what would you do?

catherine22

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A friend of mine bought a pony for her son (young) last july so has had him 7 months, hes 14hh appalossa (no particluar breeding) and 13yrs old. all she wants him for was for the odd local show and lessons for her son to learn on. the only problems they have ever had with him is he wont pick his off fore leg up easily but is fine with the others.
(as far as I know he wasnt vetted)
frown.gif
Soon after she go him she discovered, I believe from the farrier that he has had laminitus previously and badly, which she manages really well.

he had the vet last week for his jabs, who said he was at least 18 years old and has severe arthritus in his near fore which is why he doesnt like to pick the other one up and not to ride him in a school as the turns will be too tight and put too much pressure on his leg and to only walk him out hacking

Considering all this wasnt told to her when she bought him (which was for a fair sum, i'll tell you further down after some guesses) does she have any comeback at all to the dealer she got him from? or is there anything she can do?

xx

Now considering
 
I think registered dealers have to now offer a swap or money back but its more than likely depending on how long the new owner has had the animal, im not 100% sure about it all but its worth looking into it or talking to a lawyer maybe, unfortuanetly if the dealer is dealing without a license (which i presume is illegal) then there wont be much your friend can do!
 
Bit tricky really, shes bought a horse from a dealer for a decent amount and not got him vetted.
I know people make these mistakes of not getting horses vetted, but come on, isn't that the first sensible thing that people should do!?
I think she should contact the dealer and see what they have to say for themselves firstly. Unless the dealer she got him from is totally dodgy she may be able to get some money back or swap..
 
his passport says hes 13 but the dealer got it (its one of the BHS ones) so obv could say anything (dont know if vet did it or not)

when I say he was a lot of money she paid £2500 for him which altho isnt that much, would you pay that for a horse prone to laminitus, arthritus and 18 years old?
 
Unfortunately I think the whole buyer beware saying comes into force here. Personally I don't think I'd ever buy a horse without getting it vetted so it's a risk you take. A vet would or should have been able to age the horse and would have noticed arthritic changes.

However, maybe get an equine dentist in to double check the age as, not wanting to offend your vet but not all vets are 100% at ageing horses especially when they're in their teens. I would try get this double checked before going back to the dealer. also if the horse is happy enough in its work and can do what is required then i wouldn't be overly concerned about the arthritis I think it can be managed to a degree provided they are not wanting a competitive animal.
 
I'm not sure that there is much she could do about it now, other than put it down to experience........

There are some really good suppliments on the market now, so hopefull the pony can go on to have a useful life with them. She could also speak to the vet about putting it on some low levels of Danillon which would help make him more comfortable.
 
Without a vetting there's nothing you can do. Put it down to experience and next time advice your friend to get it vetted! Also what do you mean about the passport? Do you mean the dealer still has it? Getting confused!
 
Thats what I thought, she is going to contact him and see if he will do any thing (apparently he was a really nice man!lol!)
I meant the dealer got the passport when he got the horse which he says was 2 years ago (I have come to the conclusion he is more of a man that deals in horses rather than a dealer per se) so he may have been able to fill it out himself as was the case when passports first came about - does that make any more sense?

Amymay he is on 1 and 1/2 bute a day atm to keep him comfortable (ie able to be used for a walking hack as thats all he seems up for now) would the danilon be better or pretty much the same?
 
Danilon is better than bute as causes less damage on the liver when used over a long period of time.

She should also give the horse linseed each day and some formulae feet withit's feed.
 
I believe its buyer beware also. I have bought horses un-vetted (although only cheapo ones!) but I accept that if they turned out to be a totally wrong age or ill etc. then it'd be my problem. I wouldnt go back 7 months later! 7 months is a long time to find out these things...
 
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