BIG horses? ( in nl too)

[cheeseandhorses:)]

a few questions for those with horses above 17hh? F

First how tall are you , and whats your weight?

How big is your horse? And what breed are they?

And do you have problems finding headcollers, bridles, rugs ect to fit?

Thanks in advance

(pictures would also be nice )

 

[coreteam1]

a few questions for those with horses above 17hh? F

First how tall are you , and whats your weight?

How big is your horse? And what breed are they?

And do you have problems finding headcollers, bridles, rugs ect to fit?

Thanks in advance

(pictures would also be nice )

My horse is 17.1'ish and I am 5ft 9'' - My weight, well I've recently lost about 2.5 stone and still have some more to loose so won't give away too much

I don't have problems finding headcollars or rugs. My boy is in a 7ft rug and is a Irish sports horse, more TB than Draught.
I've had problems with bridles as the nosebands tend to be to small.
I have a nice one from Pink Equine.com than I use for every day (no problems with their sizing) and I have a Jaguar bridle for dressage, no problems with fit their either.

Here he is

 

[alwaysbroke]

OH's horse Vertigo is over 18.2, cant tell you exactly how big as the measuring stick isnt long enough.
He is a Warmblood believed to be by Gribaldi. OH is 6 foot, I am 5'7 and have no problem riding him
No problems with rugs, easily get 7' or 7' 3', ex full bridle and head collar.
Did spend alot of time searching for our current lorry, needed a7.5 ton, bu needed the biggest dimensions possible as poor V had to fold himself up to get into the old lorry, (it was fine when he was purchased a 4yr old at 17.1 but he just kept growing and growing)

Bonus is that jumps look very small when you are that high up and V is a total gentleman to handle and real gentle giant

 

[cheeseandhorses:)]

just thinking as seen a nice looking horse , but its 17.3hh and i thought my sisters 16.3hh was big enough :O its an ish , nice looking type.

But im 5ft6 , eight stone , and fourteen , my pony now is 14.1hh on his tippy toes :/ but i am more than used to riding, jumping, schooling hacking on 15.2 , 16 and 16.3hh at the moment and have strangly long legs - kick my ponys knees while at dressage lengh :/ but i suppose i 14hh could bugger off with me as well as a 17.3 could?

Am looking to hunt and pc ,showjump ect and am not looking to outgrow, would have to be 100% hunting though , i dont mind having an extreamly strong littleun , but not a massive thing?

Do you thing a 17.3 would be a step to far?

thanks

 

[cheeseandhorses:)]

and both of your boys are gorgeous

 

[YardGeek]

I think that would be a bit too big for you, especially as you're going from 'pony' height to 'massive great beast' height.
I moved onto a 16.1 at 14 so I can't really comment too much on your age but trust me its much further to fall and when big horses are naughty, its just plain scary when your that high up.
Another thing to think about its handling them from the ground, tacking-up, getting on etc... the simple things become much more of a challenge

 

[honey-bees]

I also think it's a bit to big for you.
I'm also 5ft5/6 & 8 stone and look fine a 14.2/15.2 depending on depth...I think I would look silly on a 17.3 but at the end of the day it's your call.

 

[Silmarillion]

I think it would be too much, to be honest. I'm 5'6", fairly petite, eight stone, and ten years older than you. Whilst I can ride the odd bigg'un (used to ride an 18.2hh at 18 years old) I can't do it regularly as well as I can something smaller. 16.3hh is my limit, really - anything else I just struggle with. My ideal is about 15.3hh for me to feel properly comfortable.

 

[spookypony]

alwaysbroke, that's one mahoosive horse!!

cheeseandhorses, I think the thing to do would be to try it and see, with your instructor in tow, of course!

I wasn't brought up in this whole "ponies for kids/horses for adults" idea, so I was on big horses quite early, and will happily now ride ponies without feeling silly. I'm 5'5.5", about 9 st, long-legged, and am quite happy to ride 17hh+. It completely depends on the particular combination of horse and rider, and if you feel happy, and your instructor thinks it's a good idea, then try it out.

 

[Nocturnal]

I think you should try it and see. My baby horse is goig to end up 17h+ and I'm 5'2 and 8 stone. I'm not too bothered about the height, though - attitude and trainability are far more important.

 

[lannerch]

My 17.2 easier to ride than most smaller horses it all depends on the horse. I always get suspicious when adverts say only for sale as too big for rider! All sizes of horses can be strong all sizes of horse can be resistant to the leg. It all depends on temperament and schooling not size!

The only thing IMO that does depend on size is getting on and off!

Rug size my boy takes 7 ft which is a size you often find in the sale. Headcoller xtra full and bridles most full fit him.

 

[nikCscott]

just thinking as seen a nice looking horse , but its 17.3hh and i thought my sisters 16.3hh was big enough :O its an ish , nice looking type.

But im 5ft6 , eight stone , and fourteen , my pony now is 14.1hh on his tippy toes :/ but i am more than used to riding, jumping, schooling hacking on 15.2 , 16 and 16.3hh at the moment and have strangly long legs - kick my ponys knees while at dressage lengh :/ but i suppose i 14hh could bugger off with me as well as a 17.3 could?

Am looking to hunt and pc ,showjump ect and am not looking to outgrow, would have to be 100% hunting though , i dont mind having an extreamly strong littleun , but not a massive thing?

Do you thing a 17.3 would be a step to far?

thanks

It's your choice and you know you better than anyone. But what's the hurry you're 14 have some fun on a 15.2hh for a while. At 16 (as I moved out of BSJA juniors).
i bought a 17.2 WB and I was just on the verge of being too small at 5'3 but my time on the smaller horses ment i had the experience to be able to ride her well (I also could mount from the ground), unfortunately on the ground she didn't notice me and rarely would rear up and drag me off. I had her for 5 years and she was a dream to ride, safe on hacks and great to load and compete, I sold her to a chap who never had any problems with her on the ground at all and she is hunting over the mendips now.

I not talking completely about OP as I don't know your situation, but I just don't get the rush to get a HUGE horse (usually see kids at show on big horses with equally big bits in)- especially when you're coming off a 14hh welsh- it'll be a huge change in every way. Maybe go and have some lessons on a big horse but remember they are likely to be well schooled and used to that environment, think about could you cope if 'something' happened.

I now have a 16.2hh and he is perfect for me but it's horses for courses

 

[TGM]

It really does depend on the horse's temperament and build. My husband's horse is 17.1hh but is quite narrow with long legs, so my 5'7" daughter is actually a good fit on him. He also has a fantastic temperament both under saddle and on the ground, so his size is really not an issue - he is probably easier to ride and handle than daughter's 16 hander.

So whilst I wouldn't specifically go out looking for such a big horse for a young rider, I would definitely consider one now if it had the right credentials and a saintly temperament.

 

[Leg_end]

I agree with TGM, it totally depends on the build of the horse as to whether it would be too big. I'm 5'7 but with longer legs than body and ive ridden everything from 15hh to 17.3hh and felt fine on all of them but it all depends on whether they take-up my leg in the right way - ie I rode a 15.2 who was very deep chested so took up my leg but on a finer horse (or one with more leg than body) I wouldn't feel so comfortable. My old TB was 16.3/17 but his height was in his legs so he never felt too big and my new boy is just 16.1 and he feels spot on too!

 

[4faults]

Have to agree with everyone else, it totally depends on the horse and the best thing you can do is go and view taking someone else experienced with you for an eye on the ground.

Fwiw I am 5'6" 9.5 stone and have a 17.3

and a 17.1

I dont feelsmall on either of them, although i have long legs, and I feel uncomfortable on anything under 16h.

 

[charlie76]

My horse is almost 18hh. I am 5ft 5 and 10.5 stone. I don't have trouble getting him tack and rugs. But he does not fit in a 7.5 tonne lorry so we had to get a HGV! This is him:

Sorry pic overload!

 

[ClobellsandBaubles]

just thinking as seen a nice looking horse , but its 17.3hh and i thought my sisters 16.3hh was big enough :O its an ish , nice looking type.

But im 5ft6 , eight stone , and fourteen , my pony now is 14.1hh on his tippy toes :/ but i am more than used to riding, jumping, schooling hacking on 15.2 , 16 and 16.3hh at the moment and have strangly long legs - kick my ponys knees while at dressage lengh :/ but i suppose i 14hh could bugger off with me as well as a 17.3 could?

Am looking to hunt and pc ,showjump ect and am not looking to outgrow, would have to be 100% hunting though , i dont mind having an extreamly strong littleun , but not a massive thing?

Do you thing a 17.3 would be a step to far?

thanks

not my own horse unfortunately but a horse i used to ride when i was 14 so thought it might help shes 17.3 and really looked after me and gave me soo much confidence despite being a wee bit quirky and spooky (i find it much harder to fall off big horses )

excuse the position was years ago and one of my first times xc

 

[cheeseandhorses:)]

It's your choice and you know you better than anyone. But what's the hurry you're 14 have some fun on a 15.2hh for a while. At 16 (as I moved out of BSJA juniors).

I not talking completely about OP as I don't know your situation, but I just don't get the rush to get a HUGE horse (usually see kids at show on big horses with equally big bits in)- especially when you're coming off a 14hh welsh- it'll be a huge change in every way. Maybe go and have some lessons on a big horse but remember they are likely to be well schooled and used to that environment, think about could you cope if 'something' happened.

I am fourteen, but my next horse will be my last if that makes sense? my pony will only be on loan (couldn't bear to sell him) , and i have been riding 16hh since i was i think 12 , so am more than happy. My sisters horse , mad ex-racer , is fine for me to handle. Although i would not buy anthing big if it was bad on the ground. He is a bit silly at things but i am more than happy to ride him. Height is an issue, but i have been knocked out by a mad 14hh before , so manners are very important too I don't really want a huge horse if that makes sense, i want a nice horse that will look after me and not be silly or strong . I personally don't so BIG bits , apart from hunting , so would have to be nicely schooled . We're only thinking about it at the moment as the horse would have to be perfect for us , as my mum likes to get on for a walk round to block too so has to be good for a novice to ride too

Reading back through that i don't think we're ever going to find the perfect horse

 

[cheeseandhorses:)]

a
cheeseandhorses, I think the thing to do would be to try it and see, with your instructor in tow, of course!

It completely depends on the particular combination of horse and rider, and if you feel happy, and your instructor thinks it's a good idea, then try it out.

I don't have regular lessons , camp and the odd pc rally keep me going , and i wouldn't say i was a bad rider either

Of course we would only buy if the horse was completly right for us , and i wouldn't get a horse i felt unsafe on.

 

[anuvb]

I'm pretty petite and used to ride a lot of big horses when I was younger. The practical things you need to think about are bigger feed bills, often more expensive tack to get it to fit and transport. The reality is that getting on or off on a hack or to pop a jump up is more a hassle and just putting on rugs is more of a struggle. There's not much wrong with having a bigger horse per se but do bear in mind they are also more prone to breaking down (sorry but its true) due their larger size, bigger joints, weight issues etc.

The reason I gave up big horses was my hips were getting too sore riding them and I'm getting too old to manage it these days.

 

[Lymm]

Hi, I'm 5'3 and 9 stone, my Holsteiner Warmblood is 17.1hh. I bought him as a baby and didnt expect him to grow so big but it has never been an issue. He is very well schooled and does everything in a snaffle- hunting, eventing all three phases etc. Think, as others have said it depends how mannerly they are. Although i must admit when my long legged instructors get on him they look better!!!!

 

[BronsonNutter]

I'm 5'3" and have ridden a friends 18hh horse on several occasions - hacking out and flatwork - and once you're on he doesn't feel 'big' because he's not very wide (an ISH but has a lot of TB!) and isn't a big flashy mover. Whereas I stuggle with her slightly smaller WB because his paces are so big it's really hard to hold everything together. Don't stuggle with either on the ground, but they are very mannerly - need to be at that size!

It's probably worth ringing up the owner and asking if they 'ride big', before making any desicions about going to try them or not