What Puts You Off Buying A Horse?

JadeyyAndLadyy

JadeyyAndLadyy

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If you were reading an advert, and thought "wow, this horse sounds great, i might give them a ring" Then you notice they have vices, would you run for the hills or give the horse a chance?
Are there any vices which are a big NO for you? Or does it matter whether they have vices or not? :)
 
I have one that cribs and I wouldn't be keen to have another cribber. I have electric tape along the top of all the fences or she destroys them (she's been known to pull top rails right off) and she has a magic ability to know when the battery has run out.
 
If the advert really grabs you to begin with then I think that a lot of vices are forgiveable, though I suppose it depends what you want the horse for! A kind nature is really the most important thing for me.

For me, I would not take on a horse which would bite, kick or rear or one really afraid/silly in traffic (I don't mean that it would have to hack alone, just that it would have to be safe in traffic whether with company or not). It would also need to be fine turned out in company.

It would depend on my situation but they are really the main things I could think of which I would never take on. I think the common vices like the odd buck, wind-sucking, sweet itch, not hacking alone, being strong etc. would all fade into the background if I thought the horse was for me.
 
Has to be safe in traffic and able to hack out alone or in company for me.
Not sure if I could cope with a nasty horse either. I saw an ad for a fantastic competition horse on horsequest for a really good price but saying this was due to handling problems after a good think I decided a nice horse is more important to me than wining anything.
 
If the horse was reasonably priced and was to good to turn down just because it had a vice then i would have a look. But i cannot stand cribbers/windsuckers, just cant stand the noise of it thats one thing that cracks me up lol Id much prefer a biter to one that cribs!!
 
Would need to be good in traffic and hack out alone. Vice wise i wouldn't want a horse that rears, depends on how bad the vice was ie. do they crib in the field etc and how well it could be managed. I think you need to look at the whole picture and decide if you live with it/ manage it. Rearing would be a definite no no for me though
 
Its obvious, but a history of any sort of lameness. I know its not always easy to fond out, but any sign of any sort of lameness, no matter how small, and i would run for the hills. I made that mistake with my first horse, the vet passed her on her 5 stge vetting and said she thought it would be fine, one month later shes completely lame and unrideable.
6 months and 1000 pound down the line and i still cant ride her. Lets just say lesson learned.

Vice wise, if there was a horse that had a sweeet nature but weaved, i wouldnt be that bothered. But rearing/napping etc would be a big no no.
 
I wouldn't necessarily rule out a horse with vices, but the worse the problem the more perfect the horse would have to be. I mean perfect for me, ie fitting in with what I am looking for. I think it's about finding a balance between making a rational decision and trusting my instinct.

My absolute, non-negotiable dealbreakers are that the horse must be sound and sane (I don't mean a novice ride, but no bolting through wire fences or throwing itself over backwards). Beyond that I've learned that it pays to be flexible.

My horse is nothing like the horse I thought I was looking for (when I bought him some years ago). I wanted a safe, teenage, 15hh allrounder as a transition from ponies to horses who could show me the ropes. I got a 16.2hh rising 5 year old warmblood. He turned out to be my horse of a lifetime and I'm so glad I didn't do the sensible thing and pass him up. BUT I'd known him for some time, knew he had no health problems, and also knew all about his various quirks.

The thing about vices is that they can have associated health issues, so I'd be consulting very carefully with my vet. Also as so many people are saying, it is a buyers market at the moment. There are horses out there without vices, so why pick one that has them? On the other hand, if the horse was what I wanted and the right price, it wouldn't be an automatic no.
 
As long as the vices are not nasty, and even with some vices, and this does not affect their performance ability, I would still look at the horse as a lot of good competition horses will have a vice or health issue. My big no no is a horse that is nasty.
 
Vices would put me off, unless that horse happened to be exactly what I was looking for (and more besides).
Windsucking is the worst for me though. Can put up with cribbing and such.
Saying that though, Carosel Quest, -Ollie Townends top horse, windsucks so. :/
 
if the horse could do the job i wanted then i could put up with pretty much anything... but it would have to load, i can't be arsed spending half of my life trying to persuade a horse up a ramp! i compete a lot though and go out to lots of lessons so it would be a big thing if i had a horse that wouldn't load...
 
Vices are a no-no for me. At some point, all of mine have been, or will be, for sale, and I can't easily sell something with vices.

I can cope with weaving or door kicking at feed time, or when the hay cart goes round, and even sort of weaving in general, but no cribbing, no windsucking, no biting, no kicking. There are hundreds of nice horses- why have one which has issues?
 
Sadly its usually the owner. :confused: In a few cases the owner has described the horse as "the best thing since sliced loaf" and when I get there its been nothing like described - not the horse's fault. Once went to see an ideal horse which turnout to had had an awful injury - in fact really only had 3 working legs. Sad :(
 
diggerbez said:
if the horse could do the job i wanted then i could put up with pretty much anything......
Click to expand...

Same :) if there was a horse (if iw as looking to buy that is) which did exactly what i wanted at a reasonable price but say... weaved at feed time or something, then i would put up with it :)
I came across an advert of a lovely 16.1hh TB who loved to jump and go hacking but was priced at £600 because it cribbed. If i was horse hunting i prob wouldve rang up :)
 
I would never touch a confirmed bucker or rearer.

Riding is my sport and I want it to continue to be that way!

I dont mind the occasional buck, or rear resulted from a stop - but a confirmed one is a complete no no for me. Riding is a dangerous enough sport!

I dont mind cribbing, can put up with windsucking and banging, box walking is a pain but could be managed, you can re-train a horse to load, if it dosent lunge well thats fine as well.
Am normally pretty flexible - but not when it comes to a confirmed bucker/rearer.
Bucking from high spirits or being young is perfectly acceptable imo, as long as not becoming habitual.
 
No price; expensive horses older than 8 with "potential" but no competition results at £4k or over, horses with spavins or history of tendon trouble, rearers, nappy horses, horses with sweet itch, very narrow shouldered horses.
 
The only thing that would 100% put me off is a kicker. Rearing would be dependant on the circumstances - often it can be managed and if its been xrayed etc for pain then I wouldn't be 100% against it.

The other thing I can't really stand, and I would never have personally, is a horse thats really nasty on the ground. My horses are pets, and if I can't cuddle etc then that sort of defeats the point!!!!!! However, my OH is looking for a competition horse and so long as it wasn't DANGEROUS, i would be happy to look after one that wasnt v nice on the ground if it had the competition prospects he hoped for.
 
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