Do you think anyone will want my horse???

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Bert&Maud

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I've just settled with the insurance company to get partial loss of use on my lovely boy who has kissing spines which my vet didn't want to operate on (several reasons including his age - 15 - and he's quite happy hacking but can no longer do flatwork). Having had a year of various treatments etc I,m now itching to get back to schooling/competitions etc, but cannot have more than one horse, for both financial and time reasons. So I desperately want to find a lovely hacking home for him. He shows none of the typical symptoms of KS such as bucking, but his walk becomes irregular if you try to collect him, and he likes to take his time down hill, apart from that he is a lovely hack. However, I don't know if I am expecting too much to hope that someone else might like him. I wouldn't want much, if any, money for him if I could find him the right home, it would be too sad to have him pts when he can still do a job, albeit not the job that I want to do.
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How sad
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All I will say is be very careful about letting him go for very little or no money - you have no idea where he will end up. He could go straight to the sales and be sold as a riding horse. Could you not try and find a nice loan home with someone that just wants to do some light hacking - as long as it causes him no discomfort you might find someone who will just be content to do just that. The worry is that someone might want to do more and more until he breaks down.
 
I completely agree that selling him with this condition could lead to an uncertain and unpleasant future for your horse. A loan home would be ideal, but they would need to be sufficiently knowedgable to recognise deterioration and deal with it and TBH that kind of home is hard to find
 
No, I do not think you will find a home for him, there are plenty of horses out there that are sound, and cost just as much to keep as a horse with a problem, you would be lucky to find someone
 
You might find someone who would buy him as a companion - is that an option? Or you could try loaning him out to someone as a companion (and be sure of his future too)

He sounds like a genuinely lovely boy - what a shame he's had such bad luck. Hope you find something that works for you - advertise everywhere - word of mouth is good, local tack/feed shops etc. There are a few people out there who will be able to take him on and want him its just finding them.

Good Luck x
 
If he is a well behaved horse I am sure you will find him a home - there are loads of people who only want to go for rides and are not interested in competitions or schooling.

But I don't think selling him for low money would be a good idea. No matter how genuine people sound it is more than possible that he would end up being sold on for several hundred more than you sold him for (it has happened).

I think the best thing would be a permanent loan - but you should visit the place he is to go to and go and see him sometimes - there have been some terrible stories of horses never being seen again by their owners.

There are many genuine, nice people around - but you must also be aware that there are some real crooks around too!

Why not advertise on Project Horse or on one of the Natural Horsemanship sites where you may well find a good home for him.
 
My mare had a hip injury at 6 so it ruled out her doing any schooling, regular jumping.She could hack out fine but i really wanted to compete so my only option was to loan her out to a hacking home, i would never sell her as she means to much to me and i would never forgive myself if i sold her and then found out she'd been ruined completely and had to be pts or something.I wanted to get another horse to compete but i made sure i found a home for her first and that i was happy with where she was. She is in Windsor Great Park now with a lovely lady that adores her, 2 mths after she'd gone i felt ready to get another one,i now have a lovely 4 yr old that i'm hoping will last me this time. I can't afford this next one to go wrong so fingers crossed.
I'm sure you'll find the right home for your boy,there are plenty of people out there that just want to hack, only a small amount of the equine world actually want to go out and compete. I new when the lady tried mine out that she was the right one for her and i'm sure you'll have the same feeling to,good luck.
 
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I would put him on 'permament' loan

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Question - would you take on a horse which already has health issues on the understanding that you would also become responsible for the care of that horse when it become unrideable (as it is certain to do and possibly in a comparatively short timescale)

I am generous to a fault, but even I wouldn't take that on, not even for free.
 
Tass depending on where you are in Wiltshire if you are that desperate to be riding/schooling whilst you decide what to do with your boy you could always hop on down to
Bristol I have 2 that could do with riding as I have had to stop due to being pregnant.
 
I took my boy on loan with arthritis in his coffin joint and then went on to buy him for £1750
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After 2 years of doing some riding club activities I have had to semi retire him as he can no longer cope with 5/6 days a week of work. The most he can cope with is 2/3 hacks a week.
Both of my horses are on DIY livery and they are both shod. It costs a small fortune to keep them both but I feel I owe D alot, he has taught me so much and has given me so much enjoyment. I think in return the best I can do is to make the rest of his life with me, the most comfortable and happiest I can. If it ever came to the point where I could only keep one horse then I would sell the other one. This is just the way I feel about D, I hope you don't think that I think what you are doing is wrong because it is not.
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I think there are people out there who will take on a horse with health problems but like other people have said you are better off loaning that way you have the final say over how much he can do.
If you do decide to put him on loan make sure your contract is very detailed about what you expect from the loanee.
Good luck
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Thanks everyone for your ideas. I've decided to advertise him locally for loan, and have looked on BHS & H&H sites for ideas for loan agreements. Keeping him myself is really not an option, as I'm not ready yet to become a "happy hacker" (not that I'm knocking it!). I find it impossible to justify the expense and work involved just to trundle around the lanes in the rain! Space is limited and I have lots of help from my elderly Mum who wouldn't thank me for adding another horse to her list of things to do! So will try hard for a while to find someone who will enjoy him. If he hadn't got the most exceptional temperament and character of any horse I've ever owned I would not be finding this so hard. Thanks again for your support!
 
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