Horse Swap - any ideas?

victoriaocarroll

victoriaocarroll

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Hi All

So after much heartache I'm considering swapping my horse. I adore him to bits but I think he needs someone that can be a lot firmer with him and not let him away with being naughty.

He has competed to elementary dressage and is by Runin Star N (Rubinstein) so has all the ingredients to be a great dressage horse but unfortunately he's been napping really badly and has had me off a few times.

He's 10 at the moment so it's not that he's being a youngster, I've had all the necessary checks and had him vetted and he's on the plainest of plain feeds. He's just being naughty and trying to evade work.

Does anyone know anyone that would be interested in a horse swap? He's 16.1hh....photo below!

Thank you
A very sad Victoria

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Swapping is not really an easy answer most likely a dealer will but they will give very little for your horse, unlikely a straight swap, they may not have one you really want so you could be worse off and out of pocket.

Try to sell privately, if you can get him professionally schooled for a while he may be able to stay with you or find a new home more easily.
 
You can only try, but my boy has been uppety with me, so a a BHSAII comes and rides him for me every week at the moment, he is coming round to her way of thinking, but if you have lost your nerve you will also need lessons to boost your confidence.
Most horse do better with more work, and also if out 24/7
I considered horse swap, but only got people trying to get rid of horses who needed loads of time and work, and they also wanted me to pay for these "potentials"
Could you advertise for someone to compete him, then they would have to sort him out for you!
 
Thanks everyone. To be honest, it's not me who has lost my nerve. We're stabled close to London and with London livery prices it's expenisve so have had to get a sharer but I can't keep a sharer because he's so so naughty and they loose their nerve, which is understandable.

I suppose I could look at sending him away to be taught some manners, my main worry is that he's so old now that the old adage "you can't teach an old dog new tricks" will apply to him and I will have spent even more money on him.

I really wanted to compete on him this summer but I can't have him out at competitions because he just has no concept of his surroundings, he napped so badly yesterday he nearly backed into barbed wire and I'm just worried that he's actually a danger to me and people around us.

If anyone has any suggestions for good trainers close to London though, I'd consider that....

If only I was a millionaire, we'd be sorted in a flash!!!
 
Miss L Toe said:
You can only try, but my boy has been uppety with me, so a a BHSAII comes and rides him for me every week at the moment, he is coming round to her way of thinking, but if you have lost your nerve you will also need lessons to boost your confidence.
Most horse do better with more work, and also if out 24/7
I considered horse swap, but only got people trying to get rid of horses who needed loads of time and work, and they also wanted me to pay for these "potentials"
Could you advertise for someone to compete him, then they would have to sort him out for you!
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Oh, and thanks Miss L Toe, unfortunately living in London the turn out is really rubbish so we only get 2 hours a day. I do think he would benefit from more turn out and have looked at other yards but there are a lot of knowledgable people at my yard so would rather be surrounded by them for now.
 
10 too old??? goos god better write off my 14 yr old who is going through reschooling!!!!! I very much doubt you will find someone to swap given her current issues, either you will have to sell for very little or send her for reschooling of some sort I would have thaught?
 
Sounds like he would be a different horse with more turnout.
Have you considered moving him further out on full livery and seeing if 10 -24 hours turnout a day sorts him out?
 
s4sugar said:
Sounds like he would be a different horse with more turnout.
Have you considered moving him further out on full livery and seeing if 10 -24 hours turnout a day sorts him out?
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Yep, I have. At the moment I'm driving almost an hour and a half up to the yard we're at because it has such great facilities, apart from the turn out, including a trainer on the yard (I live in Battersea in London so it's a drive to any yard regardless!). So further away would be really tough. There is a yard opening nearby in the summer and they have daylight hours turnout so I am hoping to move him there if he's still with me.

At the moment it's just a lot of heart ache, every single day and I think he might be better with someone who has the time and money to help him with his problems. Maybe I'm giving up too soon but was just so devastated last night when my sharer told me she didn't want to ride him anymore because she felt he was a danger to himself and her - and she is a trained instructor!
 
Could you not full loan him out and then get a full loan for yourself? So nothing to do with a swap, just find someone to loan him for a couple of years for you, preferably at a yard with maximum turnout and then you can find yourself somethnig to enjoy and get your confidence back on?

Sounds like he just needs a firm, confident rider and more turnout.
 
SummerxStarsx said:
Could you not full loan him out and then get a full loan for yourself? So nothing to do with a swap, just find someone to loan him for a couple of years for you, preferably at a yard with maximum turnout and then you can find yourself somethnig to enjoy and get your confidence back on?

Sounds like he just needs a firm, confident rider and more turnout.
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Yeah, that does sound like an idea....I've actually just had an email from a girl who really wanted to share him and she has experience with really naughty horses so she wants to try and help him. I've told her exactly how he is, it's not just a little spook or putting the breaks on, he turns into a rodeo horse so I just worry about people's safety.

But I'm going to keep my fingers crossed that this girl can help us and I'll pay the trainer at our yard to take him out once a week.

Fingers crossed.....
 
victoriaocarroll said:
Yeah, that does sound like an idea....I've actually just had an email from a girl who really wanted to share him and she has experience with really naughty horses so she wants to try and help him. I've told her exactly how he is, it's not just a little spook or putting the breaks on, he turns into a rodeo horse so I just worry about people's safety.

But I'm going to keep my fingers crossed that this girl can help us and I'll pay the trainer at our yard to take him out once a week.

Fingers crossed.....
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Yes, I know it's expensive but may be worth paying a GOOD trainer, who specialises in dressage to school him for you a couple of times a week and see if that makes any difference.

How long have you had him, has he always been like this? Is it just in the school he does it or out too?
 
SummerxStarsx said:
Yes, I know it's expensive but may be worth paying a GOOD trainer, who specialises in dressage to school him for you a couple of times a week and see if that makes any difference.

How long have you had him, has he always been like this? Is it just in the school he does it or out too?
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We have a PSG dressage instructor at our yard so I'm going to get her to ride him once a week to see if she can put manners on him. I've found him good with me, I feel like we've had the battle and he's finally come to the conclusion that there's no point fighting me. But he still has his moments and when he has them they're really big.

I haven't had him very long, bought him at the beginning of the year and he was underweight and had no muscle because he'd been in a field for almost a year. His owner told me he just didn't have time for him but looking back he didn't ride him, the owner of the yard rode him, and I think it was because he was scared of him. There was no emotional attachment to the horse when I took him, he did seem a bit relieved so I reckon he didn't tell the truth when he sold him to me. There's not much point in me saying anything to him though because from what I gather I don't have much of a leg to stand on, even though I was told he was a placid horse.

He started it in the school but now it's more when he's hacking, although I school him and his sharer has been hacking so I think it's more of him testing new riders than anything. I'm schooling and hacking this weekend so will see how he is with me.

He might be one of those horses that just can't be ridden by more than one person....
 
Well if he's getting better with you and you are getting better at persevering at pushing him on through it then I say stick with him if poss. He looks like a lovely boy!

Yes, or just can't be ridden by 2 riders of different levels maybe? Is she as competent and firm as you? I think that's key atm, making sure he's ridden in a consistent manner.
 
SummerxStarsx said:
Well if he's getting better with you and you are getting better at persevering at pushing him on through it then I say stick with him if poss. He looks like a lovely boy!

Yes, or just can't be ridden by 2 riders of different levels maybe? Is she as competent and firm as you? I think that's key atm, making sure he's ridden in a consistent manner.
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The girl who had interest in him came up and we are very similar in our ways of training and she wants to try help me so it will take the pressure off a little bit. I just got an Equine Bowan Therapist up to check out his back / nerves / movement / saddle and she said there's nothing wrong with him although she said the saddle wasn't ideal for him so I've just bought him a new one.

I really don't want to give up so will keep going and hopefully he'll settle down! He's only been at the yard for 3 months, which is nothing really!
 
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