Opinions please

Mahoganybay

Mahoganybay

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Been horse hunting with friend and this lad is on the shortest of short lists.

Breed unknown (thinking some type of draft horse), 7 years old, my friend is a confident novice and he ticks all the boxes with regards to experience and i hope he will give her years of fun after losing her horse of a lifetime.

So, confirmation experts, what do we think? She will be having a vetting done but some other opinions would be good and also, what are peoples thoughts on his breed?

Please excuse my friends face, she was very nervous and he was the first horse she tried, been to see loads of others and ended up liking the first one seen, go figure.

He is a sweetie.
 
vieshot said:
Would like to see those fronts unbooted. I like him though :-)
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His feet were good, nice and smooth, never had Laminitis, nice fleshy frog and in good proportion with his legs, slight pigeon toed on his his nearside fore, but i think the farrier can improve that. Other than that, i'm no expert with foot angles etc but they looked ok to me. Hopefully the vet will pick up anything untoward.

I actually thought he was fab, think he is going to look even better when he greys out.
 
Looks a genuine enough sort, a little straight through his hind leg for me. Possibly connie cross or as they are commonly known, an Irish Sports Horse, covers a multitude of options!
 
Vetting might be a disappointment, that is a very poor hind leg. Good luck though, temperament is key and I hope he makes the grade for you.
 
I would not look at this horse those hind legs they would not achieve or stand up to what I would require .
However if the horse passes the vet and your friend is looking for a dependable first horse type and he knows and is good that job then he might be just the job .
 
he looks like a nice sort but I too would prefer to see him without boots on he is straight through his hind leg but I suppose that also depends on what he is about to do as his new career
 
AdorableAlice said:
Vetting might be a disappointment, that is a very poor hind leg. Good luck though, temperament is key and I hope he makes the grade for you.
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Oh no! He has a fab temperament. My friend is going back for a second viewing on Friday with another friend who is probably a bit more experienced than me on the confirmation front.

I have text her to have a good look before a vetting is arranged.

Thanks all for your replies, most helpful.
 
She wants a safe steady hacking horse, she will do some light schooling & low level dressage, we are talking Intro's, possibly a bit of low level jumping too.

So hard to find a quality horse on her budget that is a genuine sale, hmmm, ******!
 
Sugar_and_Spice said:
Then maybe there will have to be a compromise somewhere, in this case maybe its the conformation, it doesn't necessarily mean your friend shouldn't buy the horse. You can't expect perfection on a tight budget.
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Yes, that is true, just a bit concerned about any long term implications.

Will see what our other friends says when she see's him in person and take it from there. Thanks.
 
Frequently people post photos on here of their beloved animals, that they have competed for years and had a lot of fun with, and they have glaring conformation issues. Sometimes you can get over worried about things..

Let the vet have a look at him and make their assessment as to whether he would be suitable for purpose and then decide.

He looks a nice type, never going to make a show horse, but hopefully a good low level rc horse.
 
My first thought was he is very straight through his hocks, and he looks a little croup high, but hard to tell for sure with saddle and rider on.

If he is perfect in any other way, I would consider. See what the second viewing brings, and then vet report and get the vet to give honest opinions.

Best of luck to your friend.
 
He looks a very decent sort but I would be very wary of asking a Farrier to straighten up the slight pigeon toed hoof unless it is from poor trimming. His bones will be set & you could easily cause pain/lameness by trying to alter him. If he is sound with the slightly pigeon toed hoof my advice would be to not meddle with it. There are quite a few really pigeon toed horses out there dong there jobs with no problem.
 
I like him. I think if your friend likes him and he is as described temperament wise then get a vetting and buy him. Like us horses aren't perfect and if he is able to do the job your friend wants him to do then I don't see there being so much of an issue.
 
gingernut81 said:
I like him. I think if your friend likes him and he is as described temperament wise then get a vetting and buy him. Like us horses aren't perfect and if he is able to do the job your friend wants him to do then I don't see there being so much of an issue.
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Absolutely agree with this. I think he has a lovely kind eye. He may not be a world beater but if your friend is looking for a safe and steady friend she could do a lot worse than this chap. Conformation isn't everything. I'd get him vetted, the vet will tell your friend if he's physically suitable for the job she wants him to do. :)
 
Thanks everyone, friend has had her offer on horse after second viewing accepted, and is arranging vetting for next week.

We will advise vet of concerns re straight back legs and slight pigeon toed and ask for this to be taken in consideration taking into account level of work he will be doing.

We have a fantastic farrier who will i am sure give her the best advice also.
 
His hocks are a little on the straight side - that wouldn't worry me if he moves them well, Hocks are about function (unless you want to win at HOYS) and if he moves well, that's fine. Same with his slight pigeon toe. Unless it's purely the hoof, it should be left alone.

I would guess he has a fair bit of Irish Draught in him.
 
I have a 17h mare with straighter legs than that and she quite happily pops round 1.20m SJ without problem (I just have to put a bit more effort into keeping her back end stretched and massaged) so it certainly wouldn't put me off buying him ;) he looks a nice kind honest sort, good luck for the vetting!! :)
 
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