Trying to find a new pony!! Frustration!

Asimmons

Asimmons

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www.apricotfox.com
Havibg ridden the confidence rollercoaster from cocky to s***-scared am now ready to creep up the richter scale of daring again.Want something for intro/prelim/element aff, safe, sensible but with a teeny bit of pzazz..went to see an alleged able patent safety on Monday..it bucked the owner off in the first five mins...spectacularly.... booked to see a cousin of my dear retired ID/TBx...( he was one ina bazillion...Open workers/be/bd/bsja/hunting/hacking/nannying...you name it..) and of course she is sold...as of today. Nothing on any of the websites. I want a 14.3/15.1 ID/TBx ideally. Must not be sharp...I get brave but don't start that way, if you know what I mean!!! I have professional tuition once a week/an arena and plenty of parties to go to...plus a rapidly growing 12yr old son who is MUCH more gung ho than me. Current pony produces 67-69% dressage prelim...but is aging and I feel the need for more petrol in the tank. Not crazy about competing at the very outer limit of the poor dear's physical ability... Any ideas??? Southwest best....
 
A friend of mine is looking for something very similar and is the same as you confidence-wise.

She's been to look at 3, all asking huge sums of money. 2 were not at all as described. One owner had downright lied.

The 3rd one was worth a second look with a trainer, but she quickly highlighted potential problems that my friend would have with it, and again, for its potential and experience in dressage was very over priced.

She wants to buy from a family home, and doesn't mind a native pony x, will not even consider buying through a dealer, 'selling on behalf of' or a 'professionally trained' model

Sorry, no idea for you either!
 
Know exactly how she must be feeling! Hugely expensive things which actually have a lot of ifs and buts.... Dear old Saff only cost me £3500 because she was 15 when I got her...but I've had £10ks worth of fun out of her...she isn't push button or 100% in all circs( cows are a big issue!!) but she is great...just creaking a little more than I would like, so feel I can't progress again...and I am bizarrely competitive for a wuss!!!
 
I am interested to see where this thread goes. I am not in the market for a horse, as I am a novice returnee riding my OH's 'spare' Newfie and having a great time.

However, I like to keep my eye on the market, and I have to say I have never seen such an obvious and seemingly impenetrable minefield in my life. Trying to read between the lines, and judge which is a straight advert and which a 'hard sell' is incredibly difficult.

When (if) I start horse hunting the first person I'm talking to is our farrier.

Good luck in your search.
 
are you in the pony club? or your son if so ask the around and see who is going to uni or a levels and then you might find one by word of mouth.
also think out side the box and go and see stuff which you might not consider ie section d x
smart lw show cob stamp, some will have the movement for dressage up to elementary but with a sane head, my friend took her vanner cob that far, jumps 3ft xc 3.6ft show jumping, forward but safe. but they will never let her go and have started breeding before anyone asks if she is available
they are out there
 
I know how you feel, I have seen six horses, all overpriced, none as described, and one lady downright lied to me on the phone, resulting in me, my OH, and both my trainers driving a 4 hr round trip to not even sit on the thing!

After nearly giving up hope that the right horse was out there, I finally felt a spark of excitement last night after viewing a wonderful mare. Few niggling issues still, but doing a second viewing tonight. Even if this doesn't work out, it has given me the confidence that the right thing IS in fact out there.

It is an arduous, painstaking, time consuming, emotional rollercoaster of a journey, but honestly, it will be worth it when the right thing comes along! You will be glad you didn't settle for anything less!

Best wishes for your hunt, from a newly inspired and increasingly chirpy Wan2beventer! xx
laugh.gif
 
It is frustrating. I previously posted about the hunt for a lead rein. My added problem that I created myself-is that none of the ponies we have seen match up to a pony that I previously owned. She has set a precedent and nothing is coming close to her.
Not only that, but as a horsey mum (my parents were not horsey) I am only to aware of how dangerous and confidence shattering the wrong pony can be.
We went to see one that was 11.2 15+ safe as houses. First time in my life that someone has actually added years to a pony!! It was 5ish and only just backed!!
 
It is such a minefield! I am thinking laterally,Hollyandivy....and I WISH i was in the pony club...well, I am via my son! Cattistock. Very good. The word is out and my trainer is teaching xc rallies this hols so he has his eyes peeled...
What I feel bad about, is that mentally I have moved on from dear Saff and now find I have to really motivate myself to ride her with any real drive...so, to give us both a lift, we are off to Kingston Maurward clear round tmrw night. It had better not be cancelled at the last minute again...last time we rocked up plus trainer(expensive!!) to find it cancelled because not enough staff and , no, we cdn't hire school because there was an exam the next day and they didn't want to have to harrow...grrrrrrrrrrrr
 
I'm at the opposite end of the spectrum. I've got a 14.3hh mare that I bought as a broodmare. She's 8 and green but a little cracker, safe but forward going and moves well. I was thinking of getting a few miles on the clock and selling her but with my injury putting me out of the saddle I've decided just to breed from her again instead. I find people coming to try horses bad enough, when they totally over estimate their ability, couldn't cope with children and their mothers! So I decided I didnt want the hasle of selling her.
 
OH for gods sake! Why weren't you looking about a month ago!! There was a fantastic mare at my yard, jumping pony BUT 14.3 so no one was interested at the time as she was that 1 inch above height, prob a bit lighter that you want but a fantastic pony, in fact if I didn't have mine I would have loved her, great to hack alone, bit fizzy in company but safe totally bomb proof on the roads and jumped like a stag! Could the owner sell her, she was pulling her hair out! It was a genuine sale as she had got another horse and couldn't afford to keep 2, other horse is her dream showing horse! she finally sold the mare a fair amount under the asking price with tack and rugs!!! So moral is they are out there!!
 
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