Did you get what you wanted/expected for your first horse?

[Casey76]

When I made my "shopping list" of what I wanted for my first horse I had only three criteria...

NOT coloured
NOT cobby
MUST do dressage

I ended up with...

A wonderful coloured cob who doesn't *do* schooling

Pinto isn't an easy horse to ride. He is incredibly sensitive, and contrary to what most people think, he doesn't have a "go slow" button.

He is however, the most rock steady, lead anywhere, walk over anything/through anything horse you can find (as long as you're not waving a whip or a rope around).

He is virtually unflappable out hacking, and the only thing which has kept us back are my come-and-go nerves. I had an amazingly bad crash almost 20 years ago now, and despite walking away with only a concussion it has left me with some extremely deep seated fears which I'm not sure I will ever get over completely.

Pinto continues to push my envelope, and while I doubt we'll ever win any medals, we have enormous fun pottering around, having lessons (as long as they don't involve leaving the ground), and trying to perfect out lateral work.

I really have to hand it to Pinto for helping me get over my hacking fears, and we go out by ourselves 95% of the time these days

For the "fun" stuff I leave to younger and more confident riders...

So, while not exactly what I was expecting for my first horse, I wouldn't swap him for the world; and he will be with me for life

 

[Magicmillbrook]

Lovely cob. I suppose I still havent ever had my 'own' first horse. My curent mount is my daughters semi retired 14.1 ex JA/PC pony, who we had for 10 years as a mother daughter share. Much as I adore her, she isnt what I would have picked for a 'me' horse. Part of me doesnt want to get the opportunity beacuse that will mean that the old girl has gone off the that great big field in the sky

 

[Honey08]

My first pony was a pony that I rode at my local trekking stable. The owner got cancer and the ponies were all sold off. The pony was my favourite colour - palomino - but was a 6yr old welsh/arab demon! Once out of the riding school environment (we kept him at home on his own, which didn't help, and we knew nothing of horse care really) he became a nightmare and scared the living daylights out of me. He did every trick in the book - rearing, kicking, running off - setting off to his old home four miles away and refusing to stop or turn! My parents said if he went I wouldn't be getting another (my mum regrets that nowadays having seen my stepson on an older schoolmaster cob being looked after not traumatised!) so I had lots of lessons and after a couple of years ended up doing very well with him. I credit a lot of what that pony taught me to me getting my BHSAI later on! He died twenty years later at home, and a little bit of my heart died too!

 

[Kelly1982]

My first horse was brought for me as a present and I didn't get on with her at all!! Although she did give me loads of confidence!!!

However when shopping for my current horse I didn't want a mare and I didn't want a chestnut (previous 2 horses had been chestnuts so wanted something different). I ended up with a chestnut mare!!!!

Wouldnt swap her for the world though!! She is me in horse form lol

 

[Sukistokes2]

I did not care what my first pony/horse was or looked like i just SO wanted one and my sister did too. I dreamed about it all the time and I never walked anywhere, i trotted or cantered. We had to wait a long time until Mum thought we were ready and then Star arrived. New forest/TB, avery fat bay pony. He was all i'd every wanted and beautiful. We slimmed him down and I am sure made loads of misakes looking after him but he lived until he was 31.He remains my best ever horse and i still think about him all the time.

 

[1Lucie]

Ermm... i went looking for an experienced all rounder....ended u buying a 7year old who'd hunted and hacked but not much else.

However, he has a temperament to die for, has completly restored my confidence on th ground and is a fab little hack.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

Oh, gorgeous!

My criteria were not grey, not a mare, not spooky:

I got one out of two right!

He's very forward, can be very spooky, but otherwise is quite sane.

 

[smokey]

my first, I got what I deserved, I was so naive, I believed the seller who told me I was getting a perfect family pony, ex riding school, worth her weight etc etc. What I got was a napping, bucking, spinning put you off on the road nightmare Didnt have the confidence or skill to deal with her, so sold her on to someone who turned her into a fab jumping pony for her daughter (who had great fun on my nightmare!) Like others here, my present horse isnt what I went looking for. I wanted a clydesdale youngster, a colt, not chestnut. I got a filly, straight off her mum, chestnut! She is a clydesdale tho, and I wouldnt change her for the world!

 

[Kellys Heroes]

The lady who owns Kelly has got a 16.2hh chestnut mare too (in my sig).
They went out looking for a 14.3-15.2hh gelding, preferably black.
They definitely did NOT want a chestnut mare and nothing big...however she is the sweetest, beautifully mannered horse I've ever had the pleasure to meet and ride and she is (80%) of the time, a dope on a rope, but capable of beautiful lateral and jumping work too!
K x

 

[Kat]

I had a sensible list of requirements........ The only one the horse I bought fullfilled was "preferably a mare".

She is younger and smaller and finer than I was looking for, she is also "a boring bay" with no white.

BUT she is the boldest horse I've ever met, she is fun but sensible, and hacks like she's been doing it forever. Never thought I'd buy a rising 4 year old as a first horse or that such a young green horse would do so much for the confidence of my nervous DH.

 

[Ollie's Mum]

I fancied a coloured cob or a spotty- I got a dark bay New Forest But in every other way I got just what my wish list was

 

[indie999]

I wanted a hairy gypsy coloured cob vanner etc etc

I got a cob cremello type big boned creature. Fab in traffic but not well schooled at all. Had been driven strong in mouth. It was only after 10 years and retirement I then went to riding school realised how light the aids on all the riding school horses were compared to my stubborn big old beasty!

But would I have swapped him NO! Home for life. He taught me a lot and he has a heart of gold definitely, no nastiness at all. After looking last year and viewing some nightmares (I gave up) I realise I was very lucky indeed.

 

[Circe]

I wanted an appaloosa, 6 to 10 yr old 15hh to 16hh,

Got a lame 3yr old tb.
he's gorgeous though, lameness problems sorted finally, and he is the sweetest boy. I plan on keeping him forever.
Kx

 

[asommerville]

Had mad coloured warmblood x arab. went back to the dealer looking for a gelding that was not bay and no arab at all. came back with a bay mare. second horse went looking for a bay 7+ mare...came back with a 3 year old chestnut arab x! mad i think but love them both to bits!!

 

[Lintel]

I wanted ideally...

A black or grey.
To be TBX or Irish sport horse type.
Forward going. Could do BSJA.
And stood in at 15.1hh-16.2hh
Was broken and schooled well.

I got this...

The day I bought him.

A golden dun. - I hated duns...
Highland pony.
So laid back he was horizontal.
Was to make 14.2hh max.
Unbroken and 2 years old.

Him last summer... 4 years old.

He has a fair pop in him when he feels like it- we could do Baby Native BSJA!

Still dream about my 16.1 black mare, who can jump 1.40m with ease and schools like a dream.. but I would not swap him for the world.

 

[rhino]

I wanted a gelding, over 15hh, 4 - 8 year old, not coloured or grey. Did pretty well 15.3hh chestnut 8 year old belgian warmblood gelding. He's been all I wanted/expected and an amazing amount more, I really hit the jackpot when I bought him Horse of a lifetime!

 

[Ladydragon]

I don't do very well at this horse shopping malarky...

I wanted (still want!) a plod... Not even fussy about sex, breed or colour so long as it was 15h-ish... Just, an easy going, plod to pootle around the countryside... The mature, stop or dead slow, no interest in speed and bought the T shirt type...

Ended up bringing home a half starved, rising four, ginger, TB... My excuse, he desperately needed a mum...

 

[JustMe22]

The horse I had on loan for a year I still think of as my first horse. He wasn't technically mine, but we pulled him out of a field and I started to ride him - his owners always asked my permission before riding him etc, and even said they thought of him as mine.

So anyway, I'd had a couple of years at a terrible riding school doing nothing but trotting around aimlessly and riding unschooled ponies..firing them at jumps with no idea what I was doing, so I was pretty novicey!

We went to look at a pony for my sister and I ended up with my boy on loan. He was a TB ex-racer who'd been in his field for years because nobody would ride him. 15.2hh, mad as a hatter and used to bite and kick. He would charge out the minute his stable door was opened, so leading him out was a skill in itself.
My mum always said she used to be absolutely terrified watching me with him sometimes.

He was not at all what I'd had in mind. However, I loved him so much...he was brilliant. He never once bit or kicked me (though he did always pull nasty faces at me around dinner time). He went form leading in a chifney to walking up to me in the field and being led in without me even holding the rope. Never did quite stop his random running off and bucking, but it definitely improved a lot.

We really did have a brilliant bond - I love my new horse (who I've had for 4 years) to bits, but in a different way, and I don't think anything could ever replace my first horse. I only wish I could've got hold of him years sooner - I would've loved to see how he'd have turned out had he had a different start in life, and had I been a bit more competent!

He was PTS about 4 years ago, due to a really bad colic and I still miss him!

 

[Merlin11]

Pretty much and still got him. Wanted a steady horse with breaks that I could enjoy hacking on and he is pretty much that. He will go when I want him to but will also plod along when that is required. He is a bay part bred welsh cob.
When I was young I dreamed of having a grey horse or black beauty. He is not that but I think temperment is more important and luckily I was sensible for a change and put that first when chosing a horse. Only negatives are that he is a cheeky so and so and doesn't like hacking alone but I guess you can't have everything.

 

[Barney2003]

For my first pony we were looking for something that was:
- safe enough for my 8 year old brother to ride
- preferably not grey
- native
- 13.2-14.2
- mare
- been there done a bit but still a bit quirky
- 8 +

Ended up with a 14.2 grey connie gelding, 5 years old had done pretty much nothing, has chucked my brother off everything time he has ridden him, bolted into walls, had confidence issues if anything changed... oh and I fell off him when we went to try him

Wouldn't swap him for the world though, he's still very unpredictable but can be a super bsja thing when he wants, but we do get some weird looks from some showjumpers when i'm warming up on a little fluffy grey thing that can only do a couple of fences before we start bouncing of the walls with excitement although I did have to spend 5 mins coaxing him over a pole because it was obviously going to eat him last night (he's 8 now )

 

[Parker79]

LOVE this thread - brilliant!

I set out looking for a 16.2h+ big boned steady sort - fell in love with my mare (now 20) who is 15.1h, fine built TBXConniexID with all the cheeky traits!

She was never sound for more than 2 minutes and ended up loss of use but she really has been my perfect horse. Taught me SO much, made me love dressage and was the nicest horse I have ever ridden.

So....you would think I would learn!!

I'm in a gorgeous livery yard with direct New Forest access with a beautiful but lame horse, so wanted something else to ride ....Just bought a rising 3yr Fresian gelding that I cannot back til next year!! I really need to have a word with myself!!!

He is gorgeous though

 

[millreef]

I wanted a leg in each corner and a pulse- I got what I wanted

 

[Madam Min]

My first horse was a 4 year old, very green, 17.hh TBx gelding. I've ridden since a child but never had my own horse so to speak however OH has had lots of experience ( and guts!) and previous horses and since he was to be the main rider it didn't really matter. DJ taught us both loads and gave us 6 fun filled years.

 

[Chumsmum]

I started riding as an adult, expected my first horse to be a 15hh coloured cob, quiet plod.

Ended up with a 14hh dun native type who was forward going and had occasional attitude with a big buck but who looked after me so well most of the time. We mainly just hacked and went off for miles on our own and had wonderful times.

He is retired now and has a fab life stuffing his face all day, I have another horse and have moved up a level, am competing locally most weekends etc but I'll always be so thankful to my dun boy who introduced me and made me addicted to horses.

I would say he was a perfect first horse for an adult, very easy to do, forgave your mistakes, not spooky or silly but enough about him to make you keep your wits about you.

 

[PolarSkye]

Not really, no . . . I went looking for a schoolmaster type - decent height, plenty of bone, sensible, sane, well-schooled on the flat with a decent jump - a been there, done that sort. Didn't care about colour or gender.

Got a relatively green (despite his age) nutjob of a sport horse . . . sharp, spooky, sensitive, quirky and definitely not totally suitable for a novice (which accurately describes my daughter and me). He was barge-y, opinionated and walked all over us at first. Very green in the school, unbalanced, not particularly trusting of the rider, went everywhere at 90 miles an hour. However, we love him . . . he is now reasonably well schooled, his manners are much better (he's still cheeky, but that's part of his charm), he is relaxed and calm (most of the time) and definitely trusts me now. Having him as a first horse has been a steep learning curve . . . but I'm very glad we did it . . . one thing that was 100% accurate in his ad was that he was "very sweet" . . . he certainly is that .

P

 

[lme]

For my first horse, I wanted something to get back into riding after a 5 year break. I bought a 4yo unbroken chestnut sports horse mare simply because she was beautiful. Fortunately, I was able to get lots of help to get me to the standard I needed to be to ride her. For my children's first pony, I wanted a sensible pony for them to learn to ride on. I bought an 8yo who was perfectly calm plodding round on the lead rein @ walk with them but a pocket rocket who loved to go fast once we got her home. My mare is now 32 and proved to be a superstar (though not at all a 'first horse') and our pony is now 15, & being ridden by the 3rd of my children. She is priceless / will never be sold.

 

[Ibblebibble]

yep got what i wanted....a horse, took me until i was over 30 to get my own and i admit i was so happy that OH had agreed that i pretty much bought the first one i went to look at heart definitely took over on that one lol. but it all worked out and i got an 18yr old bay TB mare who was lovely in all ways except she didn't like open spacesfound out the first time i took her on the common and she took off for the road small fields she was fine but big fields she would panic and run to the hedge

 

[Paris1]

I never went horse shopping. My pi.y came I.to the school I worked at and I started schooling him. Six months later and I bought him. Fourteen years later re are still teaching each other things.

 

[Fallenrose]

My mare ticked every box on my list! Even down to being coloured (of course what colour she was wasn't high up the list of priorities - just a bonus) - and she was only the second horse I went to see! I feel very lucky!

Had her since October and she has been perfect so far! I'm sure we will hit tricky times along the way but we will work through them. She has a home for life.

 

[MerrySherryRider]

I wanted a magical pony that I could have fun with, go anywhere, do anything and would be my best friend.
Fortunately, I got exactly that. She was better than anything I could ever have imagined.