Looking for a new horse. Advice please

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Jules_F

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Hello,

I am new to the forum, I hope it is ok for me to post this here.

My husband and I are looking to buy a horse that we can share. This poses something of a problem as he is a strapping 6ft and I am a petite 5ft3.
Also, while I have been riding since I was a child my husband is a novice. He is remarkably confident and an excellent rider considering how long he has been doing it but I feel that he needs a good steady, kind, cob type.
What I am trying to find is a cob or cob x between 15 and 16 hands. Not green but not too old. I also need it to be bomb proof in traffic, willing to hack alone and a good companion for our 13.2 pony who it will be living with. It also needs to be calm and kind around children and dogs.
We are in the process of moving into a cottage with six acres. We intend to move our pony out of livery and keep him there and the new horse would be his field mate. I do not want to move our pony until we have a friend for him but money is tight so our budget is in the vicinity of £1000. Is it possible or are we dreaming?

Thanks in advance for any advice :)
 
it's not impossible, but I think you'll probably struggle to be honest. £1000 is not a lot really in terms of buying horses - but you may find something which is older (this might suit you anyway if your husband is a novice - older horses who are in good health should not be ruled out. They have a lot to offer and can teach your Oh the ropes, whilst still knowing enough about life to keep you happy too.)

Alternatively, you could try and find something to loan, or from one of the horse charities? Take a look on the Horses4homes website too as they just change a 'rehoming' fee

Good luck :-)
 
Its not impossible but be prepared to search high and low & possibly travel for it. I have exactly what you are looking for with the exception that he's 20. He was 'free to a good home' and I travelled over 300 miles to get him but just used some of my buying budget (wasn't intentionally looking for a free horse) to get him transported by a professional company. The only thing we found once home was that he naps with nervous riders but fine with experienced or confident riders.

Also I found areas / location the key too when I was searching. Randomly I found Wales (where I found my boy) had a number of low cost heavy cobs 15hh plus, whereas where I live (Surrey) I couldn't find anything under 3k at the time that fitted my wish list (a year ago). Main sites I found useful were Preloved & Facebook, it took about a month of continuous searching and wanted ad's too

Good luck, hope you find one x
 
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Thank you for your replies.

I will have a look at the horse charities. I like the idea of giving a home to a horse that really needs one. I wouldn't mind an older horse as long as they were fit and sound, my oh is a vet so he can check over anything we are considering. As it happens I am in Wales, and I have found loads of great looking cobs unfortunately at the moment they seem to be mostly around 14.2 which is just a bit small for oh. I have tried to join Facebook groups which advertise horses for sale but I might try again to see if I've missed any.

Thanks again!
 
Thank you for your replies.

I will have a look at the horse charities. I like the idea of giving a home to a horse that really needs one.
I wouldn't mind an older horse as long as they were fit and sound, my oh is a vet so he can check over anything we are considering.

As it happens I am in Wales, and I have found loads of great looking cobs unfortunately at the moment they seem to be mostly around 14.2 which is just a bit small for oh. I have tried to join Facebook groups which advertise horses for sale but I might try again to see if I've missed any.

Thanks again!
 
So £1k for a youngish, well mannered, bombproof, good for hacking, 15-16h horse that can go down or up a gear depending on who's riding it? You're dreaming, otherwise you need to knock off the "youngish" and look at veterans needing a slower life.
 
9tails said:
So £1k for a youngish, well mannered, bombproof, good for hacking, 15-16h horse that can go down or up a gear depending on who's riding it? You're dreaming, otherwise you need to knock off the "youngish" and look at veterans needing a slower life.
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Pretty much this. I'd expect to pay £1000 for a youngster needing work, not a sound, safe & sane Cobby-type who is good to do in all ways.

Depending on age you're looking at 2.5k upwards. You'd probably find what you're looking for with your budget if they're on the older side.
 
Thanks for your replies.
It may be that we need to keep our pony in livery a bit longer so we can save up for the right horse. It is just that with stamp duty/solicitor fees etc looming with house purchase we need to be watching our pennies. It is a bit of a catch 22 though as we will have to be paying full livery fees whilst owning our own land...
 
Apart from the problem of only having £1,000 to buy a safe hack you will also have to consider how your pony will react when you take his friend away to ride. Often when there are only two together they get very attached.
 
'We are in the process of moving into a cottage with six acres. We intend to move our pony out of livery and keep him there and the new horse would be his field mate. I do not want to move our pony until we have a friend for him'

Perhaps I have misunderstood, but I thought this would allow OP to move current pony out of livery and therefore save money by keeping it at home.
 
Your budget as others have said is limited for the type you are considering.
Either consider homing an older \ rescue, or look at loans.
A loan could also work out well, allowing oh to gain experience, whilst you save up for your own.
 
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I agree with other posters - I have what you're looking for but slightly smaller - he cost 2.5K with no tack and to be honest was an absolute bleeding bargain!

If I were in your lucky shoes I would bring pony home, get a mini (so cheap, sadly, these days) for company and then save a bit more for your horse. Then you also solve your problem of leaving just one in the field when working the other. xx But that's just my 'ideal world' solution. :)
 
I recently purchased a laid back 15.00" hand high heavyweight cob and he cost £3,500.00 including tack and I would suggest that this is about what that sort of horse is worth these days.
 
Thank you for all your comments.

I am now considering a little companion for Wally while we save up. There are plenty of little ponies or donkeys near me who need homes. My husband is a partner in a veterinary practice so we can take on something a little older without having to worry quite so much about vets bills! I also have a lovely friend who runs the yard that my pony is in, she is a qualified instructor and horse physio and has broken and brought on many horses. I am tempted to talk to her about buying a bit of a project which she could work on with us and bring on at her yard until we can bring it home.
Again, thank you for all your help. Im sure il be back with more questions once we move in as I have never owned land before and we will need to make it all horse friendly before we even begin!

Julia
 
Jules_F said:
Thanks for your replies.
It may be that we need to keep our pony in livery a bit longer so we can save up for the right horse. It is just that with stamp duty/solicitor fees etc looming with house purchase we need to be watching our pennies. It is a bit of a catch 22 though as we will have to be paying full livery fees whilst owning our own land...
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You can foster an RSPCA horse short term I think. My friend dropped some rugs off at Shewsbury and talked through this option with them
 
9tails said:
So £1k for a youngish, well mannered, bombproof, good for hacking, 15-16h horse that can go down or up a gear depending on who's riding it? You're dreaming, otherwise you need to knock off the "youngish" and look at veterans needing a slower life.
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Not always. My friend has just bought a highland pony, 10 years old, well schooled and bombproof. Owner sold him as he has outgrown his show class. Less than £1000........jammy gits!
 
Regandal said:
Not always. My friend has just bought a highland pony, 10 years old, well schooled and bombproof. Owner sold him as he has outgrown his show class. Less than £1000........jammy gits!
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That was really jammy. Which I had spotted that one! Agree that generally £1000 won't get what you are looking for. I would budget £3000.
 
Which part of Wales are you in? There are some Facebook groups in S.Wales I could recommend you have a look at. I'm always a bit sceptical about the ads themeselves and the type of person advertising, but I think you could probably pick up a nice horse fairly cheaply on there if you're careful and know what to look out for.

I was window shopping yesterday on here and fell in love with one, a 15.3 ISH who sounded like he would have been perfect for you - except he was nearly £5k and in N. Yorkshire!
 
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