Shilasdair
Patting her thylacine
I don't think anyone over 6 stone should ride a horse.
Racing weight includes saddle riders boots/hat etc - which for a leisure rider will probably add 2 stone plus to bathroom scales weight.Red Rum won the Grand National carrying 12st.
+ 2.5 stone over nekked weight for me and that was summer wear (as per my avatar).Racing weight includes saddle riders boots/hat etc - which for a leisure rider will probably add 2 stone plus to bathroom scales weight.
B) they worked in the way that was best for them, they weren't subjected to what we think is biomechanically right, or had bungee's/draw reins plonked on them, or hauled into broken at the 3rd vertebrae and over bent outlines. (Sweeping statement).
There been some discussion about horses doing more work in olden times, but a bit over 40 years ago when I first got into horse owning any horse over 8 years old was described as "aged", the maximum value of a horse was between 8 and 10 years old, and once over 10 the value began to drop markedly as they were already considered to be old and a fair way to being worn out.
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I’m totally confused, there Are two of these threads running.
https://forums.horseandhound.co.uk/...-be-a-ceiling-ability-to-horse-riding.807230/
No, one is regarding weight and the other is regarding ability.
OK so I'm going to stick my neck out here and be prepared to be hated despite the fact that I'd like to think of myself as a fairly 'woke' person but if you ride a horse that you are too heavy for you are as abusive as someone who beats or starves their horse. How this weight to horse-carrying ability is calculated is subject to some debate depending on horse's type, fitness, saddle fit, rider ability and fitness and so on but I'm afraid that I don't subscribe to the view that everyone should be able to ride anything and anyone who offers criticism is politically incorrect. I'm afraid that to my mind the horse's welfare trumps anyone's 'entitlement' to ride. So kill me now.
I think there is a limit but not necessarily the 20% thing a 500kg highand pony this short back, short flat cannons, and a well muscled and slim body mass could easily carry more than 100kgs a 500kg tb with underdeveloped frame, long back badly set on neck and weak through the loin would struggle with that 100kgs. If a horse is obese it cannot carry a big rider as it is already carrying hundreds of kgs extra on its joints. Heavy horses may well be nearly a ton but they are not designed to carry but to pull so again would not be able to carry a heavy rider. I would estimate about 18 stone and a carefully selected horse built with strength and compact body, fully muscled and not fat would be my limit
Who would police this? How would they distinguish between the maximum weight for a Shetland and that for a Shire? Who would decide what a heavyweight Hunter could carry as opposed to a Maxi-Cob? Are we talking about RS horses, privately owned horses, show horses, police horses, cavalry horses?
There is no rule, guidance or anything else which suggests 20% is ok!
I will be so happy when I stop seeing this ancient army folklore from history being rehashed as if it was scientific data.
This is a question that we need to learn how to discuss without the emotion. For the welfare of the horse, if not the human. I say this as someone who battles with their weight, so I do know that it isn’t easy (for many people) to stay in a healthy BMI range. But to be blunt, some of the humans in the ‘looks too much’ combinations out there are not healthy.
To be in the healthy BMI range and weigh 100 kg, you need to be 6’11” or taller.
Anyone who rides needs to consider:
their weight - basic ratio to the horse (allowing for tack)
their build and BMI - what size saddle do they need to fit comfortably
their height and length of limbs - what size do they need to place limbs in best place
their fitness and balance - if unfit or poorly balanced need to be lower weight ratio to horse (as in 10% rather than 15%)
Their ability and what they want to do - can you ride a horse in the optimal frame, is the horse the right type, age, fitness to do what you want etc
the age, stage and training of the horse
if any of these are not optimal, then that will reduce what a horse can (should?) carry.
There are lots of activities where your size, shape and weight affect your ability to take part, and they don’t involve the welfare of an animal. For example,
sea kayaking - most closed kayaks wouldn‘t fit people who are obese, and most top out at 300lbs before they sink!
skydiving (18 st)
cycling (many top out at 100-120 kg)
climbing (advised to Boulder until you have a better height/weight ratio)
So I really don’t get why we treat equipment better than a live animal. I’ve been personally struggling with some of the images on Facebook recently. People in saddles that are way too small for them, people who are too heavy on a wee spindly legged horse. Just not right.
Either I am seeing double or is this post posted twice by two separate people?! ? ?