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Expert
Posts: 1561
  
| In your personal experience between a mare and a gelding which have more heart, try and grit? 
When and where did you 1st know your horse had the "heart" to be something special? |
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  That's White "Man" to You
Posts: 5515
| Like everything else, it depends on the horse. |
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 Proud to be Deplorable
Posts: 1929
| I don't think the sex of the horse has a darn thing to do with heart. IMO |
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 Shipwrecked and Flat Out Zapped
Posts: 16390
Location: DUMPING CATS AND PIGS IN TEXAS :) | Ditto to the above, but I dang sure have two gritty little fillies from the same dam right now. |
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 Husband Spoiler
Posts: 4151
Location: North Dakota | In my experience I find that mares have more of a tendancy to have more grit and try where as a gelding will look for an excuse to not work or only work as hard as you make him...lol. But I have had a couple geldings that gave you 110% all day everyday and the few mares that just would rather fight and be stubborn than cooperate and do their job. But over all I have come across more hard working, gritty, give me everything they got, no complaining type attitudes in my mares. |
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 Heeler Hoarder
Posts: 2067
| Mares but occasionally you will get a gelding |
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 Veteran
Posts: 178
| In my experience, mares. Not to say there aren't geldings out there, but overall the mares just seem to be tougher and grittier. Keep in mind this is coming from someone who thinks women are just tougher than men in general, so perhaps I'm just sexist lol! |
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 Undercover Amish Mafia Member
Posts: 9992
Location: Kansas | Whiteboy - 2014-04-28 11:11 AM Like everything else, it depends on the horse.
Agree, but I absolutely love my mares |
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 You get what you give
Posts: 13030
Location: Texas | I think a horse with a ton of heart is special and gender doesn't determine that. We've had ones who were all heart, mare and gelding alike. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 928
Location: Northern CA | In my opinion mares have more grit, but a gelding has more desire to please and is dang sure more consistent. I will take my geldings. Have tried and tried mares, and I think we are too much alike, do not get along with them.
Edited by halter_ego 2014-04-28 2:14 PM
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 591
| I think that "heart" just depends on that particular horse. They are few and far between and you are always lucky to find one with a lot of heart. Now I feel where mares and geldings can be different is their "try" or "want to", at least in the beginning stages. Mares tend to have more try early on with their training, while with the geldings you have to coax it out a little more. Geldings (like little boys) are a little less focused and get distracted quicker. Like men, geldings mature a little later in life - LOL! The girls catch on a bit faster, but can have a bit more "attitude" about everything. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 364
Location: Texas | Geldings! Every gelding I have rode has given me 200%. Every mare I have rode has been a BRAT!!! |
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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 417
Location: CA | Mares |
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Husband Spoiler
Posts: 4151
Location: North Dakota | 3 To Go - 2014-04-28 2:51 PM
I think that "heart" just depends on that particular horse. They are few and far between and you are always lucky to find one with a lot of heart. Now I feel where mares and geldings can be different is their "try" or "want to", at least in the beginning stages. Mares tend to have more try early on with their training, while with the geldings you have to coax it out a little more. Geldings (like little boys) are a little less focused and get distracted quicker. Like men, geldings mature a little later in life - LOL! The girls catch on a bit faster, but can have a bit more "attitude" about everything.
^ this!!
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I Really Love Jeans
Posts: 3173
Location: North Dakota | I have had better luck with mares. But it comes down to chance really! |
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 I'm Cooler Offline
Posts: 6387
Location: Pacific Northwest | Both...and I think when you find the perfect combination of horse and rider it makes it even better. I have a temperamental gelding that no one else gets along with but him and I have an understanding, so I think I get more out of him than someone else would. I have another gelding that would give me, or anyone, 110% with 3 broken legs. I also have a mare that did not click with her previous owner but her and I get along great and her times improved drastically just because she liked me, basically lol
All three of those horses are the ones I've had the strongest "bond" with, so to me they all seem like they have a lot of heart because they pretty much do whatever I ask and just want to work for me.
As for knowing "when", the temperamental gelding I got when I was 11 and he was 2 and I was basically so smitten by him that I didn't care that he was a stubborn brat and in my little 11 year old head I really thought we were going to make the NFR hahaha He ended up being a fantastic 4H horse for me, I did literally everything on him. The other gelding and mare it took me a bit longer for them to show me who they were. The gelding has a TON of health issues and still just wants to run and work (and a lot of times I can't let him, he's spent the last year being a trail horse), I don't think I will ever find another horse like him. The mare I was originally borrowing from a friend and I didn't know the horse at all and just went by what I was told - that she was witchy and basically a "typical mare". Turns out she's not like that at all, I think she was really misunderstood as corny as that sounds. And she had some pain issues that I fixed. Once I saw the "real" horse I decided to buy her and now she's mine forever (:
Edited by livexlovexrodeo 2014-04-28 7:52 PM
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 A Somebody to Everybody
Posts: 41354
Location: Under The Big Sky Of Texas | Just got to find that right horse that will fit you and they will work their heart out for you, could be a mare or could be a gelding, or stud. |
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 Neat Freak
Posts: 11216
Location: Wonderful Wyoming | I have ridden a whole lot of every gender and I think mares have more heart in general. My pick is stallion because they have quite a bit of heart, but still love to please (if you have their respect), geldings and lastly mares. I also agree it depends on the horse, but if you took a poll I think mares would win. |
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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 559
| Mares ! Seems like everytime I hear someone with a horse that wants out of work/ stubborn is a gelding ! Just my personal experience though . |
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 Warmblood with Wings
Posts: 27846
Location: Florida.. | just my opinion for me....
stallion and mares.I love my geldings but they had to have direction.. like a robot..lol.. they work well but treated it as a Job..
Stallions give it 110% alot of the time and wants perfection...and mares want it if they want it.. if a mare has it she has it.. and always will give you 110% but if she doesnt feel like it then .. so be it.lol.
Edited by Bibliafarm 2014-04-28 8:19 PM
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Duct Tape Bikini Girl
Posts: 2554
| Based on what I have ridden, I would choose a mare that loves her job over a gelding that loves his no matter what. BUT, I have to be a better rider to keep up with the mare! Therefore, now that I am half a century old, maybe I need to stick with geldings! |
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Expert
Posts: 1561
| Good responses. 
Were looking for a 4-6 yo prospect and both my daughter and I are leaning towards a mare but wont turn down the "right" horse no matter what. |
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 Ms. Marine
Posts: 4642
Location: Texas | I've had better luck with mares. The geldings I've rode all seemed a bit like airheads. Seems like once you geld them, their brains go at that time too. |
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 Expert
Posts: 2276
Location: ohio-in my own little world with pretty ponies :) | I don't think it has anything to do with gender. My old guy gave 110% every single time! But right now my little mare is the grittiest son of a gun and she has a heart of gold! |
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I'll Be Your Huckleberry
Posts: 1488
Location: Arizona | I can't STAND my husband's mare. My gelding will try anything I ask of him without any sass. I've had a few mares in the past that I really got along with and I felt like they would "try" more for me but only if they "felt" like it. A gelding may not always give you 110% (of course many do) but they will usually consistently give me 99% and I like consistent lol. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 929
| Definitely mares. Both of my mares try their hearts out (unless in season...but I can't blame them, I work my a$$ off until it's "that time" and then I'm a royal pain, too!) My gelding...not so much. I have had a few wonderful geldings, but I agree that they seem less inclined to really TRY unless pushed. I have yet to race a stud, but have jumped several and they are just amazing if they respect you and you treat them fairly. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 1131
| I love a good gelding because they are usually more consistent, but I have found that if you can get a good ride on a mare, they will give you 20x more than a normal gelding.
My mare that I work with now, she isn't the most consistent horse on the pattern, but when she gives it, she gives you a good run, and they are a lot more likely to push themselves for you.
JMHO, of course. |
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Expert
Posts: 2685
| I'm a mare person 100%. I currently have 2 mares and 1 stud (that will be gelded). In the past 5 years I have sold 1 mare and 5 geldings because the ones I have had just haven't had the heart or want to to please. They just wanted to do what I asked to that I would leave them alone, not because I wanted them to. The 2 mares I have now have more heart than I have ever seen in a horse. The 5yo has the most heart, the 3yo has the grit. Both have a TON of want to.
I would go with whatever horse works for y'all. Like for me, I would buy the mare because I know I'll get along with a mare better but if you know in your gut that you would get along with a gelding better maybe that's not the best choice. |
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Fire Ant Peddler
Posts: 2881
| This totally depends on the horse. |
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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 563
Location: Small Town Iowa | It all depends on the horse's personality. But with that being said, I personally have had better luck with mares actually wanting to do thier job and actually liking it and being gritty. The only problem with mares is that at the end of the day they are female. So you're gonna have your days when you just have to ask them and they will and then you'll have those days when you have to go the extra mile to wine and dine them just to get the simplest thing accomplished. |
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 More bootie than waist!
Posts: 18425
Location: Riding Crackhead. | I'm partial to mares. |
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Hungarian Midget Woman
Location: Midwest | I think this is kind of a silly question.. kind of like asking if men or women are more dedicated employees!
IME, it totally depends on the horse, and sometimes the horse and rider combination. I don't think one gender could be labeled as superior. |
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 Expert
Posts: 3782
Location: Gainesville, TX | I've had some super awesome geldings. Grew up on them and only occasionally rode mares at my uncle's when we worked cattle. The first mare I have owned personally is my broodmare. The first foal out of her was a filly that I'm keeping to futurity. And I just bought another mare earlier this year. Also, my mare threw me another filly this year. I love my gelding too. He has lots of try and is tons of fun. I also had a gelding in high school that would work himself into the ground to please you, super gentle. But my 2 year old filly is training easier than anything I've ever owned. She's smart, willing, and gentle. She also has the best personality. Thus I'm being converted to the mares are awesome camp since I have four of them and only one guy! I imagine since I'm getting more and more into breeding that I will tend to keep the girls and say adios to the boys. But I love them all! |
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 Midget Lover
Location: Kentucky | My mares have always worked harder for me, they will give you everything. I won't own a gelding anymore... not specifically for that reason, but I just really love mares. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 399
| I have a mare who has more grit and will try hard , and a gelding who tries soo hard and will give you everything he has. Basically I just feel lucky enough to have owned two horses who will literally work themselves into the ground for me. |
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More heart mare or gelding....