Shire horses

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fine_and_dandy

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I can't quite believe I am doing this but...

Shire horses. Anyone got one/got experience of owning one.

What are they like temperament wise and to do in general?
What are they like as youngsters (how trainable) etc?
Is there anything you should look for in particular when looking at them as something to avoid/something that is a positive?

Just to clarify, OH and I have spoken about getting one at some point in the future and he has itchy feet. He has even been doing sums to make sure one is viable now, and it appears it is. It will be his baby predominantly and he wants to ride it at some point in the future (if is a baby will ahve lessons whilst it grows up).

He was talking about taking it to shows this summer - I quote - "We can take it to the Norfolk show!" I think his mum will have coronary - look what I've bought mum?!! She blames me for getting him interested in them as it is - how will this go down?!?!?

I'm still in a state of shock.
 
Fantastic!

I cant answer for Shires, but my horse is half clydesdale and a friend has 4 clydesdales. She started off with 1.

Warning, heavy horses can become addictive!
 
From the way he has been talking (looking for land etc) I get the feeling that it may spread.

He is talking about having a filly so she can show, be backed broken and ridden and breed from her too (although if we do end up getting one, I think I would cross her with a Warmblood, a Hannoverian possibly). He'll be big enough for them which is a bonus (6'4 and rugby build
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He saw pictures of them pulling drays and would like to learn to drive as well (I can drive) and wants to see it all in action at shows.

I still can't quite get my head round it.
 
A true shire is a joy to be around. Rarely sick or sorry, v low maintence but needs everything in big sizes= expensive! Unfortunatly a show bred shire is bred for height, often pigion chested stupidly leggy and poorly muscled. Could never do a days farm work. Show types can be a bit hot too, again not bred for work.

Previously all our carriage horses have at least had 1/4 shire blood and they were all sweeties who worked hard for at least 10 years for us.
 
I was wondering where you were Ezme as this ones right up your stable yard!! At the yard I used to work on there were 2 big boys - one was a Clydesdale and the other a Shire X - both were over 17hh were complete dopes on a rope and riding them was like sitting on a moving armchair! Very sweet natured - proper gentle giants. The kids would have been safer handling them than the devil ponies!! Hehe!
 
My favourite horse at college was nearly full shire. Absolutely stunning, I loved him to bits.
He was so gentle and kind, never ill, you could put any level of rider on him and he looked after me when I jumped him as I used to hate jumping.
So yes, I definitely recommend them, if I could I would buy Toby but they won't sell him, worth their weight in gold
Nickie
 
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I was wondering where you were Ezme as this ones right up your stable yard!!

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Glad to see I'm becoming (im)famous around these parts!

I would just like to point out, as a general heavy thing, they're not all dopes on a rope, there are a lot more "tricky" heavies than you'd think! Like I said the show ones can be a bit feisty.

Jess, he is georgous, just the sort I like. Bet he never goes wrong!
 
I don't have a Shire, but do have a full Clydesdale and a Vladimir (Russian heavy). They are 18hh and 17.3. Both have wonderful temperaments and they are very easy to do, handle, ride etc. Both have driven in the past. Everything is far more expensive than a "normal" sized horse - and much bigger
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- from the size of their stables to their rugs. They both take 60 inch girths
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, the Clydie takes 7ft 6in rug - but is such a toughie that he hasn't worn one all winter. He has fantastic feet, but he is shod all round and my farrier is a gem and only charges £75 a set (a lot of farriers charge £100). The only problem I have is that the Russian is now getting on a bit (20) and suffers quite badly from arthritis.
Be warned though - once your OH gets hooked, they'll be no stopping him
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I'm gona share with photo time, he's the magnus! Admittedly a good few years ago now doing cones with the old groom. He's 16.3hh at least 3/4 shire (has full feathering but its clipped off to match him to the others... and its easier!) and is 21 now and still teaching babies to be good carriage horses!
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edited to add: All the heavy breeds are prone to joint changes such as arthritus and DJD unfortunatly
 
Show shires and working shires are like two differant breeds.Show horses they prefer to have finer feathers than a coarser feathering of working horses.They prefer close hocked behind so they look abit like a tripod behind than a leg in each corner of a worker.They must be a solid colour for showing no roans or too much white higher up the legs (that they will tell you is a clydie same with the roan colouring).They are fantastic horses with a temprement to die for and will work all day for abit of grub at the end of it.Very easy to train in capable hands.This chap was a cracking stallion to put with the finer riding breeds but no good to breed show animals as he was too old fashioned to produce show horses.

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This is one of the aboves babies again to coarse to be a show horse.

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The dray horses.

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We bought a shire x tb just a few weeks ago for my partner who started riding in July! he has been totally taken by the bug as you can tell and was very quickly a good competent rider. Murphy is 16:1, obviously shire, but a winter coat that is less than mare's summer coat! I think he will grow and fill out a bit more, but is a lovely horse with a lovely temperament. We keep him at a farm with a shire x clydesdale who is just huge but actually only a couple of inches bigger than him, but she just looks totally shire and everything is on massive scale. My only worry is that she is so big that sometimes she seems to forget her size and will walk into and over things and barge without realising it. Murphy seems to have more of an awareness of where he ends, though feels far bigger than any 16:1 I have ever ridden or been involved with. His rugs aren't too bad as long as we get chest expanders, and even his head is only full size - shire to look at but in miniature! A fab man's horse.
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I've got one- had him for ten years now, as he came to us at nearly 2. He's brilliant temperament-wise, and always has been. I would say that is the most important thing- mine is very good with voice commands etc. They also vary a huge amount within the breed- mine is one of the bigger ones.

This is mine in his winter woolies, taken this afternoon after three months on box rest (the other one has had laminitis and refuses to be separated):

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One happy shire........!

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Happy to answer any questions if I can
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I've got a Shire x Tb (Shire dam, Tb sire).
She's black, leggy, and over-enthusiastic. She's not broken yet, but puts a lot of energy and verve into everything she does, but with no malice at all (I even walked her and grazed her in hand in a headcollar when she was box rested after colic surgery).
I don't actually know much about the breed - she acquired me, I didn't go looking for her
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, she was just an orphan foal I got involved with.
Four year old now, 16.3hh plus, weighs A LOT, and takes 7 foot rugs, with a larger than full size head.
S
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i have a shire filly, rising 5 now, black and my babe! She is very humanised, but was orphaned at 4 days old, so I excuse her. She needs a firm hand at times, but in my opinion, they need firm but very fair handling as babies, and you have to gain their respect, as well as they for you. A full grown arrogant pig in a shire takes some tangoing with!!!!
 
I didnt know a great deal about shires before we took on Barney as a 2 y/o, he is rising 7 now. At 18.2hh he is a big lad and is still maturing bodily and needs to fill out a little more.

As a baby he had a habit of coming into your personal space and with a shoe size of 8.5" you either have to sort that quickly, or learn to moon dance
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He is gentle to handle and soon learned to understand voice commands, i.e. to put his head down for bridle etc. He is still a little slow learning in the school as it takes his bum a second longer to catch up with his brain. He surprises most people who have the idea that Shires are plodders and should be pulling a plough, he is very forward going and light in the hand. He did used to trip alot when first backed but we put that down to him being a baby and unable to balance himself too well.

This is the boy, taken a year ago ...

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He is in a 7ft 3" atm but expected to grow out of that this year. I had his bridle hand made by a local saddler for around £60 and I have had great diffiulty in finding a saddle to fit.

This is him being hogged (he has sweetitch) which may give you a good idea of his size ...

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This was him two years ago, backed and beginning his education ...

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In a nutshell, Shires can make fantastic companions, Barney is very vocal, enjoys one on one attention and grows a hand when you tell him he's a good boy! Do let us all know what you decide to do.
 
thank you all very much!!

It is really interesting to hear about the differences of the showing shire and the working one, I wouldn't have known about that. I may be PMing a few of you for a bit more info so we know which direction to go in.

Loved all those pictures of them, absolutely goregous!
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shires have been bred very large over the years (imagine the farmers that used them would not want to have to use a stool to tack them up!)
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and they used to be closer in height to clydes and suffolks

your heavies are the slow thinkers and movers (they mull things over and do everything with gentle determination and a heavy sort of grace) they are peaceful and gentle and normally quiet.

nothing that big wants to do much in a hurry
 
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