Moving to the UK (Lakenheath) from the US (with my horse?)

[Caol Ila]

Just a general question but in quarantine who looks after the horses? Do you have to hand them over for 30 days and not see them?

If you were moving a horse from the US to the UK, it's possible to set up a quarantine facility at your own barn if you have a suitable isolation stable. I looked into doing this. It wasn't unfeasible.

For the other way, I think there are USDA quarantine facilities where you hand it over and see it on the other side, but it only applies to mares and stallions.

 

[SibeliusMB]

Just a general question but in quarantine who looks after the horses? Do you have to hand them over for 30 days and not see them?

Regarding the pre-export quarantine in the US: it depends. Many farms/yards are able to be approved through veterinarians to do quarantine onsite, if the horse can be appropriately isolated or far enough away from the main traffic on the property. All the blood tests etc are run during this quarantine time. Hypothetically speaking, if I were to bring my guy with me, I would look into this option. The farm he's at now has a couple paddocks and smaller barns where he can still get turned out daily or live outside, stay in his normal training routine, etc with little or no disruption to his current situation. I would probably move to the UK first and he would follow a month or two behind after I settled on a yard, so keeping him at home with my friend for her to train on him while I'm gone would be perfect.

There are also specialized quarantine facilities where the horse is taken care of by staff; not sure if owners are allowed to visit or not. There are some here in Lexington as there is of course the big TB breeding business which does ship worldwide. There is a 3-day quarantine for geldings coming into the US as well, but this is only to clear the blood work and whatever tests they need to run before they are released to continue to their destination.

 

[SibeliusMB]

It's a head or heart situation isn't it?

Head is sell, make some money, have a better budget to buy something over here which you either take back to the states or sell prior to leaving.

Heart is he was supposed to be a keeper, you're enjoying him, he's going well and even if it is a huge amount of money moving him about you can afford it.

If you can't run 2 on your return to the states, I'm not sure I'd loan him out for the duration of your stay but would look to sell on before you come over, you may as well capitalise on the situation, and horses being horses there's nothing to say he would still be sound and well on your return.

I'm a softy and a 1 horse owner. Horse buying is a PITA, horse owning is an expensive hobby and you want to enjoy it if you have a busy job. So for me I'd stay with the safe option and keep the one I already have, given as I like them and if I truly could afford the shipping costs.

Very much so!

chaps you bring up an excellent point and are spot on. Right now, trying to look forward two years, I estimate I would not be able to afford board/livery on two horses, and a payment on a new truck to haul a horse trailer with (large trailer = large truck = large payment!). Was just running numbers when I got home this afternoon. One horse and a truck payment is perfectly fine, but two horses is probably very unlikely (unless I win the lottery...in which case I will keep All The Things and buy you all some nice presents for being so lovely and welcoming! ). In which case, like you said, loaning him for two years is risky as his value may or may not increase, and we always risk the possibility of injury. If I were to sell him, the time is sooner rather than later. So, looks like that narrows things down to the two options: take him with at great expense (but make my heart happy), or sell and buy something nice while I'm in the UK and import that horse when I return, which makes my head and my inner (wannabe) 1.20+ jumper rider happy.

But it's so hard being a softy! When you find a good one it's hard to let them go.

 

[DabDab]

Hello, welcome to the forum, hope you like the UK ?

It's a tricky decision, if it were me I would absolutely take my horse with me, because I'm saft like that. From a purely financial perspective the cost of transport back from UK to US is irrelevant because even if you don't bring Sig over you will buy something else to transport back, so that's money you will spend whatever you do. That leaves transport from US to UK on one side of the equation and buying a suitable horse here on the other side. Would purchase of a suitable horse here be more expensive than transport of your horse across? Yes, probably about double. Therefore doing that only really makes financial sense if you also sell Sig before you go.

I've just had a quick look (I'm very out of the loop with showjumpers), and it looks like the sort of horse you would want is for sale for about £12,000 over here at the moment.

The competition scene is very easy to access in the UK. I don't know the Cambridgeshire area but I should think that for British Showjumping Association shows you will have at least 3 venues within an hour's drive. If you want livery yard recommendations then it might be worth starting a thread specifically to ask that. There are some members on here in that rough location but they might not see this thread.

Good luck, exciting times!

 

[phizz4]

I've heard a figure of 5000 pounds to ship two horses to the UK from the USA.

 

[Pippity]

Another option would be to loan out your current horse, buy something in the UK, ship it back to the US, and sell it in the US? You get something to ride while you're here, and hopefully make a bit of a profit when you sell it. (And if you know from the start that you're going to sell it, there's a chance you won't get too attached.)

Of course, this doesn't help to appease your inner 1.20+ jumper!

 

[CanteringCarrot]

I've heard a figure of 5000 pounds to ship two horses to the UK from the USA.

Please tell me where and who you heard that from. I will start shipping immediately. ? maybe for just the flight? But even then, I am not sure.

In my recent experience it is still ~£7000 per horse when you factor in almost everything. Could be a bit more depending on a few things.

My thing is, you can't go off of what someone said it cost them a few years ago, or whenever, you've got to get actual quotes from the shippers. Sure you can ballpark within a few thousand or hundred, and if you're comfortable with that, then fine.

Me? I couldn't stomach $20k to send back and forth when I would be there for 2 years. Our next move will likely be to the US, and I have one horse that I own at the moment that I bought in Spain that I may bring with me. I can sort of handle the one way. Plus the shipping price combined with his original purchase price is far less than what it would cost me to buy a horse of equivalent breed and training in the US. So there's that.

I see people do it a lot, without even blinking. To me, $20k is a lot! But it depends on the individual. I have things I am saving for to avoid loans/large loans. People have different financial goals and incomes. So hard to compare.

It just comes down to the individual. No definitive right or wrong here necessarily.

I would seriously weigh finances, my mental state, what makes me happy, and what is realistic as well as what other possibilities I would be happy with (a loan for example).

That being said I am incredibly jealous as I don't see myself getting to the UK anytime soon ?

 

[Michen]

If you've got the money to do it, follow your heart I say. I am potentially looking at a stint in Oz and it's too short a time to consider bringing one of mine over with me, plus it wouldn't be fair IMO to ask a horse to adjust to such a signficant climate change twice in his life when coming back.

But in your situation with time frames and climate I absolutely would be taking mine with me too as long as it was financially viable.

 

[Annagain]

I think I'd loan Sig, buy one here and take that one back to the US when the time came. You could then sell one of them to fund your truck purchase. Yes there's a risk in loaning Sig, but if he stays at his barn and has a decent loaner, the risk is minimised and there's a risk in everything - the one you buy here could go wrong the day before you go home. At least this way you could make an informed choice as to which horse will suit your needs best in the USA when you get back there. I imagine the travelling you have to do to find competitions of the right level combined with working full time in the military would be prohibitive so you may not want / be able to make the most of a 1.20/1.30 horse back in the states?

 

[Trouper]

Welcome to the Forum and I hope the UK turns out to be all that you are hoping it will. You really do have a head and heart dilemma, don't you!!!

On a slightly different take from others, I would be thinking about the reality of buying over here. It sometimes takes quite a time to find "the one" and I think we all know how long it takes to get to know a new horse and really gel with it. You would be doing all this on top of a new posting to another country so, to my mind, a lot of your posting time here would have passed before you really got going with a new boy. (I speak as ex-military and veteran of many moves!!!)

If you can bite on the financial bullet of bringing your boy over, then at least you would be up and running with a horse you know and the two of you can explore the UK horse scene together and fully enjoy your posting. At this stage I would not be factoring in too heavily what to do at the end of the posting as so many things can change in a couple of years and more options might be available to you then.

Good luck with whatever you decide - and, yes, do keep us up to date with whatever you decide.

 

[hobo]

I am with trouper on this it could take upwards of 6mnts and min of £10,000 probably £15000 to find the type of horse that you have requested. The only positive you would get to see a lot of the UK on your quest to find a horse! Finding the right one and getting it to past the vet is a full time job.

 

[Squeak]

Would it be possible to sell Sig once you're over here? You could loan him out initially and then see how you're getting on over here. That way all your options are still open and you can decide as you go along.

 

[McFluff]

I'm another softie. Horse would come with me or I wouldn't go. It took me a few months to find mine and a good year to really get to the point you sound like with your boy now. I wouldn't want to give that up and start again. Although I am less experienced with getting a new horse going than you are, so that will also affect what works/doesn't work for you.

But I can see the financial arguments for selling before you come, then buying here and taking that one on your next move.

 

[phizz4]

Well, for that sort of money I would loan or sell in the USA, not buy in the UK but spend the money on quality training and horse riding holidays here and in Europe. Go on riding trips in France, Spain, Italy, dressage or jumping lessons, and still have change!

 

[vhf]

Welcome!
I'll wade in with everyone else and say... loan/sell in the US depending on how much you think you will still like your horse when someone else has 'personailised' him for 2+ years - I wouldn't want to return to one that I'd started in my mould but had then gone on to someone else to finish shaping, however brilliant they were. I'd be miffed if I spent a fortune bringing him over for him to promptly do what horses do best, and go lame for the next 10 months...

I agree it could take some time to find a proper 1.20 gem over here, though not impossible and you could potentially be lucky and stumble straight onto one. You might equally be lucky and come across someone looking for a decent rider for theirs through University/pregnancy etc. You never know.

You'd stand a better chance of buying quickly if you set out to find Mr Right Now as it were, a nice horse you could have fun with whatever its talents turned out to to be. A safe and pleasant 'ordinary' horse will sell well and easily in this country when you move back even if it's not one you fancy shipping to the US. In the past I have 'done' one a year as a project, had massive fun, and not been badly out of pocket, but that's not buying stunning talented well bred warmbloods to go up the levels on... (My horse of a lifetime was from a racing yard, and an unbroken 7yo TB I 'did' was one of the most talented I've ever produced, so TBs are good in my book!)

 

[BunnyDog]

Hi Sibelius! Welcome to H&H - and of course to the UK for your future posting!

@BunnyDog on here is based in the US and exported two really lovely show jumping horses from the UK to the US, so the other way to your possible move.

Bunnydog took us all along for her horse search, which was really fascinating, but the amazing thing was the massive difference in horse values - it was jaw dropping to see how many $k’s even a nice riding club type horse would fetch in the US - about 3 times the UK price!

So, what I’m coming around to saying would be to suggest that you perhaps find a good new home for your lovely horse and sell him before you leave for your new posting. Then when you arrive here, look to buy a nice TB x horse that may have a future back in the US in hunter classes or eventing. Then when you’ve finished your posting over here, you can export your horse (and maybe a couple of other young horses!) back to the US so you can sell on one or two when you get home! ?

LOL..... Who do you think told her as the first piece of advice....

"Join the Horse & Hound Forum. Introduce yourself and explain the advice you need and why"

I swear by you all. Made my biggest life challenges seem like a cake walk. And @SibeliusMB is a fabulous person. I'm totally jealous but if she's in the UK and if COVID ever lets me travel again.... free housing and voila UK HORSEY ROAD TRIP!!!

BTW Cudo and Chad and all their fur say hi!!! They're muddy but enjoying their holiday.

Em

 

[blitznbobs]

Could you loan him out and then take a horse on loan whilst in the uk?

 

[photo_jo]

Times change and things happen, with a young horse you've not had for that long I'd be selling and then buying something here when you're settled. The market here is mad at the moment but I'm sure will settle down. It might be worth looking at a few ads and see what the sort of horse you are looking for is making. I know of a 2017 mare 16.2hh in Ireland, blood enough to event but jump to go 1.30m and beyond and gorgeous to look at but she isn't cheap!

 

[Dreckly]

Hiya. I have nothing further to add to what people are saying above, but once you make the decision bring or not, you will love the riding around here. I am a few miles away from Lakenheath but the outriding is fantastic in the forest, and we are on sand so riding all year round is lovely. You will so enjoy it. In a previous job I used to transfer lawyers from the States to the UK on 2 year cycles into our London offices and they loved it.

 

[PeterNatt]

I would bring him over here as you have already bonded with him and know him inside out and for a bit of an adventure I would ride him back home (via Alaska).

 

[LadyGascoyne]

Welcome!

I’d suggest loaning your horse in the US, with an option to give a month or two’s notice.

You could come over, see the yards in person, get a feel for the logistics and costs - things like how long it takes you to get to the yard from where you live, how much riding you’re actually going to do. You could also do some horse-shopping and get a feel for the sort of thing you could get here.

Then you could decide to have him sent over to join you, or decide to continue the loan - or even to sell, if you found the right horse here.

I’d also think about keeping him loaned out in the US and then buying something here to take back and sell. I’m sure you could get a lovely Irish horse or a nice warmblood for far less than you’d pay in the US.

 

[ILuvCowparsely]

I’m soft. If I had the money I would bring over with me and then take home again.
I would say yes they are respected as sport horses. A fair few of the top eventers are ex racers.

Me too
One of my livery horses flew their horse over from Bermuda to Chicago for quarantine then to UK.


I too am soft, and would not like to leave my horse behind for 2 years. They would stay with me

 

[Suechoccy]

Hi,
I live about 40 miles from Lakenheath. It's a nice area and very close to/bordering Thetford Forest which has several livery yards and miles and miles of off-road horse riding routes which you can ride free of charge if you have a horse. Also plenty of safe places to park a horse trailer/lorry (yards offer parking, toilet, use of water for about £10 a time).
In your position I would loan your lovely horse out first, to stay at current yard, and I would look at a horse-share in the Lakenheath area, whereby you get to ride someone's horse 2-4 times a week in return for horse and stable duties on those occasions and a small payment. That would be a good introduction to the area, to the people, the horses, etc. Do your homework carefully and find the right yard or rider or professional horseperson who needs help and you will have a wonderful time without needing to buy yourself a horse for 2 years.
Then your boy is still there for you when/if you get stationed back home, and meanwhile you've had the opportunity of many new experiences with horses in the UK and made most of your horse time here.

 

[Old school]

Would you think of popping him onto grass livery in US for your first six months overseas? Keep your options open. Could be quite a journey finding your ISH/WB horse and could take a good deal of time. If you meet some brick walls on the way, you still have your faithful buddy back home. Also, people knowing you are overseas might be more in a frame of mind to overstep a loan agreement. Personally I would not sell and then not be within easy travel distance if the sale went a bit pear shaped.

 

[mariew]

Well, for that sort of money I would loan or sell in the USA, not buy in the UK but spend the money on quality training and horse riding holidays here and in Europe. Go on riding trips in France, Spain, Italy, dressage or jumping lessons, and still have change!

Yup, I second this. Also you might be able to find a perfect share if you are lucky.

 

[SibeliusMB]

Thank you all so much for the replies, I've read everyone's inputs and I appreciate everyone taking the time to offer your thoughts! I will reply to some directly but given the amount of responses I can't reply to everyone directly and I apologise. Again, thank you for reading and helping out.

Hello, welcome to the forum, hope you like the UK ?

It's a tricky decision, if it were me I would absolutely take my horse with me, because I'm saft like that. From a purely financial perspective the cost of transport back from UK to US is irrelevant because even if you don't bring Sig over you will buy something else to transport back, so that's money you will spend whatever you do. That leaves transport from US to UK on one side of the equation and buying a suitable horse here on the other side. Would purchase of a suitable horse here be more expensive than transport of your horse across? Yes, probably about double. Therefore doing that only really makes financial sense if you also sell Sig before you go.

This is an excellent point (that the US import cost is money I'm spending anyway) and I hadn't thought of that! You and I are definitely on the same page - buying a good prospect in the UK would likely require Sig to be sold first, hence my head vs. heart dilemma.

Many of you lovely folks have suggested loaning a horse in the UK and that's certainly an option. But again, for me, if I'm coming over there I'd rather come home with a 1.20 jumper as I have absolutely no options for purchasing that type of horse in the US. As @BunnyDog can attest, those usually start around $75K over here. I do fine on my salary, but not THAT well! Financing a horse purchase seems insane to me, so buying one outright with cash would have to happen in the UK or Europe. My intent would then be to import that horse to the US and keep it for myself rather than resell. I'm a one-horse type of person (any my job doesn't allow free time for a second horse anyway), and I prefer not to flip/retrain/resell horses but rather keep long term for myself if possible. I've sold plenty of horses in my pro days and now I'm looking for a lifetime partner if I end up purchasing in the UK. Yes I've been studying some of the classifieds on H&H and other UK sites, and I'm aware of what price range I'm looking at.

 

[SibeliusMB]

I imagine the travelling you have to do to find competitions of the right level combined with working full time in the military would be prohibitive so you may not want / be able to make the most of a 1.20/1.30 horse back in the states?

Another spot on point! Another poster warned not to get too preoccupied with what might happen in the future, but right now I honestly don't know if I would have the opportunity to maximize on that 1.20 horse. It completely depends on where I get stationed upon return from the UK. I imagine if I end up in the middle of nowhere, which I'm due for since all my previous assignments have been AMAZING (therefore due for some bad luck), I might have to travel 5+ hours if not longer to really show. In my experience there usually aren't unrated a lot of (unaffiliated) competitions that have much over 1.10 in the US. Most 1.20+ competitions I've seen are rated with USEF on one level or another. You all probably aren't familiar with the uproar in the States at the moment regarding USEF and how prohibitively expensive it is to compete ($1-3K/week depending on what classes/divisions and how much help you're paying for/or not)...but I honestly can't afford much more than 2, maybe 3 rated shows a year right now. So how worthwhile will it be to buy a bigger jumper? Impossible to say. It's absolutely possible I never get the chance to get that horse to its potential. Meanwhile...Sig is a reasonably fancy all-rounder that can do the 1.10, hack out, XC school, do that dressage, etc. He won't set any discipline on fire, but he's happy to do whatever I feel up to that day.

I feel like when we really start peeling back the layers on this quandary the more interesting it gets, LOL!

Welcome to the Forum and I hope the UK turns out to be all that you are hoping it will. You really do have a head and heart dilemma, don't you!!!

On a slightly different take from others, I would be thinking about the reality of buying over here. It sometimes takes quite a time to find "the one" and I think we all know how long it takes to get to know a new horse and really gel with it. You would be doing all this on top of a new posting to another country so, to my mind, a lot of your posting time here would have passed before you really got going with a new boy. (I speak as ex-military and veteran of many moves!!!)

If you can bite on the financial bullet of bringing your boy over, then at least you would be up and running with a horse you know and the two of you can explore the UK horse scene together and fully enjoy your posting. At this stage I would not be factoring in too heavily what to do at the end of the posting as so many things can change in a couple of years and more options might be available to you then.

Good luck with whatever you decide - and, yes, do keep us up to date with whatever you decide.

Thank you so much for this. I've been spoiled with my personal horse purchases as they've all fallen in my lap, none of my "keepers" have ever come from me looking/trying horses, they just sort of popped up and worked out when I wasn't even in the market. I have horse shopped plenty and when you bring that up, I'm reminded how long it can take and how frustrating it could be, and you also have a great point of dealing with the horse finding venture on top of adjusting to a new country, culture, job, and military unit. Sig is a known entity and in the last two years where my current job has been nightmarish at times, he's been my one constant, super consistent, and I always could count on him to make me feel happy.

 

[SibeliusMB]

Would it be possible to sell Sig once you're over here? You could loan him out initially and then see how you're getting on over here. That way all your options are still open and you can decide as you go along.

If Sig were to stay in the states on either a lease/loan or to be sold, it would be done through my old friend and current trainer. She is well connected and could facilitate a loan or sale on my behalf if that's the final decision. I had him in full training livery with her for the 15 or so months I was living in Japan 2018-2019. She knows him like her own, and I would trust her as my agent if I was in the UK.

FWIW, if I were to decide to bring him, I would not ship him over when I moved. I would get settled in the UK first, visit some yards to confirm which one he would live at, and then we'd start the quarantine/import process. So he would be a month or two behind me depending how far I got with the yard search before I left the US. He might ship home a month or so early as well and go live with my friend in KY for however long while I get settled into the next stateside assignment. It's such a blessing to have my friend and her farm to act as our "home base" as we navigate this crazy world of military moves and horses! I know I can always send him to her and she'll keep him safe and sound for me.

Well, for that sort of money I would loan or sell in the USA, not buy in the UK but spend the money on quality training and horse riding holidays here and in Europe. Go on riding trips in France, Spain, Italy, dressage or jumping lessons, and still have change!

This is certainly the most financially sound suggestion so far and it's definitely tempting! I do intend to do some travel (Scotland and Ireland I am coming for you!!!), and my unit at Lakenheath offers very reasonably priced trips to the continent as well and I want to take advantage of those too as able. I would definitely do a lot more traveling/memory making without paying livery on a horse every month. But my whole life is being around horses, and that's how I stay centered, and not being at the yard regularly would slowly kill me. So this is another tough decision and what kind of experiences/memories I want to make.

Honestly, I am a HUGE SOFTIE and overly sentimental/romantic. The thought of hacking out in the UK countryside is a dream of mine too, and I'm weirdly and poetically attached to the idea of doing that on Sig and writing a very interesting chapter in our story. Did I tell you all I was a writer too? LOL

Welcome!
I'll wade in with everyone else and say... loan/sell in the US depending on how much you think you will still like your horse when someone else has 'personailised' him for 2+ years - I wouldn't want to return to one that I'd started in my mould but had then gone on to someone else to finish shaping, however brilliant they were. I'd be miffed if I spent a fortune bringing him over for him to promptly do what horses do best, and go lame for the next 10 months...

I agree it could take some time to find a proper 1.20 gem over here, though not impossible and you could potentially be lucky and stumble straight onto one. You might equally be lucky and come across someone looking for a decent rider for theirs through University/pregnancy etc. You never know.

You'd stand a better chance of buying quickly if you set out to find Mr Right Now as it were, a nice horse you could have fun with whatever its talents turned out to to be. A safe and pleasant 'ordinary' horse will sell well and easily in this country when you move back even if it's not one you fancy shipping to the US. In the past I have 'done' one a year as a project, had massive fun, and not been badly out of pocket, but that's not buying stunning talented well bred warmbloods to go up the levels on... (My horse of a lifetime was from a racing yard, and an unbroken 7yo TB I 'did' was one of the most talented I've ever produced, so TBs are good in my book!)

More really good points. So I'm extremely picky about how my horses go and how they're brought along, and getting one back after someone rides it totally differently is so frustrating to me. Sig goes as correctly as a polo-bred TB doing dressage can go, and I'm enjoying all the new buttons I'm installing on him. He's getting to that point where I think it, and he does it. Now I love my fellow Americans (ok...not after last week), but not many people who ride in our show hunter/show jumper world do much with flatwork. Very high likelihood if he were loaned out to a typical adult amateur hunter rider or a good junior rider that he'd do most of his flatting on his forehand and not connected. Fixing that after two years would be annoying at best.

I agree if he were to stay in the US on loan or sold, then a part share or a loan in the UK would work great. But my goal in the case of Sig being sold would be to come home with a higher level jumper, so a purchase would be my end goal in the UK anyway.

LOL..... Who do you think told her as the first piece of advice....

"Join the Horse & Hound Forum. Introduce yourself and explain the advice you need and why"

I swear by you all. Made my biggest life challenges seem like a cake walk. And @SibeliusMB is a fabulous person. I'm totally jealous but if she's in the UK and if COVID ever lets me travel again.... free housing and voila UK HORSEY ROAD TRIP!!!

BTW Cudo and Chad and all their fur say hi!!! They're muddy but enjoying their holiday.

Em

I am SO EXCITED! UK horsey adventures await!!! You need to come because NONE of my American counterparts at work are going to understand any of this obsession. Thank you again for the suggestion to come here because this might be the best horse forum, ever? Fight me, COTH!!


If you've read this novel of a reply, please give yourself permission to treat yourself to something sweet. Thank you all again for your sincerity, time, and opinions.

I know the financially sound decision is to leave Sig home, loan or just take some periodic lessons. The next option that makes the most sense financially is to sell Sig, buy that 1.20 prospect, and import it with me when I return. I am extremely excited about the possibility of finding that unicorn in the UK, and enjoying a high quality horse that I could never, never afford in the US. The option that makes absolutely the least sense financially is taking Sig with me. I'd likely be spending more in round trip cost than he is actually worth. And that cost is not easy for me; it's a crazy amount of money, but it can be done with some big ticket items I have to sell before I leave anyway. I could get his round trip completely paid for )$$ for return trip would obviously be put aside while I was in the UK) prior to me even leaving the US. Is that money "better" spent on one of the other options, absolutely.

But I keep coming back to the emotional side of this too, and it's hard to describe how hard my job can be sometimes. This piece I wrote might help provide some insight into what having my horse with me really means (this was about Sig's predecessor, Soon, who I sadly lost only a few weeks after that was written). Right now I'm not focused on competing (if we show, YAY!...if not, also YAY!) and get all my enjoyment and fulfillment from training my young horse and spending time with him at the farm or off on hacks with my horsey family. I've had an extremely difficult last couple of years personally and professionally, and this last assignment has been particularly challenging. Sig has been my one constant and my rock through it all. While green, he's been very consistent in his progress, and has 100% always put a smile on my face. We know each other so very well. I can't put a price on that. I know another horse could absolutely step into that role like Sig did. But if anyone is wondering why I'm even debating this (exporting a US TB versus buying in UK), that's why.

 

[rextherobber]

Hello and welcome! Why not loan Sig out ( he looks lovely!), buy 2 while you're here, take both home, sell one ( would that cover buying your new trailer/truck?) and keep Sig and the other new one?

 

[DabDab]

Aww, you sound lovely, I'm sure you'll have a great time here.

From your description of your possible life in the states and the cost and logistics of competing I would be even more inclined to bring Sig over and now but a jumper here. If you bring him over you can spend 2 years taking advantage of the fact that everything is close in the UK and you will have lots and lots of opportunity to compete that you wouldn't have back in the US.

Over here the regular, non-championship affiliated shows run from 0.9m up to either 1.20, 1.25 or 1.30m. So you can do 1.20 at the same show as 1.10 and you might find that Sig will do that height (he looks a fairly handy jumper to me). I know European warmbloods just seem very exotic to you guys over there, but honestly they are not all that. A small percentage are, but they have as many duds as a lot of other horse types/breeds and there is a lot of dross knocking around here with the title of warmblood, as well as the good stuff.