what is the best horse to do jumpers w/?

Question

I have a pony and i do jumpers w/ her!!! we r really good but i need another horse! a big 1!!!!

Answer 1

What matters is not so much the breed, but the individual horse's conformation, training, disposition, and athleticism. For a jumper, you're going to be looking for a horse that's slightly uphill so he can better engage his hocks and bring his hind end underneath himself. This is crucial when you're jumping bigger fences and you need a horse that you can quickly and efficiently collect and pull together. In the pony jumper rounds, most of the ponies are agile and quick enough to just barrel around the courses (at least at the lower levels and heights), but when you're jumping bigger and more technically challenging courses, the speed still matters but precision counts for more. That's why you need a horse that you can rate easily, one that you can extend along straightaways or large gaps between fences and also collect during tight turns. You're going to need a horse with nice, clean legs. His form over fences doesn't have to be as picture-perfect as a hunter, but he shouldn't hang a knee or fail to follow through with his hind end, or he'll pull a rail. The ideal jumper is adjustable and scopey, which means he should be able to find his own distance to the fence, and even if the distance isn't perfect, he should still be able to jump cleanly and (most importantly) safely.

Hands down the horses most often seen these days in the jumpers ring are warmbloods of just about any type. Be aware, though, it's tough to find one for under twenty thousand, even as babies. Jumpers with talent, training, and a show history proving their success may be anywhere from fifty thousand dollars to well over the half-a-million mark. If you put the training into the horse yourself, you may be able to find a cheaper prospect, but this would require lots of time, knowledge, and there's always the risk that the horse won't have the talent to succeed. Injury is always a concern, too, especially when starting younger horses as there's always that risk of pushing them too fast too soon. If you don't have the money for a warmblood, a thoroughbred is a good second choice. Be aware, though, most of our TBs come from the track where they're pushed very hard during the formative years of their lives. As a result, many of them have old injuries in their legs and special care needs to be taken to keep them sound and safe. Some of them have vices and if you buy a horse from the track, it will require serious professional retraining. I've worked extensively with off track TBs, and they require a sensitive touch. It's harder to retrain them than it is to start a young horse under saddle for the first time. If you go with a TB, you can still find a retrained jumper with some proven success in the show ring for anywhere from ten to thirty thousand, so they're much more affordable than warmbloods. Be aware, though, TBs also have very long bodies and a flatter running style. When our jumpers competitions used to be held outside in open grass fields, the TBs excelled with all those wide stretches where they could just run. Now that the rings are smaller and many of them indoors, the turns are tighter and the courses are more technical. It's often harder to hold the TB together than it is the warmblood. The warmbloods have also been bred for many years to do one particular job, usually either dressage or jumping. As a result, they have the right disposition, conformation, and athleticism for that job. The TB is bred for running, and their attitude and conformation reflects that. They are so long, but they're also so athletic. When a quality TB steps into the ring, I still notice.

Some breeds I'd stay away from unless you want to restrict yourself to the breed-only show ring are the quarter horses and other stock-type breeds (most appaloosa, paints, etc.) and also Arabs. The stock breeds often have a downhill build that's not ideal for jumping. Most of them level off around 3' as a maximum height. Keep in mind, Level 1 jumpers start at 3', so if you want any room to move up through the ranks, a QH is not answer. Likewise, the Arabs tend to have flat, steppy jumps that are alright for lower heights, but they tend to pull rails when the fences get bigger.

Answer 2

It's perfectly fine to jump with ponies but if you want a bigger horse-- possibly one that you can show with on the larger jumps and maybe even cross country I'd say get a Thoroughbred. They have so much energy/stamina and they can be a huge unpredictable handful but thats why i love riding them! My TB carries me over any jump-- hes really brave but he definately has an attitude. So you should be good enough to be able to handle a potential trouble-maker if you want a thoroughbred!

NOTE: Someone above said TB's dont make good jumpers? Thats a huge mistake because most famous horses that compete (ie// the rolex 3de) are thoroughbreds AND someone else said above to get a hunterjumper breed.... Hunter jumper isn't a breed of horse, it's a style of riding.

Answer 3

A Dutch Warmblood, Appaloosa, Canadian Horse, Canadian Sport Horse, Caspian, Hackney Horse, Haflinger, Irish Drought, Morgan, Oldenburg, Shagya Arabian, or a Thoroughbred. All of those breeds are great jumpers. I would suggest getting the Dutch Warmblood, the Shagya Arabian, or the Thoroughbred! I got all of these horses from a book. The tittle of this book is Horse Breeds of NORTH AMERICA
The text is by Judith Dutson and the Photos are by Bob Langrish. Enjoy!

Answer 4

I really not into Jumping for competition, not sure that what you want to do or jump for fun. We had a Thoroughbred, and they a fast horse, but, I not sure they be a good jumping horse. I would be more fearful of them breaking a leg. The Warmblood mentioned may be a great horse, again, I not know. For fun jumping I would go with a Quarter Horse or Appaloosa or Paint. I never had an Appaloosa, but, been around them. I know my Quarter Horse and Paints could jump about anything we encountered, within reason. But, I no expert in this area, and I guess it just my opinion. Sounds like the Warmblood the horse, but, I assume mainly for competition.

Answer 5

Usually a dutch warmblood cross or a thoroughbred cross are good jumpers. I really like Hanoverians though for jumpers.

Answer 6

My favorite jumper is the Dutch Warmblood. They are normally big and great jumpers, but they are not cheap. I also love for local or lower level shows TB's they are great.

Answer 7

Dutch Warmbloods, Irish Sport Horses or Tb's are good (and expensive too), but so are alot of breeds of horses... even Quarter Horse and Quarter crosses are used in jumping! I love quarter horses. :)

Answer 8

Any horse with athletic ability can jump. I would get with your trainer if I were you and start looking for a nice jumper prospect.
Look for one that matches your riding experience, is healthy, athletic, and tucks up nicely over fences.

Answer 9

If you want a big 1 go for a Hunter Jumper. Iknow one that is 17.2 HH (Hands High). But if thats to big foryou go for a Thoroughbred. And thats about it Quarter Horses don't do well on the course TRUST ME!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 10

a quarter horse/ two eyed jack mix would make a great jumping horse.
i had a regestered quarter horse(her name is MysticMajicLilLady. she was regestered with the aqha.i have sence gave her to a young cowboy that has trained her for the rodeo circut. im not sure if he re regestered her but you are welcome to check it out on www.aqua.com .
anyway because she had two eyed jack in her blood line she was very sweet and trusting and very smart. she would do just about anything you trained her to do and she would do it well.
i love her dearly and miss her loads but i couldnt bring her with me to austraila.

hope this helped you in choosing a horse.
ps when choosing a horse ,start with a pack of yearlings , at least 10 in a paduct and just walk out there and stand.you do not pick the horse. the sweetest one will chose you... thats how i got lady. she chose me. she trusted me and i trusted her. when it came time to break her to ride that same 16 yr old cowboy came out to my house and put a halter on her and a lead rope and jumped on her back and because she trusted me she trusted him and they bonded. she never bucked ,kicked or ran she just stood there waiting for him to teach her what to do. she was steady and strong and happy.
30 days later i got on her and rode her and she was great.
hope this helped
cheers
josie