Following on from bad viewing- saying no- nicely!

M

matthew

Well-Known Member
Joined
26 May 2006
Messages
1,364
Location
Lincolnshire
Visit site
I was reading thorugh the posts about dodgy veiwings and i was just wondering if it was onyl me that finds it hard saying no.
1 horse i tried was decribed as forward off the leg but defo not sharp- well the horse was so sharp in the school i felt like it was going to go into orbit! it over reached really badly as well!
The man then led out another horse which was described as being 8 yrs but looked like a 4 year old- no muscle and was as scabby as any thing- this one had the choppiest stride ever- it was so bad a thought it was lame to start with! eeekk!
Anyway- was wondering if its just me or does everyone else feel bad saying no- i would hate to be described as a timewaster. But, if you politly state '' sorry its just not what i am looking for'' - ofter they ask you why!!
I hate it!
 
I usually try the not my type line!

Sometime I just stump up and say honestly so e.g. to close behind for me, or not the paces I was looking for etc.

I do try and be polite and I do try to keep the viewing short if I know it's not for me.

Not always easy though is it. Keep at it though, it's worth it all when you find the one you want.
 
yep you just have to say something like, nice horse, just wasnt what i was looking for'

who cares what they say behind your back? you know youre not a timewaster! xxx
 
I know what you mean. I do say "sorry, she/he is lovely (if possible), but just not for me/what I'm looking for". I feel that anyone without a significant learning disability knows that means "I don't want to buy your horse", so if they ask why, its because they want to try to sell it to me anyway. As a result, I no longer feel bad and just say "just not for me, best I don't waste your time" and leave!
 
That's why I hate going to dealers, I got caught out by two not very reputable dealers when looking last year, I didn't realise they were dealers until I got there (actually one of them denied it completely). The nicer one just kept leading out horses for me to try, all of them scatty and hot (exactly what I had NOT asked for), even though I kept wanting to say no and leave I found myself saying "while I'm here, why not"!
crazy.gif
The second dealer I went to first showed me a dodgy horse (sarcoids, fired, and allergic to flu vaccs, all of which she wouldn't tell me until I got to the yard despite me asking on the phone), then I didn't realise it was the same place I was going back to until the second time I got there... we had different directions given! Another dodgy horse, but I should have known that time and just turned round and driven home!
Damn I have to go through all this again in 6 months, I hate horse shopping!
 
Haha I don't know what is worse - saying no to someone who is trying to sell you a horse or saying no to someone who wants to buy one! The 'not suitable' bit works well.
 
If the advert was truthful and the horse simply not for me I would say that. If like you have experienced the owners have "lied" saying sound, vice free etc and this is not true or have hugely exaggerated in their advert then I tell them so! That makes them the timewasters for having put you out by going to try the d**mn thing! But then I'm not british and you are all very polite
wink.gif
 
I arranged to go & view one horse & when we arrived I walked straight passed it, it clearly wasn't anything like had been described.
crazy.gif


I am wary of adverts where they say 'readvertised due to time waster'....do I really care, no I don't...but it does tell me that someone came to view & for some reason decided not to have it. Could be for any number of reasons...but could also mean there's something wrong?
frown.gif
 
Well, it was a riding school actually! but it seemed he was a bit of a dealer on the side- nice enough bloke but i hated saying no! even though he tried to sell me a 14.2 coloured sports thing- lovely but FFS i am 5'8!!!!!!
 
No, your not the only one.

When I was last looking, I went to see at least 8 that I didn't even want to see ridden. You just have to be brave and say that they are not what you are looking for. Someone even told me I was an idiot to my face coz I did not want to try it after seeing it ridden. I was very polite back, but wish I had given her what for looking back!

I went to see one when I was last looking - liked it and went back a few times to see it, but it then failed the vetting.

2 weeks later I saw it re-advertised and you guessed it..... due to timewasters!
 
I did have to readvertise due to a timewaster once, but didn't dare say so in the ad because I thought everyone would assume he'd failed a vet!
I've also had to do the tactful "not for me" a few times, too. Including a 16hh that was under 15hh when I measured him. Tried pointing out that if she could see my 5ft friend stood on the other side of him him he was clearly not over 15 hands at the wither, but she didn't understand...
 
Am I the only one who tends to give a reason when I say "thanks but no thanks"? When we sell it's really useful to know why someone who obviously liked the sound of the horse over the phone found it wasn't for them when they saw/rode it - we don't want to waste anyone else's time if it's something we can mention to anyone else over the phone.
 
I generally know the moment I see a horse whether it is of interest to me or not. If it isn't then I tell them straight away so that they don't get it all tacked up. I don't have the time to waste looking at things that are no good for me.

Once in a while I will have reservations so will have them tack up and ride and then see what I think, but the moment it becomes not what I want, I will say so and stop the viewing right away. If I think it has potential then I will have it put through it's paces and generally if I think it is right then I will make them an offer then and there.

My viewings tend to last no longer than half an hour tops - because I know pretty much straight away.

When I sell my horses, the viewings tend to go on for about an hour, from the moment I catch the horse, to the point where they make their offer for him/her.

I once did have a weird viewing though - the pony was not what was described and to top it I felt it actually had a number of things wrong with it. I went away and said I would call them later when I had made my decision - I did and they continued to question why I was not buying it. I started off being very tactful and just saying "it is lovely but not for us". Well they just would NOT take that as an answer, so eventually after half an hour I just told her exactly what was wrong with the horse
blush.gif
. SOOOO I learned from that and now I generally always tell the people in person to save all this nonsense, LOL!!
 
I've always said "he/she is a lovely horse but not quite what I am looking for and as I hate timewasters - I don't want to take up any more of your time - thank you for showing him/her to me" I then walk away, get in the car and go. I have been asked "why is said horse not what you are looking for". And always say "as I have said, horse is not what I want. thank you" That is it. I have always been polite but firm and have always told people there and then.
 
I was lucky in that last time I was horse-shopping my mentor/advisor could not come with me, so I was able to tell all the vendors that I had to send photos/videos to her before I could make a decision.

That way, we parted very amicably without me having to say I didn't want the horse. Thank goodness, cos I would be soooo embarrassed to have to say 'no' to someone's face.

What I did was to email later, when I had found my ideal colt, and say that their horse was lovely, super, etc. but that I had fallen in love with another colt - not a mater of quality, etc., just the quirks of personal taste, you know when it's The One, etc.

In many cases this was actually true - I did see some very nice colts during my horse-shopping trips, but just didn't quite fall in love with them. In some cases it just saved me the embarrassment of having to 'reject' a colt I didn't really like.

(I have to say I had few if any cases of 'misdescription' as I always asked for photos by email before going to view.)

For others who find it all v embarrassing, perhaps taking a camera/video and saying you have to send photos/video to your advisor/trainer/whatever might be a good idea? Then you can either use the 'fallen in love with another horse' line later or the 'I loved him but my advisor/trainer said no' excuse?

Am I the only one who goes to such ridiculous lengths not to have to say 'no' in person?
blush.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]
I feel that anyone without a significant learning disability knows that means "I don't want to buy your horse", so if they ask why, its because they want to try to sell it to me anyway.

[/ QUOTE ]

Not necessarily, I think thats unfair to assume. When I was selling my horse, I quite often asked people what put them off, as its useful feedback. Once somebody said no I would never try to press them into buying the horse, but I am always interested to know whether they think something specific was wrong or I hadn't described it accurately enough - that kind of thing. Its helpful to know for future reference.

I hate saying no to people as well, but actually I've bought all my horses as the first ones I saw, so I've not had to do it! Only thing that I really hate is when people say they will call to let you know, or arrange a time to come see the horse, and never do. Its so rude! I have wasted hours before waiting for people to show up with not so much as a courtesy call to say they'd found something else.
 
[ QUOTE ]


For others who find it all v embarrassing, perhaps taking a camera/video and saying you have to send photos/video to your advisor/trainer/whatever might be a good idea? Then you can either use the 'fallen in love with another horse' line later or the 'I loved him but my advisor/trainer said no' excuse?

Am I the only one who goes to such ridiculous lengths not to have to say 'no' in person?
blush.gif


[/ QUOTE ]

I always say I'll ring them back when I've thought about it (unless I realise mid viewing that it's really not what I'm looking for). Whether you want it or not, it's always good to have a think about the viewing before saying yes or no, and I find it easier to say no on the phone (it's harder to get cornered!!)
 
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I feel that anyone without a significant learning disability knows that means "I don't want to buy your horse", so if they ask why, its because they want to try to sell it to me anyway.

[/ QUOTE ]

[/ QUOTE ] Fair point. I'll bear it in mind.
 
I've viewed two horses recently. The first one was clearly hugely over priced, and not at all what I wanted. After seeing it ridden for 5 mins I just said 'Thanks - but not for me'. I was asked why and I told the seller that the horse was not straight - and that this was particularly important to me.

The second horse - again I said 'thanks, but not for me'. We were both happy - the seller and me, as clearly the horse and I were not suited.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top