veiwing a horse, riding a different one?

S

Spotsrock

Well-Known Member
Joined
8 June 2008
Messages
3,223
Visit site
I am still thinking I may sell my youngster. I lover her very much but we are not that well suited at all. I have a lovely girl helping me and we are ironing out all the kinks but I am just not sure long term once this help is gone.

Question,

when people come to veiw, bearing in mind that she is a very well bred, lovely little horse who has only ever had a limited number of riders and only 4 years old, am I pushing my luck asking people to hop on my other horse for 10 mins first?

Only in my previous somewhat limited experience of selling horses no matter what the ad reads, if it's pretty you will get complete numpties call up and even someone knowledgeable on the phone is not always any good on a horse.

I really don't want her upsetting by the process or her progress setting back by novices but the best way for me to double check is slap them on something else first.

I would be a little miffed but I guess I would understand if it was me veiwing such a young horse with a real future (potentially) ahead of it. I would never invite someone over and let them ride her before I had seen them ride, even a new freind or work mate who claimed to be experienced. We have had friends like this through work who claim to jump 4 ft at riding school and be this good and that good. Turned out not to be able to even ride our (then) 25 year old happy hack!!

Obviously once she goes I won't have a say who rides her. I know I'm stressing but I am so sad at making this decision, really feel it will be for both of our best but don't want it to be any harder than it needs be for her or me.

Thanks.
 
If to ride your other horse, is to see they are cable of riding the baby, then I think its OK to ask. I mean if someone was viewing a car, you would ask to see their insurance, to make sure they can drive before you let them drive your car (well I would)
If who ever is viewing her, really likes her, and is serious about buying her, then I think they'll understand your request. Will they be able to ride the baby after?
 
Absolutly I just trust B's judgment of how someone rides when they are on her more than my own before I see them ride!! If they don't upset B and look stablein the saddle then they will be welcome to try I. Just don't want her to be messed about too uneccessarily. B is far less sensitive! They would have to be fairly poor riders for me to ask them to leave without riding I and obviously i would explain before they came.
 
then I think its not a problem. Explain it all to potential viewers before they visit though (i.e. on the phone when arranging visit) that way, if they don't like the idea, they don't have to come, and they won't blame you for wasting their time!

If I was buying such a baby, I would be prepared to ride a more experienced horse first, not only for the owner to see I am capable, but also so the owner can see how I ride a horse (i.e. am I a sympathic rider etc etc).

Good luck with the sale!
 
When we were looking for a horse a dealer that we visited insisted we try a totally unsuitable horse first, not what we were looking for at all, more of a riding school plod than the young eventer that we had come to see. Once my daughter had ridden this horse and we said, politily, it wasn't what we were looking for, dealer then showed us the one we had come to see and a couple of others. He explained afterwards that he wanted to make sure she could ride before she got bucked off.

We accepted this and saw his point, but could very easily have walked off the yard without trying the first one. So I would say that yes, serious potential buyers won't have a problem, but be up front about why. It will be a lot easier doing that than asking someone to get off your horse when you see they can't ride her, or potentially having a accident.

Good luck selling her.
 
Agree that so long as you explain why you are asking them to ride another horse first then they should be fine with it (and if they're not then they're not the sort of person who you want to send your baby to as it's clear from what you've said that you're trying to do right by her).

You could potentially have several people come and ride her and if they all rode badly you'd end up with an unsellable horse!!

If someone had asked that of me when I was viewing I would have happily agreed (also because to me it would be an opportunity for a bonus ride and also I'd have felt that I could get the feeling of my riding being judged out of the way before I rode the horse I was really interested in!! lol).
 
I'd be put out and wouldn't particularly want to get on anything else.

If you want to screen people's experience you can ask them lots of questions over the phone. Plus if anyone comes and gets on her and you can see they are no good, you can tell them to stop and get off.

Trying horses is a pain in the backside enough without having to undergo an assessment before trying the horse you've come to see.

Saying that, I suppose it is within your rights to ask people to do this, but do it over the phone so they know about the extra time it will take, etc. It might not be much of a pain to people who don't have to travel a long way.
 
It's totally within your rights to do so, but TBH I wouldn't be happy about it either. It's a buyers market atm and something like that might well make me think I was better off going to see something less complicated.
 
I don't agree that it's any more complicated or difficult for people who are travelling further to do than getting on just one horse. It could take a max of 10 extra minutes to just get on a horse long enough for the owner to know that you're not going to damage her horse (or yourself and sue her). It's usually pretty obvious straight away whether or not someone will meet a certain standard - which I suppose is an argument for just letting them get straight on the baby then hauling them off if they're not good enough.
 
I can completely see where you are coming from, but as has been said above, some people would really take exception to having to prove their ability, personally if it was me, I would use a safer enviroment (i.e. a menage), and if it was a young person coming with their parents then yes by all means check out ability with your older less sensitive horse, but an adult should know (within reason) their own strengths and abilities and should be okay for a test ride straight onto your youngster (unless there is anything in particular that your youngster does that they should be made aware of) you can always be on hand in the school ready for answering questions and putting forward some subtle hints on what your youngster likes/dislikes whilst being ridden.
 
We looked for a year and it wouldn't have put us off at all - if you have driven 2.5 hours to see something what is another 10 mins? And you have the bonus of knowing the horse won't have been messed about too much by being ridden by a dozen numpties.

Some people will obviously be able to ride and you might spot that as they arrive and be confident enough to bypass the older horse, but others could indeed be numpties so do it.

We had the opposite problem with one horse - he had probably never been ridden by anyone else other than the very good pro who showed him to us. Daughter got on and he bucked her clean off within two minutes - wish she had got someone else to ride him a few times in the week before! We can laugh now but we didn't at the time.
 
Llewelyn said:
We looked for a year and it wouldn't have put us off at all - if you have driven 2.5 hours to see something what is another 10 mins? And you have the bonus of knowing the horse won't have been messed about too much by being ridden by a dozen numpties.

Some people will obviously be able to ride and you might spot that as they arrive and be confident enough to bypass the older horse, but others could indeed be numpties so do it.

We had the opposite problem with one horse - he had probably never been ridden by anyone else other than the very good pro who showed him to us. Daughter got on and he bucked her clean off within two minutes - wish she had got someone else to ride him a few times in the week before! We can laugh now but we didn't at the time.
Click to expand...

She had only been ridden by me until recently but I have Sharer riding her more a bit now and some experienced help as I am quite busy at mo
 
I think its a very sensible thing to do, and wouldn't be bothered at all if you asked me. Yes you can ask lots of questions on the phone, but a lot of people think that they are more experienced than they actually are!

If I was buying a youngster that had only just been started, and you explained the situation to me I think that I'd be happy to know that it had only had capable riders on it. I suppose that someone more nervous could read into the situation and think that the horse may be difficult etc, but I guess that these are the types that you don't really want to sell it to.

Yes it is a buyer's market to some extent, but that doesn't mean you can't try for a decent price and to find a good home. I will be selling our wonderful pony later on in the summer, and although we want him to go to a good pc home because he is too good to waste, he would be staying with us if it came to a toss up between that and a less suitable home! We don't HAVE to sell him.
 
I think it's a good idea. I recently took a woman to a friend's yard to try some young showjumpers. Said woman has been riding 20 odd years and is competing at 1.15m classes on her current horse. I'd never seen the woman ride before she got on one of the young horses and how I wish I had! In my opinion (and that of the owner of the horses she was trying) she needed to learn how to ride and forget about jumping anything for a while. She had no balance and she fell off 2 different horses as they both cantered off with her and she threw herself off them both. (the horses had been ridden before she got on by one of the stable lads who had been riding for just a year and both went lovely for him) One of the horses then got out of the arena (after she thre herself off) and was almost hit by a car. Luckily no one was hurt, although of course the horses were both shaken up. She did end up buying another one that she tried although she refused to jump it!

At the end of the day she's your horse and you can decide who rides her. If people are put out by having to be 'assessed' first then their loss. Also you have to be careful these days in case some idiot does lie about their ability and falls off, they could try to sue you (not sure how successful it would be though).
 
I wouldn't mind at all! In fact I would think what a consciencious (sp?) seller you were to care so much about the young horse. I would be pleased as it would show that she had not been ridden by numptys and that you cared about her education and experiences, especially if you are selling her as a potential competition horse not a happy hacker.
If people do mind and dont like you 'assessing' them first or are ashamed of their riding then tbh they may not be the best riders or suitable for her anyway. An experienced person serious about getting a nice unspoilt youngster would understand I'm sure :)
 
I'm another who wouldn't mind at all. In fact it would make me more keen to see your horse as it shows that you care about her and can recognise the difference between a good rider and a numpty. I think it is important that you tell any potential viewers before they arrange to come and see her though.

Something I'm sure your plan will do is weed out the less confident and less able riders who probably wouldn't be a good match for your young horse anyway.
 
As a buyer it wouldn't bother me at all and I can see where you are coming from. I've only ever sold one horse which went to the first person to see him, but from my experience of looking for sharers people grossly overestimate their own abilities and a novice rider could really scare a youngster even with one bad ride so I really sympathise with you.
 
It wouldn't be a problem for me at all - you know your horse after all !

If I was serious and be happy to show you my riding - lets face it if I got on her and rode like a bin bag full of yogurt you wouldn't sell her to me anyway so what do I have to lose ??? You may be able to tell with some people though ie if some one come is eventing pre novice has a horse either with an injury / has decided to breed from current comp horse / would like a youngster to bring on for next year then I would be comfy letting them on from the off :-) ..... or if Olly Townsend turned up
 
I wouldn't mind being asked to ride a more experianced/safe horse before trying a youngster. I'm still in contact with my filly's breeder and it amazes me when she tells me some of her anecdotes about potential purchasers that were actually totally unsuitable. Knowing this, I (like Firewell) would actually be encouraged and think that you cared about the horse's future, not just the ££££.
 
I think that is a good idea actually. I was looking for a sharer for my mare a while ago and had one woman who was coming back into riding and I said she probably won't be suitable, but the woman so so persistent that I agreed. Anyway she got on, rode for about 5mins before I asked her to get off! She was completely unrealistic about her riding abilities and I think she would have ended up on the floor if she had of carried on!

I think a decent level headed person would see that you are being sensible and care about the rider and horse. That said though...there are some nutters in the horse world. Good luck! :)
 
It wouldnt bother me at all. In fact when we went to get M, I rode a different horse when we hacked and the then owner rode M and we swapped halfway. Wasnt an issue for me at all. In fact I hadnt even thought about it until I saw this post.

You wouldnt want to sell your horse to someone completely unsuitable. Anyone can exaggerate their riding skills over the phone. Someone told me a few weeks ago about a girl bragging about her medium dressage horse to the owner of a potential new horse she was viewing. The seller thought wow, great, hop on, was practically rubbing her hands together only to find that said girl hadnt even mastered rising trot and when she asked it to canter it went into one!! Potential buyer was slung off the yard, quite rightly IMO.

OP, Its your horse and its your decision, any reasonable person would completely understand that a youngster doesnt need every tom dick or harry on its back.
 
La Fiaba said:
I think it's a good idea. I recently took a woman to a friend's yard to try some young showjumpers. Said woman has been riding 20 odd years and is competing at 1.15m classes on her current horse. I'd never seen the woman ride before she got on one of the young horses and how I wish I had! In my opinion (and that of the owner of the horses she was trying) she needed to learn how to ride and forget about jumping anything for a while. She had no balance and she fell off 2 different horses as they both cantered off with her and she threw herself off them both. (the horses had been ridden before she got on by one of the stable lads who had been riding for just a year and both went lovely for him) One of the horses then got out of the arena (after she thre herself off) and was almost hit by a car. Luckily no one was hurt, although of course the horses were both shaken up. She did end up buying another one that she tried although she refused to jump it!

At the end of the day she's your horse and you can decide who rides her. If people are put out by having to be 'assessed' first then their loss. Also you have to be careful these days in case some idiot does lie about their ability and falls off, they could try to sue you (not sure how successful it would be though).
Click to expand...

Was that in Tuscany? I used to work with horses in Italy (many moons ago) and evented. At that time you had to do an exam to be able to compete - and the exam let you compete at certain levels. I think my BHSAI let me do novice eventing. The horse wasn't classed, just the rider, so you could buy yourself an expensive advanced horse and do pre-novice classes. I've never seen so many people topple off for no apparrent reason in the collecting rings! I also vividly remember everyone crossing themselves in the XC start box! Happy memories!

Ladylina - I'm loving the "binbag full of yoghurt"!
 
I think it is a great idea to get them to ride a more experienced horse first. Your youngster would not benefit from a string of numpties upsetting her. I think any would-be buyer worthy of your horse would admire your tactics and would not be in the least offended. It shows you really care about the horse and don't want just to 'get rid'.
 
I was looking for a horse a few years back and ended up going to see a neurotic TB mare. The owners knew what she was like and were very honest. They only had a field to ride in and they were worried I might get hurt. So I rode another older, plod type horse that they owned. I then rode the horse I was there to view on the lunge. I decided not to even bother riding it off the lunge as I didn't feel safe.
So I think it's a very sensible thing to do and should show up any potential problems.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top