Hunting Horses

[PaulJames1]

What do you guys think is the best way to train horses for hunting? I got 3 quarter horses all very mellow and professionally trained! thanks

[fats]

HUNT

[Shorty]

If the horses are already broke aka trained. The only thing left to do is to go hunting. The only thing you may want to do, is to get off and lead them through the real rough stuff. Thats assuming they haven't been ridden outside much. It'll take an arena horse a little time to learn to navigate through the real bad stuff. You don't want to be aboard if and when they fall in it. Other than that the more wet saddle blankets the better.

[PaulJames1]

oh my horses are ranch horses. You can rope off them and so on. I'm just wondering about introducing them a gun off their back. Nope my horses arent know arena horses, they go on trails in the Rocky Mountains and so on.

[slowandeasy]

Why would you want to shoot off a horse???


Take care, Willie

[mark]

To get some saddle bronc experience????

[Shorty]

Paul, In the hound hunting game, shooting off your horse usually isn't necessary. That being said, I have shot of nearly every horse that I've ridden at some time or another. I however, have never shot a large caliber rifle off any horse. The largest would be a 41 or 44 mag revolver. I'd start with a 22 and work up. I try to make it a habit to never shoot over the horses head. I myself try to shoot at a 90 degree angle or better away from my horses head. I do this because I've usually never shot off them before, lol. Ironically I've never had one spook. They were all just broke ranch horses.

Some of the mounted competition shooters may have some better advice.

[Mike Leonard]

I agree with Shorty's advice on firing gun around horses. We generally keep quite a number of geldings for our hunting and I think at this time we have over a dozen and we pretty much follow the same routine in our early training to insure they will be steady in the field when we are in the bad stuff hunting and have hunters who may not be that expereinced in the saddle.

After general sacking out and round pen work which includes a lot of flag and Wal-Mart bag work I start noise training at feeding time. I start by either cracking a stock whip lightly and then throwing out the hay. After a bit of time I can pop it pretty loud and here they come looking for food. We graduate to swinging it over their heads while working them on the ground and popping it away from them until they tolerate it without spooking and then it is time to do it from the saddle. Once you have them rode down pretty good then is a good time to take down your whip and start swinging it easy from the saddle and making real minor pops with it. It seems like no time and they forget it and you can crack it like the Man From Snowy River if you are that good ( I am not) and they hardly blink. Then it's time to start with a 22 or a blank training pistol and work up from there. We have several you can shoot a 12 gauge off their back but I don't recommend it but it is nice to be able to get off and set down and take a crack at a running buck or walk in on a pointing dog and bust a covey of quail and not have your ride home break and leave for parts unknown.

Horses that are whip and gun broke certainly have added value.

[papa]

Be nice to be able to flush and shoot a bird from horseback...should be able to teach a dog to put the bird in your hand. Sounds kinda lazy huh? Bad feet will do that to you.

[PaulJames1]

Oh okay. Yeah I thought it would be cool to shoot off the horses back. What I forgot to say is that I was going to shoot by the horses and didn't want them to get spooked. Yeah I'll take that advice Shorty and Mike. I have shot a pellet gun and cap guns and stuff like that. They did fine.

[Cowboyvon]

I've never had the need to shoot off of a horse, but I have shot around them before and haven't really had one spook that bad. I would think what everyone has said above is about right getting them use to loud noises..

As far as hunting horses go I had a friend of mine come out and make a circle with me last Saturday in preparation for a through pack trip we are going to make next week through the wilderness. Now this guy rides nice horses.. I mean real nice horses all real popular bred working cow horses.. He brought 3, rode one and ponied the other 2. This country I hunt is pretty rough and especially so after the fires and the floods. It was interesting watching how the 3 horses negotiated the rougher parts ,even without a rider. None of these horses had been in the rocks before.. 2 of them would get in a rough spot and just try to bull there way through it jumping and scrambling and not really paying attention. But this one little sorrel gelding always put his head down and looked and placed his feet right and really took his time. This little sorrel gelding was probably about a $10,000.00 dollar roping horse that could really sit on his ass and turn around..I think he was a duel pep.. I told my buddy I would trade him 2 of my mules for him then I could hunt off of him all week and then go to the ropings on Sunday.. needless to say he didn't take the trade. But anyway I think some horses just take to it a little better then others and although more exposure out and about helps your better off trying to find one that takes to it more naturally.

But if your really serious about hunting the rough country best get a long ear

[Shorty]

Von, I agree 100% !

[PaulJames1]

okay thanks. yeah I think if I introduce a gun to them quite a bit, the they will be good.

[Mike Leonard]

Von,

I agree about some horses being way more natural and taking to it beter. My little red Dry Doc horse Shadow has alwasy been a natural in the rocks and I have looked back at some of the bad places I have rode him thru after the hounds over the last 10 years or so and shake my head. He is a good one! I have three paliminos right now two are full brothers a year apart and the other is out of the same stud and a closely related mare. these three are just super natural at rough stuff. We run them in the badlands when they are off duty but the put their heads down analize things and work it out better than just about any young horses I have ever seen. I work them a lot on obstacle courses when they are in early training and this also helps.

Mules as a rule follow the old principle take it slow and don't hurt yourself and wait till you get out of the jam on the mountainside and let that rider relax and enjoy himself and then come out of the blue sky and do something off the wall. LOL!

Sorry mule lovers I couldn't resist and I know there are some super mules out there and I have rode some but just about every old lion hunter that rides mules has a few tales to tell about one of those mule moments. LOL!

[PaulJames1]

Wow. sounds like you got some good horses. I got one palomino and 2 bays. They are all around good horses and get ridden like 2-3 times a week. After I get my dog good at hunting I'm going to take a trip out and hunt with hounds and horses!