# Interested In Driving?



## hoopla (Jan 29, 2012)

*How to find and chose a good driving horse*

Look, observe and take advice before making any decisions.

As a novice you really are best advised to elicit the support of your Driving Instructor. They will be able to honestly assess your competence and experience and help you to find a pony or horse to match your ability. 

Think carefully about the breed

Remember you make haste slowly - even if your ultimate aim is to drive hackneys in the show ring or a sports horse in CDE, these are not the horses to start with. It would be like driving a ferrari or a formula 1 before you'd mastered the technique of steering.

Your first driving horse might be plain but it's a fact that a flashy, showy one is ALWAYS harder to drive than a plainer, more even-tempered one.

It's the very high-spirited nature that dictates this and you will find the more spirited and able to think for himself that your horse is that the faster, surer and more automatic your reactions need to be. Something that ONLY comes with miles on the clock and testing yourself properly over time and with good help and lessons. 

If starting with a family pony, get someone experienced to put it to harness for you.

For anyone not genuinely experienced with putting a horse to harness and bringing on a youngster, I'd say never less than 6. 

If buying a new horse or pony, think CAREFULLY what you want to do with it i.e. will it be ridden as well as driven. That will determine the size.

How heavy are you? What sort of terrain will you be driving over? What sort of vehicle will you be driving? Again all determine the size and strength required. 

You'll struggle to look past any of the traditional native British pony breeds for a good all-purpose driving horse:

Any of the welsh ponies and of course the section D are up to weight for the largest adult and all make terrific driving ponies and are up to the job but the welsh D or cob type are a little larger. Also useful enough to ride and drive are: Highland, Connemara, New Forest, Dartmoor. 

The American Morgan makes a darned decent ride and drive horse too. 

Be honest and use a liberal dose of self-awareness when it comes to assessing your own ability and competence. Remember experience is just time spent. Competence is entirely different!

As a novice, buy a horse that has been well trained and tested as a carriage horse and that *REALLY *knows it's job. It should be 110% traffic proof. It should want to stand forever unless it's been told to go forward and it should know how to look after itself at all costs.

The overall turnout of horse, vehicle, driver and passenger should look balanced and in harmony. Be neither under or over-horsed: neither in size, type nor ability.

Ensure you have public liability insurance before driving out on roads

Two novices are *NEVER *good mix

You and your horse can't "learn the job together". Most frequently that ends in disaster. And yes, you'll hear people telling you it can be done but in my considerable experience, it can't! 

Remember

*Green + Green = Black and Blue*


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## MisssMarie (Jan 31, 2012)

Awesome! Thanks for the great advice! My instructor is helping me look for a horse, and I am looking for one probably within the ages of 10-17. I just want to pull a small cart for now, someday I might want to advance to something else. My driving instructor uses an older ex american mustang for her cart horse, and I know of a few who get mustangs, train them and sell them for driving. Would that maybe be a possibility?
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## Lilley (Dec 13, 2011)

I own a 9 year old haflinger cross. He is Amish trained and very very patient. He is teaching us about driving. Haflingers were bred to be dolcile small draft horses. you may want to look into this breed as they stand about 14 hands and are Cob sized pulling machines.


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## MisssMarie (Jan 31, 2012)

I'm lookin at buyin this untrained 2 year old for Riding and I'm thinking maybe when shes older, getting her trained to drive as well? She's got a great temperment. What do you think?

http://s802.photobucket.com/albums/...tion=view¤t=ea2700f8.jpg&evt=user_media_share
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## churumbeque (Dec 20, 2009)

Couldn't see any pictures but why not train her to drive while she is young and then riding should be a breeze?


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## hoopla (Jan 29, 2012)

I'd say not suitable for a novice driver


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## MisssMarie (Jan 31, 2012)

I say not yet, although I will get her used to a harness. I say not yet because of my newness to driving
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## churumbeque (Dec 20, 2009)

There are over 800 pictures and I saw 2 horses and stopped since I didn't know which one but not sure how anyone can tell from a few bad pictures if it is a suitable driving horse unless the girl with the bandages got hurt handling the colt??.


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## hoopla (Jan 29, 2012)

You're right about the photos but 2 years old and untrained for a novice driver.... say no more.



> Two novices are *NEVER *good mix
> 
> You and your horse can't "learn the job together". Most frequently that ends in disaster. And yes, you'll hear people telling you it can be done but in my considerable experience, it can't!
> 
> ...


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## churumbeque (Dec 20, 2009)

hoopla said:


> You're right about the photos but 2 years old and untrained for a novice driver.... say no more.


 I guess I didn't see where she stated that she wasn't going to get professional help for herself or the horse.

Some people also have more aptitude than others. I am self taught and trained my own to drive. 1 about 35 years ago and now one recently and have taken some lessons over the last 2 years. It's hard to find a good instructor though. I took 2 lessons from a very experienced driver and I would say my knowledge far surpassed hers so I didn't take anymore.

I am very diligent at research (lots of reading and asking questions) and safety more so than many experienced drivers and I trust my ability and my horse.

Now if I didn't trust my horse I wouldn't be driving her either nor putting myself, my horse or anyone else in danger. 

So I try not to discount a novice with out having more info.


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## MisssMarie (Jan 31, 2012)

So, adding photos from mobile, doesn't work. Here's the filly: 









I'm currently taking lessons, and if i did decide to go forward with training her to drive, I would DEFINITLEY be getting better professional help. A real trainer and someone who can work with me as well as break her to it. She seems like she has the perfect tempermant for it. I know how to do the harness and all, so, if I decide to drive her, I'd just get her used to the harness in the next year or two and then I'd seek professional help. I mean i'd put it on her and let her get used to the feel, as well as ground drive her with the surcingle. What do you think? I think in a year or two, she should be fine to start training and I would be seeking professional help and all that. Her tempermant seems absolutely perfect for this though. I'm purchasing her as long as the owner will sell, for more info on her, see the link at the bottom of the post. She's very well mannered and calm for a two year old.


http://www.horseforum.com/horse-talk/help-me-help-tiger-lily-114626/


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## hoopla (Jan 29, 2012)

churumbeque said:


> I guess I didn't see where she stated that she wasn't going to get professional help for herself or the horse.
> 
> Some people also have more aptitude than others. I am self taught and trained my own to drive. 1 about 35 years ago and now one recently and have taken some lessons over the last 2 years. It's hard to find a good instructor though. I took 2 lessons from a very experienced driver and I would say my knowledge far surpassed hers so I didn't take anymore.
> 
> ...


well you can easily read the OP's numerous posts over the past weeks and figure for yourself


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## MisssMarie (Jan 31, 2012)

I am the first to admit driving is NOT my skill. I'm better at training western pleasure/trail. So, this would be a big thing. But, do you guys think, with the proper training and a few years down the line, she could be used to pull a small cart?
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## churumbeque (Dec 20, 2009)

hoopla said:


> well you can easily read the OP's numerous posts over the past weeks and figure for yourself


Well you are not very encouraging why don't you read them all and share since you know it all
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