New Horse Owner, Any tips would be welcome!

[Peaches Lee]

Cool! I have posters of them all over my room! we were planning to breed her for mules, but idk if that is still going to work out. Maybe we should wait a while. That is true, we aren't made of money!

Yes, I have a few posters as well. It keeps me focused on my future goal and where I desire to be! I'm constantly researching bloodlines and looking at what the offspring of certain stallions/mares produce. It's certainly very fun!

 

[kwhites634]

I rented one for a month, and had a few lessons, so I am somewhat experienced, not a total beginner. Umm, no pony, but we my get some goats in the future, but I will be spending plenty of time with her. This would be a dream come true, I am not just gonna sit on the couch all day, I will be with her, working with her, riding her, maybe entering a few competitions or shows down the road. We do have a dog, ducks, and chickens. That is true! You can never learn too much about how to ride a horse.

Be careful about pasturing a horse with goats. I had a Thoroughbred/TWH mare here for a while whose tail drug the ground, until one of the goats ate half of it!

 

[ChickyMama229]

Be careful about pasturing a horse with goats. I had a Thoroughbred/TWH mare here for a while whose tail drug the ground, until one of the goats ate half of it!

Yes i have heard of goats nibbling on tails! Thanks for the advice!

 

[Zoomie]

I learned this about mule breeding... the mare has to have grown up around donkeys. Mares don't normally want to have ANYTHING to do with a breeding jack. I had a friend who had a dream of breeding her own mule team (she was an awesome hand at driving) so she got all the mares and the jack and... nothing. The mares would have nothing to do with the jack. She eventually had to sell those mares and then it turns out the joke works both ways, the JACK has to have grown up around mares! I have no idea if that is always true but my friend had to go through two sets of mares and jacks to finally get her mules. If you do decide to go ahead and breed mules, keep that in mind!

 

[ChickyMama229]

I learned this about mule breeding... the mare has to have grown up around donkeys. Mares don't normally want to have ANYTHING to do with a breeding jack. I had a friend who had a dream of breeding her own mule team (she was an awesome hand at driving) so she got all the mares and the jack and... nothing. The mares would have nothing to do with the jack. She eventually had to sell those mares and then it turns out the joke works both ways, the JACK has to have grown up around mares! I have no idea if that is always true but my friend had to go through two sets of mares and jacks to finally get her mules. If you do decide to go ahead and breed mules, keep that in mind!

wow we definitely will. the jack we were looking at bred both jennets and mares.

 

[mesafox101]

horses are very costly so if you are worrying about the cost i would wait and save some more money

 

[Bunnylady]

I had a friend on another forum that had a gorgeous mini donkey jack that she called her mule maker. He'd gladly breed mares (if they would let him) but she couldn't get him to so much as look at a jennet. I knew someone else that had a stallion that she used to produce hinnies. Sometimes you may get a jack whose drive is so powerful, he'll try anything (there have been wild horse herds taken over by jacks, resulting in wild-born mules, but it's pretty unusual), but generally, they all prefer their own species, unless taught differently. But even if you can get the animals to cooperate, a mule pregnancy is more likely to be lost (some mares just never settle or never carry a mule to term), and a mule foal is more likely to be rejected by the mare.

And then there is what goes on between those long ears . . . a horse is smart, a donkey is smarter, and a mule is smarter than you. Guaranteed! (though you might have to actually work with one to know what I'm talking about). They are definitely not just funny-looking horses; they need a different sort of handling to train.

 

[ChickyMama229]

I had a friend on another forum that had a gorgeous mini donkey jack that she called her mule maker. He'd gladly breed mares (if they would let him) but she couldn't get him to so much as look at a jennet. I knew someone else that had a stallion that she used to produce hinnies. Sometimes you may get a jack whose drive is so powerful, he'll try anything (there have been wild horse herds taken over by jacks, resulting in wild-born mules, but it's pretty unusual), but generally, they all prefer their own species, unless taught differently. But even if you can get the animals to cooperate, a mule pregnancy is more likely to be lost (some mares just never settle or never carry a mule to term), and a mule foal is more likely to be rejected by the mare.

And then there is what goes on between those long ears . . . a horse is smart, a donkey is smarter, and a mule is smarter than you. Guaranteed! (though you might have to actually work with one to know what I'm talking about). They are definitely not just funny-looking horses; they need a different sort of handling to train.

Yep, great points, I dont think we are going to breed mules for a while. Thanks for the helpful info!

 

[ChickyMama229]

horses are very costly so if you are worrying about the cost i would wait and save some more money

we have some money saved up, and I could buy the horse, tack, all the brushes, and feed right now if i wanted to. We just need to find somewhere to put her.

 

[mesafox101]

putting them somewhere will cost a lot unless you want them to be a lesson horse which i wouldnt because the students can mis treat your horse