Halter Horses: What Are They Used for? Can You Ride Them?

Last updated: December 6, 2022

By: Miles HenryFact Checked

My grandson is quite curious by nature, so when he saw a horse show exhibiting halter horses, he wanted to know everything about them. So, I did my research, and here is what I found.

Halter horses are a class of horses bred explicitly for use in showmanship. They are muscular and well-groomed and have good conformation but aren’t typically used for riding or pulling. Their primary use is halter class competitions.

Halter horses are beautiful to look at, but is there more to them? Let’s examine these fascinating horses and learn more about them and what they can be used for.

What Are Halter Horses?

The primary use of halter horses is to be shown at competitions, which do not involve riding the animal. At these competitions, people first walk their horses around the arena to display their movement to judges.

Once the official competition begins, the owners are required to walk and trot their horses in a straight line toward a cone, and then turn 90 degrees and walk and trot for a designated distance, turn 90 degrees again and return to the start.

Then, the horses stand still while judges inspect them up close, evaluating their balance, bone structure, muscling, and body proportions.

Judges also assess the horse’s overall appearance and breed characteristics like their mane, tail, and the sheen of their coat. Halter horses are trained in a particular way that increases their ability to excel at these competitions.

Their preparation includes their diet and health management, grooming, and some very specific exercises. Sometimes, the result is that they cannot be used for other activities easily.

Halter horses can belong to any breed. But they are most popular among the American breeds such as the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA), American Paint Horse Association, and the Appaloosa Horse Associations.

Halter competitions are different from other horse shows, where horses are typically judged for their speed, intelligence, or athletic ability. Halter horses are led around the arena (instead of being ridden) and are judged on their conformation, structural correctness, muscle, balance, and some sex and breed features.

What sets them apart as a class is that they have huge muscular bodies.

Purpose of halter class horses

The purpose of a halter class is to preserve breed standards by awarding individual horses that best resemble the ideals of their breed by exhibiting balance, structural correctness, muscling, and gender characteristics.

Why Are They So Muscular?

Halter horses are the equivalent of human bodybuilders. They look like they’re on steroids, and maybe some are. But they are also the result of selective breeding practices.

Most halter horses can trace their lineage to the sire Impressive, a massive quarter horse that passed his muscular body to his progeny. He also has produced excellent performance horses, but with his breeding comes problems.

I avoid buying horses with Impressive bloodlines because they carry the gene that causes HYPP. HYPP is a severe condition that can cripple a horse and, in more severe cases, cause death.

But the risk is worth it for people who show halter horses because Impressive genes also produce bigger muscles than other horses. Besides genetics, halter horses are fed diets designed for muscle mass growth.

They typically feed a commercial feed with a high protein percentage combined with alfalfa hay and a hefty supply of muscle-building nutrients.

Can you ride a halter horse?

While watching the halter class, horses were led around the arena, instead of being ridden, which made me wonder if a person could ride one in equine events or even on trail rides.

Halter horses can be ridden, but If you want to convert your halter horse to other uses such as jumping, dressage, ranching, or even trail riding, you’ll first need to recondition your animal.

With patient training and a change in feed, halter horses have the potential to be excellent riding horses. Still, many have physical limitations caused by their halter breeding and training that can’t be overcome.

Some halter horses have physical limitations.

What do I mean by that? Well, since halter horses are bred for halter shows and have specific physical characteristics. They often have very straight legs, which are disproportionate to the large, muscular body.

While straight legs in halter horses are a desirable feature for competitions, they do not make for a great riding experience. Straight legs often cause the horses to have a short, rough stride.

But worse than a rough stride is the fact that sometimes halter horses cannot carry any weight at all. Some of them have small legs and tiny hoofs, unable to support even their own body’s weight.

These physical traits can cause joint problems. Having so much muscle restricts halter horses from moving freely. Spindly legs under a large body mean there is a lot of muscle weight on thin bone.

The sheer weight causes many halter horses to break down physically early on in their careers, rendering them useless.

Judging halter class horses.

The American Quarter Horse Association affirmed its commitment to halter horses and provided a guideline of what is expected. They determined that an ideal halter horse for their breed possesses specific characteristics.

1. Balance

Balance is listed first in the American Quarter horse Judging handbook because it is the single most important characteristic in equine selection. It is based on the structure of the animal.

Judges try to visualize and evaluate the skeleton of the horse. The specific location they focus on include:

• The slope of the shoulder.
• Top to bottom line ratio of the horse’s neck.
• Prominent withers that are sharp and slightly higher than the horse’s hindquarters or croup.
• Hindquarters that appear square and full.

2. Structural correctness

Structural correctness focuses on the straightness of the animal’s feet and legs and is the second most important consideration in judging the halter class. The following are the basics used by judges to award winners.

Side view

A judge examing a horse from the side should picture a line from the buttocks’ point to the ground. This imaginary line should touch the hocks, run parallel to the cannon bone and be slightly behind its heel.

Rearview

A correct horse viewed from behind should be its most comprehensive from stifle to stifle and another imaginary line should run from the point of the buttocks to the ground and bisect the gaskin, hock, and hoof.

Front view

Next, the competitor is looked at from the front, and again an imaginary line is useful to determine the correct form. This line should run from the point of the shoulder to the toe, and bisect the knee, cannon bone, and hoof.

3. Breed and Sex characteristics

Horses shown at halter should exhibit conformation unique to their breed. Judges evaluate the overall body style and specific breed characteristics.

Also, horses should show feminine qualities or masculine qualities based on their gender. For example, mares shouldn’t have thick, heavily muscled necks.

4. Muscling

Proper muscling is based on the horse’s and should be balanced and adequate for his overall structure. Judges should not choose the horse with the most muscle, but one with the best muscle volume that displays uniformity throughout the horse’s body.
They look at each muscle group and compare it to other areas to find balance and uniformity, such as the stifle, gaskin, or forearm.

Eye appeal

The American Quarter Horse Association defines eye appeal as “the harmonious blending of an attractive head; refined throatlatch; well proportioned trim neck; long sloping shoulder; deep heart girth;

Short back; strong loin and coupling; long hip and croup; well-defined and muscular stifle, gaskin, forearm, and chest; and straight and structurally correct feet and legs that are free of defects. The ideal should be an athlete that is uniformly muscled throughout.”

Criticism of Halter Shows

There are strong criticisms and adverse reactions from many people concerning halter shows. These critics believe that there is an unfair and ridiculous focus on halter horses’ appearance, with little to no regard for their performance.

Halter class horse owners focus on looks that result in weak, overgrown, and animals not suitable for any purpose.

My Bottom Line

Indeed, some halter horses are not suitable for anything apart from halter shows. Yet, you can ride others after some training. I also believe that there is no match for the exceptional beauty and perfect bodies of halter horses.

But I agree that for the overall well-being of the animal, too much muscling is unhealthy and creates a myriad of health problems for halter horses.

Below is a helpful YouTube video on how to show halter classes.