# Right Horse Height



## Jump_Away (May 21, 2007)

Hi guy's, 

Im 5"11 1/2 (nearly 6") and weigh about 58 kg I was just wondering what the ideal height for a horse for my height would be?

I have a 15hh horse that im thinking of retiring (or selling  ) because I just feel that he is WAY to small for me!! 

I do jumping (and some ODE's). 

Cheers,


----------



## Dave Singleton (May 3, 2007)

Yay it's time to get mathematical!
The height of a horse vs. you can often be very misleading so it is often better to compare your weight Vs. the weight of the horse to get a clearer picture. The following formula is useful for estimating the weight of your horse:
Weight (kg) = (girth^2(cm)xlength(cm))
.......................................11900(divided by above - can't get it to go underneath!)
-Length should be measure from point of buttock to point of shoulder.
- The girth should be measured from directly behind the elbow all the way around after your horse has breathed out. This can be quite tricky to get right so it maybe better to try a few times and get an average! Do not forget to square it. 

As a rough guide you should be looking at around 400-500kg. Now to compare your weights! For a competitive horse total weight (including tack) should be about 20% of the horses's total body weight. For a non-competitive horse it should be about 30%. I would advise then about 25% to be safe. You may want to weigh your tack and yourself in full riding gear to get a good picture.

For a 500kg horse you would therefore be looking at a total weight of 100kg+! Even for a 400kg horse you should be looking at 100kg in the middle weights. I can therefore fairly safely assume that you at 58kg + clothes + tack is fairly unlikely to reach 100kg unless your tack is super-heavy. However, this does depend on the age of your horse also as horses build up their carrying capacity up to a peak at about 10-15 and then drop off again as they get older.


----------



## Chestnut1 (May 18, 2007)

Thank you so much for clearing up a long overdue issue with me. 
I have been around horses all my life and have never known offically how to work this out. 
i've begun to carry a few extra pounds since i had my children, well maybe more than a few, but am only 5'4" and have always wondered about wieghts etc. 
Would love a highland pony (usually 14.2 - 15hh) but was too worried that i'd be too heavy so have never bought one. Thank you again.


----------



## joseylovesrain123 (May 23, 2007)

Dave Singleton said:


> Yay it's time to get mathematical!
> The height of a horse vs. you can often be very misleading so it is often better to compare your weight Vs. the weight of the horse to get a clearer picture. The following formula is useful for estimating the weight of your horse:
> Weight (kg) = (girth^2(cm)xlength(cm))
> .......................................11900(divided by above - can't get it to go underneath!)
> ...


man i thought i was good at math but this confused me!!! lol i'm also 5'11 1/2 and weigh 152.8 pounds. so how tall/heavy should my horse be????


----------



## DesertGal (Apr 28, 2007)

Dave has a good forumula!

Some horses are very stout and stocky and can handle quite a bit of wt. Some arn't and can't handle it so well. My Dad was 6 ft. and used to ride my 14 hh mare without any problem. His feet were around her knees... She sprang around as if he was as light as a feather. She was very stocky, thick strong legs and body.


----------



## KANSAS_TWISTER (Feb 23, 2007)

lol....he lost me at yay......  :!:  , this is really intrusting to know........


----------



## Dave Singleton (May 3, 2007)

I'm glad that I can be of service! It was really odd that I had actually been reading a chapter of a book that discussed exactly this just the day before hence how i could remember the exact figures!



> man i thought i was good at math but this confused me!!! lol i'm also 5'11 1/2 and weigh 152.8 pounds. so how tall/heavy should my horse be????


lol! Right to work it backwards ( :? may go wrong).

First of all conversion from pounds to kg (I prefer to work in kg):
152.8/2.2 = 69.5kg
I will now assume that your clothes, helmet and tack are 20.5kg ~ this is probably over-estimating but it makes the maths easier!
Total weight therefore of 90kg.
Now it depends on what you do, for light work up to 30% is fine, heavy work is 20%. I shall therefore calculate 20, 25 and 30%!
For 20% --- simply multiply 90 by 5 = 450kg horse*
25% --- 90 multiplied by 4 = 360kg horse/pony*
30% --- (90 x 100)/30 = 300kg horse/pony*
* Min weight requirements for purpose.

To convert to height:
20% - As a general rule between 400-500kg is the weight range for a 14-15hh horse/pony. You would therefore be looking at 14' 2".
25% - Smaller!
30% - Even smaller!!

HOWEVER!!!! You say that you are 5' 11"; we'll call it 6'. While the above states how small a horse you can actually ride it does not give any info on how small a horse can be for you to look in proportion. The general rule is that you should stand a hand higher than your horse. Therefore if you convert 6 foot into inches you get 72. Take away 4 for the extra hand for 68 and then divide by 4 for conversion = 17hh!!

Conclusion --- I would aim for a horse between 15-17hh but if you want to compete seriously in dressage or showing then I would aim towards the top end. For normal purposes though you can actually technically ride a pony still without any real problems except of course your feet trailing the ground! However, you must also be careful not to over or under horse by just considering the height - both are important. For example, you get a few shires at 17hh; however, weight wise they are pushing a ton! They would clearly be too strong for you. You may also find one of the tb types who is around 16hh but is only just in your weight bracket on the lower scale.

Erg editing this like nothing on earth::: you must also beware of the top heavy horse who may weigh in well but have stick thin legs. There is a weight calculation that takes this into account but it is rather complicated to say the least and involves all these leg measurements etc. etc.


----------



## joseylovesrain123 (May 23, 2007)

ok well i measure my baby today he's around 15.1hh so i guess that can do for now i dont plan to go pro with im or anything. he's my fun and show horse for now, but when i get some real money i'll invest in a big horse that might be able to pro.  
thanx for the help!!!


----------



## Dave Singleton (May 3, 2007)

15.1hh by my humble opinion is really just fine for pretty much everything. However, in dressage the judge's marks are very much subjective and you could very easily be marked lower just because while the movement could have been correct you being tall may not look exactly "right".
To be honest while the maths is helpful in refining your search nothing really beats a friend's critical eye when test riding!


----------



## joseylovesrain123 (May 23, 2007)

that would explain why i got second in a dressage show and the first place pony didnt execute the moves at the right markers or right time. haha thanx i've been wondering y that happened.  
do you know of any tall equestrians that have gone pro??? i dont think i do and it sort of discourages me.


----------



## Dave Singleton (May 3, 2007)

> that would explain why i got second in a dressage show and the first place pony didnt execute the moves at the right markers or right time. haha thanx i've been wondering y that happened.
> do you know of any tall equestrians that have gone pro??? i dont think i do and it sort of discourages me.


Tall equestrians? There are quite a few!
Zara Philips - At 5'6" she is above the female average height of 5"5'
Nick Skelton - 5' 9" This is quite short but still not incredibly short.
Height should not really matter; weight on the other hand could but as you are light for your height I can't see it impacting greatly.


----------



## Eventer Gal (May 15, 2007)

*Horse size*

My sister is 6 foot 2 and she rides a 15.3hh Thoroughbred, she doesn't at all look to big!!! The picture below is a bit goofy!  

I think what eva you get out of a book isn't always right! Poppy the horse below is about 2 1/2 foot wide so yeh!! I think the best way to figure out if you are to big is simply jump on!! Have a look, for dressage make sure your leg is acually touching the horses side for the aids. (Not dangling at their knees) 
Hope i was a help!


----------



## Dave Singleton (May 3, 2007)

> My sister is 6 foot 2 and she rides a 15.3hh Thoroughbred, she doesn't at all look to big!!! The picture below is a bit goofy!
> 
> I think what eva you get out of a book isn't always right! Poppy the horse below is about 2 1/2 foot wide so yeh!! I think the best way to figure out if you are to big is simply jump on!! Have a look, for dressage make sure your leg is acually touching the horses side for the aids. (Not dangling at their knees)


As I said, a critical eye is always best; however, it is a guide. I also said that it isn't really height but weight that you judge for compatibility between horse and rider. In strictly height terms I also said that it doesn't particularly matter apart from possibly dressage and showing where it could affect your marks.


----------



## Eventer Gal (May 15, 2007)

*Not at all!!*

Dave really she has never got critized for her height on Poppy, and because she is competing pretty heigh up in the Dressage and Hacking (Showing for people out of Australia) and she has never once told that she was to tall.
I know someone who is 170kg and rides a 15hh QH mare, yes she is big but the mare handles it!


----------



## Dave Singleton (May 3, 2007)

> Dave really she has never got critized for her height on Poppy, and because she is competing pretty heigh up in the dressage and Hacking (Showing for people out of Australia) and she has never once told that she was to tall.
> I know someone who is 170kg and rides a 15hh qh mare, yes she is big but the mare handles it!


Hence why I said possibly. Judging is a subjective thing and in high level competition where every movement is carried to practical perfection the only thing a judge may go by is which one 'looks' more right as in simply nicer to look at - if you are a bit out of proportion then that _could_ make a difference... not _would_; could.
In the cases you put forward - I have already said that it is weight that really matters and so comparitively in weight they will probably look in proportion. The formulae are only ever meant to be a general guide for suitability anyway and are only really designed to help with your search for a horse as it will rule the horses that are too big or too small out straight away - this means that of course there will be plenty of exceptions to the rule but at least it saves you tramping 300 miles to see a horse that turns out to not actually be at all suitable despite being tall.


----------



## Eventer Gal (May 15, 2007)

thanks, but i think there is no formula to love your horse. You just have to find a horse for your height and weight. I don't really think it effects the horses performance-well it might but not much. Doing dressage-yes you have to present to the highest you possibalbe can but you can be pretty big to do alright. Like i am fairly small and a lady about twice the size of me won in Rider Class.


----------



## Dave Singleton (May 3, 2007)

Well I think it depends to what extreme one is mis-matched. For example, if you have someone who is over-horsed they are going to have significant problems gaining the control needed simply because they are not strong enough for the horse to listen and vice versa.


----------



## TxHorseMom (Mar 4, 2007)

Another factor to think about is torso size vs leg size. Some people who are tall have very long legs, but a smaller torso. Others have a long torso, but shorter legs. The larger the barrel on the horse, the shorter the legs will look.


----------

