Horse potentially much older than what I thought I bought

ester said:
So sellers vetting and dentist apparently said 6?, the vet that did your vetting said 6 (were you present and saw him check)? It is only this new dentist (and the friend they have asked) who disagree and say older?
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Yes - but OP does say she's going to get another independent opinion somewhere in this thread. I think that's a good idea given the big swing in estimated age!
 
ester said:
So sellers vetting and dentist apparently said 6?, the vet that did your vetting said 6 (were you present and saw him check)? It is only this new dentist (and the friend they have asked) who disagree and say older?
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Correct, so I’m going to ask a few more people before going in all guns blazing! How she managed to slip through the net multiple times without it being discovered is worrying. What on earth do we do vettings for?!
 
stormox said:
I would be extremely annoyed if I was sold a horse in its teenage years when I had bought one to bring on. I am amazed that people are saying they wouldnt mind if a horse was 10 years older than they thought!
1 - Its Fraud.
2 - What else is incorrect on the passport?
3 - if a seller lies once and gets away with it they will do it again and con someone else.

Have you checked the microchip and description (apart from age) match the horse, OP?
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. Description and markings all match up. Breeding etc isn’t recorded. Unfortunately I think passports are pretty useless. As has been proved you can just write whatever you like!
 
be positive said:
All of this, you have possibly bought something that was not as described by the seller but the person who you really have some comeback on is the one who was working on your behalf, who is qualified to assess the age and health of the horse and who will be covered by insurance for this type of professional mistake and that is the vet who vetted her for you.
A client of mine was paid out by the vets insurance for much the same, horse actually died, not age related, but she would not have bought it if she had known it's true age at the time of purchase, there was no defence as 2 experts were able to age it , my feeling was the vet hadn't even looked in it's mouth at the vetting and just took the word of the seller, no passports then, more recently I had a horse vetted and the vet declared it to be 4 years older than I was selling it as, I knew his history and was not prepared to drop the price when they asked so pulled out of the sale, aging is not always easy and people do get it wrong but to be 6-9 years out on a horse supposedly 6 does seem unlikely.
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Do you mind telling me what the vets paid out for in the end? Was it just the vetting fees? It’s a similar situation to your friend in that I wouldn’t have considered a horse this age - she is exactly what I was after in all other respects but that is not the point. I paid for her to be checked (as I don’t have the knowledge myself!) and they have missed something pretty crucial.
 
1nd1c03 said:
Do you mind telling me what the vets paid out for in the end? Was it just the vetting fees? It’s a similar situation to your friend in that I wouldn’t have considered a horse this age - she is exactly what I was after in all other respects but that is not the point. I paid for her to be checked (as I don’t have the knowledge myself!) and they have missed something pretty crucial.
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I will pm you the details.
 
I must admit, although I have heard of vets missing things, as ultimately it is sometimes unfortunate as a vetting is just a moment of time one day, horses can go lame the next week...... but their teeth do not suddenly age 10 years.
 
pippixox said:
I must admit, although I have heard of vets missing things, as ultimately it is sometimes unfortunate as a vetting is just a moment of time one day, horses can go lame the next week...... but their teeth do not suddenly age 10 years.
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Agreed, anything else then it happens with horses. Something like age, height, color etc I would expect them to get right every time!
 
This reminds me of when my mum bought us a pony many years ago as a 12yr old we had the farrier he said “ he can’t be 12 I have shod this pony for over 20 yrs “
 
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Follysmum said:
This reminds me of when my mum bought us a pony many years ago as a 12yr old we had the farrier he said “ he can’t be 12 I have shod this pony for over 20 yrs “
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Haha!! Oh god, why do we do it to ourselves?! Could just buy handbags and things instead.
 
It does sound like you need to find an expert who will testify that their age is the correct one, though if the sellers vetting vet and dentist will also do the same it still wouldn't be a very clear case.
 
I got a little mare who had a passport saying she was 6 (just a little rehomed companion) when i got home and looked properly it was the passport of her colt foal (identical animal) and she was actually 14 i think at the time. Didn't bother me as i say she was just a little companion, but had i bought her as a 6yo with intention id be mightly pissed off. Of course, i would have probably looked at the horse/passport better at the time was i buying her for something as it was i was just happy to get her here and start her proper care. Best little horse i ever had, wish she had of been six.

But despite you actually liking the horse, you are now if shes really ten years older doing yourself out of a lot of time. The big question is would you be willing to send her back? Cause unless the seller suddenly said ok ill send back half/ 3/4 of the money the most likely outcome will be returning her.
 
equi said:
I got a little mare who had a passport saying she was 6 (just a little rehomed companion) when i got home and looked properly it was the passport of her colt foal (identical animal) and she was actually 14 i think at the time. Didn't bother me as i say she was just a little companion, but had i bought her as a 6yo with intention id be mightly pissed off. Of course, i would have probably looked at the horse/passport better at the time was i buying her for something as it was i was just happy to get her here and start her proper care. Best little horse i ever had, wish she had of been six.

But despite you actually liking the horse, you are now if shes really ten years older doing yourself out of a lot of time. The big question is would you be willing to send her back? Cause unless the seller suddenly said ok ill send back half/ 3/4 of the money the most likely outcome will be returning her.
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Seller has offered to have the horse back, with a refund, and / or gift me another. But I am already attached to my mare and I’m too soft! Her age is something I will get over with time, however I feel Obligated to raise it with the vets.
 
I'm another who thinks the horse I bought was actually younger than described. He was passported as ten years old (2002) but wasn't actually issued with a white Irish passport until 2009. Since I've had him, a number of people have believed he is up to five or six years youngster than stated. It's very difficult to look at his teeth without a gag and sedation and I'm guessing he was passported as part of a job lot as his passport is incredibly vague (no breeding, no height, no marking etc).

It's not the same issue as yours OP but I do wish I had known he was potentially five when I bought him - it would have explained a lot of issues and I would have approached things differently.
 
No way is that a six year old! The corners only cut at four/five and they are well grown. The length and slant of all of them are of an older horse imo.
 
I recently moved to ireland and what Ive came to realise is that most large scake sellers either don't know or dont care about the actual age of the horse 😔

Was at an auction recently where a "jjst turned 2 year old cob gelding" was desribed as "broken and riding" 😡

Now the "broken and riding" part is a whole other issue as it usually means the former in the traditional meaning of the word 😏 but nobody batted an eyelid!

Have had a few sent to me for riding on...first one was described as a 5 year old mare, bought from auction to sell on, loads of time taken doing groundwork/backing etc. Couldn't get near her back end for almost 2 weeks, she retreated to the far corner of the stable upon seeing tack and had zero idea of long reining or lunging. First time I sat on she felt like she would explode!
Another arrived when she left, another 5 year old, connemara gelding (I think he was 3). Terrified of his own shadow. Would stand and shake with nerves when you approached the stable. Headshy. Ok ish with front feet being touched...had front shoes on but no hinds. When grooming you got near his flank and he'd turn himself inside out trying to double barrel you. Totally totally dangerous. Again told he was broken and riding - poor lad barely knew how to lead in hand. 6 weeks later I had only just cured the kicking, owner asked what hes like to ride and I had to say what good is riding him when he wants to kill you - if you cant groom or handle him the riding part is immaterial! He said he didnt care about having his feet touched and sent him to england with dealers who sell on. I truly hope they continue with the handling before anything else as he would be a danger around kids if rushed, and was perfect size 2nd pony and pretty as a picture - which always attracts kids!

So lesson learned to not believe 99% of what you're told and to try and make your own investigations/judgements to discover the truth!!
 
My unprofessional guesstimate from that pic is mid teens.

Seller has offered full refund which is the right thing to do, totally up to you if you want to return the “goods” (in the eyes of the law) for the money or keep her if she is the right one for you.

I quite like older horses :), my gelding is maturing like a fine wine! Now 14, and in his absolute prime of health and training.
 
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Another agreeing with the second vet. Certainly not 6, mid teens would be a good guess. On the plus side mid-teens still means many more years and doesn't mean that you can't 'make your mark' on her. I'm currently riding a very green and hot 13-year old who was only broken at 11. She's extremely rewarding and changes every ride!
 
The independent dentist estimate of 12-15 looks to be spot on from the limited information visible in the photo. No way is that a rising 6 yr old.

If you want a younger horse, I would send this back and buy one in the UK that you can independently verify the history of, and that you can get vetted by a UK vet.

If she ticks every other box (apart from her age) then stick with her - but be aware that she has a fraudulent passport which doesn't show her correct age. Not sure what you do about correcting that!
 
Having bought an Irish horse from a guy who points at the ones he wants in a mate’s field, I am very suspicious of passports. (11 came over together) My borse’s passport was done because he was coming over here, is probably not actually his, bar the coloured bit in his passported name it’s all rubbish. I’m convinced the guy had a fistful of passports and just chucked me the nearest one.

The vet and my dentist said it’s really obvious and easy to age them when horses are young and his age was a year out from what the passport said.

I’d be really peed off if I thought I’d bought a youngster and had a teenager. Mine’s 16 next year so I can only get veteran insurance plus his joints-as a heavy-are not wearing well. I
 
Teeth are oval, not triangular, no infundibulum and dental star- I would say 13 +
Absolutely 100% not a six year old
 
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My twopence worth - I absolutely LOVE older horses, you bypass all the genetic stuff that finishes then off young and provided they are reasonably sound you will have a healthy functioning horse for years to come that is already trained and sensible and will try not to kill you! The absolute BEST horse I've ever had I bought 4 years ago at the age of 19 (her not me) who has been fighting fit and twice the horse I need for the whole time I've had her!

Can definitely understand you are peeved BUT you do have a healthy working horse that you are attached to, many owners of younger horses definitely do not have that
 
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Follysmum said:
This reminds me of when my mum bought us a pony many years ago as a 12yr old we had the farrier he said “ he can’t be 12 I have shod this pony for over 20 yrs “
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A pony I owned a lot of years ago, turned up some years after I'd sold her with a vetting saying she was 9. She was actually 21, although you'd never had known it.
 
Agree with the mid-teens estimate. I’d go for anywhere from 12-15.

Trying to put myself in that situation OP and think what I would do. I guess that if I really liked the horse and it ticked all the boxes, I would probably keep it. Might be worth trying to get some financial compensation though, although not sure how successful that would be. Only thing, as others have said, is joints and things often start showing ‘age’ issues around the mid-teen age, plus the horse is likely to have done more than you were lead to believe initially.

You can still put your own stamp on an older horse, in fact it can be really rewarding to do so.

Best wishes with whateve you decide.
 
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