Ensuring a horse's future

Wagtail

Wagtail

Horse servant
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There are many threads on here where people get slated for giving a horse away, or loaning a horse, but never selling a horse. Why is that?

There are only three sure ways that I know of for ensuring a horse's future, and those are:

Keep the horse yourself, for life.
Put the horse to sleep at home
Send to the blood bank.

All other ways as far as I can see carry various risks. You can do your best to limit them, but once that horse leaves your care (except to the blood bank), you do not know what might befall it.

Of course people have to sell horses. If they didn't all the lovely responsible owners would never be able to buy one and I am not criticising people for doing so, but rather just asking why people get slated for giving horses away or loaning a horse but not for selling?
 
Lots of people believe that there are only terrible people at the bottom of the horse food chain, so only horses with a big price tag get looked after. They're wrong.

I can see the argument that FTGH opens up a profit for a dealer / meat man, but IME there are lots of kind people who will give such a beast a good home, but wouldn't go out and pay money for it. I'm a sucker for a pony who might come right with the right handling, and I'm not alone...
 
We choose to loan one of ours out,so we can keep ultimate control(assuming loaner genuine, which so far they have been.on second one). The pony has done nothing to us to merit us loosing control, and as I have my own yard,having her back is not an issue- though makes me slightly over horsed for the land.
Agree though that many folk won't make responsible decisions. , they palm off their problems on someone else.
 
pennyturner said:
Lots of people believe that there are only terrible people at the bottom of the horse food chain, so only horses with a big price tag get looked after. They're wrong.

I can see the argument that FTGH opens up a profit for a dealer / meat man, but IME there are lots of kind people who will give such a beast a good home, but wouldn't go out and pay money for it. I'm a sucker for a pony who might come right with the right handling, and I'm not alone...
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I agree. I have taken on two free horses in the past and they have ended their days with me. If I were to take on another horse, it would have to be a freebie as I don't have the capital to justify buying one. Even though I have my own yard and the financial means to keep it for life.
 
Spottyappy said:
We choose to loan one of ours out,so we can keep ultimate control(assuming loaner genuine, which so far they have been.on second one). The pony has done nothing to us to merit us loosing control, and as I have my own yard,having her back is not an issue- though makes me slightly over horsed for the land.
Agree though that many folk won't make responsible decisions. , they palm off their problems on someone else.
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I think loaning is usually a very good and safe option so long as the owner either knows the person they are loaning to or they make sure they visit regularly, and to start with, maybe unannounced. I would avoid loaning to someone who lived too far away.
 
Personally I've only sold one horse when I was moving away and couldn't take him, it was heartbreaking that was to the yard he was at livery on, to be used for lessons/schoolmaster but within a couple of weeks he was gone and they wouldn't tell me who he was passed on to. With every other horse they've been pts due to injury or illness etc (one broke a leg in the field)/old age. My current ginger is 18 in a month or so and when I go to Afghan he's being loaned to a friend complete with contract, hes got some arthritis and has lost a lot of scope so only jumps up to 85cm with a bit of xc and dressage now for fun. He doesn't act his age nor does he look it but I know eventually he will need to slow down, he is a horse that loves to have a job and if just a field ornament becomes quite difficult also as bombproof as he is in all traffic he doesnt have the patience for 'happy hacker' preferring to flounce, pirouette and generally mess around especially on bridleways despite me hacking him almost daily! So for me, when he can no longer do what he loves he will be pts quietly and humanely in his field with his buddies around him. I would be heartbroken if he was passed from piller to post and passed off as younger to make a quick buck. I think they give us so much we owe them a dignified end. Dx
 
xDundryx said:
Personally I've only sold one horse when I was moving away and couldn't take him, it was heartbreaking that was to the yard he was at livery on, to be used for lessons/schoolmaster but within a couple of weeks he was gone and they wouldn't tell me who he was passed on to.
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That is just awful. How heartless.
 
It put me off selling an older horse as he was around 17 and lord knows where he ended up.
I couldn't send a horse to slaughter either again a totally personal thing, when I was at Uni I worked for a summer in our local 'meat processing plant' as it was called..they dealt with cattle only and as much as it was 'quick and humane' the smells, sounds and sights are something I won't forget. And the fear and panic of some of the animals when they were processed through.
 
The ONLY ways to ensure a horses future is never to sell it, and if you loan it, supervise carefully with regular, unannounced checks, When the time comes pts. That is the bottom line.

Never, ever breed one either unless you can take the rough with the smooth.......

Remember under these circumstance a horse is for life and a lame horse can live for over 20years.
 
Interesting thread, OP, and I completely agree. Just recently, I was chatting to one of the liveries at the yard where my friend keeps her horse. This individual proudly showed me her 17 year old gelding, telling me that he had come to her branded 'unrideable', but with work she'd turned him around yadda yadda yadda...
She then said that she was going to advertise him for sale in the spring because another friend has a TB that would be 'perfect' for her. I asked her who she thought might wish to purchase a quirky 17 year old when sensible athletic horses half his age were struggling to sell, and she said she was sure there would be someone out there... Poor pony - I hope he finds his loving forever home, but I am not hugely optimistic for his future.
 
A well trained horse who's pleasant to be around and ride, with no major health iasues and no behaviour issues in most likely to find a good home. It'd be rare for a horse with 'value' to end up in a rubbish downward spiral ( though it does happen sadly)

However a horse with issues, physical or behavioural, IS likely to end up being shunted from pillar to post. Because if YOU don't want it because of it's issues, why would anyone else?!?!

Sometimes the 'issues' are minor and wouldn't be considered a problem by the majority of owners (I.e big athletic horse isn't suitable for a nervous novice but fine for a competitive rider) . But if the issue is something most owners wouldn't want ( lame, confirmed rearer, aggressive etc) then the chances of a good home is slim.

I have sold an easy, issue-free horse. He got a lovely home and I've no worries about his future because of the type of horse he is. I've also had sold from under me a loan horse who was sharp and quirky. I managed to trace him and he did indeed get passed from pillar to post as a cheap horse before becoming 'valueless' but thankfully landed on his feet.

You can never guarantee their future if you sell but by making them into as good and easy horse as you can, you can help them. And by not passing the buck if there are problems.
 
I've sold ponies once they have become outgrown as I've need the cash to get the next and didn't have the facilities to keep them, but I did find the "best" home I could and am still in touch with owners although both have moved on from the homes I placed sold them to. I've only ever put one horse out on loan, he was a bit quirky and wouldn't have passed a vetting, although he was quite talented and an excellent hack. The second loaner bought him from me for peanuts and still has him. My old TB is with me for life (now retired) and my current horse, now aged 16, will also be with me for life. Horses and ponies do have to be sold and I'd only loan out those that I didn't feel were a 100%
 
Kallibear said:
A well trained horse who's pleasant to be around and ride, with no major health iasues and no behaviour issues in most likely to find a good home. It'd be rare for a horse with 'value' to end up in a rubbish downward spiral ( though it does happen sadly)

However a horse with issues, physical or behavioural, IS likely to end up being shunted from pillar to post. Because if YOU don't want it because of it's issues, why would anyone else?!?!

Sometimes the 'issues' are minor and wouldn't be considered a problem by the majority of owners (I.e big athletic horse isn't suitable for a nervous novice but fine for a competitive rider) . But if the issue is something most owners wouldn't want ( lame, confirmed rearer, aggressive etc) then the chances of a good home is slim.

I have sold an easy, issue-free horse. He got a lovely home and I've no worries about his future because of the type of horse he is. I've also had sold from under me a loan horse who was sharp and quirky. I managed to trace him and he did indeed get passed from pillar to post as a cheap horse before becoming 'valueless' but thankfully landed on his feet.

You can never guarantee their future if you sell but by making them into as good and easy horse as you can, you can help them. And by not passing the buck if there are problems.
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You make some good points. However, I have seen MANY very expensive horses being mistreated, often by professionals. I mean losing their temper, yanking them around, digging in spurs as punishment and holding the front so the horse can't go forward. It's very common. Even more so with teenage riders.
 
oldie48 said:
I've sold ponies once they have become outgrown as I've need the cash to get the next and didn't have the facilities to keep them, but I did find the "best" home I could and am still in touch with owners although both have moved on from the homes I placed sold them to. I've only ever put one horse out on loan, he was a bit quirky and wouldn't have passed a vetting, although he was quite talented and an excellent hack. The second loaner bought him from me for peanuts and still has him. My old TB is with me for life (now retired) and my current horse, now aged 16, will also be with me for life. Horses and ponies do have to be sold and I'd only loan out those that I didn't feel were a 100%
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I wish everyone was as responsible.
 
Sometimes selling is the right answer:

I sold my 'problem' welsh at 18 years old. He bucked, reared, spooked, and tanked off regularly, and was, frankly dangerous.

I had put him in harness at 13, and he was faultless, having done lots of public fetes, and a couple of weddings... so I sold him to an RDA driving group, where 10 years on he's still doing a splendid job for them.

Only once in that time has anyone try to ride him. They got off and walked him back apparently...
 
Wagtail said:
You make some good points. However, I have seen MANY very expensive horses being mistreated, often by professionals. I mean losing their temper, yanking them around, digging in spurs as punishment and holding the front so the horse can't go forward. It's very common. Even more so with teenage riders.
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Oh yes and I have one my Sandro Hit bred WB, he was a very expensive horse and he was abused so badly - he has taken 3 years to come right.
 
pennyturner said:
Lots of people believe that there are only terrible people at the bottom of the horse food chain, so only horses with a big price tag get looked after. They're wrong.

I can see the argument that FTGH opens up a profit for a dealer / meat man, but IME there are lots of kind people who will give such a beast a good home, but wouldn't go out and pay money for it. I'm a sucker for a pony who might come right with the right handling, and I'm not alone...
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This. I've been very lucky and have been gifted 2 of my horses and I absolutely love these horses to pieces and they get all that they need. For one of them, I'm now looking to rehome him (permanent loan) simply because he's only suited to hacking now and I'm not a happy hacker so if someone else can still get a few years of fun out of him then why on earth wouldn't I try to encourage that. I'm very picky though which I think you have to be when trying to find a home for what many see as a "freebie". It does attract total morons I'll admit but they're pretty easy to weed out in the very first conversation. I don't believe that free or cheap horses always end up in bad homes by any means, I see no problem with offering horses at all ends of the market but it is ultimately up to the owner to try to ensure the home is suitable (as much as they can do). Having sold a pony in the past for good money to a very wealthy family, who I believed could offer my pony a fantastic life, it didn't end so well, they lost interest and the pony was neglected (thankfully then ended up in a lovely home) so I actually find a horses future is uncertain whoever/however you rehome it, be it selling, loaning or gifting.
 
I think it depends on age and issues. I have no problem of selling an older pony/horse if still well and physically able to give more. But i find passing aged animals or ones with issues on for sale hard to swallow. Yep could have sold my lass only 14 beuatiful mare striking action and wow factor. But issues with head from being battered and sight failing. So i said goodbye as i could not have slept wondering if she was ok. All depends on horse its age its body its mind.
 
I sold a horse and loaned one out when I couldnt afford them at that time to keep them. So sold the one that was saleable and put my old boy out on loan. The older horse I would never sell on, he is on loan to a friend for her daughter right now as hes foot perfect in the stable and to handle and a real gent to hack out and ride so hes teaching her nervous daughter all about horses and how to look after one. He is there for as long as they want him then he will come back to me. If I couldnt afford him he would be PTS by me as he owes me nothing and I owe him everything, he has been my rock and sanity for 13 years and I would never pass him on permanently. Im broken right now and couldnt look after a horse so him being on loan is a win/win situation for all involved.

Selling on permanently broken or older horses I dont agree with personally. But at the end of the day its up to the owner. If the horse is still useful like my old boy then loan is a good option, selling as companion I dont agree with either.
 
im afraid any horse i have is with me for life.....even though my current mare is a handful and i lost my nerve for quite a while, i thought about selling her but was worried that she wouldnt get an understanding home as she is very quirky so i carried on and have now had her for 12 years and she is nearly 23...she still can be a loony but i am now used to her..i hate seeing ads for elderly horses especially when they have been owned by the same people for many years and as soon as they cant compete , they get thrown on to the scrap heap. there is no loyalty shown for the years that they wer useful.....its a shame!!!
 
After selling my old pony to what I thought was a loving family and learning a while later he was abandoned at the yard....I will keep mine until they are PTS, unless I know the person I'm selling/loaning to.
Not all homes are like the above, but it broke my heart and I still feel guilty to this day - I thought they were nice genuine people and that my pony could start his ridden career and be loved by their little girls. How wrong I was.
 
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