Whats she worth ?

[sintrago1]

This is so sad to read. If you were that desperate for another one I would be putting to sleep some of the older ones as you will no doubt save a fair amount over winter with not having to feed them. 6 is a lot of horses to feed! Put that to one side and what you could potentially sell your 20 year old for you could save in a few months

You think its kinder to put healthy horses to sleep rather than sell one to a caring owner desperate to love one? I dont get that . And would never happen.

 

[Timelyattraction]

You think its kinder to put healthy horses to sleep rather than sell one to a caring owner desperate to love one? I dont get that . And would never happen.

Nope i think its sad that you’re willing to Sell an old horse that has the security with you and has essentially been retired for 2 years to go back into full work for what sounds like you want stupid money for just so you can get one you can ride. And then you say if you can't get basically 6k for him you’ll keep him. Why cant you just loan him? What difference does it make except for the money? Why didnt you sell him 2 years ago when he was still in work?

 

[JenJ]

It only occurred to me today has never even crossed my mind before, always presumed she would always be with me. Like my other 6 retired horses But i just thought maybe she might actually enjoy it. It might go well she is out 24/7 with me, she may enjoy all the pampering she might get for maybe a few years, getting spoilt a bit. Difficult to truly know what she would prefer.

I think maybe you should take a couple of days to have a think about things - separate the idea of selling her to fund a new polo pony from the idea of her having a new home to get spoilt, they are two different things. Work out which of the two is more important, and focus on that.

If you are more concerned about her having a pampered life, then let her go for free on permanent loan. You won't get polo pony money for her.

If you want the money, advertise her for what you think you might get, and see if there's any interest. She's unlikely to get a pampering permanent home.

You can't do both at the same time, sorry.

 

[sintrago1]

I think maybe you should take a couple of days to have a think about things - separate the idea of selling her to fund a new polo pony from the idea of her having a new home to get spoilt, they are two different things. Work out which of the two is more important, and focus on that.

If you are more concerned about her having a pampered life, then let her go for free on permanent loan. You won't get polo pony money for her.

If you want the money, advertise her for what you think you might get, and see if there's any interest. She's unlikely to get a pampering permanent home.

You can't do both at the same time, sorry.

Im literally been offered a pampering, they say permanent (obviously cant be guaranteed) home though?

 

[nutjob]

You think its kinder to put healthy horses to sleep rather than sell one to a caring owner desperate to love one? I dont get that . And would never happen.

The amount of older horses sold to caring owners purporting to be homes for life and who then pass them on into the dodgy dealer network is soul destroying. It's happening all time, they are renamed, repassported, lose a few years and sold on often multiple times dropping lower and lower on the dodgy dealer circuit.

It just seems a bit unusual for someone who wants a schoolmistress to be interested in a horse that's been out of work for 2 years, it doesn't sound right. They don't know if the horse will stand up to the job they want to do and will have to go slowly to bring a 20yo back into work after 2 years off. I would have thought that someone with several thousand pounds available would look for one which is still sound while at a similar work level that they will want.

 

[JenJ]

Im literally been offered a pampering, they say permanent (obviously cant be guaranteed) home though?

Is she also offering enough money for you to fund a new pony? If so, congratulations, and you don't need this thread anymore

 

[Bellaboo18]

Im literally been offered a pampering, they say permanent (obviously cant be guaranteed) home though?

So loan her out.

 

[Merry neddy man]

RS?

 

[sintrago1]

The amount of older horses sold to caring owners purporting to be homes for life and who then pass them on into the dodgy dealer network is soul destroying. It's happening all time, they are renamed, repassported, lose a few years and sold on often multiple times dropping lower and lower on the dodgy dealer circuit.

It just seems a bit unusual for someone who wants a schoolmistress to be interested in a horse that's been out of work for 2 years, it doesn't sound right. They don't know if the horse will stand up to the job they want to do and will have to go slowly to bring a 20yo back into work after 2 years off. I would have thought that someone with several thousand pounds available would look for one which is still sound while at a similar work level that they will want.

Very scary to think of them ending up.in dodgy dealer hands, thats why ive got so many.
The lady has been looking for many months, had few fail vets and more than a few not been anything like advertised. She was wanting to talk to me about any advice i could offer to help her find one as she getting disheartened. I gave the best advice i could and simply as an after thought said you know that horse your descrbing that you want is in my field. Id never thought of selling her prior to this conversation. The horse wasnt retired through injury or sickness but simply because i stopped wanting to ride her.
I hope everyone gives this much grief to everyone selling older horses! It sounds like the amount of money the horse would be worth would not be enough justification for the worry of what might happen to her down the line, so she can just stay here as always planned
With all the others!

 

[sintrago1]

Is she also offering enough money for you to fund a new pony? If so, congratulations, and you don't need this thread anymore

My original question was to get a value to ask for her? Which i got... people seemed to think 2k at a push to which i deemed not enough to worth pursuing the idea., not enough for the emotional side of it. I wasnt expecting to get enough for a pony but i also have a 7yo on loan who i could also sell and the combined money may have got me close...however as i said 2k is not enough to make me pursue the idea any further. She will remain in the field

 

[JenJ]

It sounds like the amount of money the horse would be worth would not be enough justification for the worry of what might happen to her down the line, so she can just stay here as always planned
With all the others!

This part is what people are reacting to - you are implying that there IS an amount of money that IS justification for the worry of what might happen to her.

And it's ok if you want to sell an older horse. Even if other people don't agree, if that's what you want to do, it's perfectly ok.

But you can't claim that it's for the horse to be pampered while at the same time also saying that for the right price she can go somewhere that you might be worried about.

Glad you've decided to keep her anyway, she's a lucky girl

 

[twiggy2]

It sounds like the amount of money the horse would be worth would not be enough justification for the worry of what might happen to her down the line,

This sentence is the problem, it's not concern for the horse its all about if it worth it to you.
You accept there is a risk to the horse in the future if you sell her but if you could get more money for her the risk is no concern anymore and you would sell her regardless

 

[quiteniceforacob]

To me the concern is, if you got £8k for her, you wouldn’t worry about her future? Again, separate those 2 things. Do you want the money or to secure her future?

Ultimately you have no say over her future selling her. Even if the potential buyer is genuine, pays you £8k and they are wonderful together, and your mare stays fit etc, in 2 years the new owner may say “I don’t need / want a schoolmaster anymore, now I want a 5yo.” Your mare goes back on the market, this time at 22, value further reduced, and this time you can’t vet the buyers.

 

[ycbm]

What does pampering mean?

I have lost count of the number of fed up looking horses and ponies I've seen covered head to foot in bubbles while the owners talk about how much they love a pamper session.

Or the people who think horses that have lived out 24/7 in a herd would feel pampered in individual turnout in a small paddock in summer and no turnout at all in winter.

Pampering for most horses is a nice mud bath and plenty of forage.
.

 

[FieldOrnaments]

I can't imagine selling on a 20yo who's served you faithfully for 17 years because you want a newer model. Ditto can't imagine pushing an arthritic pony to do a few chukkas week because they're all you can afford.
No one NEEDS a pony.
Horses do need to be free from pain and have their needs met. She's a horse. She'd prefer being in a field up to her knees in red clover with the sun on her back and a herd of others.
It sounds to me like you can't afford to play polo at the moment and need to look at other areas of your life to change round or cut down - rather than compromise animal welfare, which is never a negotiable matter. The animal's welfare would not be bettered by selling her on as a ridden horse.
Sorry to be so blunt but this made very, very uncomfortable reading, not helped by the context added in the later comments.

 

[sintrago1]

This part is what people are reacting to - you are implying that there IS an amount of money that IS justification for the worry of what might happen to her.

And it's ok if you want to sell an older horse. Even if other people don't agree, if that's what you want to do, it's perfectly ok.

But you can't claim that it's for the horse to be pampered while at the same time also saying that for the right price she can go somewhere that you might be worried about.

Glad you've decided to keep her anyway, she's a lucky girl

There is no price she would go somewhere i was worried about. What i meant is a sale to even the seemingly best home still has an element of worry as you cant be sure of the future.

 

[ycbm]

I hope everyone gives this much grief to everyone selling older horses! It sounds like the amount of money the horse would be worth would not be enough justification for the worry of what might happen to her down the line, so she can just stay here as always planned

Can you hear yourself?

£2k is not enough to face the worry about what might happen to her in future, but £10k would be?

The answer to your question is yes. On this forum, mostly populated by people who really love their horses, everyone expressing that kind of opinion would get as much grief if they suggested selling a 20 year old they have owned for 17 years when their circumstances aren't forcing them to sell.
.

 

[sintrago1]

I can't imagine selling on a 20yo who's served you faithfully for 17 years because you want a newer model. Ditto can't imagine pushing an arthritic pony to do a few chukkas week because they're all you can afford.
No one NEEDS a pony.
Horses do need to be free from pain and have their needs met. She's a horse. She'd prefer being in a field up to her knees in red clover with the sun on her back and a herd of others.
It sounds to me like you can't afford to play polo at the moment and need to look at other areas of your life to change round or cut down - rather than compromise animal welfare, which is never a negotiable matter. The animal's welfare would not be bettered by selling her on as a ridden horse.
Sorry to be so blunt but this made very, very uncomfortable reading, not helped by the context added in the later comments.y

 

[JenJ]

There is no price she would go somewhere i was worried about. What i meant is a sale to even the seemingly best home still has an element of worry as you cant be sure of the future.

Absolutely!

But you say that for the right price, it's worth the worry. That's what people don't like.

 

[sintrago1]

Can you hear yourself?

£2k is not enough to face the worry about what might happen to her in future, but £10k would be?

The answer to your question is yes. On this forum, mostly populated by people who really love their horses, everyone expressing that kind of opinion would get as much grief if they suggested selling a 20 year old they have owned for 17 years when their circumstances aren't forcing them to sell.

 

[sintrago1]

If the arthritic polo pony is sound and comfortable ( injected joint) i dont understand the problem. Im very attentive to her, if she was uncomfortable i would stop riding her. She would probably have been pts if someone didnt buy her and try keep her going as it unlikely a polo owner would have kept her for a retirement, they dont seem to do that and she wouldnt be suitable for any other job.

 

[FieldOrnaments]

PTS isn't a barbaric thing to do. It literally means good death. A good death is always preferable to a bad life.
Apologies if I misunderstood the situation there; if you've got veterinary approval it's not in discomfort then crack on.

It doesn't change anything regarding the twenty-year-old, though.

 

[sintrago1]

To me the concern is, if you got £8k for her, you wouldn’t worry about her future? Again, separate those 2 things. Do you want the money or to secure her future?

Ultimately you have no say over her future selling her. Even if the potential buyer is genuine, pays you £8k and they are wonderful together, and your mare stays fit etc, in 2 years the new owner may say “I don’t need / want a schoolmaster anymore, now I want a 5yo.” Your mare goes back on the market, this time at 22, value further reduced, and this time you can’t vet the buyers.

I suppose i was hoping for the impossible, a secure future is most important and that cant be guaranteed. I might add though that every time anyone sells any horse at any age for any amount they are doing so without a secure future.

 

[PurpleSpots]

I suppose i was hoping for the impossible, a secure future is most important and that cant be guaranteed. I might add though that every time anyone sells any horse at any age for any amount they are doing so without a secure future.

I think, in all honesty, you were hoping some/all of us would help to alleviate the discomfort you feel in considering making this sale?

Sometimes I think you have to go there in your mind, and look at it from all angles, in order to decide for sure it isn't right. I don't think there's anything wrong with thinking about things thoroughly, even uncomfortably sometimes.

It's your actions which count.

 

[SO1]

I think you have made the right decision not to sell the 20 year old. Some elderly ponies who are still competing and are SJ/PC school masters do have a good value.

But your horse has not been ridden for 2 years the person wanting a horse who you think might be suitable had had a few failed vettings. Your horse will not be fit enough if the lady in question wants to do a 5 stage vetting.

In terms of price if your horse was in work there is a 19 year old advertised on horsequest similar height 4.5k but is in full work not sold from the field.

I do agree with you that at whatever age you sell your horse at you cannot secure it's future and horse can break for lots of reasons not just because of age.

However if this lady who is only one mile away wants a horse that can be ridden now and will pass a 5 stage vetting I don't think that your horse even if it was 10 would be suitable for her as she would need to bring it back into work which will take time and she wouldn't not be able to a 5 stage vetting until the horse was fit enough.

 

[TheMule]

You must have quite a set up if you can keep 7 retired horses and 2 playing ponies. I don’t think offloading 1 20year old horse is going to do much to change your financial position.
Get her back into work and loan her out if it’s helpful to you to have 1 less, but I would not contemplate selling an old faithful, and she really has very little value as she is at the moment anyway.

 

[BBP]

I bought a 19 year old earlier this year, as a hack to enjoy for a few years before my young horse is backed. In her advert she sounded the perfect horse. Within weeks of getting her home, I realised she is crocked, in body and mind, and it would take huge amounts of work to bring her to a point where she would do the job I bought her for comfortably, with the correct muscle, posture and balance to carry a rider, and with her mental anxieties addressed. (Of course I could choose to ignore how she feels and just ‘make’ her do it, and enjoy hacking out on a shut down horse.) So now I have a 19 year old horse where I haven’t had years of emotional connection being banked, you could say I owe her nothing. It would be easy at this point to sell her on, she isn’t what I wanted, she doesn’t meet the job I bought her to do. If I sold her I’d have a pot of money to buy something better. I’m sure someone out there would buy her and ride her and not notice or care that she freezes up when she sees tack, or that her eye goes blank and staring when you approach her, and she holds her breath. She would do the job for a time because she is a genuine horse but she would undoubtedly end up on a downhill spiral. But she didn’t ask for me to buy her. I owe her a duty because buying her was my choice, not hers. So I have chosen to retire her before I have even really ridden her, she is eating all my money and enjoying just being a horse with no expectations on her. To me that’s what a 20 year old horse deserves.

My point being, good homes are out there, but I just don’t know how many homes like me there are. (And I certainly didn’t pay more than £2k even when I did think she would be a riding horse for a few years).

 

[ycbm]

If the arthritic polo pony is sound and comfortable ( injected joint) i dont understand the problem. Im very attentive to her, if she was uncomfortable i would stop riding her. She would probably have been pts if someone didnt buy her and try keep her going as it unlikely a polo owner would have kept her for a retirement, they dont seem to do that and she wouldnt be suitable for any other job.

The problem is that on your other thread you said you adore her and would do anything to help her.

What you meant was that you adore playing polo on her and would do anything to extend that.

I realise I'm sounding very hard on you in my posts on your threads but as a new joiner you have now posted two threads and both are likely to raise hackles on this forum. For myself, I'm afraid that I can't abide people saying that they adore their horses when they will continue to go something with them which could barely be more guaranteed to cause them issues with an arthritic knee than polo.

Are you now saying you bought her knowing about the arthritic knee with the intention of keeping her going? If so I agree with the person above who said you can't afford to pay polo if that's what you have to do to play it.

PTS is not a welfare issue. There are many sad horses living out long retirements out in all weathers, or stuck for long hours in stables, in grumbling pain, who would be better off dead.
.

 

[starbucker]

Sorry but if shes sound and suitable for low level riding why is she not okay for low level polo ? It it particularly taxing I know nothing of the sport? Sorry if I missed this part of the thread

 

[stormox]

There is no such thing as a guaranteed permanent home. You aren't offering her one, why should anyone else be different? Circumstances change beyond our control. And the dealers are quick to jump in and make money.