What am I doing Wrong?

[bexwarren24]

I have a selection of foals for sale companion types and small riding types. I personally dont think I am asking alot of money for them and i have out on every ad or reasonable offer but I have had no phone calls. Is it that people are just not buying at the mo? Am i asking too much money? Or am i advertising on the wrong places? What wud u do? How much wud u ask and where wud u advertise?

 

[crazyponys]

link to ads ?
wat type of foals ?
need more info :}

 

[bexwarren24]

haha! Ok, sorry, wasnt sure how much i was allowed to write on here before i got pulled up for advertising. I have 2 coloured Shetland colt foals, 1 yr old. 1 coloured dartmoor hill pony colt 6months, 1 coloured dartmoor hill pony filly, 1 reg dartmoor colt, rising 2 and a coloured welsh X to make 14hh. What sort of prices do you think they are worth? Im starting to think i have priced too high :-s

 

[Booboos]

I don't mean this at all badly and please don't be insulted but at that age and in the present economic climate I wouldn't think they would be worth much at all, unless they are amazing show quality. Any potential buyer would need to pay for them for a couple of years until they matured and then put all the work breaking them in, so I would say your best option would be to try to loan them out (this may also prove tough though).

Good luck!

 

[bexwarren24]

No offence taken as i am trying to sell them for what i would class as not alot. The sad fact is it looks like i wuld get more money for them putting them through my local market then selling them privately which surely isnt right? I do not want to put them through the local market as thats where they came from. I bought them to try and save them from an unfortunate fate but i can kinda see why people dont bother. The dartmoor is from excellent showing lines (confirmed by a big HOYS breeder) but still no interest. The welsh X is very pretty as is the little filly. Maybe i would have more luck in the spring? I had someone wanting to "trial" a shetland but they were about 150 miles away, unfortuantely im not that trusting.

 

[V1NN]

could you put a link to your add? are they on horsemart? x

 

[Persephone]

Slightly off topic and not trying to be mean but the Dartmoor Society do not allow coloured ponies. I would be interested to know what the 'excellent showing lines' are!

 

[bexwarren24]

The pure breed is black not colured, the mother is from Dunmere lines and has been placed numerous times at county level. Not sure u can really argue with those results but im not even asking showing prices for him. Well, i dont think anyway. I out the shetlands on horsemart a whie ago, havent dropped there price on there yet to the same as i have elsewhere.

 

[Persephone]

Apologies I read it wrong

 

[bexwarren24]

No offence taken, lol Do u know alot about dartmoors (i personally dont)? The people who told me about his lines said I could get £900 for him if the right person was looking. I cant even manage to get £400. Lol!

 

[BigRed]

I only paid £30 for my shetland when he was a foal. He is a companion pony. I think if you are asking anything more than £100, it is probably too much. I know you did not breed them - but I wish people would think before they breed these ponies, there are not enough good homes available for them.

 

[Kat]

The registered dartmoor isn't coloured.

The coloureds are dartmoor hill ponies - this means they aren't registered dartmoor ponies.

OP- I would have thought your best bet is to try and sell the registered dartmoor to a showing home. Might be worth advertising through BSPS etc to find someone suitable. Put up notices at any show centres that hold HOYS qualifiers too. Try and do a bit of inhand showing with him in the meantime, it will make him more saleable and get him known.

The 14hh should sell well but probably not until it is ready to be backed or is already backed. You might be best keeping this one at grass until it is three.

The shetlands you might find companion type homes for or if they are registered showing homes. The childrens pony market and driving market probably won't be interested until they are ready to be broken.

The hill ponies I think you will struggle to shift at any price, until they are broken these ponies typically go for meat money at sales. Loaning them as companions might be the best option if you want a secure future. Once they are broken and ridden away though they should be easy enough to sell as riding ponies.

Could you afford to keep some of them until they are old enough to break?

 

[Booboos]

If you can afford to keep them through the winter, I would imagine sping would be an easier time to sell anything. Even better, if you can afford to keep them until they are old enough to break in, it would probably be easier to find them a good home.

Good luck!

 

[251libby]

where abouts in the country are you?

 

[bexwarren24]

Tracey - £100 for a shetland you think, hmm? I had them at £200 but open to offers (of which know one has done). I agree, i dont see why people feel the need to breed more shetlands or dartmoors. With the Dartmoor hill ponies i think farmers get subsideys of some type for having them on the Hills. I may be wrong but i thought breeding was encouraged to keep the moors tidy and to keep the heritage.

Katt - BSPS, havent thought of that one. Good idea! Will give that a try. May see what shows are around locally i could take him too and make a fool of myself (not done much in-hand before). I thought the 14hh may have gone quicker then he has and TBH i dont really want to keep him til he's 3yrs, even tho it is a possibility. I think i probably did pay meat money for the dartmoors and dont want much more than that back. Baring in mind i have put time into taming, etc. I was hoping those too may go to companion homes. Shetlands are registered sadly.

Chesnut Mare - Im in Devon.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions

 

[Persephone]

Only what I have learned since getting a couple at the yard!

We were given ours because they couldn't sell, and they are not great examples tbh!

 

[jewel]

is this them http://www.horsemart.co.uk/advert/1_yr_8_0_hh_skewbald_shetland_pony_devon/73380.
IMO they are too much money, people are giving away this type of pony.

 

[bexwarren24]

yeah, thats the ad, have since dropped the price on other sites. Still no luck. It must be the current climate as they used to fetch close to this price at the markets near us in the summer. I've seen shetlands go for more than TB's in this area but i guess times have changed. Half the reason i put that at that price is too find them decent homes. Hence the or reasonable offer bit.

 

[MurphysMinder]

Someone posted on here a little while ago that they had bought 3 foals at auction for under £50 total. If that is the sad state of affairs at the moment I think yours are over priced, sorry.

 

[Tinypony]

I think if anyone is rescuing, then the responsible thing to do before selling colts on is to geld them. There are too many unwanted and poor quality foals being bred, and most responsible rescue organisations geld all entires before rehoming.
If I was looking for a little cute thing then they would be very tempting, but I'd be adding the cost of gelding to their price, as would most people.
You have put them in the category "Lead Rein and First Ridden", they aren't are they? They are little babies and many years from being suitable for children to learn to ride on.
Will you send them back to market if you can't find buyers?
Sorry, I've got to edit to add, how <u>could</u> you advertise a foal as a potential lawnmower?

 

[SusieT]

Far too expensive imo, I would have thought a 100 at the very max, and even that's pushing it. I also think that you have been naive in buying these to sell on for a profit. It would be another 6-7 yrs imo before they would be worth any realistic money, and that would be broken and riding v. quietly.

 

[Kat]

Yes if they aren't registered and good examples of their breed geld them before selling on. Not many people are in the market for a stallion, and any one who is will want a nice pure bred type.

 

[Puppy]

QR - Far too expensive

I wouldn't pay 3 figures for ponies like that, I'm afraid.

 

[LauraWinter]

You can buy them for- ten quid each at the dartmoor hill pony sales, my friend bought two. Lots of them dont even sell at that price, especially the geldings. I would be pleased to give them away if I were you; to good homes of course.

 

[varkie]

At the local shetland breed sales, fully registered shetland colts were selling for just £60 &amp; £70 guineas. One of these was a top quality bred in the purple colt - you'd expect him to have achieved far more money.

Coloureds in shetlands aren't always achieving higher figures anymore either, unless they have something extra going for them - top blood lines, show history, etc.

We picked up a couple of shetland colts at the sales recently - they just didn't deserve to go to the dealers/meatmen. They are home with us now, for at least the winter - if not longer! They will run on with our own colts, then they will be castrated in the spring (testicles willing!) - we very very rarely sell entires - the shetland world is awash with colts that no one wants. Our colts have already begun their vaccination programme, and are wormed. By the time they go, they will be fully handled, good to do in all ways, and ready to start a new life. And they will NOT go to sales if we can't find new homes - they will stay with us until the perfect homes turn up.

If you want more than £50 for these ponies, then you need to do them properly - vaccinate them, fully handle them, take them out to shows, etc. Then I'd suggest better ads with better pics - I don't think the current ads do the ponies justice. An ad per pony - with various pics of them handled. Listing their breeding, all the things they can do, the shows they've attended, etc.

 

[Donkeymad]

Sorry, but they are way over priced, most are currently worth £50 max. Also, you really should geld the colts, otherwise you are likely to be adding to the unwanted ponies when some numpty buys a colt and decides to breed from it.

 

[bexwarren24]

Murphys minder - Most of the bay colts go at the sales for the mimimum bid of £10. The catch is you now have to passport and chip every foal. Plus by the time you have wormed them and got them home. So by saying they got 3 foals at auction for £50 is probably very acurate but i bet the 3 foals now stand the person in £200+ (for the three). Plus they'll be as wild as they come. I agree i think they are over priced but i was trying to deter unscruplious dealer types. My friend sold 2 she bought for £150 each, more realistic price i agree so I think i will drop them and see what happens.

Woeisme - I could geld them yes but i really dont have anymore money to spend on these foals. I appreciate that people will take that into consideration when pricing the foals up but its upto them to contact me to make an offer. As for being "responsible" by gelding them, yes, but the sad fact is the dartmoor hill pony association dont even geld there rescues. Mainly i think cos as i have said before farmers are paid to breed them and keep them on their land so breeding is not going to stop.

I will lower the price on horsemart but advertised locally and on ther sites they are cheaper than this and in comparison to the other shetlands on that site (registered and unregistered) they do not stand out as expensive. There isnt a "companion" section so they went into first ridden/lead rein as its the closest thing. Maybe i could put them in as youngstock. I wont send them back to the market no but it looks like i would get more money for them that way from what i have seen at markets in the last few weeks.
How could i add them as that? Because everyone who has rang up about them wants exactly that, a cute pony to keep there field looking nice.

 

[Fransurrey]

Hi Bex,

Can't really comment on the market as I'm not an experienced seller, buyer OR dealer, but I did notice that you have a filly in there. If she's at all accessible to those colts I would make her rehoming a priority, before the inevitable happens. Good luck!

 

[bexwarren24]

Hi Fran,

The filly has been kept seperate. Even tho having come from the moors the inevitable may have already happened!! Hoping not at her young age tho she wouldnt be fertile enough.

Varkie - That is the main reason i bought these (the dartmoors and shetlands were heading this way). I bought the pure breed and Welsh for different reasons. They are having handling by kids now as well. I guess maybe shows are the way to go. Thanks for your advise!

 

[Scheherezade]

Sorry - how are the ponies any different from when you got them from the market, if you won't geld or break them? You can't make money on something that hasn't changed, apart from adding a few months onto the age.