Help with finding me a horse! Am I being too picky?

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Umbongo

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Hello!

Well I am about to finish uni and I am desperate to finally own my first horse after years of loaning and looking after other peoples! I am a quiet and confident rider, been riding 10 years, loaned a few horses, always seem to get put on the nervous, nappy, naughty ones etc.

I am looking for a horse probably between 15.3-16.2hh, ideally between 5 to 10 years old, although the younger the better. I want something that has done a bit of everything and must be good to hack out in traffic/open fields etc. I am in Gloucestershire at the moment but in a couple of weeks I will be moving back home to Somerset.

I say I am confident, however a jumping accident and then loaning a few horses that did not like jumping, I have lost a bit of confidence. But I do believe that if I had a horse that had already done some jumping and was honest then I will hopefully regain my confidence. I also think that the lack of regular riding whilst at uni has not helped either :(

TBH I don't really want a TB type, my ideal horse would be an ISH, ID x, or Connemara X. My last 2 loan horses were 15.2hh arab X and I loved them but I am 5ft 8 with long legs and looked a bit silly :)

When I look for horses for sale in my budget around my area they all seem to be TB's, and the ones that I fall in love with in my area (South West) are way out of my budget (around £2500).

Am I being too picky? It's just this will be my fun forever horse and I want to get it right, I don't want a perfect push button horse as I would get bored, just something for me to have fun hacking, hunting, jumping, local competitions, beach rides etc, but I feel like I want to give up looking already :(

Typical when I wasn't looking there were loads I wanted, but now I can't find anything!!
Anyone who loves horse shopping want to look for me? I have actually exhausted horsemart, horse and hound, horsehunter, horsequest, adhorse etc :(

(bacon sandwiches for reading this :))
 
I think you are looking for the kind of horse a lot of people want and I don't think £2500 is enough for a horse with no major quirks. It depends what you will put up with. Good luck!
 
have patience! i know its really hard when you've made the decision to buy and the money's sat there waiting. i was on horsemart etc twice a day, jst hoping that special pony would pop up! i made a mistake of rushing in with my first horse and got it wrong. altho i was lied to about her, which didnt help. but the right horse will find u, as did mine. i put out several wanted ads and thats how my boy came to me. the owner emailed me before even advertising him. good luck in your search and we want to here all about him/her when you've found them x
 
I don't think you're being too picky - if this is a horse you want to keep and enjoy it's worth waiting for the right one!
You may however find it helpful to compromise on the no TB bit as often they're slightly cheaper. I had a similar list of ideals to you when I was looking 3 years ago (inc same budget) and ended up with a TB despite wanting more of a cob or mw type. He is slightly higher maintenance but lives out happily allyear and *touch wood* hasn't needed the vet for anything other than jabs.

Have had a quick nose for you (any excuse to look at ads!) and found a couple - although you may have already seen them:

http://www.horsemart.co.uk/advert/10_yrs_16_0_hh_bay_tb_x_somerset/97260 - slightly over your budget but everything inc and they may take an offer?

http://www.horsemart.co.uk/advert/6_yrs_11_mths_16_0_hh_bay_tb_x_id_wiltshire/96058 - no ridden pics but seems to fit most of your criteria
 
I like that first ad tb x cob she looks lovely and a bargain! Keep looking maybe put up wanted ads too and see if anyone comes to you.
 
I think realistically top get the horse you want you may have to look more around the £3000 - £3500 mark but that said, it is a buyers market at the moment so you MAY be able to negotiate a lower price... I too like that cob x - she doesn't seem to being work to her full potential in the pics and with some schooling could be quite a picture! I think you could easily knock the price down on her to 2.5, especially if she's been on the market a while or they are keen to sell...
 
I'd say yes, you are being too picky. Its not impossible to get what you want for that budget but your criteria are quite specific and so you're limiting yourself unnecessarily.

One key point you haven't mentioned is what you really want to do with the horse - how talented does it need to be, are you talking jumping 2ft6 or wanting something with the ability to affiliate some day?

Going on the assumption that you only want to jump up to say 3ft, then I think your best bet would be to compromise on location, age or type. Once you get over 10, then prices do drop and you can get much more for your money, plus there is no reason than an 11 or 12 year old won't go on just as well for 10+ years.

For example, a quick look on horsemart turned these up - slightly outside your ideal criteria but all nice horses that should do what you want.

http://www.horsemart.co.uk/advert/11_yrs_7_mths_15_2_hh_bay_connemara_west_midlands/98815

http://www.horsemart.co.uk/advert/12_yrs_15_2_hh_dapple_grey_irish_sport_horse_west_sussex/98639

http://www.horsemart.co.uk/advert/9_yrs_15_2_hh_grey_thoroughbred_east_sussex/98445

http://www.horsemart.co.uk/advert/7_yrs_15_0_hh_grey_irish_x_somerset/98249

http://www.horsemart.co.uk/advert/11_yrs_15_2_hh_bay_irish_sport_horse_west_midlands/98082

http://www.horsemart.co.uk/advert/10_yrs_1_mth_16_2_hh_bay_thoroughbred_berkshire/98728

http://www.horsemart.co.uk/advert/8_yrs_16_0_hh_grey_irish_sport_horse_shropshire/98424

http://www.horsemart.co.uk/advert/9_yrs_16_2_hh_dark_brown_thoroughbred_west_yorkshire/98533
 
I'm in East Devon and know of a really nice 16 hand 10 yr chesnut gelding - well within you budget. TB I'm afraid but not your typical light bodied type. I hack him out for his owner. He sounds like he'd fit your bill exactly (except for being TB). He's only for sale as his owner works long hours during the week and now has her grandchildren most weekends. Means she simply doesn't have the time to ride or enjoy having a horse any more. We were only discussing him this morning, and what she should do. He's looking great at the moment and working nicely.
 
We paid £2500, including tack and two rugs, for a 7yr old 16.2 ISH mare with reasonable breeding but very green. She has hunted in Ireland and done a little schooling. However, she supposedly could hack alone fine but it turns out now that she lacks confidence and needs someone walking or cycling alongside. She also is pretty quirky - was very nervy at first and would break free when tied up, can be head shy and now does not like to have her bridle put on or to see the farrier. Having said that, I am enjoying the challenge and I think it will be worth it in the end.

I think it would be possible to meet your criteria if you were very patient, kept your eyes peeled and were not fussy about looks or anything, though it might well be tricky. I think with £3000 it would definitely be possible.

Good luck!
 
Hi, thanks everyone for looking for me! I did actually ask for ridden pictures of the ID x TB in Wiltshire but have not been sent any since I asked last week.

I can put up with a few quirks. My last loan mare was the nappiest, stroppiest mare you have ever met, it used to take us 2 hours to get 100 yards down the road! But I didn't give in and within a few weeks she was hacking beautifully by herself for hours with me. I don't mind excited bucks, small rears, nervousness, biting, work on schooling etc. I am a confident rider and throughout learning to ride I have been placed on all the naughty horses, green horses, rearers etc.

But I do think my lack of riding whilst being at uni has made me feel like I am a novice all over again when I'm not, so I think I need to knock some sense into myself! TBH it is just the jumping thing, I only want to jump at a few local shows up to 3 ft. Although I think I am more confident with jumping than I think I am!

Will have a look at a few of those links people have put up :)
 
Ha yes I have also been looking at some slightly higher than budget too! I'm hoping I good negotiate as I will be giving a fun home for life, and lots of pleased and happy owners that I have loaned from to give references etc.
 
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