Can you help put my mind at rest?

[Milliechaz]

Hi everyone. I am pretty confident I am making the right decision here but just have a little niggle at the back of my mind that you may be able to help me with.

I currently have a 3.5 year old that is going away to be backed in November at that time my retired 23 year old mare who has been struggling with arthritis and kissing spines for a while will be pts. I will then need to get another horse in time for when my youngster returns so she has company.

I have been offered an 18 year old been there done it absolute gem of a horse on full loan and they will keep him for me until winter when he can come home. He is fighting fit, is still jumping up to 1m10 and doing cross country but the current loaner has had a baby hence him being returned to the owner. Owner is looking for a quieter life for him which is where I come in as I am looking for a nanny for my youngster to show her the ropes hacking, cross country, fun rides etc. In this case he is absolutely perfect without a doubt.

My only niggling concern is his age. My mare semi retired as a hack only at 19 and then fully retired at 22. He however has no ailments but just wants to slow down a bit. I certainly wont be hammering him, he will probably be ridden 4 times a week, hacked, clinics, fun rides etc but longevity is my concern. In my mind I know that he is still fighting fit and probably has years left in him but I cant get rid of that niggling concern that he is "getting on a bit". My alternative would be to get an ex racer from the racehorse rehoming charity in which case I will be getting a horse ridden from a young age and potentially with more chance of injury than the older boy.

Please reassure me i'm making the right decision...I absolutely know I am but 1% of me still questions it. Thanks

 

[ihatework]

Honestly it’s a no brainer for the purpose you want a horse for and you should be snapping their hands off. It’s a loan and if you get a year or 2 of safe, fun riding before he retires then great.

 

[ester]

He sounds ideal for what you need to help bring on your youngster.

If something happens that means he has to retire, that's another conversation to have with the owner at the time and not something I would be worrying about now. No saying an OTTB wouldn't injure itself and require retiring either.

 

[AmyMay]

I would say if he is generally in good health and you look after him you’ve probably got two years of him being able to help you out - which should see the nannying stage out beautifully.

 

[Keira 8888]

I think you 100% are. Age is irrespective depending on the horse - some are retired at 9 due to health issues while others are still hacking at 30! He sounds absolutely perfect and a real gem. Good luck! X

 

[Roxylola]

He sounds ideal. Even if he starts to gradually need a quieter life ina year or two your youngster will be stepping up more then. If hes out and doing the job now no reason he cant tick over a good while yet

 

[PapaverFollis]

The 18 year old is a loan. You can loan him for as long as he does what you need then he can retire back to his owner... you can't predict when that will be but if he has no issues now the odds are in your favour. The experience he can offer in nannying your youngster will be worth the potential risk of it being shorter term than you might like in my view.

 

[rabatsa]

Go for it. An 18yr old can still have years left of steady work and it is only a loan horse at the end of the day.

 

[be positive]

A friend took on a teenaged horse as a hack, he was fairly broken at the time but sound enough for her needs, she lost him at the weekend to colic having had 10 years of fun with him, he did pleasure rides, plenty of hacking and apart from a few fairly minor niggles he was sound most of the time, he had been a decent eventer/ hunter and thrived on being kept in light work, I am not certain of his age but he was probably 26 when he died and still in regular light work.

 

[CanteringCarrot]

Sounds ideal. What luck!

Horse's are all individuals, and if he is still sound doing all of that, he likely has some good years left in him.

I mean, my friend's 21 year old is still worked every day (horse prefers this/does best with this), is sound, and can run circles around my 8 year old in terms of energy and motivation!

Plus it is a loan, it is not as if you are full on purchasing the horse for a hefty sum.

 

[Xmasha]

Sounds perfect. What can be better than a schoolmaster who you can also use to nanny the youngster as well. Go for it.

 

[IrishMilo]

TBH if the 18 year old is still working and standing up to the job he's less of a risk than an OTTB.

 

[Errin Paddywack]

Don't judge him on your mare. 18 is only middle aged for many horses. He could have another 10 yrs of riding life. He sounds like an absolute gem and his owners too.

 

[paddi22]

100% go for the 18 year old. having both 18 years olds and ottbs I can guarantee the 18 year old will be less hassle if he's fit and active currently.

 

[Sprat]

Agree with the above. We have about 3 horses on our yard who are in very regular varied work with no signs of slowing down. Their ages range from 18 - 26!

 

[FinnishLapphund]

Age is only a number. There is horses that sadly breaks before they even reach a double digit age, and everything between that to the golden oldies that seems to just keep on going like the duracell bunny. There is no guarantee what will happen, but you've managed to find a horse that is ideal in so many ways, your only worry is his age, but you don't even have to buy him, without only loan him.
To me that sounds like you've found the needle in the haystack, and I think you should grab him with both hands, because you might not find another such ideal needle in the haystack until your current youngster is old, and ready to retire. If even then.

I'm so sorry to hear that you're going to have to euthanise your 23 year old. But remember that not all horses needs to semi retire at 19. There is probably a bit of luck involved, but for example in Sweden we had a police horse who became a bit of a national celebrity, Utter (1975-2006), who was in full service until the day he retired at the age of 27!

I've read about Panache, who won in showjumping at Grand Prix level age 20:
https://www.chronofhorse.com/articl...e-is-peaking-at-20-with-grand-prix-win-streak

And those are only two examples, there is many more.

 

[Milliechaz]

Thank you everybody, it has been really helpful to get the definitive answer that I already really knew, that he is the perfect person for me at this time.

 

[Summit]

I bought my horse when he was 19 two years ago....he has loads of life in him and healthy too

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

Go for it he sounds ideal