Am I daft to consider a TB?

[Kirstd33]

So as the title says really!!

As a middle aged on-off lifetime rider/sharer the time was finally right to buy our own last year for both me and the teenage daughter (to mainly hack about, low level stuff) and we purchased a lovely cob, who we adore but hasn't been straightforward at all and after 8 months of stop start riding got diagnosed with annular ligament damage in March. He finally had the surgery in May and we're 7 weeks into what we know will be a very long rehab and we don't expect to be riding him much before the Autumn. I should say he's not going anywhere even if he doesn't come sound again.

In the interim we've been fortunate to have the ride of a very kind lady's 2 horses: a 16.1 ID who my daughter mainly rides and I ride her mum's 15.2 TB who is an OTTB, but now 10ish. Having not ridden many TB's I didn't know whether I would like it but WOW I love riding him, he's athletic, not too wide, jolly and a great boy! Coupled with the fact that a dream of mine has always been to dabble in some non-competitive endurance I was thinking of looking for one??? Is this a crazy idea?
Any advice most gratefully received!

 

[Glitter's fun]

I've never owned a full TB, only a half-bred but found this that may help...

Can Thoroughbreds do endurance?????

Hi all Does anyone know if thoroughbreds are ever successful in endurance riding? Any advice greatly recieved xx

forums.horseandhound.co.uk

 

[starbucker]

Sounds like your shares are ideal! lovely tbs out there but very hit and miss from what Ive witnessed. They are high maintenance and also like to break so make sure you're open to having 2 field ornaments ..

 

[Kirstd33]

Our sharers are fantastic and we can't believe how lucky we are to have found 2 horses locally that we can hack together a couple of times a week in the most wonderful hacking area.
I would never have considered a TB either but its really opened my eyes to the breed. All we do is hack but his intelligence, forwardness, ground covering trot and power has been a relevation, and when we do canter you can feel that there are more gears there should you be braver than me!

 

[starbucker]

Our sharers are fantastic and we can't believe how lucky we are to have found 2 horses locally that we can hack together a couple of times a week in the most wonderful hacking area.
I would never have considered a TB either but its really opened my eyes to the breed. All we do is hack but his intelligence, forwardness, ground covering trot and power has been a relevation, and when we do canter you can feel that there are more gears there should you be braver than me!

Honestly sounds like a fab deal I'd stick with in since you seem to love riding this particular horse and just keep an eye out so something special if it came along ... Love a forward horse tbs definitely have this going for them, once you get used to a forward horse you don't have to kick there's no going back !

 

[JBM]

Pick carefully but tbs are wonderful
I’ve had 2 first one didn’t suit me at all!
Second one is an angel
Now the first one was a flat and second was point to point. So started later and a bit of a thicker build
No idea if that’s the difference or just their personalities

 

[Kirstd33]

He/she looks lovely and I expect as you say you can't generalise as there are good and bad examples of every breed but the one I ride is very different to my somewhat lazier cob who approaches everything in the same way as Eeyore does, where the TB is more like Tigger!

 

[deicinmerlyn]

Definitely not daft! However, like all breeds, they are all different. You’ve found a horse you click with and love riding but trying to replicate that particular horse will be difficult and could be disappointing.
Could you not just continue to ride the one you loan or offer to buy/share?
My TB was the kindest of horses and lovely to ride, after 15 years, I lost him in December.

 

[Bobthecob15]

I know a few fabulous TBs...however you do need to be picky, particularly if they have raced. Check for previous injuries if so....and they are known for not having the best hooves!!

 

[dapple_grey]

TBs are great but I would recommend getting one that is currently out doing the job you want it for, or better still in harder work. At least then you know it can stand up to the job. I see it all the time where people buy straight off the track and the wheels start to fall off when it starts doing harder work.

Pay special attention to the state of their feet as well, as they're prone to being very flat and thin soled. They are lovely horses if you find the right one. Good luck

 

[oldjumper]

So as the title says really!!

As a middle aged on-off lifetime rider/sharer the time was finally right to buy our own last year for both me and the teenage daughter (to mainly hack about, low level stuff) and we purchased a lovely cob, who we adore but hasn't been straightforward at all and after 8 months of stop start riding got diagnosed with annular ligament damage in March. He finally had the surgery in May and we're 7 weeks into what we know will be a very long rehab and we don't expect to be riding him much before the Autumn. I should say he's not going anywhere even if he doesn't come sound again.

In the interim we've been fortunate to have the ride of a very kind lady's 2 horses: a 16.1 ID who my daughter mainly rides and I ride her mum's 15.2 TB who is an OTTB, but now 10ish. Having not ridden many TB's I didn't know whether I would like it but WOW I love riding him, he's athletic, not too wide, jolly and a great boy! Coupled with the fact that a dream of mine has always been to dabble in some non-competitive endurance I was thinking of looking for one??? Is this a crazy idea?
Any advice most gratefully received!

Having ridden TBs and partbreds, including several off the track since I was 13, when I needed a new horse in my late 60s I got another one! We mainly just hack out/school but he can belt up a mountain side or scramble down rocky slope like a mustang and if we do have to go on busy roads he carefully looks after his whimpering rider (albeit with some eye rolling). TBs are horses and all vary but get one you click with and get it well vetted and there’s none better. Good luck!

 

[Fransurrey]

I nearly loaned a TB years ago and she was lovely. She was sold before my loan started, so sadly didn't work out. I do have a couple of friends with OTTBs, both of whom loved the endurance rides. I've known more sensible ones than scatty ones, thinking about it.

 

[slimjim86]

It's never daft to consider a TB, fantastic versatile breed but as everyone has already said they are all individuals so just judge the horse that's in front of you x

 

[Jellymoon]

Def not daft, they are fabulous, and if you like the one you are riding now, then I don’t see why it would be a bad idea.
Do they break any more than other horses do? I’m not sure…cobs seem to break a lot too as far as I can tell. They can have poor feet, so something to look out for.
I think one would be perfect for starting out in endurance.

 

[Equi]

With the correct work and feed a tv is a fabulous versatile horse. You just need one that has a good head on their shoulders and hasn’t been treated like the maniac it can be. There are two on my yard atm both under 6 and both are lovely sane sensible animals. They both get proper work and neither are fed silly sugar filled mixes and conditioning feeds.

I’ve personally owned two, one was a lot older so well past his scatty phase but damn that horse was bombproof. He wouldn’t flinch at a bus passing him with an inch to spare at 60 (this actually happened)

The other one whislt totally bombproof and lovable is the only horse I’ve had to sell. His separation anxiety verged on psychotic so when my only livery (at my home) and riding buddy went off on maternity I found I couldn’t handle him anymore. At the time I wasn’t able to go to livery so having two horses just did not work for us.

 

[SkylarkAscending]

I adore TBs, I’ve owned two and ridden quite a few more - I wouldn’t have any other breed given the choice

 

[Kirstd33]

Thanks everyone for your advice given so freely, that's exactly what I needed to hear! So I've actually seen one on FB that has been on a training yard but not raced as apparently she was too slow -, whats everyone's thoughts on that?

 

[MereChristmas]

We have OTTB’s at our yard regularly. Their temperaments and abilities vary greatly.
However from what I have seen most need a cooling off time learning to be an ordinary horse so they are equipped for life in a ‘normal’ environment. Some need turning away, some don’t.
If you enjoy the horse you ride at the moment I would think there is no reason why you could not find another but choose carefully.
Happy horse hunting

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

If you have never trained one straight from racing I would say don't do it get one that is doing what you want to do now.

I've known a few TB I had a retired national hunt horse who was brilliant anyone's ride but good fun, but I've know a few that were a bit nuts and not for the faint hearted.

I have Arab's which are similar as they are also hot bloods but smaller generally and it's the same with them some are fine some are nuts.

 

[Equi]

Thanks everyone for your advice given so freely, that's exactly what I needed to hear! So I've actually seen one on FB that has been on a training yard but not raced as apparently she was too slow -, whats everyone's thoughts on that?

Anything that’s been through the training will still need their brains rewired, but it’s worth having a look so you can at least see what their mentality is like vs the one you now ride. So you then know what to avoid

 

[dapple_grey]

Thanks everyone for your advice given so freely, that's exactly what I needed to hear! So I've actually seen one on FB that has been on a training yard but not raced as apparently she was too slow -, whats everyone's thoughts on that?

I would be extremely wary based on that description. Trained but not raced usually means too lame to race.

Even the slowest ones will be given a chance or two to race - that's what Class 6's are for! They pay enough in training fees to at least give them a try.

As I said before, I wouldn't have one straight out of training (and definitely wouldn't recommend to a 1st time owner) as you don't know they'll stand up to the work yet.

ETA: This is coming from someone who worked on a racing yard. The slow ones were just put in a race with other slow ones! Some horses will be donkeys at home but really light up on a racecourse.

 

[Kirstd33]

I would be extremely wary based on that description. Trained but not raced usually means too lame to race.

Even the slowest ones will be given a chance or two to race - that's what Class 6's are for! They pay enough in training fees to at least give them a try.

As I said before, I wouldn't have one straight out of training (and definitely wouldn't recommend to a 1st time owner) as you don't know they'll stand up to the work yet.

ETA: This is coming from someone who worked on a racing yard. The slow ones were just put in a race with other slow ones! Some horses will be donkeys at home but really light up on a racecourse.

Thanks for this insight, thats very illuminating especially from soneone involved in the industry. Shes for sale from what looks like a dealer who specialises in the retraining and selling on of TB's, so would this not be suitable? I have never owned a TB no, although other liveries on the yard have.

 

[starbucker]

I'll repeat what Ive written on another post about a novice looking for a tb reasons to be reasonably cautious (as with any horse to be fair) and follow what others have said about getting one doing a job already. Ive known 5 tbs bought in the past year or so - 1 fine for a few months started kicking biting - sold on as companion after failed vet on serious heart condition, no. 2 bronking and bucking owner off (again fine for 1 month or so) lame on back hind. 3 - bought older tb strong to handle and had previous leg injury not disclosed, sold at a loss 6 month later. 4 has KS owner spent 1000s on getting right needs corrective shoes every 6 weeks and still not really right no 5 - raised and broken in by experienced rider out competing at 1m+ fabulous horse. You need to know what you're looking at, defintely get someone experienced you know to give a second opinion

 

[dapple_grey]

Thanks for this insight, thats very illuminating especially from soneone involved in the industry. Shes for sale from what looks like a dealer who specialises in the retraining and selling on of TB's, so would this not be suitable? I have never owned a TB no, although other liveries on the yard have.

I really would advise going for something that has been out of training for a few years and has done the low level rc stuff you're looking to do. What you describe is very high risk IMO.

Make sure you get it vetted and get back x-rays. I can't tell you how many people I know who have spent thousands on kissing spines/SI/hock issues which have come to light when re-training starts. Ulcers and NPA are also a common issue.

All horses can go wrong but you need to try and mitigate the risk as much as possible

 

[Jellymoon]

I have no experience of this personally, but there are a few rehoming places which loan them out, after a vetting process. This might be an option.

 

[Jellymoon]

I have no experience of this personally, but there are a few rehoming places which loan them out, after a vetting process. This might be an option.

 

[poiuytrewq]

I have had, I think 6. Some straight from trainers, two had done a bit, one had done a lot!
They vary so so much. I've never had one with brilliant feet though, feet have always been at best average, at worst terrible. I've had lots of illness and injuries, but in hindsight maybe not more than other breeds of which I've had fewer to compare.

Absolutely give it a thought, but think carefully and as above go for one that's already done stuff out of racing.

 

[Welly Boot]

TBs are great but not all are saints as others have said, it's hit and miss. A 10yo ex racer will be very different to one at the start of it's reschooling journey. Solway racehorse are great at matching and will have them back if there is an issue. You need to really learn how different their lives are in racing - very regimented and quite often restrictive esp if in Newmarket where there is minimal space for turnout. I had them for 20 years but whilst rewarding they can be jolly hard work too.

 

[Wishfilly]

I would say taking a horse straight from racing is a gamble in so many different ways, and very different to riding one which has been established for a few years. You can find cheap-ish ex-racers who are already out there doing a job- I would in particular look for one that has done fun rides/endurance already for a couple of reasons:

1- It shows they are sound enough to be up to it, and not breaking down, which is perhaps more common in TBs and ex-racers than other horses.

2- It shows they can cope with it mentally- some horses do find this sort of environment mindblowing, not every horse can cope with being passed at speed. If you are going to proper EGB events, you do have to accept the serious competitors will pass at trot when it is safe to do so, and not every horse can cope with that.

If your interest is endurance, then have you considered an arab or a part bred? They can also offer everything you've described on this thread, and dare I say it may be a bit sounder/more robust than TBs (obviously your milage may vary), and it won't be too hard to find one that has already done a few pleasure rides etc.

 

[Trouper]

Welcome to the ex-racers fan club - it's a lifetime membership.!!

Unless you have the skills to take on the assessment and re-training yourself I would seriously go down the re-homing of racehorses route. There are numerous organisations who do this and who can assess both you and the horses they have in. Good luck!!