Ridecamp: Re: [RC] Weight of horse compared to rider

> On Fri, 06 Sep 2002 11:54:02 -0700, Bette Lamore <woa@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
> wrote:
>
> >So I am saying that IMHO that horse is too small for that man. I know
> >Heidi doesn't like me bringing this subject up again (we have had our
> >differences in the past re: BIG Arabs--- me standing a 16.2 Purebred
> >Arab stallion put me in the pro position with her breeding her smaller
> >Arabs putting her in the con position) BUT, I'll tell you my husband
> >feels MUCH more comfortable on his 16h Arabian gelding and feels he is
> >pushing the envelope when he is on anything smaller than a 15.2h horse.
> >I guess it is partly a matter of personal preference and then maybe
> >someone should ask the horse! ;-)
>
> Just as breeders can produce "toy" dogs and miniature horses, it is
> possible to breed outlandishly tall Arabians.  I think it's sad,
> though, that the American obsession with "bigger is better" is
> producing such animals.  I sure wouldn't recommend such an outsized
> horse to anyone to use in endurance, though.  The Arabs knew what they
> were doing when over thousands of years they bred those compact,
> athletic, beautiful horses.  If they wanted something tall, there were
> always camels.
>
> That's my two cents on it.

Joe, thanks for your input here.  I'd like to add that it is kind of
aggravating to have someone suggest that I am somehow promoting smaller
Arabs simply because that is what I breed.  The truth of the matter is that
I breed what I breed because after much observation, I figured out that
those were the horses that did the job that I was trying to do.  And it is
nice to have that perspective validated by folks who have ridden a great
deal farther and faster than I have.  I only started as a breeder in order
to have available the sorts of horses that I care to ride--and I selected
(and still do select) my breeding stock accordingly.  I'd like to also point
out again that the poster whom you quoted suggested that it was her husband
that was "uncomfortable" being a tall man on a short horse--NOT that the
horse was at all uncomfortable carrying a large rider.  And having palpated
literally thousands of backs at endurance rides, I can tell you which are
most apt to be sore--and it darn sure isn't the ones on the shorter horses!

It is really fascinating to read some of the things written by some of the
early American breeders regarding height--most were of the opinion that it
was very difficult to find Arabs of quality that were over 15 hh.  From what
I've observed in my own endeavors and travels, this hasn't changed much.  I
truly wish that everyone endeavoring to breed Arabians would read and
re-read the preamble to the AHR Stud Book V (which is the first one in which
the modern sequence of registrations begins).  It is a reprint of an article
that old-time breeder Albert W. Harris wrote in 1944 for the US Remount
Magazine.  In it, he states:  "The Arab is a small horse, comparatively
speaking.  The average height is around 14.2 hands, the average weight
slightly under 1000 pounds.  Of course, some are larger and some are
smaller, but one can readily see that such a horse can be easily mounted.
His conformation is such that he can carry the weight of any but the
heaviest of riders easily.  He is short-coupled, has good, dense bone,
strong tendons, and good feet, and so can take his rider over any kind of
country and go on indefinitely  His endurance is proverbial.  He is an easy
horse to sit on.  His gaits are so smooth and elastic that one does not grow
fatigued."  Mr. Harris says a great many more things about what an Arabian
is supposed to be that sure no longer describe the faddish horses we see
being bred so frequently today.  However, the key above to the present topic
is that the 14.2 hand horse had the SUBSTANCE to carry even relatively heavy
riders with ease.  Height has little or nothing to do with it--other than
when it becomes a selection factor in its own right at the expense of the
rest of the conformation, it actually becomes a detriment to the ability to
carry weight.  With the preponderance of tall horses on the market these
days, it is interesting to see that the vast majority of the successful
Arabs in endurance are still under 15.2, and in fact most are still between
14.1 and 15 hh....

Heidi (who never managed to find one of those "magic sticks" that somehow
renders those 14.2 horses as 15.3....)


=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
 Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net.
 Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp
 Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=