Is It Legal In Texas To Drink While Riding A Horse?

We were discussing a court case out of California this morning on The RockShow that involved a man being arrested for riding his horse while drunk. Police noticed he had a beer in his hand and stopped him. He was above the legal driving limit for intoxication, which is .08.

We joked that you could probably get away with it in Texas, but can you? Let's see what Texas law says about riding a horse while under the influence...

Is it legal to ride a horse while you are drunk in Texas?

Nope. Even though you can't get a DUI, since a horse isn't a motor vehicle, there are still several DWI-related charges that the police can throw at you if you are caught riding around on a horse while intoxicated, like public intoxication and animal endangerment. If you've got your kid riding on the horse with you at the time you are caught, you can also face charges of child endangerment. Furthermore, if you cause injury to other people or damage someone's property, you could face civil liability.

So, what have we learned here today?

As much fun as it might sound, it's not a good idea to ride your pony while you're drunk in Texas. You could get into a lot of trouble. The first offense could get you 180 days in prison and your license suspended for up tor up to a year, and the offenses just get worse after that. Don't risk it!