Age for purchasing a horse unsure if too old?

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indie999

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Stupid question(s)

I have contacted a seller just need to make sure its excellent in traffic & still for sale. Looks my type otherwise.

BUT it is 14 years old, I know horses can be ridden a lot longer. Its mostly for hacking but is £2.5k I am not sure if thats too much to ask as well? I have seen younger ones my type for less, but too far for me?

Also would you get a horse like this vetted as well?(OK another stupid question..i only say stupid as i know people that have had vettings and still have problems)

I dont want a baby as I am not experienced enough to bring one on at all. Was looking for 8-12 year old originally.But this one sounds quite nice?

Any advice greatly accepted thank you
 
If you like it definitely! Also get it vetted, the vet will take the age of the horse and what you want to do with it into account.

14 really isn't that old. My old horse was jumping upto 26 when he passed. I was doing 1m15 courses when he was 20!

You never know the fate of a horse, I brought a 5yr old and she died at 9. The horse above I got when 16 and we had 10 years of amazing fun.

You never know, if you like it then go for it! :)
 
14 really isn't that old these days! I would say that unless it is very talented £2.5k is a lot though in the current market (I have just given away a stunning 15 yo TB mare as a broodie, she was an excellent jumper but a quirky hacker). I guess it just depends on what you want. If the horse is a bomb proof happy hacker then it is probably worth it's weight in gold :-)
 
It's not too old but it is too expensive. On the other hand, if you have the money, and everything is right about it, and you have really fallen for it, and the seller won't take an offer of,say, £1750, then buy it because life is too short and you don't know what tomorrow will bring.
 
Definitely! I have just bought a 14yo for showjumping! He will stay with me forever, and is fairly low mileage, so age wasn't a big deal :) I didn't get him vetted (I rarely do though)

Not sure about price, if he's sound and safe then I would say it would be reasonable, although it's really hard to tell without seeing him :D Perhaps ask if any tack's included?

J&C
 
I took on an 18yo mare last summer and she has been amazing, an older horse can be a great schoolmaster. I seem to remember in my younger days horses rarely got ridden after about 15 years old or so, these days there are loads of veteran classes around for showing off those golden oldies!
 
Bought my horse at 14 and paid more than that for her!

I dont think thats a lot of money for a horse thats sound and is well schooled. When i had the vet out to carry out 5 stage i asked him if he thought personally that the price was reasonable for the horse i was buying and he said absolutely. At 14 what you get is the final article, most horses are in their prime at this age. Personally I think it would be cheeky to ask for tack aswel but no harm in asking i suppose;)
 
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Definately not too old.

Re £2500, has the horse only hacked before? - in that case it is too much. If the horse has done lots of other things and is a good RC type, but you are only intending to hack, then its not too much. It also depends on the type of horse and whether it has good breeding etc.

Perhaps take someone with you who is experienced, who would give you another opinion on whether the horse seems youthful enough or not. Personally I have never come across a 14yr old that seemed old or slowing down yet.
 
As you are contemplating your first horse, let me advise you a bit, there are quite a few options open to you.
It might be better to take a horse on loan, and keep it at a good riding school or livery yard, by this I mean one where the yard manager is willing to help you with horse management and riding advice, there are so many things to learn at first, it is all too easy to do something wrong, for example one lady was told to feed sugar beet to keep weight on, but she was not told that the nuts had to be soaked ..... result colic!
You may need advise on saddle fitting, here again the loan horse may have his own. Even with a loan horse it may be worth having a two star vetting, where the vet will explain to you what are the things to look at.
I think you are being sensible and not rushing in to things, it is all to easy to be taken for a ride by someone wanting to offload a horse, and remember when this horse was born there were no passports, so it could be any age.
Make sure that you get a family friend and offer it a good home, you may want to go and ride it several times before you keep it, and you can also ask for a months free trial. Unless you have very special requirement it should be possible to find one reasonably near you, take along the yard owner, ( offer payment or a really nice gift), they will make sure you are getting something you can manage and enjoy.
Make sure you book in for several short lessons in the first few weeks so any problems can be identified, having your own horse is great, but not a cheap alternative to riding lessons as some people think at first.
 
Ryan's Son got a clear (I think he won actually) at 21! There were 3 18yo horses around badminton this year! Quite amazing how long some of them go on for now :D

J&C
 
ok thank you for the responses.

I have sent the seller a whole bunch of questions & will see if firstly it is still for sale(just my blooming luck it will have been sold as have the last two that I contacted).

But if its for sale I will be round to have a peek and ride.

Will do the vetting thing too but I can take someone experienced to help me who I know will ride what ever we look at, as well as me. I was lucky the last time I bought my first horse I was able to get a copy of the vets reports from the sellers own vets! They completely told me the truth etc and offered for me to contact the vet and I got a computerised print out of all vaccinations etc etc This one is now the companion.

I have also contacted other sellers and have had some very bizarre evasive answers! One keeps telling me how high their horse can jump, it goes up daily(I have nt asked just 110% traffic..urghh)
 
I bought a 19 year old for the same price for my daughter. He's an absolute star and has taught her loads and is happily jumping 3ft still. I don't think 14 is old at all!
 
remember,an older horse has survived. You could buy a promising 6yo thats a field ornament in a year. This was the advice I gave a friend some years ago when she was considering an "older"horse for her daughter to BE. That darling horse has given the girl some great years and experience and has in return ,a home for life. The mum now rides him mostly ,but a green rider would have been lost without a seasoned profesional horse.
 
I have increased my viewing age now, mind you someone stated in their ad that it was ridden by a 50year old..............made me laugh as thats me!

I didnt realise I was that old to be riding.

Thanks the search continues and I think its going to be a long one!
 
I was given a 15 yr old who was ridden regularly until he was 30 and died at 34.

My own mare is now 14 and her energy/attitude isn't much different to when she was 4 - it all depends on the horse.

I think that's alot of money for a 14 yr old hack, but as someone else has said, if it's successful in any competitive sphere, or could be sold as a schoolmaster then it's not much at all.

Also depends on what comes with it - if you buy an average saddle brand new you could be looking at around 1k, so if you get one with the horse that's a lot of money you won't need to spend.

Definitely get it vetted.
 
TBH, if you want 'bombproof', I always think that you're better with a 'been there, done that' type of horse, in other words, older.
14 isn't that old, anyway. We've kept horses active into their 30s.
 
I bought Nadia at 15 from a little under £2500 and it included tack. I did get her vetted and it brought up a few things like potential arthritis but I still went ahead anyway and yes she now does sudder with arthritis but it doesn't stop us.
 
14 is definitely not too old! My mum bought her last horse aged 24 and they had five wonderful years of hacking together! Definitely advise you to get it vetted though and IMO £2000 sounds a lot for a 14 year old hacker in this current market.
 
If he is genuinely safe and sound and a novice ride then he is worth every penny.

In my neck of the woods (south east) you cant get anything decent for less than that unless they are green as grass and 3 or 4 years old.

Perhaps try to get tack and rugs with him, or put in a cheeky offer of £2250
 
14 is definately not too old! I've had my boy 11 years now and bought him as an 8 year old. He's now just turned 20 and is still going as strong now as he was when I first bought him!!! Definately get him vetted though. As for the purchase price, it would depend on what would come with him. If you get a full set of tack and a full wardrobe of rugs etc, I would think the asking price is fair. Hope this helps, good luck.
 
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