[50673] THU 01/23/97 12:11 FROM ridecamp@endurance.net: RE: Looking for advice;
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Okay so everyone got a good giggle out of my last question, so
I thought I would try again. What I really should have asked was
what do you look for in choosing your endurance horse. I realize
each of you will have different views or ideas but that is okay I am
interested to hear them all.
Things like age, mare, gelding, personality, confirmation and yes colour.
I guess because I own one bright chesnut mare with polish lines and one
grey mare with egyptian lines of which I like both for different reasons I
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I learned the hard way that the more specific you are in what you
want, the harder it will be to find a good horse. Before I rode
endurance I had my heart sent on a buckskin, and against my better
judgement, bought a 3 year old registered buckskin QH, stupidly
overlooking the fact that she was too green for me, had pasterns
that were way too long and sloping, and cribbed. AFter wasting my
$ on a trainer, and getting discovering this filly loved to
sneak buck, I opened my eyes and realized that despite the pretty
color, this horse was just not going to be what met my needs.
So, training becuase more important than color!
AFter I started distance riding, I jumped at the chance to buy a
Foxtrotter that had done NATRC. Didn't really check out the horse
(she was also a pretty color), and found out that she tripped and
stumbled on a regular basis, despite shoeing changes. AFter she
tripped going up a hill and I landed on my nose, I decided that
surefootedness also came up there pretty high on priorities.
Meanwhile, a horse only 1/2 mile down the road that the owner
wanted $500 for (Arab mare, about 8 yrs, trail experience), that
I had rejected becuase she was only 14.1 hands and grey (I was
tired of grey), was bought by my friend. A year and a half
later, I bought that horse, which I still have, does great on
the trails and the rides I have taken her on.
Next horse I thought had wonderful conformation and I loved her
size and bone (15.2). Had trail experience, and lots of training,
but was one of the nastiest mares I had ever run across in my
life. Also grey. After battling with this mare for almost 2 years,
she is comming around. But she has comfortable gaits, goes all day,
terrific P & R's. No idea what her breeding is, only that she is
Arab/Walker.
So, owning 3 grey mares (Welsh pony also), have come to the
conclusion that I am only destined to own grey mares. And, heck,
all my tack and biothane and "outfits" are mix and match with all
3, and any future horse I buy will also have to be grey <G>
I guess things I look at are age (not too young or too old),
smooth gaits, level topline (don't like rump-high horses), good
bone and overall conformation, prefer mares over geldings, good
feet. And cost <G>-probably would try not to spend over $1000
for a horse, unless i win the lottery!
Karen
To: ridecamp@endurance.net