Just wondering what each of you prefer for hunting/retrieval. Currently my father has two Yamaha Grizzlys that we use for retrieval purposes only but I was thinking of bringing my horses down from South Dakota and introducing the hunting sport to them. They would be used primarily for traversing hillsides, tracking, etc. I would porbably still use the quad for retrieval unless I couldn't get to it. Anyway, currently I have 2 horses on a 1000 acre pasture where they spend their time grazing and doing whatever. They would be moved to a 2 acre pasture and begin training for firearms discharge, mountain climbing, etc. Any ideas or should I stil with the quad and walking?
Quads or Horses???
- Thread starter BuckFever
- Start date
backwoodsboy223
New member
Not the most experienced memeber of the board on this, but I have hunted a bit with each of them. As far as the hunting uses go, I like horses a little better than quads. They are quiet, will go literally anywhere, and also in NM you can go way back into wilderness area where quads are not allowed. As far as the care and feeding and other costs of a horse I don't know much about them, as all the horses I have hunted with have belonged to my hunting partner. I am not sure that you could go wrong with either one, especially if you already own both.
BWB
BWB
Redfrog
Moderator
No contest!!!! Horses are better.
A quad won't pick it's way down a mountain trail in the pitch black, watching that you don't get attacked by bears, cougars, dragons, snapping twigs etc.
A horse is a hunting partner, not a cold piece of machinery. My horse listens intently to all my hunting tall tales, still thinks my jokes are funny, even though he's heard them all before.
He listens while I muse about fortunes won and lost. He hangs on every word while I explain the intricacies of the female mind.
What????WHAT??? WHAT??? You don't know??
OK listen up. A woman doesn't REALLY think. Actually they are very much like quads. They are expensive, You turn them on, crank them up, go for a quick ride, and end up in a wreck in the rhubarb. And Even if you never get another ride you still gotta make a payment every month. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
Yep! Horses are better.
Now that I've written this short suicide note, I think I'll go calling this afternoon. I know if "Yes Dear" sees this I'll be blowing my "frog in distress" through "puffy" lips. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
Here's father and son. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
A quad won't pick it's way down a mountain trail in the pitch black, watching that you don't get attacked by bears, cougars, dragons, snapping twigs etc.
A horse is a hunting partner, not a cold piece of machinery. My horse listens intently to all my hunting tall tales, still thinks my jokes are funny, even though he's heard them all before.
He listens while I muse about fortunes won and lost. He hangs on every word while I explain the intricacies of the female mind.
What????WHAT??? WHAT??? You don't know??
OK listen up. A woman doesn't REALLY think. Actually they are very much like quads. They are expensive, You turn them on, crank them up, go for a quick ride, and end up in a wreck in the rhubarb. And Even if you never get another ride you still gotta make a payment every month.
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif Yep! Horses are better.
Now that I've written this short suicide note, I think I'll go calling this afternoon. I know if "Yes Dear" sees this I'll be blowing my "frog in distress" through "puffy" lips. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
Here's father and son. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
Tony Stevenson
New member
Nice Redfrog!!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif I agree all the way!!! Actually I like a mule! They jump fences but that wasn't the question so just my 2 cents! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
Buckfever, not sure what type of hunting that you are going to do. I have both and would not take several thousand for my horse. Grizzly doesn't have a heart beat. I don't hunt for the kill. I hunt for the experience. I bought my horse for roping and just love the experience of having my own ride and pack animal. I hunt some bad stuff in Colorado and 10 years ago I swore that I would never blow my lungs out hunting elk. Bought my horse and have never looked back. I didn't train him around guns. I would never shoot off him anyway. If I don't have time to dismount then I don't have any business shooting. He trusts me and has never been a problem. My first hunt with him he had never been out of TX. Packed out 6 elk and 4 deer and shot around him several times. All that he requires is a container of apple juice each day that we are out, his treat for all the work. But like I said wouldn't want to sell him but I have given the four wheeler away to the kids.
Painted Horse
New member
I have both and use the horse for hunting and the ATV to haul manure and hay.
More and more of Utah is being closed to off road vehicles. You can't even use them to retrieve down game any longer. And the chances of the elk dropping on the dirt road are pretty slim.
But more so than that, my horses are my companions. I ride them year round. And my hunt would be a success even if we didn't score a kill. Just riding them in the mountains, seeing the fall colors is worth it. Like the other post above, my horses stand guard over my tent at night, they sound warnings for camp intruders. They watch the trail while I watch the hill side, Their sense of smell and hearing are better than mine and they often see the game before I do. Their odor mask my human scent better than the exhaust from a wheeler does.
I never shoot off my horse. But your's should be use'd to the sound of a gun going off. Just tie them up somewhere while you shoot some targets, Start a little farther off and move closer as they get used to the bang.
My horses have never had a problem hauling deer or elk. I suspect all the time I spend on them during the summer helps them trust me. prior to the hunt, Load them up with some paniers and put some weight in them ( a couple 50lb bags of feed works well), cover it with a tarp. Let them get used to you tugging and pulling to get something fastened on their back. Then when you load a deer, the only new thing they have to deal with his the smell of gamey blood.
Loading a deer or elk quarters is a job. especially on a steep hill side. It usually takes me and my hunting partner to lift and open the panier bags. Which usually doesn't leave anybody to hold the horse still. Teach them to stand while you load them.
And finally get them in shape. I see so many people bring their pasture potatos up hunting and just like you or me, they huff and puff when they are out of shape. If you wear the horse out he won't want to work for you. It's no fun to see your horse crumple and roll down the mountainside (with your rifle in the scabbard) because you over did him.
Most fall hunts, the grass is gone. Plan on bringing in your own feed. At least some grain for energy. Horses from the flat land sometimes need a blanket. Standing tied to a tree all night at 9000 foot elevation is a lot colder than the night before when they lounged in a barn at 2000 foot elevation
Packing elk out
More and more of Utah is being closed to off road vehicles. You can't even use them to retrieve down game any longer. And the chances of the elk dropping on the dirt road are pretty slim.
But more so than that, my horses are my companions. I ride them year round. And my hunt would be a success even if we didn't score a kill. Just riding them in the mountains, seeing the fall colors is worth it. Like the other post above, my horses stand guard over my tent at night, they sound warnings for camp intruders. They watch the trail while I watch the hill side, Their sense of smell and hearing are better than mine and they often see the game before I do. Their odor mask my human scent better than the exhaust from a wheeler does.
I never shoot off my horse. But your's should be use'd to the sound of a gun going off. Just tie them up somewhere while you shoot some targets, Start a little farther off and move closer as they get used to the bang.
My horses have never had a problem hauling deer or elk. I suspect all the time I spend on them during the summer helps them trust me. prior to the hunt, Load them up with some paniers and put some weight in them ( a couple 50lb bags of feed works well), cover it with a tarp. Let them get used to you tugging and pulling to get something fastened on their back. Then when you load a deer, the only new thing they have to deal with his the smell of gamey blood.
Loading a deer or elk quarters is a job. especially on a steep hill side. It usually takes me and my hunting partner to lift and open the panier bags. Which usually doesn't leave anybody to hold the horse still. Teach them to stand while you load them.
And finally get them in shape. I see so many people bring their pasture potatos up hunting and just like you or me, they huff and puff when they are out of shape. If you wear the horse out he won't want to work for you. It's no fun to see your horse crumple and roll down the mountainside (with your rifle in the scabbard) because you over did him.
Most fall hunts, the grass is gone. Plan on bringing in your own feed. At least some grain for energy. Horses from the flat land sometimes need a blanket. Standing tied to a tree all night at 9000 foot elevation is a lot colder than the night before when they lounged in a barn at 2000 foot elevation
Packing elk out
greyghostt
New member
Pros/ quads don't step on you, take off for no reason, stand still then buck you off, they don't spook at the sound of gun fire or the smell of a wild cat or bear, if they come up lame you dont have to shoot them. They dont mind the load at full tilt up hill all day no water, feed or tack.
Just gto gas tires and oil.
No personal attachment if it dies just over haul it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
Just gto gas tires and oil.
No personal attachment if it dies just over haul it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
smitty_303
New member
4 wheeler they aint gun shy
You don't have to keep feeding an ATV when your not using it,call in a Vet to keep it from going lame,call out a backhoe to dig it's grave.
You can shoot off an ATV,at what I don't know.
Sometimes when you dismount an ATV to hunt you smell exactly like the " horse you rode in on"
You can shoot off an ATV,at what I don't know.
Sometimes when you dismount an ATV to hunt you smell exactly like the " horse you rode in on"
For "most" hunters, they will be be far better served by using a quad. I would imagine there are maybe a short half dozen fellas here who are horse people. Far to many horse hunters are "passngers" not "horseman", and there is a big difference. A 1200 pound animal that you are unfamilar with from the get go, and if it spooks,shys, or is disrespectful, going outside the realm of just sitting atop it and meandering down a trail, a guy is going to have problems.....and maybe big ones!
In todays world, most guys have experience with motorized vehicles other than autos. They have ridden motorcycles, three wheelers and quads. None of these contraptions scare them, and muscle memory and logic control them.
Riding horseback, in hunting situations, a hunter better be a horseman, not a passenger.
In todays world, most guys have experience with motorized vehicles other than autos. They have ridden motorcycles, three wheelers and quads. None of these contraptions scare them, and muscle memory and logic control them.
Riding horseback, in hunting situations, a hunter better be a horseman, not a passenger.
In have hunted from horseback,even though I don't consider myself a " cowboy. More like a recreational rider.Because of that I went out and bought an old nag,slow she was,always wanting to stop and smell the flowers.You could pack out game with her,and shoot off her back,and she never even cared.Problem was, she was to damn slow for my other campanions.So to please them, I went out and bought a horse with a little getty-up in her step.She had so much getty-up,I got off,sold her,went out and bought another old nag.If your gona hunt off horse back,you need a horse that best fits your exsperience or lack thereof..
I don't have horses, I have two polaris four wheelers. My hunting partner has horses. Both serve us well.
There are places here in NM that I can't go and he can. However with my lack of knowledge of horses I will stick with the four wheelers.
Horses take a comitment I am not willing to make both in time and money. But truth be told I believe they are the better big game hunting tool.
Biker
There are places here in NM that I can't go and he can. However with my lack of knowledge of horses I will stick with the four wheelers.
Horses take a comitment I am not willing to make both in time and money. But truth be told I believe they are the better big game hunting tool.
Biker
gary paugh
New member
I still have to go with my ROKON.
i can get two in the back of a toyota pick up
haul or drag anything.
go alot more places then a quad need alot less care then a horse.
Gary
i can get two in the back of a toyota pick up
haul or drag anything.
go alot more places then a quad need alot less care then a horse.
Gary
Painted Horse
New member
As Chilerojo posted. Most people SHOULD NOT be on a horse. The old saying about horses is: It's not IF you'll get hurt, but only WHEN you will get hurt.
If you can't make the committment to spend the time. Don't get a horse.
So much of my state is being closed off to ATV's. The only way to access this land is on foot or horseback. And it's just no fun to pack out an elk on your back. No matter how much adrenalin you have from just shooting the big guy.
If you can't make the committment to spend the time. Don't get a horse.
So much of my state is being closed off to ATV's. The only way to access this land is on foot or horseback. And it's just no fun to pack out an elk on your back. No matter how much adrenalin you have from just shooting the big guy.
Bob Addy
New member
I have a quad and do use horses too. In Oklahoma where I hunt, one of the pastures has very limited access and is fairly rough with sandy breaks. By far I will see more game horse back and will be less spooked. I use a quad strictly for retrieval, seen too many wrecks trying to put game on a horse. My hats off to those that are able to pack out on a horse.
Painted Horse
New member
I suspect some horses will never pack wild game. But for the most part I've never had trouble putting an Elk or Mule Deer on horse. But I use my horses a lot. So they trust me.
I also don't try to load a whole deer over the saddle and have it floppy on the sides while I pack out.
Usually the problems I see with packing are when somebody grabs the neighbors pasture potato horse and doesn't know how to tie a deer (or just standard packs) on so that it'll balance and stay in place.
In the last 10 years I've taken 4 new horses that have never smelled blood or hauled game hunting with me and all have stood to be loaded. I firmly believe it's a "Sacking Out" issue. But maybe I'm just lucky.
I also don't try to load a whole deer over the saddle and have it floppy on the sides while I pack out.
Usually the problems I see with packing are when somebody grabs the neighbors pasture potato horse and doesn't know how to tie a deer (or just standard packs) on so that it'll balance and stay in place.
In the last 10 years I've taken 4 new horses that have never smelled blood or hauled game hunting with me and all have stood to be loaded. I firmly believe it's a "Sacking Out" issue. But maybe I'm just lucky.