Going to see a horse tomorrow....tips??

MontyandZoom

MontyandZoom

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Don't worry, I'm not getting rid of Zoomy :D I'm going to see a horse with a friend. She very tragically had her horse PTS last week :( He was only 5 years old and she had 2 weeks of him bucking, then 6 months of box-rest/vets bills before he was PTS.

Therefore she is taking no chances with this one! I have never been to see a horse for sale so any tips on what to ask??

Here is the boy (I actually recommended the dealers since I went there to do a vetting on work ex and I could have taken home every horse they had!!!)

http://prestwoodfarm.com/Kilmaryl Star.htm

There are some videos of him on there too :) What are your thoughts on this boy??
 
He looks nice. My only coment would be in the two ridden pictures he has his mouth open so maybe keep an eye on that when you are viewing and make sure he isn't unhappy in the mouth. I'm no expert though! The rider does appear to have hands that are quite fixed to the saddle so it may be that.

Out of interest I thought you were selling/putting Zoom out on loan to go to Uni. Have I missed an importnat post?
 
gosh he is gorgeous! Got a bit of a soft spot for duns, but he is such a lovely looking chap! Not sure I can really add much advice other than the obvious:
use your own vets
make sure he ticks your 'head' boxes before you allow your heart to go nuts
don't believe what you aren't shown him doing (ie, if it is important to you that he is easy to catch, and nice in the stable, then do this with him as well as the more obvious taking him through his paces ridden)
make sure the person selling rides him first showing him doing what you would like to do on him before you or your friend rides him
Call up and grill the seller first, don't think anything is too obvious not to be asked (vet history, any lumps/bumps on legs, vices, sweetitch etc. Some people keep stuff to themselves unless specifically asked which isn't so helpful!).
If the seller waxes lyrical about how fab the horse is look out for the facts, rather than just tempting sales waffle!
Enjoy the experience and don't be upset if he turns out not to be what your friend is after, there are lots of horses for sale and it may well take a while to find the right one, but don't get down, enjoy the experience!
Good luck, and don't forget to pack hat AND body protector!!!
 
Aniseedmiddy said:
He looks nice. My only coment would be in the two ridden pictures he has his mouth open so maybe keep an eye on that when you are viewing and make sure he isn't unhappy in the mouth. I'm no expert though! The rider does appear to have hands that are quite fixed to the saddle so it may be that.

Out of interest I thought you were selling/putting Zoom out on loan to go to Uni. Have I missed an importnat post?
Click to expand...

My parents are moving to France at the end of the year......and Zoom is going with them! :) My mum can't bear the thought of her being with another family and this way she can see her every day. She will actually be living with my mum's neighbour and their 13yo daughter will be doing pony club with Zoom.

Mum will be able to see her from the kitchen window and I can ride her in the holidays. There is also the very strong possibility that there may be a mini-Zoom on the way in the next two years :D
 
Oooh I like :) If he was a couple of inches higher he would have been just the type I was looking for.

Previous homes (how long and what's he done with them), how is he hacking/loading/clipping/shoeing..? Urmmm. Sorry I can't think of any more (those are all very generic and obvious i know! :o ) but I did have a long list of questions to bombard people with when I was looking for my boy! :D
 
Oooo he is lovely. I looked at him on the website but hes too small for me. Was hoping Prestwood would have something suitable for me but they are all a bit small at the mo so I didnt go there this week.

Good luck!
 
Only things I can add are:

Don't feel pressured to make a decision if the seller starts going on about how many people they have coming to view him over the weekend etc. Don't think 'if I don't tell them I want him now he'll be gone by tomorrow night'. If its meant to be he will still be for sale when you are ready to make the decision.

If you know how to do them and you are interested in the horse, ask the seller if you can do flexion tests. If they are not happy for you to do them, ask them if they will do them for you (but if they do it make sure they really are flexing and not just holding the leg up in the air a bit for 30 seconds).
 
That dealer is where _Gina_'s Prince is from I think :) if he is anything to go by its promising

Just make a list of questions, thats what I did to stop myself forgetting to ask things :) Lovely horse, good luck.
 
Well, yes and amen to everything's been said. BUT firstly see how they handle the horse in the stable: ask them not to bring it in for you but leave it out in the field so you can see if its OK to catch and handle, then watch them pick out feet, stable manners etc., and watch it tacked up & ask them to ride it first (important!!!).

Check out what bit its normally ridden in coz I had one on trial once and having ridden it at the sellers place in a snaffle, it actually came with a Kimblewick!!!

See them ride it in the school at walk, trot, canter & pop a small fence, on either rein. See how it looks - is it nappy? is it in obvious discomfort? how does it relate to its rider? is it stiff on either rein? etc etc.

Then and only then, get up yourself, or friend do so. If at all unhappy, DON'T GET ON IT. Walk away.

Let head rule heart. Have list of things that you will NOT consider in any circumstances, i.e. vices etc.

Have another list of "flexible" things that you would negotiate on, i.e. it might be green but improvable, but price should reflect this.

Also worth asking if its OK for you to contact their farrier to ask if its OK to shoe!!! Very telling this one can be!!! If they're sticky about it, walk away.
 
he is really nice i would see him trotted in hand etc, see him ridden jumped etc, i would also want to see him getting tacked up what hes like to catch etc, ask everything you can think of .xxx
 
have looked up his jumping recordJust for your information - ponies/horses in Ireland who showjump with the SJI cannot "win" classes at lower levels - apart from league finals. This horse has not won 4 classes. Also 6pts from 4 shows is not really as good as it sounds. Depending on whether it jumped as a horse or a pony (and i would think pony) then only in the "newcomers", which is 60/70cm and ideally aimed for young kids starting out, can you earn one point. proper "novice classes" usually have 3pts for dbl clear. Classes have changed a bit over the last 3years. however I wouldnt get hung up on a horse marketed as having showjumping points unless it had 70-100plus.

ETA - other than that he looks like a smart horse!

ETA - again- have looked at his record. registered for 2 seasons. Dbl clears were mostly at 60-70cm level and one at 90cm. Has sine had clr/4flts at 90cm and 4flts at 1m. Registered as apony. Reasonable to say hes not a particularly talented jumper, but may be a lovely all-rounder - obviously depends on the intended purpose.
 
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HI, having just spent ages looking for a horse i'd say that if your friend gets on it and feels confident to to everything that she would do at home on the first time riding the horse then its the horse for her. I spent ages going to see horses that i got on and thought with work this one would be ok, or i'd get my friend to try them jumping as i'm not the most confident jumper, but at the end of the day its not my friend who will be riding the horse and if you are concerned about its behaviour on its own yard then hows it gonna be when it gets on a strange yard with strange people and horses. I found a brilliant horse after months of looking, when i went to see her i went one day to look at her and arranged to go back to ride her, i hacked her out in company and left the company to hack out alone, i jumped her, galloped her and cantered in a controlled manner, i saw her in field and stable and lead her in hand, brushed her picked her feet out, rugged her up and tacked her up and untacked her. in fact i spent 2 hours treating her like she was my own, she was only 4 and after going to see alot of other horses i just knew she was the one. It saddens me that people take thier friends with them and take thier friends opinion, don't mistake me it is an excellent idea to take a friend as thier eyes look at different things to you but the ridden part must be done by the person who is going to be riding the horse as once you get it home there is no point having a horse your friend will ride but you won't. Another tip is to ask questions, don't be afraid ask if it bucks, kicks, weaves or cribs as if they answer no and you later find out it does then you would have grounds to perhaps get your money back, similar to buying a house if you don't ask they don't have to tell you but if you ask they must be truthful to the best of thier knowledge. I hope your friend has good luck buying as it took me a few months to find something i wanted, as alot of horses are advertised to be something they aren't.
 
looks lovely...lyn and nadine are really nice i have bought 2 horses from them that is where i got my cob from! they let me try him as much as i wanted i rode in the school hacked and jumped and tried him in traffic and they let my friend have a ride too i went back 3 times just to be sure he was perfect for me and he was he is my horse of a lifetime....good luck they have some lovely horses, hope u and zoom are well

say hello to them from me!


maria x
 
i would say just the normal stuff and make sure you go back. i made the mistake of buying a horse the first time i saw it. lovely in stable and to ride. got it home and 2 days later he started lunging at me when taken to and from field. bit me several times when tacking up. last straw was when he got his mouth round my arm. luckily he went back where he came from.

he actually looks like a mare i went to look at though she was 15.3hh and older.

good luck
 
ahhhh! M&Z! thanks for this - and GlenRuby is a legend! I saw a part arab this evening who sets the baseline for tomorrow's options.... was lovely and got lots of video i'll show M&Z tomorrow.
Am very tempted by some of the greys on the website (breaking my own no-greys-i-am-not-a-pony-polisher rule)...
Thanks for all the replies!
 
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