Do you tell potential buyers everything about your horse?

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OFG

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As title suggests.

My friend bought her first horse a couple of years ago. Tried it several times and bought it. Sellers seemed very geniune etc.

Horse (well, technically pony as she was a 14.2 traditional cob), turned out to be a total nightmare. She was fine for the first couple of weeks, allowed her to settle in to new home etc and both of us enjoyed hacking out together and all was good. Then, one afternoon at the end of a hack and riding back through the fields we decided to have a little canter. Pony reared, and I mean really went up. Then the bucking started, followed by alternating bucking and rearing and napping then bolting. It all started to unravel. Friend called previous owner 'oh, she's never done that before'.

Cut a long story short, by shear coincidence I went to the yard where she bought pony from today to view a potential loan pony for myself. Happened to mention this pony and the faces of these people said it all.

She was known to be a bucker and somewhat of a handful.

So owner was fully aware pony had issues but didn't see fit to disclose to buyers (she knew my friend was a first time buyer as well).

I know the saying 'buyer beware' but the question I want to know is, would you knowingly not disclose vices like this to buyers?
 
Why do you think it was that the pony was good for a few weeks first? before the unwanted behaviour?

Anyway, i have never had a horse like that, but I guess if i was at the end of my tether with a horse, I would sell at auction. I couldnt lie like that the other people, amazing what some people will do though:eek:.
 
any responsible seller should tell a potential buyer "everything"! the people that sold your friend her pony have been utterly irresponsible your friend could have very badly hurt and its not fair on a horse either in some cases they will just end up being sold on and become worse and worse - sorry bit of a rant but aughhh!!
 
I would but many many people dont! makes me so mad!! a friend had a terrible experience when she bought her 7 year old child a pony (had been doped) thanks god no one was hurt & they gave the pony away as a field ornament to a local farmer but just shows that even with kiddies involved many sellers dont care so long as they get the money in their pocket.
 
Whenever I sell a horse I am always totally honest. I am a mother and could never sell to someone without telling them. I had a cob who was great to ride for a beginner but from the ground was a nightmare. We ended up being friends with a previous owner on Facebook who knew about his issues. She now owned him again and is very happy with him. Obviously at a hugely discounted price to what we bought hin for!!! And of course we were not told about any issues he had!
 
It is true that horses behave differently for different people, therefore if somebody says to me 'does the horse do X,Y or Z?' all I can honestly say is that I haven't known or seen the horse to do it. Any horse can do anything given the right circumstances, therefore you can't say the horse will never do anything wrong.
 
I have always been very honest and truthful in the past about horses and ponies we have sold. Wish all sellers were honest, esp when children involved, we bought a horse a few yrs back that was totally unsuitable to be ridden by anyone let alone a child. Now a field ornament.
 
i would hope that people would tell me any vices,health issues but there are some very dodgy people about i bought my old horse 7 years ago he was supposed to be a school master he was far from it and was an absolute swine sometimes but i just put up with it in the end as he was a lovely boy most the time,my new mare was a bargain and i did after a month send her old owner an email asking was there a real reason why i got her so cheap and she said there was honestly nothing wrong with her she just needed a one on one as she had had trust issues and have to say she is a great horse
 
i told the woman that had my horse everything! and i do mean everything! he bucked, reared and napped! he was only 4 and was going through a very horrible stage that i couldnt deal with, and i explained it all to her and all the things he had done aswel! it didnt put her off and they seemed to get on well, i would feel awful if she had an accident because i hadnt told her about him. he was great in the stable, on the ground and nicely put together, he just needed a lot of work which she was willing to do,
the person i brought my horse from was my yo's friends daughter, she told me all his little things too, like he likes to drag you in for tea as years before his feed was waiting for him in his stable, it isnt any more and he hardly ever does this now. honesty is the best policy in my opinion and even though it took me ages to find a home for mine im glad i was honest!
 
I had people come try my mare for loan, and i told them everything i knew about her. However when I bought my other mare, the person I bought her off died her legs, after a couple of times washing her legs, it was revealed she had been pinfired.
 
I'm probably the complete opposite and tell more than anyone needs to know but if i've got to sell then I want to make sure its the right home and to me that means they have to know everything about the horse and then make their decision whether or buy or not. I would never lie or withhold the truth, to me that's doing the horse a misservice let alone the potential purchaser.
 
When I sold my old horse I was 100% honest for 2 reasons - 1) because I wanted to find him a forever home and 2) because I wanted to stay in touch with him. However I was very surprised how people didn't really listen as my horse's major problem was being led in from the field he would just tank off and even the most experience people struggled with him, however I had 3 different sets of people want to buy him and only one set asked to see him led to and from the field!
 
I absolutely tell people everything about the horses that I sell. I hate selling horses, and the ones that have gone lately are much loved ponies that have been outgrown. It was always ultra important that those ponies that had been so good to us went onto someone who knew everything about them, warts and all, and was happy.

I guess those that lie are those that are worried/scared of their horses and don't feel that they will ever sell them otherwise. Or scared of losing money. Not saying thats right!

I do agree, however, that horses can be completely different for different riders. I always thought that my mare was quite straightforward to ride until I put my (then) novice husband on her, and you could see the confusion on her face at the lack of direction and shock at his harder kicks - she ended up cantering wildly around the arena, almost panicing..

I do think that there must be a reason that there seem to be more "problem" horses that people say were drugged on trial/lied about by the previous owner. I think that some modern horse owners today expect a horse to be like a car - you buy it and it just goes perfectly..
 
margerita11 said:
any responsible seller should tell a potential buyer "everything"! the people that sold your friend her pony have been utterly irresponsible your friend could have very badly hurt and its not fair on a horse either in some cases they will just end up being sold on and become worse and worse - sorry bit of a rant but aughhh!!
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My thoughts too. My other half often tells me I am too honest.

My friend did end up getting thrown off (numerous times) and ended up braking her thigh bone badly. She had to have it pinned and was out of action for months. :(
 
the watcher said:
It is true that horses behave differently for different people, therefore if somebody says to me 'does the horse do X,Y or Z?' all I can honestly say is that I haven't known or seen the horse to do it. Any horse can do anything given the right circumstances, therefore you can't say the horse will never do anything wrong.
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Agree. I have ridden horses that I haven't 'clicked' with but from the sounds of it this pony was known on the yard to be a difficult ride and had bucked etc with others too.

We had her back, teeth etc checked but nothing was obviously wrong. I think she was just a very strong willed pony who didn't like being told what to do. She was incredibly dominant with my 2 horses.
 
The last horse I went to view twice I was told it never bucked and it did a nice big one and I hit the deck 2nd viewing. I was really cross the owner had obviously lied, I am no spring chicken.She then got on and it kangarood down the field.

Sorry the rearing is a dangerous vice and the owner sold a lethal weapon if she knew it did this.

Yes the owner should tell the truth if they have the horses interests and the purchasers safety at heart. If they cant handle the horse they should drop the price and let someone with experience know why its so cheap and let it be sorted out or if that bad PTS.

When I bought by boy I was told everything about him good and bad. He was exactly as described and it helped me settle him in quickly. It was their honesty that actually made the decision there and then to purchase him. I go on gut instinct as far as possible.
The last pony I sold I let the lady take it to a yard I knew(& she liveried at) and she had it for about 5 weeks in the end and full vetting and the sale went ahead fine. It was for her young children and he was not perfect but she was happy with him. I couldnt have been fairer to them.
 
I put mine on loan; and TBH probably went into too much of an essay into what he's capable of doing! BUT whilst I appreciate that loan is different to selling, I didn't want him to go to someone who (a) wasn't expecting his behaviour and (b) couldn't deal with it, so what's the point of not being honest?

The problem with mine is that he can appear deceptively ploddish when you first see him, and everyone thinks OMG what's this owner like if she can't deal with a horse like this, a real dope on a rope. And for say 9 times out of 10, he is a perfect darling, BUT on the tenth time, he'll flip and be a total fruitloop. Usually this is somewhere like a show, or hunting, or if ridden fast in company, OR asked to do something he doesn't want to do such as groundwork.

He's reared, bronked, and kicked at me (hitting me the last time he did it). So yes, I was completely honest about him when I put him up for loan. And I'd do the same if I ever sold him; its not fair to the potential buyer and certainly not fair to the horse IMO.
 
I usually buy my horses from sales - and try and ask as much as I can (about their faults et al) - but recognise that there is often a risk - The last two horses I have bought came from the same dealer - he told me that both could be fresh. He was covering himself - they both turned out to be wonderful. The latest I bought for £400 - he has just been placed 6th at his first HT - and safely done two pleasure rides - the latter with one of my younger children aboard. He was very sad and sorry when I got him, but has blossomed. He has been pin fired (no dye....) and has a couple of sarcoids - He cornered me in the stable on his first night at home - but that is becuase he was hurting. He is now a sleek, happy horse.
I have sold horses that have been perfect with us (we are quite experienced, laid back folk) then turned out to be totally different with other people - I can't help that.
But if I knew that a horse did something I could not cope with - then I would not try to sell it on to someone less experienced them me.
 
I would always tell the worst about a horse. Paint the bad picture and then you know if the worst happens then the new owner is prepared and they will most likely be pleasantly surprised! Saying that though I wouldnt sell or advertise a horse with a huge problem, it would stay until it had been resolved or at least become a manageable level.

I cant see why people would lie about their horse, mostly I think its because they are scared they wont sell the horse without fabricating a story. Id rather keep a horse before not telling the truth about it. If you lie there is a chance that they will sell the horse on and it could end up god knows where. I know there is a chance that could happen anyway but I think you have to do your best to make sure you sell the horse to the right person.
 
I was completely honest when loaning my gelding. The woman that sold him to be however is an entirely different story.

It is important to stress that just because a horse displays an unwanted behaviour doesn't mean to say that the previous owner knew/experienced said behaviour. Horses do act differently with different people if given the chance to do so.
 
Whilst I have exchanged horses for cash (ie sold to people that I knew), I've only sold 2 by means of advertising. There were reasons for them being sold and I was honest, sec D was too much for me when I was 14 and was a biter (bit my dad badly, in the paper the following week) and a bargain horse I picked up at auction, appeared perfect but I had very little history on him. Both found good homes as the people knew what to expect.
I thought I was a little disappointed when Markie displayed 'airs above the ground' upon meeting cattle as, I felt, his previous owner was honest when she said he just plants if he's unsure! Spoke to her about it and she said, if he was concerned he'd plant...........then she'd take him a different way! He'd never been requested to go past 'scary' things for most of his life. Meeting cattle is hair raising and quite dangerous, but the previous owner couldn't tell me about it as she'd never attempted to move him on when he planted! (Still would have bought him though, but, I would have avoided a certain ride when the calves were out, lol)
 
Sadly I have been caught out twice in the past. The first one was brilliant when I tried him, but as soon as I rode him at home, he went nuts and I ended up breaking two ribs. He had obviously been doped and was dangerous when the dope wore off. The other one was sold as excellent on his own or in company. Again, when the dope wore off - he wouldn't go out of the gate on his own or in company - he constantly reared and reared. I sold him to a very experienced person who had had a cob like that before, I told her absolutely everything and three years later (we kept in touch) he is much, much better but can still nap now and then. To those unscrupulous people who won't reveal if the horse they are selling has issues - do they realise that their horse could kill someone, or do they simply not care?
 
Yes i am honest, for the horses sake. Having said that, I certainly believe that I have been sold 3 ponies where ther vendor was not so honest.

I certainly spoke to them after the sale about my concerns, the kids eventually grew into their ponies and the ponies improved as they settled, but there was a definite discrepancy between what I had been told and what I saw - I would say that I was a little naive, and would suggest that a potential kids pony be tried not only at home, but where possible out hacking, or on away premises. I would also suggest several trials, no riding of the pony by the vendor after vetting, if the sale agreed on. In fact I would collect asap after vetting, as anything that the vendor does to the pony after vetting but before collection, is not covered by a vetting.

I spoke to pony club people about the ponies prior to purchase, but they usually have a friendship with the vendor. I would never use a vendor's vet (which I did once) as again it is hard to eliminate bias.

Having said that, 1 of the three above ponies was sold on, after8,years, (and has since died of colic), she was a very useful pony despite her quirks and I believe I found the right home for her. Of the remaining two ponies, 1 I am sure I could not sell on as she can be extremely dificult when she gets into a new environment, or with vets, (rearing, napping, lugging) and took a good 12 months to settle with us. I cannot see anyone else being prepared to deal with what we had to when she arrived. The other will try out a new rider, but will settle with a confident rider, so he would be less difficult to place. So I can see him being sold at some point in time.
 
OFG said:
We had her back, teeth etc checked but nothing was obviously wrong. I think she was just a very strong willed pony who didn't like being told what to do. She was incredibly dominant with my 2 horses.
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I have one on the yard like that at the moment, se was very rude when she arrived to other horses and to people, because nobody had corrected it. From the day we got her she has been treated firmly but kindly, has routine. knows what is expected of her, has blossomed and is doing more than she has ever done in her life, and willingly.

Her young owner is now ready to move on to the next size and has asked me to help with advertising her as her parents are not horsey. Do I paint a gloomy picture or do I describe her as she is now (which is faultless)? Actually I know the answer is to say 'this is her regime now and it works for her, if you change it, or don't keep on top of her, she may well change'..but I know that buyers often overestimate their capabilities (ridden or knowledge).

I am by no means a tough professional, nor a dealer..I just want to help them find the best home for this pony....and have to hope that potential purchasers listen and take on board what I say. Otherwise I can imagine that they will be on a forum in 6 months time complaining that the pony has changed.
 
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