“There are too many good horses to buy that one’”?!?!?

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Muddy Wellies

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I often see on here, people asking questions about certain injuries or problems in horses they are potentially interested to view/buy?

But it’s then often followed up with replies along the lines of the fact there’s too many good horses out there to buy one with problems… So who does take these horses on??? What about the sellers that need to sell their horse for varying reasons, yet they have on off lameness, tendon injuries, spavins, sweet itch, kissing spine, behavioural issues so on so on?

What do sellers do when their horse fails a vetting due to something serious? Drop the price? Lie? Mask things up? Make adjustments to keep/manage the horse?

Just interested in peoples thoughts on this.
 
For me it totally depends on the problem, I wouldn't buy a horse with a history of laminitis/lots of colic due to my previous experiance of them but other things I might look into before I made a descion and look at vet history and do some reasearch myself before I decided. Difficult one as it depends on what you want to do with the horse/how you can manage it
 
For me at the moment its more a case of WHERE are all these good horses without the issues?!! I'm looking - and trust me, there really aren't as many as people make out!
 
Muddy Wellies said:
… So who does take these horses on??? What about the sellers that need to sell their horse for varying reasons, yet they have on off lameness, tendon injuries, spavins, sweet itch, kissing spine, behavioural issues so on so on?

What do sellers do when their horse fails a vetting due to something serious? Drop the price? Lie? Mask things up? Make adjustments to keep/manage the horse?

Just interested in peoples thoughts on this.
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These are the horses people end up with from dodgy dealers and not so honest sellers.....cheap from sales or given away as companions. Often the horses spiral though a succession of innappriopriate homes or end up hurting someone.....

This is why is not such a bad option to PTS rather than sell on a horse with issues....
 
Muddy Wellies said:
I often see on here, people asking questions about certain injuries or problems in horses they are potentially interested to view/buy?

But it’s then often followed up with replies along the lines of the fact there’s too many good horses out there to buy one with problems… So who does take these horses on??? What about the sellers that need to sell their horse for varying reasons, yet they have on off lameness, tendon injuries, spavins, sweet itch, kissing spine, behavioural issues so on so on?

What do sellers do when their horse fails a vetting due to something serious? Drop the price? Lie? Mask things up? Make adjustments to keep/manage the horse?

Just interested in peoples thoughts on this.
Click to expand...

I've just bought one who would never pass a vet - but he's so special that it was a risk I was prepared to take. I paid a very very nominal sum for him, after the owner vetted me thoroughly to make sure I deserved him. She was totally honest about him, and that's what made me decide to take the chance. He's fit and sound, but even if he was to go lame, I'd still happily have him as a pet as he's such a nice person!

I'd hope that every seller who sold on a horse with an issue would be totally honest, but sadly, I think that's probably not the case in the majority of cases.
 
If I was getting a horse cheap that might have issues in the future I would weigh up the cost of future treatment & the lower price against what the same horse would cost without the issues. Then make a decision as to whether its worth the gamble. And like anyone sensible I only gamble what I can afford to lose. Which will vary from person to person dependent on personal situation.
As to what people do when the horses condition makes it worth only meat value, that varies depending what type of person they are. If the horse has quality of life they might permanent loan to someone they know & trust, or pts if they are caring & responsible & they really can't keep it themselves. Some people will disguise the problem, regardless of quality of life & sell dishonestly to anyone or at a low end sale. Some people live in the fluffy world of no responsibility & give away free/ sell below meat value to strangers & fool themselves into thinking their horse won't end up being mistreated or sent straight to an abbatoir. Others may have the means to either keep the horse, treat it & sell it when recovered depending what's wrong, or keep it & loan locally with arrangements about vet fees or return if the problem worsens.
Milder problems that can be managed without much expense on an otherwise good horse the price just drops. Or sell for a different purpose, eg a hunter with an old tendon injury might not manage 4 fast days anymore but could pass a vetting as a riding club level horse.
 
IMO.....if you know the horse has an issue then you can make an informed decision whether or not you want to take it on....

If you don't know theres a problem, and are not experienced enough, or simply told a pack of lies.....then it can make for a very miserable ... not to say expensive....horse owning experience....

I personally wouldn't want to pass on a horse with major issues- if I couldn't afford to keep then to my mind its best all round to PTS....others may not agree......
 
Luckily not everyone has the same criteria when buying. So for some what would be seen as an insurmountable problem, might be insignificant to others, and not weigh badly against positives the horse might have.
 
What littlelegs said, basically.

It costs the same to keep a good horse as it does a bad one, and you might as well pick one which is good - for you. The key is that "good" is relative to the owner - I like fun, bouncy ponies who are fit and sound to do most things they're capable of. If you wanted a similar type of pony as a beginner's pony or novice hack, you might consider something with low level veterinary issues which would fail a vetting for harder work, but is fine for your purposes. If another prospective buyer was looking for something to take round Badminton, their level of tolerance towards potential issues is likely to be lower!

Similarly with behavioural issues, a novice looking for a quiet hack will not consider anything which is daft. I might consider something bouncier. A more psychopathic owner might be bolder still - and so on :p

If the horse is so problematic as to be unworkable on any level, the seller has to either look at the potentially risky route of selling as a companion, or should pts imo.
 
Littlelegs has given a very concise view. It is true that some things are more important than others for buyers.

For instance a show person wouldn't buy a horse with sweet itch, nor someone living on low ground. But if it was very quiet in traffic and you lived on top of a breezy hill, then you might be willing to give it go, at a reduced price.

That is why a really good horse, with good conformation, well schooled and generally nice all round is expensive as there are plenty that don't come up to that.

Although people are always looking for a cheap horse, so are willing to compromise.

The biggest favour anyone can do a horse is to teach it good basics and then it should always have a loving home no matter what happens to it in the meantime.
 
i bought my boy knowing that he was a veryyyy green 9 year old who had some behavioural issues. he also windsucked.

however, looking into the history of him he really hadnt had any constant work so i figured the behavious issues could be worked out. and he had never had to have the vet (as far as im aware) due to his windsucking causing any problems.

so i got the price down to a much more realistic level of what he was worth (they wanted £5000 for him. really, £5000 for a horse that couldn't canter a 20 meter circle?) and took the risk and bought him :D

although he still has the odd "moment" hes 100x better behaved and his windsucking is well under control. for me, it was totally worth it as i would never have been able to afford a horse like him WITHOUT the issues he came with
 
That is true I am looking at a windsucker too. I think with the price reduction you would usually get it is worth a try, vices don't bother me it is just the potential for vet bills, and I have him in sort of loan to get to know him which obviously makes a difference, better the devil you know than another one at twice the price from someone who hides more serious issues!
 
I agree with littlelegs and jftd..

I bought my big mare for £1 after she broke her shoulder.. Previous owner had her 5 months and was going to have her pts if I didn't take her as she wanted a horse she could get on and do with and this one was apparently never going to be rideable..

Luckily for the mare I had space.. If she came good, great.. If not, she could do horse things with the rest of my herd for the rest of her natural life, barring disease or accident where pts was the best/only course..

She's been hacking out for the last year on orders from my vet.. She won't showjump again, I would never ask or allow it, but she's happy..

I have 2 youngsters aged 2 and 3 who will start doing things next year, I've had abdominal surgery in the last 5 months, lost another horse and moved from the midlands to the south west.. It's nice to have an occasional happy hacker if I have the urge, and if not, she's a great nanny for the young ones..
 
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