Buying unseen from abroad WWYD?

[ester]

WWYD?

I wouldn't
I wouldn't buy a horse I wanted as a happy hacker without trying hacking it
I wouldn't borrow money to buy a horse.

 

[July dreamer]

Personally I would never buy unseen, but that's because I'm looking for a friend and not just a horse to ride and personality/character is everything to me. Horses stay with me for life.

Since you have experience with thoroughbreds could you try any of the TB rehoming charities? I've known a couple of people who have taken on ex-racehorses from them, they are usually on long term loan. I'm surprised that you can't find similar to the Dutch horse in the UK, I would have thought there were many ex competition horses looking for a quieter life.

 

[Pippity]

I'd be hesitant to buy this horse if it was right next door, being sold by my best friend. I understand the urge to buy (my riding instructor had to glare firmly at me before I walked away from the first horse I had vetted, after it failed with bilateral hind lameness) but you can find a more suitable horse far closer to hand.

I'd question why the seller hasn't been able to find a buyer closer to home.

 

[ihatework]

Well I’d offer a pound, pay the transport myself and take a gamble.
Be prepared to shoot if the horse is knackered and also be prepared with some ££ for ongoing vet maintenance that the horse may need.

But that is only an option for a pragmatic experienced horse owner. OP as I don’t know you I couldn’t say if you fall into that category and what your attitude to risk is.

ETA - but I’d have to really like the look of the horse from video. Because tbh I could easily pick up a free hack from contacts in the UK any day of the week

 

[Asha]

I saw this on FB earlier and thought it was quite apt . Happens to us all at some time or other ?

 

[eggs]

My biggest question is would this horse be a happy hacker though. A lot of horses on the continent don't hack and quite a lot of them are not used to being out in a field.

If you are really set on this horse then do get your vet to speak to their vet and go and try the horse before committing to buy. I know it isn't easy to do that at the moment but it certainly doesn't sound as though this horse will be going anywhere in the near future.

Personally I would avoid buying a potential problem.

 

[Lillian_paddington]

Setting aside whether or not it’s a good idea to import a horse unseen with an old injury (I would say not) is it suitable for what you want? Is it going to be happy making the transition from fairly high level competitive dressage to a happy hacker? As it is often pointed out a lot of competition horses need a job to do, and hacking may not cut it for them.

 

[emilylou]

I wouldn’t buy a horse if I didn’t have the money to buy it. That’s the beginning and the end of it for me.

Have you tried any hacking centres or riding schools? They are likely to want to shift some horses for a bit. You could get one on loan for a year and save for your own in the mean time.
Also, if you’ve previously had a TB and are experienced why not an ex racehorse? You can pick them up for £500 or so from the right places if you are offering the right sort of home.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

You must be able to find a happy hacker in the UK without a mahoosive budget. I wouldn't buy any horse unseen and definitely not from abroad, I would be concerned this is a scam of some sort but then I don't understand why you are advertising in the Netherlands. Have a look on Dragon Driving/Preloved if you want a cheap horse and are prepared to borrow some money to acquire one.

 

[J&S]

If the horse is as nice as you think why can't he find a home for it in Holland? I have been there and ridden and loads of people have their horses outside their back doors with a sand arena and where I was in the north there was brilliant hacking in huge woods. They are not all competition riders!

 

[FestiveFuzz]

So I've bought unseen from Germany before, but the difference was I was buying a foal so outside of checking it had 4 legs/was sound and had a pulse there was very little else to check at that stage. My older boy also came unseen, although was known to my trainer who in turn knows me incredibly well. He was also originally on loan to me so much lower risk if we'd met and not got along. I wouldn't want to buy a happy hacker unseen, especially one with known issues that I couldn't really afford without borrowing money in the first place. It just feels like a recipe for disaster.

It's a shame you're not looking in around 6 months time as we're moving up that way, and while neither of my boys would ever be for loan, I'm likely to be looking for someone who wants to ride in exchange for giving me a helping hand with the youngster and ultimately being my hacking buddy once he's backed.

 

[Polos Mum]

I appreciate your desperation to find a horse. I wouldn't wish horse hunting on my enemies - it should be fun spending money on your hobby but it's an endless cycle of disappointment.

Lots of good comments above, I would try more charities Bransby and HAPPA have ex police horses when they retire for example, good ones don't make it to the website some times.

I would contact your local riding schools and see if they will loan while they are under virus restrictions and can't use them all in the riding school.

I would ask your local instructors, farriers, vets, physio etc. As people struggle with cash through the virus they may be more willing to loan to someone known to someone more than they would reply to an advert.

I would be suspicious that a presumably cheap horse that can school and hack nicely is worth sending to the UK - it screams scam to me or at best the poor thing is dog lame and the seller has a reputation locally.

 

[Shilasdair]

If I were you, OP, I'd

1. Decline the horse from Holland - too risky, and you don't have the budget to fund risk.
2. Contact local riding clubs, your BHS committee, local riding schools, livery yards and area FB pages to see if you can find a horse you can share for the summer, offering work rather than cash.
3. While sharing, save the loan livery money (and any other money you can) towards buying/loaning/emergency fund for a horse.
4. In the autumn, early winter I think the recession will prompt an increase in horses on the market, for loan together with a reduction in prices - and I'd then restart my attempts to either buy or fully loan a horse, with the cash I'd saved.

 

[irishdraft]

No definitely not lots of good points raised here . Understand when you are desperate to fill the hole left by your previous horse but not to the extent of giving youself more grief.

 

[Flicker]

Good grief, you'd think that Holland is the other side of the world! It is very easy to transport horses to and from Holland, it's routine and no less hassle than doing so within the (apparently even more insular than I'd previously thought) UK. However, even if the horse was just up the road, I would be hesitant to buy a horse that had had an injury serious enough to end it's competitive career. You would want a very rigorous vetting, and a very good price.

Oh yes I would totally agree that bringing a horse over from the continent is pretty straightforward. However, it does seem a long way to go for a happy hacker (and one with an injury as you point out). Also, if anything goes wrong, you’re negotiating across two separate legal jurisdictions, which is an added hassle. It just starts to add up to make a ‘cheap’ horse considerably less so, and that’s before you’ve even started to deal with whatever physical problems the horse has, and whether she will even do the job you want her for.

OP, you will make the decision that works best for you and your circumstances. I really hope you find something lovely.

 

[teddypops]

If you are questioning it, don’t do it!

 

[Abby-Lou]

Do not go there ! be patient and the right one will come along

 

[ycbm]

If the horse is as nice as you think why can't he find a home for it in Holland?

The $64,000 question.

 

[The Fuzzy Furry]

OP, Holland isn't far, for example it's only 4.5 hrs to Assen once off the ferry at Calais in a truck, so quicker by car, or easier for you to go via Hook of Holland.
However, travel isn't easy outside the UK currently.

I have purchased unseen a number of times, my current mount was brought this way, BUT I brought on breeding and knowing that there were no medical issues.

Please, save yourself a lot of potential heartache and keep your search within the UK, it's worth spending time driving to see a few.
Also, if you can wait till autumn, there are likely to be more available (imho).

 

[Mikas-mom]

like most people on here have said, Don’t do it!
I bought what I thought was the perfect horse, unseen, from Ireland two years ago, a lovely 7 year old, 17hh ID X. He was recommended by a friend who knew the breeder well and had seen the horse since birth, or so I was told.
‘friend‘ who I had known for 20+ years helped me arrange a vetting, sent me pics and videos of him doing ever from being caught in the field to hacking to having a bath.
i thought I’d done ever right.
BIG MISTAKE!
To save you from a long boring story (and save me from crying yet again) he isn’t what I was told, and is in fact not suitable as a ridden horse at all. I’ve spent almost £9000 in total including purchase cost/shipping and trying to find out what’s wrong with my ‘perfect’ horse. money I will never get back (not that I begrudge him at all, he’s a real sweetheart on the ground)
last winter I was told by the vet that I had 2 options PTS or put him to grass as he is NEVER going to be safe enough To be a ridden horse.
I was devastated ? but luckily for both of us, a good friend of mine breeds and has ’bought’ him for the token sum of £1. He’s now got a ’job’ as a big brother to a gang of young colts which suits him perfectly, and I know he’s in a fantastic home for life.
so I’m pretty much in the same position as you are, horseless and now skint!
this mare may seem like a bargain, but as others have said, be very, very wary. I for one wouldn’t even contemplate buying her, no matter how nice she seems. She could end up costing you a small fortune.
keep searching, I’m sure the right horse is out there somewhere ?

 

[Apercrumbie]

Having once bought unseen from abroad and having been seriously stung, my serious is advice is don't touch with a bargepole. And that's before I begin to think of reasonable alternatives to getting into debt to buy a horse unseen. I think the best solution mentioned by other posters has been rehoming an ex-racehorse. They're cheap as chips and if you have a good eye, you could end up with a cracker for a few hundred pounds. Otherwise, hang on in there for a share/loan.

 

[MiniMilton]

I know the UK market is crazy at the moment but I honestly think that give it 6 weeks or so and the prices will start to drop and then continue to drop dramatically. You could buy a potentially unsound horse now or wait 2 months and get the perfect horse with no soundess issues.

 

[JennBags]

If you're been searching for 8 months, surely you've saved up at least £2.5k by now? It costs between 300-500 a month to keep a horse, even if you have your own place you still have maintenance, farrier, vets, worming, tack, feed, bedding...
If you can't find the right horse here then just keep saving that money and when the market crashes later in the year you're then in a great position to buy.

If you've been lurking here for a while you'll know that the collective HHO rarely agree, there are usually at least 5 different opinions! In this thread everyone has had the same opinion which is don't do it.

However it sounds like you really want this horse and are going to go for it anyway. Your money, your risk.

 

[Melody Grey]

I'd be questioning why it hasn't been snapped up by someone in holland. I know of someone here in the uK who does rehab with top competition horses and those that don't return to top level competition are In high demand for big money from para riders and ambitious amateurs. The fact this hasn't happened suggests it won't stand up to the work.
They contacted you. It doesn't add up.

 

[MagicMelon]

There must be loads of horses here who would suit a hacking home, I'd understand buying unseen abroad if perhaps you wanted something super specific but surely there's heaps in this country for you to choose from? I personally would not buy from abroad if there was any past injury involved...

 

[Amirah]

I've done it and it worked out but I had her vetted in Holland first. Very much doubt I'd do it again. With the soundness issue I'd definitely want to go over and have a proper look at least. I think this could be a "when in doubt do nowt" situation.

 

[Winters100]

I would not do it, but if you do go ahead make sure that you do so knowing that you are doing something very risky, and be prepared that you may end up with large vet bills going forward. This sort of horse is not difficult to sell anywhere provided that there is nothing seriously wrong and the price is sensible, so a seller being willing to split a transport bill sounds very suspicious. If you do go ahead I would want a clause allowing me to return the horse within 6 weeks, because if something is seriously wrong then the cost of a return transport will be a drop in the ocean compared to keeping it.

Good luck, and whatever you decide to do I hope that it works out for you.