the title says it all. What breed or breeds make great hunting horses in high altitudes. I would imagine great stamina is needed to climb mountains every day.

I like quarter horses, but there are other breeds that do well for hunting in mountains. A horse that comes from low altitudes has to adjust to the high altitudes the same as people.

I ride the quarter horse, and IMO, they are the standard by which all horses or judged...Ive owned many breeds over the last 70 years, some good and some not so good, but the quarter horse has been my go to horse for any discipline...I have cross bred them on occasion an in every instance they failed to stand up to the full blood quarter horse..That said, I speak only for myself, and Im sure other breeds suit a lot of folks..I btw, like all horses, and feel all breeds have a place in the scheme of things. All my horses are mountain horses as that's where I use them when Im not competing in the rodeo arena.

I would think the individual traits of a particular horse might be more important than breed.

Horses bred on the high plains or mountains would probably be more physically acclimated then say a Quarter Horse from a long line of horses from a farm in Kentucky.

Some people swear by mustangs or mules, if you can get one that is sound and well broke.

JMO

BH63

It is hard to beat a good riding mule in the mountains. We use them elk hunting and following dogs on lion and bear hunts here in NM and most horses have a hard time keeping up.

I agree how a horse or mule is raised makes a different, but when I ranched I rode quarter horses, always have and they will keep up with a mule if they are raised in the same inviorment, and I can catch a calf or turn a cow on a horse, damn mule can't run fast enough to suit me..I did have 3 race bred mules that I got from Ellmer Hepler in NM, and they were fast, for a mule that is, but they couldn't outrun a slow horse..I hunted off my mules, and I packed dead mule deer in my lap to the house many times on both horses and mules..I like a good mule, but they are hard to come by because they are hard to break and most folks won't use them enough to make them good...My best mules growing up were 20 plus years old, lots of savy and too smart to wear themselves out. A mule that's used and kept in shape will outlive most folks!! .JUst my opine..

I’ll take a horse over a mule any day and every day. I’m horse guy, not a mule guy. I’ve been around both most of my life.

I,ll second that...

Horses certainly look a darn sight prettier than mules or donkeys!

BH63

More important is horses or mules, even cattle do better in the country where they are raised..Horses raised in pens are never as good as Mountain ranch horses, all else being equal like breeding etc..Town horses or pasture pets never develop or learn to travel in rocks and cactus, Horses raised on the flats can't compete with horses raise in the mountains. A lot of things make a good mountain horse besides size..It how they grow up and how they are used..I like quarter horses, but Ive seen throughbreads, Arabians, Morgans and others that could do a good job if raised under proper conditions...Ive seen some ratty starved down horses in Mexico that you couldn't ride down, they can be industructable and they are ugly as hell, they had to be good or they would have died..

quote:

Originally posted by lindy2:
the title says it all. What breed or breeds make great hunting horses in high altitudes. I would imagine great stamina is needed to climb mountains every day.

Some would default to a Palomino , but for nimbleness through rocky, scraggy trails and terrain at altitude, an Appaloosa or a Mustang is what you seek.

That's what the Injuns rode going up into the Rockies and other mountainous venues to evade and escape U.S. cavalry units, ... and other elevated places such as you find in Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana.

The reason Indians rode Appys and Musgtangs is because they were the only breeds that they could catch on foot and they didn't have corrals..

I wouldn't be caught dead on either one. Had a couple over the years, didn't fit me..Hard to break and train, stupid and tricky, why bother with problems like that. The secret to good horses is proper breeding and that has been advancing for many years now and it sure has worked..Do your homework, study the horse and his advances, just pictures alone tell the story. None of this has been accomplished as well as the Quarter horse and the Throughbred..

Until the horse breed is accepted on the race track, they are an unsuccessful breed..Of that I am sure.

quote:

Originally posted by Atkinson:
The reason Indians rode Appys and Musgtangs is because they were the only breeds that they could catch on foot and they didn't have corrals..

I wouldn't be caught dead on either one. Had a couple over the years, didn't fit me..Hard to break and train, stupid and tricky, why bother with problems like that. The secret to good horses is proper breeding and that has been advancing for many years now and it sure has worked..Do your homework, study the horse and his advances, just pictures alone tell the story. None of this has been accomplished as well as the Quarter horse and the Throughbred..

Until the horse breed is accepted on the race track, they are an unsuccessful breed..Of that I am sure.

lol....your absolutes are not....

I've had a few Apps that were GREAT horses. Several of their papers were more Quarter horse than App though and the last one didn't have a single App feature except for a couple of stripes on hooves.

quote:

Originally posted by Atkinson:
The reason Indians rode Appys and Musgtangs is because they were the only breeds that they could catch on foot and they didn't have corrals..

I wouldn't be caught dead on either one. Had a couple over the years, didn't fit me..Hard to break and train, stupid and tricky, why bother with problems like that. The secret to good horses is proper breeding and that has been advancing for many years now and it sure has worked..Do your homework, study the horse and his advances, just pictures alone tell the story. None of this has been accomplished as well as the Quarter horse and the Throughbred..

Until the horse breed is accepted on the race track, they are an unsuccessful breed..Of that I am sure.

Actually, the myth that Indians preferred Appaloosas, was started by the Appaloosa Horse club, to promote the breed. The Nez Perce weren't that discriminating.

Grizz

Just testing the water on that one!

quote:

Originally posted by Atkinson:
The reason Indians rode Appys and Musgtangs is because they were the only breeds that they could catch on foot and they didn't have corrals..

...and by the time they got into battle they were *really* pissed off!

I mostly feel the same way about Appys and make fun of them every chance I get. Then my wife reminds me that my primary mount is half Appy (Appy/Paint cross).

For my purposes, he is awesome and damn near as good as my dearly departed QH mare Ruby (the wonder horse).

There are good and bad and fair to middlin horses in all breeds...

For a mountain horse I would buy a horse that was raised in the mountains and learned to get around in the rocks when he was a baby...A human child raised in NY apt. ain't worth a flip on a rock slide..same with horses.

JCM,
Were I to challenge your post, Id say your correct the last paragraph says it all..get enough Appy blood out of them and they will make good horses!! However, in reality, there are good and bad horses in all breeds, so just playing the internet game and having fun.

All these issues of what makes a good horse. it ain't always breeding or what breed, its the simple things in life and what goes with'em..

Find a good horse that is kind, can get around in the rocks all day without falling and breaking your neck, and won't give out, he will meet you at the gated evey morning and at the end of the day you can still rope a calf or two or a steer in the evening and then enjoy a good cup of coffee, maybe one stiff drank, and get up the next morning and have another..You can't do this on a half broke no account SOB...He will just ruin your day and your faith in God!

My best horses have been Warm-blood thoroughbred crosses.

My favorite horse was a T-bred/Trakehner cross. He was brave, fast, would take care of any rider on his back and knew his business. You could give him his head going down a steep hill and he would pick his way to safety. After fox hunting season ended in March I'd just let him be a horse for a few months and in June begin getting him fitted up for a new season and the t-bred in him would take over and in 3 weeks he'd be back in shape. It would take months of conditioning to do that with a pure warm-blood.

My second favorite horse was a Dutch Warm Blood. He was also brave, and hard working. His only fault when I got him was he was a 4 in hand driving horse and only had one gait and he liked to trot with his head held high... Took me a bit of work to get him to drop his head and the transition to canter was a little rough but he eventually got it. He also was brave and would jump anything you would would ride him over. Worked wonderfully off my legs. Very gentle with a little stubborn streak in him when we did flat work together. But put him in a field with a pack of hounds and horses and he was in heaven--loved that work and would give you everything he had even on a hot day...

I cross bred some mares quarter horse to Throughbreds. My main complaint was the cross didn't put enough bone on the colts and they didn't last as long in the rough country where we ranched by more than a few years, too much weitht and size on too light bone structure...I went back the other way after that experience and went with straight quarter horses and some with about 1/8 to 1/4 throughbred and they were much better..

A good running quarter horse such as those on the race track are pretty darn good for any discipline..

The short fat stubby original quarter horse of yesteryear didn't have much to offer in my opine, but that came to pass as time and geneology came about...Todays quarter horse is damn hard to compete with under any circumstances...

I have riden morgans on outfitted hunts that wre awesome

Locally we have the Basotho pony from inhospitable Lesotho that is tough and agile. Possibly too small for bigger riders and their gear.
These horses crossed with Boerperds or other tough (but bigger) horses, make great mountain animals.
The Nooitgedachter is really an improved Basotho pony.
See https://www.countrylife.co.za/...-of-the-basotho-pony

and http://nooitgedachter.co.za/

I apologise for this, I am not all that fond of horses.

In fact the last horse I rode was in 1997 in western Colorado on a Guided Elk Hunt.

Being the twisted asshole I am, when I first saw this discussion when it first came on the site, all I read on the page listing the topics was "Which Breed Makes A Great Mount" and that was where it cut off.

My first thought and I have been holding it in and my boss loves horse's, was to respond with are you looking for a shoulder of full body mount!

I do apologise to all those that love equines and I have to admit that last ride I made in '97, had me and that little horse wrecked we would both hasve been killed and I still have a picture of me on his back.

I petted him when I got down and said Thank You Buddy but that is my last ride.

My guess is that you were given an unsafe horse or horses to ride & you're inexperienced.
I have helped outfitters on horseback elk hunts ( & in CO west slope ).
A lot of the horses were gathered from people who didn't need them or hadn't been handled much lately. Some were runaways & dangerous.
Others just hard to handle like a green horse.
Some hunters who booked the horse hunts, shouldn't have. They weren't cutout for it.
Have also heard bad stories from clients that experienced other horseback hunts ( about the horses ).

Buy a mule and you don’t have to worry about s mountain horse

quote:

Originally posted by JCM:

quote:

Originally posted by Atkinson:
The reason Indians rode Appys and Musgtangs is because they were the only breeds that they could catch on foot and they didn't have corrals..

I wouldn't be caught dead on either one. Had a couple over the years, didn't fit me..Hard to break and train, stupid and tricky, why bother with problems like that. The secret to good horses is proper breeding and that has been advancing for many years now and it sure has worked..Do your homework, study the horse and his advances, just pictures alone tell the story. None of this has been accomplished as well as the Quarter horse and the Throughbred..

Until the horse breed is accepted on the race track, they are an unsuccessful breed..Of that I am sure.

lol....your absolutes are not....

I've had a few Apps that were GREAT horses. Several of their papers were more Quarter horse than App though and the last one didn't have a single App feature except for a couple of stripes on hooves.

Yep takes a lot of quarter horse blood to pump them up.

I only speak for myself, so not absolute except for me and me alone, the rest is advise to take it or leave it..there are good horses in every breed, that's an absolute, Would I care to own other than a quarter horse, no I would not, that's another absolute on my part, do I recommend this to others? Nope, and that's another absolute..

If I was buying a mountain horse I would go t some big ranch in Wyomings Mt. country, The Texas Big Bend country, Arizonas mt. country,or such, that's where their mama taught them to get around in the rocks and rough country, Pen raised horses never worked for me, apartment raised kids seldom make the best cowboys. Its the same with cattle, horses, mules and people, it starts at birth..