Did you buy your horse unseen apart from photos?

Tick all that apply please and comments welcomed Was your horse?

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I bought a Shetland yearling without even seeing a picture. He was bought from his breeder who was advertising a different pony, still no picture. 20 years later I still have him, he is an absolute treasure and I have bought 2 further ponies from the breeder although I did view them.
 
I bought a highland foal unseen and he just turned up. I was in bed ill going through the ads like you do and feel in love with the pic. He will stay forever as iv never felt such love for a horse or felt so loved and keep in touch with his breeder. But I wouldn't sell a horse like that.
 
Yes, and paid with paypal. Was a vet failure and very cheap. After I had paid she ended up sounding like some sort of a headshaking lunatic. When she arrived she was far better than expected (they didn't mention she moved like a dream). She's now in foal and hopefully her suspensory ligament will heal over the next two years. Never did headshake either. Not sure she'll ever be my 60cm/happy hacker though!
 
Yes, I got photos and a very short video (showing the horse being ridden in walk, trot, canter). I couldnt find a big Welsh D (wanted 15.2hh) so found one on the 'net in Wales. It was only a 3yo and had been recently backed, so I figured it didnt have time to be ruined! Had him transported up so first time I saw him in the flesh was coming off the lorry. He was far lankier and thinner than the video but it was winter when I got him. Although the horse had some issues, and was horrid to begin with (seriously bargy, would kick / bite etc.) and was hard work for the next 5 years I owned him, I dont regret it one bit. Loved that horse to pieces and got a lot out of him! What I do regret is selling him!!
 
I voted as my friend would have done. She bought a 6 month old Friesian filly from a Dutch website. She fell in love with a pic of 'supposed' filly who had good breeding blah, blah... She pain 3,500 euros for filly plus transport and filly arrived on a truck with trailer along with another 17 Friesians of varying ages. The fillies pedigree arrived by post 10 days later-her blood lines were completely different to those advertised-how strange! My friend has been ripped off big style but happy to say, she loves her filly. I'm having the filly to break next month, she's now three and a half but is reputed to be very small for her age. My friend acted (IMO) very stupidly...she knew absolutely nothing about horses AND bought unseen and un vetted from a foreign country :O
I bought my own filly unvetted at 6 months but she was seen by me and almost turned inside out while I looked at her. I couldn't buy unseen as I like to be magnetically drawn to the horse-no positive gut feeling=no horse. So far, it's always worked
 
Yes, I have. Not to be recommended for riding horses:rolleyes:The 15.2hh horse, which i was promised he definately was, turned out to be 14.1hh on his tippy toes, and took me 2 years to retrain and sell on, him being too small for me.

The others were youngsters from breeders when i wanted that particular line, and i think i would have brought them anyway.

I have also had two people buy small ponies off me, buying unseen, just description and photos, it was a worry about where they were going and if the buyers were happy, but they both were, one of them still messaging me 3years later, but then i am a very honest seller:)
 
I got the best pony I have ever owned from word of mouth. He came all the way up from Devon to Scotland without so much as a picture but his show record said it all! 11 years I have had him now and would never trade him for the world! We have bought a couple from one or two pictures, some as pics of them as foals when they were 3 or 4 when we bought them. Infact the only ones I actually saw in the flesh before buying were my Fell pony and my 4 tb's - 3 I worked with and the 4th I was being very pernickety about what I wanted and wouldn't take anything on I hadn't seen.
 
I used to live in Ireland but had moved to the uk and was over for a weekend and speaking to a friend who told me about a homebred that her cousin was selling which sounded just my type. I arranged to see him the next day but had to turn back due to overnight snow and impassable roads. They sent me an excellent video of him, trotting up in hand from front and rear as well as side, back and front on for confirmation and loose in the school so I cold see him moving. He was a 3 year old who had been professionally backed that summer and ridden away for 4 weeks before being turned out. He ticked all the boxes and so I had him vetted whish he flew through and I arranged to pay for him and leave him with them until March the following year as I didn't actually have room for him at the time but really didn't want to miss out on him. I finally got to see him in the flesh over Christmas and was not disapointed :) My friend ended up restarting him for me as due to weather issues he didn't actually travel over here until mid April and I had to move him from the previous owners as she needed the space. He is now 16 and back in Ireland semi retired with the friend who broke him, as a hack for her mum. He had an accident in the field which ended his competition career and she always fancied him back for her mum so it worked out perfectly for everyone. He was so much more than I could have hoped for, perfect on the ground and a total sweatheart to ride.
 
bought my beloved, unseen from a private breeder, he came up from wales to ne scotland at 6months old and he was everything his breeder said he was. he is now 3 and a half and the love of my life :)
 
Bought a lippizaner 3 year old from Slovenian breeder from 2 pictures (Which i still have!). Got references of breeder and luckily a resonably local lady had imported one from him so mum went over and spoke to her who highly recomended him :) She wasent vetted or seen and came over with some other which were distributed around the UK. She is pigeoned toed and dishes slightly but we didnt want to show her and she jumps well! Overall pleased with her and would def do it again :) She is now 7 and improving every time i ride her :)

Picture we bought her from -
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Last september at her first ODE -
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yep

I bought her unseen from a friend based purely on her photos, videos and what I was told about her

She was spot on with everything she told me about her and she's rapidly becoming my horse of a lifetime
 
Bought from one piccie from a show producer, horse was more stunning in the fleash, she did warn me he had a few quirks, barring putting one person in hospital, ive had no problems with him. I love him to bits!!
 
I have brought loads of horses unseen and have to say never got a dud one yet, one mare i brought i did not even see a picture of her the seller i was buying one from said she had another broodmare and so i said stick her on the lorry and the first time i see them both was when they dropped them both at my yard.
Have brought a couple of other the same way never see them till i went to collect.
I also have never tried a horse before buying, and never had a vetting done.
Makes me sound really bad but you know what i have 3 out on loan who are perfect and 2 brill competition horse, and a stallion thats is just the best dote on the planet.
Have to say i am glad with every horse i have ever brought
 
I've bought and imported a number of horses unseen. I don't have them vetted but they do all need to have travel health checks and bloods taken. Some have come directly from their breeders, some from private individuals. Some have turned out to be not quite as advertised (size, quirks) but most have. Overall I've been very pleased with all of my bought unseen horses.
 
Tally was just from pictures as a rising 5YO unbroken- Probably a bit of a mistake, his issues on the ground make him a very special case, would be PTS rather than sold type, he is often simply vile- comes at people in the field, kicks the stable door as you go past and flips himself backwards tacking up along with cow kicking and biting whilst being tacked up. But he does so the job we want him to do very well, so staying with us for now.
Buddy was from a few pictures from someone we knew and had seen him in competion although not specifically watching him once. As a 11YO ride and drive competition pony.
Ronnie was from a friend from results and word of mouth, as a 8YO driven first competition pony.
Bazill was from pictures and results as a yearling :)
All the others we've seen atleast once- other than Tally nothing has been bad :) The ones we've had that have been awful and didn't stay long have mainly been vetted and from dealers :rolleyes:
 
Bought my first unseen straight from his breeder after he had failed the vet. A friend had seen him and said he looked 'ok'. That was 32 years ago and he is still with me :) - he was perfect right from the start and still is :)
 
I bought my young mare a a recent import from a dealer online.

I saw about 5 photos and a short video clip of her loose schooling. She was rising 3 at the time.

She was not vetted and I am more than happy with her (the chestnut in my sig).
 
I have sold quite a few horses unseen from my adverts , if the client is not coming to see the horse we send them heaps of photos and videos of horse on the ground tacking up etc, loose in School, ridden on back ,jumping ,hacking and competing if applicable. I have sold horses to Europe and America , and all over UK all have been happy with their purchase :) .
If you buy unseen you are going purely by the written description of the horse and photos , my advice is to get all your info in written form/emails, get pics , videos etc and remember The Sale Of Goods Act will protect you if the seller is a dealer as the Horse has to be fit for purpose. Hope this helps :)
 
I saw my horse's advert online while I was nearly 200 miles away from home, and my instructor went to look at her for me, told me she was perfect and we bought her... I finally got home and saw her after I'd owned her for two days! No regrets at all, we got a fantastic horse for a very good price so I'm convinced she would have been snapped up by someone else if we'd waited til I got home to see her. I wouldn't have bought her totally unseen though, I only went for it because my instructor had tried her out and knew that she was exactly what I was looking for.
 
Interestingly there are some dealers in Ireland who anly seem to sell via DVD - if you don't buy off the DVD quick enough they go! Mind you, one particular dealer I have in mind's reputation is built on the qality of animals of his in the show ring and they tend to be rather nice.
 
Yes, I have, several times and all from abroad. They were:

A colt and a filly from Canada in 2003 and 2004 respectively.
A colt from The Netherlands in 2007.
A mare and two fillies from USA in 2004.

All were as described or better. I still have all of them and am completely satisfied with all of them. All were direct from breeders, with the exception of the mare from the USA but I did see video of her. The first horse in my sig pic is the colt from Canada, now a stallion.
 
I bought my boy from France via the internet - I was looking for an appaloosa but couldn't find anything suitable in the UK. An acquaintance found him on the internet, I fell in love with him. He was to be sold at weaning bred by an appaloosa to appaloosa breeder. Wanted to see him first but train was so expensive so just paid for him and had a sort-of vetting by their vet, he had two eyes, two testicles, four legs, off you go.....! It was in French so couldn't understand it, same as his passport! He was weaned at five months by him and his dam coming up to the lorry together and him being chucked in the lorry! Poor little mite.
He has turned out exceptional though, luckiest happening in my life. He has sired 9 lovely foals that are already winning prizes in hand and has been a champion several times (in hand) himself, his conformation is always admired as well as his movement, all of which he passes on. He is lovely to ride too, I ride him western (though did put an English saddle on him last week - boy it felt weird after riding western for the last 6 years). He is my best friend and I do not regret buying him sight unseen. I was very lucky. :)
 
I am taking on loan for a year with view to purchase after a horse that I haven't yet met, he is word of mouth from my sis in law who knows the horse and I have spoken to current owner.

Have seen plenty of pics and vids of him with a much smaller/younger rider so figure I should be more than OK with him.... if not I will work on it.

wouldn't normally do this, but after travelling distance for some and them being totally unsuitable I am trusting this one to be the right one.
 
Charlie I bought from a dealer imported from Ireland. Went to the yard, tried several, chose him. Bought him unvetted but had a check done when he came home. Very happy with him, even 14 years later, he's perfect :)

Una was bought unseen as a yearling from a stud website, I bought her from seeing a few pictures and a good chat with the stud owner, but mostly on her breeding. Again, couldnt have been more happy with her - lovely looking horse, perfect temperment and has been a joy to own :)
 
I bought a four year old warmblood hunter type from Belgium. I did a lot of research on the breeder and they have shipped all over the world. I got lots of photos and although he is no where near as backed as they said (i suspect actually a little bit of a brain melt as he had never even left his breeders before, and they had him in a very harsh bit) he is way better than i expect him to be. A real bargain too.
 
i bought my newbie unseen (apart from a photo) and description. he is my special boy! not novice he is only young (2 yrs younger than what they told me he was) but for his age i think he could turn into a nice little chap :) i have bought the odd one unseen that i have not been so lucky with but oh well. :)
 
I've bought 4 thru interenet, 2 only seen when picked up. I do reseach blood lines, winnings and I do buy them as cheap as young stock to bring on.
You get very good at judging pictures, pony on all occasions better than expected, I am due a dud.
 
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