horse people?

so, generally just kinda throwing things about...

ive always loved riding...
when i was real little my grandad worked for a brewery in the uk who still used big ole shires to pull the carts for the deliveries...unfortunatly this tradition is slowly dying and only a few breweries still retain their drafters for local deliveries i was lucky and got to go to the stable often with him and quickly became very attatched to those big ole gentle giants, the managers used to let me bareback one of the big boys, a gorgeous chestnut shire, huge and they would lead me round the yard. as i grew older i managed to make frineds with a woman who owned a pair of clydes and she would take me riding through the feilds...

since moving to the us i miss riding so much, i never had any formal lessons, and im not interested in any "formal" riding, just to have a horse, know how to ride properly and safely and be able to ride through masses of untouched land....

that comes to my future plan. and of course this is extreemly far future...
i want to buy a vast amount of acerage, hopefully somewhere in the triple digits, i dont know where yet, and a small house and stables, only a couple, enough for a trio and leave most of the property wild...and just ride trails...

but in truth, i dont know all that much about actually owning a horse...

it would have to be a drafter...
why?
because of all the horses ive ever met, of all the breeds and all the times ive actually been on horseback, those drafters still hold the best memories...
and as much as most wouldnt consider them "riding" horses...thats what i want, a big ole drafter to loll about with and just slowly wander around and enjoy the veiw...
so of all the drafters, which would be the best choice firstly...
I have the most experience with shires and clydes but i love ALL of the drafters (especially fresians) and would love the oportunity to not only saddle but also train to pull, that way i can enjoy lots of ways.
(and of course im willing to put in the nessicary training for MYSELF to know how to properly handle such an animal under saddle and cart)
but which breed?
im also a large girl, mabe this accounts for my love of the big boys, i dont want to feel like im crushing the poor animal.

now, once i choose breed, what goes into the upkeep of said animal, aprox monthly cost of food, vet ect, im of course hoping to have my own stables at this point os no need to worry about renting a stall, but for a larger drafter, what is the general cost monthly for horse upkeep...

what else would i need to know before embarking on the journey of finding my perfect horsey companion?

thanks guys....

My vote is for a belgian draft mule!!

Oh, wait...horse...

Belgian! LOVE this breed, if I was allowed to own a draft I'd have a belgian draft mule...er, belgian... in a heatbeat.

What about a belgian draft mule? LOL

i take it you like belgians lol...never met a belgian...

hahahaha at the belgian draft mule. Belgians can definitely make really nice horses. Friesians are considered light draft horses. They're my favorite breed for sure. It depends... are you leaning more towards a heavy or lightweight draft breed?

It's going to depend soley on the animal at hand. If you go for a draft breed then you need to keep in mind that your feed expenses are going to be much higher as they require a higher intake. I would recommend either saving up a high portion of money in a seperate account for unexpected vet expenses or looking into equine insurance. I worked at a stable for a while and I can't tell you how many times unexpected vet emergencies would come up. I tell you if there's the smallest thing in a field that can cause a horse injury... they tend to find it... like a magnetic attraction. Keep in mind farrier costs as well and if your horse will go bare or shoes. Shoes are expensive, but if you get a horse that already has them it's hard and can be unsafe to switch them to bare feet. Horses need a trimming every 6-8 weeks.

Boarding is going to depend as well considering the type of housing you'd prefer for your horse and where you live. Are you looking at having a stall with turnout, straight field board, etc? Those are things you would need to take into consideration.

I wouldn't say I know the general MONTHLY cost. I haven't owned a horse on my own. I was a barn manager, but I ran a small stable with at least 12-15 horses at a time easily so I generally purchased feed, etc in bulk. I would have to sit down and seriously think about the cost for only one horse. Really it's going to depend. Anyone can give you a number... but that number will vary greatly on your location, the horse you get, their needs, etc....

Good luck planning this out. I would recommend that meanwhile you look into maybe volunteer work at a local stable. It's always good to get your hands dirty with experience. Keep us updated. I absolutely LOVE to talk horses.

I like belgian draft mules better than belgians
All the belgians I've met have been like giant golden retrievers, they're so gentle, sweet, and very willing to please.

i do love the fresians...
id LOVE to voluntere more than anything, the only problem is, the only local stable that would be willing to let me get any hands on is over 3 hours away...its insane, ct is full of horse people, unfortunatly many seem to be very exclusive and even snobby, most are compertition people too and the attitude ive seen in this area at least has been "if you dont own a horse already, your not good enough to meet mine" or "if you dont own one from childhood you never should"
unfortunatly the other problem ive run across is 1 finding a horse big enough, as i say im a large girl at 265lbs, and while i know many of the larger breeds can easily allow a person of my size to ride without damaging the horse, most of the horse people around here seem to feel that fat people shouldt own horses (or cars for that matter)

i live in an area of ct thats got alot of "kids" my age who have had everything handed to them...the "bratty" folks who seem to think there better because mommy and daddy bought it...

i keep looking because i KNOW not all horse people are like that...
Im currently looking into a place about 1 hour away that does trail rides and aparently they can esialy acomidate someone my size, im hoping even if i can voluntere up there once a month or something...its some kind of experience...

oh and i LOVE fresians, absolutly stunning...thats a breed thats definatly on my list but ive never riden one and only met 3 in my lifetime...but *DROOLS* i have a thing for BIG BLACK horses. always have...

When I was a kid I used to have dreams all the time about a black horse with feathering. In my dreams I would ride him everywhere... he could be anywhere in the world and if I called to him he would come. In my dreams he was my best friend. I guess you can say that he was my equivalent of an imaginary friend. Maybe that's why I'm so partial to friesians though.

Anyways... you'll always run into the stuck up snobby types of horse owners. The definitely exist and unfortunatly it's those people that give horse people a bad name. Really, they're not all like that as I know you already know. I've never owned a horse of my own and I was fortunate to run into a few people in various points of my life that had horses and helped me to build my experience. Working at a stable helped a lot too. I know what you mean though about some people feeling that "if you never had a horse as a kid then you never should." I get that from people as well, even some family. Don't let those people push you away though. If this is a dream you have then shoot for it. Aim for the stars. If you want it bad enough you will make it happen. Do your research. Plan both mentally, physically and financially. Horses require a lot of time and hard work. It's a HUGE commitment so make sure you prepare yourself for that.

Well, I'll be the devil's advocate. I've got to say, I am not partial to draft horses; the temperment is all wrong for me. So take my opinions with a grain of salt (but keep in mind that I've had an awful lot of experience with a large variety of horses).

With all the breeds that have feathering, keep in mind that it is a **tch to maintain. Not only does it become a tangled, twig-catching mess, but keeping the skin underneath clean and dry is a daily chore. If you don't keep it that way, it becomes a cracked, infected mess. Many people I know who keep non-show drafts just shave it off, because it is easier.

Upkeep - Luckily, most drafts are pretty inexpensive to feed. They generally keep their weight well, and most do just fine on nice quality forage, with little-to-no grain. Your fencing needs to be very solid, and ideally electrified; drafts are prone to just leaning on it until it gives. Keep in mind, it can be tough to find someone to shoe/trim them, especially as you are in the land of expensive show horses. My horse's farrier will not do drafts, and that is the case with most of them up here. When you do find someone to do them, expect to pay extra. Fees for any drugs (wormer, bute, antibiotics, etc) will also be considerably higher since you dose by weight. Tack, blankets, and equipment for them is also going to be harder to find and more costly than a normal sized horse.

A word on Friesans - I would never call them drafts. You can probably find some that still would qualify as light drafts, but the breed is rapidly becoming popular as a sport horse (why, I have no idea), and the type is changing along with the temperment. My trainer had several extremely well-bred ones - a mare she imported, and her three fillies. The personality of the breed is unique, different from the sport horses or drafts I've known. I used to be pretty fascinated by the breed (let's face it, they are the embodiment of many of our childhood fantasies!), but would never be interested in them after knowing them. They are not, in general, quiet "hop on their back in the field" draft horses (although again, these were more sport-type Friesans).

For my money, if I had to pick a draft, I would go with a Suffolk. Not too huge, no feathering, and one of the more appealing-looking drafts for me. The other option would be to look into rescuing a PMU mare or foal. Whatever the drug companies may say, there are still an awful lot of draft mares and their offspring suffering so woman don't have to deal with hot-flashes. A friend of mine has two draft geldings who were premarin babies, who now live a life of luxury with her and have learned to pull a wagon.

Don't worry about your weight - you can find a horse of many types that can carry you just fine, especially for the light amount of work you are talking about. Look at some of those stock-type horses, carrying huge men around all day working! A quarter horse or paint with nice conformation should have no trouble with your weight. I'm not a small person, and my Hanoverian has no issues with me. If you want a draft, by all means get one; just don't limit yourself strictly because of your weight.

thank you boston, thats awsome info!

Hands down for me would be s percheron. Light on their feet (arab in the back ground) little feathering. Great temperaments. Heck a full blooded percheron stallion went FEI dressage! Boston did you see pics of him? I personally love the draft mentality, most of the ones I have met and worked with have temperaments vary similar to warmbloods. But for anything more than light hacking around, they just aren't built for it (most breeds)

I would take a few lessons, not to be fancy, just to learn how ride in such a way as to be easy for the horse to carry.

Really it depends what sorta riding you want to do. I like the Belgian, they move quick, the seat is comfy and your legs are snug, absolutly not stubborn and can run with the best of them.
Shires have too big a foot to travel at speeds and they hit hard ... if you want just pleasure riding at a slow pace the Shire is for you. I think the seat is uncomfy. Belgians love speed and are the hottest of Drafts. IMO.
Percherons have huge heads and are very stubborn, every one I've been on didn't like to do to much of anything ... they like to waddle and throw their weight around .. more of a stacked horse at all times kinda thing. They are the bullies of all the Drafts I think.
Clydes and Gypsies are simply beautiful well rounded animals. I don't think I ever seen one I didn't like looks wise. Gypsis have the mind of a Mustang. JMO.
I had the pleasure to ride a Bud Clyde while they were stabled at my place, but I was afraid to ride I might break him. :yikes: If it would have been any other Clyde I would have gave him a test run for his money.

Good Luck ... hope your ideas come true.

Hmm percherons have the SMALLEST most arab like heads of all the drafts lol

ohhh shucks .. of course they do.

Too bad that summer fairs are over ..... I love to go through the horse barns and look at different breeds . They all need stabling , feed , vetting and shoeing , so I don't think that there'd be much difference in cost .

LOL I have shown them, and judged them. It in the breed standard (look it up if you wanna be pissy about it) Just like there are bad versions of pure bred dogs, maybe you met some really poor ones? As far as I know Percherons are the only full draft breed that has had much success as a riding horse (Cotton Wood Flame was a pure percheron that was light and balanced enough to be a very successful grand prix dressage horse-not somthing a clunky unbalanced horse can do )

Clydes and Shires are fun, ridden a fair number of those. One of THE most fun rides was a clyde/shire cross, his canter was unbelievable, lol so was the size of his nose. There are a fair number of Clyde crosses around here used for low/mid level showing and feild hunting. Along with a few percherons. I showed Trillium (B circuit hunter) on a belgian cross. But most belgain crosses are NOT my fave, tho I love the full ones. Full belgians are much more massive than percherons.

of all the horses ive ever seen i think the most stunning horses imaginable are the Gypsy and Drum horses, but i doubt id ever find a drum lol. there stunning though.

http://www.gypsyhorses.com/Horses/galwar.htm
i personally think this is one of the most GORGEOUS horses in the world! *drools*

im thinking a shire or clydes or such cross though would be great for me the personalites of 2 breeds i adore in one big ole package...(i do have a soft spot for the biggies lol)
i do have BASIC riding skills, and id definatly take lessons for the needed basics in order to ride Safely, id never even think about taking out such a strong and powerfull animal alone without the proper knowledge on my half, it would be stupid AND unfare to the horse...
and of course, a horse is a very large step that wouldnt be entering my life untill i can not only aford the cost, but the time

Ohhh good site on the Gypsy. Beautiful.

There are always a few Gypsy vanners at the royal. They are much smaller than I would have thought (about 15.1-15.3 hands) Very pretty though.

arnt they gorgeous, ive had the pleasure of actually meeting galway warrior in person, that horse is stunning and an amazing personality, he comands a crowd with nothing more than a simple glance and is 100% steadfast, a toddler broekr free from his mum and ran right up to the horse and screamed and that big boy stood still as a rock till the child was removed from around his feet.
he also headbutss for earscritches and man that boy is hardheaded and strong lol, almost knocked me clear off my feet.

the vanners are a smaller horse...suprised me too the first time i met one

Please look very, very closely at the gypsy horses if that is an interest for you. There is a ton of controversy surrounding them, and it does need to be taken into account. While I know people will disagree, I firmly believe they are the horse world's version of the designer dogs - basically a cheap mutt with a fancy name and a big price tag. They are, IMHO, a bit of a joke. If you want one, you can buy them cheaply, by the pound, at any auction in Ireland.

Let's agree to disagree. I put them in a whole 'nuther ballpark to the warmbloods, but I have a ton of experience with WBs and not as much with pure drafts. A lot of "American Warmbloods" (gag), which are draft/TB, but not as many pure drafts - probably less than 10 that I've handled consistently.