For those who have both PTS and sold on horses

[wyrdsister]

Thank you The horse I sold who did well for himself was a cracker. A little quirky, but kind & willing & a nice all rounder. Someone said above they usually land on their feet. The likelihood is your mare is fine too.

 

[{97702}]

I have had a horse PTS - he had pretty bad navicular in both front feet and would not have made a field companion as he bullied/beat up savagely every horse he was turned out with! I have never regretted it for a minute, despite the emotional blackmail I got from a LOT of people at the time.

I sold my last horse for financial reasons and I have regretted it every day since, the lying little brat I sold him to did the usual and promised me she would give him a home for life then sold him on a few months later for 4 times the amount she bought him for.... I wish I had had him PTS too, he was never the soundest after a P2P career and I dread to think where he is now

 

[Rhodders]

I sold one of mine a few months back, it took me 3 years to do it, I put him up for sale, had 6 people in 24 hrs wanting him so I had the luxury of choosing where I wanted him to go. They love him to bits, I get regular updates, he's looking fantastic I know I made the right decision for both myself and him, I have no regrets at all, he was my first horse I had him for 7 years

 

[Annagain]

@annagain

In an ideal world this would be my aim, too. Being able to visit your old loan pony for so long sounds lovely. I'm sorry about your old boy. 27 is a very respectable age!

The mare was bought with the intention of keeping her out her life and had luck been on my side I would have still had her. It was a combination of less than ideal circumstances piling up at once which added to my negative feelings about parting with her. No foreseeing it unfortunately. Back when I bought her I had the setup to make it work on all counts, otherwise I would have held off to avoid this situation.

I wasn't criticising your decision, just saying I've been lucky enough to avoid that situation. I appreciate it's not always possible.

 

[impresario08]

I can imagine that makes it harder. I guess there will always be developments as we discover new treatments to help previously hard to treat conditions, which on one hand is a positive for those who develop them later on but less so for those it is too late for. Wrong time and all that..

thankyou hun

 

[serenityjane]

I convinced my son to sell his quirky mare to a 'breeding home only' as opposed to PTS (she had bolted several times amongst other issues) but was conformationally good had had all the vet investigations etc. He sold her in February/March to a 'forever home' and we delivered her 200 miles away so he could check the home out- he sold her for very little. Only 5 months later she has had two name changes, four owners and is currently up for sale at a comparatively very high price as a perfect hacking and hunting mare- complete with pictures of my son riding her!!!! We only found this out by chance, and the pictures even include one professional one that I bought when both my son and I took her and my mare on a fun ride this time last year. I honestly do wish that we had PTS for her sake-horses do not lie, but people never tell the truth.

 

[MargotC]

I wasn't criticising your decision, just saying I've been lucky enough to avoid that situation. I appreciate it's not always possible.

Oh I didn't take it as such, no worries! Musing to myself, really, I do tend to go on rambling a lot. In fact I really like hearing about the 'happy' stories because it makes me hopeful about the prospects of returning to ownership in the future instead of giving up completely out of fear of 'what ifs'. (And it would indeed be silly to give up all the joy that comes with horses simply because you know something CAN go wrong.)

 

[MargotC]

I have had a horse PTS - he had pretty bad navicular in both front feet and would not have made a field companion as he bullied/beat up savagely every horse he was turned out with! I have never regretted it for a minute, despite the emotional blackmail I got from a LOT of people at the time.

I sold my last horse for financial reasons and I have regretted it every day since, the lying little brat I sold him to did the usual and promised me she would give him a home for life then sold him on a few months later for 4 times the amount she bought him for.... I wish I had had him PTS too, he was never the soundest after a P2P career and I dread to think where he is now

That is horrible. I think it goes to show some people will say what you want to hear despite their real intentions as they just lack morals. Oh how I wish there was a surefire way of preventing this. Selling is enough of a worry as it is!

 

[MargotC]

I sold one of mine a few months back, it took me 3 years to do it, I put him up for sale, had 6 people in 24 hrs wanting him so I had the luxury of choosing where I wanted him to go. They love him to bits, I get regular updates, he's looking fantastic I know I made the right decision for both myself and him, I have no regrets at all, he was my first horse I had him for 7 years

A lovely outcome for sure. And a well thought out decision on your part I take it. It must be a relief!

 

[noodle_]

i had my last mare PTS she was 6. purely as she was ill and nothing could cure her except living out - she was a field ornament who i couldnt afford for the next twenty years doing nothing.... nor could i risk giving her away.

ive sold my first horse who was a nutter and should have been put to sleep. not my decision though.

 

[MargotC]

I convinced my son to sell his quirky mare to a 'breeding home only' as opposed to PTS (she had bolted several times amongst other issues) but was conformationally good had had all the vet investigations etc. He sold her in February/March to a 'forever home' and we delivered her 200 miles away so he could check the home out- he sold her for very little. Only 5 months later she has had two name changes, four owners and is currently up for sale at a comparatively very high price as a perfect hacking and hunting mare- complete with pictures of my son riding her!!!! We only found this out by chance, and the pictures even include one professional one that I bought when both my son and I took her and my mare on a fun ride this time last year. I honestly do wish that we had PTS for her sake-horses do not lie, but people never tell the truth.

Oh no. I think this is what could have happened if I had sold my first on as opposed to PTS and with him being a gelding there wasn't even the viable option of a breeding future the right mare may have. It beggars belief why someone in good conscience would pass a horse on without being truthful when they (your buyers) were clearly aware of the terms! Not only have they let your son and the horse down but the subsequent string of owners as well (though you can of course wonder why they in turn sold her on). I hope she ends up with someone who will 'get her' and either retire to breeding or do the responsible thing.

A thought I have had, thinking back to the one I PTS, is that the "ideal" horse to sell on is a horse you'd really be happy to keep, yourself, as backwards as it sounds. Though obviously there are some homes that can and will enjoy the ones with 'quirks' the question is how do you know you have found the one when you cannot take people at face value anymore.

 

[MargotC]

Deleted double post.

 

[MargotC]

i had my last mare PTS she was 6. purely as she was ill and nothing could cure her except living out - she was a field ornament who i couldnt afford for the next twenty years doing nothing.... nor could i risk giving her away.

ive sold my first horse who was a nutter and should have been put to sleep. not my decision though.

So sorry to hear about your mare. I think given the circumstances it was absolutely a right decision and not entirely unlike the one I made. I could have kept him on as a field ornament but would have had to give up riding out his life as I couldn't afford full boarding for two horses. Sometimes realism has to come into it as well.

Actually I was given grief from some over not selling the first one however I know to myself I made the only call I could. I am thankful it was all my decision and that I didn't have to watch him be sold on.

 

[MagicMelon]

I see PTS as the very last option and one I would only choose if there was actually something wrong with the horse and it was not enjoying life (so basically due to a veterinary problem). I have had several horses over the years so have sold probably about 10 of them, I've always been very picky about where they went and have visited every single home prior then kept in touch thereafter (including any owners after that, only one horse have I lost contact with but by his age I believe he probably isn't around anymore). I have been very lucky to have only had to PTS one pony due to cushings finally getting the better of her. I have no regrets in this situation, only that I couldn't help her. I couldn't put down a healthy horse - I have one horse who was out on permanent loan (now being retured) who is mechanically lame and at 17.1hh he isn't exactly cheap to keep (and really he has no purpose) however I took on the responsibilty of him and I owe it to him to give him a good life, just because he can't be ridden anymore its not my right to kill him so I will do my best to give him a good life even though it will stretch me financially.

If I sell a horse, I think I see it as even though I absolutely adore my horses and provide them as best as I can, I don't believe I am the ONLY one out there who does this. I just do my hardest to find a really genuine, nice home who will look after and love the horse as much as I believe I do.

 

[ihatework]

For me it very much is a mixture of factors. But I can hand on heart say I've not felt guilty about any horses I've sold on.

Those I've sold were mainly purchased with the intention of selling on (and I worked out what job they were most likely to succeed at and sold accordingly).

2 horses were intended to be keepers but after a few years they weren't doing the job for me - they were both sold on in a LWVTB/trial situation and both stayed in their new homes until the end.

I have 3 at the moment - 2 of which are with me whatever, even if that means they are pets. 1 still had a job in him but was unsellable so is out on long term loan as I didn't love him enough to keep another pet!