Tell me about TBs

I’ve had lots. My last one was just lovely, he did have issues and is now retired but he really shows there are such a huge variety of TB’s and some which really don’t stick to the stereotype.
He hacked alone straight away, he did plant the first time but once that was sorted we were away. He was a good doer, I fed him a balancer and chaff all year round. I’d stick him on the lorry and go off for lessons, just tie him up at a new place to tack up etc. We live on a farm and the lads soon will realised they didn’t really need to slow down even he was that good. Never lost shoes, happy in or out. Ground tied (not sure if that was taught by someone or just luck, or a bit odd 😂)
If he’d only stayed sound he was literally perfect.
As above Sophie Spitteri has some really nice looking ones but also SB racehorse rehoming and Mills stables are worth a look area dependant.
Can’t vouch for it just yet but my friend has one arriving today from SB rehoming and she’s thrilled at having found just what she was looking for.
 
I used to help exercise an ex racer turned hunter. 16.3, tough as teeth, survived being owned by someone who was decidely casual with his horses. Once had colic, no vet called, my friend sat with him all night and gave him colic drench, he was ok by morning so he took him hunting much to our horror. I loved him and had he been a couple of hands smaller would have liked to own him. Last news I had of him which was some years later was that he eventually refused to be caught so lived out his days at pasture. Owner was a farmer and contractor who thankfully married a lovely girl who took much better care of his animals. I never knew him be unsound, only problem he had was that he was always snotty and when he tried to PTP him found out he was a bleeder. His name was Masse Wood, always known to us as Massy. Such a nice boy, not an evil bone in him and a fabulous ride with a huge extended trot.
 
Ladybird L said:
Just thinking - has anyone found them more prone to doing tendons/suspenesories? If I was out in mud or something….?
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No, not in my experience - I’m sure some do but on the whole I’ve had worse luck with ISH and warmbloods. In terms of ridden work I usually find them better than heavier horses in deep/soft going as they tend to travel across the ground instead of digging in.
They’d be more prone to mud fever though I’d expect, given the thin skin and tendency for any little nick to blow up. Neither of mine have had any but equally we don’t have much mud.
 
From following some traininers on social platforms, it's quite clear that mant trainers are also now training them with a second career in mind too with lots of horses in race training visiting XC courses, hacking normally and doing some light schooling and jumping work which might make it a little easier to bring one on from the track :)
 
I can't imagine having anything else tbh. My horse of a lifetime was apparently 'Irish TB' but I had no paperwork for him, if he was full TB then he was of the national hunt type, but not raced and apparently came over from Ireland as an unbroken 4yo so who knows exactly what he was! Anyway, he was an awesome horse, laidback attitude but had the TB brain. Great to work with, could be sharp if something spooked him (which was quite a lot to be fair!) but he was so easy to do, chilled on outings, could get on him after a year off and it would be as if you had ridden the day before.
Current one is an exracer, and was a bit of a walking vet bill for the first few years. He is sharp and can be spicy at times - not afraid to share his opinion on something! But has an amazing work ethic, he is great to hack out/traffic/dogs/etc, and the feeling when taking him for a blast is just out of this world! A lot less spooky than his predecessor, he does take a bit of management though, but he is more than worth it.
 
no advice, but i do think theyre fabulous horses - my favourite at college was an ex-racer!

i think my criteria for having one would have to be if i only had 1 though, because i do think they can be more high maintenance😂
 
ycbm said:
They have almost all been bred to race but not all of them will have raced. Some are identified as no good for racing in training. The tiny proportion which were bred as sports horses not racers will likely cost a lot more than a failed racer. And the untried racers also fetch a lot more than the tried and failed.

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I've seen a few on the ex racer pages that are unbroken 2 or 3 year olds. Not sure why they wouldn't even get to training after all the effort and expense to breed them and if that's a good thing or a red flag.
 
sportsmansB said:
There is no feeling like riding a blood horse cross country and them skimming over the top of the muck that the big fancy warmbloods are sinking into!
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I remember taking mine regularly to the gallops. I never galloped, I just did interval training. We had good fast canters. One day I actually galloped him, jesus, I have never sat on anything so quick!!
 
I have a big ex NH gelding who was quite frankly a useless racehorse. He is very sturdily built and is more of a hunter type if anything. He has his hot/sharp moments like any horse can but to be fair to him he's an absolute gentleman 95% of the time and has impeccable manners. However he doesn't fit the TB stereotype and is a very good doer who gets too hot when rugged. Most ex racers I've had the pleasure of riding have been good 'people' and most likely the next horse I have will also be a TB :)

I have also had a standardbred and she was the most unflappable hardy little horse that I have had. So that may be something else to consider. I can't speak for all of them but I know they're generally meant to be pretty level headed and she definitely was I always felt safe on her.
 
I recently got my first horse, who is an ex racer. I've had a fair bit of experience with thoroughbreds, but she's my first owned horse (only took me 32 years of dreaming, loaning, sharing, exercising etc!)

I absolutely adore her. But she is a walking vets bill 😅 I think I've just been a bit unlucky and she had a few things crop up that I've had to deal with in the short time I've had her. A very common thing with ottbs (and mine has been no exception) is ulcers. Which are not cheap to sort out. Make sure you have decent insurance!

I think a thoroughbred carefully and kindly produced can do anything though. Fantastic all rounders and I feel like once you love a thoroughbred, you'll never want anything else. There is definitely something very special about them.
 
criso said:
I've seen a few on the ex racer pages that are unbroken 2 or 3 year olds. Not sure why they wouldn't even get to training after all the effort and expense to breed them and if that's a good thing or a red flag.
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Some are probably fine and it's a mystery why the owner decided not to race then, but it's certainly a warning flag for me unless someone can come up with a convincing answer.

I'd have the same questions about a horse which was imported to race and then didn't race in the country it's being sold in.
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My first horse was a TB. He was 14 when I got him. He was ridden for a year before he went lame (navicular) and from then it was on and off as I tried everything to try get him sound again. After two years or so I retired him until he passed away at 20 due to colic. He wasn't easy. Was very forward, would not hack out alone (but also back then I was less skilled in dealing with that), had very flat feet, and took a lot of feed and monthly bodywork to keep him in decent condition. Saying that I loved him very much and he's taught me so much about horse keeping. I miss him dearly.

I have ridden other friends TBs and I think they are pretty good in general, although they typically need more care than some other breeds. I prefer the chunkier, hardier and smaller horses now though. Here in Australia we have many trainers that focus on retraining OTTBs. They are cheap to buy, most are priced between 1-3k, but they are also young and green (<5yo). Be prepared to spend more on upkeep however.

My next horse was an anglo-arab (superb breed imo). She was the best horse I've ever had to date. It's hard not to compare any new horses to her. She was the bees knees.

Get vetting and x-rays for sure, and check for Equine Complex Vertebral Malformation (ECVM).
 
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