Ziggy_
Well-Known Member
Ok, this could be a very long post, but please bear with me as I'm in dire need of some sensible opinions.
Some of you may be aware that my mare came from a rather dodgy dealer in a bit of a state; I worked for said dealer at the time which is how I ended up buying her. Two years on she's a fab horse and I love her to bits. Well, I used to work on this yard with a girl, lets call her A. She too bought a horse from this dealer; lets call the horse B. B was dumped at a livery yard by her previous owner. Our boss hated her and declared her dangerous but my friend saw something in her and worked on her for about six months before offering to buy her. She was sold as 12 but the dentist has since put her at around 17. My mare needed a lot of work when I bought her but it was nothing compared to what B was like; she is/was an absolutely neurotic little mare, a chronic rearer with a tendency to go over backwards. She also had major issues when jumping (would rear when pointed at a jump) but A took her right back to basics and built her confidence.
Lots and lots of time and money (physio etc - all her ridden problems were pain related) and lots of hard work on A's part and she turned into the sweetest most adorable mare going; she still had a few quirks but generally very gentle, friendly and just a nice person to be around. She's a solid hack, well behaved at shows, and used to be ridden (under supervision) by a tiny twelve year old novice who she looked after brilliantly.
We both ended up leaving the yard and moved our horses together to the same yard, hacked out together, went to shows together, etc. Last winter, A was struggling financially (as was I) and made the decision to sell B. She sold her with full disclosure for £1000, telling the new owners that she had reared in the past as a result of pain, but at the time hadn't reared for nearly a year. She also told them of her jumping issues and how it was important to keep her happy and confident and not push her too hard. And how she would never consent to going in a trailer until she had performed at least one backflip first...
Unfortunately, her new owners haven't heeded the advice. They swapped her professionally fitted saddle for a non-fitted synthetic dressage saddle. They have had her jumping heights of 3'6'' upwards several times a week and B is no longer a happy, sweet little mare. She has started rearing again, bites and kicks on the ground, tanks off, and has come close to going over backwards. Her new owners want rid.
Now I've always adored this mare, there is something very special about her and she's stunningly beautiful to boot. I've known her quite a long time now and I'm positive she's in pain somewhere. I hate the thought of her ending up being passed from bottom end dealer to bottom end dealer, which is inevitably what's going to happen. She's 17, a bit nuts, a chronic rearer, and apparently no longer safe to handle either.
I'm sorely tempted to buy her.
She'd be a constant companion for my mare (who struggles to settle on most livery yards due to everyone coming/going at different times - I've been contemplating getting a companion for a while as it means I can give her a much more solid routine - and avoid being lumbered with individual turnout, which is all I can find at the moment and mine can't cope with it.) I'd get her all checked out physically and perhaps she'll be up to an occasional hack (I will NOT be doing so much as sitting on her until she's had the all clear from the vet, physio, etc, to do so); if not, she'll be a big pet and have a nice retirement. I already have a sharer for my mare - I don't ask her for a financial contribution but she helps out with the horse care side of things.
On the other hand, I work long hours in a minimum wage job and fit my horse around it. I suppose I afford her fairly comfortably but I don't know if I can afford two. If I was ever unable to work through illness/injury I'd be absolutely b*ggered. And if it came to the point where I couldn't afford it, what would I do - one 12yo LOU mare and one 17yo back flipper are not exactly going to be easy to rehome!
I can't bear to see her ending up god knows where - I honestly feel almost as attached to her as I am to my own. At the same time I'm worried that I'll end up struggling to afford the pair of them - I've always hoped to be able to keep my mare for life as she's my one in a millon horse - and I'd hate to take on another and end up not being able to keep either
The new owners want to get back what they paid (£1000) which obviously isn't going to happen. It just so happens that I'd been planning to buy my mare a new saddle and have £500 sitting in the bank - I'm thinking of offering this. How much would you say for a 17yo, 15.2hh bonkers TB?
Please either knock some sense into me / help me look at this rationally and make a decision. How have people who've gone from having one to two horses coped time/money wise? Am I completely insane to be thinking of buying a horse that could turn out to be very dangerous?
DISCLAIMER. I know, looking back, that this post probably sounds like some very dangerous/irresponsible decisions have been made in the past regarding this mare. Please bear in mind that I have at no time had any influence over decisions made and have no influence over any of her past/present owners so don't lay into me over it. All I want to do is try and secure her future - without compromising the security of my mare's future.
What to do?
Some of you may be aware that my mare came from a rather dodgy dealer in a bit of a state; I worked for said dealer at the time which is how I ended up buying her. Two years on she's a fab horse and I love her to bits. Well, I used to work on this yard with a girl, lets call her A. She too bought a horse from this dealer; lets call the horse B. B was dumped at a livery yard by her previous owner. Our boss hated her and declared her dangerous but my friend saw something in her and worked on her for about six months before offering to buy her. She was sold as 12 but the dentist has since put her at around 17. My mare needed a lot of work when I bought her but it was nothing compared to what B was like; she is/was an absolutely neurotic little mare, a chronic rearer with a tendency to go over backwards. She also had major issues when jumping (would rear when pointed at a jump) but A took her right back to basics and built her confidence.
Lots and lots of time and money (physio etc - all her ridden problems were pain related) and lots of hard work on A's part and she turned into the sweetest most adorable mare going; she still had a few quirks but generally very gentle, friendly and just a nice person to be around. She's a solid hack, well behaved at shows, and used to be ridden (under supervision) by a tiny twelve year old novice who she looked after brilliantly.
We both ended up leaving the yard and moved our horses together to the same yard, hacked out together, went to shows together, etc. Last winter, A was struggling financially (as was I) and made the decision to sell B. She sold her with full disclosure for £1000, telling the new owners that she had reared in the past as a result of pain, but at the time hadn't reared for nearly a year. She also told them of her jumping issues and how it was important to keep her happy and confident and not push her too hard. And how she would never consent to going in a trailer until she had performed at least one backflip first...
Unfortunately, her new owners haven't heeded the advice. They swapped her professionally fitted saddle for a non-fitted synthetic dressage saddle. They have had her jumping heights of 3'6'' upwards several times a week and B is no longer a happy, sweet little mare. She has started rearing again, bites and kicks on the ground, tanks off, and has come close to going over backwards. Her new owners want rid.
Now I've always adored this mare, there is something very special about her and she's stunningly beautiful to boot. I've known her quite a long time now and I'm positive she's in pain somewhere. I hate the thought of her ending up being passed from bottom end dealer to bottom end dealer, which is inevitably what's going to happen. She's 17, a bit nuts, a chronic rearer, and apparently no longer safe to handle either.
I'm sorely tempted to buy her.
She'd be a constant companion for my mare (who struggles to settle on most livery yards due to everyone coming/going at different times - I've been contemplating getting a companion for a while as it means I can give her a much more solid routine - and avoid being lumbered with individual turnout, which is all I can find at the moment and mine can't cope with it.) I'd get her all checked out physically and perhaps she'll be up to an occasional hack (I will NOT be doing so much as sitting on her until she's had the all clear from the vet, physio, etc, to do so); if not, she'll be a big pet and have a nice retirement. I already have a sharer for my mare - I don't ask her for a financial contribution but she helps out with the horse care side of things.
On the other hand, I work long hours in a minimum wage job and fit my horse around it. I suppose I afford her fairly comfortably but I don't know if I can afford two. If I was ever unable to work through illness/injury I'd be absolutely b*ggered. And if it came to the point where I couldn't afford it, what would I do - one 12yo LOU mare and one 17yo back flipper are not exactly going to be easy to rehome!
I can't bear to see her ending up god knows where - I honestly feel almost as attached to her as I am to my own. At the same time I'm worried that I'll end up struggling to afford the pair of them - I've always hoped to be able to keep my mare for life as she's my one in a millon horse - and I'd hate to take on another and end up not being able to keep either
The new owners want to get back what they paid (£1000) which obviously isn't going to happen. It just so happens that I'd been planning to buy my mare a new saddle and have £500 sitting in the bank - I'm thinking of offering this. How much would you say for a 17yo, 15.2hh bonkers TB?
Please either knock some sense into me / help me look at this rationally and make a decision. How have people who've gone from having one to two horses coped time/money wise? Am I completely insane to be thinking of buying a horse that could turn out to be very dangerous?
DISCLAIMER. I know, looking back, that this post probably sounds like some very dangerous/irresponsible decisions have been made in the past regarding this mare. Please bear in mind that I have at no time had any influence over decisions made and have no influence over any of her past/present owners so don't lay into me over it. All I want to do is try and secure her future - without compromising the security of my mare's future.
What to do?
