# can my senior Arabian do endurance



## KBA6 (Aug 24, 2013)

I've always wanted to do endurance, but life was too busy. 
Now I have time... the thing is, my boy is a 23-year-old Arabian. 

Is that too old for endurance?

He is in great body condition, no health problems, never lame. Sometimes seems a little stiff in the mornings but warms up fine. We did a 7-mile hunter pace with little to no conditioning and he was in the front constantly and could have gone for another 7 miles no problem. Same with my 20 year old quarter horse. She was right beside him and never faultered. 

I know endurance is a different beast. And I'm a little scared of it. But if its safe for my senior horses then I think I would like to take a stab at it


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## CaliforniaDreaming (May 8, 2011)

I feel ya! I wanted to do NATRC and endurance for ages and ages, but something always got in the way (money, time, lack of transportation, etc.) I've been trying to do it, and in the meantime, that 8 year old Haflinger gelding I bought went and aged up (he’ll be 22 next year, how does that happen? I only bought him a week ago didn’t I? 😂)

Plenty of older horses doing endurance, with the right conditioning. If we ever manage to get to a ride, I plan to stick to the Intros for my gelding because he’s not an Arab. 10 miles shouldn’t be difficult. Might be something for you to consider. And then if your horse acts like he wants more, step up to an LD.

Of course, if we want to get technical, I have a virtual 100 mile Tevis horse. We did the Virtual Tevis last year and it took us 3 months to finish, but we got all 100 miles in. 😅


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## charrorider (Sep 23, 2012)

I'm also in that club. I've been riding Arabians for over 30 years and always wanted to do endurance, but never had the time. And I never will. So I trail ride a lot, several hundred miles every year. As far as your question, there is an Endurance Riding section in Horse Forum. I suggest you post your question there. My experience with endurance is limited to helping mark and unmark the course. So I have been at endurance racing camps, but never participated in the race itself. I know that nowadays they have races as short as 15 miles.


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## stevenson (Sep 12, 2011)

If your horse is stiff in the morning , then it has arthritis going on, and before you do anything you need have him Vet checked. Endurance horses have a lot of conditioning .


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## RoadRider / Rios Dad (Jul 2, 2009)

This is Strider. He is 23 when this picture was taken
He is just finishing up a long lope
We lope north for an hour on the snowmobile trail
Turn around and lope south for 3/4 of an hour
Lopes a little faster going home
But he has done endurance all his life
I would give it a try on your guy


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## ChieTheRider (May 3, 2017)

The only way to know for sure is to constantly be in touch with his health and his comfort. Begin conditioning him slowly and see how he does. If he gets even more stiff and uncomfortable then he probably won't make an endurance horse. With the old guys it's about letting them make the decision on whether or not they would like to retire. They'll let you know when enough is enough


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## charrorider (Sep 23, 2012)

Horses, like people, age differently. It sounds like your horses are in good shape. Endurance "rides," as they call them, are not all extremely long distances. Some rides are only 25 and 35 miles. There is an endurance ride section in Horse Forum. I'm sure you can get some solid advice there.


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## lsdrider (Jun 27, 2012)

I've seen 33 year old horses (Arabians) complete LD's. Wouldn't doubt a 50 to be possible.
That said, the first step would be a thorough vet check and attention from a knowledgeable, experienced farrier. Once you get their blessing, ease into training. Always watch for signs of soreness and listen to your horse.
You'll probably be surprised.

ETA: Look for endurance clinics in your area and / or attend rides. Your learning curve will be shortened immensely and your horse will benefit as well..


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