Was your second horse like the first?

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cheekywelshie

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Jet is now 25, he’s my rock. 20 years together through the pain of colic surgeries and we still hack a few times a week. He’s still happy to be ridden so I keep him in work but just light hacking.

I have been longing for another partly as a companion for my boy (he’s next to another horse but on single turn out, you can have two together if you own two), and partly because I miss the things I used to do - jumping, clinics camps xc beach etc. because of the cost and the prices, I looked but only absent mindedly. Then I saw one that looked just like him . My OH said one that looks like him is a silly idea because you’ll always be comparing and you can’t replace him. Which is a good point.

I have the added complication of timing. My dad being very ill and mum not great and they are a long way from me (my brother lives nearby) so I am going up more . Perhaps this isn’t the right time anyway….with jets age I’m so scared of losing him and not having bonded with another …and it can take a long time to find the right one. But maybe I should just save a bit more. And not obsess with a horse just like the one I currently have.
 
I don't think any of my horses have been similar inside, even if they have looked similar on the outside.

It does sound as if you have a lot going on at the moment. I would perhaps only pursue it if finance is not an issue, so if it doesn't work out, you could sell again or pay for full livery while sorting out life's other issues.

Having strong £ backing does get you out of a lot of sticky situations. Lack of £ can make a tricky situation impossible.
 
All mine, 10+, have been different. Some more similar to eachother than others, especially the ones who are related. But they are different individuals and I wouldn't wish for it to be different. The experience of somewhat similar individuals makes you more prepared for what this individual might come up with (eg. some are prone to run off the road to go on an adventure. Since I'm used to that, I'm giving my current youngsters significantly less opportunities to learn this as it's not a very nice habit).

I have a few requirements for a horse to really fit me: they have to be sensitive, sane and want to work. I'm very flexible with the rest.
 
None of mine have been the same or looked the same. Similar temperaments and ways of going, because I like something a bit fizzier.

Go and see the horse.
 
I bought Lottie because she had similar breeding to Amber. She is so like Amber and it was a joy to have another horse who gave me that bold, enthusiastic feel combined with level-headedness. I definitely have a 'type'. And I don't think there is anything wrong with knowing what you like and trying to find a horse who ticks those boxes. They turned out the be very similar on the ground too: aloof, non-affectionate, independent. I did't love that about that about them but accepted that they both had a fantastic wotk ethic and after work they wanted me to go away and leave them alone. It is quite nice to have an affectionate mare now!
 
Sister and I co-own all our horses. Our first horse was a bay gelding, every other one has been a mare. The first mare was an Appaloosa with a very different temperament from the steady gelding.
BUT we have had 3 Appaloosa mares who have all looked different from each other but with several similar character traits. And 2 Clydesdales, one bay, the other blue roan with very similar temperaments.
If you can afford another horse, I would go and have a look at the one you've seen advertised with an open mind.
 
Mine was a grandson of the sire of my first horse (had no idea until I went to try him). Looked and behaved differently but on paper similar (same colour and 1" difference in height).
 
Aged Belgian warm blood to Friesian foal so no they weren't alike! Both mares. Only geldings since bar sh*tland. TBs, cobs, NF to IDs and ISHs of all colours and heights over 40 years for daughter and I.
Go see the horse 🐎 😉
 
Red-1 said:
I don't think any of my horses have been similar inside, even if they have looked similar on the outside.

It does sound as if you have a lot going on at the moment. I would perhaps only pursue it if finance is not an issue, so if it doesn't work out, you could sell again or pay for full livery while sorting out life's other issues.

Having strong £ backing does get you out of a lot of sticky situations. Lack of £ can make a tricky situation impossible.
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Yes there’s a lot to be said here.

It was literally that it looked like him and was the kind of horse I might go for like mine - although I think there’s a lot of interest in it anyway. I am not in a rush. I’ve looked on and off for two years and that’s only the second i enquired about. I’m still getting my head around prices 8-10k for four year olds and some go without even having been seen!
 
The same in colour and partly in breed. First horse is part cob and lighter limbed with less hair. Second horse is full Gypsy Cob and masses of feather and mane. But similiar in that they are 'nice & easy to keep' boys but both different personalities. First one takes no prisoners and certainly tested the boundaries when he was younger(think it's the part Welsh in him), he is smarter than a lot of humans I know! Second horse despite still being a youngster is a very nice person and very forgiving. Probably a good example of the Gypsy Cob being docile. I do compare, but they are different in their own ways. The main thing for me is that they are easy to do 95% of the time and generally have pleasant temperaments to be around.
 
Nope.

My first was a bolshy Highland pony mare 4 yrs old. We worked together and she lost the attitude but stayed confident. The most fun pony ever.
Second came nervous nelly New Forest pony 3 yr old mare. Spooks at her own shadow type.
Third is confident, excitable Arab gelding 2 yr old. He is now 5 and starting ridden work. Once I get used to a different way of going to Highland I think he's going to be just as much fun. I do need to be careful as it's easy to think oh I could canter through these trees while with him I'm more let's just walk. Slowly. (To be fair though I've literally ridden him 3 times so the newest of ridden partnerships).

New Forest never put a foot wrong but I was so nervous on her that if she tensed I was like nope I have to get off. Arab bounced a little today and I got him to stop and out nanny horse to come back but no point did I ever think, I have to get off.


My friend has a type. Her geldings are different breeds but have similar looking heads and are both forward. They have similar personalities but different enough that it's not like trading one for the other or acting like they need to be similar.
 
My heart horse is 20 and I started looking for something younger to compete two years ago. He’s a rare breed so when another came up with similar breeding, I bought him. He was probably an impulse buy as I was blinded by his relation to my old boy. Turned out to be a huge mistake as he was nothing like my old boy and a tricky character. When I discovered his full background, I should never have bought him!I never bonded with him so sadly sold him after a year. Went back on the search and bought something totally different but he proved to be not as advertised. I decided to keep working with him after the mistake with the last horse. Spent loads on lessons and schooling livery but had lost my confidence with him and sold him too. Felt so bad passing both these horses on as I like to buy for life. Went to look at another but saw an ISH that took my eye. I’ve now had him for 6!months and he’s a star. My old boy hates him. Can it be jealousy as he’s now semi retired. Anyway good luck in your search but be prepared for it to be harder to find the right one after having a heart horse.
 
Opposite in almost every single way- TB/ Cob, Gelding/Mare, high maintenance/ ridiculously chill, chestnut/ black. But my requirements had changed massively in the time between buying him and buying her
 
My first pony was a 13.2 haflinger, first horse a 16.1 bay thoroughbred (no markings)

Had them for years together until I bought my 3rd one. Firstly because I completely fell for her but also because my 2 were getting old and didn’t want to be left with 1.
I lost both my oldies and I now have

A 14.2 haflinger and a (all of) 16.1 bay TB x (pretty much no markings 😂)

It wasn’t deliberate but they are all so different in character I don’t feel like I tried to replicate them. The bay girls move so differently that even from a distance I never mistake the new one for my old TB.
 
cheekywelshie said:
Jet is now 25, he’s my rock. 20 years together through the pain of colic surgeries and we still hack a few times a week. He’s still happy to be ridden so I keep him in work but just light hacking.

I have been longing for another partly as a companion for my boy (he’s next to another horse but on single turn out, you can have two together if you own two), and partly because I miss the things I used to do - jumping, clinics camps xc beach etc. because of the cost and the prices, I looked but only absent mindedly. Then I saw one that looked just like him . My OH said one that looks like him is a silly idea because you’ll always be comparing and you can’t replace him. Which is a good point.

I have the added complication of timing. My dad being very ill and mum not great and they are a long way from me (my brother lives nearby) so I am going up more . Perhaps this isn’t the right time anyway….with jets age I’m so scared of losing him and not having bonded with another …and it can take a long time to find the right one. But maybe I should just save a bit more. And not obsess with a horse just like the one I currently have.
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Kindly I think if you are traveling to care, and involved in that, it isn't the right time to bring another horse home because both a horse in a new environment and relatives that are in need of care, demand a lot of time, emotional (and physical) exertion, so you risk ending up spreading yourself too thinly and stressed out, when horses are a hobby we do for precisely the opposite reason.
Plus horses are money pits when caring demands might mean you need to take time off work. I also think looking for a carbon copy of a beloved horse means you do an injustice to both your oldie getting a "replacement", and the new one who is never going to fit exactly into that mould.
 
I don't think anything you've written means now would be the wrong time (I'm assuming you have care in place for your current horse when you have to go away so could just add the new horse to that care) - let's face it, there's never a good time as there will always be something and sometimes you have to just have to go for it. There will always be teething issues and a settling in period.

What I would do is be really clear about what you want in your new horse but be open minded about how that might look - if you know you want a sane, easy hack that could pop a small fence then that could be a native, it could be a cob or it could be an OTTB.

Both my owned horses have been the same colour & geldings but that's where their similarities have ended - completely different sizes, breeds and personalities. Both were and are very special ❤️
 
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Nope … I have 9 at present and all are v different - interestingly I have one that rides like my first horse ever … but they look nothing alike but I do often say he is like his reincarnation…
 
Every horse I have bought has been different in type and personality from the one I had before. I guess none of them have been terribly fizzy because I can't be arsed with a horse that wants to pull my bloody arms off all the time, but other than that, nothing alike at all. In a way by design. I wanted something different.

1. QH mare.
2. TB/Shire x mare
3. PRE mare
4. Highland gelding
 
My last 2 have been polar opposites. Previous horse was the most laid back chap you could find, often needed a rocket under him unless you took him hunting when he finally found 3rd gear! Even then I took him in a snaffle and survived. Current horse is like a toddler on blue smarties, has one speed which is fast - even his walk is like he’s trying to set a personal best lap time. Brakes are usually a discussion not a definite, if it’s windy or cold I do a small prayer before getting on.

I didn’t deliberately set out to buy completely different horses but it just happened! They’ve both had their pros and cons and both taught me an immense amount which I believe has made me a better rider.
 
Some one once said to me - always be the monkey... grab another branch before letting the other one go 🤗

And I'm glad I did - if that helps with your timing situation, its never a wrong time.

I think when I got my new horse he was similar in ways to my old horse - I love a dark coat, he was similar size and he had the kindest most expressive eye which was the thing that hooked me! And when I saw his ad - something just drew me in, sometimes you just have to trust your gut!
 
When I lost Ebony, I went looking for another, if slightly bigger, Eb. He was 14.1 on tiptoes, a black Sec D. I went to see a 15.1, black Section D at a dealer's and he just wasn't for me, too quiet and backwards thinking. I said this to the dealer and he said, I've got just the one for you. Out walked Archie, a 16.3, white grey ISH. I said no, he's too white and too big. The dealer said just sit on him. Half an hour later, I'd bought him subject to vetting. Despite being nothing like Eb, he was very like Eb.

Long story short Arch semi retired after a few years and I started sharing my friend's horse Monty - also a huge grey. They looked so similar people used to ask us if they were related. You couldn't get two more different horses but they were both amazing in their own way. Arch was totally bombproof and the cwtchiest, most loving horse in the world. There was no malice in him at all but he could be incredibly (terrifyingly) strong in exciting situations so I would take Monty to those things. Mont was exceptionally talented but quite lazy so would just about do enough to avoid being hassled for more. It all came so easily to him though that his 'just enough' was often very good. His only fault was he wasn't great in traffic, especially alone, but I had Arch to do that on so we just didn't do it.

15 years later Arch was retired and Monty was stepping down so I went looking again - wanting the perfect blend of Archie and Monty but a different colour. I ended up with the same colour rather that the blend! It all went a bit wrong with Charlie (he was sweet but we just weren't right for each other) so after 2 years I was looking again and found Wiggy, same size and shape but thankfully dark bay. He is the perfect blend of Arch and Mont. Bombproof like Archie, laid back like Monty but with an absolute desire to be the world's best horse and try his heart out - he shares that with Eb.

All of my horses have been wonderful (even Charlie in his own way, I've never met such a funny horse) but Wig is definitely my Mr Perfect.
 
All of my horses have been wonderful and special in their own ways.
Flynn- we met when he was 16, an ID x Connie, loaned for a year and then took over ownership. We lost him when he was 24. He was polite and dependable, I could put anyone on him but he was also strong willed, if he decided there were monsters in a hedge you had no chance at getting him past it for weeks.
Dolly- she was 10 when we purchased her, an irish sports horse but alot of TB in the mix! She was narrow and quick, if you didn't do something how she liked it she would tell you. I'd only allow certain people to handle her. To ride she would be classed as sharp, but she would go through fire for me- I trusted her completely. Sadly lost her in January.
Indie- she's rising 5 (July), passported as an irish sports horse but is a cob × tb! She's quiet, sensitive and a lovely person. I would say she's a mix of the 2, she's a gentle soul like Flynn with everyone where as Dolly needed to feel she trusted you before she would relax with you. But she gets over things as quick as Dolly, we spook then we carry on where as Flynn would carry the worry with him.
 
No - same breed, same colour, I even bought the young one (unseen) because he reminded me of the older one in his advert pics/videos.

They're like chalk and cheese.
 
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