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Will she be too short??

15K views 28 replies 20 participants last post by  SorrelHorse 
#1 ·
I am looking for a prospect barrel horse. I have found a very nice mare that has good bloodlines and conformation. The only problem with her is she is extremely short! She is 2 1/2 years old and only stands about 14 hands tall? Her dam is 15 hands and her sire is a little over that. I am 5'4" and weigh 140lbs. I know it would be no problem to just trail ride her but would we be able to be competitive in the barrel world? How much more could she grow? Should I buy her? lol thanks!
 
#2 ·
The fastest and stoutest horse I ever had the pleasure of riding was a 13.2 or 13.3 hand mare. I am a little taller than you and weigh just a bit more and she was the fastest little horse I ever sat on. Not only that, but she was an excellent roping horse too. So I am going to say no, she definitely won't be too small providing that she has some natural speed and good solid conformation. Plus, she's just a baby yet. It is entirely possible that she will continue to build height until she's 5 or so.
 
#3 ·
I am looking for a prospect barrel horse. I have found a very nice mare that has good bloodlines and conformation. The only problem with her is she is extremely short! She is 2 1/2 years old and only stands about 14 hands tall? Her dam is 15 hands and her sire is a little over that. I am 5'4" and weigh 140lbs. I know it would be no problem to just trail ride her but would we be able to be competitive in the barrel world? How much more could she grow? Should I buy her? lol thanks!
Size doesnt always matter. I wouldnt go shorter than 14.2...but that's because I'm taller, not because I dont think a shorter horse can be competitive on some level. At 2 1/2 years old, she'll probably still grow more. In the end, it comes down to if she has the talent. If your not sure, have an experienced barrel trainer evaluate her for you. What are her bloodlines?
 
#4 ·
Well what breed is she?
I wouldn't ride her at that age in a show.

My mare is 18 and 14.2 hh, she is a paint. But she is my fastest horse and I own three horses. My mare before I owned her, she was in big barrel racing shows. So no she not to short, she will grow so more.
 
#6 ·
Exactly! My daughter rides a horse named Dash of a Jet :) his name says it all in the way of his breeding. He doesn't have the drive to be a barrel horse. In his pedigree is one WP horse and that is just exactly what Sheldon's desire to be is. So while still in the arena it is not doing speed events :lol:
 
#7 ·
LOL. I know that feeling^^. I had a paint for a while that was Easy Jet bred, he had the confo and size to be a great performance horse, but thanks to having Zippo Pine Bar like 4 generations back, he was perfectly content to just kinda plod along.

Smooth riding booger though :wink:.
 
#8 ·
I am looking for a prospect barrel horse. I have found a very nice mare that has good bloodlines and conformation. The only problem with her is she is extremely short! She is 2 1/2 years old and only stands about 14 hands tall? Her dam is 15 hands and her sire is a little over that. I am 5'4" and weigh 140lbs. I know it would be no problem to just trail ride her but would we be able to be competitive in the barrel world? How much more could she grow? Should I buy her? lol thanks!

A neat trick for figuring out how much they will still grow is to take a string and measure from the ground up their leg to wear it attaches to the body. Double that measurment and you will get the final height of the horse to within an inch or so. It has worked everytime i've tried it, even on babies born pre-mature or as twins and on youngsters who where starved when they where babies.
 
#9 ·
Ill tell you what... We have alot of smaller horses around here who are barrel racers... Those 13 hand ponies beat the horses everytime! They will blow you out of the water.. It's INSANE how fast those ponies can go! I wouldn't worry about height.. esp since she's only two she still has some growing to do.
 
#10 ·
I agree, height isn't really the factor here, as much as her desire to want to do what it is you are wanting for her. My 14.3 hh QH that I had when I was growing up, was the fastest thing on four legs, I swear...He out ran alot of horses who were hands taller than he was! But he was also a really good pleasure horse...go figure!Hahaha
 
#11 ·
I had a rope horse (QH) who was barely 14h and was built like a tank but you couldn't out run him, he would be right at the top with the 16h Dash For Cash bred Barrel Horses. I don't care what height they are, if they can drop their head and know how to stride out and run height makes no difference.
 
#13 ·
one of my barrel horses is only 14.2 hand and we do just find i mean we never got first but third and fourth every time and we are still goin atter, if your horse can run and you can get her bending aroung the barrels and and making good pockets a would say you should do just fine:)
 
#14 ·
You have to take into consideration what size pens you're going to be mostly running in. Around here, they are mostly small pens so I try to stay away from the bigger horses. There are exceptions to everything, but generally a smaller horse will fair better in a smaller pen and a bigger horse in a bigger pen.
 
#16 ·
A short back doesnt nec mean a "stronger" back. A horse with a longer back will have a harder time rounding and collecting than one with a shorter back. But, a super short back really isnt desirable either.

But, like I said..there are exceptions to everything. I know of some long backed horses that are 1D horses.
 
#17 ·
Well obviously there are exceptions, and too short a back isn't good either. However, the longer the back, the weaker it is. If a horse has a decently long back then it's harder for said horse to hold the riders weight, and they're more likely to have a sway. And at a younger age. Shorter backs also help the horse engage it's hind end more around the turn rather than swinging it out.
 
#19 ·
Well no, not if the horse has a slightly long back, but if it's quite long it will(IMHO). Maybe this is just an english thing, and I come from the english world, but I suppose that's just my opinion.
No need to start arguements :] I respect your opinion, as I hope you do mine.
 
#22 ·
I'm glad. On horsechannel- another horse forum- you have to be oh so careful with how you put things, or it will most definetly explode into an arguement. I'm so glad to have found a sane, and reasonable online forum!
 
#27 ·
Height isn't a huge factor. It depends on the heart of the horse and the SPEED that they can complete the pattern.

Sherry Cervi's world-champion mare Stingray is only 14.2 hands. And Sherry is over 6 feet tall! But they obviously work well together and run a very, very nice pattern. And Stingray can boogie! And she gives it her all every run.

When buying a prospect, I'd look more at what her breeding is and what her parents/grandparents have accomplished in the barrel racing world.

Of course, you never know how a barrel prospect is going to do until years and years down the road, but that's the whole point of buying your own prospect vs. a trained finished horse!
 
#29 ·
I wouldn't worry about it.

Yes, it's true a lot of barrel horses now are pretty big, but I've had my butt whooped by 12hh welsh ponies when I've been on a big 16hh Dash to Fame colt. It all depends on the heart and the build. Obviously a short-strided, irritable and unhappy horse isn't going to make a good barrel horse. But if the little mare has heart and a nice stride it can work amazing wonders!

Good luck!
 
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