needs advice please

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suzanneand bayley

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i bought myself my first horse one month ago (2nd july 2010) she needed to put weight on so i have had her out in the field since then, unfortunately i did not get her vet checked b4 my purchase, and my excuse is i felt the lady and her daughter were trustworthy (just a feeling i got) silly i know!!!! anyway although i have no issue with the horse's personality she is quiet in temperment which as she is my first is what i was looking for, i have got to know the other girls at the livery yard who have been guiding me and also if i have any questions i refer here....i had her wormed a few days after i got her also, so the next thing i thought of to help her weight issue(after refering to the net)was to get her teeth floated, so my vet came today to do this, and this is where i need advice: when i went to look at her i asked lots of questions one of which was "what age is she" and actually on her add when she was selling the horse quite clearly stated she was 15 and she confirmed this when i went to see her, but today my vet said theres no way shes 15 shes more like 25 im not quite sure what i should do now as i wouldnt have bought her if id known thats how old she was, as i would never be able to sell her on in a few years when i feel confident enough for a younger horse....sorry for the long story....what do you think i should do ?????
 
if shes the right one, does age matter ?You never got her vetted its proving sellers knew she wasnt 15 but 25 can be tricky you could ask trading standards for advice if you feel strongly by it , but if she was really 15,and youkept her say two to three years older horses are cheaper anyway but good novice rides are hard to get whatever the age ,please dont let age put you off if shes ok
 
thanks for the advice:) she has a lovely temperment, and were getting on well im just a bit concerned that with her being so old her veterinary needs will be alot more than a younger horse and i would struggle to pay for the extra needs....also is 25 not around the age for them to retire???? i wastnt intending to show her in any way i just want to school her and maybe a wee hack now and then. also my concern is if i cant ride her what do i do with her??? i cant just keep her in livery until she dies and buy another horse......im probably panicking a bit here i know but these are things that have entered my head from i saw the vet today:confused:
 
youll feel better in a few days/weeks when you see other people bolting and riding spooky horses ! And your on safe as houses :D a good safe horse holds money in my opinion and you never know you might not want to part ever as long as you care for her the sayings are your as old as you feel some horses are galloping about at thirty dont worry, enjoy you never know whats around the corner <or over that hedge !> i think youll forget about the age in a few weeks if she gets to the point were you cant ride or retire financially or companion re-home you will have to think then have fun
 
Personally, if she is perfect in every other way for you, I wouldn't worry about it. It is notoriously hard to age horses accurately. The horse dentist I use told me she'll never age an older horse it is just too difficult. She tried to age mine out of interest and got the two oldies (both in their 20s) wrong. I am assuming your mare's passport says she is 15? In which case, the previous owners probably assumed she was that age. Enjoy your mare and have fun!
 
This is one reason why compulsory microchipping before the age of 6 months is a Good Thing, the date of chipping for horses born in the future will give an accurate age.

Mind you, given theres a horse on Dragon Driving openly being described as 'wormed but not passported' (!) theres still some sectors who will need more attention to ensure microchipping actually happens!!

Teeth arent a reliable guide as a horse ages, sadly.
 
I experienced this scenario too. I had a pony mare I had outgrown who was 15. I spent ages finding the right home for her and then their dentist said she was 25 so shouldn't be ridden anymore. WHAT! She loved doing the games etc and the pony jumping and xc. Anyway, after talking it through the new people carried on with her. We stayed in touch and ironically ten years later (pony was 25 then) met a lady at a show who recognised pony and turned out lady was a previous owner before me - when pony was five - so pony was the age we thought all along and dentist was completely wrong!

Not saying your vet is wrong, but teeth don't always tell how old they are. Living conditions, diet etc have such a role to play in teeth appearance. If horse is happy and comfortable doing what you are - hacking, competing whatever - I don't think you should stop : ) Enjoy!
 
Try not to worry!

You have no come back against the seller anyway - so don't fret abiout possibly sending her back.

Settle down with your lovely new ned and enjoy her! It is true that you probably won't be able to sell her on in a few years. But realistically you would have found it difficult to sell on a nearly 20yr old which is what she would have been had she been 15 now.

As everyone else has said it is very difficult to age horses. They retire when they need to retire. Carry on with what you want to do with her. You might want to think about veteran mix or glucosamine supplements - but you would have been thinking about that at 15 anwyay!
 
Have you looked at her teeth yourself, have a look at the Galvaynes groove on the incisors, if it is still showing from the top of the tooth then the horse is between 15 and 20 (depending on how far down it goes) if it has disappeared from the top of the tooth but still showing lower down then she is 20 to 25.

For some reason people seem to have forgotten how to age a horse themselves, something that was done naturally years ago. Have a look yourself and see if you can make a call on whether the vet is anywhere near correct. I would also contact the sellers and ask them if they are sure of her age, just tell them what the vet has said and as if he could be right. If she is older then I would just enjoy her and put it down to experience. As long as she is fit and healthy there is no reason why you can't do what you want with her and she will see you through the years until you get your confidence/experience to move on to something younger. When the time for her to retire comes, if you feel you can't keep her, give a a good summer and then do the right thing by her rather than passing her on.
 
thanks for all the great advice:) after alot more thought and a nights sleep i feel better about the whole situation now;) myself my partner and our kids have struck up a bond with her now and we'd be sad to see her go so thats not an option....i just hope we can care for her in the right way...so any advice or tips are welcome......i have another question though lol on her passport there is no age noted, should their be????
 
lots of breed societies did passports way before they became a legal requirement so it could be one of those where it wasnt required, or it could just be that whoever passported her didn't know how old she , I would imagine there are lots out there with no age on.
 
Have a hug and a hot choccy. It sounds like you have a lovely girl there.

I bought a three and a half year old and lost her at four and a half. Bought a four year old, and we don't yet know if she will stand the course.

No guarantees with horses hun. It can be almost impossible to tell a horse's age, dependent on how the teeth have been looked after, the health of the horse, etc. Little Lad is now anywhere between fifteen and twenty-five, when we got him he was meant to be about twelve, but some people throught then that he'd never see fifteen again.
 
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