Vetting - do you bother?

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tigger01

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Exactly as the title - how many of you have potential purchases vetted before buying? Is it worth the money? Am looking at spending 4.5k on a new horse and am unsure whether to proceed with a 5 stage vetting?

Your thoughts appreciated.
 
I would, but it depends what you want to use horse for- if it's something that is fairly strenuous and a lame/ill horse couldn't cope with then yes for sure, but if it was just for a ploddy hacker that would only ever trot with a little canter then probably not! But if you're spending 4.5k i presume it would be used for more than hacking, so yes! So worth the money, and I think some insurance companies wont insure unless you provide a 5 stage vet certificate! xx
 
tigger01 said:
Exactly as the title - how many of you have potential purchases vetted before buying? Is it worth the money? Am looking at spending 4.5k on a new horse and am unsure whether to proceed with a 5 stage vetting?

Your thoughts appreciated.
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Personally I would always vet if the horse is ridden, IMO the expense of vets bills and heartache are just not worth the risk.
 
No, I don't for broodmares and ponies. I asked my Vet what the ball park figure was and he charges $500, plus travel, for pre-purchase exams, not worth it for a horse less than $3000 as far as I am concerned. If I buy a dud then that's my lookout.

However, if I was spending a large amount of money, and/or the horse was more than merely for hacking about, then yes, I would go the whole hog. If I was buying a horse, to hunt, for example, I would like to know that it can see, and that at that particular moment in time is in respectable working order, functioning leg at each corner blah, blah, blah.
 
Depends on horse.

My most expensive horse was 5 stage vetted, given a pass vetting certificate so I bought her. The insurance company decided they didn't like the vetting certificate and declined to cover her.

I haven't bought such expensive horses since and they haven't been vetted. It seems daft to me that the one I had checked out carefully to make sure she was sound cannot be covered but the others I just bought on sight are all covered for vets fees and I've even had a big claim on one of them.
 
Growing up my Grandpa bought all of our horses/ponies on sight but he rode before he could walk and was a literal mine of horsey knowledge so he could do so confidently. As he is no longer around though I'd be going for a full vetting without a doubt and hopefully an opinion from my most knowledgeable horsey friend too! :)
 
Good point actually jemima! I had my coloured boy vetted, but only very basically (heart beating, legs working etc ;) ) and then had difficulty insuring him as the insurance company wanted a 5 stage (I didn't insure him for the first 18mnths of ownership anyway)

My latest horse I had very thoroughly vetted, including being scoped to check airways etc, and then the insurance company didn't want it! Typical!
 
no i don't bother vetting and wouldn't for a £4.5k horse.

i can check heartrate, respiration, lameness etc myself and do so.
 
Yes - even for a £700 horse.

My feeling is that I don't know what is going to happen in the future and I may need to sell the horse - and whoever I am selling it too will want to get it vetted - so start with a healthy horse - makes life easier.
 
I usually do but only the 2 stage. Ive had 2 horses 5 stage vetted, the first was passed for being fit for purpose by a dodgy vet even though it was lame with a huge spavin. 2nd horse failed on the sight and flexion test. 2nd horse was very lame on the flexion and im so glad I had him vetted as I had him on trial for 2 weeks before and honestly I thought he was sound as a bell! I felt and saw no probs at all, in fact he moved beautifully so it just goes to show!

I would only go for 2 stage now (unless spending £££££'s!) as both the above horses problems could have been and were, picked up on the 2 stage bits of the test. Vetting is just a snapshot on that one day, iv'e learnt to use it as a very loose guide and insurance. Thats it.

My current loan horse would have failed an initial vetting if I had been looking to buy and I probably wouldn't have brought him as a result. He was very stiff and weak when I got him, he couldn't put his right hind under his body at all and he felt unlevel at times to ride. However with proper, slow work and an excellent osteopath he is now dead sound and much much stronger. It was all muscular and weakness with him, nothing major. The velocity with which he has improved has proved to me that its nothing serious at all.
My friend had her horse 5 stage vetted and he passed. However he is now probably only going to make a hack because of an old injury that wasnt picked up at the vetting, my horse has got better and better with work and my friends has got worse.. again it just show how a vetting cannot show up everything.
 
Yes. I've seen a 2 stage done and it did cover flexions, just not the ridden part of a 5 stage, including obviously checking for the heart rate after work and how quick it returns to normal.

I've just spent £500 on a 4 year old, un-backed horse. For the money I figured it was pointless to vet her. I figured, rather coldly, that she'd be worth that to the meat man at the vet worst. :eek:
 
Very, very rarely have vetting and then only 2 stage. Mind you i have never paid that much and you can insure them without certificate if under 2.5k.

Its probably a good idea if your not very knowledgeable. Or are paying alot of money.
 
Would you buy a car without an MOT? Same kinda thing really to check if the major things work ok. For the sake of a few hundred quid it's a small price to pay should your new purchase have something wrong with it? You would then be giving your insurance company the best get out of jail card too.
 
Depends on how much i'm spending, age of the horse, and what I want the horse to do. I wouldn't get am unbroken youngster vetted, nor would I have a horse vetted if it was under £2.5K. I did get a full vetting with X-rays and scans done on my Intermediate horse when I bought him, as he was rather expensive and I had high hopes for him!!!!!!!!!
 
If I was spending 4.5k yes I would.

Didn't for the last one we bought as it probably would have been impossible to get the owner out with the vet (story in inself) but I did worry about not getting one done. However as it turned out I didn't need to worry as the horse was due for jabs not long after we bought him and our vet gave him a thorugh going over and he has a clean bill of health.
 
Years ago i never had a horse vetted, my now 25yo TB is one of those & he was still competing at 22yo.

However now i always have horses vetted, more for insurance reasons than anything.:)
 
I have never had a horse vetted but i have never spent over £600 on a horse, Most of my horses have been "if you can catch it you can have it"

If i had £4.5k to spend i would prob have a vetting done though.
 
It very much depends on the age, price, job - and how well you know ther horse - says she who has only ever had four 'vettings' done in her horse-buying life! Three of those were little more than cursory glances as well.

The last one I bought wasn't vetted, but had any eyesight check at measuring. We'd had her a few months anyway and felt we would have discovered any major health issues in that time! We were never buying her in the first place but you know how things are!

Two I bought from dealers - again, no (must have been a risk-taker back then) and no problems with either.

An unbacked 3yo - nope, that neither, and again no issues. A five year old just broken and riding away, eyes and for any hint of sarcoids (how thorough am I!) and the most expensive one at 3K I did, but she passed with thoroughpins, windgalls and actually has been about the worst for things going wrong with her!

Never been refused insurance or a claim - even E&L coughed up £180 without too much fuss - so no complaints. Have tried not to claim wherever possible - about 4 times in thirty years of owning at least one at a time, and as many as five.

Ask me about my insurance cover for an even more higgledy piggledy reply!
 
I've had 5 stage done today for a project pony worth <£2k it was well worth the £160, it failed, so easy to buy, so expensive to keep, vet it every time IMO.
 
Yes, I always do as I would hate to find there was a problem that I hadn't been aware of and was working the horse to the point that it caused an issue. In fact I am having a new horse vetted at 9am tomorrow morning so wish me luck!
 
Depends on whether it is being insured as most companies insist on one for a horse over a certain price. I don't insure, therefore don't vet unless I have a specific concern. The last time I had a horse 5 stage vetted it was put down within 6 mnths with wobblers - a condition my own vet felt had been present prior to purchase, especially as I had voiced concerns at the time of vetting.
As in all of these issues, each to their own...........
 
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