Gun Dog Forum

Alright, I need a horse. I'd like to scout some potential studs for Moxy, run some horseback stakes and ride in galleries to get some FT education. Thing is, I haven't dealt with horses in about six years. I used to live just down the way from my aunt who trained horses and she taugh me quite a bit, but I never learned a thing about maintenance or upkeep. I have no doubt I could handle a horse and could afford a non-field trial horse, but there's a catch-22 here. I can't afford a highly trained, dog-conditioned horse, but that's a must for trialing/training. On the other hand, I can afford a horse, but it's going to be a basic broke gelding with not much experience.

Alright, enough rambling. Let me ask, does it take a seasoned professional to bring on a trial horse or can someone with common sense and experience in training animals do the job?

Common sense goes a long way with a level headed horse.Good luck

If you put the word out at trials you might get some good leads on a FT-experienced horse for not much money. I paid less for one of ours from an ol' pointer boy than the for the non-FT one I got locally, and didn't have to mess with all the training.

Don't forget to budget for tack, a vet/farrier fund, barn/fencing, a trailer, and a truck to pull it with. It's expensive to start, but once you have the basics it's not so bad.

Good luck with your search.

Thanks, guys. I got a PM telling me the number one piece of advice is to not be in a hurry. I think that's good advice. I'll start asking around.

I know little to nothing about what it takes to be an FT horse, but I have been using a Barrel horse wash out that my wife had in the barn to work and run dogs, it has taken me some time and patients but if you use common sense you dont have to be the horse whisperer. My biggest problem was getting this horse to stand while birds were flushing and a starter pistol went off but he is getting better. I havnt had to walk back to the truck for a while .

I will second being patient, and finding the horse YOU want. On a whim, I bought a TWH mare at a sale a couple of months ago and while I believe she will make it, she has busted me up pretty good once (when I found out she was BARELY green broke) and has not yet been the steal of a deal I thought her to be.

It all comes down to whether you want a turn key horse or if you want a project.

Jim

Rowdy-
Hold your horses! ( Pun intended) You can participate in the walking stakes without a horse. Believe me, I did it for years! It sounds like your really high on the sport and the dogs you have at the moment. I have been trialing in the state of Ks for over 10 years and have yet to run a championship. I believe that I have two that can compete at that level finally. I seem to start the dogs off and sell them before they are Sh dogs is my biggest problem cause I am VERY picky. Keep going to some trials make your mark, maybe even get some dog of the year accolades. Diving in to fast could quite well burn you in the long run. I have seen guys come and go, life happens and some people get burnt out. I would hate to see that happen to a young man like yourself. There are plenty of added expenses with the addition of a horse into this game. Trailer, trailer and truck maintenence, gas mileage, vet bills, hay, farrier, ground or boarding, tack, TIME to train the dogs AND Horse, and plenty more that I cant think of now. Horses are only a must in this game if you get into the HB game. I will tell you from experience that you better bite the bullet and spend the money on a field trial horse. I started going to HB events with a quarter horse that I would use in the walking stakes. BIG difference. QH's cant keep up, cant go the distance, and will KILL you after a whole day! Go to some different trials walking and HB. The only way to get an education in this game is to get out and do it. Walk as many braces, enter as many dogs as you can afford, and ask questions when you get to the trials of the old guys that have been doing it for years.

topher40 wrote:Rowdy-
Hold your horses! ( Pun intended) You can participate in the walking stakes without a horse. Believe me, I did it for years! It sounds like your really high on the sport and the dogs you have at the moment. I have been trialing in the state of Ks for over 10 years and have yet to run a championship. I believe that I have two that can compete at that level finally. I seem to start the dogs off and sell them before they are Sh dogs is my biggest problem cause I am VERY picky. Keep going to some trials make your mark, maybe even get some dog of the year accolades. Diving in to fast could quite well burn you in the long run. I have seen guys come and go, life happens and some people get burnt out. I would hate to see that happen to a young man like yourself. There are plenty of added expenses with the addition of a horse into this game. Trailer, trailer and truck maintenence, gas mileage, vet bills, hay, farrier, ground or boarding, tack, TIME to train the dogs AND Horse, and plenty more that I cant think of now. Horses are only a must in this game if you get into the HB game. I will tell you from experience that you better bite the bullet and spend the money on a field trial horse. I started going to HB events with a quarter horse that I would use in the walking stakes. BIG difference. QH's cant keep up, cant go the distance, and will KILL you after a whole day! Go to some different trials walking and HB. The only way to get an education in this game is to get out and do it. Walk as many braces, enter as many dogs as you can afford, and ask questions when you get to the trials of the old guys that have been doing it for years.

I keep hearing from you folks back there about walking stakes. I have never seen one out here. Never even hear talk of them out here. To bad!

DonF there probably aren't any walking AF stakes in your area, but I bet there are walking AKC stakes in Oregon/Washington.