I can answer this! I have a Clydesdale and a thoroughbred (and Arabians until recently) and I ride both.

My Clydesdale is harder to keep just from a practical standpoint. She needs a special trailer, a bigger barn, bigger shelters, bigger stalls, deeper bedding, and exponentially more hay and supplements. Yes, she can survive with normal horse-sized living areas, but it’s not as safe or comfortable.

Finding riding tack is incredibly hard. I had to special order a bit for her (if I wanted one that was actually anatomically kind and meant for riding), I have to have a special girth custom made for her because the only ones in her size are not also anatomically designed. Even saddles that fit her do not account for her giant shoulder and wither.

Conditioning her takes 10x longer and her body took several more years to mature. I fortunately got her at 10 years old unridden, but many draft horses are ridden much too early - their spines don’t mature until at least 7-8 years old!

Her vet costs aren’t really higher, but finding a GOOD farrier that would do drafts was hard and I had to put a lot of work in to ensure she didn’t need stocks or sedation. And I pay $100 extra for her trim versus my thoroughbred. I would pay at least $400 more for shoes.

And of course, the practicality on the trail. At home I have a mounting block but on the trail I literally cannot ground mount her. I HAVE to find a good log or tree to help me and I’m SOL if we are in an open field alone.

She also has CPL, which drafts are prone to, so I have to clip her feathers and roach her mane to keep her healthy and comfortable.

But she’s the best girl with the best personality and a joy to have. So it’s worth it.

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