Thank you. It took me a while to find the article but what a wonderful story. I did enjoy it and passed it on too!
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@clipper, apologies, somehow I lost track of this thread! What did you decide to do?
I donāt have personal experience with the JMF horses but know people who love them as big, beautiful, athletic horses.
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Thank you for asking. Went and saw the horse. He is stunning and seemed very level headed. Pulled some hair and sent it away for PSSM 1 testing as he is not tested.
It will take a 2 weeks before we know the result.
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Canāt wait to hear more!
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Former Morgan owner here. They are super fun and quite intelligent. I taught lessons on mine and he was hilarious, for beginners he would go around the ring perfectly, doing everything they asked, and advanced riders could get a lot more out of him. With an intermediate rider, however, he would stand in the corner of the ring and not budge until they figured out the right way to ask him to move. Smart little booger.
He also learned a number of tricks including āsmoochā where he would kiss you, and he loved giving neck hugs. My kids loved him and he was the best first horse for them. Would not hesitate to buy another if the right situation cropped up!
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The Morgan Sport horse is finally priced fairly after being undervalued for decades. A trainer well versed in biomechanics of the horse and rider can bring out the best in a Morganās gaits. Morgans are not trained ābackwardā unless the people riding them train them backward.
I represent several Morgan Sport horse breeders and their horses.
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I hope this isnāt a hijack of the thread, but I wonder if some knowledgeable folks could have a look at my coltās pedigree? Iām new to Morgans, and am just learning about the different families. Aside from seeing some big names way back (Waseekas In Command, Beamington, Senator Barr, Noble Command), who Iām sure show up in most Morgans, I canāt really tell what Iām looking at.
My colt is gelded and will be my personal horse, so itās not for breeding or even resale potential. My competition goals are modest (Iād be thrilled if we got to Training level eventing, 2nd level Dressage), so Iām asking mostly just to learn more about the breed (and some insight on how my guy came to be!). Thanks!
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Sorry but the animals I was seeing represented as āsport horseā and dressage prospects were greatly lacking. Especially for the absurd post Covid price tags people are putting on them. I still think even the most mediocre bred WB is going to out move and out preform most sport bred Morgans. 12-15k is apparently the new sport Morgan price and that makes them not worth it to me. WB cross at minimum for me at that price.
Am not sure what Sport Morgans you have been presented with. The ones I have represented have been enthusiastically purchased by both ammies & professionals, at prices which reflect their abilities.
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There are a lot of mediocre warmbloods and crosses out there for you, most of which are not much fun to ride compared to a nice eager little Morgan. Thanks for leaving the Morgans for those who enjoy them!
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12-15k is apparently the new sport Morgan price
mediocre one may be, daughter was offered more than three times that for her six year mare who had won a national championship as a sport horse, two national and a world championship in Dressage
Then after putting a western saddle on her she placed in Working Ranch Horse division
Horse has no trainer and is kept in our backyard, the mare is just a regular old horse for a Morgan
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A teeny tiny bit of info here that is not anything but trivia, in your coltās pedigree I see True American way far back. True American was the sire of Green Hills Jill, the first Morgan mare I knew and grew up with. I have a picture of her somewhere and Iāll send it if I can find it. She was a very nice mare and I have many fond memories of her.
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But this was the Morgan shows right and at what level? I love Morgans and had a 4th level one here that was such fun but the was totally suited for dressage and did well at the open dressage shows.
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those awards were from the Morgan Grand National which had over 1100 head of the best competing
To qualify for the Dressage division at Nationals since there are not any Morgan Dressage classes anywhere near us she had to compete on the open market against all comers. At a Class A, which had its share of warmbloods she won her division there also.
Dressage is not the end all only thing that we do with these horses. We found that they enjoy a change of life along their journey so we expose them to what ever may be of interest at the time.
We have had Morgans for decades so know full well that many people have different opinions on what is the Best Horse to have (even within the breed there are those who prefer a more modern type) . Rather than having A Horse for A Specific discipline we prefer a horse that can do multiple disciplines very well, who can be competitive again all breeds in open competitions
None of our horses are in any profession training program, all are backyard kept at home. Will this mare become a very top level nationally competitive Dressage mount, very questionable but she can do just about anything very well without having to spend tens of thousands of dollars annually being constantly in forever day to day repetitive training
Warmbloods have their place, we just have no need for their limited use
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I get that but just pointing out the obviousā¦ breed shows are very different than an open show. Not sure what a class A show is or what level but if you want to concentrate on dressage and move up the levels you do need a certain type right?
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I would disagree that a āmediocreā WB is better for the average ammy rider looking to do dressage and other activities for fun. I think you can get more of what you want with a Morgan than a WB or WB cross for the same money. Around me anything that is verifiably WB or WBX (verified!) is probably going to be 5-10K more at least.
The difficulty with Morgans is finding one under saddle that doesnt have a lot of different training to undo. It has gotten better over the years.
More importantly, you have to think about the personality type you like to work with. In general, Morgans are active and involved to the point of being pushy. Most are not very spooky, but some can dip out from under you when they do!
When looking for a lower level dressage/pleasure/trail horse, I would not start out being breed-specific. Many nice horses may fit the bill. When I was looking I tried TBs, QHs, and grade horses (found no appropriate WBs of any sort in my budget). I ended up with another Morgan because that was what spoke to me. He turned out to be unexpectedly talented in dressage. S judge commented that many WBs would love to have his trot. He excels at collection and lateral work, though his trot extensions will never be awesome.
Happy horse hunting.
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I agree with that statement
We are not in that class of people nor ever expect or pretend to be. (our son runs in that part of the world)
But when we take our horses out into the world they are admired by others.
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This is what the OP wants:
These are realistic goals. For a change. I see far too many people who think that they are going to the Olympics. Theyāre not. Most wonāt get to Second Level - at least not in a competitive way, for a variety of different reasons, and there is no need to take out a second mortgage in these circumstances.
The OP, and others like them, should be encouraged in having realistic goals and wanting to enjoy their horse. You donāt need to take out a second mortgage for that, and a Morgan is the perfect all round horse to ride dressage with, go to hunter paces, and go for trail rides.
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Honestly this is what Iāll be looking for in my next horse. I just want to have fun.
Once my competitive goals are good and dead (weāre getting close, with how expensive things are getting), Iād love a rock-solid minded Tennessee walker to cruise the trails with and go camping and such.
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Iāve loved Morgans since I was a child and saw them at the famous Red Fox Stables in Gilroy CA. To me they are the ideal general saddle horse especially if you like the shorties (although now the āsportā type is often bred for height, moreās the pity). They are not specialists but can do well in most venues. My mare is typical ā big shoulders, big rear end, short curvy back, well-sprung. Not the easiest horse to fit a saddle on. She has a motor. On the trail she will outwalk most larger horses and she has a fancy road trot, her favorite gait. I would describe her as more willing, more sprightly, and brighter than the average horse, and this is also very typical. Sheās a fun horse!
Morgans are usually very easy keepers and you really need to watch them on grass. My girl, who is thirteen now, needs to wear a grazing muzzle in season, and when dry-lotted, slow feed net only. No grain. I would say this is their main issue. Morgans were originally bred to work hard every day on minimal feed. The lines which have kept close to the original Morgan, like Working Western and Lippitt, are handy little draft horses, fancy trotting horses, and family riding horses all in the same horse.
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