What did your horse 'tell you' at first viewing?

I never viewed Andy just took him home. I thought he was quiter then he was but as he got fitter he got more crazy, but I loved it.

Although I didn't buy Louie in the stabdard way I thought he was a scrawny cheeky devil but would out grow it. Sadly it seems the less scrawny he has got the bigger he can buck. Little horror. He is an absolute dream to own though, but I did have a years 'trial.' Still can't believe he's mine.
 
Mare told me she was a tall spooky optionated madam who liked to do things her own way.

Gelding was bought unseen from a friend of mine and I'm so glad I took the chance
 
My lad told me he was a grumpy, fed up a*se on the ground with a sewing machine trot, fantastic canter and the most honest jump ever. The canter and the jump remain, the trot is transformed and after a fairly dramatic few weeks of grumpiness he is now incredibly easy to handle.

Most of all he said: buy me....if you can handle me I'll be your most loyal and genuine horse ever. He was right.
 
"I know I'm already 17hh at 3 and you have never backed a horse before in your life, but look how handsome I am!"

His seller assured me that he was quiet, easy and loved everybody - when I led him in from the field he plodded next to me like a lamb. And to his credit, he has been fairly easy... for a big unbroken three year old WB. If I could go back in time I would like to give myself a slap for being seduced by flashy paces and a pink passport and thinking everything else would sort itself out. But God knows I love him, so it probably wouldn't have made any difference!
 
The first time I saw mine was in the SJ phase at a BE event and I almost went home as although he was jumping well (apart from 1 down, which is a bit of a theme with him lol!!) I just wasn't 'taken' with him. I was convinced to hang around for the xc phase and that was it, he was sold! My little pocket rocket came galloping past, pulling like a train, ears pricked and looking for the next fence and he screamed to me - 'you are going to live for doing xc with me' and he was so right and I just knew he was the one for me before I had even ridden him!

So I arranged the viewing, had him vetted and home he came. He is the most frustrating horse at times as he hates dressage/schooling with a passion but get him on the xc and he is an absolute machine, there is nothing he won't/can't jump and from any stride, he is just so clever and for that I will be forever in his debt and he will be with me for the rest of his days as he is worth his weight in gold and then some x 1 million!!! :)
 
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I have two -
The first is a beautiful black mare, and she was so polite on the ground and when riding at just turned 4, I fell in love and to this day she is just as polite.
The second is my gelding, I wanted an eventer. He had been eventing and then showjumping at a top level successfully for 6mths. Again he was polite in the stable, a bit like a giraffe on the flat, but lit up when jumping - to this day he is still the same
 
One I bought which was a welsh D was spooky when I tried him and also held his head up very high when he was cows on the hack . Thought nothing of it but he turned into an absolute nightmare around them, jumped barbed wire once to get away from some ! Fantastic Competiton horse but very unsafe hack . Sold him thank god .
 
In hindsight, there were lots of things that I merrily overlooked at first. second and third viewing of my gelding but hey ho.

But the one thing I really should have taken note of was that on the 2 separate days I went to view horses, the mare I was riding for a friend because she was for sale took to yelling and yelling after me as I left her in the field after I'd ridden before I went off to view. Something she'd never done before and never did again. She knew. I did eventually buy her too (whether that's cracked up to be all she thought it would be, I don't know).
 
Oh God! He told me that if you view a horse when you are pregnant, irrational and hormonal, and still reeling from the completely unexpected loss of your previous horse, then you will be unconvinced by it, then you will decide you love it, then you will cry (in the office!) when it fails the vet and then you will buy it anyway.

And it will prove to be the best flipping horse that you could possibly have bought and it will take you round your first Intermediate by the time your baby's eight months old.
 
One mare - i had pretty much bought just by seeing her face over the stable door. It told me she was brave, kind, sane and had a big heart.All of this has proved to be correct.

Other mare - i fell in love with her on sight but on inspection i was worried about her future soundness - large windgalls, odd front feet, tail held to one side. I ignored it and she has had a number of lameness issues. Whilst she jumped and moved really well, she also never really took me forward anywhere and this has subsequently been at the route of a number of problems.
 
That there was a reason that I hadn't been that enamoured with the others I'd been to see - and he was that reason! If ever a horse did the choosing - it was him!
 
giraffe said ' think you can ride? Think again love but very very occasionally I will make you feel like a Olympic gold medallist'
mare said ' get me out of here - you know this will end badly even if you do buy me but I will give you everything' - and sh was right
 
HotToTrot said:
Oh God! He told me that if you view a horse when you are pregnant, irrational and hormonal, and still reeling from the completely unexpected loss of your previous horse, then you will be unconvinced by it, then you will decide you love it, then you will cry (in the office!) when it fails the vet and then you will buy it anyway.

And it will prove to be the best flipping horse that you could possibly have bought and it will take you round your first Intermediate by the time your baby's eight months old.
Click to expand...

Love this!!
 
He told me that he was bored and fed up where he was and wanted to come and live with me. He also told me that if I allowed it he would be rude and bargey but he would never ever hurt me deliberately and despite being an unbroken 3 yr old, that I would feel safe riding him and he would look after me. He was right <3
 
This thread proves that there is someone out there for every horse, which is lucky as some of them don't sound that appealing from your first meetings. :)
 
My old lady adopted me as 'Mum' when she was a foal - her dam was a bit of a witch with her foals and P learnt early on that humans and her grand-dam were nicer to associate with and Mum was only good as a milk bar. I fell in love and eventually bought her as an ubacked 4 yo with plans to event her. We did that along the way, gave up on it as she hated showjumping, took up dressage and competed to Inter I and trained all the GP work, retired sound and bred me three beautiful foals. I still have her aged 24yo, she is still the herd boss, doubles as my happy hacker and will be with me to the end of her days.
The other bought in mare is my eldest's horse and she walked straight up to C in the field and stuck her head in her arms the day we went to try her, she came home with us four days later and has done better than I ever imagined she would.
The other four all came out going 'Granny' lol. Still have three of them ranging from 7yo to 18 months.
 
That she was a MASSIVE mover, nothing like any riding school horse I'd ever sat on. I knew that "warmbloods", as she was marketed, had big paces. Gelderlanders have even bigger bone jarring paces and you need abs of steel and a spine of jelly to absorb the movement. I'm glad I was so green as I'd have missed out on a fabulous mare. She's not comfortable, I still look like I can't ride but the last 6 years have been the best years of my life.
 
that he was going to be awesome, but difficult.

i only saw him bombing round a small muddy paddock as no menage available-he passaged, he piaffed, he extended and he did clean changes...........................and that was enough to cancel out the fact that when he accidentally clipped the fence rail bucking, he span round,went back to the same spot and belted it again for good measure, and then tried to do the same to the girl who went to catch him!
 
the very "plain jane" turned out to be a horse of a lifetime..... i called her ugly and wanted to sell her for the first month. We then clicked and never looked back - once the handbreak was off she was amazing.

2 very short years with her before she was peacefully put to sleep. :(

some horses you just never get over. shes one.
 
My old boy told me the truth- he was a badly behaved old man who did exactly as he pleased, but knew how to look after me whilst messing about. He would have been one of those boys who are absolutely awful nearly all the time, full of banter and terrible jokes, but also some of the nicest people around who are always on the lookout for when to stop a joke and administer kindness. I had 5 years with him and he held absolutely true to what he told me on our first ride together. He was the best decision we ever made.

Reg told Al that he was here and would try, that he was game and genuine. And he is- he's very upfront about life. And Smokey said he was very special and everyone should love him, and Al was inclined to agree with his opinion!
 
That he was a sweetheart :)

He hadn't been ridden or even turned out in about a month, and let me walk and trot him in a 15x15 peat pit (after being chased round with a lunge whip!) and prod him all over.

Trotted up sound, gave me a kiss and a groom and that was it. He was coming home!
 
Interesting thread
Horse Number 1 told me I needed to learn to ride - but that she's go all day and be as brave as a lion in return. We both kept the bargin.
Horse Number 2 told me he was being ridden by plonkers from whom he was hiding both his talent and his good nature. (he turned out a great bargain and I still have him)
Horse Number 3 told me she'd try her heart out of only she understood what was wanted. She also told me she was not comfortable (But silly me I didn't listen!)
Horse Number 4 told me he was a jobs worth who might do a fair days work on a fair day - we tussled about it on and off over the time i had him but he turned out OK.
Horse Number 5 told me she was afraid of her owner and of life in general but if I could win her trust she would be a good listener. She also told me the people selling her were telling me a pack of lies about what she would do and that the pictures of her jumping 3 6 were probably of another horse as she hadn't mastered canter yet. The vet told me there MIGHT be something wrong with her back - should have blooming listened to the vet rather than the horse!!
My husbands horse told me he might look a bit knackered but if we didn't work him too hard he would be happy and kind despite his wonky leg action - this turned out to be very true he takes my husband hacking and jumping and even xc schooling all with a nice nature and even stops to catch him should he have a woops moment - and that's an ex race horse!
 
New one said you didn't want a welsh so why are you here?
I know it's because you need me to look after you and I will

Very early days yet as was only riding her 6 wks when I had to have surgery on an old injury
But so far so good. She will lead in gales from my invalid scooter to parts of the college she hasn't seen

She is great fun and safe to ride

Can't wait to get back on now :)
 
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