# Ask me about horses.



## Telemecus (Jan 12, 2013)

I have been born and raised on a horse breeding ranch. I have broken horses, trained them, showed them, ridden them in rodeos and cattle drives, spent countless hours feeding and watering them, and more than a few restless nights delivering foals. I don't feel like I have much to offer all you scribes, since I am so young, but this is one area I can contribute to a lot. Also, if you're interested, I have hunted from horseback, and participated in training a jousting horse, and helped with the actual event. I would love to help anyone out, if they have any questions.


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## afrisch (Jan 12, 2013)

Greetings!  My name is Alisa and I'm originally from the eastern U.S., but now finally live in Arizona.  I've been learning western horseback riding since last 2011, and although never raised with horses, I'm always trying to learn more with magazines and books.  Since I recently acquired an IPad, do you know of any apps that are good for horse knowledge?  Thanks!


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## Telemecus (Jan 13, 2013)

I am sorry, but most almost all of my experience is first hand. Louis Lamour has written a number of western themed novels that are filled with accurate portrayals of old west behavior, including horse riding. Other than that, I don't know anything else you could download (we are a little lowtech out here. The computer is about all I have)


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## Valentinator (Feb 22, 2013)

Great, I have several questions. What is the speed of the horse when you are traveling on its back for weeks? How many hours a day a horse can carry a man of an average size? If the guy is big does it affect the horse much? Which things you are taking with you to take care of the horse?


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## SeverinR (Feb 22, 2013)

Jousting? IJA?
A few people I have met have been involved with IJA. (International Jousting Association for those that don't know it)
International Jousting Association - USA - Home

SCA has very modified jousting using balsa and card board tubes, but I wasn't involved with that, it was not allowed yet in my area back then.


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## Darkfantasy (Feb 23, 2013)

Hi, I#ve raised horses all my life too, and I doubt you'll be able to answer this question, but do you know anything about the harness that was used with Chariot driving? I'm trying to research it and getting no where.


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## Telemecus (Feb 24, 2013)

When I have gone on extended horseback trips, usually a couple days, we have always gone at about a walk. A person on foot would probably cover 20ish miles a day if they didn't stop much, but I have gone 35 at not too hard a pace on a horse, and still had time for lunch and breaks. I have competed with a few very stout people in rodeos, and they do pretty well, but they tend not to turn as fast, because their horses don't wheel around on their back legs. They stay rooted to the ground for the whole event, generally. And I have never made a trip with anyone too big, but i would assume their horse would get tired at an accelerated rate. It probably wouldn't show until day two though. When I have gone on a trip, there has always been an abundance of grass and streams every few miles, so feed and water weren't an issue. It would be very hard to carry that stuff if you needed more than a day's worth. A knife is good, in case the horse gets crud wedged in it's hoof. Saddle blanket, saddle, halter, leadrope, bridle, bit and reins are the only other things you need to ride. (Bareback is not fun!)


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## Telemecus (Feb 24, 2013)

I have rigged up sledges and sleds to a horse before, and it may not be a perfect match, but I can describe those. Two poles, extending from the ground, the sled, or whatever you are hauling, straight towards the horse's shoulders. Then, make a girth strap around the horse, like a saddle, except looping it all the way around. That should be in the middle of the horse, slightly forward on the ribs. Then go up the poles to a height that is in the middle off the shoulders, below the neck, and connect the two poles in front of the horse. Then connect this front binding and the girth strap by running a cord between the front legs and tying it all together. Pad anywhere the design touches the horse. This design has worked when hauling timber, sleds full of kids, hay, and quite a few other things, and I hope it helps. One note, though. This design has a tendency to slip and tangle up the horse when going steeply downhill, so you would need to apply brakes to whatever you are pulling. Hope this helped!


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## craenor (Feb 24, 2013)

If a team of 15 had 30 horses and 5 pack mules, and none of the animals were carrying too heavy of a load at any given time, how far might they be able to travel daily, along well-kept roads, provided they intend to travel each day as long and as fast as they may?

Not trying to trip you up with a tough question or anything. I just want to pick some realistic numbers for speedy travel of a mounted troop. 

Thanks!


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## Sia (May 21, 2013)

Hello there, I'm Sia and I ask about handedness.   I have this little minor detail: For whatever reason, my world's leftie:rightie ratio is flipped as compared with the real one or our world or whatever.  What does this change regarding breaking/training/riding, the feed and care of horses and so on?


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## skip.knox (May 22, 2013)

Here's a non-horse footnote to craenor's question about the land speed of a fully-laden horse party: you can get some realistic numbers for travel along well-kept roads, but that's probably not realistic. It would be very surprising if any road was free of mud, bandits, storms, fords that have mysteriously moved, bridges that are washed out, unreasonable tolls put up by a local warlord, and so on. 

But that 35 miles a day figure from Telemecus is not bad, at least for European horses. The Mongols could do better, but that was in no small part because they learned to ride carrying next to nothing. Even their remarkable achievements, though, were accomplished mainly by war parties, who conveniently left behind camps, breeding stock, elderly or sick, and so on. They were built for speed.

Wagon trains in the American West sometimes covered as little as eight miles a day, or less, when the going was rough.

At the other end, post riders in early modern Europe could cover sixty miles a day or even more. But they had changes of mount and carried no baggage.

In short, as long as you don't go higher than maybe 40 miles a day, and don't keep that up for more than a few days, you won't strain credibility. And you can always slow things down for any of the reasons given above.


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## Tom (May 28, 2013)

@ Sia:

Well, for one thing, the side your riders mount on would be flipped--most horses are trained to allow riders to mount from the near (left) side, not from the off (right) side. This is because in olden times, calvalry wore their swords on their left hips so to keep from getting their swords tangled in their saddles they mounted from the left. Some horses are trained like this to the point that they will throw a fit if you try to mount from the right (at least a few I have had experience with). 

Horses are also usually led from the left side on a halter and tacked up from the left side of the body. Also, when riding at a lope or canter, most right-handed people feel most comfortable cantering on a right lead, and vice versa, as the horse leads with the leg on your dominant side.


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## Sia (May 28, 2013)

Could you tell me more about horses throwing a fit if you try to mount them from the wrong side?


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## SeverinR (May 29, 2013)

Sia said:


> Could you tell me more about horses throwing a fit if you try to mount them from the wrong side?



When you mount a horse, the horse shifts to counter your weight, in a horse not use to being mounted on either side, it won't feel right, and it will balk*. The biggest problems with horses is they panic quickly and can't figure out how to correct problems they aren't ready for. Simple things like leaning the other way, might be a problem for a horse that been trained to "think" properly. (Left brain right brain thing, fear and panic is one side of the brain, reasoning and learning is the other)
*Balking can be as little as a verbal objection or a side step away, or as much as a kick or a jump away from the offending rider. Any time a horse isn't happy it can react or over react, bite, kick, charge, jump away, buck, head butt, etc. (The more the horse is conditioned to think(reason) rather then react(fight or flight), the less the overreaction will be.) 

A well trained modern trail horse should be mountable from both sides, as you might need to remount the horse next to a mountain or a cliff, which would prevent you from mounting "properly". You could turn the horse around if you have room, but for my horse, all I had to do was expose it occasionally to mounting from the other side. 
I really miss my horse.


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## Tom (May 29, 2013)

I have a grudge against a horse at the stable I used to work at. He hated being mounted and would sidle up to the fence on his left so you couldn't mount. So one day, I finally lost patience and tried to mount him from the right. Bad idea!

Oh, another thing that just occured to me is that you'd need to reverse the hardware on your saddles and bridles. Most saddles and nearly all bridles have their buckles and cinch fasteners on the left.


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## druidofwinter (May 29, 2013)

Hi Tom, thanks for this thread! I ride horses myself, and so i know how to stay on and control one but i don't know to much about them. Just wondering, how would a horse do in the desert? Saying there are oasis every 10-15 miles. Would it be able to walk in loose sand? Withstand the heat? I know there are many different breeds, and some would most likely do better than others but in general, is a horse in the desert a good idea?


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## Tom (May 29, 2013)

Arabs are the best horses for the desert. They have small, incredibly tough hooves that are perfectly adapted to walking on loose sand, and their coats are very fine, almost like mesh, which allows their skin to breathe. They can survive on very little food and water and can withstand temperatures above 100 F. A good Arab could give you a lot more than 10 miles in a day, so you wouldn't need to worry about dehydration between oasis. They're a small, light-boned breed, so they don't need that much food.

Just a note on Arabs, though--they're extremely flighty and hot-blooded.


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## SeverinR (May 29, 2013)

Tom Nimenai said:


> Oh, another thing that just occured to me is that you'd need to reverse the hardware on your saddles and bridles. Most saddles and nearly all bridles have their buckles and cinch fasteners on the left.


If this is related to mounting on the other side of the horse, you only mount on the other side occasionally to keep the horse use to it. You can still saddle normally.
I have seen a horse not react kindly to a person getting on the wrong side, no one was hurt but they won't forget which side to get on.  
Personally, I don't see a need for mounting a horse next to a cliff or narrow trail.  But it was nice the few times I did it. (a couple times just to show others I could.)


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## Sia (Feb 25, 2015)

So if you knew about a horse that verbally objected to being mounted on the wrong side but didn't actually do anything about it. besides 'complain'....what sort of training would you expect it to have had?


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## Tom (Feb 25, 2015)

Sia! You're back! 

So...let's see. Rodeo horses are always trained to accept a rider mounting from both sides, as are most working cow horses. Cowboys need to be up and in the saddle quickly if there's a problem, and a horse that objects to being mounted from one side could be dangerous. I'm not sure about the English discipline's training practices; I mostly rode Western.


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## CupofJoe (Feb 25, 2015)

Tom Nimenai said:


> ... I'm not sure about the English discipline's training practices; I mostly rode Western.


I went to check out a riding school when I had the urge to learn to ride. In the English/hunting form the owner of the school explained that their beginner/training horses are used to people [usually children] getting on them in whatever manner worked... as long as the horse was okay [and they seemed to be very content and chilled horses].
I got the impression that for the occasional/weekend rider getting on from one side or the other was more to do with the muscles in the leg being strong enough, the horses in the stables were pretty tolerant.
The more advanced horses [where you learn to canter, gallop etc.] were  more traditionally trained, to accept mounting from the left. I think a few would  tolerate it from either side but not many.


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## Russ (Feb 25, 2015)

You have no idea how excited I am to have access to someone with knowledge about horses.  Thanks much for this thread.

I am writing some scenes where my characters are travelling in hills and mountains, which lead me to a couple of questions.

Firstly, are their types or breeds of horses better for that kind of terrain.  Secondly at what point does an upward, or downward slope, or a slope with debris become unwise to ride a horse on, or even make a horse walk up/down?

Thanks in advance for your help.


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## Tom (Feb 25, 2015)

First, for a mountainous journey, no light horses. That rules out breeds like Thoroughbreds, Arabs, etc. No heavy horses either, which rules out draft horses and some of the heavier warmblood breeds. They're just too big. For a mountain trek you want horses with strength and stamina, as well as enough dexterity to get around tight spots. I'd suggest ponies. The Norwegian Fjord Horse and the Icelandic Horse are both tough, rugged ponies built for riding across rough terrain. 

Second, horses don't do well on steep slopes, whether going up or down. It's kind of scary to ride a horse up and down an incline of more than thirty-five degrees. Horses really aren't built for rocky terrain, either, and will slip on debris. They often panic, too, because they're most comfortable on an even plain.


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## Caged Maiden (Feb 25, 2015)

In my mountains I use stockier more compact horses that can survive on poor quality food throughout a long winter.  ON the plains, I have several varieties of horses including draft horses for plowing huge grain fields, elegant and swift horses meant to pull noble carriages in nearby cities, and varieties of war horses that are stronger and smarter and therefore more appropriate for armored men in combat.

I wrote a scene where a young soldier took his mountain horse into a swamp and had to lead his mount on foot because the horse was too heavy and ill-equipped for the marshy ground.  The character mused at one point about how his horse differed from the local animals which sported broad hooves, long legs, and lithe bodies.

The thing is, horses are like dogs...lots of small variations that give you a huge range of characteristics to play with.  Some have long coats for harsh winters, others short coats for humid climates (because unlike dogs that don't sweat, horses do and can freeze to death if they get overworked and aren't dried).  Some horses have long legs that help them run fast and jump high, while some have short legs and can work in mines or haul super heavy loads.  Some have friendly dispositions while others are ornery and even malicious.  Some get jumpy over the smallest thing and freak out (sometimes seriously hurting themselves) while others are steady plodders who aren't bothered by anything that doesn't immediately spell threat.

The interesting thing I've noticed in my limited experience with horses, is that like the domesticated dog, advantages have drawbacks.  An animal might look beautiful and be mean-spirited, or it might be fast as heck but also jumpy and prone to bolting.  In writing horses, I think it's important to take the animal's job into consideration.  My war horses are very special breeds, almost an issue of national pride in some ways.  A well-trained war horse in my plains kingdom can cost something like $100k.  Those animals aren't the really special ones, just sort of the standard war horse with minimal training to make it combat-ready (not jumpy, comfortable wearing armor and carrying an armored soldier, etc.)  Meanwhile in my cities, nobles pay high prices for beautiful horses (rare colors or spots) for their carriages, with little concern for their temperaments (because the grooms have to deal with that sort of thing, right?)

It's funny I have given a lot of consideration to horses in my world even though it doesn't play a huge part in the stories themselves.  One of my characters retired and became a horse-breeder however and after I did that, I just had too much fun contemplating what horses meant to my characters.

I've always wanted a horse.  I rode a little when I was in high school but not recently.  I am however an archer and would love to participate in mounted archery in the future.  I'm not sure whether I can ever afford a horse of my own, but if I can, I'd love a big beautiful Belgian Draft Horse because I think it would be so pretty and they're just the friendliest, kindest animals.  I think a lot of draft breeds are like that, because they've worked so closely with humans for so long.  Ooh, or maybe a Frisian.  I don't really know that much about what makes a horse a good companion animal, but I love draft breeds.


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## LadyUmbranox (Mar 31, 2015)

Fellow horseperson here! I've been riding and training most of my life, and have practiced many disciplines. I started off as a three-day eventer (English), have ridden western, heavy trails, and I now ride bitless and with a very light saddle. I've done a lot of my own research on tack (equipment) and training styles over history.

The best breeds for mountainous riding are the gaited breeds, so Rocky Mountain Horse, Tennessee Walking Horse, etc. They're extremely hardy and can climb a wide variety of terrain. Nice temperment as well.

I wouldn't have an exact angle for steepness, but a strong, well-trained horse can handle some pretty steep climbs. You want to keep that at a short distance, though, and with anything steep there is added danger of slipping so it's good to keep that in mind. 

As for horses spooking when being mounted from the right side, I can only see that happening with a young horse or one who hasn't been trained well. I train all my horses to mount from either side and be led from either side, so I've never really had that problem, nor have I noticed any really bad incidents in my years, even when I ran camps and riding lessons.

Generally horses in the middle ages were better trained than horses are today for things like long-distance and ease of use. Horses today are a bit spoiled and spook more often because many aren't exposed to things like weapons and loud sounds like horses in war-torn eras would be.

For the left-handed character, he'd probably still use everything the same. Unless he's a prince who insists I doubt they would create entirely new pieces of tack... I mean, there are plenty of lefty riders today who use the same tack, right? Just a thought.

I'm here like the others above for any questions, and can help especially with historical training methods and equipment.  Hope I can be of help!


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