Thinking of Buying a Horse- but You're a Total Beginner?

I think I was born wanting a horse. It seems to me that the mobile over my crib must have been ponies and I longed for a real one. Like most kids, I asked for the pony for Christmas and instead I got some stupid clothes. Most of my friends had pony dreams too, but as puberty came on most of them decide that clothes were cool and horses were stupid. Not me! I wanted to buy a saddle though I knew nothing about them. Every birthday wish was at least to rent a run-down stable horse for an hour of sheer joy.

If this sounds familiar to you, whether you are still young or well advanced in age (which at my age no longer means anything in particular,) then you may have this disease of horse-itus and you may be wondering if it can come true. The answer is YES- it can- though I hope by writing this article that I might save you from some of the pitfalls of new horse ownership.

I bought my first horse when I was eighteen years old and I had been lucky - or unlucky - enough to have taken one short course in beginning horsemanship. I DO advise a course like this although I don't think it means you cannot do well with a horse without an actual course. Of course, you won't be as foolhardy as I was. I assumed that having taken an eight week course in beginning horsemanship pretty much qualified me as an expert. I didn't know a darn thing about training. The phrase 'young horse' to me meant that it was a relative newborn that was fairly useless anyway. (I was very wrong.) The phrase "green horse" meant to me that the horse would be lively and exciting and give my eighteen-year old blood a good shot of adrenaline.

Before I get into that, I do want to say that I don't intend in any way to scare a newcomer to the horse world. Horses are wonderful creatures and can be a best friend, a therapist, and an exercise buddy. Beginners can tap into these things too. If you do start out with a fear of horses due to some kind of previous trauma or other causes, I would advise seeking some assistance with those fears before you embark on the purchase of a horse. Otherwise, though, if you are excited about having a horse- I hope that you'll take something good from my better choices and learn from my poor choices but still jump into the saddle, so to speak. Even 'small' horses are heavy animals and can be dangerous. They rarely ever want to hurt anyone. Horses are flight animals by nature and if they feel threatened they will run away before they will try to hurt anyone. But, that very act of running away can be dangerous if you are on the back of the horse and you don't know how to react. Also, some behaviors that people see as 'fighting' behavior such as biting or kicking are actually not fighting to that horse's brain. A horse learns like many of us do, by a process of reward and what we might call punishment. If a horse feels good and put his teeth on the owner in a sign of affection, the owner might see it as cute and encourage it. Horses can scratch each other on the back with their teeth and it feels just great, so if you encourage your horse to 'mouth' you it may decide to give you more pleasure by applying teeth with some pressure. That horse is not aware that your skin is much thinner than horse skin. If you react to that nip by giving the horse a little slap on the mouth, the horse may be confused and also become afraid of your hand. Pretty soon, you have a biter who is expressing confusing, and a horse that may be afraid to let you brush its face or put a bit in its mouth. I say all that at the beginning because you if you don't know much about horses and you want one, I'm the first person to tell you to research the right type of horse for you and give it a try! But, I will also be the first person to remind you that they are large animals with brains different from ours, and you'd do well to learn something about that either in a class or on your own before you buy a horse. You've also got to consider a variety of things. Will you pay to board your horse at a stable? Will you pay extra to have it fed and its stall cleaned? Will you buy land and try country life? (And yes, I struggled with some of these questions and learned some things, so you can also read my beginners article on country living if you wish.)

In my case, I went shopping for a first horse without doing much research beyond the half-attention I had paid in class. I wasn't a bad rider since the class had helped me in that area. But, I didn't know much about horse feeding, care, or psychology. I had decided to buy a horse of around two or three years old, though in my class all the horses I had ridden had been at least five. My thinking was that a younger horse would be more of a blank slate for me to write on, and besides that, it would be lively and fun to ride. I test rode several of these horses and I was surprised. I knew that most horses were only saddled for the first time near the age of two, and that at three that were often only what we might call 'green broke.' When I rode these green horses, I was surprised to find that not only were they sometimes lively and sometimes just the opposite, they rarely responded to the commands I had learned in class. A man who had a few horses for sale suggested that I try a six-year-old mare just to see what it was like. I thought it sounded boring, but I tried her out. She was easier to ride, still very lively, and she responded to commands much better. I was pleased, but I figured if she was so easy to ride I could forget about any of the safety measures I had been taught. I rode her in an open pasture on a chilly day and I left my feet hanging out of the stirrups and left her reins loose so I could just enjoy my ride.

The next thing I knew, the horses was startled by the rustling of a ski jacket worn by another rider and she jumped sideways. If I'd been riding as I had been taught: reins not tight but ready, feet in stirrups since I was in the field on a horse I'd never ridden, and paying attention… Well, I'd have been all right most likely. In my cavalier position I instead slid right off of the spooked horse and landed on my head and upper back. I felt absolutely stunned in every way. What happened? This obviously gentle horse had just jumped like any startled creature and my first fall landed me on pasture dirt as hard as concrete. I sat up slowly, feeling unwell and shaken. A friend ran to me and asked if I was all right. I said that something didn't feel quite right in my shoulder and maybe I'd dislocated it. I was a little relieved that it might be something so simple. I'd seen television - they just yank that arm and the shoulder pops in and you get back on your horse. My friend agreed and tried to help me up. I passed out.

Many painful dirt-road-bumpy miles later I was sitting in the Emergency Room wondering if they could hurry and put my shoulder back in so I could ride the next day. A little fear was there- but not too much. A nurse came and wheeled my chair to an x-ray room. Pain set in rather badly, but I was young and tried to pretend it away. Another nurse told me they couldn't give me pain medication until they were sure if I'd need surgery. I laughed. I wouldn't need surgery for a dislocated arm. Well, to make a long story short, I ended up with a collarbone broken in three places and the ligaments in my right shoulder so stretched that now (twenty-plus years later) it still hangs a little low. Now, this could happen to anyone. If you buy a horse, yes, it could happen to you. But I still believe that if I had done my homework a little better and been more into safety even on 'broke' horses, I might have avoided the pain and permanent injury that followed.

Of course, I was still back in the saddle soon, maybe too soon, but boy did I learn some things. I still wanted a horse of my own. So, I went looking for a nice stable horse that could be my teacher. I bought a little mare that was short enough for me to saddle well while my shoulder more fully healed. She was seven years old and well broke. She and I spent the next three years learning from each other. I also had the delight of finding out after I purchased her that she was pregnant, so I got two horses for the price of one and found out that you can learn so much from horses of any age.

I still ride today and I will do some training on difficult horses and by now I have owned a couple of young horses just at the breaking stage. But, I also learned that every day that I spend with horses, I know just a little less. They aren't human and as much as we love them and anthropomorphize them, they don't think or behave like humans. If we treat them too much like humans or like pets or other dogs; we get into trouble.

So, if you are a total beginner to horses and you still want one, pursue that dream! I've never been sorry. Before you do, though, read the good horse magazines and get some books by some of the great current trainers out there. I learned so much from Monty Roberts books when I was most into training. Learn about horse feed and what can go wrong with your horse. Learn about colic. Make sure you can afford either boarding or some land. Make sure you can de-worm them or pay a vet to do so. Check on prices for having their hooves trimmed or shod and find out how often it needs to be done. Learn the basics. If you can't take local class in beginning horsemanship, do go rent some horses just for saddle time. And, especially if you can ride much before you buy a horse, get an experienced horse person to go with you and look at your potential purchases. If you haven't ridden much at all, consider buying a horse of at least twelve years old and one that is well trained and has been ridden regularly. Get an experienced friend to ride the horse and give you an honest opinion.

With those thoughts, I'll leave you to dream of a canter along the beach for now, and I'll try to work on some more thorough articles about what to look for in horses, etc. You'll also find some other great horse articles right here on Associated Content so do some searching. Happy Horse Dreams!