Home Forums Gear Horses and ATV's Rocky Mountain Horse

Yes, too many if not most buy on looks. Rediculous actually but that's the market most of the time.

When I say looks many don't go past color size and confimation. You know cause they have to looks good on the trail... cause well.. their freinds need to see them like that.

We sold 80+ horses last year in the reduction sale. I bet of the 80 sold, less than a handfull of people actually looked past the above and really looked at feet, structure, foot placement, angles, from the front, sides and rear of the horse. Very few asked us to even moves the horse around to watch how it moves.
The first 25 or so we sold on color alone...

I love to ride these hills, I'm not an arena person, it bores me. For years I rode a Fox trotter/quarter cross. He was a horse that I pulled from the dude string years ago. He had a roman nose, narrow shoulders and was a tad butt high. Confirmation was not there, looks we not there... but they way he moved and his heart were larger than life. We hated each other for a few months but we were good for each other, we both knew it we just had to figure out how to make it work. He was smart, agile, sure footed and gave 110% all day long. I always thought I knew what was right and so did he. But them we realized if we listen to each other and compromise..we'd be better off... ya know, WE were right. He was my goto guy. Now, if I wasn't riding him I was riding a mustang or a draft/quater cross. OF the three the last thing I was worried about were looks. I chose them because of their ability for my purpose.

So many people choose a horse because it is what they want.. NOT because it is what they NEED. We've ended many sales after seeing the prospected clients ride and their abiltiy compared to the horse they chose and it's temperment, personality and ability. So many people are not realistic about themselves.

My new horse, Jonesy is coming along nicely he's handsom and regal. Built like an all day mountain climber with intellegence too boot. But I never once chose him becuase he looks good. I choose him for his abiltiy to accomplish my tasks. And truth be told I really never knew for sure until after the first 5 or so days and "seeing" or seeing enough to give me an idea that he had what was needed.

With that being said. I have 2 horses in route from Wyo next Fri. One a Pinto horse that has been there and done that. Can go all day through the hills, anywhere, anytime. Is tried and true and is honest as the day is long. With him is coming a BLM horse ( true mustang) that is built like a tank. Feet like concrete and can take you and anything you can carry stright up a ledge.
Looks, who cares, are they fast... nope, who cares?... are they coming for a purpose? Yeah, I need a snubbing horse and proven trail horses that can pack, keep their mind in the middle, never get flustered, never spook and have so many miles that there is little they have never seen. I'll be riding them all summer and through the hunting season. TEACHING and Training other horse's with them. Jonesy won't be ready for that stuff until next year. OHHHHH the horror... he's doing so well and is THE smartest horse I have ever worked with BUT... good horses take time and NEVER rush it. He'll learn from these 2 tried and true horses these next 6 months.

NONE of them were chosen on looks or blood lines. I could care less about that. But 100% because of what they have proven.

I wish, truly wish people could let go of their ego, shallowness and their drive to be vane and ostentatious. Simply be honest about themselves and their abilities and choose a mount that is right for them and they are right for. So many more people would be happier and so many more equine, truly exceptional equine would find good homes.

ok... so that just went on for a while..huh...

I think most here are in general agreement, it just took awhile to express and exchange views on the subject at hand. Had we been sitting together in front of a good fire we would have had a heck of a good conversation.

It is also a testimony to all that we can have a exchange of opinions and not run the thread into the gutter.

The plain and ugly truth.

Not to get off the subject but one thing that kills me about the "market" is the mare part. It could just be my area but you can get twice the horse for half the price if you ride a mare.

I've heard/hear all the stories about mares. From a selling standpoint I tend to pick out stud colts. That said by this fall I don't know that our best two trail horses won't be two young mares. By golly they are doing great and its a shame they way they get catogorized.

Really sad when you see someone with limited funds(aren't we all) that needs a good horse. Seen it over and over they will pay much much more for a sorry built average moving...pretty colored gelding.


Do y'all see the same thing in your area? Or maybe y'all feel mares are lesser too? Just curious.

So very true...

So many are so pre-conditioned that mares are a pain in the ass and mean, moody, blah blah blah.. so far from the truth if you did things right.
So many spend so little time with them because it's a "mare" they get the short end of the stick from the jump...

regimate is an amazing thing.

Again, no-one can get past some really ignorant things cause "it what they have heard" such BS.



The mustang I talked about in my earlier post today was a mare! She was my top 3 "goto" horses not just for me but for my hunters...

Here she is (black horse) "babysitting" a hunter on the way to the high country for mulies.

If I have a choice and all things being equal I'll take the gelding, but will take a mare if she is the better horse.

Right now I ride a molly mule becausee that is the way the plumbing came out when she was born.

She doesn't get bitchy when in heat, but gets moody and wants to stop and pee every 100yards. Most won't believe this, but she clacks her jaw when in heat. Stupidest thing I ever seen and I never seen another equine do this. Even the vet didn't believe it until he saw it himself.

Lol.....glad it's not just us. First time we went out west my friend wanted to ride his gelding. Only problem was his gelding is a dick head. So he needed a good mare to pack. So we grabbed mine and she done great even though she was a mare....lol. Ill try and get some decent pics of our crappy mares this weekend.

I totally agree when you said most done get the same attn as a gelding/stud. We ride our fillys just like our stud colts. The girls keep up just fine. As a matter of fact I'm not so sure I'm not gonna like my Lil girl horse better than her big brother. Time will tell but she's the spitting image of him so far. From the way she was on day one to the way she rides.

3yr old mare

My point exactly..

I am very interested in horses with good bloodlines, no doubt that increases ones chances of getting an excellent horse. I could care less about color, confirmation and good feet is part of confirmation. A horse with good feet, pasterns, and over all good confirmation help in assuring long term soundness and usability

Around here it is said, the best color is broke.

That is a good color indeed

Saddlesore, We bred Gypsy Vanners. Had a stallion, mares, and a bunch of colts and fillies. It was the darndest thing, when the young stock approached the fence and the stallion was on the other side, they would clack their teeth and even drop to their front knees. we always figured that they were doing a submissive gesture to the stallion.

We also have a appendix mare that grits her teeth. she does it to the other horses when feeding, when they are at the gate to come in at night, and we think she does it to try to assert her dominance, even though she is not the dominate mare. she also tends to pin her ears when doing it.

Back to the original topic..

Leetle known fact is that the Rocky was originally the poor mans horse. It was the breed that would and could do it all and not break the bank on you.

Easy keepers, hard feet, smart and abilities/skills to do many things well.

Much of the information indicates that these horses could survive on little feed or sub par feed in harsh, less than ideal conditions in very chalenging weather and climates. Their feet were also easily maintained.

They were also the do it all. Instead of having a saddle horse, buggy horse, cow horse and a field horse. The Rockies were built and bred to accomplish all these tasks.


jus' thought yad find it interesting.

Nice post by Saddlesore.
The mule world is a small fraternity.
Jake Clark is a great muleman and an honest trader.
Bishop Mule Days shows mules doing anything a horse can do a few they can't like stepping over the chain in a 20 up going around 90 degree corners. The cutting mules at Bishop look like Quarters with long ears. My friend Ralph Atkinson has won the world's best teamster award many years in a row. He is self-taught starting with donkeys, then mules and horses. He only competes with mules.

There are plenty of useful horse breeds but mules can beat them for versatility. You don't see many horses with "three bells and a bob." The ones used to ride, pack and drive.