Things to consider when purchasing a horse

If your ready to purchase a horse for yourself or your child please make sure that you get the right horse for your ability and needs. If you fail to do this you and your horse will be at risk for an injury. Here is a list of things to think about and or do:
1. where will I keep my horse
2. how will I provide food, water and shelter for my horse
3. what type of riding will I be doing
4. what equipment will I need
5. what size horse do I need
6. how do I know if the horse is right

I would like to make a few comments about the 6 items mentioned. Hopefully this will help you find the right horse for you.

Where will I keep my horse:
There are several options to consider for this. You can board a horse. This is where you pay someone to let you keep your horse on their property. These services can be a full service stable where they do everything for your horse to just a place to keep them and you do all the feeding and care. You can pasture a horse in your own pasture at least a couple of acres per horse. You can keep a horse in a barn with a small running area for exercise. Regardless keeping a horse is not cheap. They need to have shelter, pasture and an area to exercise.

Providing food for horses can be done by several methods. A horse can do just fine with a good pasture area with little other added feed. Most areas have periods when the pasture is not good such as late summer when the grass is burned up or winter when it dies off. Other feeding methods are hay, grain and alfalfa tablets. Hay can be fed by round bales which are put out and the horse eats it as they wish or feeding it daily by square bales. Remember you have to store square bales to keep them dry so they do not mold or large round bales that can be stored outside but need a large area to keep them. You can use alfalfa tablets in place of hay which are easier to store and feed but are expensive about $12.00 per bag. You can grain a horse with a sweet feed usually 12 % protein. Horses are a grazing animal and do better if they can get access to feed throughout the day. Also they do better eating from the ground which is more natural to the way they are designed to eat.

Type of riding:
There are a wide variety of riding venues but if you are new to the equestrian world you first need the basics. First you need to look at the 2 different types of riding. Will you be riding English or Western. Both of these types of riding require different types of equipment and styles of riding. Within each of those is a variety of options. First you need to decide if you are going to choose a faster horse or a more laid back type of horse. 

Type of horse:

Second you need to understand the conformation of the type of horse you want. With this in mind you should find someone that can assist you that is knowledgeable and understands horses. If you do not know anyone that could assist you, I recommend contacting your local 4-H extension office for names of horse group leaders or organizations in your area. They should be able to offer some assistants.

Things to consider are:

age

feet

condition

teeth

health including vaccines and worming

Equipment:

Type of equipment varies by the type of riding. You will need basic grooming supplies, saddle, bridle, blanket or pad, halter and lead line and a lunge line. You can look at my horse show check list to see additional information. You can purchase used equipment at a much more reasonable price.

Size of the horse:

Horses and ponies vary in size. When choosing a horse or pony you need to consider a few things. How long will you be riding. This is important because if you plan or riding for many years you want to choose a horse that will fit you in the future. In that case you might want a younger larger horse or pony. It depends on you, your comfort level and the horses behavior. If you are new to riding an older horse or pony that is calm and well trained might be the better place to start.

How do I know it's the right horse:

First of all, don't buy the first one you see or the cheapest. Make a budget for what you are looking for. Make sure you physically see the horse. Gently pet the horse all over including its ears and belly. Pick up the feet and inspect them. Lead the horse around and if possible ride the horse to see how it responds to you. Ask about the horses vaccines and wormer. When was the horses feet last done. Does the horse pull away from you or offer its head quietly. In the end it is a gut feeling. I tell you sometimes a thin horse that has good feet and attitude will make a wonderful ride.