Deciding on Age of a New Horse

23 October 2009 No Comment

When buying a horse, it is important to select a suitable age. A horse which is too young can lack maturity and training, as well as being unnecessarily expensive. A horse which is too old will not provide you with the years of future riding that you would like. To help you choose a suitable age, the advantages and disadvantages are discussed below.

Four Year Old. This is one of the most popular ages, since horses typically complete their basic training by age four and are immediately ready for riding. In addition, if you decide you want to train the horse to an advanced level, it is still young enough. Although a trained horse will be more expensive than a younger untrained one, this is offset by saving on the costs of training and associated stabling during this period.

5 to 7 Years Old. A trained horse of this age has all the advantages of a 4-year old. However, it will be more emotionally mature and calmer, and may be trained to a higher level as well. All of these factors make it easier to manage and more reliable than a younger horse, so it is more suitable for new riders and for children. However, as a horse gets older it becomes more difficult and consequently more expensive to train so one should ensure that the horse is fully trained before the end of this period.

Over 7 Years. Older horses are increasingly calm and dependable. Consequently, the older horse is great for children and new riders. They are also less expensive to buy as they are less popular. If the horse is not too old and has been well treated, it should still have many years of riding left. However, one would not want to purchase a horse which is too old for the number of years you intend to ride it.

3 year old. This is the age (depending on breed) when riding training usually starts. Consequently, you can enjoy the experience of training your horse rather than buying an already trained horse. However, if your main purpose is riding, you will likely prefer to purchase an older trained horse, saving yourself time and training fees.

Less than 3 years old. Watching a horse grow up can give immeasurable pleasure, something like watching young children mature. However, like young children, it can be difficult to predict how they will turn out physically and otherwise, so a foal is more of a gamble than a mature horse. Although foals are less expensive to buy than mature horses of the same quality, once one adds in the cost of stabling and training before it is ready to ride, they are usually more expensive in the end.

The preceding is a general summary and not applicable in all circumstances. For example, if you will be using the horse for racing or other competitions, the associated age restrictions need to be taken into account. Furthermore, breeds and individual horses age at different rates, as well as owners having different policies as to when and to what extent horses are trained prior to sale.

This article is by Duber Stewart, who writes for websites such as Horses for Sale.

buying a horse