contrast to the native horse breeds of Europe that are referred to as cold blooded). It was a referrence to both the climate that the horses are accustomed to, but also their temperment which tends to be more spirited and high-strung. Many modern breeds are decended from both eastern and european bloodlines being interbred and are called, aptly enough, warmbloods.

Hope that helps.

Answer 12

There are a couple different ways it is used. One is to explain the temperament of the horse and the other is to tell the HYPP or other disease status. HYPP N/N is negative N/H is single hot and H/H is hot or double hot. This can apply to other genetic markers as well.  

Answer 13

um wow i have not really ever heard that term in any other way than the horse is really hyper with a wild temper, a warmblood, it is in good shape and or good looking...and the horse has been worked and is still warm and need to be cooled out... i can't tell you what the people are thinking or what they mean by the team i would suggest just asking the person what the people mean when they say that

Answer 14

Hot means the horse is very high strung, energetic,  hyper, and/or easily spooked

Answer 15

Hyper is different from hot in my experiences. Here are my definitions form my knowledge and experiences:

Hot- crazy, uncontrollable, trying to run off, running through the bit, not stopping horse.

Hyper- full of CONTROLLABLE  energy, horse is not "hot" but has normal energy level.

Answer 16

hot is really hyper in a sense.

the horse is not as easy to control as some horses and is very excitable.