What kind of?

Question

Horse should I get?

im 5'2 ft

and i weight 95 pounds

I want to barrel race

Answer 1

If you want to barrel race then the best horse for the job is either a quarter horse or appendix.   If you are a good rider but have never barrel raced before I suggest you find a mentor, someone who has barrel raced and/or trained barrel horses.

If you have never riden a horse then I suggest you start with riding lessons and learn to ride a horse before you start barrel racing.  You know you have to learn to walk before you can run.  

Just some notes:  Remember not every horse has the athetic ability or heart to be a good barrel racer.  Really good barrel racers go for 10's of thousands of dollars.  If someone is selling a trained barrel racing horse at a bargain price....well don't forget the old adage: "you get what you pay for".

Answer 2

If you are a beginning rider, please take lessons and develop your horsemanship skills before you start your barrel racing. And if you are able to take lessons from a certified instructor, you will be in a position to evaluate what kind of horse you are eventually going to need.

As for height and weight, that is not especially important other than choosing a mount you can get on easily. Many small people like big horses. I am your height, and I have been comfortable on everything from 14 hands horses to 16 hand horses, but as I get older I find myself much happier mounting the shorter horses  :-)

Answer 3

i'd say maybe a 14.3 hh QH, and if your still going to grow i'd get a 15.1hh QH, the age doesn't matter, because it depends on how well you can controll horses, as well as how confident you are

Answer 4

You've had tons of lessons and read lots of horse care books, right? Just making sure. (If you haven't, get lessons and read books - horse ownership is a LOT of work!!!) A Quarter Horse, Paint, Appaloosa, Appendix (TB / QH), Pintabian (Paint / Arabian), or Quarab (QH / Arabian) would be good, since that is basically what they were bred for. IDK if youre still growing or not, but if you are going to stay your size (your done growing), you need a horse that is AT LEAST 475 lbs, and that's if you want to ride for like 15 mins a day. :P If you plan on riding for about an hour or more every day, I would go for a minimum of 600 lbs, or a 10 - 12 pony. Your taller though, so I would say 14 - 15.2 hands. If youre still growing, try getting a 15 - 16 hander. Youre making sound like you haven't barrel raced before and this is your first horse (I'm assumuing here). If it IS your first horse, get a deadbroke (very well trained) horse. And if you haven't barrel raced, get a horse that has barrel racing experience - and LESSONS! You can never go wrong with lessons. Anyway, barrel racing is intense, so get a horse that's atleast 6 years old, where they are done growing and they will be OK with galloping the barrel pattern. Good luck!

Answer 5

Typically most run a Quarter Horse, but I've run that breed along with, a 1/2 Arb/QH, 1/2 Arb and Morgan and a full Arabian loved them all and they all did great.  But if I have to pick I would take my QH:)

Answer 6

Quarter horse or Paint horse. maybe an Arab cross....all these are great at Barrel Racing. Good luck!

Answer 7

With your small build, you would be absolutely fine with a quarter horse.  A smaller built quarter horse would would handle the tight turns well and, depending on its body structure, would have a good chance at being fast.  Another advantage to getting a quarter horse for barrel racing is that there are sooooo many competitions that either target quarter horses of are restricted to them.  I really hope you find the perfect horse.  If you end up not liking your horse, I'll be happy to take it off your hands... haha.

Answer 8

dont listien to these people jenna arabians are stubborn and don't listein

go with the QH

15.2

I was riding cactus and he's a 15.1 qh

Answer 9

i would say a QH , paint, or a arab!

their all good/fast horses and could come in small sizes depending on what you would like

Answer 10

The breed of the horse isn't so important although the ones in higher levels of competition are primarily Appendix Quarter Horses and next prevalent are the Paint horses.

You're light enough that even a smaller horse that you may be more comfortable with is a viable horse.  I once had a POA (Pony of the Americas) that could whip the tar out of any full-sized horse.

I suggest finding one that's a bit experienced and get with a trainer.  If you've the luck to attend an Ed Wright clinic, get to one with your horse.  You must be able to trot and canter in a figure eight and have good control of your horse and his ability to change leads.  Ed spends a couple days with each horse/rider at about a half hour to an hour each working with them from their abilities to get started.  The cost is often a few hundred bucks, but you will learn more in those few days than in years and years of learning on your own.  The same goes for a Martha Josey clinic or any of the pros you can spend time one on one with.

I would not suggest that a beginning horse would get you to the NFR, you will progress through horses as your experience and ability increases.

But if you're just starting - any horse is capable.  People are running Arabs now on Arab circuits at barrels - Mustangs are used quite often in local fun events - Morgans if bred for work are sometimes quite agile and able to bend well enough.  Morgans and Arabs are getting more and more involved at all sorts of things now.

But if you've the money and high hopes, look towards a nice, athletic Quarter Horse with a few years on him and a good disposition.  Something that's proven to be trainable - look for hocks that are low to the ground - like their hocks should be less than half the distance to the tops of their legs.  A short back and a long underline (the line from their girth to their stifle under their belly).  Short cannon bones as opposed to long ones and a head that's not set too high or too low for balance.  A horse that's heavy in the shoulders and neck (like some foundation Quarter Horses are) will not be able to pick their front end up and get around a barrel.   Likewise, one that's wimpy on the front end with a rear the size of texas will be too grounded to move his rear when needed.  If you draw a circle around the shoulders and around the hip, the circles should be about equal in a good barrel horse.

Check out some of the barrel websites and look at the horses there.

Good luck!