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Percheron Eventing?

17K views 47 replies 16 participants last post by  CJ82Sky 
#1 ·
Percheron Horse For Sale, Florida, Bushnell

I am considering buying this horse. I am looking for an eventing prospect, and I LOVE biiiiiiiiiiig horses. He sure fits the bill. But I haven't seem many percherons eventing, or jumping at all for that matter..... any thoughts?
 
#4 ·
Well - I am not highly educated on drafts and conformation and all that, but I do believe any breed of horse can do any low level activity.

On that note - I would be very hesitant to buy a draft especially for Eventing. They are bred to be work horses, pulling horses and therefore their conformation is meant for that.

Even though I see drafts jumping, that doesn't mean they should be. In my opinion.

I think they would be more suceptable to breaking down before they should be due to what they are built for.
 
#5 ·
MIEventer, thank you for the constructive criticism. What you are saying makes a lot of sense. I am still going to take a look at him and give him a shot, and maybe he will take me through the low levels, and then I can buy my upper level horse in a few years......
 
#7 ·
Hi,
If the horse is full Percheron, I would be inclined to say 'no', Eventing would not be his game.
If this horse is a PerchX, which he appears to be in the picture with the thinner neck, then they can make competitive Eventers at the lower levels.
I was training my Perch/TB for BN before I was injured.
He had exceptional confirmation and jumped the moon, a bit lazy, but opened up cross country. Love the draft-crosses and there are some really nice ones out there.
 
#8 ·
He more then likely could make a good eventer, however like other said he would be a low level eventer. If you want to move up the levels with him I would say no, but if you want to use him as a low level horse he could surely do it.

As far as drafts an eventing, they are not built for it, but they can easily do it with the right training and conditioning given they have the conformation to jump. No down the road you might see he could excel at higher jumps while that may be true with his heavy build he will just not be able to make the time in the higher levels.

In my area we have some nice full drafts that are eventing in the low levels and they are doing nicely. There is no reason a full draft could not do the low levels.

Good luck - he is cute!!!
 
#13 ·
That was an awesome blog!

I spoke to the owner, and she is willing to drop the price, take payments, AND give me a 30 day trial! She said he will definitely 100% pass a vet check. (We will see!)

I am really leaning towards getting this horse for a couple reasons:

My fiancee is a complete beginner, but is 5'11" and 330lbs (yep he's a big boy!) so it's VERY hard to find a horse he can ride. He LOVES Percheron's and rides my friends Percheron once in a while. He is 16.2hh and VERY thick just like Jake (this Percheron I'm interested in - but Jake is bigger @ 17.3 and VEEEEERY wide) This is the first person I've come across that will let me do a trial. I am thinking that pending how this horse is tomorrow, I will take him on trial and see how he does. If I like him and he seems like he would be okay for low level eventing, I will buy him, do the low levels, and then in 4 or 5 years, give him to my fiancee and buy my upper level eventer...... Any thoughts? I was thinking that I will do the PPE at the end of the trial, just to make sure I really want him and dont waste a PPE. Do you think this is a bad idea?
 
#16 ·
I have known several drafts Percherons and Shires that do foxhunting quite successfully. I rode a 18 hand Shire on the hunt field once and loved it. I love riding big horses, too. The only thing is if your out in the field and find yourself on the ground for what ever reason you'll have a hard time getting back up there without a block.
 
#17 ·
amen to that! I looked at a fox hunting clyde cross mare, granted she was only 16 hands but there was a clyde stallion and a percheron mare who fox hunted with NO problem, normal fox hunting jumps are about 3 feet tall.
with the right training, you should have no problem
 
#18 ·
Right, we see drafts and draft crosses jumping , but it is how long can they do it before they start breaking down, due to what their conformation is meant to do, the sole purpose of their breeding - pulling.

Their shoulders, their chests, their hips, their pasturns are made for pulling - not jumping. Their conformation will not be compareable to a TB's or to a Pedigree'd WB - etc, etc.

That's all I'm saying.

Yeah, we see drafts out there jumping, regardless of training - conformation is conformation.
 
#19 ·
I agree that they were built for pulling, but I think the mind of the horse has just as much to do with what a horse will be good at. I have known horses breed and built for jumping that did not like doing so. They were much happier with another occupation. I think everyone has heard of the horse that some cowboy is just giving away, because despite the cow horse breeding, the horse hates cows. The shire that I talked about earlier foxhunted into his old age and he loved his job.
 
#20 ·
I agree that they were built for pulling, but I think the mind of the horse has just as much to do with what a horse will be good at. I have known horses breed and built for jumping that did not like doing so. They were much happier with another occupation. I think everyone has heard of the horse that some cowboy is just giving away, because despite the cow horse breeding, the horse hates cows. The shire that I talked about earlier foxhunted into his old age and he loved his job.
Right, I agree - heart has allot to do with it, but regardless of heart, if the horse doesn't have the correct conformation to do the job, the horse wont beable to do the job for long, or has to stay at a certain point to prevent from breaking down.

Drafts bones are not the same as a TB's bones *I just use the TB as example* nor are their joints the same as a QH's. Their bodies mature slower, their pasturns are shorter, their shoulders, their hips - a draft cannot take the traction, impact, trauma as well as horses who are bread for that sport can.

Now, granted - there are horses out there who aren't drafts that don't have the correct conformation either and there are many out there that break down because their owners are in it for themselves and not their horses - but drafts aren't bred to be jumpers, they are bred to be work horses.

Yes, there are beautiful and well bred Draft X TB's. Because they are bred properly, carefully. Same with other breeds that are bred with the mindset of tough compeition.

I am not arguing the fact that drafts can jump. I see it, I've seen it, I've ridden them. What I am saying, is that they will and can break down before they should, because their bodies wont permit too much of it due to how they are structurally, physically made.
 
#21 · (Edited)
The Perch & Clyde that fox hunted are both in their teens, fox hunting since the ripe age of 3 or 4 and still going strong. When the lady was riding the Clyde next to me. she saw the coop jump and immediately perked up and wanted to gallop to it and jump it, they LOVE their jobs. I got to ride Perch and she let me take him over a few of the practice jumps, and OH MY GOD, he flew. after wards (just like every ride) they were all checked for soreness, heat, etc and nothing. their conformation may be built for something else but if they love what they do and aren't breaking down, by golly do it.

with that said, don't over do it and take the training slow.


like MIeventer said because of their bone structure they will break down sooner, buuuuut the closer you watch them and prevent it, they will lost longer. don't push him if hes telling you that he cant.
 
#22 ·
Any horse can do any discipline, it's just a matter of how well and why. Is confo that prevents doing the job well? is it lack of training? or simply not liking the discipline?

Any draft could do it, but they were bred for pulling. I personally think they make absolutely awesome riding(flatwork) horses and to be honest, I think nothing beats a jumping draft BUT you are going to wreck that horse's bone structure soooo bad and so quickly.

Jumping

Now apply that equation of a horse of an average build to one of a draft jumping. That force is going to be going thru every joint of that poor horse.

"While a horse is running or jumping, the horse's hoof touches the ground first when it lands, and thus the action impacts the bottom of a horse's hoof and a horse's heel directly at the moment of landing."

I would stay away from jumping if you get a full draft :)
 
#23 ·
Of all the draft people I know I have yet to see someone say their horse is breaking down sooner because of their build. They are like any other horse. If you train them properly and with care you can jump them (again at the lower jump simply because the can't get those big butts as high as lighter horse).

The idea of them breaking down sooner is a bunch of poo. Look at the race horses that break down at 3 years old and they are bred for that. What matters is to understand the individual horse you are working with. Some horses are going to be able to do way more than another horse.

Obviously if you want to do serious high level jumping then yeah, a cross or light would be much better. But to say a draft horse is going to break down earlier due to jumping is nonsense.
 
#24 ·
As far as the bred for pulling, you'll notice that most of the draft horses these days have a finer look than the stocky pullers. You can see them a lot in dressage these days. Draft doesn't automatically equal plow. Mine is much better suited to riding than driving and he's not as sporty as a lot of the Perch's I've seen.

A lot of farms aren't breeding toward the pulling discipline as so many people are now riding and showing drafts in many other disciplines.
 
#27 ·
Eventerdrew - there are some well bred Draft Crosses out there - because the breeders are very meticulous about their conformation and making the breed better.

But there are allot of crap breeders who just breed to breed - and many draft crosses are put together without any education, thought or consideration towards making them a better line.

That goes the same for any backyard breeder of any breed - yes there are crappy bred TB's, because those who decided to pop them out, didn't do it with consideration, education or trying to better the animal. Yes there are crap QH's out there as well - the list goes on.

I still stand by what I've seen first hand with many draft crosses out there.

Yes there are well bred one's who can do the job, but many out there are not.

My friend had a Percheron X TB who she took to 3rd level dressage - and ended up having a horse with hip issues and string hault. The horse couldn't do what was being asked because of it's conformation.

But - again, there are crap bred horses of all breeds out there.

Just be sure your veterinarian does a full vet check to assess how far your horse can be pushed before they break down.

I would be very hesitant to buy a draft cross - the good one's are rare and few between due to all the breeders we have out there, who think they can call themselves breeders.

I've seen lovely bred one's - but there are't allot out there.
 
#28 ·
MIEventer. I totally understand where your coming from but there are people who breed crap QH's and crap TB's and crap Arabians. I don't think you can generalize draft crosses into the "crap" category when they are not the only breed/s who have been bred carelessly. I know you said that before in your post though.

My vet and my farrier (and other vets and farriers who have seen my horse) have all said that my horse has the makings of a GP jumper, an Intermediate or Young Rider's horse for me in eventing, and an upper level dressage horse. I don't appreciate it when people are snobby against draft crosses just because they are draft crosses.

My mare's breeder is reputable and breeds her approved 1/2 Tb 1/2 Shire (17hh) stallion with registered TB mares. Her half sister is in training with Karen and David O'Connor and they love her.

and who can automatically say that a draft cross is going to break down? I could say that I think an OTTB is going to break down so you should have a thorough vet check on it, too. But that doesn't necessarily mean they will. my OTTB mare went lame for her conformation, which is way worse than my draft cross'.

I feel if you have owned a draft cross... a nice draft cross... then you would change your mind.

just saying...
 
#30 ·
Rebellion- my Draft X jumps out of her stall too :) and once, she broke the board above her stall... with her head!

I think it's awesome that you have a draft X that has been proven to do well in jumpers. Gives 'em a good name!
 
#31 ·
Being fond of Clydes and all drafts and draft crosses, I would like to assume they do not break down but how can you rule out the fact that a 2,000lbs animal, regardless of it's training will not take jumping differently than that of a light breed.

How do you feel about a 1,100 lbs tb pulling a cart? how do you think his anatomy is going to take to it?

Not turning this into an arguement but curious as to your thoughts.

Please post articles or info from at least recognized sources that would suggest there is no difference in joint break down with heavy vs light breeds.
 
#35 ·
Well, first of all 1000 lbs. horses pull carts all the time. So there's not an arguement that there build isn't for that. Light horse have been pulling carts since before the Romans. You can see Amish using them regularly today, you see them all over the show world, you see people pulling sleighs with them, you see people out on the roads riding for pleasure.

Second, yes, a 2000 lbs. horse IS going to jump differently. That doesn't equal to not be able to jump and breaking down. Different style, different way, does not equal can't or shouldn't.

Third, it's about common sense. If you are using a full draft, don't be riding hard before they are 4-5 years old. A lot of people out there tell you that you can do light jumping from 5-6 then after that they can move into regular jumping (that being the low level jumps which are more suited for their build).

If you put a solid foundation on them - good training, breaking down is not going to be an issue. A horse will tell you if it is. I've seen this as well. Drafts that start in the jumping field and just don't have it then move onto another discipline. And then there are the drafts that live for jumping.

It's time to get away from the old thinking of draft horse equals plow. Full draft can do anything now.

I talked to every draft horse person I could when I got my boy. There are several draft horse forums with full draft jumpers even back in 1999 when I got my boy. Those people were fighting the draft = plow back then.

This link is from the Percheron Horse Association web page. At the bottom it tells that some make fine jumpers.

Percheron Horse Association of America

On the main page a picture of one jumping:

Percheron Horse Association of America

This is a pretty famous Belgian Jumper:

Pics of Horses

If you take the time to look around there is a lot out there on them. Irish Drafts often jump well into their teens.

And again it's all about good training.
 
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