My new horse is one foot taller than anything else in my barn. At almost 18 hh he towers over me. He has only been here 48 hours, but worried this feeling won’t go away. I have ridden him. He is well trained and lovely to ride. My concern is when he is standing in the cross ties…he looks intimidating. Ideas to hasten the bonding process? So far I haven’t ridden him alone. But he has only been here 48 hours …
Anything you can do to just hang out with him. Take him out to graze in hand, do lots of groundwork so you know you have control over his body on the ground. Did he intimidate you before you bought him?
18hh is big, but I think it’s what you’re used to. I grew up with drafts that were 17hh and squat, but some of the tall warmbloods are still huge to me.
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18hh is big, but I bet you’ll get used to his size in time. It’s kind of like when I got my 4WD big pick-up. At first I was like, “This thing is huge!” and I felt like I was driving a tank around town. Now I whip it around like I’m driving at compact car. It seems totally normal.
I agree with doing lots of ground work with him. Push him around a bit. Make him yield to you. Teach him to be very aware and respectful of your space. Eventually, his size will be what you’re used to and all of those other horses will seem tiny, lol.
Good luck with your new boy!
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Know anyone with full drafts you could hang out with? I’m fairly petite (5’2") yet having owning very large draft horses for driving/pulling for years I’ve found that I’m comfortable handling some extra-large WBs that even grown men were nervous around. You just get used to it.
In my experience, one advantage is that while they’re not really slower per se than smaller horses, you can see/sense them starting to move much further in advance. That gives you the chance to correct bad behavior before it starts or take evasive action if warranted.
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How does your farrier feel about taking care of those extra large feet?
I think you are finding “the measure of man” is not just a phrase, but real, here applied to horses and their humans.
Thankfully both are adaptable, you will find a way.
In our riding center we had a few of the military band horses, including some BIG draft drummer horses to start and train.
I was one of the colt starters, all 4’11" and 96# of me and looked right down ridiculous up there, legs didn’t even come half way down their fat bellies, felt like riding an elephant may.
We made it work, they were lovely horses.
I wonder, why did you get a horse that size? Surely you knew beforehand that was big?
Think about what attracted to him, those thoughts may help you get past his awesome giant self.
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I’m wary at first with all of the horses I have gotten over my decades of horse ownership. Not because of size, but because I’ve only had 1 or 2 days to decide before buying, and all were youngish (3-5 yrs). Never bought a local horse that I could lease or ride for a period of time. I hoped my intuition was right and took the plunge, so the first weeks are nerve-wracking for both of us. Current youngster is only 15.3hh, but she was a bit spooky compared to my last horse. Now 7 months into our relationship we’ve really bonded and trust each other, so the things she did when she first arrived are almost 0. Give your new horse and yourself the gift of time. No, there isn’t a way to speed the process up - it takes the time it takes. Best to you!
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I agree with doing anything outside of riding to develop a rapport. I do a lot of in hand work, hand grazing, grooming, etc. just to spend time (for me more so than my beasts) with them that isn’t totally focused on high pressure work (under saddle). Just walking them over obstacles can do a lot in terms of feedback on their mental processing and their understanding of what you want and reading your body language. Mostly the focus is on having fun and giving them a way to build confidence in you and your abilities as a leader. This works regardless of size of human or beast.
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You’ll adapt 
My WB was a good 17’3 - at 5’4", I couldn’t see over his back. Had to check for Clean by Braille 
Mounting from the ground Did.Not.Happen.
The one time I tried “hopping on” bareback, from my 3-step mounting block, I fell short & cracked a rib on his withers. 
I was glad of my indoor arena - which had been pretty much unused with previous horses. < Including my 17h+ TWH.
The WB, as a former GP Jumper, had a canter depart that was {ahem} explosive 
Until we got that sorted out, I was thankful I had the enclosed space to work on it.
You are long-legged & a strong rider. 
Soon Will & W will seem like Honies to you.
Enjoy your new Big Guy 
Here’s Sam, standing behind 52" Kouma:
Giving me a nuzzle:
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Shoot, OP, I have felt that way the first 48 hours with both of my horses – first was 15hh and the current fella is 14.2hh. Could it partly be just plain new horse jitters? He is probably intimidated too; you go be his security blanket.
For bonding, you could just grab a chair and sit outside his stall and read out loud to him, or groom him and give him holiday stencils on his coat, or take advantage of all those Tik Maynard and more recent Warwick Schiller videos on communication and connection. Maybe also look into Equestrian Tai Chi with Jennie Pimm – I find Tai Chi boring but surprisingly effective in helping me return to a state of centered calm unflappability that is very reassuring for my fella.
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My suggestion is don’t push the riding. Him having a week, or even two, off before you get on isn’t going to hurt anything. And that time on the ground will allow you both to get used to each other. Groom him, bathe him, hand walk him around. Show up at night and just give him cookies. Do some work on the ground in the arena, just hand walking him over poles, making sure the back up and stop cues are nice and strong.
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Thank you for all the useful suggestions. To answer a few questions: I’ve known this horse since 2013 when DD bought him as a 3-Day project. He briefly (very briefly) lived here until she moved 3 hours away. He was always pleasant, but then she was here to do his daily care and riding.
I started looking for another horse for Mounted Archery --I’ve been using William Tell exclusively but then he developed arthritis in his knee --while the vet(s) have cleared him for use the daily practice and three or four day competitions may not be something he’ll be able to do. At the last meet, I used old faithful W --and actually scored higher than I did on William Tell because W is slower, I shot more accurately–but we received no bonus points for speed . . .W is going to be 25 in January --so again, asking him to do daily practice and competitions seems like a lot for an older gent.
Daughter decided that Hugh Jackman had done as well as he was ever going to do in 3Day (training level) and she wants to start over. Hugh is going to be 15 in January. Due to his extensive racing career before she owned him, he shows some wear and tear. Her thought was that jumping might not be the best for him --but flat work could be something he’d do well. And so I have him now.
Mounted Archery is a 90 meter flat track. Horse must canter. Some gallop. I just canter and depend on my accuracy to win the day (and sometimes I do). But horse must work hand’s free. Will Hugh Jackman do that? My guess is that with training, he will --he already has a lovely canter and will canter on a loose rein, carrying himself well. I can’t really practice mounted archery until April, but we can sure spend the winter working on that canter.
Did I know he was that big? Yes, in theory. But looking at him standing in my cross ties in my barn and knowing I was now the one going to ride him, well, gulp, he looked gigantic!
Today I got him out and put him on the pony line with W in the lead. I thought taking him around the farm, letting him look at everything (including the horse scaring turkey bastards who were not out today) would give us a feel for each other. Hugh was perfect. He came right along as if he’d been pony-ed his whole live (probably was as a race horse). We’ll do that and lots of ground work and brushing for the next few days. He sees MY vet 11/29 for discussion of what he can and can’t do, best supplements, feed, etc. And then at some point I will ride him and pony W. Hopefully, he doesn’t notice the difference . . .and we’ll ease into more and more solo work as I grow my confidence.
Hugh didn’t look so big when I was riding W even though he’s a foot taller.
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You know we require pictures of this tall drink of water, right ?
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Generally the taller they are the better trained they are. That is because if Mr 18hh doesn’t want to load, time is taken and Mr 18hh is taught to self load.
If Mr 11 hh doesn’t want to load, 4 men can pick him up and put him in the float.
So you end up with an 18hh that a 3 year old child can handle and a 11hh pony that a 3 year old child cannot handle.
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What a nice horse, but, but, was he not supposed to be a draft/part draft?
He sure looks classy there. 
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Wow . He’s beautiful. Thank you for sharing !
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He’s beautiful! Love his name too! LOL!
Mounted archery sounds like it would be really fun and interesting/challenging. I’ve never even done archery standing on my own two feet, but I’ve always wanted to try it.
Good luck to you and Hugh!
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@Bluey Hugh is an OTTB. I wasn’t looking for a draft or draft cross. Before Hugh was offered I had looked at a few QH…
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@RhythmNCruise might see if there are mounted archery clubs or people near u. Mounted Archery people are either archery sportsmen who learn to to ride, or riders who learn archery. I happened to be both but I am an old lady. Still, youth and gender don’t seem to be an advantage over plain old practice!
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OUCH!
This is my thought - you know humans and change, we don’t like it
I have the Perfect Pony who is perfectly 13.1 (and 13.1 around). I also have my IDSH gelding who is just shy of 16h but I have had experienced horse people argue with me, experienced horse people with taller horses (my vet, who just lost her 17+ Trak gelding, and my fitter who has a 4 yo 17.2 WB), who say he must be at least 16.2. Nope. He has a HUGE aura. When I ride them back-to-back, the difference grooming in the crossties is astounding, significantly more than just riding. Riding obviously is different but standing next to him after grooming her, and looking up up UP at his face… yikes.
When I got my big guy at 2 yo, I got him because he was a steal and I figured he’d be a flip (the Perfect Pony was also supposed to be a flip… 
), but I was actually looking at QHs. He is registered as an Irish Draft Sport Horse but mostly TB. I got a yearling this year, also a IDSH, but by breeding is nearly half QH. I suspect she will be taller and heavier than him but she has a smaller feel already because she is a thinker and very zen about things. The gelding is emotional about everything.
Your guy sounds big in body but calm in spirit. That should help.
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