First Share Advice-What now?

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Mylo

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I've been taking lessons for 14yrs now and finally am in a position to part loan/share.

The question is what kind of horse should I be looking to share? I'm definately not experienced enough to deal with a youngster or very green horse, and am no serious competition rider. But I'm not looking for a plod or happy hacker. In particular I'm aiming to ride a decent elementary dressage test and do some competitions in the future. But there is some way to go!and I'd ideally have some lessons on the share horse


Any advice? I really don't want end up not being able to do justice to a young or competition horse, but am looking to improve and have more of a challenge....

Any suggestions? :)
 
Sounds to me like you're looking for a teenaged horse that has a bit of a 'been there done that' attitude that would also be happy with the occasional hack. Just because it's been shown or competed on doesn't mean that its a horse you could 'not do justice to', and one that's been around the block a bit would provide you with a good learning opportunity without the uncertainty of a youngster.
 
I'm in a very similar position to you, I've been riding on and off throughout all my life (over 18 years now) and finally I've got as far as I can go with riding lessons, so I decided to look for a horse to share.

Luckily I came across a horse very quickly, but I will give you a few words of advice. My horse is an IDxTB, 16.1hh and aged 13. I thought that was the perfect age, but he does have arthritis in his hocks so it does mean that he is very stiff, and in-between treatments from the physio he does get worse and has been known to tweak his back leaving him un-ridable for a few days/weeks.

I wouldnt be too afraid of a younger horse if I were you, I love my Wilbur now and could never let him go just because he is a bit of a creaky old man (bless him) but if I have one regret it is his age. 13 is not old for a horse and I'm sure you will come across plenty of 13 year olds with no health problems, but in my case his age is causing health issues which slows down our progress, and also he has forgotten how to do many things in the school, so we are having a bit of a battle at the moment with basic schooling before I can move on to preparing him for a dressage test.

Maybe aim for a horse that is aged 7+, by that age he/she is out of the difficult youngster phase but is still young enough to learn new things. I wouldnt go any older than a horse who is 15, and regardless of the age of the horse I recommend you ask as many questions as possible when you go to view the horse. I was told upfront about his arthritis, but wasnt made aware of his back problems, nor his allergies that cause a nasty cough...I did ask a lot of questions but clearly not enough!

Most sharers will be happy for you to have lessons on the horse - I have Wilbur 4 days a week, and can basically do what I please with him, I have fortnightly lessons and I am hoping that once we have both improved I can compete him next year. Transport is my main issue (Wilbur's owner doesnt have any) but there is a competition yard in hacking distance so I think I will just be going there for the forseeable future. Ask the owner when you first visit if he/she has transport, that might be a deal breaker for you if you want to compete.

Check the facilities too when you visit the yard - check what kind of bedding the horse is on (that will be very important if he/she has allergies), is the arena an all weather one or will riding become difficult in the winter, what is the hacking like around the area, where is everything kept, overall cleanliness of the yard, what the other horses are like, whether you see many other people riding seriously or just hacking, if there is an instructor who teaches already at the yard or would you need to source your own....the list is endless but the more questions you ask the better!

Hope this helps!
 
If your not too big, don't discount a nice 14.2, that people haven't wanted to part with. Age is pretty much immaterial, anddon't let a veteran put you off, my 21 year old pony still more than happily fits in this box, and he is as sound as a pound to boot.
Depending on which part of the country you are in, there are quite a few about by the sounds of it, but the good ones tend to go by word of mouth. Don't be afraidto advertisefor what you want in the local tack or feed places.
 
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