Buying a large horse

[Mouse19]

A friend is considering buying a 17hh WB.
I have expressed concern having lost a large WB of my own to neuro problems. Now I have no real evidence that larger horses are more prone to neuro issues apart from when my gelding was being diagnosed posting on forums for advice and the general response being from people with 16.3+ horses and especially WB’s. So my reasoning is far from scientific.
So a couple of questions to people who have larger horses:
Do you think they stand up to wear and tear? Being larger are they more predisposed to lameness/ weakness issues?
Neuro issues- are they more common in large horses?
Confirmation wise what do you need to be aware of?
Opinions welcomed

 

[stormox]

Larger horses are more prone to wind problems, such as roaring and whistling. Also I think they need a lot more slow fittening work than a more compact horse would to enable their muscles to cope with the workload of carrying their heavier bone structure.

 

[Batgirl]

It is all down to the individual horse IMO.

I have a 17'2" WB - never have a days lameness, he is built well for his height (i.e. plenty of bone).

To add to just my horse I am on a yard where he is not even close to being the biggest WB on the yard as it is a stud with 2x WB stallions 17+ hands, 18hh WB pure dressage horse plus a variety of large youngstock. None of them have wind, neuro or lameness issues.

Conformation wise look out for what I call splindly legs - not enough bone or hoof for the height/weight. Long backs - by this I mean check carefully the saddle carrying area (mine is quite long backed which does add to the maintenance I have to put into his back).

Interestingly I have never struggled with having to do slower fitness work (nor have the stud owners who event to Intermediate) - again I think that is down to individual horses and what they cope with.

 

[zola89]

I have a 17hh WB I bought as a 4 year old after she had just been broken. After I'd had her for about a year she went for loads of diagnostic testing as they thought she was a wobbler. Her official diagnosis was "big, weak and young" and definitely no neurological issues. I spent a year or so really concentrating on building up her muscle with the right feed and a lot of exercise and she's fab!

I would say that big WBs probably develop more slowly so by default might be prone to injury more as they are weaker, however as long as you put the effort in on the training and strengthening side I don't think it should be a worry, and as already said, should be viewed on a horse by horse basis.

 

[ihatework]

I don’t know about neuro problems as I have to say it’s not something I have much experience of.

I do think there is something in orthopaedic considerations though.
You really need to consider what job you want the horse to do and how you go about fittening the horse for that job.

For me, conformation and the body to limb proportions are very important, but then they are on whatever height you buy - I can’t be doing with over topped horses light of limb.

A friend of mine has a very large, light of blood, top level event horse. His fittening is done quite differently to the smaller more blood types. He also takes noticeably longer to recover from an event than the small ones.

 

[poiuytrewq]

The only horses I've ever known with neuro problems have been my own 15hh and one a tad bigger.

 

[Trules]

they eat more and poo more than smaller horses which is enough to put anyone off. mine is eating me out of house and home at the minute and I feel like i'm mucking out an elephant! x

 

[AdorableAlice]

The best thing for you to do Op, is look at the breeding and research records for siblings and what they have achieved. Soundness is a lottery at the best of times but with the better bred and more traceable lines it is possible to get a picture of longevity. I would think warmblood breeding is easy to research ? I wouldn't touch a warmblood so have to admit knowing nothing about them.

I have had and still have big horses, always ensure the feet are big enough and the right shape to carry the horse. Bone is crucial, if you are fortunate enough to find a middle or heavyweight TB it must have lots of bone, you will be very very lucky to find the old fashioned TB nowadays. A quality gullet is also essential and helps with wind issues. The big ones want starting carefully and given masses of time to mature, my 18h ID was not mature until he was 9 and he was 7 before he could work consistently well for an hour without falling in a heap. he was tied back at 5. I lost him at 13 with colic, he had surgery but didn't survive and the vets did say his size was a major issue with lifting him and in recovery.

The 2 young horses I have now, a 4 yr old TB X 16.3 growing like a weed and manages a couple of half hour sessions a week, rest of the time spent asleep or eating (a lot!) The Shire X 6 year old has plenty of go, very little whoa and is growing again he is permanently asleep,
luckily he doesn't need to eat tonnes of food.

 

[OrangeAndLemon]

They eat more, need more wormer, can be more difficult to fit into transport, take longer to groom (more surface area to get dirty), need bigger (more expensive) stables with more bedding and you can't get on without a mounting block. Mine is clean to muck out though.

On the bright side, I won't be amassing a collection of rugs because there aren't many which come in 7'6", same for boots and other pretty things.

I bought my pony because he had the perfect temperament. I wish he'd been a bit smaller but at least he's chestnut so you can't tell how dirty he is unless you look closely.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

Not neurological problems necessarily but I have found modern bigger horses to be less robust. I used to own a Clydesdale mare who must, according to the vet, have been born in the 1960s and was pts in 2000
After having had to pts a show-bred Shire and a Clydesdale at 6 and 11 yrs respectively, I decided to avoid those breeds, as their gene pool is restricted. I then bought a 16.3hh IDx and had to pts aged 11. None of their problems was musculo-skeltal and all were different.
My next horse was a 16hh Westphalian Katblut who has just been pts aged 23 because of end-stage Cushings.

 

[Mouse19]

Hi all
Thanks for the replies. Greatly appreciated and a lot to consider.
She’s going to go an view on Sunday so will update then.

I’ve never been brilliant with large horse conformation

 

[Leo Walker]

This means nothing really as its only anaecdotal, but I cant think of a single horse I know or have known over 16.2hh that has stayed sound long term. Maybe I just know the unlucky ones, but you couldn't pay me to take on a big horse like that.

 

[eggs]

This means nothing really as its only anaecdotal, but I cant think of a single horse I know or have known over 16.2hh that has stayed sound long term. Maybe I just know the unlucky ones, but you couldn't pay me to take on a big horse like that.

Fortunately I've known plenty that have stayed sound!

One of my horses is a 17.3 wb and just about to do his first PSG and is the soundest horse. He is scared of his own shadow though.

 

[MuffettMischief]

Like anything, conformation is key but I think especially important in a big horse. The right amount of bone for its size and good feet are essential. I would be especially critical of hock angles in a big horse. We have one with sickle hocks and he already has arthritis at 10 but didnt start work until 7 so its not like he was started young and ruined. He does however have excellent feet and bone so the hock OA has been his only leg problem in 3 years and its manageable. I also cant believe I just written that down, although I didnt say it out loud so hopefully I havent tempted fate...

As others have said. Feed/wormer/hay/bedding always trebles for a big horse that is working a reasonable amount(ours is a hunter) so there is that to consider. Stable size, transport have to be considered. rugs over 7 foot are cheap in the sales though! There is also livery to consider. When were looking for space for our 3 a couple of years ago, alot of them said no the second I mentioned a 17.2! Having said all of the above, I do love a big horse.

 

[hopscotch bandit]

I remember reading evidence to suggest that Wobblers syndrome which is a neurological condition is more prevalent in geldings than mares (twice as more likely in fact), more evidenced in horses with longer necks (due to weaker necks which are more prone to traumatic injury) and is also more specific to breeds , i.e Warmbloods, Quarter horses and Shires which tend to be faster growing horses.Genetics are not thought to be a cause, i.e. it doesn't appear to be herediatary.

I don't have any experience of this myself but know someone who did and she knew a lot about it and I can remember her telling me about the above too.