What do you look for in a driving prospect?

[Tremor]

I have a 2013 colt that I would really like to use as my show horse. I think he has a lot more potential than my own stock that we produced.

But I'm curious, what do you guys look for when you look for driving prospects?

 

[Maple Hollow Farm]

First and foremost for us is DISPOSITION...if the horse is spooky, unpredictable, or has a habit of rearing or flipping over just while being trained, there is a good chance it is not going to be getting put to a cart LOL! Depends also on if you have any preference on what division you want to be in. We like the Country and Western divisions best as we dont really care for the over exaggerated trots and headsets of Pleasure. Just our personal preference so we generally look for those with very natural movement, great reach and some upward action but we still like the ground covering trot. A good shoulder and hip are both important for the horse to collect and drive under themselves properly. We like a good neck in proportion to the body with a nice slender throatlatch so they can flex at the poll comfortably. Also straight legs and we prefer not too refined since we want a performance horse that will be able to keep performing for many years. Of course you will probably get several different answers but this is just what we look for.

 

[Reignmaker Miniatures]

4 legs and a head. LOL, seriously tho MapleHollow pretty much covered it. I want first and foremost a bold horse who looks at the world with more curiosity than fear and if I can add to that a horse with enough hip to power himself well and a good reaching stride I am happy. If he then has a good throatlatch to facilitate flexing and an inclination to use himself well at liberty I am thrilled. Almost any horse can be driven but to be competitive they have to have a the conformation and attitude to shine in the ring.

 

[romewhip]

That's pretty much what I look for too!

Sensible- it's normal for a colt to startle at something new or strange but I don't want him leaping around like a fool at something. Sure stop and have a snort, but no rearing and bucking and being silly.

Patient- need to be able to teach the colt to stop and hold still. Some just can't really do this well!

Gaits- good rhythm, good cadence in the trot, knows where feet are, and a nice free moving shoulder and hind. I like a pony that has a nice swing and freedom to the walk, and who will step up under himself at the trot.

Conformation- balanced front and back, plenty of length of neck, clean straight legs.

 

[Sandee]

I like more movement - action. I have had the smaller minis that do western and possibly country but give me the big trot and uphead. In a young horse this is difficult to figure out as a floatly (pretty) trot in, say, Liberty will not always be the same when hooked to a cart. So you have to look at how they're "put together". Do they move freely at the shoulder? Do they "naturally" like to carry their head up or down - more relaxed? I have, IMO, the ugliest looking horse but boy can he move and while he wants to MOVE out in harness, he is a really a baby to handle on the ground. In harness he's beautiful and such fun to drive!

 

[Tremor]

I think I have a decent little colt. From what I can tell (at 5-6 months) he has decently straight legs, nice neck and back, I'm not sure about his shoulders though, the one fault that I am not fond of is his butt highness (which comes from his sire as well.)

I've had him a little over a month and he seems to have a very nice personality. He's very, very interested in what put towards him. I haven't seen him trot much, I've seen it ONCE when I let him out with my gelding and filly who he hadn't seen in over 2 weeks and was VERY attached to. It was a NICE, FLOATY beautiful trot.

 

[Minimor]

For a driving horse I want an agreeable attitude and a lively personality--I want some energy, not a slug that has to be pushed.

Conformation--long, well angled shoulder with neck well set on, long hip with a relatively high tail set, good length of leg and good clean joints--no meaty hocks (which is something many people don't seem to notice in Miniatures)--good length of neck with a clean throatlatch. I also do not want a wide built horse. People talk about wanting wide chests, but in reality your best moving horses do not have wide chests. When viewed from the front the horse should have a nice inverted V where his legs and chest join. You don't want both front legs coming out of the same hole, but if instead of a V the front legs form an inverted U with a very flat base--that is too wide.

People talk about a narrow chest meaning poor lung capacity, but in actual fact it generally isn't an issue. When I was 16 I got a Morgan gelding that had horrible conformation--his front legs did just about come out the same hole--we bought him because we felt sorry for him! In spite of that narrow chest that horse could out trot just about any horse he was ever ridden with, and he could go all day without running out of air--the very narrow chest did not hinder his breathing ability at all. He absolutely sucked as a show horse, obviously, but his conformation did not hinder his trotting ability.