Is this crazy?!

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Sparemare

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If you do go ahead with buying her make sure that if she doesn't work out for you the dealers will genuinely give you your money back. Far too many dealers say they will do this, but then when you return the horse offer you another horse they have on the yard instead.

Also, I never believe that horses don't mind being on their own. Their owners may think they are ok with it, but I've never known one who doesn't need company.
 
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RidingAgain

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Brilliant - thanks all for your positivity which has - of course - made me super keen. I'm going to try her out tomorrow eve and I know she may well not be what I want/need and not be as described so trying not to get too carried away. Ahem. I have found an equine vet who has branches across the area so has come recommended by someone I know but will travel to the dealer's yard if I decide to go ahead - thanks for all your advice on getting the vetting done before..

I haven't totally ruled out having her here but have decided only to do so if I can borrow a companion pony or come to an arrangement with horsey neighbours where we can share turn-out so that she isn't alone. And also only, if on chatting to them about my plans, they seem up for being on hand if I need someone wise while I get used to it. If I can't be sure she'll have company and I'll have back-up from day one then she'll go straight to the livery.

Do you mind if I update you after I view tomorrow?
 
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RidingAgain

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I did ask about this @sparemare and was told there's a specific money back period but that after that they would offer another horse/sell her on for me.
 
splashgirl45

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definately do not keep her on her own. think of it from the horses point of view, in a busy yard with lots going on and horses for company,taken away to a quiet yard that she doesnt know without the company of horses. most horses stress a bit when moved so i think you need to replicate what she has at the moment until she settles and confident with you....so for me livery is the best to start with and then eventually home but with a companion...
 
Amye

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Good look with the viewing!! Definitely keep us updated - everyone likes to hear the outcomes :) Or if you need any advice.

Make sure you get them to ride her first before you do. And if you can, try and ride her in the school and then take her out somewhere (or ask if you can go back and hack her if you can't at the first viewing!). I think you've already said that you'll be doing that anyway but it's easy to get swept up into the excitement of viewing and forget certain things! When I was looking for my first a couple of years ago I wrote down things to do/ask on a piece of paper and took it with me. I'd read it in the car before I got out so it was fresh in my mind.

Try and see the horse in all different scenario's if possible! Like being tacked up, being groomed in and out of the stable.
 
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RidingAgain

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UPDATE:
So I tried her this evening and I think I want to go for her - subject to riding her again and a vetting. She's gorgeous - very easy on the eye, friendly, well behaved to tack up and interested in me. I feel like we could have a lovely time together.

Dealer was very straightforward not sales-pitchy.

My only doubt is that she feels a little bit less oomphy than I'm used to (in days gone by I rode a thoroughbred). Not mega lazy, but just needing a lot of leg. Really perked up when I jumped her (obviously loves jumping) and when I rode her out in the field but the schooling felt like she needed pushing. However she's fat and unfit at the moment as her teenage owner hasn't been doing anything with her and part of me is pleased to have something to work on. And it feels like the best problem to have for my stage of riding at the moment and if I do grow out of her in a couple of years she'd be perfect for my daughter.

On the very positive side she felt super safe, I jumped her and even though I super rusty and was doing more than I'd done in years she totally saw me right and forgive all my errors. When we hacked she walked over all kinds of spooky things, through a field of sheep going crazy, alongside other horses trotting beside, rabbits etc and though she was interested and forward going she didn't flinch.

Wanted to add a photo but I can't work out how!
 
splashgirl45

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that sounds good, she may well liven up when she is in a new place so being a little quiet is no bad thing as this will give you extra confidence which ,in turn, willhelp her to settle. make sure you get her vetted with a vet of your choice,not the dealers...good luck
 
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She sounds lovely. I agree with arguments in favour of keeping her at livery - regardless of whether she's fine at yours, SOMETHING is bound to go wrong / you'll get The Fear that often comes with a new horse- I just think a yard with support on tap is a much better place to start. No matter how helpful your neighbours, they won't be on the spot if you need the tiny bits of help that sometimes make all the difference - someone to hold while you get on the first few times, for example. Even the most perfect horse might throw a curve ball, and it's absolutely no fun on your own, even if you have help over the hedge!
 
mynutmeg

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RidingAgain said:
UPDATE:
So I tried her this evening and I think I want to go for her - subject to riding her again and a vetting. She's gorgeous - very easy on the eye, friendly, well behaved to tack up and interested in me. I feel like we could have a lovely time together.

Dealer was very straightforward not sales-pitchy.

My only doubt is that she feels a little bit less oomphy than I'm used to (in days gone by I rode a thoroughbred). Not mega lazy, but just needing a lot of leg. Really perked up when I jumped her (obviously loves jumping) and when I rode her out in the field but the schooling felt like she needed pushing. However she's fat and unfit at the moment as her teenage owner hasn't been doing anything with her and part of me is pleased to have something to work on. And it feels like the best problem to have for my stage of riding at the moment and if I do grow out of her in a couple of years she'd be perfect for my daughter.

On the very positive side she felt super safe, I jumped her and even though I super rusty and was doing more than I'd done in years she totally saw me right and forgive all my errors. When we hacked she walked over all kinds of spooky things, through a field of sheep going crazy, alongside other horses trotting beside, rabbits etc and though she was interested and forward going she didn't flinch.

Wanted to add a photo but I can't work out how!
Click to expand...

Sounds really good - it's easy to oomph them up, much harder to quieten them down, as she gets fitter she'll get more forward and you can always tinker with feed to get more forwardness.
When you go back try and take either your instructor or an experienced friend with you for an impartial opinion on her
 
Landcruiser

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I'd definitely get her in livery first, while you get your place sorted. It's not just the companion - it's all the other stuff as well, like shelter (from flies), water to field, where will your muck heap be and go, where will you keep your tack/rugs/feed....the whole horse owning infrastucture could do with being in place before she arrives, otherwise you will end up struggling along and then probably having to bale into livery a bit down the line.
Have you checked there is space at the livery now/later? With the options (DIY/assisted/full/turnout etc) that you would want?
But definitely go for it, or you will always wonder and probably regret.
 
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RidingAgain

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So... went back today. I don't have an instructor I know well enough to persuade to spend 3 hours with me trying her out but I did take a reasonably horsey friend, who is also just good at reading situations and asking difficult questions. In short - I love her and the horsey friend did too. She's super genuine, really friendly and just wants to make sure her rider is ok. There's definitely stuff to work on but I'll enjoy that and have sent a video to the trainer I've been using who has given as much of a thumbs up as possible from looking at a video.

So next step is vetting. I'm told she's in rude health and has never had an issue with anything. She certainly looks it but we'll see.

On the livery/no-livery front, an added dimension is that the livery on our road is full whistles and bells livery or nothing - no grass/part or DIY. I definitely want to use it if I'm having her at livery as everything else is a bit far away, the facilities are so great, they are lovely and having her so close by is really important to me. It's not going to work in my life if there's 40 mins to an hour of travel involved.

BUT we have an unusually financially tight couple of months coming up (selling our holiday let so it's empty, mortgage gone up, conveyancing costs etc) and while I wouldn't be doing this if we couldn't afford it in general it would be super handy not to be paying £500 a month for a horse that's living out full-time and not eating anything but grass, when we do have turn out ourselves especially while we recover from the initial outlay on her and just get over these slightly tight couple of months.

There is a space at the livery - I've checked - and I am going to check with them tomorrow if they would consider doing a summer grass livery for me though I know that's something they explicitly say they don't do. There is another livery option at a riding school I've been going to that's much more affordable but it's 25 mins drive away which really puts it out of the picture.

I'm going to chat to my neighbours tomorrow and see whether they might be up for me turning my horse out with theirs/see if they have a companion pony etc as - just over the summer it would be so handy (and also lovely) to have her at home. I work from home - as does my husband - so we are here a lot and while I wouldn't want to do it in winter at the moment I feel like a can cope with a good doer who isn't bothered by flies. Plus, the two neighbour's mares who spend a lot of their time with their heads over our fence asking for cuddles could surely do with another friend?! ;-)

Our field is set up already with water (as it's had sheep on it) and luckily I've got good storage space for tack storage/feed etc. We've got good tree shelter in one area of the garden - a hazel thicket - and happily we have no ragwort or buttercups (well I spotted 1 on my field patrol earlier). There's already a much heap area as the previous owners stored next door's pig manure for garden usage.

I know the sensible thing is to send her to the livery, but if I can find a sensible way to make home from June-end of August work I'd like to try on the proviso that the livery yard is there, I will send her there in the autumn and that bailing out before is no shameful thing if it's not working - I can trot down there in 5 minutes if necessary and I'm going to ask them to let me know if they get other interest in the spaces so I can get in there first if possible.

So, fingers crossed for the vetting and I'm going to be spending the next few days working our logistics as thoroughly as possible, as well as thinking through/day dreaming about how I'll start to get her fitter and build our relationship.
 
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RidingAgain

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p.s.

bR5Yha
 
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If you only want your horse home for summers and not winters, then get yourself into the livery yard now before the space goes, it could be ages before another vacancy comes up. Moving to livery every winter after a summer at home will only work if you're not to fussed what yard it is, because so many people do the same thing. Don't think of it as paying £500 for grass livery. The full livery yard is averaging their costs out through the year, which is why it's only £500pcm for such a good yard. This will also be the reason why they can't do cheap grass livery over summer.
 
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Have you contacted the owner direct to ask about the pony? If she was in PC or in a riding club it would be worth contacting them to ask what they know. If the girl was in PC and the pony is so good its surprising its not been snapped up in a PC home. If its not had any problems with the vet then it may be worth asking previous owner if you could talk to the vet - shouldn't be a problem if there aren't any issues.

Just be a bit cautious .. if all is Ok then none of the above should be a problem.
 
meleeka

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Aww she does look lovely. I'm sure things will work themselves out. You may totally change your mind once she's with you, or you may not, but what a fun journey you're going to have!
 
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RidingAgain

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I did speak to the owners (well the parents). She did PC when she was first bought but not RC so they aren't very well networked there any more. Turns out that the vets I've chosen for vetting her have her on their books already (at another branch) so should be able to get a really good history for her as well.
 
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RidingAgain

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Thank you! She's really gorgeous. That's kind of how I feel and I think she and I (and my family) would get a lot from a summer spent together. If we need to change things we absolutely will but think there will still have been a value in having her head over the fence while we are out in the garden, building that relationship and being able to be really hands on with her at first. I am talking to the livery yard I like today to see what they think and whether it seems likely they will still have a space in September or if they would give me first refusal over the summer should the place look like it will be filled.
 
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gnubee

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I don't think keeping her at home for a couple of busy and time pressured months is a problem, BUT if you need the space to be at that specific livery put her in straight away.
They might offer you first refusal, but if someone already there decides to get another they aren't going to hold a place for you over that. Unless you already know this yard you are basically starting your relationship with them by asking for special favours (grass livery, hold me a stable til winter and I will only pay you for it in summer if someone else comes along) so whilst I see where you are coming from, in their position if someone else came along just wanting the stable now I would not be coming back to you before accepting their offer.
 
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