Stallion Ownership

[Flint]

I’ve always wanted a stallion, and am finally at the point in my career where owning and keeping one is realistic, however I have basically no in person experience with horses. I’m planning on doing some riding lessons or something of the sort just to get used to handling them. Knowing that stallions can be dangerous for beginners and generally a terrible idea, this is obviously an issue. For those of you who own a stallion, how did you work up to that? Were you raised around horses? Did you first own a mare/gelding?

 

[1Ostwind1]

Seeing that no one is answering, I'll try (I've met them and my friend once tried to deal with one of them).
A stallion is not a horse for a beginner, not at all.
But even if we omit the rules of behavior with this animal, the owner's skills, etc. The biggest problem will be precisely that it is a STALLION.
90% of stables with boarding will refuse to board him because no one needs problems, and those who agree will set such a price that the idea of castrating him will become more and more attractive every day.
Also, do not forget that if this creature smells a mare in heat, it will break through all the fences and doors until it either kills itself or gets to her (for the stallion to be adequate, a VERY VERY EXPERIENCED owner is required) and then the game of roulette begins in terms of the reaction of the mare's owner and how purebred she was and whether the stallion harmed her (the stallion can also get hurt), but a headache and possible lawsuits and embezzlement are guaranteed.
Let's continue further, a stallion- kitten that was bought for crazy money in the hands of an inexperienced owner can turn into a monster in half a year.
Also, given the factor that stallions are prone to breaking through fences and doors, you should be prepared for the fact that he will stand in the stall 24/7, or walk alone in the distant paddock, so that neither he nor anyone else sees him, which will add points to speed up the process of his madness. The list can go on and on if you go into depth about training, maintenance, etc.

Therefore, I can advise that if you really want a horse with a penis, then it’s better to buy yourself a gelding that was castrated late, he will behave almost like a stallion, but he will be calmer.

 

[Mare Lover 1975]

The best way to have a gentle stallion is to get him as a young colt and raise them yourself, preferably with a older no nonsense mare or two for company and to teach him how to behave and learn some manners. 99% of all the issues with stallions are man made, keeping a herd animal alone in a stall 24/7 and only allowed to interact with other equines for breeding purposes.

Don't want the hassle of foals? Get a molly mule or two as they are extremely unlikely to get pregnant nor will they put up with any crap from a young colt. I say this as a former owner of multiple stallions that were bred, rode, shown and most of all they were herd sires, aka they lived in the pasture with their mares and foals year round without any of the problems associated with the average stallion.

Everything else about keeping/owning horse applies and you must have the time and skill to work with a stud, it's not for average horse owners but nowhere near as bad as people make it, stallions aren't born crazy, people make them like that.

 

[azeq9gurl]

I’ve always wanted a stallion, and am finally at the point in my career where owning and keeping one is realistic, however I have basically no in person experience with horses. I’m planning on doing some riding lessons or something of the sort just to get used to handling them. Knowing that stallions can be dangerous for beginners and generally a terrible idea, this is obviously an issue. For those of you who own a stallion, how did you work up to that? Were you raised around horses? Did you first own a mare/gelding?

I want a beautiful stallion to please.

 

[kyhorse]

The best way to have a gentle stallion is to get him as a young colt and raise them yourself, preferably with a older no nonsense mare or two for company and to teach him how to behave and learn some manners. 99% of all the issues with stallions are man made, keeping a herd animal alone in a stall 24/7 and only allowed to interact with other equines for breeding purposes.

Don't want the hassle of foals? Get a molly mule or two as they are extremely unlikely to get pregnant nor will they put up with any crap from a young colt. I say this as a former owner of multiple stallions that were bred, rode, shown and most of all they were herd sires, aka they lived in the pasture with their mares and foals year round without any of the problems associated with the average stallion.

Everything else about keeping/owning horse applies and you must have the time and skill to work with a stud, it's not for average horse owners but nowhere near as bad as people make it, stallions aren't born crazy, people make them like that.

Green and green is black and blue. Bad idea.


I’ve only ever owned stallions. I run a stallion station and have helped several people find their stallions and trained several as well as their owners. Stallions are not a beginner horse. Lessons and such are great, and you’ll need plenty of experience before you want to reach out for a stallion. Some suggestions-

Reach out to an experienced horse person, ideally one with experience with stallions. They can help with the hands on.

There is an old, time proven adage, green and green is black and blue. You never want a new rider/handler with an untrained horse, it’s a great recipe for getting hurt.

Generally you want an older, been there done that horse as your first. They’ll teach you what they know. Less ideal for a zoo horse as you may end up needing a mare to tease. Colts you can often train without a mare. But in your case that’s fine, you need to work on a lot more than sex at first and it may be years before you’re ready to actually take his full flare.

Be aware stallions can cost a lot more to own and purchase. They usually require private turnout and housing. All my fields are doubled fenced to prevent incidences. Boarding in KY for a stallion can run upwards of $1500/mo, compared to 300-500 for other sexes. This very much depends where you live as well. In the NE of the USA stallions are shunned and people are afraid of them. Out west, they’re much more common and you may never notice that several of the horses you’re riding with are stallions. The rest of the country, there somewhere in between. They’re tolerated but not loved. Their loss.

Because they live alone, they’ll need extra stimulation and activities to keep them from being bored or lonely. You need to make up for that solo life by having other horses or animals to keep them company.

I love stallions and have no intention of ever owning a gelding or a mare for myself. Oddly enough a green stallion was my first horse lol but I had 5 years of working with horses and stallions professionally before I got him.

And fyi the sex part with stallions is a whole different topic lol

 

[1Ostwind1]

The best way to have a gentle stallion is to get him as a young colt and raise them yourself, preferably with a older no nonsense mare or two for company and to teach him how to behave and learn some manners. 99% of all the issues with stallions are man made, keeping a herd animal alone in a stall 24/7 and only allowed to interact with other equines for breeding purposes.

Don't want the hassle of foals? Get a molly mule or two as they are extremely unlikely to get pregnant nor will they put up with any crap from a young colt. I say this as a former owner of multiple stallions that were bred, rode, shown and most of all they were herd sires, aka they lived in the pasture with their mares and foals year round without any of the problems associated with the average stallion.

Everything else about keeping/owning horse applies and you must have the time and skill to work with a stud, it's not for average horse owners but nowhere near as bad as people make it, stallions aren't born crazy, people make them like that.

Well, I understand that they can be kept differently and then the stallions are quite adequate.
But I was describing more the "standard" situation and the problems that beginners face when they buy a stallion, having watched movies and living in fantasies (I am not writing this as a insult to the author of the thread), and then these stallions end up in the slaughterhouse.
I do not think that a person who has just started to get acquainted with horses will be ready to allocate a huge amount of money to buy a plot of land, a stallion, mares, everything necessary to maintain a small herd, constantly spend money on feed and veterinary needs, just to have a horse with balls. (well, unless this person is a millionaire).

 

[kyhorse]

Well, I understand that they can be kept differently and then the stallions are quite adequate.
But I was describing more the "standard" situation and the problems that beginners face when they buy a stallion, having watched movies and living in fantasies (I am not writing this as a insult to the author of the thread), and then these stallions end up in the slaughterhouse.
I do not think that a person who has just started to get acquainted with horses will be ready to allocate a huge amount of money to buy a plot of land, a stallion, mares, everything necessary to maintain a small herd, constantly spend money on feed and veterinary needs, just to have a horse with balls. (well, unless this person is a millionaire).

Yeah that’s like deciding you have to know how to build a car to own a ford mustang lol how can we make this more complicated? I know! Let’s learn how to run a full farm and breeding herd all at once x.x

And the mega wealthy have other options rather than buying everything.

 

[Flint]

The best way to have a gentle stallion is to get him as a young colt and raise them yourself, preferably with a older no nonsense mare or two for company and to teach him how to behave and learn some manners. 99% of all the issues with stallions are man made, keeping a herd animal alone in a stall 24/7 and only allowed to interact with other equines for breeding purposes.

Don't want the hassle of foals? Get a molly mule or two as they are extremely unlikely to get pregnant nor will they put up with any crap from a young colt. I say this as a former owner of multiple stallions that were bred, rode, shown and most of all they were herd sires, aka they lived in the pasture with their mares and foals year round without any of the problems associated with the average stallion.

Everything else about keeping/owning horse applies and you must have the time and skill to work with a stud, it's not for average horse owners but nowhere near as bad as people make it, stallions aren't born crazy, people make them like that.

I appreciate the advice, I do like the idea of getting a mule for a colt, do you think the mule going into heat would be an issue in terms of training the colt? From what I understand, it generally makes them more aggressive. Also how long do you think someone should be around horses before trying to raise a colt?

 

[Mare Lover 1975]

I appreciate the advice, I do like the idea of getting a mule for a colt, do you think the mule going into heat would be an issue in terms of training the colt? From what I understand, it generally makes them more aggressive. Also how long do you think someone should be around horses before trying to raise a colt?

Mules cycles can be rather unpredictable from what I'm learning, my molly is the first mule I've owned so I'm not much help there. Most of my stallions were raised from either birth or as yearlings in with my mares, mind you breeding them was the plan so I wasn't concerned about that happening. Never had any behavior issues when training as they were very happy to get away from a small herd of either pregnant or nursing mares.

I had several years of experience with horses before I bought my first stud colt, training him was no different than any other horse I'd trained but that's all riding and handling related, nothing sexual other than taking turns with the mares.

As others have said owning and keeping stallions isn't for the inexperienced, if you keep him well away from other horses it's a lot easier than if you're in a area with lots of other horses around as sooner or later someone is going to get out in order to get with the other, and mares will often do just as much to get with a stallion as they will to get with a mare.

 

[Flint]

Mules cycles can be rather unpredictable from what I'm learning, my molly is the first mule I've owned so I'm not much help there. Most of my stallions were raised from either birth or as yearlings in with my mares, mind you breeding them was the plan so I wasn't concerned about that happening. Never had any behavior issues when training as they were very happy to get away from a small herd of either pregnant or nursing mares.

I had several years of experience with horses before I bought my first stud colt, training him was no different than any other horse I'd trained but that's all riding and handling related, nothing sexual other than taking turns with the mares.

As others have said owning and keeping stallions isn't for the inexperienced, if you keep him well away from other horses it's a lot easier than if you're in a area with lots of other horses around as sooner or later someone is going to get out in order to get with the other, and mares will often do just as much to get with a stallion as they will to get with a mare.

I was planning on purchasing an equestrian property or building a barn and fence on a ~5 acre lot, and taking lessons in the meantime, so that works out well then.

 

[kyhorse]

That way has pros and cons, but in my opinion far more cons than pros. I stand by my original recommendations. Best of luck to you.

 

[Jmmp2803]

Seeing that no one is answering, I'll try (I've met them and my friend once tried to deal with one of them).
A stallion is not a horse for a beginner, not at all.
But even if we omit the rules of behavior with this animal, the owner's skills, etc. The biggest problem will be precisely that it is a STALLION.
90% of stables with boarding will refuse to board him because no one needs problems, and those who agree will set such a price that the idea of castrating him will become more and more attractive every day.
Also, do not forget that if this creature smells a mare in heat, it will break through all the fences and doors until it either kills itself or gets to her (for the stallion to be adequate, a VERY VERY EXPERIENCED owner is required) and then the game of roulette begins in terms of the reaction of the mare's owner and how purebred she was and whether the stallion harmed her (the stallion can also get hurt), but a headache and possible lawsuits and embezzlement are guaranteed.
Let's continue further, a stallion- kitten that was bought for crazy money in the hands of an inexperienced owner can turn into a monster in half a year.
Also, given the factor that stallions are prone to breaking through fences and doors, you should be prepared for the fact that he will stand in the stall 24/7, or walk alone in the distant paddock, so that neither he nor anyone else sees him, which will add points to speed up the process of his madness. The list can go on and on if you go into depth about training, maintenance, etc.

Therefore, I can advise that if you really want a horse with a penis, then it’s better to buy yourself a gelding that was castrated late, he will behave almost like a stallion, but he will be calmer.

Very instructive