Would you buy a horse that failed a flexion test on near fore?

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I have seen a horse advertised, originally £3500 but now under £2500 because it failed a flexion test on its near fore.

I am a happy hacker primarily and want to hack, perhaps a fun or beach ride but perhaps not.

Would you buy or consider and what do I need to be made aware of that this test is flagging.

Thank you
 
Get it vetted, it might not fail a second time. Flexion tests are widely variable and often unreliable. I wouldn't let it put me off immediately if everything else was right but I would want to know how 'off' he was exactly and then make a decision.

I doubt my girl would pass a Flexion on one of her hinds but she has been hacked/jumped/schooled 5-6 times a week for the last two years and never had a day's lameness.

That said, I did halt a purchase due to a Flexion and I was gutted. Mind you it sent him trotting away probably 6/10 lame and it was painful to watch.
 
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Would not put me off! flexion tests are controversial anyway. Not natural at all and if carried out incorrectly could give this result. I have seen many performed incorrectly (by vets!).

It always depends on what you want the horse for. If like you say it is just for hacking mainly and you are not wanting to BE event top level then it is prob fine! BUT you would never know unless you want to x ray EVERYTHING!! which would prob cost you more than the horse LOL. So you have to weigh it up, IF it is the perfect horse and you have ridden it then get vetted again....might not show up next time ;)
 
Get your own vet to look at it and then take their advice.

However, the fact that this horse has been reduced by a grand probably means that there's a little more going on than a failed flexion.
 
I think flexion tests can be unfair on the horse. If someone held my knee in an unnatural position and then made me run on it I'd probably be sore for a couple of strides too...

Get it vetted by your own vet and go from there. Good luck!
 
If this is the one you mentioned that was kicked on its knee then no I wouldnt buy it

If its not then I would have it re-vetted
 
I have bought one that failed a test and never had a problem, but present one failed test and I still bought it and we do now have a problem ! So probably wouldnt do it again
 
Get it vetted again. Ours failed flexion test when one vet insisted on doing it on rubbly ground, another vet passed it on concrete a month later
 
Having a horse with collaterall ligament desmitis which to look at her trotting up you wouldnt know, its only really seen as a lameness problem when trotting a circle on hard ground and flexion, no i wouldnt buy without further investigations on both front legs to rule oit any nasties
 
Just get your vet to x-ray the front feet if you suspect a problem. I don't put much stock in flexions to be honest, it all depends on the vet doing the flexions, the ground cover and too many other variables. Full PPE vettings over here more often than not include having the horses legs x-rayed/scanned rather than relying on flexion tests and hoof testers.
 
I would err on the side of caution tbh and have more investigation carried out. One horse I knew that was slightly off on its hind leg when tested showed absolutely nothing else wrong. A while later it kept getting a locked stifle. Seems to have sorted itself out from what I know ( probably as it matured). Obviously not the case here with it being the front but I wouldn't risk having potentially huge vet bills and your insurance wouldn't cover it.
 
Personally if all I wanted the horse for was hacking about then it deffo wouldn't put me off but then I probably wouldn't be getting a horse vetted if all I was after was a hack. If if worries you then get it vetted by your own vet but keep in mind flextion tests are very unreliable x
 
To me it sounds a bit expensive for a horse known to have 'failed' but if it is what you are looking for then I would have a look. From a positive point of view if the owners have openly declared that it failed on flexion then it is likely that they are honest people and not hiding something from you. Get it vetted by your own vet and only offer what you think it is worth.
 
I event mine and there is no way he'd pass flexions at his age and with the miles on his clock. Second everyone who suggested getting your own vet to have a look, you don't have to pay for a full vetting (if you don't want to) just get them to do all 4 flexions and see what their view is.
 
When I got my horse vetted my vet said a failed hind flexion test is workable he would look at other things and see if he really thought it a issue

He told me a failed front flexion was a big No No

So from that advice I'd not buy a horse with failed front flexion as I trust my vets view very much.
 
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