Young horses not making or overshooting the height you want...

Meowy Catkin

Meowy Catkin

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... or expect given the height of their parents.

Well I've suspected that my gelding will be bigger than his parents (both 15.1hh) and did think that he might just get as big as my chestnut mare who's 15.2 and a half hh. Well, he was standing next to her today on flat ground and his back end has had a growth spurt and is now level with her rump. He's not fully grown by a long shot. What are the odds that he's going to make 16hh... or more?

Oh rats - is there a 'don't grow taller' dance that I can do?
 
That is just typical, my old boy was meant to top out at 16hh what he actually made was debated by me and the vet for years but he wouldn't measure due to being a numpty! The vet thought 17hh and I said 16.2hh :p
My clydesdale has topped out at over 18hh (no idea of actual size as he doesn't sit under my measuring stick which finishes at 18hh) but yet they thought he would never ever make 17hh as was quite a little foal.
I am now interested to see where my yearling ends up, he is currently 15hh at nearly a year old. I am thinking 17hh as both his parents are around that height :)

How old is your gelding? I don't know if it is an old wives tale buy my family always used to stay if you geld them they get taller then if you leave them on... Though I don't know if this is true?!
 
On the other side of the coin, we have a gorgeous 13.3hh who was bred to make 15hh+, he's only little but really a small horse rather than a pony.
 
Faracat I think Felix is doing the same to us. Mummy was 15 hands, daddy is 14.3, the other full siblings are all around the same mark (I think Spud is one of the tallest at 15.1), grandparents the same, but there is one single line in the pedigree that is tall, and guess what, I think Felix has thrown to that line..... He's just turned four, still looks like a weed, and is marginally taller than bro already. My gut says he'll make 15.3ish. I've been collecting details of daddy's offspring for his Facebook page and they're all around the 14.2 to 15.1 mark apart from the odd freak 16 hander....who are coincidentally all very developmentally similar to Felix..... Darn that El Shaklan.....
 
If there is a dont grow taller dance, someone please teach me !

My 2 YO is standing somewhere between 15.3-16hds, id hoped she would make 16hds i dread to think what height she will make, on the other hand bought a filly at 3months old. This was was supposedly an investment, so need her to make 16.2. Filly has other ideas, and is just upto 14ds, now she is only 1 ( June), so does have time to grow, but i cant see her getting past 16hds

why cant they just do what we want
 
Mines about 14.2 at the moment, I think dads 15.2 and mum 14 so hopefully he will stop growing (he has just turned 3 and was looking rather 'leggy' in the field the other day) *please don't grow please don't grow* - Hes a section d and quiet a traditional type so don't want him any bigger now!!!
 
He's 4 and 2 months. This is him just after his fourth birthday - obviously immature.

283f00a6-46d6-4bba-a9ec-68a46128543e_zps80105753.jpg


E - I've just looked him up on allbreed to count how many times El Shaklan is in his pedigree... oh dear - its lots. :( Plus I misremembered and his sire is actually only 15hh. I have thought that he looks similar development wise to your boy. Oh dear we are doomed.

http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/taj+amir

Yes, he was gelded young.

Asha - I quite agree, we should be able to say 15.1 hh (or whatever you want) to the foal and they should oblige by growing to that. :D ;)

Maybe if we all do the dance it will work?

Maybe I should have sent the extra inches Millikins way?
 
My mum crossed her 15.1hh chestnut tb mare with a 14hh black welsh cob and got a 16.2hh dun! It turned out the mare was the runt of her family and the rest were 16hh+ and the cob was bred on dun lines.

A few of our shetties havent made their expected height,one has gone over. There's not really any rhyme nor reason to what they actually do!
 
I've tried every 'don't grow taller dance' going
My boy (wb x tb) was meant to make 16.2hh according to passport, dam 16hh and sire 16.3hh.
He's now 16.3hh as a 4yr old and with room to grow.
Not an issue for me but 16.2hh would have been a nice height.
 
Minstrel_Ted said:
That is just typical, my old boy was meant to top out at 16hh what he actually made was debated by me and the vet for years but he wouldn't measure due to being a numpty! The vet thought 17hh and I said 16.2hh :p
My clydesdale has topped out at over 18hh (no idea of actual size as he doesn't sit under my measuring stick which finishes at 18hh) but yet they thought he would never ever make 17hh as was quite a little foal.
I am now interested to see where my yearling ends up, he is currently 15hh at nearly a year old. I am thinking 17hh as both his parents are around that height :)

How old is your gelding? I don't know if it is an old wives tale buy my family always used to stay if you geld them they get taller then if you leave them on... Though I don't know if this is true?!
Click to expand...

My ID cross was 15 hands at 1 year old. He is now 17 hands at 3 and I don't think he has finished yet! Was expecting about 16.2 but I don't mind as he is gorgeous :)
 
Felix was gelded young too. After what happened to Spud his breeder decided nothing else was leaving her care with its balls so they all get the snip early.
 
One of mine kept string testing to make 16.2hh. He was a midget when he was born, easily the smallest foal we've ever had and in my own mind I did not believe for one minute he would make 15.2hh, let alone 16.2hh. Anyhow, he was hidden away in our back fields for all his young life, as he was my token yak and not on view to the public! Well he's now 3 years old ... and sticks at 16hh, so it looks like he may indeed make his 16.2hh. I'm floored to be quite honest lol!
 
S2M - 17hh at 3! *faints*

PP - don't say the dance doesn't work.... oh rats there goes my last hope! :(

That's interesting SF, i might string test him later. The elbow to fetlock method?

M - whatever we want the do the opposite just to be contrary it seems. ;)




EKW said:
My mum crossed her 15.1hh chestnut tb mare with a 14hh black welsh cob and got a 16.2hh dun! It turned out the mare was the runt of her family and the rest were 16hh+ and the cob was bred on dun lines.

A few of our shetties havent made their expected height,one has gone over. There's not really any rhyme nor reason to what they actually do!
Click to expand...

It does make sense to me (the colour, not the height thing), as the black Welsh was probably a smoky black, so carried one copy of cream which was passed on to the foal, giving a buckskin foal. :) Lovely... but very tall.
 
Faracat said:
It does make sense to me (the colour, not the height thing), as the black Welsh was probably a smoky black, so carried one copy of cream which was passed on to the foal, giving a buckskin foal. :) Lovely... but very tall.
Click to expand...


If she had looked into the colours of the grandparents she may not have got quite a shock lol! The foal was intended to be a 14-14.1hh black/bay Show Hunter Pony type for us kids to grow into - whoops! The best laid plans and all that!
 
My 3 y o has put on 2 inches since I bought her in April - she was 16hh and a midges ** when I bought her she is now 16.2 I thought she might make 16.2 fully grown but now I can't tell how big she'll be... As long as she doesn't outgrow the trailer to I'll be happy ...
 
EKW - did they grow into him with a bit more time? ;)

BNB - oh lord I hadn't thought about the trailer - it can take 16.2's so hopefully he wont get anywhere near that. *prays* as I'll never get a saddle on him if he gets that big. :(
 
I bought my youngster at 7 months to make 152-155cm (mum is 148cm and dad is 162cm). On his third birthday at the beginning of the month Blitz measured 159 at the wither and 162 at the croup :/

I string tested him about 3 months ago, which seemed to indicate he could grow another 3 ins yet :o which is rather scary tbh!
 
At old yard there was a 17.1hh Warmblood thing who was two nearing three. He was still bum high though. Absolute idiot to lead. He didn't realise his height and was all legs so would often stand on you.
 
My 6 yr old is out of a 15.2 mare. Her mother was 14.3, her father 16hh. His father comes from a line of 16.1ers.

When he was born he was tint. he could walk under his mum for nearly two weeks!

He is now a strapping 16.2+ and appears to still be growing. I, on the other hand am 5'2" and my other main riding horse is 14.1hh!
 
There's a full papered Connemara on our yard that came over from Ireland at aged 3, with the sellers admitting at the time he was going to go over height for a Connie. At 6 1/2 he's 15.3...
 
my yearling is 14'1 at the front and 14'3 on his bum with string test coming out at 16'2 - mom is 15'1 and dad was 15'3!!
 
My filly is out of a 15.3hh TB mare with plenty of bone, by a 16.1 German WB stallion. She has just turned 3 this week and only measures 14.3hh. Knee to coronet string test says she will be 14hh! so already over that one. String test from ergot to elbow says she has another 2 inches to go. I hope so as I'm 5'10". On the other hand we have a 2 year old that is already 16.2 hh and both string tests say he will end up 18hh. Dam is 16.1 and sire is 16.3. His owner is tiny!
 
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Sod the stop growing dance, I fear I'm too late to learn the keep growing dance! (Maybe for next time!?)
I have 2 'under height horses' (Maybe I've done it all wrong?)
TB x Sec D Mare.... Sire TB, 16.1 Dam Sec D 15.1 = my mare Meg, 14.3 1/2 (15 on high tip toes). Now 18 years old, growing dance long out dated!!
NF x mare, dam, NF 12.2, Sire ''to make 14.2, NF X 2yr colt'' = my pony, now aged 4 12.3. Sadly her lack of height has meant that she is sadly for sale as too small for me. Maybe, just maybe she may grow to 13h but - kids would have more fun!!

Equally, working with a rising 4 dutch warmblood, currently standing at at least 17 hands, and hes big with it. Hope he doesn't grow any more!! I look like a pea on a mountain!!
 
I did the string test and got the 16.1 result we had all anticipated, 3 years later lookign at 16.3 and still growing eek! Willing to do any don't grow anymore dance you can suggest!
 
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