what animals with a horse ?

Hi,

we're going to have a horse and i was wondering what animal(s) can fit well with a horse, to not let the horse alone ?

thx

I have had a horse for a number of years now.  Our horse most enjoys the company of our goats and chickens.  Actually it is more that she doesn't feel territorial with these animals.  They interact, sleep together, and eat together.  If you are getting more than one horse it is best to get a mare and gelding that have been together as younger horses.  Then they will also do well with the above animals.

I believe the #1 horse companion historically is a goat. It's where the phrase "got my goat" came from, as racehorses often have goat companions. I racehorse might panic and lose if someone stole his friend the goat!

You can get a pygmy goat and they are small and easy to feed and take care of and heavy so they don't jump as well as other goats. Supposedly a goat and a horse on pasture take care of almost all the weeds!

Dogs, chickens goats and cats have all been relatively famous horse companions. I suspect that horses will make do with whatever creature is around to keep them company.

I once got a goat..nubian cross I think she was, as a companion to a horse. She lasted about a week as she had horns and as far as I could see was deliberately trying to blind the horse and came very close a couple of times to hitting the horse in the eye with her horns. So she was down the road in short order.  I have had horses comfortably coexist with chickens, geese, sheep, pigs, mule, cats and dogs. They will get along with donkeys (if you have a mare make sure any male donkey is gelded..or even a mule as far as that goes)or cows.  (Some horses will chase cattle though, if they get bored.).  I don't know about alpacas or llamas.

Any time there are two or more horses there will be an adjustment period to decide who is king of the mountain. After that is settled I've never seen horses not get along with one exception..in a band of horses wandering free sometimes the stallion will take exception to a mare and will try to exclude her as much as possible..even if he breeds her he seems to resent doing so and will try to drive her off afterwards.  Not common but does happen. Otherwise...once they know who is boss I have never seen problems.

Thanks for the answers,

we want an animal to not let our old horse alone,

we have a plot of 0,3 ha but it is an old pasture which turns to a forest,

so we think of a donkey or a pig to pasturize a bit the forest

Given a choice I suspect the horse would prefer  the donkey as they are sort of first cousins. Normally horses and pigs don't have much to say to each other although they're unlikely to fight or anything. Still,if  each finds the other  the only game in town for companionship they will likely make do with each other.

With my current horse and my buck goat it was like love at first sight, and she allows the goat kids liberties that she doesn't allow anyone else.  She and the cattle get along, but they are polite, not friendly.  She is careful of the chickens, but you just can't have much of a conversation with those little bird brains.  She is a little creeped out by the pigs.  Anyway, she would definitely vote goat.

The one thing that I would not put with horses is bees.  Bad mojo!

Friends had a clydesdale who was followed everywhere by their worshipful donkey for 15 years or so.

You might want a few ducks, I believe Muscovy's don't need a water source and are happy with a kids pool to spash around in.  With horses comes flies.  Ducks eat flies all day long!!  My chickens ignore flies but when I had a few baby ducks they went for the flies!

Tami

I think just about any livestock will get along with a horse. But a donkey would probably be the most friendly with the horse.

Our sheep get along just fine with our horses.

Geese are not fans of horses. They will chase and nip a horse even after getting kicked.

If you want company for your horse don't get a pig - horses rarely tolerate them. Our current horses don't object to the sheep or goats (though we did have a couple of Comtois fillies that would try to kill them  ) and pretty much ignore anything smaller. The advantage of a sheep or goat in with horses is that the intestinal parasites are different so with mixed grazing you can reduce the worm burden.

Have wanted a horse my whole life. Now 68 , semi retired, and exploring the pros and cons of getting one.
Putting up fencing, rain/sun shelter, companion animal, feed costs, farrier costs, etc.
Would love some advice fellow permies.

Leila Blair wrote:Have wanted a horse my whole life. Now 68 , semi retired, and exploring the pros and cons of getting one.
Putting up fencing, rain/sun shelter, companion animal, feed costs, farrier costs, etc.
Would love some advice fellow permies.

Ask local veterinarians, feed stores, farriers, ranch stores - whatever you have locally - if they know of any stables in your area. Many will offer beginning riding lessons which is a good place to start. Even a few will make a big difference.

Then, if you're still interested, ask if they know anyone offering a lease or half lease. You can often lease a horse for limited or unlimited riding while the owner is busy, or away at college, or just needs someone to help cover expenses. You would typically pay all (for a full lease) or half (for a half lease) of the expenses for that one horse.

Once you have some experience, you can move on to owning your own horse if you wish. Remember that it is really easy to buy a horse, but they can be a challenge to resell. So ask someone who knows horses to help you find one.

Look at it once by appointment and then drop by when they aren't expecting you and see if the horse acts the same. (This is especially important if you are looking at horses offered by someone who trades in them. They will often sedate a horse when they know you're coming to make sure nothing unusual happens.)

Note that some horses ride perfectly in an arena, but are not broke to ride down the street or out on trails. Other horses will ride beautifully on a trail ride, but become a nervous wreck in an arena. So whatever you plan to do with the horse is what you should do before you buy.

If there is no one at the place willing to get on a horse - do NOT get on it yourself. Either have a trainer friend try it for you or skip that one and keep looking. It is a good idea to make sure the horse is sound and healthy. An experienced horse person will catch most obvious things. You may want to have a Veterinarian do a vet check before you buy.

Get a bill of sale and read it before you sign it to make sure you know what you're agreeing to and if the horse is sold as registered, they should transfer it when you pay. Make sure either a transfer document from the registrar or a signature on the papers indicates that you own it. And you usually have to send in a form and pay a transfer fee. Do that right away or you may lose the ability to resell the horse as registered.

I was raised on a horse farm, and the thing to check out when choosing a companion animal is whether they carry parasites that will infect the horse.  Cows and horses go good together, and actually reduce the mutual parasite load, though I can't remember why.  A horse without a companion will bond with his human.  A horse with a companion can be very resistant about going to work and leaving his friend behind.

What goes well with a horse ?
Well here in France mushrooms carrots potatoes and red wine but more seriously I would recommend a donkey. They are tougher than most horses and eat stuff the horse will not and make good companions  

Another horse. All herd animals can coexist with each other up to a point, but they will always speak different languages and even together still be alone.
Donkey and horse are problem, they play very differently and that can easily result in fighting/injury. Also longworm in donkeys is leathal to the horse mind your worming very strictly if you keep horses and donkeys together.

For pasture management and natural control of intestinal parisites, horse-sheep/goat combo is a good one. But between horns and weight they don't always do well in one group.