Dealer or no dealer

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conroy

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What would you say buy from a dealer or not??
Personally i would but then again I know what i am talking about. I could understand first time buyers being weary but then again i have heard alot of bad things about private sellers or people that say they are private sellers.
There is alot of decent straight dealers out there but there are also alot of people that are dodgy. So i just wondered what people would do, and weather they would be put off from buying from them or not. Would a bad experience put u off??
I know alot of dealers that are straight and have decent stuff to sell, i dont understand how dodgy dealers get away with it. I mean the trading standards are there to help you if you do get stung. Is this because people dont contact the trading standards or is it that nothing ever happens to the dodgy people!!
I dont know how the bad dealers have the gall to sell dangerous animals that could cause accidents. I run a yard for an equestrian agent, this means that she takes horses to sell on behalf of private customers that may not have time to sell them themselves or if its a kids pony that they av grown out of. This means she can pick and choose what comes to be sold and this means that there is no dodgy stuff on the yard to sell, plus its a business so its covered by the trading standards. Is this the best way to buy??

I think its quite an interesting debate. what do u think??
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I did and I would again but only because I know what I'm looking for and talking about. I can see how inexperienced people get in trouble through buying from dealer. Some are great and very proffesional but others will prey on the inexperienced shoppers
 
I would yes - but would ask around to find a reputable one first, would not just trust anyone.
 
I am a dealer/producer/breeder and no I would never buy from another dealer. I buy all of my horses privately and I sell them privately too.
 
I don't think I can debate it as I deal myself, therefore I'm biased:)
But a few things for anyway:
1. you can try many horses in one place
2. you are protected by the selling goods and trading standards
3. you can get some advice from people who know what they are doing and match a horse to your requirements
4. many dealers run a return or exchange scheme (guarantee)
5. it is not in the dealer's interest to sell you something you are not happy with in the long run - it will come back and dealer might lose their reputation
6. If everything goes pear shape it is easier to sue and recover loses from a dealer
 
I used to ride for a dealer many years ago and fortunately we never sold any dodgy horses, if a horse was cold backed we told the people, if they couldn't have a certain feed we told them.

Since I have only been riding for myself I have brought a number of horses, and agree there are some very dodgy private sellers out there, and there are some very dodgy dealers as well.

So advice would be always make sure you take someone very knowledgeable with you and always turn up earlier than stated as you can then see if the horse has been lunged before you got there, this is a common trick with dealers and private sellers, always get them 5 star vetted and if you can afford it get x-rays done.

I have recently brought 2 horses from dealers and they were very honest, one horse had done nothing and one horse had a confidence issue. I appreciated the honesty and also got 2 very good horses both were priced quite reasonably and the newer of the two is coming on in leaps and bounds.

A lot of posts on here are about the dodgy dealers around the country so always keep an eye on here for feedback, or if you find a horse then post one yourself.

Dodgy dealers always sell quite cheaply because they buy cheaply so that should be your initial warning but for every ten they sell, one will be okay.

Dodgy dealers will only stay in business as long as there are people out there prepared to buy from them, if no one buys then they go out of business.

There was a documentary earlier this year about a dealer in Kent who was selling horses with wrong passports, with their teeth having been filed down to hide their true age.

So my advice is yes buy from a dealer but do ask about and check their reliability around the area and post on forums to see what others have to say.

I wouldn't hesitate to buy from a dealer, in fact with some of the horror stories I have heard of people who have brought privately would prefer this as most dealers who are good will give you a warranty.
 
I can see both sides of the debate! just wondered what everyone else thought. Some one was talking to me about it the other day and said that they would never buy from a dealer coz ther all dodgy and they were talking about a certain dealer on the forum the conversation has been removed now i think as i cant find it.
I believe this is unfair as its a big genrilisation to say all dealers are dodgy!!
just wondered what made Christiamas say that u would never buy from a dealer if u r a dealer yourself?
i have bad experiences trying private horses than dealers but then i know most of the names of the dodgy dealers around about!
 
Lol! I wouldn't because I know most of the dealers around my way, and they know me
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. They would never want to sell a horse to me as, even they know, they are dodgy geezers!
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They would never buy a horse from me as they know they can't afford mine.

I am friends with them though and they do tell me some fantastic stories!
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I would buy from a dealer and have done a number of times in the past! Although I always find it bizarr when dealers don't want horses vetted for clients and are funny about it, usually blaming it on, 'can't be bothered with vettings' or 'too much hassle' i find this very suspisious especially as they claim not to be dogdy but then have posts remove of forums such as this one.
 
I don't mind having horses vetted for clients at all
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What I do mind is if somebody comes to view something either unbroken or advertised as not in work and sold from the field and then wants a full 5 stage vetting including ridden work
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Vetting is my pet hate, but I put up with it as it is part of the business...
Why is it a pet hate you would like to ask?
Well, especially the suitability part I find bizarre, as potential buyers for example say they want it for showjumping but forget to say it is unaffiliated or RC...
I could go on forever, but won't
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About 10% of the horses I sell are vetted pre-purchase by my buyers. The dodgy geezer dealers I know, generally run at around 80% of their horses are vetter pre-purchase by their buyers, according to them. I don't know how many sales fall through for them though, I could ask I suppose, but I know their prices are very low - most of their horses are for sale for under 3K. My horses are always significantly more expensive, and yet my percentage of vettings is far lower. All horses I have sold have passed their vettings with flying colours by the way.

I have wondered if it is because my horses look so good and live in beautiful surroundings and I ask a lot of money for mine, therefore do people think that I am not dodgy? Which I'm most definitely not. Or is it because I have a very good reputation? Whatever it is, when people commit to buy from me, they obviously don't have any qualms about what they are buying or how much they are paying for their horses. I hardly ever have anyone haggle with me either which I always find odd, Lol!

Heyho, I don't mind either way, every time a horse has been vetted her for the purchaser, it has been my vet who has done the vetting - and a rather thorough job he does too!
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I bought Jerry from a dealer and I'm not at all experienced at buying horses (as he was only the second horse I'd ever bought!).
I was delighted with service the dealer provided. She is very local to me so I suppose it was in her interest too to be honest. She contacted me when she thought she had a suitable horse for me then I could use her school to try him in before we went out on a hack. Then she brought in to my yard so I could have him for a couple of weeks to try him and she encouraged me to try to do all the things I wanted in that trial period, eg jump him, load him, hack him out alone, canter in open fields etc.
When the trial period was up, I was 99% sure I was buying the right horse for me. I am now 100% sure he is the right horse.
I would definitely buy from her again (hopefully I won't need to for at least the next 10 years) but I would recommend her and I would recommend buying from a reputable dealer too.
 
I actually would only buy from a dealer now.

1. Because they usually have more than one horse for you to try when you get there so you're less likely to have a totally wasted journey.

2. Because they really have a genuine reason for sale... ie. they only bought the horse to sell, to make money. If private homes sell IME its usually because the horse isn't doing the job they bought it for, whatever reason they invent. (I accept there are exceptions, before I get jumped on, but this is true IME)

3. The really dodgy dealers are all pretending to be private sales anyway!
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2. Because they really have a genuine reason for sale... ie. they only bought the horse to sell, to make money. If private homes sell IME its usually because the horse isn't doing the job they bought it for, whatever reason they invent. (I accept there are exceptions, before I get jumped on, but this is true IME)


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I don't understand that- Surely the horse was sold to the dealer in the first place as it 'isn't dong the job they bought it for.'?

I'm not sure- The two horses we have got from dealers were both from dodgy dealers. One sold us a pony, who they said was a perfect first pony. We got it home and couldn't stop it throwing riders off- Experienced and Novice. After a while we sold it on as it was never going to be suitable for the job, and it turns out the pony was a super hunting/ hunter trial pony, and the old owners had done very well, but admitted it wouldn't go in a school. Not sure if the pony was doped when we viewed it, but it was never going to be suitable. The other one was a lovely Irish mare, who seemed lovely. Got her home and she kept bucking, huge dangerous bucks, inculding just before a jump, and on the road. A few professional riders tried her and decided she wasn't 'right'. She was found to have a brain tumour and was PTS.
 
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2. Because they really have a genuine reason for sale... ie. they only bought the horse to sell, to make money. If private homes sell IME its usually because the horse isn't doing the job they bought it for, whatever reason they invent. (I accept there are exceptions, before I get jumped on, but this is true IME)


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I don't understand that- Surely the horse was sold to the dealer in the first place as it 'isn't dong the job they bought it for.'?



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I buy most of the horses directly from breeders, not from people who bought them and they wouldn't do the job. Sometimes I buy from people who overhorsed themselves and find a suitable home
 
Often not the case. The best dealers mostly get horses direct from breeders, import them and often do some training, sometimes all the breaking in, themselves.
 
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True- I would call them producer rather than dealers, but see your point
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Me too - that's why I generally call myself a producer rather than a dealer, but at the end of the day, they are both in the business of selling horses so sometimes it's easier just to lump the two together.

Someone above has highlighted the main problem with a lot of real dealers though - they generally only have their horses for anything from a few days and often only for a month or two at most, so how can they possibly know what the horse is really like? They can't! This is why I keep my horses for at a minimum of one year, generally though my lot are bought directly from the breeders at as weanlings/yearlings and kept until they are backed and riding out at 3 or 4 years old. So I KNOW all of my horses that I sell, I've been the one backing them, I've been the one looking after them for 2 or 3 years before they are prepped for sale. It's not the same as something who buys something from an auction and sells it before they've even transferred the name on the passport - often they don't even bother to do that. All of my horses are registered stock and all of their papers are registered to me, regardless of how long or short I intend keeping them.
 
My horses as a rule stay with me for at least 4 months, I know it's not 2 years, but a little bit of time to get to know them.
The exception is if I find a horse as an agent to order or I sometimes offer horses to friends straight of the lorry, pretty much just covering my costs
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Yes I've done a couple of times too. Actually I did it just a couple of weeks ago. Friend of mine had a couple of ponies and wanted to sell them. I went to have a look, knew right away that I had a buyer (I do get lots of buyers) so had them deliver pony to me, made appt with buyer to come that afternoon, they bought him and that was that. Pony was only with me for a couple of hours. The other pony sold about 4 days later, not my type of seller horse (very scruffy and I was slightly embarrassed to put my farm's name to it, although I did say selling on behalf of ..). Both had history with them though, so again not totally selling blind, and really I only did it to help a friend out. I made nothing but a slap-up meal out of it
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I've bought one horse and at that point wouldn't go to a dealer. but I got a bit screwed by said private seller. If I was to look again I wouldn't call up a dealer and ask what they have, but if I saw an advert, say on horsequest, that caught my eye I'd ask around about them. If they came back ok I'd then speak to them personally.
 
A lot depends on the type of horse you are looking for. I would buy a young horse from a dealer, but for an experienced PC pony, a dealer wouldn't be my first port of call.
 
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I don't think I can debate it as I deal myself, therefore I'm biased:)
But a few things for anyway:
1. you can try many horses in one place
2. you are protected by the selling goods and trading standards
3. you can get some advice from people who know what they are doing and match a horse to your requirements
4. many dealers run a return or exchange scheme (guarantee)
5. it is not in the dealer's interest to sell you something you are not happy with in the long run - it will come back and dealer might lose their reputation
6. If everything goes pear shape it is easier to sue and recover loses from a dealer

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What you describe is quite right, but really only applies to honest dealers. I have seen post after post on this forum, from people wanting to take a horse back under guarantee only to be told they can't or be offered peanuts or only after legal proceedings have been threatened, and others where the dealer was just after a quick sale, and really didn't care if the person never came back.

I think there are two sides to this coin and that the buyer has some responsibility too.

A friend bought a horse from a dealer. It seemed fine on the ground and in the school, but because they had travelled a long way to see it, they had to make a decision there and then and they chose to buy. The horse turned out to be unsuitable and had without a doubt been sedated when it was ridden, the passport had also been doctored, but the buyer did not complain, did not alert Trading Standards and just lived with a nutter horse (who was actually very sweet, just a bit wild).

I think dealers also have the problem of dealing with people who over estimate their abilities and who over horse themselves and then try to blame the dealer for selling them something unsuitable.

If I were in the market, I would buy from a dealer if they had a suitable horse and I would do the same checks regardless of whether it was a dealer or private seller.
 
What i dont understand is why people call themselves producers when a producer is a somebody that trains a horse for a certain discipline for the horses owner etc!! So personally i would not call somebody that buys a horse/pony and then brings them on n and sells them a producer.
 
I breed produce and sell horses, I refer to our business as producers and not dealers mainly because my horses are usually with me for several months [or years]! before I sell them, where as a dealer is more likely to have a much quicker turn around on horses
 
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I breed produce and sell horses, I refer to our business as producers and not dealers mainly because my horses are usually with me for several months [or years]! before I sell them, where as a dealer is more likely to have a much quicker turn around on horses

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I do pretty much the same and call myself a dealer
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It's quite simple really.
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The person responsible for producing a horse is the producer of that horse.

The person who breeds the horse is the breeder.

The person who buys and sells, generally with a short turnaround and generally not putting anything into the horse, except keeping it ticking over till sold, is the dealer.
 
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