Why do you own horses?

[PeytonM]

well I got an idea from a guy on YouTube, he made a video about “why you own firearms” and got me thinking so I wanted to start one on here on “Why do you own Horses” I figured it would not only help us learn a little bit bout each other but I think might give site to new ways of working your team. being I thought of the idea, I’ll start it off.

I grew up more in to high horsepower motors more than anything. I had quite a few motocross quads and also did a lot of woods racing. I had a few bad accidents to the point that I was in to see the Doc after every race to get my neck and back fixed up cause I was in pain. My grandpa passed in 06 and he had a lot of horse stuff from back in the day and my grandma gave them to me. I got a 4 wheeled wagon, neck yokes, harness parts, a bob sled, and a few poles. It really would hurt me watching gramps stuff rot away and I needed something else to do with my time. so with the money I got back from taxes I got my first team. Prince and Randy. 12 and 14yo pure Belgians. I was always told a horse can tell the mood your in from the time you walk out the door of the house. I use by boys to pull logs mostly and ride around in a wagon checking out all the farm land, I also make them pull in their own food, I got a sled that I put round bails on and they drag them in to eat. I got to say I’ve learned a lot from theses horses, since I’ve owned theses boys I’ve gotten sucked in from a horse puller that lives not too far away and hes helped me out a lot and I’m still learning things from him. I’m buying another team from him this fall, think it will be Nov. ish. a gelding and bred mare, they are 5 and 6.

In the end I think a lot of me owning these horses comes down to family tradition and not letting this die off totally.

[hunterbrooksfarm]

I bought my first horse a month ago, a 12yo belgian mare. My grandfather had horses that I can remember when I was little about 4yrs old , My Uncle has had horse since I can remember, which is about when I 4yrs old. He uses his for logging, and pulling in competitions. For the last 8yrs or so whenever I get a chance to get up to see him, or go to a competition I try and get involved learning as much as I can. I had been looking for a good well broke team, but found a very nice Mare that is just the right pace for me to learn from and thats dead slow, and patient as the day is long. She has been so great and patient with me as I learn to drive her, she I believe knows more than I do and reminds me what I’m supposed to me doing. I’m hoping to pass on the same values on to my two boys. Eventually I plan on have a few pairs of belgians for work around the farm, and for doing some competition pulling.

[mitchmaine]

I think I see a pattern here. We have all been imprinted maybe. I grew up on my grandparents farm, and my granddad died just before I was born. My grandmother rented out the fields to a neighbor, who took off our hay and stored it in our barn for his use and ours. He also moved his team(king and harry) over to our barn to make more room in his for cows. they twitched our wood and made our hay. Other than riding them while they pulled hay up into the loft, I had no interaction with them, and they(horses) were gone by the time i was six, replaced by a tractor, but they(horses) were a strong presence. Enough so I had some as soon as I could. Can’t even imagine life without them.

[PeytonM]

I think personally with say that horses have changed my attitude. I am really calm and easy going if I’m working them and don’t get something done that I would liked to get done I figure I always have tomorrow. Gramps really made me understand things after he passes and I’ve started getting a friend of mine in them, she is buying the team I have and I have a down payment on a current 5 & 6 year old team!
thanks for the reply’s!

[chrisf.]

I was never around horses when I was young but have wanted draft horses as long as I can remember. One of my great grandfathers farmed with horses and another trained horses for bread runs. Unfortunately I never met either one of them but I guess just knowing that sparked an interest for me. I bought a house with a bit of land and a horse a couple of months later. It turned into a adiction sometime after that and now most of my time goes into my team. I’ve spent quite a few evenings out working with my team even after eleven and twelve hour days at the real job that pays the bills. I’m working towards cutting back the hours spent at the paying job and increasing the hours spent working with the horses. The satisfaction I get from a day looking at horses buts is worth a lot more than a paycheck…unfortunately the bank doesn’t have the same views.

[PeytonM]

yeah I found my self doing that my self, leaving as soon as I could just to work my team. haha I hate getting the pay check and going “man I thought I should of got more… oh wait… I was always leaving”

[Anonymous]

I grew up on a subsistence farm and riding horses was my first look into the adrenalin junky side of me. When I learned to drive at about 8 I promised my mom at the gas pump that I would never own a car because they don’t eat hay. After “growing” up and driving lots of cars I started driving drafts for a sleigh ride company and my mom reminded me of the day that I told her I would never own a car and she asked me if I was going back to what I promised her. At about the same time an old neighbor showed me a picture of me as a kid passed out asleep wearing only cut off jeans on the back of her old shetland pony as it grazed through the meadows behind our house.
Now that I have a family and a small farm I keep trying to integrate horses back into my life based on functionality, but what it boils down to is I like hanging out with an animal that I dont have to butcher and eat, I can get all of the work done myself but it is more fun to do it with a poky overweight buddy.

[rookie]

Reading everyones tales of how they fell in love with horses made me think. The first thing I can remember is it seemed we always had Sugar (a really ornery shetland pony) who I took out of the barn harnessed up to a little cart and drove to grandpas.
She would only tolerate this until she wanted to return to the barn, and quite quickly I might add. When riding her you made sure you had your feet pulled up because she would find the smallest crack in the barn door and take you thru! Then when I got older Dad bought me a quarter horse his name was Jack, he was no show horse but he always there to give a friendly nicker. There are a few old pictures of grandpa with his top notch bull and the work horses in the pasture behind him. Both Dad and Grandpa are gone now, so I guess that is why I am going back to horses, they bring back great memories and now I can tell my daughter all about how Sugar use to take me thru the barn door!

[Dickel]

I love all horses for their personality’s and individual traits. Due to my space available and age I only have and care for the miniature horses. I have nine now and each one reacts different when I work with them as well as how they react to each other. I had riding horses when I was in my twenty’s but my work made it imposable to give them the time needed.

[J-L]

I was ‘imprinted’ too. Being born and raised on this cattle ranch in Wyoming (5th generation), had no choice but to be horseback from a young age. We all grew up here with a horse and a rope in our hands. Great way to grow up.

My obsession with draft horses started early as well. My earliest memories are being bedded down in a bob sleigh full of loose hay, ‘driving’ feed team for my dad. I realize now that it was a good, old solid pair of horses that were going to walk the feed grounds anyway while the ol’ man pitched the hay off, in spite of the 4 or 5 year old kid farting around with the lines.
Another start for me was driving a pair of horses in the hay field. I got the job of driving the scatter rake team for a while. I felt pretty important and grown up. That old team would get tired of the flies and just walk over to the nearest willow bush and stick their heads in to brush the flies off. One of the older siblings or my dad would come over and help me get them lined out. I don’t believe those old horses would have broke into a trot if you lit a stick of dynamite behind them.
We grew up using the work horses for a lot of jobs around the ranch. Horse power was, and still is, a good asset around the ranch. Beyond that usefulness is what we are all aware of, they just make you feel good. I never wake up in the morning thinking “Man I can’t wait to start my tractor!”. But I wake up most every morning looking forward to running my team in and harnessing up.

[carl ny]

I was raised on a dairy farm. We had one old 10-20 tractor and three drafts. Dick was a clyde-belgian-percheron stud horse. His team mate was Daisy,a belgian-percheron, and Queenie ,the single horse was also a belgian-percheron. Queenie was also totally blind. When I was around 4 or 5, I used to ride on Queenie while dad raked hay(not OSHA approved) with her. I also help put up loose hay by leading Queenie on the hay fork. It wasn’t until I was about 25 that my mother told me the truth. Queenie was baby sitting me to keep me out of the way. Dad was telling her what to from the top of the hay wagon. Oh, the memories !!!!!!!!!

carl ny

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