The right price for safe weight carrying type?

[ester]

YN I don't think that is a bad plan, rather than have something that potentially doesn't do what either of you really want.

I only mention the width thing as neither mum or I would have thought about it before buying our two, but having ridden other horses since we both struggle riding horses much wider for any extended periods. I have a welsh cob who I have always thought of as quite chunky (and he is) but he isn't wide, he only takes a MW saddle when fit.

 

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

Horses like OP is looking for are like hens teeth TBH. I looked for a smaller version i.e 14.2hh'ish and they're just impossible to find, and when they do come at a price.

If you want that size, and up to weight, and presumably a nice do-able temperament and not a tank on legs, TBH I think you'd need to be digging in your pocket for anything from £4,500 upwards. I've seen some very nice horses round about the £5,000, and thought that was expensive, but then you try finding one for yourself and it just ain't so easy!

If you want WH or show/RC potential, then you'd need to start around say £7,500 I reckon, more like £10,000 TBH; unless you look over to Ireland and see what's coming off the hunting field now'ish at the end of the season, you might well find a little gem that way and something really worth having ....... OR go for a youngster and bring it on yourself or even have it professionally backed and then produce it yourself.

Good luck!

 

[windand rain]

Forgot to add she is 15hh nicely put together although not marked well for showing came with all her tack and rugs which werent brilliant but servicable absoluetly bombproof on the road only thing she doesnt do is jump

 

[YogaNurse]

Forgot to add she is 15hh nicely put together although not marked well for showing came with all her tack and rugs which werent brilliant but servicable absoluetly bombproof on the road only thing she doesnt do is jump

It’s sounds like you got a nice little bargain there! I mainly just want a safe happy hacker that I can maybe bring on in the school. Have decided I’m going to look for something little for me though!

 

[YogaNurse]

YN I don't think that is a bad plan, rather than have something that potentially doesn't do what either of you really want.

I only mention the width thing as neither mum or I would have thought about it before buying our two, but having ridden other horses since we both struggle riding horses much wider for any extended periods. I have a welsh cob who I have always thought of as quite chunky (and he is) but he isn't wide, he only takes a MW saddle when fit.

I will still probably look for a chunky-ish type, but much smaller! I’ve been just having a browse online at ponies meeting my requirements and the budget much more in my range. Thanks for the advice

 

[YogaNurse]

Horses like OP is looking for are like hens teeth TBH. I looked for a smaller version i.e 14.2hh'ish and they're just impossible to find, and when they do come at a price.

If you want that size, and up to weight, and presumably a nice do-able temperament and not a tank on legs, TBH I think you'd need to be digging in your pocket for anything from £4,500 upwards. I've seen some very nice horses round about the £5,000, and thought that was expensive, but then you try finding one for yourself and it just ain't so easy!


If you want WH or show/RC potential, then you'd need to start around say £7,500 I reckon, more like £10,000 TBH; unless you look over to Ireland and see what's coming off the hunting field now'ish at the end of the season, you might well find a little gem that way and something really worth having ....... OR go for a youngster and bring it on yourself or even have it professionally backed and then produce it yourself.

Good luck!

Yes it does seem quite expensive! I certainly do not have that sort of budget on a nurses wage.. I’m hoping something smaller won’t be as pricy. I would be happy to put the work in with a youngster though, and I am starting to think I would prefer to do this to mould said pony into what I want. It doesn’t need to be flashy - just safe!

 

[YogaNurse]

I have a 15.1hh welsh d and as he has matured I have found he is just too wide and gives me a lot of hip problems. If I was to buy another cob I wouldn't go over 14.2hh and get a PB one instead. As to cost I would pay a lot for a perfect hack as a safe horse out and about on a daily basis is worth its weight in gold.

How tall are you if you don’t mind me asking? I am still thinking a chunky type but a mini version for myself! There are lots of adverts for these types and all say suitable for small adults.

 

[Peter7917]

madness, cant believe people pay these prices for a quiet hack!

 

[ester]

How tall are you if you don’t mind me asking? I am still thinking a chunky type but a mini version for myself! There are lots of adverts for these types and all say suitable for small adults.

Fwiw I'm 5'5 on my 14.2 and I look much better on him than I do mum's 15.1 anglo. The only change made because of my height was a pair of swan neck spurs for dressage.

There are pics on here recently of someone 5'8 on a 13.2 fell iirc, she looks great on him!

 

[AdorableAlice]

madness, cant believe people pay these prices for a quiet hack!

The Op is after a family horse, capable of carrying weight, quiet and safe in all ways and a pleasure to be around. There is a comment of £750 buying such a type. Which bit do you want for your £750, the tail and half a leg ? A safe horse is a balanced, responsive and schooled horse.

These horses have to be broken, produced and made into the safe family horse, there is not a secret stack of them stashed away waiting for someone to pay peanuts for. They are not born safe and mannerly, they are made into the family horse capable of giving many years of pleasure.

Here is an example of a common, 15.2 11 yr old family cob. Fully produced and trained, pass anything and is sound. I have lost count of the number of times people have asked me to sell it. Price it up for a bit of fun.

 

[Snowfilly]

madness, cant believe people pay these prices for a quiet hack!

I can! A good hack needs to be well mannered, excellent in all sorts of traffic, able to cope with unexpected cows on the road, able to cross all sorts of going. It should have a good walk, trot and canter, plus able to let rip across an open field and then pull up.

If it can open gates, walk calmly through a stream, scramble up a bank and pop a fallen log, so much the better. It also needs a degree of leg yield and rein back so you can manoeuvre it on the road.

To have all that installed, plus be a comfortable ride and be sound and able to carry on for a few more years, I expect to pay a decent price. Possibly my idea of hacking is different to most, but anything that can do 15 miles a couple of times a week and make it a joy is worth just as much as any other discipline.

 

[skint1]

I can! A good hack needs to be well mannered, excellent in all sorts of traffic, able to cope with unexpected cows on the road, able to cross all sorts of going. It should have a good walk, trot and canter, plus able to let rip across an open field and then pull up.

If it can open gates, walk calmly through a stream, scramble up a bank and pop a fallen log, so much the better. It also needs a degree of leg yield and rein back so you can manoeuvre it on the road.

To have all that installed, plus be a comfortable ride and be sound and able to carry on for a few more years, I expect to pay a decent price. Possibly my idea of hacking is different to most, but anything that can do 15 miles a couple of times a week and make it a joy is worth just as much as any other discipline.

Exactly this!!

 

[AdorableAlice]

I can! A good hack needs to be well mannered, excellent in all sorts of traffic, able to cope with unexpected cows on the road, able to cross all sorts of going. It should have a good walk, trot and canter, plus able to let rip across an open field and then pull up.

If it can open gates, walk calmly through a stream, scramble up a bank and pop a fallen log, so much the better. It also needs a degree of leg yield and rein back so you can manoeuvre it on the road.

To have all that installed, plus be a comfortable ride and be sound and able to carry on for a few more years, I expect to pay a decent price. Possibly my idea of hacking is different to most, but anything that can do 15 miles a couple of times a week and make it a joy is worth just as much as any other discipline.

Exactly my point. All of the above will and should carry a realistic price tag.

Perhaps people do not recognise or understand what a safe family horse actually is and consider it to be a under fed and weak scruffy cob out of a bin end auction that morphs into Mr Perfect overnight.

 

[be positive]

Exactly my point. All of the above will and should carry a realistic price tag.

Perhaps people do not recognise or understand what a safe family horse actually is and consider it to be a under fed and weak scruffy cob out of a bin end auction that morphs into Mr Perfect overnight.

Many just do not appreciate or value a good hack and do not realise it takes almost as long to produce as a competition horse, sometimes longer in my experience, I have struggled to find decent well mannered hacks for clients yet when we sell one they tend to get snapped up very quickly often through word of mouth.

 

[Flyermc]

We've bought 2 horses that matched your description, neither have been difficult to find or a million miles away from. one was 8 years old and cost 1k the other was 4 and cost £400

both weight carriers, forward going safe rides, both happy to hack alone and in company, both could jump and both nice to look at and stood at 15hh and 15.1hh

to be honest most of the horses on the yard that i kept my lad on would have fitted that description and i wouldnt have thought that the owners would have paid the prices people have mentioned.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I can! A good hack needs to be well mannered, excellent in all sorts of traffic, able to cope with unexpected cows on the road, able to cross all sorts of going. It should have a good walk, trot and canter, plus able to let rip across an open field and then pull up.

If it can open gates, walk calmly through a stream, scramble up a bank and pop a fallen log, so much the better. It also needs a degree of leg yield and rein back so you can manoeuvre it on the road.

To have all that installed, plus be a comfortable ride and be sound and able to carry on for a few more years, I expect to pay a decent price. Possibly my idea of hacking is different to most, but anything that can do 15 miles a couple of times a week and make it a joy is worth just as much as any other discipline.

All this and I expect to be able to leave them in the field for a month and then pick them back up and have them just as mannerly as if I'd ridden yesterday. But I will say, I have rarely paid more than £2000 for one.
That is because I am willing to put some work in at first, usually working on the manners, either on the ground or ridden. I find that often this type of horse has been allowed to get away with murder because they do tend to be bolshy and bossy, then the owner finds that they can't cope with what they thought would be an easy horse and sells on.
What astounds me is that 25 yrs ago I paid a similar amount to what I paid for the horse I bought 7 yrs ago. That really is madness, houses and cars have at least quadrupled in price in that time.

 

[Daniel_Jack]

I’ve recently bought a 8 year old 14.1/14.2 cob who is as you describe (just a bit smaller) - great to hack but green and unbalanced in the school but nice paces in the lunge. I paid £1k which so far seems like a bargain but we’ll see how it pans out.

My previous horse was similar and I paid £4K for him as a 5 year old at a time when coloured horses were fetching silly money - I sold him 9 years later for half that price - could have got more but a good home is more important.

My friend also recently paid about £500 for a 12 year old 14.2 coloured cob who is again as you describe - fab to hack and green but willing in the arena.

There are bargains to be had if you can find them and are willing to put some work in to schooling them.

 

[ester]

I have found there is a big difference between a safe hack and a really nice pleasant hack.

I have ridden plenty of the former and it has made me realise how much I appreciate the manouverability of my own..

 

[Orangehorse]

I can! A good hack needs to be well mannered, excellent in all sorts of traffic, able to cope with unexpected cows on the road, able to cross all sorts of going. It should have a good walk, trot and canter, plus able to let rip across an open field and then pull up.

If it can open gates, walk calmly through a stream, scramble up a bank and pop a fallen log, so much the better. It also needs a degree of leg yield and rein back so you can manoeuvre it on the road.

To have all that installed, plus be a comfortable ride and be sound and able to carry on for a few more years, I expect to pay a decent price. Possibly my idea of hacking is different to most, but anything that can do 15 miles a couple of times a week and make it a joy is worth just as much as any other discipline.

Really any sort of horse SHOULD meet this description but sadly few of them do. When I was looking for one for a
friend 5 out of 6 advertised wouldn't hack alone.

I am thinking that what the OP needs is a good hunter type of Irish cob, and if you ask around there are dealers who regularly import them, but they generally have their outlets and go to people who will bring them on and sell.

 

[Tiddlypom]

I have found there is a big difference between a safe hack and a really nice pleasant hack.

I have ridden plenty of the former and it has made me realise how much I appreciate the manouverability of my own..

Absolutely this.

 

[Bernster]

There is a big range in terms of this kind of horse. Certainly if you're lucky and maybe prepared to put a bit of work into a younger or greener version, you can get them for less money. Suspect that's from people who don't know or value what they really have. But for an established type, proven and sound, yes I'd say they are def worth their weight and would pay several 1000 for that.

Often if they are nicely put together and have decent paces and/or jump, what you're getting is actually a very capable all rounder, RC type horse, which ups their value again.

Unicorn poo frankly and should command a good price.

 

[Goldenstar]

I am with Bernster on this it’s hard to price this sort of horse at one end you have horses like H who is full ID hunts in the field and field masters ridden by woman and men he’s bold great in traffic would do well in draught dressage and would happily do low level BE , he’s is like a large Labrador to handle . If I needed to replace him it would cost a lot of money and I would struggle to find one . At the other end you get weight carriers that are so heavy and they often have very poor back conformation that they struggle to canter and have the most awful uncomfortable paces and they can also be very stodgy and not really keen on work so are limited in what you can do with them .
Good wieght carriers are sought after and can command very good money .

 

[cobgoblin]

I'm getting lost here... I thought OP said she was now looking for something pony sized just for herself, that she can bring on in the school.. Not a ready made schoolmaster type family cob over 15hh.

OP I'd look for a ride and drive... Just make sure it has been ridden in a saddle and knows how to bend a bit. If you're happy to school yourself there's no need to pay a fortune.

 

[ester]

She was but she has changed that plan now so I think the conversation sort of evolved on the basis of some of the other comments.

 

[Templebar]

OP it would also depend on where in the country you are/how far you were willing to travel. Prices can vary massively between areas, i know places where the same horse would probably sell for £3000 difference maybe more, just because of demand in the area.

Out of interest you didn't actually put what your budget at the moment would be.

Also depending on how novice your OH is and the size/height difference between you i know of several horses temperament wise that would suit you both. Put someone on who can ride and do a bit the pick up put someone novice on and they are happy to plod along especially if out hacking with someone else.

 

[PeterNatt]

What price for safety?
The first horse I bought cost me £350 with tack and could be ridden by itself through central London. Totally safe and bombproof. Could also be cross-countried and hunted but 100% safe.
They are so difficult to find these days because people do not spend enough time on exposing them to things and establishing them.

 

[YogaNurse]

I'm getting lost here... I thought OP said she was now looking for something pony sized just for herself, that she can bring on in the school.. Not a ready made schoolmaster type family cob over 15hh.

OP I'd look for a ride and drive... Just make sure it has been ridden in a saddle and knows how to bend a bit. If you're happy to school yourself there's no need to pay a fortune.

Yes this is correct! That’s a good idea about having been driven, hadn’t thought of that myself - Thank you! I’m more than happy to put in work myself which I (think) I mentioned in the original post.

 

[cobgoblin]

Yes this is correct! That’s a good idea about having been driven, hadn’t thought of that myself - Thank you! I’m more than happy to put in work myself which I (think) I mentioned in the original post.

You also (usually) get the added bonus of a horse that responds to voice commands

 

[OldNag]

The Op is after a family horse, capable of carrying weight, quiet and safe in all ways and a pleasure to be around. There is a comment of £750 buying such a type. Which bit do you want for your £750, the tail and half a leg ? A safe horse is a balanced, responsive and schooled horse.

These horses have to be broken, produced and made into the safe family horse, there is not a secret stack of them stashed away waiting for someone to pay peanuts for. They are not born safe and mannerly, they are made into the family horse capable of giving many years of pleasure.

Here is an example of a common, 15.2 11 yr old family cob. Fully produced and trained, pass anything and is sound. I have lost count of the number of times people have asked me to sell it. Price it up for a bit of fun.

I can imagine that although you might be lucky and pick up a horse like this for a middling amount, a horse with a good reputation can command a hefty price. I bet you have been offered well over £7k.

 

[Goldenstar]

Yes this is correct! That’s a good idea about having been driven, hadn’t thought of that myself - Thank you! I’m more than happy to put in work myself which I (think) I mentioned in the original post.

You need to understand that driven horses can be very good but they have been exposed to the world wearing blinkers So you know and see for your self they are really good hacks .
They also can struggle with cantering and often have poor muscle development in the backs my strong advice would be unless you are really good at flat work don't buy one that is not calmly cantering a twenty metre circle why you try it .