How did you find/ end up with your horse?

My friend had an Arab stallion. He was just the most wonderful, intelligent, kind, beautiful horse I have ever known, and all I wanted was one of his offspring, but she didn't really use him for breeding very much.
One summer she was offered free grazing from a farmer with an unregistered Welsh brood mare, she had free grazing all summer, the farmer had a free covering for his mare. My boy was the result, and I wanted him even before he was born! I saw him at 2 weeks old, and knew everything that happened to him from then, and when I heard he was up for sale as a yearling, I just went for it, it was a foregone conclusion.
He is now 18, and will be with me until the end.
 
Got my first horse at 13, after years of nagging my parents and being disappointed I turned to my dad one day and said "I am putting an ad in the Farmers Guardian for a horse on loan - and you can't stop me"!!!
Luckily he gave in and I got Alfie, 16hh TBx complete schoolmaster (**read knows every trick in the book**)!! and he taught me so much, and dropped me on my head many times :o, but I still saved all my money earnt pot washing to buy him 12 months later!
When Alfie was PTS 6 years ago, I had a break and got back into it with Rocky (pictured) I phoned the seller about another youngster she was advertising, but it had been sold, she mentioned Rocky, he was younger than I was looking for, but such a wonderful temperament and cute face, I fell in love, fingers crossed he will be my next forever pony :)
 
WOW!! Some really lovely stories on here and thanks for posting. I think sometimes it is just fate that we stumble across them when we are not even looking.

Keep them coming! xx
 
My first horse, he was from the riding school at the yard I rode and helped at, my sister loved him and rode him all the time (I'd never ridden him as he was 16.3 and I was too small and not experienced enough at the time). He came up for sale as he was not behaving very appropriately for the riding school :rolleyes: and as my sis loved him, my mum agreed with the RI and with my sis to buy him, as long as me and sis would share. I didn't find out we were getting him, or even ride him, until we'd bought him :rolleyes: Then my sis gave up a year or so later, and I suddenly had a horse to ride who was still too big for me and who I basically did not enjoy riding...
Next horse was a loan for just under a year, from an event yard I'd been helping out at- rode him out to exercise, really liked him, found he was for sale, begged my parents to buy him, arranged a long-term loan WVTB (very very kind of the owner to do this- she had a very soft spot for him, but knew he was not easy, and persuaded me that it was best to loan first so we could get to know each other before I made any decisions). I am very glad we did this, as he turned out to be not the horse for me as, despite teaching me lots, he had a napping issue which I was not experienced enough to deal with.
Current horse....conventional route- saw on Horsemart (private seller), went to see him twice, and then to see him vetted..he passed the vetting and we took him home the same day :) I didn't really get 'the feeling' the first time we saw him, and didn't think he was anything special, but went back to see him a second time, take him for a little hack, over some XC jumps, SJs in a field- and was so glad I did as he was fab!!
 
I was at school one morning and a boy in my class came over and asked if I rode horses. When I said yes, he said his mum was looking for somebody to exercise a couple of her "rescue horses" if I was interested. Got in contact with her and arranged to go and meet her. Turned out I had a choice of an arab mare, who was obviously quite well liked, or a cob mare who was looking very depressed and uncared for the other side of the yard on her own. As soon as I walked on the yard she caught my eye, and as much as the woman tried to get me to take on the arab, I knew the cob needed me more. She was so headshy her bridle had to be took to pieces to get it on her, and she would throw herself onto her knees if you tried touching her front legs, her mane and tail was a mass of knots.
Intially, all I had to do was turn up and ride whenever I wanted. Over time, started taking on more responsibilites with her, and a couple of years later the woman asked if we wanted to adopt her properly. Of course jumped at the chance. 10 years after our first meeting, she is a confident, happy horse who is only to headshy when i'm trying to get the mud out of her ears! She has done so much for me, and I can only hope I've done as much for her.
 
Aaah, there are some really lovely stories on here. :)

I've had my horse for 15 months now, and he kind of fell into my lap. I had only re-started riding lessons 5 months ago after a long break, and I was a nervous, unfit, unbalanced, terrible rider! I was working at the RS and riding whenever and whatever I was allowed to, but there were only a few horses there that I could ride as I was too big for the ponies. When my boss said she was buying a nice big cob for the RS I immediately said "I'll loan it!", so I actually arranged it all without ever seeing the horse. The first time I saw him when he came off the trailer I thought he was adorable, and he was so quiet and well-behaved, took the change of scenery completely in his stride. I was petrified the first time I rode him and had to be led round on the lead rein, but over the next few months he gave me my first canter outside of the school, my first rosette, my first jump, my first clear round, my first trophy...! I bought him after I'd been loaning him for a few months because I have never felt so safe on a horse in my life, and I'm never going to be parted from him!
 
I had started looking for a youngster to bring on and compete in dressage... I told my YO I was looking for a black gelding with white socks and blaze if possible... She bought in a gelding who was black, white socks and blaze and I fell in love with the bay mare who she bought at the same time.... 5 months later she was mine :) I don't know to this day what it was but there was something really quite wonderful about her x
 
got my boy form a rather boring advert on horsemart with no ridden photos. The lady that came with me said he was to green and I could get more for my money but I had already put a deposit down without telling her. He was a bit slow off the leg (hadnt cantered for 3 months at least), had been out of work for a few months and she was a bit vauge about what she had done with him. But he is now my horse of a lifetime and has changed so much in the last 6 months I cant wait for the summer with him so watch out for all the updates :D
 
Was looking for a horse, had tried several and they just weren't right. Came home from school one day and my sister said she'd spotted a lovely IDxcob mare that had just gone up and had rung up about her. We went to see her the next day, she was everything we didnt want in a horse, a grey, a cob type and a mare. But she was perfect. She was a little green but she just tried her heart out and we really clicked. The vetting was organised for the following week (bank holiday got in the way otherwise it would have been the day after haha) and she came home the day after her vetting and life has never been the same since :D We have had, and still are having ups and downs, but she is totally amazing, shes one in a million! :)
 
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