How old does a shire horse have to be before it can be ridden?

offlights: How old does a shire horse have to be before it can be ridden?
I once heard/read that horses need to be 5 years old before their bones are strong enough. I want to own a Shire horse someday and would like to know if they can be ridden earlier because they are stronger. I have always been curious about this. If you can give me websites or reccomend books on shire horses and horses in general(careing for them mostly)that would be great.

Answers and Views:

Answer by lys_rachelxx
Uh, I’m not positive, but I think that standardly horses should start to be trained when they’re around three years old &then be ridden when they’re ready. I don’t think there’s a difference at all because no matter how strong a horse is, they still have to develop.

Answer by KC
Horses in general shouldn’t be heavily ridden until they are at least 4 years old so their bones can develop properly. Thoroughbred race horses are ridden too hard at too young an age, which is why they tend to wear out so quickly and have short racing careers. Shires may be different because they’re bigger, but I wouldn’t recommend serious riding until 4 or 5. Get a jump start on lunging and training until then!

Answer by cowgirlupmich
I typically suggest not starting the riding process til it is verified by a vet that the knees are closed…This means that the legs are complete finished growing and you will not cause damage. This can vary per horse. The typical breaking age is 3 year old 🙂 Below are some links to informational sites about Shire Horses….

Answer by crazy horse chick 88
I would not wait till they were 5 unless they were immature horses and were not ready until then. Usually 3-4 (I lean towards the 4) is the standard. Check with your vet, trainer, and/or farrier. It partly depends on the particular horse. Whenever they are physically and mentally ready, that is the time.

Answer by nascarfan15
That is true, that Shires and also Clydesdales have to be 4 to 5 years old..because they are of the draft breed, their bones are meant to be thicker and a lil longer than the average horse..The horses knees, bones, tendons, and muscles aren’t fully developed until they reach 4 to 5 years old..

Answer by Horsetrainer89
We break everything at 3 years of age. Up until that point, we do a lot of ground work which prepares them for everything we are going to be asking of them. If you are worried about a particular horse, have the vet stop out and take a look at his bone structure.

Answer by Doe
all horses can be ridden younger then 5yrs old. Its the amount of riding that varies. a horse can start to be trained to lead and ground manners as soon as its weanned, then even at a year old you can put a saddle and briddle on it. You can’t ride it, and training sessions shouldn’t be more than 15 or 20 minutes but any handling the horse gets will be good for it. Then at 2 it can start to be broke. this is still young and again you never want to do much but I know lots of 2 year olds that are green broke. as long as you keep the sessions short an not too stressful then its ok.
people who tell you you can’t lope a horse until its five or can’t put a saddle on until its 4 probly havn’t worked with many young horses.
or just prefer to wait. Some want to wait since the horse is so young and will have a sounder mind at 4 or five. But if you keep your sessions short then startign at 2 is not too young.