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I’m way down south and I’ve never seen anything like this winter. I was fighting flies on Christmas day and had the windows open.

I have a masonry heater and typically burn 2 small fires a day December through end of February. This winter I’m burning 1 fire every fifth day or so when it actually gets cold.

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I’m having a hard time picturing this stone boat. I saw one in a video, but didn’t really understand what was going on. I’ll see if I can find some more info about it online.

Is it a platform on two runners? What is a dashboard latter?

Sorry I’m so dense! I really appreciate your suggestions.

I can see a left behind horse getting crossways and irritated.

Do most people always keep their horses in a stall? I was assuming that mine would be on pasture most of the time. Is that bad?

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Thanks for the info.

Unfortunately I can’t get on Facebook. They always want to send a code to my cell phone that doesn’t work here. I have to drive up the road, get the code, drive back and log in. Just isn’t worth it.

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All good advice that I am grateful for.

Does it make sense to y’all that I would start out having my horse tote things for me with a pack saddle: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Outfitters-Supply-Pack-Saddle-TrailMax-Sawbuck-Latigos-Brown-WPS350-/231845185910?

This seems like a good way for us to get to know one another because it is all lead work.

I’m thinking from there to riding, then start cultivating with a one horse cultivator? Then add in things with plowing last as Erika recommended.

I am a ways away from being able to afford a forecart, etc.

I WISH there were working horse people around me. As far as I know, there is no one. The closest teacher I can find is in Mississippi at Russell Farms and I hope to do that this spring.

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Thanks to all for the responses.

To get a horse feels like a pretty monumental event for all people and critters involved (my sheep, goats, dogs … the chickens maybe not so much). My animals all comingle, so the only separation I have right now is that the rams are off by themselves. So, introducing this new creature to the farm seems like a lot. Introducing two REALLY BIG (comparatively) new creatures feels pretty overwhelming. When I get a horse, I had planned to keep them in the ewe pasture with ewes, a great pyr, and chickens. It’s always challenging when any new animal is brought in and we seem to have a settling in period where everyone works out their differences. I also only have three pastures right now, and I need 3 separate pastures when I have young ewes, young rams, and the breeding group. A horse is going to have to camp with at least one group.

Also, starting out I plan to use my horse for these things: helping me plow, harrow, and cultivate a 1/4 acre garden, pull a small wagon with tools or feed/water around the farm, and ride to deliver eggs to neighbors. Right now I do all of these things by hand or with a tractor. Once I get confident about these things, I may get a second horse and start mowing. My pastures were REALLY bad when I started 3 years ago. The man that owned this before me clear cut and bulldozed everything so it was solid blackberries and broom sedge. I’ve fenced each pasture as I could afford it, and finished the third this year. I need to finish another by October because I’ll have two breeding groups. Where the animals have been the longest, the pastures have improved the most. All this to say that my sheep, goats, and chickens have done a really good job of slowly improving things as I’ve enclosed pastures. I’ve been bushogging pastures and unfenced areas on a tractor once a year. The pastures could use more bushogging, but I just feel like I’m compacting soil and burning fossil fuels. The animals are a much better way of improving things.

Also my land is really hilly and I can’t get anyone with a lime truck out here. Or, rather, they come out and look and then won’t bring their truck out. I have a chicken tractor in each pasture that I pull by hand on an as needed basis and that has a pretty dramatic impact on the soil and vegetation. Anyway, I don’t have anything worth mowing for hay right now, but I’m hoping to have that in the future and I’d like to mow with a horse rather than bushogging.

Also, there’s a bonding issue. Maybe I’m mistaken but it seems like it will be easier for me as a beginner to bond with a single horse rather than two. I’m the mother of twins and always knew that I came in second place to their relationship with each other (not a complaint, that’s just the way it is and there is plenty of love to go around).

And, I don’t think there’s enough work for a team at this point. I still work full time and only have an hour or two and day during the work week and Saturdays and Sundays to do farm work. I can “work” my horse daily during feed time and then for more extended periods on the weekends.

So, it’s the amount of work, the impact on my other animals, and my time limits.

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I have sheep, both ewes and rams, and goats, and I really have a hard time picturing this. My ewes are super skittish and flee (fast) if something spooks them. Rams are actually pretty dangerous once they hit two years of age or so. They can get extremely aggressive and they literally ram things (people, dogs, other rams, gates, fences).

Now a nanny goat I can see. A buck, no. But, goats are more likely to cooperate especially if there is a tasty morsel in it for them.

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I am very interested to hear about anyone’s experience with the Annie’s All in One. I’ve looked at all of their literature and it seems like this is something that one person and one horse could handle.

I an interested in hearing about its durability.

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This is VERY cool. I’m still trying to figure out this fore cart and how things are or aren’t attached to it.

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Wow! So many responses! I went from this post to reading all of the other threads and didn’t see these until now. Thank you all that responded.

After reading many pages of threads, I guess I can say that I’m still not scared away (but some of it is pretty scary).

I’ve been thinking a lot about size and I’m pretty convinced that I want a small horse, mostly because I am small, 58, and female, and realistically, I don’t have the strength or stamina to really work a large horse. I still work full time and can work all day on the farm Saturday and Sunday, but during the week I really only have 1 – 2 hours a day that I can devote to the farm. My goal is to be full time farming in 3 years.

I’ve been doing everything by hand and really like the idea of having a horse pull a plow that makes a trench for my sweet potatoes rather than me digging the whole thing with a shovel. Not to mention cultivating. Right now I do hand weeding and mulch heavily with wheat straw (which also helps the soil). And hilling! And spreading compost! And hauling water to sheep (right now I carry in buckets by hand).

I’m realizing that I’m sounding really lazy and just wanting a horse to do all this work for me, but I really want the horse to do the work WITH me. Every time I’m doing something hard or tedious I’m watching my dogs sleep and my sheep chew and the chickens trot and peck … none of them are very helpful.

And, I also really love horses and have since I was old enough to know what they are. And, I want to stop using fossil fuels, and improve my pastures (manure). My pastures are still not in the “good” category, but they are no longer straight blackberries and broom sedge. And, I think I glimpsed a few grains of topsoil in my vegetable plot. And, my heart breaks a little every time I crank the tractor.

My farm is very hilly. I’m at the very tail end of the Appalachians and there is very little flat land here. The only flat land on my farm is where I raise vegetables. I’m worried about a horse being able to pull up and down these hills.

I’ve looked at the draft ponies a bit, but I do want the option of riding. (I have this fantasy that I will have some free time.)

I hear what y’all are saying about being open to many breeds and that makes sense to me. It seems that the perfect match for me is a very mature horse that is very calm and experienced and who will be patient with me, because I’m afraid I’m destined to make a lot of mistakes.

I honestly can’t make heads or tails of the discussions about harnesses, but I’ve been able to figure out a lot of things on my own so I’ll probably get passable with a harness at some point.

Unfortunately I don’t know of anyone in my area that farms with horses and the clinics and workshops are so far away and so expensive.

Sorry to touch on so many things in one thread, but this isn’t the half of it – there are so many things to think about and question. I’ve been wanting to do this for years and I think this is the year.

Thanks all.

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