Heart or head ... be honest

[kassieg]

I am very much head as I buy to ultimately sell on (long term projects) but I also "know" when I see something.

Like we have been looking for another & we had a few nice 1s that we were looking at, nothing wrong with them but I just couldn't make a decision on them then I saw the 1 I am buying & there was just something about her that made me think yep she's the right 1.

 

[ZondaR]

My first horse was head. I wanted to buy and this horse ticked all the boxes.
My second horse; I wasn't looking to buy a horse and I rode a new arrival at the riding school and BANG!!!! I was hopelessly besotted and simply had to have him. He is a pain in the h*le and makes life difficult but 13 years later I still love him just as much. I happily dumped the first horse (to a wonderful home) so I could have my wonderful boy.

 

[DJ]

Well, the main one who made my heart sing after seeing his advert, I viewed today .... and after viewing him he also seems to fit with my head too <3

 

[Leo Walker]

I reply to ads based on my head, so if they meet my criteria I go and look. The rest is head all the way!

 

[Hippona]

Heart, every time! I go with the, "if it looks right, it is right" theory! I've had some real characters, but they've been crackers to look at!

Ditto.

When I was having issues with one of mine, I thought well, even if I can't get on the ****** , at least he looks pretty in the field lol.

 

[Shantara]

I'm not sure with Ned, to be honest!

Because I didn't buy him, I got to know him over a few years and he was eventually given to me. However, the lady who gave him to me, she went with heart! She even said to me that she had no idea what she was going to do with him, she just had the room and seeing him at the sales, with the meat man bidding for him shattered her heart. I am so glad she did I do wonder where we would both be now if she had used her head!

 

[cambrica]

I would say neither heart nor head just - 100% gut instinct.
When I saw him advertised I wasn't even looking to buy anything at all just bored and browsing through 100's of adverts. I saw an advert with photos and knew that I had to have him, to me personally he was the most exquisite horse I'd ever seen. Throughout my life my gut instinct has never let me down and now I have 'my' perfect horse.

 

[littleshetland]

Oh crikey - Heart, because if I listened to my head, I probably wouldn't have bought a horse - any horse - at all...ever!

 

[Tobiano]

ooh exciting DJ - keep us updated!

I definitely bought Bilbo with my head - but the heart has a veto, and mine said ok to go ahead. Now I am extremely fond of him. I am not sure what I bought some of my earlier horses with - ego? - pretty, flashy and way beyond my abilities.

 

[DJ]

ooh exciting DJ - keep us updated!

I definitely bought Bilbo with my head - but the heart has a veto, and mine said ok to go ahead. Now I am extremely fond of him. I am not sure what I bought some of my earlier horses with - ego? - pretty, flashy and way beyond my abilities.

Sounds like he was the right one for you Tobiano ... I shall keep you informed, going to ride him again today, and if all goes well he`ll be coming home a week on Saturday ... Valentines day lol ...

 

[maresmaid]

My head chose which horses we went to view & ticked off on a check list - but then allowed my heart to have the final say, I have to say that head and heart together made a great choice!

 

[Ahrena]

Squirrel - head then heart
I had him on loan originally. He didn't wow me when I tried him, but he ticked the boxes, I was in a rush (just wanted a horse to have fun on and compete for the summer before going to uni) and I could get him and go right away. Later on after ditching uni and pursuing eventing dreams with him, he was offered to me for sale. He failed the vet and was horrendously overpriced for a 13 year old with 1 eye who failed the vet on flexions. But I bought him anyway and he's paid for himself a thousand times over.

Lexi was head really but also heart. She ticked all the boxes but I did say when I went to see her (it was a dealers yard who had a job lot of youngsters recently imported), that I wasn't going to buy her - I didn't want a grey mare, and I didn't want to pay the extra grand for her rather than the others because of the fact she was clearing the top of the wing by over a foot in her loose jumping photo - I event, I don't need a horse that can jump 1.80m! But hey ho she's been amazing.

 

[SuperH]

My current two, one I felt sorry for and the other was head. The second I didn't like that much to start with but now I love her, she is awesome.

 

[Grinchmass]

I bought my mare with my head, she did everything I needed her to, she's creeped into my heart since the day I brought her home

 

[MagicMelon]

Heart, but I base everything on temperament. If its a lovely natured horse, I know I'll have some fun with it even if it doesn't turn out to be my "perfect" horse. I've only ever been wrong once (loved the horse to death though, but he didn't have the attitude to do anything sadly!), he still taught me plenty.

 

[lurcherlu]

Head ..... A yearling to bring on back as a three year old and sell on. She's now rising 5 and owns my heart . The best horse I've ever sat on and the only one I've broken in myself for myself . Broken in loads for others etc but never for myself . Love love love her ... The total opposite of what I would have looked for if I was looking for what I thought I'd want a happy hacker that could hunt a few times a year . And no bigger than 14.2 cos I'm a midget at five foot on my tiptoes . Now I'm stuck with a nearly 16hh marble varnish roan tobiano (did I getbthat the right way round ) appy Welsh that jumps like a stag , will hunt all day in a snaffle , likes to challenge everyone but me on the floor , can put my 5 year o,d daughter on her and she's a lamb , will excel as an event /rc type . I've never competed but now am out a couple times a month doing low level stuff . So head but rules my heart now

 

[Sussexbythesea]

Heart I guess.

I bought a horse from a dealer had him for 2 months and realised that it was way too much horse for me. So took him to another dealer to sell on. After a few weeks on sales livery the dealer said why don't you take this gelding on trial do a straight swap and if you don't like him you can bring him back and get another. I tried him out and wasn't impressed but thought I have nothing to lose so the next day he was delivered. When friends asked me about him I said he was sludge coloured, had small ears and had a funny canter.

Within a couple of days I knew that I could never send him back despite the fact he stood like a ballerina and did have a funny canter he was such a darling. I never had him vetted and he has had some problems over the years but he is the absolute horse of a lifetime, we rarely come home without a rosette and this year will be our 10th anniversary, I feel blessed to have found him and I love him to bits.

 

[NZJenny]

Gut instinct - they had to have the "like" factor to attract me in the first place. Then "head" - why do you like this horse?

So far, so good.

 

[kez81]

Were your horse/horses bought with your heart or your head.

Did you behave and work through a checklist, tick, tick, tick ... methodical, you`ll do exactly what I need.

Or

Did you just melt in a pool of goo and just know regardless of everything you thought you wanted on paper, that all went completely out of the window (but they`re pretty to look at lol)

Well youngster was bought purely with head. I saw a scrawny little rising three year old that I thought would fill out to be a good family cob type I would have no trouble selling on once I found my next endurance horse. I figured he would keep my old boy company then I would back him and sell him and get myself a younger version of my old boy. Three years later and he has totally stolen my heart and is my horse of a lifetime, he sure as heck won't be being sold!

 

[happyclappy]

Some with heart, most with head.

 

[anuvb]

The ones I have bought with my heart have always worked out... the ones with my head, we have often never really clicked, and I have schooled on and sold.

The latter have been more work colleagues, the former more like family friends.

 

[Annagain]

Old boy was a strange one. Heart that I bought him for £5 (at 17 without telling my parents!) to make sure the horrible soon-to-be ex-husband of his owner definitely couldn't carry out his threat to sell him for meat. He insisted he owned him not his wife and although he was registered in wife's name, we wanted to be certain so I bought him had a proper receipt and transferred his ownership on his registration documents. I'd had him on loan for 4 years at this point though and that wasn't a decision, I just fell into it, starting with the odd ride and gradually doing more and more. He was perfect for me though and was with me until he died at 27.

My current boy was 80% head and 20% gut - in that I'd had a gutsfull of looking! I adore him and he's certainly not wrong for me but I was a bit naiive and knowing what I know now I probably wouldn't have bought him. I used an agency who were supposed to vet him as part of the service and although they told me he had been vetted, they 'forgot' the certificate when he was delivered and despite me nagging them they never produced it. I'm sure he was never vetted as he has health problems which I'm sure were there at the time. Now I wouldn't accept him without a certificate (well I'd never use an agency again, I'd sort it all myself so it wouldn't be an issue) but I wasn't the person I am now 10 years ago. I will do it all very differently next time round.

 

[gina2201]

Deifinitely my head with this one. I knew what I was after, and unless they ticked those boxes I didn't entertain them. I dismissed the first horse I looked at although I did have a bit of a tug of war with my heart but my head over ruled me and I've ended up with a lovely mare!

 

[soulfull]

My 2 best horses I have bought with my head. Including my current absolutely perfect mare.

Others I bought with my heart were not so

So I cringe when people say 'trust your heart, you will know when you have found the right one'