TexasCHLforum.com

Within the last year or so, AAA Texas Magazine (the road
service company) had an article on the Texas county with
the highest number of horses.

One might make an assumption that a West Texas county
'might be the place for the most horses.

According to the article, you would be incorrect. Now I have
no way of verifying their assumption, and anyone with some
kind of "horse population" website is welcome to provide
competing data, but the winner is

DENTON COUNTY.

It's more in the northern part of the county, since the southern
part of Denton County is suburban DFW. Some of these horse
farms have palaces for stables.

By the way, one of the Denton County horse farms is the home
to all the horses used in the Medieval Manor shows. The horses
have to be extensively trained to be in the jousting shows. The
article I read said that even the Florida Medieval Manor sites get
their horses from Denton County.

SIA

I can believe it. I have traveled that area several times and lived in the DFW area all my life. The northern Denton county area is known as horse country. The sandy loam soil there is better for them than the black land clay seen in many of the other counties in the area. There are lots of large breeding facilities there and it's home to many wealthy owners who like to show their horses. The area west of Fort Worth, Parker County, probably ranks pretty high too since it is a popular area for training and breeding cutting horses. The economy has affected both. I have noticed several ranches up for sale and there was a recent seizure of starving arabian horses in Denton county from a facility that was once a showplace. The price of land and taxes in that area is pretty eye popping. I have wondered how long it would be before places like Stephenville and Sulphur Springs lure a lot of the high end horse industry away from the DFW metroplex. They are attracting more all the time with far lower land prices, good soils, and good facilities.

North Denton County and Southern part of Grayson County. Take a drive from 380 North on 377 and go as far as say Whitesboro to see lots. Take side roads off 377 anywhere along the way and see places that you never expected to see.

My Father was in the horse business, but he never made it big like some of them in Denton/Grayson. He did OK, but some of these guys make NFL players look like chumps (dollar wise).

I also would have guessed near a large urban area. Horses are expensive.

Interesting.

boomerang wrote:I also would have guessed near a large urban area. Horses are expensive.

+1 My first thought was look for the county with the most money (that isn't completely paved over). Oddly enough, I have read in horse mags (altho never verified it) that there are more horses in America nowadays than in the days when they were the primary form of transportation and, well, horse power.

Right now my hay burner is in the front yard, mowing the grass. Trying to save a few nickels on hay...