PapaFrita
Well-Known Member
So... My friend J is looking for a horse to SJ upto 1.10m. He's tried Antifaz to have on loan, but A is too hot for him; they just don't get along. J doesn't try particularly hard to find a horse, even though a few people have offered to try get him something and mention a few that sound very promising. He's got his heart set on a TB (he likes PF) and he hasn't got a massive budget.
SO, one of the grooms says his FIL has got a nice 5YO off the track. Mind, this is not off the track track, this is a backstreet racehorse that has been raced in semi (possibly not at all)-legal races. First thing I don't like about the horse is the price; AR$8000, which is about £1300. Way too much by UK standards and astronomical by Argentine standards.
J goes to see the horse and falls in love. I agree to go and see the horse as well and I don't fall in love. I especially don't fall in love with the fact that the horse hasn't had a square meal in weeks.
Apart from the price I can't really see anything hideously wrong with the ned and J just loves him. He's very sweet, has a nice, if a touch nervy temperament. So J arranges a trial period of 1mth to decide if the horse is suitable and if, in fact, it can jump.
Then the messing around starts; owner hints he's got a buyer for the horse and wants paying up front (having agreed to installments) I tell J to tell him to keep his horse (using rather stronger language); If he can find a buyer for 8k he should sell straight away before the mug can change his mind. J remains unconvinced that he's being lied to.
THEN surprise surprise owner decides that J is a good bloke, and agrees to send him the horse on trial.
Horse arrives looking like this; even skinnier than when I saw him and this is a VERY flattering photo. You can see every bone in his back. He also has verrry small feet and was terribly footsore.
J duly worms horse and buys a vitamin supplement, and gets the horse shod. Horse gets lots and lots of food (forage, before someone asks) Can you see where this is going?
A couple of weeks later, horse is looking better, has been shod and lunged lightly. He's been in the jumping lane and looks promising over about 2'9"
J gets on him and walks around a bit. Horse sweats up MASSIVELY and is very reluctant to take up a contact.
I check his mouth; Yep, nasty pointy molars. I also tell J that if he really really has his heart set on this horse, he MUST get it thoroughly vetted and even better, legs x-rayed.
J continues to lunge him, and gets on him a second time when I wasn't around and grooms were elsewhere.
He has NO recollection of what happened. Horse and J wandered separately back to the stables. To cut a very long story a tiny bit shorter J has an exposed fracture of his second metacarpal and a nasty concussion (yes, he was wearing a hat) and spent 3 days in hospitalr. He won't be riding for a couple of months.
At this juncture, I would rapidly send horse back to owner, but J remains unconvinced. J doesn't even want to believe that horse might've cracked him one on the head with his neck (seems the most likely scenario) and says he just fainted and fell off... *sigh* Yes, because THAT's what gave him concussion and broke his hand. And nooo, he won't be any livelier when he's put on a few pounds.
To be fair, the horse has shocking teeth and who knows how many other issues and is probably not malicious. I DO however think he's too hot for J, especially since he won't be able to ride every day, and come March I won't be there to help him out.
I tell him, in as nice a way as possible that he should look around for something else... what has he got to lose, right?
He can get lots of other green horses that haven't done anything and are cheaper than this one, but I feel like I'm banging my head against a concussed wall....
Ideas/suggestions? I think I might be lining up a few horses for him to see myself...
SO, one of the grooms says his FIL has got a nice 5YO off the track. Mind, this is not off the track track, this is a backstreet racehorse that has been raced in semi (possibly not at all)-legal races. First thing I don't like about the horse is the price; AR$8000, which is about £1300. Way too much by UK standards and astronomical by Argentine standards.
J goes to see the horse and falls in love. I agree to go and see the horse as well and I don't fall in love. I especially don't fall in love with the fact that the horse hasn't had a square meal in weeks.
Apart from the price I can't really see anything hideously wrong with the ned and J just loves him. He's very sweet, has a nice, if a touch nervy temperament. So J arranges a trial period of 1mth to decide if the horse is suitable and if, in fact, it can jump.
Then the messing around starts; owner hints he's got a buyer for the horse and wants paying up front (having agreed to installments) I tell J to tell him to keep his horse (using rather stronger language); If he can find a buyer for 8k he should sell straight away before the mug can change his mind. J remains unconvinced that he's being lied to.
THEN surprise surprise owner decides that J is a good bloke, and agrees to send him the horse on trial.
Horse arrives looking like this; even skinnier than when I saw him and this is a VERY flattering photo. You can see every bone in his back. He also has verrry small feet and was terribly footsore.
J duly worms horse and buys a vitamin supplement, and gets the horse shod. Horse gets lots and lots of food (forage, before someone asks) Can you see where this is going?
A couple of weeks later, horse is looking better, has been shod and lunged lightly. He's been in the jumping lane and looks promising over about 2'9"
J gets on him and walks around a bit. Horse sweats up MASSIVELY and is very reluctant to take up a contact.
I check his mouth; Yep, nasty pointy molars. I also tell J that if he really really has his heart set on this horse, he MUST get it thoroughly vetted and even better, legs x-rayed.
J continues to lunge him, and gets on him a second time when I wasn't around and grooms were elsewhere.
He has NO recollection of what happened. Horse and J wandered separately back to the stables. To cut a very long story a tiny bit shorter J has an exposed fracture of his second metacarpal and a nasty concussion (yes, he was wearing a hat) and spent 3 days in hospitalr. He won't be riding for a couple of months.
At this juncture, I would rapidly send horse back to owner, but J remains unconvinced. J doesn't even want to believe that horse might've cracked him one on the head with his neck (seems the most likely scenario) and says he just fainted and fell off... *sigh* Yes, because THAT's what gave him concussion and broke his hand. And nooo, he won't be any livelier when he's put on a few pounds.
To be fair, the horse has shocking teeth and who knows how many other issues and is probably not malicious. I DO however think he's too hot for J, especially since he won't be able to ride every day, and come March I won't be there to help him out.
I tell him, in as nice a way as possible that he should look around for something else... what has he got to lose, right?
He can get lots of other green horses that haven't done anything and are cheaper than this one, but I feel like I'm banging my head against a concussed wall....
Ideas/suggestions? I think I might be lining up a few horses for him to see myself...
If he wants this creature there will be little that you can do about it. Sounds like he will learn the hard way.......
