Horse stuff for sale ... is it me?

[Mrs B]

(Probably) but ...

... why do people offer things for sale like saddle cloths, boots, rugs etc covered in sh*t, pee, excessive moulted hair & mud and casually add - 'Needs a good wash.'

Well, (FFS) wash it, Dear Liza! THEN I'll consider paying a reasonable price for it.

PS I understand the argument about not always washing rugs as some don't in case it compromises the waterproofing but still ...

 

[HorseMaid]

I agree, I see lots of "yard clearout" posts where there's a box of old tatty bridle pieces that haven't seen oil for a decade and girths with rusty buckles, plus saddles from the 1960s that "need a reflock" - just take it to the tip!!

 

[smolmaus]

I spent last Friday going through a pile of rugs that had been donated to the sanctuary. Guess how many were washed ?? We dont have the facilities to wash 50 of them before they go up for sale so they'll get a decent chunk of cash knocked off for the hassle.

I would much rather buy a clean rug with "needs reproofed", just on principle.

 

[meleeka]

I recently spent a silly amount of time washing things to sell at a boot sale. The last one I did I sold a mixture of clean and dirty items. For £1 or £2 I didn’t bother going to the effort of cleaning, but for items of £10 or above I did. I certainly wouldn’t expect to get the same price for a dirty item, but just had so much stuff to sell, it was impossible to clean everything.

 

[Barton Bounty]

I would never sell anything dirty ?

 

[Equi]

This is why I have two rooms full of old stuff I can’t be bothered to wash and sell ?

 

[Mrs B]

I recently spent a silly amount of time washing things to sell at a boot sale. The last one I did I sold a mixture of clean and dirty items. For £1 or £2 I didn’t bother going to the effort of cleaning, but for items of £10 or above I did. I certainly wouldn’t expect to get the same price for a dirty item, but just had so much stuff to sell, it was impossible to clean everything.

Boot sale, I agree. What you see is what you get.
But online when you are buying unseen and for more than a tenner?

 

[Poingsettia]

Or the phrase, slight rip / loose button / missing buckle - easily fixed. Well if it’s so easy why not do it?

 

[TheChestnutThing]

I bought fetlock boots that were so dirty on ebay that I sent them back! It takes 1 second to chuck them in the dishwasher or washing machine.

 

[tda]

I started sorting stuff out to sell, realised how much of the the leatherwork actually needed cleaning , so it's all back on the shelf for now

 

[SussexbytheXmasTree]

Smaller items are easy to wash but when it comes to rugs that need specialist cleaning or are too heavy for a domestic washing machine then you can’t get your money back on the cost of cleaning especially on cheaper makes. In terms of mending some people are a dab hand at it or have the right heavy duty equipment to make a decent repair whereas I don’t.

Having said that I can’t stand the hassle of selling anything so have tonnes of stuff I should get rid of but haven’t got around to advertising.

 

[Crazy_cat_lady]

Exactly it's grim, why would I want to have to wash someone else's horses s**t and p*** off a rug??? Would make me not buy, especially as washing them isn't cheap. It must stink too

I've given up horses but when I sold everything, it was all clean I had the rugs professionally washed and reproofed before listing as well

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

I won't buy any second hand stuff thats dirty and I wouldn't sell it dirty either I really don't get it when people do it.

 

[Abacus]

I also can't be bothered either to prepare stuff to sell, or sell older stuff for a few pounds a time. It amazed me when people list things like plain plastic buckets for $1. (sorry, spanish keyboard, it only has $!).

 

[fidleyspromise]

It wouldn't bother me buying something dirty/needing fixed if I had the know how.
As long as its stated in the ad if online selling and a little cheaper for the inconvenience then sure.

 

[SilverLinings]

I wouldn't buy something dirty online as the amount of dirt on horse stuff can hide the actual condition of the item quite effectively. I also can't tell if it's just dirty or absolutely stinking. I have bought unwashed items from car boot sales though, as I could check them over and see what the dirt might be hiding (I clean them before use though).

I wash/clean everything I sell; despite selling quite a bit via ebay I have never actually needed to sell a turnout rug, so that might be a different issue, it might depend whether I'd make the cleaning costs back in the sale or not if it wouldn't fit in my washing machine.

I have noticed that on ebay my items have tended to sell quicker and for more money than dirty ones, but that is just my observation not proper research!

 

[little_critter]

Or the phrase, slight rip / loose button / missing buckle - easily fixed. Well if it’s so easy why not do it?

I was annoyed the other year, I was selling rugs, one had a sizeable hole in it which I made sure to clearly photograph and priced accordingly (it was a stable rug so no need to be waterproof).
Someone offered to buy all the rugs ‘for her mare’.
Within a couple of days they were back up for sale, for more money and with the hole ‘hidden’ ?

 

[criso]

I clean everything except some turnout rugs. It costs £18 to get a rug washed and reproofed so you have to be sure you'll get your money back.

I've got one at the moment, LW Rhino too big for current horse. It's not had a lot of use, it's not filthy, I've brushed off the mud I could and the inside is OK. It won't do the proofing any good to get it washed and while it's an expensive rug, if you price anything over £20, you get people saying they can get a new rug for that.

But that's the exception, I clean before putting the photos up.

 

[Lady Jane]

I clean everything except some turnout rugs. It costs £18 to get a rug washed and reproofed so you have to be sure you'll get your money back.

I've got one at the moment, LW Rhino too big for current horse. It's not had a lot of use, it's not filthy, I've brushed off the mud I could and the inside is OK. It won't do the proofing any good to get it washed and while it's an expensive rug, if you price anything over £20, you get people saying they can get a new rug for that.

But that's the exception, I clean before putting the photos up.

Not sure where you are in Herts but that's expensive to get a turnout cleaned/proofed

 

[Lady Jane]

I wouldn't buy anything dirty. You can't see the condition properly

 

[criso]

Not sure where you are in Herts but that's expensive to get a turnout cleaned/proofed

I could give you about 4 mobile rug places and 2 tack shops that charge about that, some a little more, some less. One even charges separately for a detachable neck!

I had a quick Google and some are charging £20 £21

Even TC which is usually cheap is £16.99 for a wash and reproof and £9.99 for fly rugs and £8.99 for stable sheets

That's this year's prices, everyone's put their prices up at least £2 since last.

My preferred s the cheaper end at £17 for a wash and reproof, £10 for wash only and £7 for fly sheets, coolers, summer sheets but I need to have at least 5 for a pick up.

 

[silv]

I won't buy any second hand stuff thats dirty and I wouldn't sell it dirty either I really don't get it when people do it.

Absolutely this, I just don't get it. I have also seen horse trailers for sale that are filthy and need a good clean, don't understand that either.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

I went to a equine table top sale once and someone had a pile of about 20 turnout rugs, they were so muddy and old you couldn't even see the colour of them and obviously expected people to buy them.

They needed to be chucked on a bonfire.

 

[little_critter]

I can understand not washing turnout rugs before selling. If it costs £18-£20 to get the rug washed and a run of the mill second hand rug can be sold for £25-£30 (clean) or £20-£25 (dirty) then washing the rug seriously eats into your profit.

 

[jnb]

I do sell used/not washed rugs but, as my field isn't muddy and my cob rarely plasters anything in mud they're usually relatively clean anyway.
#I always advertise with a stock photo AND a photo of my rug both on my cob and off him and offer to clean it/reproof for an extra £15 if the buyer wants me to, they rarely do.
I buy a new rug & sell the old one, usually for just over half the price of a new one and someone gets a quality barely used rug and my cob gets a new one for less money, win win

 

[SheriffTruman]

I do prefer my second-hand turnout rugs to be unwashed. Makes me sure the waterproofing isn't compromised. For tack, and numnahs it really depends on the price. If it's a bargain, I'll gladly clean and oil it myself.

 

[Kaylum]

Our charity runs a recycling scheme for dirty old ripped rugs saves them going to landfill.

 

[Glitter's fun]

"Picture doesn't do it justice"
Er, take another?

 

[KittenInTheTree]

What annoys me are the ones who list something for sale on ebay, but who won't post the item, instead the buyer has to collect it. Why don't they list it on their local selling groups instead? Why clutter up the listings on ebay with stuff that only people living locally to you are at all likely to buy? I can understand not posting if it's something like a trailer or a very expensive saddle, but not when they're just selling numnahs, rugs, etc.

 

[SilverLinings]

"Picture doesn't do it justice"
Er, take another?

Or describe in the listing exactly why it doesn't do it justice, e.g. you can't tell the texture or weight of the item from the picture. That comment does usually seem to be on ads with just cr@p photos though

Some sellers seem to think they are doing the rest of us a massive favour by selling their cast-offs, and that they can hardly be expected to put any effort into it.*

* for the sake of fairness, I've come across some pretty demanding potential buyers too.