TB's whats your view?

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tinker88

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Hi,

I normally HATE TB's. I ride a few and apart from the odd one, or the odd re-trained show horse they are not my cup of tea.

But im getting to like a few more (old age!) lol. and im considering taking in a 4yr old that needs time off for a tendon injury, but he seems fab. Id like to do ROR classes and showing

So whats your thoughts?

I always think they are more hassel than worth with feeding them up, then they go nuts, bad feet, think skin, fine legs etc..... my list goes on.

thoughts people?
 
Ummm I have mixed views. As a rule I find them a pain in the ass to keep weight on in winter, they are stressy, and can be a bit hyper, and have cr*p feet.
But then I know a couple that live off fresh air, have amazing feet, sane and sensible and generally happy chappies....so go figure!
 
Mine costs me £40 a month in hay (over winter) and about £10 a month in hard feed, he’s barefoot and has been for 18 months, he’s had one vets call out since I’ve owned him that only cost £80. He can be stressey but on the whole defies his age and breed.

He hasn’t always been like that, when I first met him he was underweight and I vowed I would never buy him because he moved so badly!
 
I hate breed stereotypes. With a passion!
There is good and bad in EVERY breed, ones hard to keep weight on, with crap feet, sharp and spooky etc. But there is also good doers, sane, sensible etc.
Why cut your nose off to spite your face by "hating" Tb's when there could be one perfectly suited to your needs just around the corner?!! :D

Last mare (ex racer) was only shod in front, lost 3 shoes in 3 years, one a year! Which I don't think is bad going at all. Wintered on fresh air, generally sane and sensible, had complete novices and children ride and lead her. She was a gem! I think in 3 years she cut herself that we had to get the vet out once. And at that the YO forced me to get the vet out when in my opinion it wasnt needed (Vet agreed with me!!).
 
I bought a horse in the autumn, I was adamant that I was not getting a tb, I ended up getting an ex-flat racer, she's sharpe & spooky so wouldn't be suitable for a novice but she's proving to be pretty low maintenance.
She lives out clipped, she had a decent rug on in the snow & was fine, she is barefoot at the moment & was sound as a bell after a 2 hour hack (although we have to be careful to avoid too many stones). My partner has lost his job & is finding it very difficult to find another one so the shoes will have to stay off for the forseeable future.
She's not what I wanted at all but tbs are cheap so that's why I bought her, apart from being a tb she ticked all the other boxes & I'm pleased with her so I'm happy with my decision the break the no tbs rule
 
I just love em had my old boy from the age of 16 right up until he was 36 ex-racers nutty as a fruit bat but the manners of a saint it still pulls at my heart to think he'll have been gone 5 year on 6th July. If I could have swopped my arm for him to live I would have done it when he passed he took a huge chunk of my heart with him and I still miss him.
 
joeanne said:
Ummm I have mixed views. As a rule I find them a pain in the ass to keep weight on in winter, they are stressy, and can be a bit hyper, and have cr*p feet.
But then I know a couple that live off fresh air, have amazing feet, sane and sensible and generally happy chappies....so go figure!
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Like mine - barefoot, very laid back, only taking a bit more feed as trying to put weight on her (straight out of racing), non spooky and just a generally nice person to have on the yard.
 
I've just come in from the most amazing flat out galloping hack, I love my TB she is a super star. You can ride her on the buckle and she pulls up like a dream even when galloping and she's brilliant in traffic - what's not to love. I also had a 3 yr old TB when I was 13, she was wonderful too and I loved all our rides over the 20 years I had her.
 
I too find breed steriotypes very frustrating, my Tb is not difficult to keep weight on, and doesn't cost me an excessive amount to feed. His feet are improving with regular care from a good farrier and imo his lovely fine coat is a dream to look after year round as it doesn't require the same amount of grooming as a hairy even in the depths of winter and a good heavy weight rug is all that is needed to keep him warm and dry. Yes he is a little sensitive but he is also virtually bombproof on the roads and a very fast learner in the school.
A fellow livery and friend has recently bought a lovely looking coloured Cob which now appears to have a veterinary encyclopedia of skin and hoof complaints as well as a huge goiter in her neck and Combine that with the "typical cob bargy temprement" and issues of to hog or not to hog in the winter and I know that I am glad to have my boy. That said as earlier poster pointed out there are good and bad examples of all breeds.
 
I love them!!!!

They are affectionate, honest and very loyal cannot fault them, yes some of them dont do to well over the winter but with them right feed not a problem.

My last horse was TB and I loved him he was perfect my new horse part TB and just as great and honest.
 
We love ours- search my posts and you'll see exactly how often I sing his praises!!

He does need careful shoeing, he does eat a lot (although admittedly, most big 16.3hh horses eventing at 1m+ need a lot of food!) and he does need riding at least 4/5 times a week to keep him happy. BUT he lives out, he's got the most brilliant attitude to life and is an all round good egg. My mum hacks him- she's very nervous but happily takes him out. He nannies little children on their naughty 11.2hh ponies. He'll do showing, SJ, XC, dressage- whatever happens to be on that weekend with our RC. He's also got the most amazing jump, fab paces and is hopefully going to event at intermediate and beyond. Truly is the horse of a lifetime, and we all love him to bits.

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He's been entirely reschooled by my sister- she got him when she was 15, and she's just turned 17.
 
My tb that I bought in March but looked after her since November lives on fresh air. She takes hardly any hard feed (only a handful to get sups in) summer and winter. Her feet are ok. She lost a couple of shoes since November. But we just need to find out a good distance to get shod. As my last horse was every 7 weeks, but she seems to need done around 6 to keep her shoes on.
In winter she had a h/w rug on and she was lovely and warm and needed nothing else on.
She hacks alone and in company and never really spooks. She gets her head down and does everything I ask of her.
She goes to shows and doesnt bat a eye lid. Comes off non stressed and its like she still at home.
Whe out hacking you can gallop her and bring her straight back and then she will walk home not jogging or anything. There is nothing not to love about her.

But like previous posters have said you get good and bad examples of all breeds.
 
I have one, and he is the stereotypical ex-racer TB.

But I would never be without him! (although I did avoid TB's when buying my next one ;) )

He is difficult, but then I find a lot more pleasure when we get over his problems.

Although it took a few years, his weight is perfect, his feet are good - and when he is ridden he is the most behaved on the whole ride, while at the same time not being boring. I can do anything with him, and he has given me so much more confidence. He can be ridden by a novice happily plodding around - or will race around the X county course at 100MPH.

Even now he has retired he is still my special boy :)
 
I love my TB's, both are easy to do, fab feet, one is 20 this week and look like she is 4, lives on fresh air, perfect allrounder, my other one is 13, chestnut mare, she is loving, not bothered if she is in or out on her own, easy to keep and has fab feet, neither of them are a problem at all.........
 
I adore them and would never have anything else. I have worked in racing for many many years and also used to race ride so probably have an advantage in that as I pretty much know any "racing habits" they may have but I find them on the whole the most intelligent and loyal of all horses. I have many at my yard now and when someone popped around the other day they commented on what good feet they all had. This may be becuase I don't worry about there feet and as my farrier has also worked in racing yards he shoes them as to how they should be shod and not chop off half the hoof to try and get the foot more upright, this is where the problems start!!
 
They're not for everyone, they're often sensitive and intelligent making them very quick to learn - both good and bad! lol

I've found that less is most definitely more with them, the more subtle your cues when riding / handling the better the response, the more observant you can be with the information they're giving to you the better your bond will be.

It can take time to find a routine and diet that suits their individual needs but they're very rewarding, I have to remind myself to be patient when working with other horses that don't respond with the lightening reactions that my boy has.
 
Damnation said:
I hate breed stereotypes. With a passion!
There is good and bad in EVERY breed, ones hard to keep weight on, with crap feet, sharp and spooky etc. But there is also good doers, sane, sensible etc.
Why cut your nose off to spite your face by "hating" Tb's when there could be one perfectly suited to your needs just around the corner?!! :D

Last mare (ex racer) was only shod in front, lost 3 shoes in 3 years, one a year! Which I don't think is bad going at all. Wintered on fresh air, generally sane and sensible, had complete novices and children ride and lead her. She was a gem! I think in 3 years she cut herself that we had to get the vet out once. And at that the YO forced me to get the vet out when in my opinion it wasnt needed (Vet agreed with me!!).
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Well said
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I reschool ex racers fropm the trainers and they are all very individual as are all horses.

i think its sad that they are so stereotyped and therefore less desirable than other breeds when they have so much to offer.

try it out like you would any breed and make your decisions from there.
 
Generally considered a pain in the ass, but there are always diamonds to be found.

I had one, 16hh irish, chunkier type. Yes had pap feet and ate hay like it was going out of fashion, but taught me so so much, and was my horse of a lifetime. Also lived out 24/7 on a welsh mountain for 5 years with no ill effects!
 
maggiesmum said:
They're not for everyone, they're often sensitive and intelligent making them very quick to learn - both good and bad! lol

.....I have to remind myself to be patient when working with other horses that don't respond with the lightening reactions that my boy has.
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^^^agree^^^ and thats the reason why i lov'em and don't ride anything else these days.

Problem is that are often misunderstood because they are so intelligent and therefore they pick up the bad just as quickly as the good :rolleyes: In my experience any naughtiness is due to mis-communication, which is generally due to rider error ;)
 
Dab said:
^^^agree^^^ and thats the reason why i lov'em and don't ride anything else these days.

Problem is that are often misunderstood because they are so intelligent and therefore they pick up the bad just as quickly as the good :rolleyes: In my experience any naughtiness is due to mis-communication, which is generally due to rider error ;)
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stands up, applauds
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i had a ex-racer a couple of years ago and he was a lovely chap the only problem was he had underlying problems so had to have in PTS. After this i said i would never get a TB again and i did she's an absolute star keeps weight on a dream to ride i can leave her aslong as i want and then get straight on her and she doesn't put a foot out of place, happy to plod around the lanes on her own and is willing to give everything a go with passion. i think there are some TB's out there which have all of the described thin skinned, can't keep weight on etc but then you get the little gems who give there heart to you and just want to please you!!!! If you find the right one they can change your mind completely which is what happened to me!!.
 
cuppatea said:
Well said
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*Blushes* thank you :eek: :D
It is just one thing that drives me around the bend is breed and gender steriotyping!

My first ever share horse was a 17 year old ex racer, gelded at 9, raced til 12, no real schooling. I was 15 and my friend was 15.

That horse was as safe as houses. Had the odd shy but I could gallop around the field, but the second I sat up he very polietely came back down to a nice canter. Same in company.
He then went on to be a 14 year old girls first horse.

Yes he was a poor doer, yes his feet were god awful (but that wasn't his fault, think previous owner shod him herself with his old shoes and house nails!! :eek:) but worth every penny for safety, confidence and fun!!!

Hes alot more sane then my Warmblood is!! (Shes only half tb ;))
 
They really are SO different it's hard to stereotype. We've had 3 ex racers and they are all totally different.
My first one flat bred mare, she was a stressy thing with thin legs and feet like tissue paper. She was genuine though, I had her 5 years and never fell off her. I had amazing fun doing everything imaginable, sponsored rides, beach rides, dressage, BSJA the works. She wasn't easy but she was sound, she didn't need many rugs, ate haylage and at the most a scoop of mix. She was a cow to shoe and needed reshoeing every 5 weeks but despite her thin feet she was never foot sore and wouldn't often loose shoes.

Current one is totally different! He is VERY laid-back and easy to do, honestly you can take all the horses away and leave him on his own and he couldn't care less. You can change his routine, leave him in or out or whatever you want and he never ever stresses. Other horses shout and pace their stables, he sleeps!
He has good strong feet, shod every 6 weeks and I just forget about his feed. He needs rugging up a bit more then the other one. He eats lots of haylage and hay but no hardfeed. A token feed in the summer and a scoop of fibre based feed in the winter, not exactly breaking the bank! He's uber chilled to ride, will plod around most places but when something spooks him he can be razor sharp! Weird because my the one above, my late mare was fizzy and would bounce everywhere but not really 'react' so to speak. This one will be ambling along and suddenly woo hoo!! Then go back to ambling again.
He's super brave and fun to jump, and he is fab at dressage, he does any job really well.

My mums one is different again! He's a typical chaser stamp, like Lolo's sisters horse but chestnut. He is very calm but likes his routine, he gets very stressy if his routine changes or he's left alone but otherwise he's easy. He's very chilled to ride, a bit too lazy sometimes and I know my mum finds that frustrating. They do BD and my mums trainer says Red is the most talented horse she has ever sat on (not bad for someone who's ridden for GB on WB's!) but also the laziest :(. He's safe though and they go hacking alone and little clear rounds and they do county ROR and he's always easy.

So 3 different horses, all ex racers! They are all so different, I always think if you have a half decent seat and a bit of common sense then you will be fine with a TB! You will love them. It's surprising how many people do not have those 2 qualities though and that's where problems arise.

Also choose carefully as you get gooduns and baduns :).
 
tinker88 said:
Hi,

I normally HATE TB's. I ride a few and apart from the odd one, or the odd re-trained show horse they are not my cup of tea.

But im getting to like a few more (old age!) lol. and im considering taking in a 4yr old that needs time off for a tendon injury, but he seems fab. Id like to do ROR classes and showing

So whats your thoughts?

I always think they are more hassel than worth with feeding them up, then they go nuts, bad feet, think skin, fine legs etc..... my list goes on.

thoughts people?
Click to expand...

Do it, do it, do it...... you won't regret it.

I know what you mean about more hassel, but then you can say that about any horse. My mare eats haylage like it is going out of fashion but is on minimal hard feed, has only seen the vet for routing stuff for the last 3 years, is as sweet as they come and seems to be able to turn her hoof to anything with out any bother.
 
the noblest and finest horse, the king of horses, made in England - English Thoroughbred, the envy of the world
 
Damnation said:
*Blushes* thank you :eek: :D
It is just one thing that drives me around the bend is breed and gender steriotyping!
Click to expand...
same here, i have gotten so fed up of writing the same thing to these threads that i dont bother anymore and just put smileys when someone else does the work and writes it down!
Maybe i should type up a pre-worded paragraph and just copy and paste it every time someone tries to stereotype TB's......
 
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