How do you know if a horse for sale has been sedated? Long sorry!

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charliep

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Hi all. I went with to a dealers over the weekend with a friend of mine who is looking for a little pony. She has been in touch with this particular dealer for a few months. They have been really straight with her and only invited her to come and look at ponies they think are right for her. Even when she has seen one she likes on their website, she has called them and if they think it would be unsuitable for her they have told her so over the phone rather than wasting her time. I think they are decent people and certainly don't try and palm off their horses to unsuitable owners. The pony she went to see was a 12 year old gelding who had been used from time to time in a riding school as he used to be on working livery. He was so calm and quiet. He stood there almost sleepily in the stable whilst he was tacked up. His head wasn't up in the air but wasn't really low either. He was responsive to noise and his ears moved about and he rode really well for her. Took a bit of leg to keep in trot, but once in canter he was on the right leg and kept cantering until asked to stop. We took him on a hack and trotted him up the road in REALLY heavy traffic. He was a star. My only concern is that he was SO good. I know it sounds daft but I have a loony horse who has a neck like a giraffe...always high up in the air( unless grazing). He is REALLY highly strung. I don't know whether it's just because he was so quite in comparison to mine that I suspect drugs, or whether there is such a thing as a gentle, content and settled pony! Any advice would be very welcome. x
 
Some horses really are this good in traffic..the previous mare we had would completley ignore lorries, tractors, the whole fleets of motorbikes we get around us in the summer, even when my hunter was spooking and trying to run off.
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However, it is possible that the pony had been worked really hard before you went to see it, or may have been sedated, they don't always look that sleepy.

The only way to be certain would be to have it 5 stage vetted and then if his behaviour changes after purchase the blood taken during the vetting can be tested.

Another way - although one that might make your friend a bit unpopular would be to turn up at the dealer unnanounced 'we were just passing' etc and ask if it would be at all possible to look at the pony.
Might also be worth asking around pony club DC etc if this dealer is reputable.
 
It doesn't sound like it, especially if you trusted the people selling. I tried a mare once who I think was doped. She felt a bit odd to ride - a great big 16.3 powerful chestnut TB of only 4, who the dealer said had a very novice owner previously, so I expected her to be a bit nuts but she was very quiet. It rang a warning bell when I jumped her, and she crashed through the jump a few times, and then crashed into a wheelbarrow at the side of the arena - she didn't seem to be seeing the things in front of her! I didn't go back so never really found out.

Maybe ask for a trial if worried, and get the vet to take bloods.
 
If it came from a riding school then call them for a reference, easy - bearing in mind a good riding school will hack out loads in summer therefore the ponies will be traffic proof.
My 3 year old cob was just backed when i got him ( i didnt know this) he went round a busy roundabout in leeds where 2 motorways and 2 busy a roads meet he never made a muff, so yes they do exist!
 
I agree take bloods. I bought one of mine off a dealer - only intended as a hack and something quiet for OH to learn to ride on and only had 2 stage done and no bloods. They only time she has travelled well is the journey we fetched her and looking back she seemed very quiet that day but not really knowing her and of course not being able to prove anything I cant tell for sure. Ever since though in trailer or lorry she is horrendous! I am actually scared to take her anywhere now. I keep saying I will try and get to the bottom of the problem but havent as yet. You live and learn though (PS wish I had discovered all you guys before buying lol - learnt a lot on this forum)
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Thanks for your reply. The lady at the dealers said she had just arrived and just brought him in from field. He wasn't sweated up and had two outdoor rugs on which you could tell had been on all day, so i don't think she had worked him before I arrived. All the arena lights were off and she was still unlocking doors etc. I don't know what to look for with a doped horse really. I mean would you be able to canter them around if they were doped?
 
If it's a gelding their penis will hang loose and limp most of the time if they are doped!!!!! Just a bit of useless imformation I have learnt!!!!
 
My pony is exactly how you described and there are some genuine ponies out there who have a naturally laid back nature - they normally have a price to match though. How old is the pony? Riding schools do not normally sell good ponies unless maybe the riding school is shutting down. The pony may not be doped but there may be something else wrong it instead.

The vet even commented on how quiet my pony was when vetted and he was only 5 at the time too. I asked the vet if they thought he was quiet because he was doped and he said no but I had bloods done anyway. He was not doped it is his nature and temperment.

One thing though I would say is if the pony is not fit and being kept out it could make a difference - if you are planning on keeping the pony on a different routine then he could fizz up and end up being different. This is something that is sometimes seen with dealers - horses kept out 24/7 on high fibre diets and not that fit turning into different horses when kept in and fitter!

Another thing to look out for is calmers which might not get picked up by blood tests but can have an impact.
 
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If it's a gelding their penis will hang loose and limp most of the time if they are doped!!!!! Just a bit of useless imformation I have learnt!!!!

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It definately wasn't doing that. In fact I had to check twice to make sure he wasn't a mare! I don't think he is blessed with size in this area. Not that it counts
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This sounds like my horse. She's always been a little star. When we go into the arena she wanders over to stand at X while I shut the gate and has a little yawn while waiting for me to mount up! She has even fallen asleep waiting her turn in classes at fun shows. They do exist! I agree with another poster though, horses like this come wiht a big price tag and riding schools don't let go of a good worker without a very good reason. I would defo ring them and ask why they are selling him.
 
My concern is truly genuine onies tend to be like gold dust and therefore get passed from home to home through word of mouth and only when teh ex riders feet hang below its knees....

I would take bloods.
 
Always ask if you can offer water at a viewing. One of the easiest ways to subdue a horse is to dehydrate it. They are much better behaved then. It will also not show up on testing. I always want the horse to be caught from the field to see if they are good to catch and to see if they are chilled.
 
If you are concerned then I would get the 5* vetting done and have bloods taken - weirdly, i still have a pot of Murphy's blood sitting in the cupboard 6 years after buying him, never needed to have it tested though!

Some horses really are that good though. On a good day, Murphy would do everyting you'd describe, and both of my horses will hack up main roads and not so much as flinch at any traffic (Murphy makes up for it by leaping in the air everytime we pass a gate!).
 
The first horse I bought years ago after a long break from riding was a TB mare. She was cheap, very thin and I couldnt even get her to canter without a struggle. I didnt have her vetted and think I felt sorry for her, she was also the best Id seen for the money I had to spend. She arrived and was a complete nutter, prancing all over and just on top note. I put it down to the new surroundings. Things improved very slightly but she was a loony and ended up recking my confidence. I think she was doped when I tried her. I remember the girl hitting her on her chest hard for no reason at all and there was a bucket of untouched food in the stable. I think she must have been falling asleep so the girl whacked her. They were dealers but I didnt know that before I viewed her.
Saying that I have dealt with a pony today who was a complete angel, at one point I asked the vet if she was sedated, they said no. She was so so good. All I would advise is get your friend to have the pony vetted with bloods taken.
 
Not necessarily sedated, you could be describing my horse!

On the other hand he might have been "well exercised." If I was selling a horse or pony I would make sure it had plenty of work in the days before someone came to see it, and maybe the morning too. Dealers are in business to sell horses, therefore they do everything to present them in the correct way, which includes giving them plenty of work with not much feed.
 
You can have a 2 stage vetting and still have bloods taken. I had a 2 stage on mine as i already had him on trial. The vet wanted to take bloods for his own protection as aparently its not unkown for people to have horses on loan/trial and bute them up for the vetting and claim against vet or insurance for unsoundness. Also agree its worth asking at riding school for a referance of said pony. Good luck
 
I would also think about water, many years ago sister whent to try a horse for us to share, I would have thought she had tried a different one from her and my parents description, if she hadn't been so distinctive. we decided that the mare had been kept short of water.
 
If it's a gelding their penis will hang loose and limp most of the time if they are doped!!!!! Just a bit of useless imformation I have learnt!!


I learned the same fact when I had to take photos of my pony's sarcoids (which were in a rather delicate place) to send to Liverpool!
 
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