At 03:49:20 on 01.07.10, kibby wrote:
I don't know about you guys but i've noticing a lot of people getting bigger and bigger horses.. like 12yr olds on 16.2hh.. Now personally i don't think you need to have horses so big when you are that age.. and height isn't that important.. i mean i am 18 about 5'9" and i ride a slight 15.2hh stock horse.. we still give the big warmbloods a run for their money.. sure i am looking for something with a bit extra height but that is so they will be able to carry me easier, i was offered a really nice big grey warmblood to look at but at 17.1hh and only 3 yrs old, i knew that horse would keep growing. I would have no hope of controlling that thing if something went wrong.. but hey these are my opinions, i want yours..

At 04:36:05 on 01.07.10, bazz94 wrote:
hmmm i can't say too much about this- I was twelve when I got my horse but we were told that he was roughly 15.2.. ended up being 16.1hh!! but we weren't concentrating on the height- we were more thinking of what type of personality etc. but I realise some kids get these horses because of their height for jumping etc. and to compete seriously- a 14-15hh can clear 3ft if given the right love, attention and encouragement, i think it's a bit of laziness in that case. But then again 12 year olds are getting taller these days!

At 20:38:31 on 01.07.10, ToriSilverson wrote:
i havta agree kibby, i think children move on to horses to young under the misguidance that they will jump bigger. theres this wee guy i see at shows all the time, hes barely 5' and hes on a 15'2 tb type horse. he struggles to get over 60cms because he cant jump a horse he just points and kicks. he fell of the last time i saw him and a woman got on (i pressume it was his mum) rode the horse properly and jumped easily, it was a different horse. when my cousin was in the pony club, the team was made entirely of ponies around 13hh. they would go to shows and jump courses well over a metre really well, meanwhile other teams had horses but couldnt handle them.

At 11:10:39 on 02.07.10, kibby wrote:
i wasn't on my first big horse till about 15.. 15.3hh so not even huge.. but oh well, cant tell people what to do..

At 19:05:46 on 02.07.10, ToriSilverson wrote:
yea ino. when i started getting too big for romany (i was about 15) i showjumped pepsi a 15'2hh tb mare, then i loaned a 14'2 for 6months, still showjumping pepsi every now an then. the owner took the 14'2 back so i rode pepsi while looking for a new horse, and 2months later got charlie whos 15'2hh. :) it was a nice transition from pony to horse and pepsi definately taught me haha if i did anything wrong she wouldnt jump 4 me, picture below i stayed on but touched the jump with my hand :D

At 12:25:35 on 06.07.10, Flicka wrote:
I definitely prefer something smaller-in fact I keep meeting clients with fab ponies and feel like downsizing even more lol!! I was watching some show jumping the other day and all the horses were huge-I reckon people think the jumps will look smaller from the back of a 17h+ horse. But I reckon there's nothing better than a little 'un with a good pop in it! I also wrote for a dressage judge at Pony Club a year ago and was surprised the size and quality of the horses the kids were on-bit different to when I went-we were on real odds and sods-think it's got a lot more serious and competitive now. Mmm the thought of parents buying ex-racehorses for their kids because they are dirt cheap is scary :0

At 13:36:08 on 06.07.10, kibby wrote:
I had a thoroughbred before the two i have now, was an ex-racer.. She came off the track at age 4, she wasn't too good at her job, and was given to a high level show rider called called Gina Beck to retrain and sell on, She was there for about a month when a lady saw wanda at a show. she saw how lovely she was going for Gina and bought it for her thirteen yr old daughter, to take her to the royals.. Needless to say it was a disaster, the girl lost all her confidence and wanda sat in a paddock unused for about 5 years.. Until we got the tip off from some friends about her and bought her.. It took a lot of time to bring the horse back to being ridable let alone being able to compete on her.. but i had the best time on her while i did and she is now at a new girls home making her just as happy.. Yes some kids can handle bigger horses and want them so they are more competitive.. But you have to match you horse to your riding ability.. My first two horses were what you would call geriatrics.. but they looked after me and mum knew i was safe.. from there we progressed.. slowly! and thanks to mums brains i have never lost confidence because of a horse. because i have always had a horse i could handle..

At 13:37:08 on 06.07.10, kibby wrote:
"never ride a horse smarter then you are" one of my riding instructors once said that too me..

At 14:24:24 on 06.07.10, Flicka wrote:
Damn-so that's where I've been going wrong:0

At 14:35:22 on 06.07.10, kibby wrote:
hahaha. i think there will be a few hard pressed to find a horse dunmber.. hehe.. not you of course flicka! :P