Bought unseen problems returning

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and someone just commented on a post about her saying they'd bought a 15yo that's been aged at 20 and basically said take me to court as she knows she won't ever pay anything back.
 
Jasmine2023 said:
I would like to point out a couple of things. Firstly I bought unseen as I don't travel well, I have health issues, and most horses for sale don't seem to be close enough for me to travel. Secondly I am not an expert and still learning. I relied on the yard owner to check out the ad and the videos of this horse and was told he looked nice. They are more experienced than me obviously. So I have been let down by them and the seller. I have a degenerative condition which means I might not be able to ride for as long as most people that's one reason why I wanted a horse to be good to go. So I am in a very depressed state and getting flack from some people here with no sympathy and understanding. I bought myself this horse out of money left me by my parents after they died. I have enough money to take care of a horse but not loads to be able to pay for training I never expected to have to do.
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I do feel sorry that you are the victim of a well-known dodgy dealer and of your numpty YO. BUT the horse is currently in your care and you don't seem to have any feeling of responsibility towards him at all.
I am sorry you are in this position but I think you need to get your head round the fact that if you return him to the dealer you will lose your money, one way or another.
Dodgy dealers have it down to a fine art, you won't get the better of them.
So Imho it would be better to spend sometime and money getting your horse settled, which at least has some possibility of success, than spending more of both trying and failing to get your money from the dealer.
 
Jenko109 said:
I think it's very unfair to blame the yard owner for simply saying that they thought the horse looked nice 😬

The horse does look nice...

That said, I'm sorry to hear you're feeling down.

You may wish to reach out to friends or family for support, or consider a charity, like Samaritans.
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The yard sounds to be badly run, quite apart from the poor advice aboutthe advert.
 
It's such a shame horse dealers are not regulated. So I guess you have multiple options and only you know what's best for you if you are not going to get your money back. No-one on this forum really knows much about this situation and you and we all make lots of assumptions and make up solutions to what we think the problem is in our heads. Fingers crossed he chills out after a week or two and becomes easy to handle.

You need to look after yourself and your mental health though first and foremost. Also I suggest that you don't post on here if you chose anything other than keeping him and sorting his issues out as you know what the response will be.
 
Jasmine2023 said:
I would like to point out a couple of things. Firstly I bought unseen as I don't travel well, I have health issues, and most horses for sale don't seem to be close enough for me to travel. Secondly I am not an expert and still learning. I relied on the yard owner to check out the ad and the videos of this horse and was told he looked nice. They are more experienced than me obviously. So I have been let down by them and the seller. I have a degenerative condition which means I might not be able to ride for as long as most people that's one reason why I wanted a horse to be good to go. So I am in a very depressed state and getting flack from some people here with no sympathy and understanding. I bought myself this horse out of money left me by my parents after they died. I have enough money to take care of a horse but not loads to be able to pay for training I never expected to have to do.
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I do feel sorry for you, but buying a horse like this is a huge risk. You should have gone and seen the horse in the flesh with an experienced person. You should have ridden it and had it vetted. You can not buy horses like a jumper from Amazon. It just does not work like that.
You can try the small claims court, but whatever you do do not return the horse unless you get your money back first as you will end up with no money and no horse.
If it were me I would get the horse vetted now by a good equine vet, yes it will cost money but you will know what physical problems you are looking at.
Then you can go from there. If you are lucky it may be a easy fix and with some time you may end up with a nice horse. If not you have some serious choices to make.
Remember the horse deserves some sympathy and understanding too. He didnt ask for this either,
Edit to add Are you a member of Bhs or anything that offers legal advice? Maybe try citizens advice etc if not. Just do not send the horse back unless you get your money first....
 
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Feel so sorry for the horse. He's probably been uprooted and moved from one place to the next several times just recently, likely hurting, and absolutely being set up for failure with how he's being handled.
It's fine to take liberties with your own horse when you know them but the yard absolutely shouldn't be doing so with someone else's, especially when it's new and unsettled.

Although equally don't think it's fair to blame them for commenting on an advert when fundamentally OP hasn't done their due diligence in viewing and vetting the horse and researching the dealer. Buyers that purchase this way are the dodgy dealers bread and butter.


mariew said:
It's such a shame horse dealers are not regulated. So I guess you have mAlso I suggest that you don't post on here if you chose anything other than keeping him and sorting his issues out as you know what the response will be.
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Selling on as a way to cut their losses has been mentioned several times, as has issuing a CCJ to make the dealer refund as OP is protected under distance selling regs.
Admittedly If he was mine I'd throw out for some Dr green and just catch for a bit of a groom for twenty minutes every day for a fortnight or so then go from there, but fair enough if op just wants a schoolmaster type to sell honestly described and chalk it up to experience 🤷
 
I also feel.sorry for the horse who is at the middle of it. I also wish people would take ownership of their mistakes. Instead of blame everyone. This culture of buying unseen tl and unvetted then immediately saying "not as described". Horses are not cats or bikes or whatever. They have been thrown into an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people and are unsettled. As a wild generalisation Coba tens to be bargy when unsettled. Coupled with the horse then having to stay in with no turn out and they class the horse as dangerous.

Yes dodgy dealers take advantage of the more novicey people who will buy this way but don't throw out all the excuses as to why it is not your fault.

In this case, get the horses turned out, let him take a breath and settle. Spent time doing nothing much and just spending time with him. Just because your yo said he looked nice dosnt mean a thing.
 
Lousy situation to be in, OP. Let down by the dealer and your yard owner, so you now have a horse-shaped problem. Going after the dealer is likely to be throwing good money after bad, and you still have to deal with the horse in the meantime.

If it was me, I would forget about getting a refund. It's wrong, and you are entitled to one but actually getting it is almost certainly not going to happen.

I would get an opinion from an experienced, sympathetic remedial trainer and a good horse vet and go from there. It will probably work out more financially viable in the long run. You may well have a super little horse there, hiding inside an insecure, frightened and possibly sore horse.

I bought an elderly cob unseen. Supposedly a novice ride and easy to handle. Ha! She had several health issues, and was a nightmare of barging, rude and obstinate behaviour. She box-walked, would slam into you, was hard to catch and planted when you tried to lead her, she flatly refused to pick her feet up, and would throw them in your direction if you managed to get them off the ground. She also napped when ridden, was very forward and strong (sometimes just buggering off) and would throw the odd buck.

Not suitable for a novice in the slightest, but I'm not a novice and she is now a lovely old sod. Still cantankerous and not a novice ride, but basically really sweet and easy to handle. She was incredibly insecure, having been shunted around several homes in nearly as many months before ending up at the dealer's. I don't blame them, as they hadn't had her very long and probably hadn't done anything much with her, plus her health issues made her seem quieter than she was. I don't think they were dishonest and she was good in traffic like they said (deal-breaker for me), but they're basically in it for a quick turn around for as much as they can get, so whether they are dodgy or not, the 'economy' dealers are never going to give you through description of their horses. Going the unseen economy route is not for the inexperienced, or people who can't afford to lose the money or deal with the consequences of buying a potential problem.
 
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So sorry to read about your experience. I think if I were you id turn him out and give him more time to settle in to his new home. There’s a lot you can do with him from the ground that will form bonds with him. Start by daily grooming and take it from there. Also getting him checked by a vet asap would be a good idea.
If you are unable to return him then you’re going to have to make this work ( or give it your very best shot at making it work), so never be afraid of asking for help from experienced, knowledgeable people. Never set yourself up to fail in terms of safety and training, be really patient, don’t be in an hurry to ride him and lots of praise for him when he’s good. You never know, he might turn out to be a cracker!
I wish you lots of luck and please keep us posted.
 
Pearlsasinger said:
I do feel sorry that you are the victim of a well-known dodgy dealer and of your numpty YO. BUT the horse is currently in your care and you don't seem to have any feeling of responsibility towards him at all.
I am sorry you are in this position but I think you need to get your head round the fact that if you return him to the dealer you will lose your money, one way or another.
Dodgy dealers have it down to a fine art, you won't get the better of them.
So Imho it would be better to spend sometime and money getting your horse settled, which at least has some possibility of success, than spending more of both trying and failing to get your money from the dealer.
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this, it is not a case of not having sympathy for you but of trying to suggest the most cost effective way out of the situation.

None of this is your horse's responsibility, he didn't ask for this. His happiness is now the most important thing not whether you can just get on him and go.

what do you see the solutions as?

if you can post approx where you are then someone may know of an experienced person who can visit (after a couple of weeks turn out) and see what sort of horse he is and how to take him forward. You may well have a lovely horse who could be a great success for you but it needs someone experienced to see.
 
Kaylum said:
What has your YO suggested?
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Try to send back or try to work with the horse. To the person that mentioned vetting I was trying to get him vetted as said in my first post but he was so bad we couldn't continue. He didn't like the stethoscope, nor having his eyes looked at or being touched in general. Outside for the check he barged the YO and ran off.
 
Jasmine2023 said:
Try to send back or try to work with the horse. To the person that mentioned vetting I was trying to get him vetted as said in my first post but he was so bad we couldn't continue. He didn't like the stethoscope, nor having his eyes looked at or being touched in general. Outside for the check he barged the YO and ran off.
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Apologies I missed that you had tried to get your vet to give him the once over. More importantly than what your YO might think, what did your vet say about it all? Did they suggest perhaps coming back at a later date after the horse has had some turn out and relax time?
 
Mrs. Jingle said:
Apologies I missed that you had tried to get your vet to give him the once over. More importantly than what your YO might think, what did your vet say about it all? Did they suggest perhaps coming back at a later date after the horse has had some turn out and relax time?
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They just advised he probably wasn't suited to me and that he was 'very feisty.
 
OP if you are going to be stuck with this horse is there any competent keen teens on your yard that might be willing to work with him if money is an issue?

I guess the fact the horse wouldn’t let the vet do the vetting should be a red flag but there’s no point worrying about that now. And since I’ve bought unseen I have no right to have a go. It’s been the one I viewed and rode that took so long to settle for me but if you can find someone to give him confidence you may yet get a nice horse.

I hope you find a solution. Hindsight is great isn’t it.
 
Cobs can be extremely sensitive and he doesn't know whether he is coming or going right now. Find someone well recommended, who will work with the both of you, and you might well find it all works out after all.

That Belgian on that website looks like it's just come off a continental meat truck. Poor chap.
 
I'm sorry but in my experience cobs are easily very unsettled and many are nervous in new situations. You still need to give him more time to settle and he needs to go out. No cobs like being stuck in a stable 24/7 with little interaction. My horse of 15years was very much like this at first. He turned into the most loving horse and to think he was originally nicknamed the piranha because how fast he was to lash out with his teeth. He had defense aggression and took a good 6mths to settle. Since then I have 2 mares. The first was challenging to say the least. Extremely sensitive and scared of everything. She bolted through 2 fences on day one after hearing a horse wearing shoes. She'd clearly never come across them. The other one is still settling. I've had her 6 weeks. She is a bag of nerves because of her past experiences with certain people who literally drove her into the ground. I'm working with both these mares because if I don't then who will. Nobody wants broken nervous animals but sometimes it's our responsibility to work with what we have. If you feel the horse is too much then enlist the help of a behaviourist to assist you in getting him settled and trusting you. I would re try the vaccinations etc in a few weeks even if you need to sedate to do what is needed. Again one of my mares can't bear her feet touched. She is a work in progress so will be sedated for her next trim while i continue to work at handling her feet in the meantime. You absolutely need to give him time and just get help from experienced people who are happy to help you settle him in and work with him and with you.
 
Arrgh dammit is nobody else going to mention the elephant in the room here? You're forcing me to post!

Very pretty 8 year old straight legged cob dumped on the market for too little money.

If he doesn't have PSD I've got a series of hats lined up.

I'm so sorry Jasmine but please don't pass him on without checking this out.
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