SubscribeGift a Sub
Enable cache 100

HI Spy: Describe Your Dream Horse

When you were young, your dream horse was the Black Stallion’s doppelganger. You pictured yourself galloping down the beach with your firey steed. Now, after your horse has taken off with you in eight of your last ten rides, you’re thinking that maybe you need a less gallop and more plod. Your dream horse today is Ol’ Dobbin, who’s never in a hurry to get anywhere.



At one point in your life, you wanted to be a cowgirl. Your dream horse was a tough and sturdy Quarter Horse or a Mustang that you trained yourself. But then you ended up at a hunter/jumper barn and fell in love with the sleek, bay coats punctuated by a perfect row of braids. Your dream horse now has never seen a steer, but can clear any fence with grace and elegance.



When you first started entertaining the idea of purchasing your horse, you envisioned a 15.2h black and white pinto mare to trail ride and show for fun at the local saddle club. You scoured the Internet, pulled phone numbers off fliers at horse shows and spent hours with classified ads and a highlighter. Finally, you found her. Now she’s in your backyard and you’ve barely glanced at another horse since.

Tell us about your equine ideal, whether the horse waiting for you back in the barn meets the description or not. Have you always had one perfect horse that haunts your day dreams, or did your ideal change as you matured as a rider? Share your thoughts by clicking “Submit a Comment” below. Some of the responses may be selected for publication in a future issue of Horse Illustrated.

See all HI Spy Questions >>

Horse Illustrated

Horse Illustrated is the magazine for people who are passionate about horses. Each issue offers advice on horse health and care, plus user-friendly training tips for both English and western riders and engaging lifestyle features for horse lovers.

View Comments

  • My dream horse would have a lot of love to give and be spunky and energetic engough for the show ring. But also quiet engough for the trail.

  • My dream horse has remained the same since the day I fell in love with horses. She is a small, elegant golden-red mare with a silver mane and tail and the eye of an eagle. She is an energetic, speedy mount that is always ready to please. She jumps with grace and gallops with power. And she is always ready to greet me with a nicker when I approach her stall.

  • I can tell you what used to be my dream horse- a lilac roan colored Quarter Horse. My dream horse nowadays is the bay mare with two socks that is standing in my barn right now.

  • My dream horse is a small bay roan 14.1 hand pony, He is my dream horse because I can do anything on him, I don't have to worry about him playing any tricks when I am on him I can just relax and have fun!

  • MY DREAM HORSE WOULD BE SNOW WHITE, WITH A LONG SNOW WHITE MANE AND TAIL. A SOFT KIND EYE, AND GENTLE NATURE THATS FOR SURE. 15 HANDS, NOT TO PETITE, AND NOT A CHUNKSTER. NICE LEGS AND HOOVES, AND VERY SUREFOOTED, FOR VERY LONG RIDES AND ANY TERRAIN WE WOULD ENCOUNTER. VERY INTELLIGENT, AND A QUICK LEARNER. A NON-SPOOKY MOUNT WHO IS NOT ONLY A TRAIL LOVER, BUT VERSATILE AND WILLING TO DO ANYTHING ASKED OF HIM. CONTEST, PLEASURE, TRAIL, PARADES, JUMPING YOU NAME IT. HE WOULD BE SWIFT LIKE THE WIND ONE MINUTE, AND CALM AS THE CRACK OF DAWN THE NEXT. ONE THAT IS ALWAYS HAPPY TO SEE ME, AND COMES RUNNING TO THE BARN WITH A NICKER. ONE WHO IS EASILY CAUGHT, WITH NO VICES WHAT-SO-EVER, AND NEVER REFUSES TO GO IN A TRAILER. HE WOULD ENJOY BATHS AS WELL, AND IS PERFECT FOR THE FARRIER.

  • My dream horse would be a gigantic 17.3+ hand, bay/dun/dapple gray hunt horse. Not sure what breed, maybe some sort of Warmblood, or a TB cross. Doesn't matter if it's a mare or a gelding. He/she would have a perfect star between soft, gentle eyes, and a long forelock that reaches almost to the snip on the end of his/her nose. He/she would be great with kids, carrying them like the treasure they are, but in a second I could hop on her/him and gallop across a meadow racehorse style. I would primarily use him/her for hunting and stadium jumping. He/she would absolutely adore me, and would come cantering whenever I called, always ready with a nicker and a nuzzle. We would be able to communicate in an almost supernatural way.
    Well, all that dreaming, and I forgot I have the perfect horse standing right in his stall a few minutes away! My Lone Star is the horse of my dreams for this stage of my life!

  • I want a black and White Gypsy Vanner, with a little more white than black. I would name her Silver Lining!

  • My dream horse would be imperfect. In fact, he is. He has a bit of devil in him, but we love each other, and to me, he IS perfect. He's a German riding pony, a beautiful chestnut pony hunter,with a deep dark eye and snip/star/stripe combination. His abundance of thick chestnut/blonde mane and tail billow around him, despite training braids and pulling and he loves to give an explosive jump, unless in the showring. Then he's all business. To me, he's the perfect horse because we've worked to become perfect, and to become a team. I know that there is more behind his immaculate collection that training, there is a bond. To me, his is the epitome of perfection.

  • my dream horse would be a world champion saddlebred who competed in several five gaited divions. He would be a darker chesnut, not liver svhesnut but close to it, have an amazing headset and high animation. Also my horse would have consinsestity in the show ring.

  • I envision a horse exactly like my beautiful mare when I think of my dream horse. Only this dream horse lets me clip her ears.

Recent Posts

2024 Kentucky Derby: Make Your Pick

Read along for a look at each horse competing in the 2024 Kentucky Derby. In 2021, 17,779 Thoroughbred foals in…

14 hours ago

ASPCA Right Horse Adoptable Equines of the Week: Vixen and Pipsqueak

Welcome to Horse Illustrated’s weekly installment of the Right Horse Adoptable Horse of the Week, offered in partnership with the…

2 days ago

Adopt a Horse Month Success Stories

Imagine an entire month dedicated to celebrating adoptable horses: For the past four years, the month of May has been…

3 days ago

Guest Ranch Horses

Horses in the guest ranch industry come from varied breeds and backgrounds. Learn more about them. The scenery may be…

4 days ago

2024 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event Recap

Thanks to a rail down by overnight leader Tom McEwen (GBR) on the 13-year-old German Warmblood gelding JL Dublin, a…

5 days ago

2024 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event: Cross-Country Day

In a day of heat, then rain, followed by blazing sun, the sun indeed shone brightest on the British riders…

6 days ago