If you were offered 25K for your horse - would you take it?

[BBP]

I didn't buy a horse to make money. I have a roof over my head and food on my table, anything above that is a luxury I don't need. He is the most important thing in my life, makes me smile every day, and yes, another horse might do the same thing, but he is my friend and my family, I couldn't sell him any more than I could sell my sister or my cat (partly cos no-one would want any of them!)

 

[Honey08]

After months of being nagged to go competing by my instructor, then being nagged to let him compete said horse.... and the being told that he was worth his weight in gold, and he would buy him like a shot..... and I said jokingly you can have him for £30k and he said - £25k and I went red, and all hot and bothered and laughed it off.....

but now..... I dont want to go for my lessons anymore... I just feel so much pressure - I have brought him on myself - how I have no idea - I am not a good rider by any means, its the little lad he does everything for you - ok he is a bit of a handful and you have to channel his energy the right way otherwise it goes pear shaped big style, but somehow all the enjoyment has gone.

A - I feel over horsed - and now a crap rider
B - I feel like he is being wasted
C - I feel like my instructor - love him to bits - will get fed up with me
D - its to much money to offer for him - and maybe its because its all to easy I dont appreciate him
E - I only think he is as good with me as he is, because of every day of hell we had for 2 years when I never thought he would be ridden as he appeard to have a death wish at the time

GW

I had a XC instructor (pro eventer) ask if I would sell my horse on a training clinic many years ago. I felt the same as you in a lot of ways, felt like I wasn't good enough (I only ever did BE90/100 with her) and that she would go a lot further with him. This instructor was lovely, and said to me, don't worry about it, the horse will have a much nicer life with you than she would with me.. And he was right, we played at affiliated competitions, she got to live at home, out in the fields, get muddy, hack, do lower level stuff, and not live in a busy, regimented competition yard and be pushed and pushed.. She is still with me as she enters her veteran years. The instructor was killed competing a couple of years later, so who knows where she would have ended up anyway.

 

[Ladyinred]

Many years ago I worked with show hunters and at HOYS, after winning the class, my boss was approached by a lady asking what he would sell the horse for. He replied 'Madam you do not have enough money to buy this horse!' (meaning he wasn't for sale at any cost) Turned out said lady was representing HRH!! Lucky he wasn't sent to the Tower.. oh and he kept the horse!

 

[Charem]

When I have project ponies - goes without saying seeing as I tend to buy them from sales for a couple hundred pounds at the most!

With my own boy though it's different. He's been with me since I was 14. Once upon a time he was a pretty nifty jumper and would have done well as a BS horse. However he taught me everything I know, put up with my mistakes and has been my shoulder to cry on through the ineviatable difficult teenage years, boy friends, work ect. He owes me nothing and has a home for life. I suppose the one upside to his injury is that I will never be offered big money for him and so will never be put in that position.

 

[DGeventing]

The 7 I have in for sale I would accept it in a heartbeat.

My mad mare (the one I was told would be PTS if she couldn't find a home quickly) I'd be tempted. One the one hand, money would be great, but on the other she's a tricky little devil with an awful lot of potential - even with her issues, I wholeheartedly believe she could be worth more in the future.

Willy, well he's pretty much here for life. He's given me so much, and if he comes right (all signs are positive for now!) he could be worth more to a junior eventer, or as a school master.

And Cody, our first family pony (despite only being 4 and with a wicked buck! responsible parenting at its finest!) will be with us til his final day. I've retired him from affiliated competition, but he's still used as a lesson horse, and in baby competitions. Now he's the best (although I can't let Wils hear that) little pony in the world, beloved by all who have ever known him!

 

[EquestrianFairy]

If you were given an offer of 25k for your horse that had HUGE potential and you were not competative - would you let him/her go for it?

Just wondering

GW

Yes.

 

[ebonyallen]

My girl gave me my life back, whern I thought there was no point in going on. You can not put a price on that, so no is my answer.

 

[Flowers187]

Never in a million years. Broke my heart selling my youngster, and Zigs was my first horse and has potential to go alot further, but we are still figuring it all out 5 years later Horses dont have ambitions, they are usually more happy surrounded by other horses caked in mud in a field than being pushed at the top.

 

[McW]

No, not right now. Mainly because the idea of horse shopping for another fills me with dread.

 

[Dukey]

Was offer a very large sum of money for my horse after he was on 'Only fools on horses' we said no. My Dad and OH went mad

 

[luckyoldme]

without a doubt, they could have all the tack , rugs and extravagant extras that he does nt need too.
bye bye horse hello australia!

 

[Zimzim]

I wouldnt sell either of mine, no matter how much money someone offered me. They're part of the family and I enjoy having them both, even when theyre driving me mad!

 

[Bojingles]

Yeah, great, wheel her off! So long as she went to a slightly special needs nursing home, didn't have to do much work and had her slightly unusual needs catered for (constant hugs and scratches, really all the time, very friendly field mates who wouldn't bully her for being a bit simple). Oh hang on, who would pay 25k for that? P'raps I'll keep her...

 

[Bunchy]

Definitely if the horse was going to fulfil its potential I would feel I owe it to the horse I guess!!!

 

[maccachic]

Definitely if the horse was going to fulfil its potential I would feel I owe it to the horse I guess!!!

This I don't understand a horse doesn't have dreams of doing grand prix, so long as they are well looked after I don't believe a horse can be wasted.

I may or a I may not sell mine personally if it was a lovely home where he would get well cared for and have fun without being pushed too much then probably, I wouldn't want him out doing big levels too much stress on his body and not a lot of fun for him, esp when faced with $$ the horses welfare gets a lower priorty in my experience.

 

[Potato!]

Yes I would. It's a lot of money and an amount that could set me up and give me a more secure future

 

[Caol Ila]

25K, I don't know, but after I saw what Uthopia and Valegro were going for, I told my horse that if she were worth £6 million, she wouldn't be in my barn for long! So she should count herself lucky.

 

[RutlandH2O]

I was offered a considerable sum (5 figures) for one of my mares. I told the person making the offer that they could add two or three more zeros to the price and she would still not be for sale. For that matter, none of my horses are for sale at any price.

 

[midnight mayhem]

Never, because 25k would not last as long as the misery I would feel missing her..unless there's a loophole in which I could receive that money if horse were to change ownership to OH/mother/sister etc ;-) lol

 

[angelish]

depends on who was buying said horse

this actually happened to my friend ,she has a lovely event type mare that is well bred ,she came across her through a novice rider who was finding her a bit much and got her fairly cheap

she took her to a clinic where the instructor made her an offer
she turned the offer down and is eventing her herself ,said horse could make dreams come true and she could never get another one like her and obviously there is the option to breed in the future

there is a current thread running about how attractive "offer maker" is

 

[emma.is]

right now I would and buy myself a good schoolmaster.

 

[You Wont Forget Me]

With my current horse i wouldn't let him go for all the money in the world! Far too attached to him
But usually i'd say yes to that lol

 

[madmare22]

well no for some and yes for others, having just refused double for a 3 year old unbroken filly by a well well known rider. However i do take great pleasure in reading the offer, i do have it in writing, it does make me smile

 

[Jenni_]

My best (horsey) friend has recently been offered a 6 figure sum for her dressage mare by a VERY well known name.When she declined, they tripled the offer + 50k to buy her after her first Grand Prix. Friend declined again.

Needless to say her fiancé is NOT talking to her still, but she loves that mare and says she's the best horse she's ever had, and doesn't want to risk never finding one as good as her.

 

[*Maddy&Occhi*]

I think it's hard to say when you're not the one in that position. It's easy for others to say no (including me) but if that amount of money were being offered I think I would find it hard to refuse. No matter how much I loved my horses that amount of money could change my life....Go with your gut instinct!

 

[Florrie]

No, the work I have put in with my horse and the bond we both have is priceless.
I'll never find another horse like him in a million years.

 

[Gingerwitch]

well no for some and yes for others, having just refused double for a 3 year old unbroken filly by a well well known rider. However i do take great pleasure in reading the offer, i do have it in writing, it does make me smile

Are you going to frame it and hang it up in your loo ?

 

[lme]

No, she's the last foal from my 32yo who I've owned since she was 4 & therefore priceless to me. Not that anyone is ever likely to make a silly offer for an opinionated chestnut mare. I'm rubbish @ selling anyway. The last horse I sold (many years ago) was to my trainer (who adored him) for 50% of an offer I'd turned down.