What's most important in a competition horse...

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KatB

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Movement and talent? Attitude? Looks?
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IMHO - talent and trainability. There's nothing more frustrating that something super talented who is simply not interested...

ETA: confo is assumed! If its built wrong, it will break. Even more frustrating....
 
Trainability first for me, then talent/technique, then confo. I don't really care if it's a nice person or not - my horse is miserable as sin but he does the job and is a joy under saddle, and I have the cat as a usless but soft and cuddly pet - the horse has to earn his keep!
 
Trainability and attitude absolutely top of list!!!!! My bay mare had all the talent and scope you'd ever need but hated the job, she was a hard lesson learnt. Talent and technique second and then confo. Some confo point more important than others with feet being absolutely most important!!!!
 
HONESTY first of all.
Smart but not naughtily smart
Consistent temperament
Good confo nothing flashy
Stamina
Willing to work and enjoy it

Probs alwasy go for a tb or tbx just coz I prefer their looks and temperament, not keen on big bulky warmbloods, but a nice straight fwd ISH like coolgrange merger he would be my ideal, oh and ALWAYS A GELDING!
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attitude
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i love to have that important bond with my horse, and i simply will not buy a horse that is bad tempered and agressive.
i like them to be sweet natured and affectionate.
 
Attitude, ability, and assuming basic conformation is ok, then stunning looks and movement. In that order. I have had super talented horses that can't/won't perform on the day and that is so much more frustrating that my mum's horse who tries her hardest every time, and has succeeded the talented, more capable horse because of her attitude. Must add that I would never in a million years have bought her, and it took 6 mobths of nagging for me to actually even ride her
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agree with others..
trainabilty is a big thing, horse has to be willing to learn and love his/her work!
talent for the relevant level of sport you wish to compete in..
well put togther is obvious, not perfect (who is!) but strong enough to cope with what is expected of him/her..

IMO personality is down to the owners preference, some can cope with a horse that is a bit of a grump but others will want one they can bond with and cuddle etc!!
 
Trainability is top of the list for me, Frankie isn't super talented but he is very trainable and always tries his hardest to please. Followed by Movement, Conformation, temperment and looks come last.

Saying that I wouldnt buy a horse I didnt like the look of or on with conformation that might cause issues at a later date, Its a pretty fine balance!
 
Enjoyment of the job.

No matter how trainable/ well bred/ or talented a horse is if there heart is not in the job or they dont enjoy it they will never go far and if you event it would probably be dangerous to force them...

well, thats in my humble opinion anyway.
 
Attitiude right there at the top! If they're willing to work then even the less talented will achieve more than the most talented that doesn't want to know
 
I am half heatedly looking for a 2/3 year old so this is front of mind for me. I think there's a limited amount you can tell about trainability, braveness and ability even with a backed horse in an hour. I accept you can form a first impression and that you can tell if it's a definite no (nappy etc) but unless it's a naturally outstanding horse then very often those traits emerge with time and are created by your management.

So I am looking for ayoung horse that I like as a person. That has a good response to me, is outgoing and friendly. I am critically looking for perfect or near perfect limbs and feet.
To complete the package I want short coupled and built uphill - I've had enough of watching horses get 10% more because they are naturally in the right frame, and like wise for movement. I want a horse with a great walk and significant overtrack.

Not much to ask I don't think........
 
attititude and desire to do its job first very closely followed by talent and good conformation goes without saying really. I've got one stunning and very talented horse who really would prefer to just stay at home and doesn't really appreciate being dragged out to shows so puts in minimal effort to avoid being told off but not have to do any of those pesky jump offs or anything silly like that. The other one is a little cobby pony with big feet that tries his heart out and his stud guard is battered after every round, he's quite talented for a pony but he has been known to attack previous owners and can't ever be kept with a mare. For a pure competition horse i think people will put up with quirks as long as it all comes together on the day, i think basically you need a horse that wants to please, has the ability to do so and will stay sound and healthy, looks and nice temperment are bonus' but probably add to the price too
 
Athleticism - movement, jump, gallop, "spring" and manoeuvrability

Attitude - willing, brave, quick thinking, good concentration, enjoys the job, generous, rideable, trainable

Toughness - physical, but also mental, if the going gets tough you want a horse that doesn't quail but rather rises to the challenge with relish! I would rate this over ideal conformation - some really tough horses are not always classically put together and if they have the athleticism to do the job then you can hardly complain!
 
As an amateur I think temperament & conformation come first. I don't want a talented horse if it's ill tempered or crazy. I want an enjoyable ride before/after work. I agree that trainability is important but you can't easily tell that in a young horse.
 
Attitude... I've seen a few horses now in my life which have the 'x' factor. Especaily when I was working at competition yards for a few big names, there were only a few, what I call professionals horses and the rest were very nice amatures horses. Only a few had that pressance about them. I knew Jesse was exciting because of his temperment, bold, confident, quick learning and clever. Now as a three year old he's starting to prove me right! Having loose jumped him a few times he's straight away got it, it's a brilliant game in which the aim to to leave all the poles up and so he effortlessly pops over without a care. However Jesse can switch from Mr cool to Mr Excited quite quickly so I'm going to have to work hard to tame that side.

I think the most important (and hardest) lesson I learnt was 'TALANT ISN'T DOLICE' thats not to say if somethings not dolice it's talanted!! Only if it's a super firey, powerful horse that eats up those huge fences or expresses and impresses differcult dressage movements then it's not going to be sweet as pie to ride and handle. I think shutterfly is the perfect example. I found this hard because I thought it was just about having a decent horse and sitting pretty, well after riding a few I know there bloody differcult to ride!!
 
bucking the trend here but confo not a major issue for me - SGO has pretty cr*p confo, but is an awesome competition pony. This is the first time in 5yrs he's had time off due to leg [he's level, just torn muscle
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]. He's pigeon toed, has splints on both front legs, dishes slightly but other than that he's good - head / neck / shoulders all good, well let down, good depth of chest.

other than that it's brain, talent, willingness, character [i like them with a character], bravery, and trust.
 
Trainability and attitude for me, then confo. If the horse wants to do the job and has the right attitude for it, technique can be improved (as can be seen from my post yesterday!) as long as the conformation allows.

Have had horses in the past that had all the ability in the world, but couldn't be bothered to use it and it is the most frustrating thing ever! Have also had a horse that had plenty of ability and loved his job, but he wasn't very trainable and was a pain in the a*rse at shows and it really did take the enjoyment out of it for me as an amateur.

Oh, and they have to have a pretty face!
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Attitude and the ability to do the level I want. I've had the most fab horse, with brilliant attitude, but he couldn't jump newcomers.

Also now I would want one that is going to be competitive - I don't want a horse that will always go double clear if it means I'm never going to get placed.
 
For me it would be jumping talent and attitude to his/her jumping, trainability on the flat and yes, to a certain extent, looks
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My mum has always said i'm a snob when it came to horses, I'd never try anything that was butt ugly
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-attitude
-conformation
-scope

as i tend to buy youngsters i have put conformation above scope (talent) because if they aren't what i want then they are far easier to sell on if they look right.

i may accept a horse without great conformation if it was older and had proved that it was a tough horse despite bad conformation.
i have done this a few times with horses that were 8 or 9 as imo, they were unlikely to suddenly go lame through a conformation problem
 
The only way I could afford a horse with a good attitude and a good amount of scope/ ability was to compromise on looks and, to a certain extent, conformation.

When looking at unbroken horses I like to see inquisitiveness, I like to watch them face something new (eg walk over a pole) and I like to watch them move free if possible- they must be free through the shoulder with an active hindleg- if they are then they should jump.
 
Hard to describe not really the attitude but the want, the want to please and happiness to work, my little Welshie has blown me away you wouldn't say he has scope and talent to look at but he has and this has taken time and patience and now he turns himself inside out to not touch a pole, he tries his socks off on the flat learning new things, he is just so willing and honest jumping things he's not seen before, he likes to please and that is lovely to sit on.
 
I would go with Honesty too. If its honest it will always try even if its not quite as talented (funny, honesty is the main thing I look for in a man too!)
I think confo is more important than some other people think, dont want it to break and I want him/her to last long time!
I also like joie de vivre - If a horse enjoys life and is interested in whats going on I think its going to enjoy work and learning.

However im just an amature, what serious people want may be different!
 
Interesting post, Kat
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And it just shows how different people have different priorities depending on their own level of skill/experience/ambition etc. I don't believe there is a "Right Answer" in general terms, only a right answer for a particular individual in a particular situation
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For myself, I wouldn't be a million miles from Daisycrazy's shopping list, reproduced below...

"Athleticism - movement, jump, gallop, "spring" and manoeuvrability" - my variant here would be it's the jump I look at first, second and third: "spring" and technique esp. front leg. If it's a baby I wouldn't be too worried over dangly toes but really need them to get their forearms up to horizontal naturally. Movement needs to be athletic and springy for me but not extravagant, and the gallop I'm less worried about as most horses (IME) can learn this at least to the extent I need them to.

"Attitude - willing, brave, quick thinking, good concentration, enjoys the job, generous, rideable, trainable" - I don't mind a few quirks but that's just me
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But I can't stand it if they are piggy/slow-witted/backward-thinking. It's the quick-thinking, inquisitive ones I think make the best horses - but they can also be pretty challenging to train
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"Toughness - physical, but also mental, if the going gets tough you want a horse that doesn't quail but rather rises to the challenge with relish! I would rate this over ideal conformation - some really tough horses are not always classically put together and if they have the athleticism to do the job then you can hardly complain!" - I agreee wholeheartedly with this, but there are a few major no-nos for me eg back at the knee and toes majorly turned out.
 
It is all immaterial IMO if you dont click with the horse!!
Then
The heart and want to do the job, yet i bought a nappy cow!!
Talent, if they cant do it naturally its an uphill battle.
that something special, you cant really name it, but when you 1st see the horse move/jump etc does it make you look twice.
Toughness/soundness, are they up to the job you want, doesnt always mean they have fab conformation though.
Brain, they have to have the brain to cope with what we throw at them.

Having said all that, can/will go out the window if it is priced to allow!!
 
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