# Hanoverians?



## 5kiddos (Nov 15, 2012)

Wondering about the traits, temperament, strengths, weaknesses of Hanoverians. What disciplines do they excel in and do they have any common health challenges?


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## blue eyed pony (Jun 20, 2011)

When I was talking to someone about dream horses, and commented that in an ideal world I wanted an amateur friendly horse that could still jump and dressage at a high-ish level, they recommended the Hanoverian breed. They can be a little heavy, but are awesome crossed to Thoroughbreds for an eventing mount, or purebred for a dressage or showjumping mount. They're typically fairly quiet and lazy, but trainable, making them great ammy mounts.

There are some bloodlines that have weak hocks, and being a warmblood breed they are one of the breeds most prone to OCD [the joint problem not the human mental disorder]. Because of their size they can be a little more prone to heart problems than smaller horses, but most have sound circulatory systems.

There used to be a Hano farm in my state that consistently turned out good jumpers, but had an unfortunate rate of weak hocks in their lines... they sadly shut down, not sure how many years ago, which is a shame because the ones with good hocks [the majority] were awesome.


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## Country Woman (Dec 14, 2011)

Just wanted to add Hickstead was a Hanovarian very nice looking horse


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## prairiewindlady (Sep 20, 2011)

I have a Hanoverian. He is awesome! Very gentle, laid back and mild mannered but full of personality. Although he is every bit of 17 hands, he is actually at the bottom of the pecking order...my 13.2h pony picked on him so much that I actually had to separate them! 17 hands is a bit big for me, so he is currently being leased/ridden by a friend of mine, who adores him.


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## TheAQHAGirl (Aug 10, 2012)

Country Woman said:


> Just wanted to add Hickstead was a Hanovarian very nice looking horse


I thought Hickstead was a Dutch Warmblood?


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## equiniphile (Aug 16, 2009)

TheAQHAGirl said:


> I thought Hickstead was a Dutch Warmblood?


Yes, he was.


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## Piaffe (Jan 11, 2010)

3 of my "Oldenburg" mares have Hanoverian sires. They are the most beautiful horses to me..obviously I'm biased  They were/are used for dressage,jumping, and 3 day eventing. Two have the sweetest personalities in the world and the other is more get down to business..not in your pocket at all. Personality depends on the horse...not the breed.


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## LexusK (Jan 18, 2013)

prairiewindlady said:


> I have a Hanoverian. He is awesome! Very gentle, laid back and mild mannered but full of personality. Although he is every bit of 17 hands, he is actually at the bottom of the pecking order...my 13.2h pony picked on him so much that I actually had to separate them! 17 hands is a bit big for me, so he is currently being leased/ridden by a friend of mine, who adores him.


I second this! They are a wonderful breed. My hano mare is very mild mannered as well, 17.2hh and just like yours she is the bottom of the pecking order as well... although it doesn't help that my 15.3 gelding is full of "little man syndrome" 

This is my mare


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## Kayty (Sep 8, 2009)

I've got two Hano's - they're not all giants 
My 11 year old is only 15.2hh and from fully imported bloodlines. 
The 2 year old is currently 15.2hh and I'd say will hit around 16-16.1hh if I'm lucky. 

Both are very sweet, intelligent horses. The youngster is quite cheeky and has an opinion on everything, but is very easy to train. 
The 11 year old is an absolute sweet heart - his method of delaying being worked is to try and cuddle me to death. He's a talented horse, tries hard but can be highly reactive. It's taken me nearly 12 months to start to 'click' with this side of him, and we can now work through his anxiety without spooking and bolting. He has also been highly successful in the few Dressage outings he has had. 

The two year old is a hano x tb, but out of a hano studbook approved mare, hence he is branded and registered Hano. 
My aim is for him to be my next Dressage horse, and he certainly has the talent for it from what I see of him on the ground. He has wonderful bendy hocks like his father and passages around the paddock with lowered haunches and an open shoulder. Thought I suspect he will also have quite a good jump in him - his sire is a Grand Prix Dressage horse, but also works extremely well over jumps. 

The 11 year old is pure Hanoverian, both sire and mare lines imported with both Dressage and Jumping horses in the mix. His half brother from the same mare was a highly successful and greatly sought after showjumping stallion. I suspect he would be able to jump, but don't think he has the right brain for it. 

As far as ailments that effect them, they're much the same as any other horse though yes, can be prone to OCD as a youngster if fed incorrectly. Hence my youngster has lived out in a rough, slopey paddock for much of his life, and always kept more on the lighter side. 
Regarding the mention of heart problems, I have never known an Hanoverian with a heart problem, and I know a lot of them!


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## blue eyed pony (Jun 20, 2011)

Kayty said:


> Regarding the mention of heart problems, I have never known an Hanoverian with a heart problem, and I know a lot of them!


I did say most are fine 

I happen to know of three with heart murmurs, all 17.2 or taller. I also happen to know of two TB's with heart murmurs, both 17hh+... I believe it's size related, more than breed related, but some breeds tend to be bigger than other breeds.

It's just something to check. It's not hard to identify if a horse has a heart murmur... just takes a stethoscope. There is a big difference between a healthy heartbeat and a heart murmur.


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## Kayty (Sep 8, 2009)

Heart illnesses are not breed specific to Hanoverian's though. As you said, you see it in the big horses - not all Hano's are big  
So I wouldn't label them as being prone to heart problems, their chances of having it are equal to any other larger breed of horse.


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## blue eyed pony (Jun 20, 2011)

Fair enough. They do TEND to be taller, and fairly solid built horses, so to me it is something I think of a little more with the warmbloods than with other breeds simply because when I think of a warmblood, I think of a BIG horse with a solid build. It's a stereotype and of course there are exceptions, but we have stereotypes for a reason!


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## DuffyDuck (Sep 27, 2011)

I have to disagree that the Hano is a BIG breed.

You can breed for height, and width.

My Hano currently stands at 169cm. His full brother is 167cm. Dubai will, hopefully, finish at 174cm (17.1hh).

He is a typical WB, not the fancy, light legged modern WB that seems to be favoured in Germany right now.

The smallest Hanno I ever rode was 155cm. I reckon that is just 15.2hh.

The biggest Hanno I have ridden was 18.3hh. 186cm.

Instead of looking at health problems within the 'breed' so the speak, look at the blood lines. If a stallion is prone to throwing a horse with pigeon toes, then look in to it. 
If they are prone to getting a roar (which is REALLY common in bigger horses) then run the other way.
Look at the blood lines, do some research in to the temperament etc.

My boy is from Don Frederico/Donnerhall- So, he has the typical stubborn, stupid lines that if you don't get it right from the word GO, you will have to work for every step when riding that horse.

His mother is a direct Weltmeyer daughter, which is the show stopper inside of him- that extra spark, but can sometimes be a bit too hot to handle.

In the mix somewhere is worked brilliantly, and I have a solid, calm and willing rising 4yo to train.

German WBs, for me, aren't so much 'breed typical' any more, but 'blood typical' and you have to look in to more than what their brand is.

Good luck!


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## faye (Oct 13, 2010)

DuffyDuck said:


> The smallest Hanno I ever rode was 155cm. I reckon that is just 15.2hh.
> !


 155cm is just under 15.1hh. 15.2hh is approx 158cm.


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## DuffyDuck (Sep 27, 2011)

Ahh. Thanks Faye  I'm never quite sure, we just use CMs in Germany!


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## faye (Oct 13, 2010)

as we use both interchangably in the UK i'm very good at converting.

Reeco is 152.6cm which is brilliant as he needed to be under 153cm's to squeeze into the 15hh SHP classes!


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## minstrel (Mar 20, 2012)

faye said:


> as we use both interchangably in the UK i'm very good at converting.
> 
> Reeco is 152.6cm which is brilliant as he needed to be under 153cm's to squeeze into the 15hh SHP classes!


What's your conversion ratio? I was always taught 2.5cm to be an inch, so ten cm to a hand. Therefore 153cm would be just over 15.1hh. However if u have a more accurate conversion rate I'd genuinely find that useful.


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## prairiewindlady (Sep 20, 2011)

In my experience they are pretty big horses, as I said my boy is 17h...my neighbor has two Hanoverians that are around 17h and 18h as well


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## faye (Oct 13, 2010)

minstrel said:


> What's your conversion ratio? I was always taught 2.5cm to be an inch, so ten cm to a hand. Therefore 153cm would be just over 15.1hh. However if u have a more accurate conversion rate I'd genuinely find that useful.


Thing is that 2.5cm to the inch is good enough for most people to be getting on with and makes mental aritmatic very easy the correct conversion is actualy 2.54cm to the inch.

153/2.5 = 61.2" = 15.1hh
153/2.54 = 60.2" = 15hh 

the difference becomes very important when you want an animal to be in the pony classes so you avoid a judge ride! or when your pony is at the very top of the height bracket for competition


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## DuffyDuck (Sep 27, 2011)

Just found some Hannos on one of the sites I use when looking for horses:

Hannoveraner Stute 14 Jahre 155 cm

155cm 14yo Hanno..

All the way to 190cm..
Hannoveraner Wallach 7 Jahre 190 cm Brauner


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