Help needed, buying horse

[crazyhorses1]

hey guys, just need abit of help/advice really, there are quite afew questions so i do apologize and thankyou in advance!

First time owner, looking to purchase a horse around feb-april time (depending on when find the right horse)

i wondered, what stage vetting would you get? any recommendations on vets? im looking for part livery, ive looked at afew online (bambers green and attridges are top of list at the moment) any others?, insurance, anyone to go with or avoid? would it be unreasonable to ask to loan the horse first almost or have like a return within X amount if unsuitable/problems etc? looking around a 16hh horse

im around the bishops stortford/dunmow/takeley area

probably more questions but cant think of them at the moment! Appreciate your time

 

[Kat]

Definitely get a vetting. You will need a 5 stage for your insurance if you spend over a certain amount. It isn't that expensive so worth while for peace of mind.

My insurance is with KBIS shop around a bit, the cover varies a bit so pick the best one for you.

If you can get a horsey friend or someone on here to recomend a vet to do the vettings. It should be someone local to the horse who isn't the sellers vet. Never ever use the sellers vet, and always be there for the vettings.

You could ask sellers whether they would consider a short period of loan with a view to buy or a trial but very few will agree. No harm in asking. If they say know you could consider going to their yard for more trials. It is a big decision and difficult to make quickly.

 

[doratheexplorer]

Hello, and welcome to HHO!!

Best of luck buying your first horse - I bought mine 18 months ago!!

I went for a 5 stage, as he was expensive and I wanted him insured for EVERYTHING (NFU require a 5 stage and for any horse over £5k I think they aloso now require x-rays)

I am not local, so I cant help you with livery yards/vets, but your best bet is to go and look around. It may seem nosey, but i'm quite for just popping by a livery yard to see how the horses are treated/looked after when they are not ecpecting someone!

I have B insured with NFU who have been great to me, and my prive has not gone up, but literally the whole of my family are insured with everything with them!

It is a buyers market at the moment, and lots of sellers are willing to try a loan with a view to buy or a months trial period etc, just be sure to get a contract drawn up so its all in black and white covering every eventuality!

What sort of horse are you looking for hoping to do??

 

[Spendtoomuch]

Can't help with vets as not in your area, level of vetting depends what you are planning to do with horse imo. I had my current horse on loan with view to buy, just paid for him last month and got him in feb, but his owner wanted to make sure he was in the right home so lwvtb is possible. I am insured with kbis as their policy and price was really good, not had to claim (touching wood very quickly now) but have heard good things about them on here. Good luck with new horse x

 

[be positive]

Answering a few of your questions, I am not local to you so cannot help with those.
Vetting 5 stage is really recommended to cover you fully, do not use the sellers vet but find one that is recommended to you by someone you know, possibly the yard you are going to.

You may possibly find someone to let you loan then purchase but not easily, most people are unlikely to let their horse go to a new home on the terms you suggest, the best thing if that is not possible is to try several times, have a clear idea of what you are looking for and make a list of questions.

Take an experienced person with you to at least one of the viewings before you commit to the purchase. Go to each viewing with a plan of what you want to do and see, make sure the seller rides before you do, if you are in doubt or feel uneasy do not get on, there are some unscrupulous people out there that will tell you anything to get a sale and some very nice people genuinely looking for a good home for a lovely horse, it is just finding the right one.

 

[crazyhorses1]

thanks very much, to be honest around 2k poss 2.5k so not loads, ideally id like an ISH or poss even a KWPN (dreams) would like to do jumping and poss XC (never done it yet!), well ive been emailing one stable loads of emails (bless her) and bambers green havnt replied to my 2 emails so guess they arent interested! do you ride your horses now or do you wait till next year?ive found an ish online for 1,400.... hmmmm! how long does it take to arrange livery or when to start looking? im looking at horses now but thats too soon?

 

[crazyhorses1]

KBIS around 380 so not too bad think best ive had is around 320, anyone heard of these? http://www.eandl.co.uk/ anything to avoid or have on the policy?

 

[Piccy]

For vetting I would say Connor felon he has his own practice and IMO is fantastic if I was close enough still I wouldnt use anyone else.
Insurance I use carriagehouse have been with them years excellent service and yes Ive had to claim.
As for livery I would get a space before you buy the horse even if you have to hold the stable for a little while, what looks good on a website might not be right for you somwould go and have a look, I dont know either of the yards you have mentioned so they maybe perfect even when you have looked in person.

 

[crazyhorses1]

For vetting I would say Connor felon he has his own practice and IMO is fantastic if I was close enough still I wouldnt use anyone else.
Insurance I use carriagehouse have been with them years excellent service and yes Ive had to claim.
As for livery I would get a space before you buy the horse even if you have to hold the stable for a little while, what looks good on a website might not be right for you somwould go and have a look, I dont know either of the yards you have mentioned so they maybe perfect even when you have looked in person.

thanks piccy, you know where hes based? yeah obviously im gonna go look around them first, going to call them on monday to have a look around when im free, farriers to recommend? i know one of them is £65, guess thing is if i do reserve a stable and then cant find a horse im abit stuffed but then the other way around im stuffed lol!

 

[Piccy]

Sorry on phone also wanted to say would get a five stage vetting, and i wouldn't personnaly recommend e and l

 

[crazyhorses1]

no probs, your help is much appreicated, E&L been deleted from favourites would anyone stay away from working livery or?

 

[be positive]

You wont really be able to get a true price for insurance until you are sure what you are buying, there may be exclusions or the value may be different, I think e&l are best avoided, do a search for opinions on different companies .

 

[Piccy]

Farrier David Watson he has the best attitude of any farrier I have used and is very skilled done wonders with the horses he has done for me and friends, Connor is near pleshey can't remember the exact village to be honest google him and you will find his website. Can give you David watsons number if you want it. I'm not a millon miles away so feel free to pm if you need numbers also grab a copy of Essex rider good for info can also recommend a good chriopractor. (equine) and dentist (equine) hope this helps.

 

[crazyhorses1]

yeah thanks piccy really appreicate it! nice to know someones local (i think lol) how much does he charge? your a godsend

 

[be positive]

Working livery, it can work for some, you need the right riding school and horse that does not mind different levels of rider.
It is a good option if you feel the horse needs more exercise than you can provide but they can become sour with too much school work and often do not get as much turnout as they are needed in for lessons during the day.
Costs are often not much different to part livery, and you have all the usual outlays of equipment, shoes, insurance.
I would go and look at yards and see how they care for the school horses and liveries, ask around locally for recommendations.

 

[Clodagh]

Theres a nice yard on Little Easton airfield, can look up number for you. They do full/ DIY and part livery. Hacking is excellent and they have a nice big menage and a walker and so on.
Conor Fenelon is awful IMO!! Still he'd be OK for a vetting, but he certainly maximises your bills if you have him as a vet. I use House and Jackson. Paton and Lee are good too IMO.
E and L - no way, vets won't work on credit for them, I use NFU (branch at Takeley is good).
Obviously I have no idea how experienced you are but a ISH is likely to need less intensive work and to be easier than a KWPN.
Good luck with your horse hunting, I'm near Dunmow so pm me if you have any questions.

 

[Niddlynoo]

Hi, Have heard good things about Attridges, they also sell horses so might be able to do a loan with view to buy. Have you looked at Quendon, they have an indoor school, good hacking and do part and full livery?
I use SEIB, couldn't fault them when we claimed for our pony when he broke his leg. I bought my pony off Bambers Green, they were great and gave us a 3 month trial with payment in instalments (didn't have him vetted though as he was sound and good for the 3 months).
There is another yard over Hatfield Heath way (might come up if you google search) and a full/part livery just opened in Old Harlow.
Good luck with your search x

 

[Clodagh]

Farrier wise - Adam Forbes is great but I don't think is taking on new people and you are right on the edge of his area. Gavin Adams is good too.

 

[BonneMaman]

I'm only going to add one thing to the above - make sure the vet you choose is not the same vet the horse owner/dealer uses.

As them who they use and then go elsewhere - perhaps pop into a local riding school and ask them who they use - tell them what it is for and I am sure they will help.

Best of luck!

 

[crazyhorses1]

thanks very much, yeah it would only be a couple of lessons a week i think but thats what im worried about with them using my horse, ive been riding for over 15yrs but im lacking abit of knowledge on the breeds and health side of things, i know i dont want a TB (no offense anyone!) thanks very much clod, if they have a website even better too yeah attridges is top on the list at the moment thanks for suggestions

 

[9tails]

Have a look round the livery yards you're interested in, I made a decision and put a deposit on the stable. You don't want to find your perfect horse then not have a stable to put it in.

 

[crazyhorses1]

would be great if you could dig out the little easton number for me clod cheers