Very smart horses & can out wit a novice ever so subtly...

I've experienced it first hand
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I know several people who had Arabians as their first horse. They all enjoyed owning and riding their horses. Don't let the breed scare you. Find the right one for you.

 

Nothing wrong with arabians other than you have to be at least as smart as the horse to get along with it. Most of them are very good at taking care of beginners, when treated well. And most of them WILL get even when treated poorly.

 

There isn't any set in stone rules about first horses. You can go by general rules, like buying older horses or quieter breeds but you have to eval every horse individually. Not every Arabian or TB is going to be hot and not every 6 year old is going unmanageable. I'd say stick to the general guidelines, but evaluate horses on an individual basis.
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If you are just looking for a 1st horse to trail ride on then breed isn't really going to matter.
Just find a horse you like and that is suited for you that's safe, sane, and sound.

 

Thanks for all the advice!
Hmmmm that's interesting, I must say that owning an arabian does sound fun(but also challenging).
I've been watching many horsemanship videos to try and understand natural horse behavior and how they act in the wild, hopefully it comes in handy!

 

How a horse acts in the wild has nothing to do with under saddle. My Arabian was an absolute gem with children and beginners. He had one odd quirk - if he tho't the rider had no idea of how to use a snaffle bit he wouldn't move. He was fine in a flat nylon halter. Yet he was full of fire when racing around the pasture with his buddy.

 

Thank you, Saddlebag! I'm trying to soak up as much advice as possible and your post was very helpful!
I have one teeny question:

Do arabians have any specific requirements, or are they pretty much the same as other horses? (feed care wise)
Thanks!!

 

They're the same as other horses to feed. Each individual has its own needs, just like with any other breed.
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Great comments

My now 28 yr old Arab was seven when I rescued him starving and with an injured vertebra. He is only 13.3H and while I was a skinny minnie back then, I was still too much weight for him.

He ended up being the best lesson for children under 12, that we could ask for. The only time I ponied his students on trail rides at the state park, were if they were pre-school age.

He continues to be the horse that gives children happy horse memories, if they never ride another horse in their life.

That all being said, Arabs certainly are very intelligent ----- to their own un-doing sometimes.

They are also full of trickery, at least my purebred and all my Arab/crosses were

I love to set my Arab up for mischief by leaving his stall door open while I go wash feed pans outside. He will peek his head around the corner, eyes wide, ears forward, waiting. If I don't come back right away, pretty soon I hear one hoof on the aisle mat, then two, then a very cautious sound of four headed down the aisle toward the big "escape" door.

In his youth he would rush right out that door and say "GOTCHA!" but he's now 28 and much more cautious - lol lol I generally give him a minute or two, then come in the barn and say "Streeeeeterrrrrrr, what are you doing?" He stares at me, as if to say, "whelllll YOU left my door open, I'm on tour, what are you doing?" If his hips are up to it, he will back up and go in his stall.

If I sense he can't back up that day, I let him come to the end of aisle, where he can turn around and go back to his stall. In 21 years, the only severe discipline he has ever received, are those days he decides he does not want a bath and that is mainly because we HAVE been doing baths for 21 years - lol

They expect fairness when being handled but sometimes they can be drama queens as to the interpretation of fairness. What doesn't phase on eyelash on any of my Walking Horses, might evoke "Betty Davis Eyes" from my Arab:lol:

You have to give an honest appraisal of yourself first, when it comes to disciplining your child and your dogs.

If you are quick to anger, I don't recommend an Arab. If you are long on patience, then yes by all means, find the right one and it will be loyal to your child to its last breath.

 

Most of them tend to be easy keepers and require LESS feed. Otherwise, they are still just horses. If you were closer, you could come play with my lot of arabians. They love people. My stallion gives beginner riding lessons. Really, what you too often see in the big show rings really is not what you should expect from most arabians.

 

Well, everything has been said already... oh, they're highly addictive, crave attention, would come on the couch to watch tv with you if you let them, are usually very forgiving, and are really good watch dogs on top of all

 

Avoid any with halter breeding, they are bred for their bodies, no focus on having a good mind.

Consider the individual horse. My arab mare is intermediate friendly, but far too smart and sensitive for a beginner. Most I've ridden were like that, they get frustrated with beginners and are too hot.

that said, I've known two, and arab and an arab cross that were the most caring beginners horses you could ask for, one took a 14 year old girl from total novice to competing in endurance.

There are always exceptions to the breed norm, and that's what your looking for. a beginners horse is often harder to find in a typically hot breed, but not impossible.

 

Not THAT hard to find, evidently, as I have recently sold down to 4 from 24, and would trust every one of them with a greenie, possibly even the old stallion. When my kids were small, THEY all learned on Arabians. As have those of my grandchildren who were interested. They really ARE out there.The few that have been handled roughly or fired up for the show ring really are NOT representative of the whole breed, any more than the halter bred QH represents ALL QH's.

 

My first horse was an Arab and he was absolutely the best horse I've ever owned. Now I love Sonny to death and back but in terms of taking care of me, C.J., my Arab was wonderful. He was a finished show horse and yet willing to do whatever nonsense I decided he needed to do. He was perfect for my level then.

If that's the breed you want then go for it, but just like with any other breed, you have to find the individual who is right for you.

 

Hi! Arabians are the most awesome horses ever, but (like with every other breed) you have to look for the right one and not just the prettiest.

Just apply the same criteria you would for any other horse: not too young, well broke, easy to handle, well trained, already showing good disposition towards the activity you want to do. Stick with the golden rules and don't be afraid to say no to a horse who looks beautiful but shows less than a very good attitude or that shows huge holes in its training.

My experience with these horses are of a mare that was the gentlest soul on planet and that I didn't buy just due to health issues (I should have bought her anyway, she was so nice), and my evil spirit of a horse. I have to say I was too much in a rush when I bought him, and he is a bit too much of a horse for me, but then I was all alone with a 3 yo and no trainer, so the issues were understandable. Even with the (big) issue I have with him, I still think he's amazing.
He's different from any other horse I met before, I had to learn /the hard way/ how to ask him things, he won't tolerate any abuse (and by "abuse" I mean also getting angry with the horse because he's not doing some exercise) and when our opinions diverge I always have to outsmart him, trying to use force is useless and dangerous.
He came to me pretty traumatized over some stuff, and it took forever to erase those problems. There was a small incident with the barn owner too and horsie hated him for years (but BO didn't put any effort into making things right).

On the good side, he's sweet and cuddly like a dog, he's friendly with all people, loves to be petted, loves to interact with me, comes to the gate at the paddock when I call him, so even thought I made a lot of mistakes with him and still do, I cannot think of any other breed I would want.

 

Thanks for all the replies! your advice has been invaluable to me and soooo helpful! now I know that people have gotten arabs as their first horse! :-D
I suppose I am quite patient when it comes to animals and I never get angry at or shout at animals ;i would just feel awful if I did!
I really do think that they are the right breed for me! Now I just have to find the perfect individual! :-D

 

Originally Posted by BlueSpark
Avoid any with halter breeding, they are bred for their bodies, no focus on having a good mind.

It isn't the BREEDING, per se, but the way they are grained to H and back, overconditioned, and fired up with whips and plastic bags, noisemakers, etc, so they can go in the ring with that completely bug-eyed attitude that halter folk think so much of. Many of them are perfectly nice horses once they are "let down" from that high and allowed to be horses.

 

It isn't the BREEDING, per se, but the way they are grained to H and back, overconditioned, and fired up with whips and plastic bags, noisemakers, etc, so they can go in the ring with that completely bug-eyed attitude that halter folk think so much of. Many of them are perfectly nice horses once they are "let down" from that high and allowed to be horses.

my own personal experiences with halter bred arabs is that they are nuts. I will never own another one and I will never recommend someone who values their life purchase one without seriously evaluating their temperament. The first was a gorgeous, stunningly well bred mare. Her middle aged owners sold her at auction because she kept throwing them. She was the spookiest, most unpredictable mare I've ever worked with, and you had to be a hell of a rider to ride through it. Any change in terrain, lighting, wind and you were suddenly teleporting sideways, vaulting 3' over a shadow, spinning and bolting, stopping and reversing. There didn't even have to be anything there. No amount of wet saddle blankets made an impression. She would spook off trail, over cliffs, into fences. Vetted 100%. She was sweet, well built and well bred, so the owner decided to breed for an anglo arab foal. She spooked on top of him twice, injuring him. He grew up sound, but just as nuts as her.

the next one was a gelding. Fantastically well bred for the halter ring, gorgeous. I worked hundreds of hours over 2 years on him, and he was spooky, unpredictable, and a bit insane. At the end some days a kid could ride him. Neck reined, moved off your leg, quiet. could ride him bareback with just a piece of twine around his neck. The next day he would buck you off and try to kick you on the way down. He would randomly leap in the air, spook at nothing, try to run through a fence.

 

Thank you BlueSpark! Now I know which ones I should rule out!

 

No breed is perfect you know. There will always be a few nut cases no matter what breed you get into. Doesn't ruin the whole breed. And the way many halter horses are trained and handled, it's a wonder most of them don't turn killer. It is NOT the bloodlines, as I well know since I OWN some of those bloodlines, and they are wonderful to deal with.

 

There are the same as other horses. Men don't particularly like them bc they aren't tall and wide enough to be comfortable for most men.
They are sensitive, do Basic Dressage and/or Pleasure riding well, don't particularly jump well (backs are too flat) and can carry more weight than their build suggests.
They often have a habit of "recreational spooking" and "Corporal", Arabian, (1982-2009, RIP), who I bought as a green 4yo and trained/owned almost his whole life, would often spook at nothing on a trail ride just for the Hexx of it, usually once.
Other than that, they are GREAT horses. But, so are QH's and Cobs and Warmbloods and TB's and Gypsy Vanners...ad nauseum.

 

Really??? I've seen LOTS of men riding 15 and 16H horses. And many Arabians have to have a wide saddle, so how would that be a problem for men?
Jumping?? Do you not know who Russian Roulette is?

They often have a habit of "recreational spooking"

Again; really?? I've owned and ridden probably 300 Arabians over the years, and wouldn't say ANY of them "made a habit of it". Most were trained to "spook in place", and did what they were trained to do. In other words, stop and give it a good look if necessary, then move on. And yes, I trailride. A LOT.

 

The first horse I ever bought was an Arabian, however, I was not new to riding. He was most certainly a handful. Throughout the years we have bonded and he is my favorite horse to ride. He wasn't dangerous because of the fact that he was well trained, but he was very spirited and I still don't let others ride him because he is such an active horse. He eats a lot and isn't really an easy keeper. I assume he has a faster metabolism because the vet says he is healthy. Now, I do also believe that every breed has hot horses, some maybe more than others. I wouldn't buy a horse solely on breed, you need to test the horse out first to make sure individually he is a good horse.

 

Don't forget the Morgans & the gaited breeds. They have made some excellent mounts for lots of novices!

 

No breed is perfect you know. There will always be a few nut cases no matter what breed you get into. Doesn't ruin the whole breed

correct. My current arab mare is one of the most sound, sane, trust worthy horses I've ever owned. I almost didn't buy my mare because the last halter bred nut case almost killed me, and had me avoiding arabs for fear of ending up with another one. Then I heard from several other horse people, including two arab breeders that bred for endurance racing, that they avoided halter breeding like the plague for the reasons I mentioned.

I'm not saying that every halter bred horse is crazy, but I do think there are a higher percentage of halter bred horses that are inclined to make very poor mounts, mentally and physically. I think this is a logical conclusion to draw, even without any experience, because they are bred for in hand competitions and most are never ridden, nor bred for function or mind.

Thus, as the op was looking for a beginners horse, getting ones from bloodlines that typically make good mounts makes more sense than buying a horse bred for something else entirely.

 

Fortunately, I know plenty of exceptions to this idea. While there are a handful of stallions who are pretty crazy (those exist in every breed), they are by no means contained to halter-bred horses. I've know plenty with "riding-bred" lines and no halter who were thoroughly of their rockers. I currently own (and would own another from the same breeder) a halter-bred Arabian. He's got a lot of personality, but by no means is he actually crazy. I call him crazy as a pet name and things were tricky when I got him as a virtually untouched 1.5 year old (when the name started among some other choice names that won't pass the censor). Honestly, when I went to look at him, I could barely handle him to walk him down the barn aisle or even put his halter on because he was rarely handled. He only went in and out of the stall to run out to the pasture and come back in, and he'd only had a halter on twice in his life. You would never know it to see him now, or even a year after I got him.

He has never been dangerous or malicious. He's the sweetest boy, but like any other horse he has his own issues to work through. And he's smart. Very smart.

When he shows in halter classes, he naturally lights up and hams it up for anyone who may be watching. He also hams it up for anyone watches is ride when we're at home in the arena. He loves the attention, no help or encouragement necessary.

Sometimes people see halter horses in the arena and shortly before and after and they make assumptions based on their observation. Some of those are spot on and some of them aren't.

When you're looking for a horse, look at the horse for its personality, not so much its breeding.
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I have mares here with halter champions in their pedigrees that I would trust with anyone. It depends on the horse. I also have performance bred mares that I would never trust with a novice or even intermediate rider.
Arabians are wonderful horses for beginners if well trained. All my mares will follow you around the pasture like dogs and love attention.
In fact I think as sensitive as they are most people should learn to ride one. IMO this would make them better riders. Shalom

 

IMO this would make them better riders.

Yep. It would.