Planning to hit the trails or hop over fences? Perfect your horsemanship or sort cattle? If you’ve got a specific riding pursuit in mind, you need the right horse for the job.
The horse world encompasses hundreds of breeds that humans have carefully cultivated for their unique strengths, movement, and appearance. From sleek Thoroughbreds to sturdy Quarter Horses, each breed and type has features and characteristics that make it suited for specific riding styles. Whether you’re interested in roping, jumping, trail riding, or any other equestrian pursuit, finding the right type of horse for your needs will help you meet your riding goals. In this article, we’ll explore some of the most common types of riding horses, based on their suitability for various disciplines.
Western Riding Horses
Western riding disciplines have their origin in ranch work and require horses to perform many of the daily tasks you’d encounter on a working ranch. These include Western horsemanship, reining, roping, penning, and more. The breeds that are generally best suited for these sports are American stock breeds such as:
- Quarter Horse: Compact, well-muscled horses originally bred to run a quarter mile faster than any other breed, Quarter Horses are one of the most popular and versatile types of riding horses.
- Appendix Quarter Horse: Breeders might cross Quarter Horses with Thoroughbreds to produce a horse with the best of both breeds’ traits. This versatile riding horse often has the temperament and agility of the Quarter Horse but the energy and refinement of the Thoroughbred.
- Paint: The Paint is a multicolored stock breed that originated from America’s early Spanish and Quarter Horses. They share many of the same characteristics as the Quarter Horse: versatility, good temperament, and durability.
- Appaloosa: The Appaloosa also developed from Spanish settlers’ horses and sports a distinctive spotted coat. The breed is known for being willing and calm and having good stamina.
English Riding Horses
The English riding style originated in Europe, with ties to racing and fox-hunting, and has evolved to include disciplines such as dressage, show jumping, and eventing. The horses that often excel in these sports are bred for their athleticism, agility, and movement and include the:
- Thoroughbred: Bred for their notable speed and stamina on the racetrack, this versatile breed is known in the sport horse world for its energy, willingness, and athleticism.
- Warmblood: Warmbloods comprise a group of European horse breeds developed by crossing draft horses with lighter saddle horses such as Thoroughbreds and Arabians. They’re known for their elegant movement, impressive power, and good temperament.
- Spanish horse: Breeds such as Andalusians are particularly well suited for English sports such as dressage because of their compact, balanced body type and extravagant movement.
- Saddlebred: With their distinctive gaits, Saddlebreds are ideal mounts for saddle seat, which allows them to show off their good temperaments and animated movement.
- Morgan: This versatile, brave, and willing breed makes for a good all-around English horse as well as a saddle seat horse.
Trail Horses
Riders can enjoy trail riding in either English or Western tack. Trail activities range from recreational riding to obstacle courses to long-distance endurance rides. A good trail horse is one that’s brave, surefooted, comfortable, and has the stamina to spend hours on the trail. Popular trail breeds include the:
- Tennessee Walking Horse: Beloved for its smooth, gliding gait, the Tennessee Walking Horse is an excellent trail horse because it’s comfortable, willing, and hardy.
- Missouri Fox Trotter: Another comfortable gaited horse, the Missouri Fox Trotter covers ground quickly and smoothly and is known for its calm temperament and enduring stamina.
- Arabian: Arabians are the ultimate endurance mounts, possessing exceptional stamina, strength, and surefootedness.
Ponies
Ponies are small horse breeds under 14.2 hands (that’s 58 inches at the withers), making them ideal children’s mounts for nearly any discipline. Pony breeds that make good riding horses include the:
- Welsh: Adorable and brimming with personality, Welsh Ponies come in all sizes and colors and are known for being hardy, athletic, and good-moving.
- Connemara: This Irish breed is a medium-sized pony that boasts good stamina, willingness, and temperament that children and adults alike often enjoy riding.
- Pony of the Americas: This spotted breed is akin to the Appaloosa but in a smaller package. Ponies of the Americas are known for their temperament, bravery, and versatility.
- Shetland: The Shetland is a small (typically under 42 inches) and sturdy breed that, because of its size, is best suited as a kid’s riding pony.
Take-Home Message
While these are some of the better-known types of riding horses by discipline, there’s no hard and fast rule about which breed can do what. A Quarter Horse is just as capable of jumping fences as turning barrels, and a Thoroughbred can make as good a trail mount as an Arabian.
No matter the type of riding you want to do, you’ll find a horse breed that fits your needs. Do your research and figure which ones are best suited for the mounted activities you plan to do. Then, all that’s left is to get out there and start enjoying the ride.
