How much would you pay for this pony?

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HaffiesRock

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I have been out of the buying game for 7 years so have no idea what the prices for ponies are currently.

I was not looking but have happened upon a pony who is 100% what I am looking for and is for sale. However, the owner has asked me what I would be willing to pay for the pony. I have responded honestly by saying I have no idea as it has come out of the blue, so thought I would ask on here.

Pony is approx 14hh (i've been told 14.2hh but she absolutely is not), Welsh Cob aged 9 years old. Has been a broodmare most of her life and had her last foal weaned about 2 months ago. She was lightly backed before her last foal was born and in the last few weeks has done some quiet hacking and a little clear round jumping show (30cm and 40cm I believe). She appears very honest and I hacked her last week and she was great. Walked out confidently, lead the whole way, great in traffic and walked, all be it enthusiastically, through an open field. A couple of very minor spooks but overall felt safe.

She is in need of some weight and muscle post foal but was such a sweet pony. Was mostly easy to catch (walked away briefly but then stood to be caught), walked in nicely, stood quietly to be groomed and tacked up and for mounting.

There was some head shaking when riding (vertically) so I want to know more about that. She had teeth done last month and is currently in a straight bar rubber snaffle. There were a lot of flies about too but its something I want more info on for definite.

She needs a physio and a saddle fitting prior to any real work. The owner was planning to sort her out with physio and bring her on before selling but I think Id want her as a blank canvas.

She is barefoot and sound and up to date with everything.

Any thoughts on her value? Also any considerations I need to make as she's an ex broodmare? One thought I have is that she may be more forward once at a better weight and fitness and she may become more pony than I am wanting. I also need to find out why she was a broodmare for so long instead of a ridden pony as I have been burned by one like this before (pelvic issues that turned into random broncing once back in ridden work).

Any advice much appreciated and I also appreciate putting a value on a pony from my brief description is a 'how long is a piece of string' scenario!

Thank you in advance for any responses.
 
I have no idea about value I'm afraid but I thought, like you, that she may be even more enthusiastic in the open field when she is fitter. Although my priority when buying a horse is always 'how does it behave in traffic?' And it sounds as if this one would pass my test. I hope it works out for you.
 
Has the owner asked for an amount?
Is there any particular reason she went straight into being a broodmare after being backed?
 
So the owner bought her from a stud with the intention to back and sell on last year. She started the process last spring then it became apparent she was in foal again. She was lightly hacked over summer and then turned away with other broodmares to foal.

A full loan first would be what I’d ask for as I’m just so scared to make a mistake!
 
Absolutely I would agree a price prior to taking her on loan. It could all well be a non starter if she is asking way too much. I can see potential but equally don't want to pay for something that isn't a given.
 
nutjob said:
I wouldn't knowingly buy another headshaker so this would be something I'd look into before going ahead whatever the price. There are so many causes and it's often untreatable, can cause the horse a lot of distress and typically gets worse.
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The head shaking does concern me so would have to look further into it. She only did it whilst ridden and not at all whilst led, tied up, groomed etc and I didn't notice it whilst watching her in the field either.


Jenko109 said:
Maybe £2000. Perhaps £2500 at a push.

Unless she is particularly flashy...
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£2k was what I was thinking but I am pretty certain this will offend her so waiting to hear back. She is currently away so dont expect a response anytime soon.
 
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I thought £2000 or thereabouts. I think if she is a a head shaker, they wouldn’t be selling her now when the pollen has just gone crazy, unless they don’t realise she has it….
Lwvtb sounds like a very sensible options
 
The owner is a local horsey business woman and my partners daughter loans a pony from her and has for many years. So I trust that she wouldn't purposely sell me something with issues. I guess it is just a waiting game now on when she gets back to me with a price. My partner is on board with everything and his daughter has ridden the pony a few times and he likes her too. If the pony did get a bit forward for what I want then I am sure his daughter would bite my hand off for her!
 
nutjob said:
I wouldn't knowingly buy another headshaker so this would be something I'd look into before going ahead whatever the price. There are so many causes and it's often untreatable, can cause the horse a lot of distress and typically gets worse.
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if shes a head shaker walk don't run. Otherwise 3k is lower end of what I see advertised for this sort of pony. I'd offer 2.5k. Can you find out what she paid?
 
I think, £1500 tops because its hasn't really done anything ridden, will it stand work, and what is it worth as a brood mare? I would be looking through google for old ads, placings and progeny.
 
St Mark's flies are out atm and one of mine is shaking his head because they annoy him
He doesn't do it at any other time of the year
 
Flies will make any horse fling their head about. Welshies can be a handful when fit and well. Good that she’s traffic safe. Is she very thin? If she’s poor she can’t really be expecting a lot of money for her. Worming and some good grass and she could well be fabulous.
 
pistolpete said:
Flies will make any horse fling their head about. Welshies can be a handful when fit and well. Good that she’s traffic safe. Is she very thin? If she’s poor she can’t really be expecting a lot of money for her. Worming and some good grass and she could well be fabulous.
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She isn't terribly poor. I would say it is more a lack of muscle than anything. She is currently in a field with little grass and is being supplemented with hay, so no Dr green so to speak.
 
I'd definitely want at least one more ride to test the head shaking. If it's just a fly then that's ok if it isn't then it's not. I'd want to try all paces and see how mare loads and travels too. If all is good then I'd offer 2k max pending her passing a five stage vetting.
 
If the pony is nicely bred and suitable for showing then she might be worth quite a bit ….have you had a look at her passport and is she registered with a breed society?
 
If pollen related headshaking then value vastly reduces but it is controllable in my experience. I wouldn’t touch something that was head shaking with no known cause. Allergy meds and a nose net are one thing - nerve pain etc quite another!
 
Bringing her head up and down could be down to anything. Anticipation or excitement, something about the tack bugging her, bridle possibly sitting on nerves, flies…
Mine does it when his martingale isn’t on a clip and is looped through the girth. Took me a while to realise that it’s obviously uncomfortable for him like that! Of course it’s good to look into a cause, but it doesn’t have to spell disaster :)
 
Chuck some good fly spray on her before you try her again. Something with neem oil (with the owners permission). That will pretty much eliminate that as a cause. And if the small of amount of flies that ignore neem oil still cause her to headshake, you wouldn’t want her anyway.
 
There's a couple on the first page of Dragon Driving, one in particular sounds very similar to your situation. One is £2,800, the other £3,450.
 
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