Advice post-vetting

GRW

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Hello! Would really appreciate some advice on this.

I am finally in a position to buy my own horse (will be my first horse but I have been loaning for years), so really excited! I’m looking for a general all rounder - schooling, hacking, fun rides, local shows.
I thought I had found the perfect horse - a 6 year old Connemara. Loved him, loved his temperament and polite nature, nothing like previous naughty loan ponies! I was so excited and had organised a yard etc.

I had wanted to be present at the vetting as I’m out of the country this week but the seller urged me to have it done while I was away, so I organised one.

The vetting was yesterday, I had booked a 5 stage but the vet stopped it after 2 stages. Reported his foot balance wasn’t brilliant and he needs a farrier - he had some lame steps LF and RF initially but he has no shoes and it was stoney ground so continued. He was then consistently lame 1-2/10 RF on the straight and on the lunge particularly when it was on the outside. She also reported his RF foot is smaller than his LF indicating the lameness may have been going on for a little while, has been using RF less.
He was then positive to flexion on LH 2-3/10 lame the whole way up the trot up.

I was hugely disappointed but thought that having paid for the advice and being advised not to buy him, that was that.

The seller then got in contact, said she was very unhappy and didn’t feel like the vet had given him a fair chance, seemed like she wanted to fail him from the offset. She reported that this particular vet practice hasn’t passed a horse she’s sold before. She had phoned her vet who was coming to look at the pony (a vet I also know somewhat, although officially I know she wasn’t acting on my behalf).

This second vet then phoned me as she was leaving the yard to tell me that she had seen no lameness at all. The seller hadn’t told her which legs had questions over them til afterwards. She repeated the flexion tests and despite being flexed an hour or so before, he was not positive to any. She deemed him sound, agreed his foot balance is not good and I’d need to find a good farrier and have him shod. She said assessing on suitability for what I want to do with him, she would advise me to buy him.

Now I’m really torn and looking for advice! I want this horse to be right as I’ve waited a long time for my own.

1. Do you think I should ask the seller to sort his feet, get him shod and have a re-vetting? I don’t want to get my hopes up but could be foot balance related as his feet aren’t great currently.

2. Bit concerned about the smaller RF foot and therefore potential chronic lameness, am I being biased cos I like the horse and this should be really ringing alarm bells e.g Navicular? He’s only 6!

3. Now that he’s technically failed a vetting - where does this leave me with insuring him if I did go ahead? Especially as a second vet has deemed him sound only hours after the first vet deemed him lame?

I’m in a right mess trying to decide what to do! Any similar experiences/thoughts/advice greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!
 

Fire sign

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It's really hard when this happens because we all want it to be easy ... But the fact is that that the horse has failed the vetting and at an early stage . The last thing you want to do is to buy a horse with a problem and particularly one that is lame.
I wouldn't look at one with any question over soundness and I wouldn't be listening to any old excuses from the sellers either because if the horse was that good they could easily sell to someone else .
 

Red-1

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As regards the insurance, you are bound to tell them of anything that you know. They will ask for the certificate. If the horse is lame on said leg(s) in the future they are unlikely to pay out.

As regards vets, I prefer to use an older equine specialist vet. One that is practical. I have a conversation with them, and let them know that I am aware the it is a snapshot in time, not a lifetime guarantee. Some vets (seems to be especially the less experienced ones) are reluctant to pass a horse for an unknown customer.

The second vet did not do a vetting, and the horse *could* have had bute between appointments.
 

be positive

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The first thing to remember is the second vet is the owners vet and while they may not have seen any lameness they were not working for you and there is nothing on paper to say it was sound, they certainly should not be telling you it is fit for purpose when they only assessed it for lameness, they didn't do a vetting, secondly the pony may have loosened up with exercise/ being trotted up numerous times so being more comfortable later on, as you were not there you only have one unbiased and 2 biased opinions and this makes it as clear as mud.

What would I do would depend on who the seller was, if I felt I really trusted them, how nice the pony was and the price, whether I wanted the expense of another vetting and possibly xrays to put my mind to rest, failing the first vetting will have no bearing on insurance as long as he passes next time but it will always be in the back of your mind and you will be watching him like a hawk for any slightly dodgy step, can you live with that?

I have had a few fail over the years and some vets do seem to be looking for reasons to fail rather than pass normally I shrug it off get them checked by my vet and they usually fly through next time, it is a bit of a lottery.
 

The Bouncing Bog Trotter

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Has he been tested for Hoof Wall Separation Syndrome? I wouldn't consider buying a connemara without being tested. I'd walk away from this one, there will be other ponies without the complications.
 

tda

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I think the first rule of vetting is dont use the sellers vet! Not saying there is anything wrong, but it sounds a bit fishy.
Agree with the query about the hoof separation, it's well known in connemaras
 

ester

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It does sound fishy, I understand that they would want the vetting asap but to push you to have it while you're away, it fail and her to conveniently have the other vet there within the hour?
 

splashgirl45

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i would walk away, all sounds a bit dodgy to me......i would never trust the sellers vet and its odd that this vet is urging you to buy. a very strange thing to say....
 

whiteflower

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Sounds to me there is a high possibility this pony has ongoing foot problems. I particularly don't like the fact he's lame when the leg is on the outside of the circle and that alone would make me walk away. Lame on outside of circle is something I had with a horse of mine with collateral ligament injury in foot which is really not good in prognosis.
It's strange in itself the seller was happy to put the pony for vetting with feet in that condition, surely you would ensure they were in as good condition as possible. There are lots of ponies out there and when the right one comes along it will pass a vet of have only issues that are acceptable to you and won't affect your insurance as this one would as you would have to declare what was found on your first vetting.
 

McFluff

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Really feel for you, especially as he sounds like a nice ‘person’. However, I’m another who think this is a bit fishy and personally I’d walk away.
For me it’s not the failed vetting, it’s the pressure on you to hold it when you couldn’t attend followed by the own vet saying all is well later on. Too many coincidences for me.
If you really can’t get him out of your head, then get an older equine vet to vet him with you present and take blood and get them tested. I personally wouldn’t trust the seller at all.
 
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SusieT

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Vets dont normally urge to buy - they normally stay well out of it. Sellers often get offended if they repeatedly send lame horses to the vet.. I'd walk away!
 

claracanter

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Similar thing happened to me. I booked a 5 stage and I was present at the vetting but the vet called a halt early on as he said the horse was lame. Owner got pretty abusive so the vet and I left. The next day the owner said she had got her vet to look at the horse and he said the horse did indeed have an unusual way of going but wasn't lame so she owner asked if i was still interested. It was an easy decision for me.....I ran a mile.
 

Abi90

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When I was trying to buy my first horse something similar happened to me. Horse failed as was toe dragging both hinds, so vet called a halt. (It was my first time horse buying so all rather daunting). Owner then proceeded to say “he’s just lazy” and got really angry that I wouldn’t buy him. Took her two weeks to give me my deposit back, I was actually surprised I got it back after her reaction
 

twiggy2

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Can you be 100% positive it was the vet that called you and not someone posing as the vet?
There is no way I would consider buying a horse that flagged up as lame in 3 out of 4 limbs.
One hoof smaller than the other indicates a favouring of a limb that has been going on for a number of months and on its own is a huge concern and would be a no from me.
 

hopscotch bandit

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Please walkaway. It is not worth the heartache if you are left with a horse who is going to be problematic either now or in the future. Don't let your heart rule your head. There are plenty of horses out there for you I am sure. This one sounds like it will have a strong possibility of ongoing lameness problems and this will cost a fortune and require time to put right.

Get one that is sound. I know its a huge disappointment but you will look back on this and thank your lucky stars one day.
 

Ambers Echo

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I accept the wisdom of the advice above BUT I do want to give another perspective.

I had a vetting for a pony I was selling. The vet was an absolute nightmare! She failed the pony on:

- foot soreness
- flexion tests
- Back

For the back test she ran car keys down the back. I am not surprised the pony flinched!

She stopped the vetting and told me to go away so she could talk to 'her client'. I asked to stay as if my pony had a problem I needed to know about it. Potential buyer was happy for me to stay and vet proceeded to say pony had multiple problems and was not fit for purpose. and she was therefore failing her.

I was horrified as I had no inkling whatsoever that pony had any issues at all. I phoned my own vet and called him out to do a full workup. He found no problems with feet, flexion tests or back and said he would have passed the pony if he were vetting.

I readvertised but when new potential buyers came along I made it clear that the vet in question was never vetting another horse of mine. This may raise suspicions but I think she was just utterly cr@p and it is very frustrating to have a vet pronounce stuff about your horse that you know is untrue. I discovered later a lot of people think she's useless as a vet and won't use her. Even people registered with her practice say 'Not x please' when they need a vet!

Another buyer used a third vet who found no problems either. So vets CAN be rubbish. I would not trust the buyer's vet but I would also not rule out re-vetting with a different independent vet. I sold the pony 2 years ago and am in touch with the owners. She has had no issues whatsoever and they adore her.
 
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TheMule

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If you are still interested in the pony then the seller needs to sort the feet out (it's pretty ridiculous that they didn't before the vetting) and get a 3rd, independent, vet out to re-vet. I suggest you offer to split the cost of this 50:50 with the seller
 

AFB

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If you really like the pony and feel he's worth it, get an independent 3rd vetting done and x-rays if any question. If not then walk away.

Horses are expensive enough at the best of times, you don't want to buy problems
 

AmyMay

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If you are still interested in the pony then the seller needs to sort the feet out (it's pretty ridiculous that they didn't before the vetting) and get a 3rd, independent, vet out to re-vet. I suggest you offer to split the cost of this 50:50 with the seller

This would probably be what I would do too if teally intetested in the horse.
 

ShowJumperL95

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I would walk away. There will be other lovely horses out there for you that will not be lame. It is really hard but realistically if the horses feet are that bad it will probably cost you a small fortune straight from the start to get him right. Save your money and keep looking. :)
 

little_critter

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Also be aware that if you buy this one, every time he takes an off step you will be thinking "maybe the first vet was right, maybe I shouldn't have bought him etc etc etc. It puts doubt in your mind from the outset.
 

Landcruiser

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I made the mistake of using the seller's vet for my first horse, at her insistence. (I didn't have a vet at that point, and was green as grass and had fallen for a dunn who I thought would be perfect). He was a well respected older equine vet, now retired. He passed the horse as a 7 year old, 5 stage vetting, all sound no issues.

I have now had the horse 10 years. He's never been consistently sound, first vet visit for lameness was within the month, he's stiff, he had windgalls from the start, covered in scars, weird metabolic issues, strange feet, slightly roach back, and at least 10 years older by his teeth than he should be. I nearly lost him at one point, he was so lame he couldn't walk.
He's long retired like the vet that passed him, and has cost me thousands of useless pounds and much heartbreak over the years. He's a great field companion, and taught me a lot - but the first lesson was the one I didn't know enough at the time to learn. DO NOT USE THE SELLER'S VET [Content removed].
 
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Batgirl

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I wouldn't buy a young horse with odd feet. It points to underlying issues that you don't know the future of. a 10yo with odd feet that you can see the history of, fine but not a 6 yo.
The second 'vets' advice is not worth anything.

Walk away.
 

YasandCrystal

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If you are still interested in the pony then the seller needs to sort the feet out (it's pretty ridiculous that they didn't before the vetting) and get a 3rd, independent, vet out to re-vet. I suggest you offer to split the cost of this 50:50 with the seller
This is a good idea and should satisfy everyone.
 

Shooting Star

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The combination of the seller pushing you to vet knowing you couldn’t be present, potential of lameness on 3 legs and the sellers denial of any issues - run away and fast!

If there was a question over one leg and a plausible explanation then I’d maybe consider a second vetting but not in this case.

The right one is out there somewhere for you but this is not it.
 
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