Does anyone use horses for survival? If so, how?
I'm from the rural south and I am familiar with horses, but I don't understand if there's a difference in using a horse in a survival situation vs using a horse in a work situation?
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Does anyone use horses for survival? If so, how?
I'm from the rural south and I am familiar with horses, but I don't understand if there's a difference in using a horse in a survival situation vs using a horse in a work situation?
In a war or famine situation it could be on the menu.
In a war or famine situation, you could be on the menu :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Tokwan
I see it as..you and the horse...muahahahahahahahahahaha.....first the horse, then the rider.....:FRlol:
Lots of horse people out here in South western Wisconsin.....several friend have them.....
They are horse people.....that's what they live for....So you are a horse person or you are not.
All are broke....horses take a lot of room, care, feed , money and attention.
The truck just sat for 3 days......all I had to do was scrape the windows after it started.
Just saying.
We have a few horse parts here on the forum.
Yeah, I........hey wait a minute.
Yeah, what the???????......
So yeah....what?...Rick?....
Why is there more horses azzes than horses? present company excluded of course.
They only sent the hind ends to Washington.Quote:
Originally Posted by randyt
This thread really went sideways fast......
Seriously, ....If you have and use horse regularly.....many people do then you already have the barn, feed, tack, pasture, and other gear to actually have and use these fine animals.....is one thing.
To say, I gonna get a horse for survival is maybe not that good of an idea.......
Horses are a way of life.
Hunter pretty much nailed it (the topic, not the horse). If you own and care for horses now you will use them because they are a way of life. To get one for the sole purpose of using it in a disaster scenario would probably not work out so well.
And there is a difference in training your riding horse and training your plow horse. You can't just put any old horse in front of a plow (or a wagon) and expect him to know what to do. You can train a horse to do both.
I don't own horses, but my grandfather did. Just the riding kind though. I also worked at a place that used mules for plowing. Big honest working brutes but when the sun hit the top of the trees at the end of the day they would head back to the barn, sometimes dragging plow and driver along with them, and no talking them out of it.
Trucks and tractors were invented for a reason......
Don't believe everything you see in westerns............
They used the mules for plowing because they were more respectful of the crop than a tractor. The farm was also on a hillside where tractors might have been more dangerous. They're out of business now. The land became exceedingly valuable so the owner sold out. All houses now.
Let's say I had a horse, how would the horse be used?
cultivating, plowing, pulling a wagon, pulling logs, pulling a stone boat, powering a sorghum mill, riding, packing.
My grandfather (who happens to be a Brit) have 2 thoroughbreds in the early 60's. I remember them well...Sad to say the horses eat better than my granddad...hehehe
there's a lot of money in horses, you should see what I've spent so far.
This area has a lot of Amish, and they still use horses a lot....and there is a big market for wagons, and farm implements....don't see them just riding them too much.
If some one was to travel by horse back, may be useful.....but you really have to have the experience level and gear.
My friends have several....mostly riding and barrel racing.
A few have mules for night coon hunting.....a mule won't run you off a cliff or under a low limb.....or so they say.....
Still a lot of work, and money.............
Next door neighbors had a couple of big older horses (kids rode them).......then got a couple of mustangs for out west.
They didn't have enough pasture....and would let them on my land....by "accident"......long story but were finally had to give them up........
I'll take a truck any day.
I saw one movie a long long time ago...it was about an aftermath of a war or a nuclear or something...and the guy ( a father in the movie) rode out on his horse where the people grabbed his horse and have it for food.
Let's take the money aspect out of this, and go on to another question. What specific things would I have to do, or take with me, if I was using my horse for bugging out?
Food for the horse and a weapon to protect the horse from being consumed.
will you be bugging through the bush or down the roads? If only one horse available, it probably would be better served as a pack or cart animal.
A pack saddle, rope and panniers or a harness and cart. Hobbles would be handy for night time, a hoof pick, halter, lead rope, brush etc.
Can you give me a response for both options, since this is a generic discussion?
If going through the bush, the horse could be used as a pack horse and led. If going down roads the horse could be used as a cart animal.
I have been working (driving, riding etc) horses for over 70 years......first and foremost rule....a horse is not a dog..don't expect him to behave like one.......like teen age kids most of them don't like to work...they like to roll in the dirt, eat fresh green grass and drink clear running water.....rule # 2...... a horse even though he is big and strong he is made out of glass and breaks easily.....his feet mostly......no hoof-no horse......a 3 legged horse is just meat.......they can hurt you and not mean to.....you are a big target sitting on a horse....whether the bad guys shoot you or the horse you are going down.......if you already have years of working with them and know how to take care of their feet (remember the 3 legged horse rule) and you have lots of feed (1200lb horse needs 20 pounds of hay a day...every day...plus grain if you are working him hard) .......also there is no such thing as an average horse just like there are no average animals of any kind.....they are all different and will react in their own individual way.......one horse will do something with little or no training but his full brother wont do it at all. Getting a horse after the shtf is like getting an airplane.....best you know how to fly before you are required to know how to fly and fight at the same time......if you can join up with a bunch of horse people then go for it.......trying it on your own would be a very anal clenching experience.
You couldn't even show my grandpa's horses the lead rope if you wanted to ride them. They were always out in the field so you got them to come close by shaking a pot of molasses oats. If they saw the rope, they would not come. Suckers otherwise. Once you snapped the lead rope on the halter though, they would pretty much do what you wanted as far as getting em saddled up and going for a trail or fence ride.
A horse that spooks though, is like sitting on the back of a 1200lb rocket that does not care if he takes you under a branch or too close to the barn wall or over the pasture fence. Only ever had one take me over a fence unexpectedly but no amount of hauling on the reins was gonna slow him down.
I would love to be in a situation where I could keep a horse. But in a SHTF situation, you would probably spend a lot of time defending one.
As for road or woods when bugging out, I don't think, even with a horse that can pull a cart, that I would close down my options. You might have to leave the road. You may not want to be on the road (with everyone else.) The road may become impassible. Having a pack animal would be handier.
If you don't know horses you don't need to mess with them. With horses it's not if, but when, you will get hurt. I got the scars and joint pain to prove it. They are great transportation but do need some daily care. You could move them around so they could graze and get to water. I have a plan if the SHTF around here but I need to stay on the farm to provide for them. There is a lot of pasture around here put they would be stolen or shot for food without me guarding them. As to use, mine would only be good for transportation to hunting grounds and maybe packing my kill out.
That has been my experience as well....and I don't own one....friends that do can relate.Quote:
Originally Posted by NavySEAL
So to sum up this thread.
1. Horses are expensive - you'll go broke.
2. Horses are not useful in a survival situation
3. Don't buy a horse
Yeah, pretty much.Quote:
Originally Posted by Adventure Wolf
OK, what I would take with me. First I would take 2 saddle horses. One to ride and one to pack. Then the next day I would swap to keep the horses fresh longer. that and to keep them working under saddle. The horses today may have better "breeding" but compared to the horses of yesteryear are lacking in the longvity( generally speaking). Lets face it most horses of today are ridden for a few hours a day at most then back on pasture or in a barn. I ride alot and if I put 8 hours on one horse in a day that is a BIIIGGGG day.
Next, as was said earlier in the thread. if you don't have sound feet you don't have a horse. Yu will need tools to keep the horse sound. This will include, shoe puller, hoof pick and knife,Nipper,Rasp, spare shoes( I only shoe fronts, if really rocky you may need to add hind shoes)nails, hammer and clincher. And the knowhow to use them.
Tack including saddle, bridle, bit(possibly more than one depending on the horses training), halter and lead rope. saddle pad( possible more than one depending on horse confirmation and saddle fit) , hobbles or a high line set up for over night. A pack saddle and the know how to pack it as not to sore the horse.
Possibly the most important part is the horse sense to now when they may be in trouble or when you are in trouble. Either physically or mentally.
IMHO a horse is not really practical for a true Bug out situation. If you intend to cover a good bit of ground anyway. A common misconception is that back in the day a cowboy got on his horse and rode from texas to monatana and back onhis horse. that isn't true. The average cowboy on a drive had a string 10-15 horse. The drive rarely went faster than a cows walking pace. That drive ws from texas to Kansas or the northern range(Montana/Wyoming) to Kansas where the railheads were. Then they packed up and went back with ussually a new string of horses. It was a horse fleshintensive venture. Now that being said i would not have a problem using my guys for a scout type deal or if road conditions prevented the use of my truck or something along those lines. I wuldn't have a problem packing a daypacks worth of stuff in my saddle pockets and doing an over nighter. just wouldn't want to cover alot of ground with them and I LOOOOOOVE saddle time and my guys and gal are pretty stout.
and now for some show off time.:laugh:
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get a goat.
Man. That was baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad.
I much prefer rein deer or even a moose.
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Having owned several horses for 5 yrs. I will say they won't be of much help in a survival situation. I'll also say once you have them it is very hard to imagine life without them. It costs a lot and it is a lot of work. I have no regrets.
I've never owned a horse, but I owned a farm and I used to board them for other people. They're mostly a useless money pit. But so are most other pets. OTOH if you really like them and have the facilities to handle them and the money, they're just as good a pet as any other. Using them as work animals can be feasible, provided you know what you're doing and really love it, but they are a lot of trouble. My neighbor had a draft horse team and he loved them. Of course he was retired and didn't really need them for an income source. The only real advantage of horses is if you put two tractors out in the field, it don't matter how long you wait they will never make another tractor.