Cheap horses

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Hacked_Off

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When you see horses advertised really cheaply, do you automatically think there must be something wrong with the horse, or that it's a bargain?

The reason i'm asking is because i saw an advert where the horse was really cheap, but the dealer who is selling it usually tries to sell his horses for as much as he can. So it just made me a bit suspicious.

Am i just really cynical, or do others think along the same lines?
 
If it was a dealer who normally sells at a high price selling one cheap then I would most definitely be suspicious. What worries me is that there are people out there who will buy cheap horses just because they can, forgetting that the on costs are considerable regardless of the purchase price. We have been offered several horses for free but have had to say no because of time and financial constraints. Always tempting particularly when the horse is in need of some TLC but have to be realistic.

Apologies for staying off topic a bit there OP.
 
Rachiie said:
When you see horses advertised really cheaply, do you automatically think there must be something wrong with the horse, or that it's a bargain? I don't think anything at all, I ask straight out why.

The reason i'm asking is because i saw an advert where the horse was really cheap, but the dealer who is selling it usually tries to sell his horses for as much as he can. So it just made me a bit suspicious.

Am i just really cynical, or do others think along the same lines? Not cynical at all, realistic, as is always being said on here, it costs as much to keep a bad horse as a good one. I daresay that many a good horse has been picked up cheaply.

I think that there can be heaps of reasons for selling cheaply, overstocked, illness, personal circumstances, loss of facilities, horse is a crock/head case/needs drugs/special shoeing (take your pick)

There are bargains to be had, you just have to know what you are about and maybe can see what a youngster/thin/hairy horse can be with some groceries/attention and time, and be realistic about your capabilities of mending it/re-schooling/ re-homing etc before you decide to hand over the cash.

The head should rule the heart when cheap horses are concerned, yep - right, that's why I have a pair of cross bred yearling yaks in my paddocks right now:o:(.
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No harm in going for a look see or at least to make phone call.

Judge the evidence (horse) in front of you, not the seller - regardless of whether it is a dealer or private, his opinions or his premises mean nothing, if you buy a horse it is yours and won't be staying there so neither of them matter.
 
Is worth a look. I went horse searching for under £3000 and found some crackers and I honestly believe they were there because of the recession and they are reasonable priced or are a bit quirky and not everyone's cuppa tea.
 
I bought my horse for £50 - on the surface seemed just unfit and in need of a bit of schooling. Have found she has more issues beneath the surface and these seem to be increasing the fitter she gets - would just walk in with your eyes open and bear in mind you may have a completely different horse once they have some grub and a bit of tlc .
 
Because of the situation you are describing - ie that the dealer usually has more expensive horses for sale, then yes I would be suspcious, but like Enfys, I am straight to the point and would ask directly whether there was some reason it was so cheap.
I bought my first horse for £300 and he has been the best horse I could ever have imagined - no world beater, but then I'm no world beating rider, so he suited me perfectly, and he will stay with me til he passes away. I have had more expensive horses in the past which haven't been anywhere near as suitable as he has. I don't think it's necessary that there is something wrong, but maybe that the horse isn't suited to any rider and maybe needs a certain person to bring out the best in them.
 
Bought my horse for £800 and that was 9 yrs ago. Best horse iv ever had. You could get as much problems with a £8000 pound horse. I only buy cheap horses never over £1000 and never had one problem with any off them
 
my boy (Teddy) was an absolute bargain as he was for sale due to personal circumstances, and literally the best thing ever is that boy, love him to absolute pieces hes a very special boy

so personally i do believe those diamonds can be found not to say that there are most certainly some crocks out there
 
Quite often dealers have horses for sale cheaply if they have had them for a while and not sold them. When you try them out, it is normally quite easy to work out why they have not sold! I would say ring up and check it out if you think it sounds good, even if it is a 'problem horse' it is only a problem if it prevents you doing something you want to do- a friend of mine bought a really nice mare for £800 because she wouldn't hack out- friend has a riding school and doesn't need her to do this so they are both happy. Most horses will have problems, even really expensive ones, it's really just a question of finding one whose problems don't worry you.
 
My friend is currently selling a horse that will jump 1m20 as "Open to offers", there are bargains out there.
 
I suppose it depends what you think is cheap. For example, £50 sounds like a cheap horse but if it were a semi ferel native pony, its the sort of price you would expect to pay. Take an example of a 10 yr old 16 hand bay mare, of no determined breeding, tbx type, sound and reasonable conformation with a pleasant temperament. Someone keeps it living out all year in its au naturale state (untrimmed) and hacks it round the countryside 2 or three times a week. Someone mite pay £2000 for this horse, but equally it may only be priced at £500. I wouldn't think anything of either of these prices or anything inbetween! If you then trim and tidy this horse and take it to a few riding club shows (not necesarily getting any rosettes) and it could be called a nice riding club allrounder. Easy £3-4k to some people! So value depends very much on the seller, location and label, almost more than the exact horse! What I'm trying to say, the above hypothetical horse may be traded in to a top class dealer to whom its only worth £500 but to another person could be £3-4k!
 
I would always ask straight out why the horse was being sold so cheap.

There are some situations where it is right and makes sense to be cautious about a cheap horse as the circumstances indicate that there is something fishy like that for the OP.

But there are also genuinely cheap horses and chance to pick up a bargain. My sister has picked three of ours up cheaply. One the owner didn't know how talented and well bred a horse she was selling. Second horse was bad mannered and too much of a handful for novice owner who just wanted rid as had petrified her and ruined her confidence, but he has really turned around with competant, kind but firm handling. Third was a friend of ours who relocated abroad and couldn't take her horse. She needed to sell quick but wanted to secure her future as best as she could and make sure she had a suitable home. She coud trust us and wouldn't accept horses true value and substantially reduced price.

It can happen and turn out well but there are plenty of other stories to the contrary where cheap horses aren't so cheap when you have to try to fix their problems. It is just a matter of going into it with eyes wide open.
 
I'm always cynical and go in with an open mind over any horse. Whatever the price.

That said. We currently have a mare who is beyond cheap [Less than the 500 mark] just simply because we don't have a use for her and isn't worth putting work into her getting backed and schooled with the markt for she is sadly. So, for someone wanting something very cheap but willing to put the work into it, she'll be a bargain. Nothing wrong with the mare at all, just with how the market is and being pushed for grazing as it is at the moment, she's surplus really so is just the easiest way to sell her quick without stable bills adding to her cost every week. And for a 3 year old, unbroken NF mare...i's an adequate price really for her.

So I do think yes, the majority you get for what you pay for and expect the unexpected issues to emerge. But there are some bargain gems out there that are cheap for whatever genuine reasons :)
 
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