Do 'Wanted' Ads work?

Didn't work for me on HorseQuest last year. Had a large volume of responses, that I can't deny, but not a single one met the requirements of the ad. Soooo, if you post wanting,for example, a 16-16.2hh mare aged 4-7 years expect responses from people with 15hh 13 year old geldings. :( Was a waste of money and time for me and eventually I found what I wanted by word of mouth.
 
I put one in, very specifically worded, for a show hunter. The resultant responses were, at best, amusing -

He is 15.2hh - I said 17.2, they said he rides big
Chestnut mare - advert said bay gelding
14 yr old - ad said 4 to 8
Warmbloods by the bucket load - ad said ID/TB
Coloured by the bucket load
Many photos send to me - might have been a good idea to include whole horse, oh, and take the rug off.

The funniest was the answer to my question 'does it move straight' yes said the vendor, he is very good on the centre line.

I think we had upwards of 60 calls out of which we looked at 2. The first one was blemished and the second one was absolutely perfect until we were told it was claustrophobic making it difficult to handle in doorways, on the lorry and in temp stabling.

Even though we were not successful I would use wanted ads again. You can glean a lot from owners and videos before deciding to travel or not.
 
Sometimes they work. A lot of people find the whole selling business very upsetting so it is easier for them to deal with just one person who seems to want what they have.
 
Yes but be prepared to sift through a whole load of horses that don't fit your criteria, no matter how specific you are on the advert.

I like wanted adverts as you can find real gems that aren't being advertised.

I had the most success with preloved last time I did a wanted advert (this time last year). Very pleased with the mare I ended up choosing.
 
I found the perfect horse by using a wanted advert but I also had a lot of horses offered that didn't meet my criteria so you do have to be prepared to sift through the replies. I think by putting your criteria down in the advert you may find the right one.
 
I have had great success with wanted advert.
I did have to sift through the no-hopers but it was worth it for the resulting horse!
 
Yes I've found two of mine through wanted ads, as others have said you just have to be prepared for responses that are nothing like what you've asked for lol
 
I have done one very recently and I have had a few that are worth looking at which are not advertised but a lot did not meet my criteria. I know a very nice horse who is green but worth a look as not far from you but a nice sort and good brain. Not suitable for me as a bit chunky but looked like he would do a good job for someone looking to do BE90/100
 
Yep I got my last 2 from wanted ads but then I was looking for projects. Be prepared to get replies from people who have clearly not read the ad though!!
 
I answered a wanted ad that said something like ' Wanted - Small dressage schoolmaster to teach me the more advanced moves etc. I have owned horses for years blah blah blah so I replied lady came to look at my horse she rode him 'ok' but she was really nice so off he went. Couple of months later she rang me to say she had fallen off and fractured her shoulder in 2 places!!!! As he had spooked and she had fallen off. Horse came back to me and luckily I stayed on good terms with her. She did admit to me however that she had overestimated her riding ability and while she wanted to learn advanced movements she really wasn't a good enough rider. Guess what I'm saying is like everyone else who has replied the biggest problem with wanted ads is not telling the truth from both parties.
 
yes, we posted a wanted ad on the pc website when we were looking for p. a few days later someone replied with a horse they only wanted to sell to the right owners as they loved him so much and didnt want to lose him, which ended up us! 5 years down the line hes still part of the family and always will be! we still keep in touch with the old owners too
i think they are more personal. you might get the odd one trying to sell you her '3* eventer' (hairy shetland!) but i think it depends where you advertise. places like pc or horse quest will be different to the likes of fb or a free ad website imo.
 
They definitely can work - I've only ever placed one wanted ad and that was for a loan horse - I honestly didn't think people read them but I was overwhelmed by the amount of responses i received, and strangely none of them were the opposite of what I said I was looking for.
 
Depends where you put the wanted ad.. I found one of the best horses I've ever had on HHO! Depending on what you're after I'd be more inclined to utilise Facebook friends or professional word of mouth.
 
Always found wanted ads to work! Just never say a price, if you put 'can spend upto £10K', horses will suddenly increase in price...
 
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