Percheron for hunting/ mountain trail riding?

[Ucsdryder]

Definitely decided against a full draft. Half draft at most. Also realizing if I am set on a certain breed or color I may be out this for a few decades before I find the right horse so I’m open to a lot more.

Someone is looking into the price on this half shire for me. Allegedly he is a great 12 year old beginner friendly horse that was used for fox hunting. Not that that is the same as what I’m doing.

That’s a beautiful looking horse and I’d bet he’s priced as such! Look at that horse vs the horse you tried to buy. The composition, muscle definition, etc. night and day.


I rented a full Percheron and it was the finest horse I’ve ever been around. He packed a whole quartered elk like a champ. Those big feet made for great stability. He was comfortable to ride and nothing spooked him. The owner valued him around $20,000 and I can see why.

 

[bmart2622]

You dont need a draft horse to pack out elk, my 2 best pack horses are under 15 hands and both regularly pack out short quartered elk in 1 trip

 

[IDspud]

That’s a beautiful looking horse and I’d bet he’s priced as such! Look at that horse vs the horse you tried to buy. The composition, muscle definition, etc. night and day.


I rented a full Percheron and it was the finest horse I’ve ever been around. He packed a whole quartered elk like a champ. Those big feet made for great stability. He was comfortable to ride and nothing spooked him. The owner valued him around $20,000 and I can see why.

I went and checked out a boarding facility and got this picture (actually 12 years old) and immediately realized why people said he was definitely older than 12.

I don’t know the ages of the ones in the stables but the difference in what you described was obvious. That guy finally came clean when the vet was there and said that horse was 60 pounds lighter or some shit the month before when he bought it. So basically he was emaciated. That guy had a major screw loose, but whatever I’m free and clear.

Hopefully with winter around the corner moral become available but I’m not having too much luck with potential ones.

 

[McCrapper]

A lot of good advice in here. A tall horse is a pain in the ass for sure. I’ll probably get thrown out of here but I’ve always preferred mules in the mountains. Sure footed and very steady.


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[PredatorSlayer]

Here is my 2.5 yr old half shire. He is awesome. He is going to be a big boy, but I am 6’5” and look goofy on shorter horses. I bred mine, so I got exactly what I wanted. They are great horses.

 

[IDspud]

View attachment 462491

Here is my 2.5 yr old half shire. He is awesome. He is going to be a big boy, but I am 6’5” and look goofy on shorter horses. I bred mine, so I got exactly what I wanted. They are great horses.

Handsome boy. Still waiting to hear back about a price and get videos of him trotting running etc. before I make the drive all the way to Washington.

I would’ve thought there would be no shortage of suitable horses to look at in Idaho and I’m really surprised that it seems so difficult to find potential ones.

I found another boarding facility six minutes away that’s only $250 a month including food. But I have to muck out his stall myself

 

[Archer86]

I jumped in head first to horses I had zero starting in January this year and I am up to 5 at this point one thing I learned after the second horse I bought is always ride the horse away from where it is comfortable to see how it does and if possible ride it in a spot its never been to see how it acts. Those will be important to determine if that horse will ride away from the trailer and away from other horses

I have a horse now that has that issue she does great if she is with other horses but if I try to ride her out alone it gets a little western until she calms not something I would want to deal with if I only had one I use that one as a pack horse unless the kids are with then my daughter rides her for what ever reason her and that horse do well together we have been working with her and she is getting better but not something you want to deal with only having one.

 

[IDspud]

If I had property I wouldn’t expect to have less than two or three. And a couple of llamas. I actually had planned on looking into getting llamas anyway, but somebody said they do not mix well with Horses?

 

[Pony Soldier]

In the 80s a number of horse people bought llamas to desensitize their stock. Then the big rush on llamas went away. In a horses mind there does not appear to be much difference between a llama and a bear.

 

[Ouzel]

Not sure why you are so set on a draft....i spent less than 4k on these horses TOTAL. 1 is now 20..1 is 4...i broke the young one, and he is turning into one of the best mountain horses I've ever had. Both 1/4 horses who do great. You have a lot to learn with what is needed or desired for a mountain hunting horse... the best description of riding drafts is put above... like stepping off cinder blocks every step going down.

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Oh that’s a put together buckskin in the picture, but the black looks nice also.

 

[Hardtak]

This should be hilarious

I feel the joke is being directed at me. I stand by my comments, if you just go by pretty you need to be careful. If you buy terrible feet you might get a lame horse. Perhaps the pictures were bad but lets be honest you took the horse back, so it obviously wasn't up to snuff. I would believe there was more wrong than his age but I am glad you got your money back.

Sorry I didn't rub your shoulders and tell you what a great horse you bought. I am honest if nothing else. Best of luck looking for your next mount.

 

[CRJR45]

I feel the joke is being directed at me. I stand by my comments, if you just go by pretty you need to be careful. If you buy terrible feet you might get a lame horse. Perhaps the pictures were bad but lets be honest you took the horse back, so it obviously wasn't up to snuff. I would believe there was more wrong than his age but I am glad you got your money back.

Sorry I didn't rub your shoulders and tell you what a great horse you bought. I am honest if nothing else. Best of luck looking for your next mount.

Not trying to be a jerk and I was once in the same position the OP is in , but you're 100% right !
I tried to help , even PM'ed him , but like he said , who is he supposed to listen to ? He had people PM'ing him telling him to buy that horse , saying there was nothing wrong with it , LOL , where are they now ? LOL
Everybody that watched John Wayne movies are experts on horses , LOL
That horse looked like something Dr Frankenstein built , the spots sold that horse , not it's conformation , not that the OP would know what that is .
I just didn't like him saying "This ought to be hilarious" , he was making a joke of someone trying to help him , showed bad taste , IMO .
His second horse looks much better , but his hooves look brittle and I don't like the ridgeline in the right rear .
But , like I said , I've bought some jughead horses too , I'm sure he will get there eventually .
Good luck OP .

 

[IDspud]

I feel the joke is being directed at me. I stand by my comments, if you just go by pretty you need to be careful. If you buy terrible feet you might get a lame horse. Perhaps the pictures were bad but lets be honest you took the horse back, so it obviously wasn't up to snuff. I would believe there was more wrong than his age but I am glad you got your money back.

Sorry I didn't rub your shoulders and tell you what a great horse you bought. I am honest if nothing else. Best of luck looking for your next mount.

So tell us about the specific damage and future lameness you expect from those "upright" back feet.

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[Hardtak]

I really do not care if you think what I said is shit or not. I have seen 2 horses this year with this issue. One will be ok after 1 year of corrective shoes, the other will be lame or good for light riding. I have 2 good mountain horses that are sound, healthy, freshly shod for winter yesterday, and can go anywhere at anytime. You bought that monstrous piece of shit and then took it back. I have zero to prove to you.

 

[jmez]

This thread is a perfect representation of the horse culture!

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[bmart2622]

It is, people think they know horses but most dont have a clue

 

[Pony Soldier]

Even though I have had horses for the last 40+ years, I don't place myself as an expert by any means. I tend to pick and choose info as I encounter it. Not all of it works for me.

I shoe my own horses as painful as it is because when I do it the shoes stay on and no one goes lame. I've seen some interesting fads over the years but haven't followed any of them. The one item that I picked up was that the face of the hoof should be parallel to the face of the fetlock. That's kind of how they wear so that is how I trim them. For my climate and horses it seems to work.

I only put shoes on them in Sept. Largely because at least for the early part of the season, I have to travel on some graveled roads and it protects their soles.

I think if you are going to run a string it is important to learn enough about all aspects of horse and horse use to pick and choose what works the best for you and your stock. What I have seen out of some of the show people and fanatical horse people scares the hell out of me. I have purchased a couple ponies that took me a couple of years to get their feet back to natural and elimonate some of their shoer induced issues. The last one I put down at 31 years (out of teeth). I got the pads off and just left her barefoot except for the fall. She was sound for the 23 years I had her.

I am no expert! But I have met some horse nuts that I have worked at avoiding. The term loving the horses to death seems to fit.

 

[Hardtak]

Here is a decent article that might give you some insight.

What your horse’s hoof angle may be telling you

Horse owners should be aware of how hoof angle can relate to horse health.

www.canr.msu.edu

 

[Pony Soldier]

Great - thanks. Over the years I found many farriers to wack off the heals cause it was easier. Finding a good farrier has been harder than finding a good barber after you are older than 65.

 

[pacoalcracker]

It would be wise for ID spud to take at least 1 years worth of riding lessons from a good instructor for three reasons...1. to learn HOW to properly ride, handle and care for the horse.....2. once he chooses and purchases that horse to properly understand WHAT the horse is and isnt capable of, especially while being ridden (hopefully with the help of a horseman/woman or trainer/instructor)....3. lastly, to FULLY learn and understand the temperament and mindset of that horse at any given time under most any circumstance. All of this before even contemplating riding that, or any horse alone anywhere outside a fenced arena. There are no shortages of inexperience people being seriously injured and killed by horses...matter of fact the statistic is you are 20x more likely to obtain a serious injury just being around them. No such thing as a bulletproof horse...period. It is a free-thinking animal with its own mind. There are a lot of bad horses on the market so its best to perform due diligence up front and learn about what to look for to save yourself the trouble. Even if you get a great horse at a decent price, expect to add in the training for that horse to perform what you expect of it...they usually won't come well trained for under 8-10K...simply because it takes someone,s time to get a horse to that level and they expect money in exchange for that time..it makes the horse more valuable and certainly more useful. Remember, he wants a packing horse and a good trail riding horse so its unlikely you get that at once in a single shot w/o some training for the horse. Who wants a horse you have to fight and wrestle with? There was a lot of great advice here from others so the hope is that one would take the time to get it right vs hurry and get most of it wrong...and worst of all getting himself or the horse injured or killed. Im partial to Tennessee Walkers myself and mine is very well trained gelding at 7.5 and is a 16HH smooth traveler at whatever speed I ask of him....he does whatever I ask and it wasn't cheap to get him to that level but it sure is satisfying. Oh, the rider needs to be at a similar level of competency as the horse too if you want it to "click".