What did you do "wrong" when buying?

[FlyingCircus]

Opposite to the rules thread...what "rules" did you completely disregard in a do as I say, not as I do type situation!?

I did the following:
- Wasn't looking for a horse...but was looking at horses for sale (BAD move)
- Fell in love over FB ad (Very basic ad, could have been written about any horse!?)
- He was loose in school when I went to see him (took me AGES to catch him first week I had him)
- Wanted him after I saw him (hadn't even seen him ridden)
- Agreed to buy him after I sat on him (hadn't jumped him, was advised to by seller as he was quirky!)
- Didn't see him loaded until day I went to take him away
- Did NOT want a horse difficult to mount as I rode alone 90% of time(...he wouldn't stand still for first few months I had him)

And that's how I came away with a horse when I didn't intend to buy one yet, who was a ****** to catch, a pain to get on, span when spooked, goes up when pressured...
Good job I love him and he's mostly knocked those habits on the head now!

 

[ElleSkywalker]

Bought an unbacked 2 year old from a horse sale aged 15 :tongue3:

 

[FlyingCircus]

Bought an unbacked 2 year old from a horse sale aged 15 :tongue3:

I think you beat me :')

 

[nato]

- Viewed a five rising six year old despite wanting a 'been there, done that' type
- Didn't hack him out despite wanting one that would hack alone
- Didn't ask for extra videos of him doing any of the activities the seller said he had done (dressage comps, showjumping comps, etc) and just went off the one of him jumping at home
- Didn't ask or think to check how we was to do feet, shoe or clip
- Bought a horse with no XC experience for eventing

He has a temperament to die for, looked after me jumping around a 90s course despite me being very nervous, and was a gem when I tried him away from home. He is brave as they come and so I figured we'd sort the rest

 

[Carrots&Mints]

Went out looking for a 7 year old hunter type, came home with yearling Sec D

 

[Merlod]

Age 17, looking to buy my first horse with own money so not big budget. Phoned about a nice but green sec D, told it was sold but to still come down and see some of the others. Went away with a barely handled 2 year who'd just been left in the field - he was hollering when put in the stable, backed into a wheelbarrow when took out and could not understand trotting up! Didn't have him vetted, didn't take an experienced friend, didn't go away to "think about it" either. He's 10 now and my horse of a lifetime, and I think all the groundwork - leading, picking, feet, tying up, crying, swearing, trailering, walking out in traffic, mouthing, backing, longreining etc really created a bond

 

[ShadowHunter]

Didn't take anyone experienced with me
Didn't hack alone, see anything apart from tacking up, being ridden & untacked.
Didn't get a vetting

Thankfully she's turning out to be a great horse with only a few bumps in the road.

 

[Laddy]

Brought a horse from a well know dealer(for being dodgy, unknown to me
) and then had him vetted by a much talked about Vet on this website! Very lucky for me he's a gem!!

 

[Arniebear]

Vowed I didn't want an OTTB due to their high injury rate, saw a lovely Irish X which if I had bothered to look at his passport would have realised very quickly he was an OTTB (it had gallop written on it in big bold writing, not to mention his vet checks at various racecourses) I did not lay my eyes on the passport at all, I purchased him, without a vetting and within 9 months he was pts due to his racing injuries.

 

[Shadowdancing]

Everything!

 

[DirectorFury]

I went out looking for a 10-15yo, been-there-done-that eventing schoolmaster, gelding.

I:
- went to see a horse recommend by the local dodgy dealer
- got on said horse without asking how much it had done under saddle (I'll get to that bit)
- cantered said horse in the school
- took horse onto the gallops on the yard
- didn't have it vetted.

The horse was a 3yo, barely backed, section D mare. I was told she had all basics under saddle, turns out she'd only been sat on 10 times and had never cantered under saddle or been ridden out of the school .
On the other hand I'd have been daft to walk away from such a sensible horse after all that!

 

[tase1965]

Went out looking for a 7 year old hunter type, came home with yearling Sec D

I was looking for a sane and sensible older horse I could just get on and enjoy... came home with yearling Sec D!!

 

[Merlod]

I think sec D's seem to be the downfall!

 

[freckles22uk]

Ended up buying a 5 month old foal when I had only 'gone to look' I had totally lost all my confidence around horses after a road accident (resulting in my horse being PTS) .. I was at the point of being very nervous of just being round a horse...

18 years later I've still got her, backed her myself, we had our ups and downs, I was scared to death to ride on the roads, but we overcome all the problems

 

[Slightlyconfused]

Took my dad with me who informed us on the way home from the tack shop (which is also a breeders yard) that he had put a deposit down on the beautiful unpacked six year old and we were picking him up after holiday.. ... Two years on he is backed and going fab with a temperament to die for 😀

 

[Enfys]

Regularly took a trailer and wad of cash when viewing.

Never vet.

Never take expert trainer/voice of reason.

Buy something I don't need.

 

[MagicMelon]

1) Got on a young horse to try him out after the owner refused to do so... (always encouraging!).
2) Got told said young horse was "just chilly" when it was humpy once I got on, years later when I bumped into her and mentioned him being cold backed she said "oh yeah, he was horrifically cold backed".
3) I bought a Welsh D unseen from the bottom of the country (Wales) based on a very short video, took me 2 months just to get him into trot as he was so nappy and was an absolute **** to handle.
4) Went to see a WB as my first horse (off ponies), he refused every single jump I aimed him at but I just thought it was me being useless so we bought him anyway, it wasn't... that was how he was!

 

[xgemmax]

Wasn't looking for a horse and bought him without having ridden him from a horse sales and had nowhere planned to keep him or way of getting him home

 

[Spangie]

went to see an unbacked 5 year old, shortly after loosing my fab ISH. didn't take anyone with me, didn't have him vetted, didn't ask anything sensible, but when he broke off the lunge and passaged around the field in spectacular style, decided he was the one for me..... hmmm. 3 years on and he's a great horse. more potential than i'll ever have, but the most delightful nature!

 

[only_me]

Paid too much for what he was, didn't really try to haggle just paid up

But I knew he was the horse as soon as I sat on him - considering he was 17hh and only 4 years old! It just felt right, and After 6 years of owning him I'm so glad I bought him on instinct! The day after buying we went hunting with owner/breeder (ie. It was second time I had ever ridden him!!) and it was his first time that bills had ever been and he enjoyed it so much he was jumping without looking at the fences & got a tad over excited lol - but I still knew I had made the right decision

Billy has a home for life - nothing will make me sell him

 

[Nicnac]

Went to buy a "been there seen that" replacement when I lost my mare. Went alone to see a 4 year old and bought on the spot after very quick ride, small jump and then watched him being hacked down 100 yds of busy road.

I saw the ad and kept returning to it; something about him. He flew 5 stage vetting as he wasn't cheap and four years on is best thing I ever did. He events with my daughter and puts up with me doing whatever I want with him.

Bought a 5 yo just OTTB 9 years ago for 14 year old daughter - didn't have him vetted. Has cost a small mortgage in vets bills but still here 9 years on. Unfortunately only did 2 BE events before he cracked his fetlock at his first 100 but still happy at Elementary dressage thanks to copious Tildren i/v's!

 

[indiat]

Out of my five, four were pity purchases! All fab little personalities though and the kids wouldn't part with any of them.

 

[joulsey]

Vowed I didn't want an OTTB due to their high injury rate, saw a lovely Irish X which if I had bothered to look at his passport would have realised very quickly he was an OTTB (it had gallop written on it in big bold writing, not to mention his vet checks at various racecourses) I did not lay my eyes on the passport at all, I purchased him, without a vetting and within 9 months he was pts due to his racing injuries.

Out of curiosity, when do you ask to have a look at the passport? At the first viewing? Second Viewing? When/if you agree to buy?

 

[Gloi]

Bought a foal on the spur of the moment to cheer myself up because I was feeling low and he was cute.

 

[Jo1987]

Bought a 4 year old cob who'd been backed about 3 weeks, when I was looking for a tb type around 10 years old as I assumed all cobs were stubborn and heavy to ride, and all youngsters were dangerous.
He's actually a pleasant, genuine and (reasonably!) light ride, who actually didn't need 'teaching' much as he's had a good go at everything I've asked of him and has a fab attitude.
I still want that 10 year old tb type though, my only complaint about my lovely cob is that everything feels like it's happening in slow motion, and I miss the adrenalin!

 

[Farcical1]

Bought a gelding when I really was looking for another mare. My two old ladies are now madly in love with him and him with them. God knows how I'm going to manage to get him away from them long enough to teach him to hack out on his own. Did I mention that hacking alone was another definite that I wanted??

 

[AShetlandBitMeOnce]

Walked down to the field, whipped his rug off and that was that. Took him that weekend, couldn't have worked out better for me!

Didn't vet, didn't trot up, didn't lead, pick up feet, ride, see ridden, lunge or any of that. I know it sounds silly but he just had a lovely, kind face that told me what he was all about. Had a look over for injury/sarcoids/lumps and that is all.

 

[rachk89]

I wanted a calm all rounder cob type mare preferably something that would teach me and that I could go and do some competing with. Nothing fancy but that it could build my confidence which was rock bottom.

I ended up with a 6 year old oldenburg X connemara gelding with extremely fancy movement I couldn't ride when I bought him. I wasn't even sure about him at first because of his breeding and him scaring me a bit out on a hack by myself. I did like him but thought he was too much for me. My dad made me buy him because he had never seen a horse with such lovely movement before. Yes we bought him based on prettiness.

Thankfully he is a star. I did feel safe on him when I first rode him even though his trot nearly made me fall off. He only scared me on the hack because he had his head held high and was snorting but I caused that by hanging on to his mouth for fear of dying. The fact he put up with it and didn't launch me off says a lot about him. He can be an ass now at times to get what he wants and to push my buttons but he knows when I am serious and when he has messed up. I rarely feel scared on him now yet I do if I go on another horse. That is my issue though not his.

 

[Meredith]

I bought my first pony while still at school. He was an unweaned 4 1/2 month old colt foal. When I married and moved 1/2 way across the country, he came too. Later he was ridden at Pony Club by both my children. He lived until he was 27.

 

[Pie's mum]

For my first horse it seemed like a really good idea to buy an underweight young gangly Irish bog horse with assorted behavioural issues - scared of his own shadow due to previous heavy handling (freaked at whips, brooms etc), defensively bit of you went near his stable door, wouldn't pick his feet up, no mouth to speak of, used to run off with me all the time - and he was QUICK! Didn't know how to walk or trot, could only jog and gallop. Scared of coloured poles and fillers.
Well it all turned out OK - he's still with me 14 years later. Both of us older and wiser having learned so much together. He is a great friend and I wouldn't swap him for the world. He's proved everyone wrong - people used to tell me to have him shot before he caused an accident. Now people compliment his manners! He's still a somewhat quirky interesting ride but he has a heart of gold.