numpty question - what breeds can carry 16 stone?

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SarahK

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will be buying horse soon
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to share with my 5ft3 friend, i am 5ft8 so we have agreed around the 15.2hh - 16hh mark would be ok.

however said horse must be able to carry my 6ft and 16 stone sister once a week.

is there any limitations on what breeds can carry that much weight? would quite like an ISH but would one be ok to carry that amount of weight if its not that chunky?

sorry to sound like a numpty but we have always had cobs so weight has never been an issue before!
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well any chunky stamp of a horse, traditional cobs/coloureds, welsh cobs section D's (full up), but probably a good chunky hunter should do the trick.....in my opinion.
 
We have a 16hh heavy weight cob and he carries 16 stone with ease. He's supposed to be an IDx but no papers and he really looks like he has a bit of Suffolk Punch in him.

Sorry Helenhorse but I would imagine a Section D to be around 14.2hh which doesn't seem big enough for a 6ft, 16 stone person (just the height alone would make the weight distribution awkward), but perhaps I am wrong.
 
The thing is, we wanted something slightly less chunky. Like an ISH or similar and was wondering if a not so chunky horse around 16hh can carry the weight ok?
 
It depends if she is a 16 stone balanced rider or a 16 stone unbalanced rider.
Most decent sized horses can carry 16 stone.

I am a heavy rider and have had my horse 13 years. He is a hunter type. Tall 1/2 TB type. He hasn't collapsed of exhaustion yet. LOL
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Sorry I would say no, but you may want to look at the rider on the specific horse to decide.

This is Cakey who was bought for my OH who is 6ft and weighed 16 stone at the time.

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A solid 16hh who's a proper weight carrier (not all about bone - good back conformation: short-ish back, wide, strong loins, wide ribs cage etc) should carry 16st without too much effort ( I don't think ANY horse finds 16st of novice rider easy to carry!). I wouldn't put 16st on anything very TB'y though unless it was a good 16.2hh+, or anything that has high withers, narrow loins or a long back.

You also need to think carefully about the saddle. 16st of rider squashed into a 17" saddle will damage the muscle as it's just too much pressure under the panels. You'd need to have an 18" saddle at least (and at 6ft, the rider will find anything smaller than an 18" too small)

Do also consider your sisters ridding ability. If she is a complete beginner you can add at least 2st more onto her 'riding weight', as she'll be unbalanced and wobble about. A beginner rider is REALLY difficult for a horse to carry, esp a tall one.
 
My 17 hand IDxTB (but reckon he only got a sniff of the TB bottle!) can carry virtually any weight with ease. My pal at old stables who had medical condition induced weight issues and was pretty heavy, loved him cos her boy was retired and she got to take our boy out regularly without worrying about squashing him.

She might have been about 18 stone tho she was a good and balanced rider. She did sponsored rides and shows and all sorts.
 
I would imagine a Cleveland Bay could carry that weight, though pure breds are rare I believe.

Pure Bred Irish Draft also, and they're not always massively chunky and have plenty of scope for fast work.

There's no upper height limit for Welsh Sec D's so although you can find the odd one over 16hh, the larger ones are usually around 15.2hh. I don't know what weight they can carry, I guess it depends on the bone.

I think heavy weight (show) hunters have to be able to carry over 14stone in weight, so something of that stamp would do.
They wouldn't necessarily be a pure bred anything, more like a ID x TB, CB x TB, Cob X TB, that sort of thing. Or Shire X TB makes a good stamp of horse, though maybe a bit tall for what you want?
 
oooh forgot to mention, the IDxTB tank has an 18 inch saddle too, and its not too long for his back, so theres room for sitting comfy too, which is important for weight distribution etc.

here he is (the fencing is 6 foot so hes bigger than he looks! ears are pricked at the Hercules transport plane just out of shot
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Dont mean to post steel, but is there a way to calculate how much a specific horse can carry?

I think rider weight also depends on what the riding is wanting to do, eg hunting once a week is very different to a 20 min hack on good ground.
 
An easy and fairly accurate measurement is 20% of their HEALTHY (i.e not obesely over weight - it's what they SHOULD weight in healthy condition) body weight, to include tack and rider.

Works out well and takes into account their build. Goes up to 25% with a very fit, well put-together horse who used themselves well, with an expereinced, fit rider who's not too tall, and down to 15% for a fat, unfit horse or bad conformation (i.e sway back etc) or an unbalanced, novice or overly tall rider.
 
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We have a 16hh heavy weight cob and he carries 16 stone with ease. He's supposed to be an IDx but no papers and he really looks like he has a bit of Suffolk Punch in him.

Sorry Helenhorse but I would imagine a Section D to be around 14.2hh which doesn't seem big enough for a 6ft, 16 stone person (just the height alone would make the weight distribution awkward), but perhaps I am wrong.

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no full up section D's can reach 16hh+ like the maesmynach cobs, we have a sec D gelding 16hh that takes our father(16st5) out hunting every season!
 
Highlands can carry dead stags across the moors and because they are so wide, they are good for tall riders!

I am a fan of Clydesdale x TBs too.
 
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