Would you or wouldn't you? Your help needed!

coreteam1

coreteam1

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I'm in a bit of a pickle and wondered if anyone could help?

Our pony if for sale and we have some one interested in him. The question is..

Would you or wouldn't you let him go for a months trial?

Our pony is a lovely little thing however like any horses he can have his 'moments' however when they came to try him he was as good as gold and 99.9% of the time he is as good as gold.
I wouldn't want someone to buy him and then he unsettles the new owner/buyers by being a little naughty and thought a trial may be the best answer however friends have said it's not the ideal thing to do? The prospective buyers have said we can go and look at their facilities and he would be out in a seperate paddock for the duration of the trial.
Any suggestions?
 
I let a horse go on trial 18 years ago & got a hopping horse back after a month with a nail in it's sole (They claimed that they & their farrier couldn't find any reason for her lameness.)

I wouldn't allow any horse to leave my premises but would allow them to come daily for a month on payment of a deposit.
 
No I wouldn't personally. A month is barely enough for a pony to settle. I would offer as many trials at your house as they like - bring instructors, whatever, but would'nt sent a horse away unless sold..
 
I would but only on certain provisos:

1) That they have him vetted first and pay a non refundable deposit on passing the vetting to confirm they're serious about buying and don't just want a free pony for a month (also proves he was sound and healthy when he left your care).

2) That they sign a contract stating the horse is on trial only, detailing the equipment that you send with him and how you want him kept (separate paddock, no change of tack, etc).

3) That you keep up his current insurance for the month but they reimburse you the cost of it. This way if anything goes wrong, you won't be left with an injured pony and a huge vet bill.

Good luck :)
 
I have a pony for sale at the moment aswell. I wont be letting her go on trial. They have seen her at a show behaving perfectly and I have been totally honest about her so they have been told they can come as often as they like but I know she will take a little while to settle. I also want her to be seen by anybody else while they are considering her just in case they dont want her after all. If it was someone I knew well then I might think about it
 
Nope. I wouldn't let mine go on trial if I were selling. I would say that they can buy her and if she doesn't work out for whatever reason I would take her back providing she was exactly as she went to them (ie - sound, fit etc). I would refund all but an agreed 'deposit' amount I would retain for time/advertising etc.

This provides them the guarentee they want and you can be sure that they won't be stuck with an unsuitable person and pass it on again quickly.
 
I think kaiserchiefs idea is a good one, if you're going to do it at all. I would day no though. If they took the pony and lamed it you'd still have a pony you can't sell until its sound, having to pay to keep it until that time. Same if you get it back and it needs reschooling or the tack is damaged. If the pony was stolen, whatever they've signed, you could have difficulty proving the payment you received was not the full purchase price and anyway to take them to court you'd first have to find them, then hope they had some money to pay you if you won.

A trial is basically a loan period. Some people are happy to loan ponies out, some people are not so trusting. It surprises me the horse world still does loaning tbh, most people wouldn't loan their car to a friend for a month never mind to a stranger, but will happily do so with a horse.
 
I wouldn't consider it at all, however I know people who wouldn't consider buying without a trial, so it cuts both ways. Too risky for the owner and the pony, and you might get back an injured or traumatised pony.
 
Tricky decision - How local are they to you? I wouldn't want the pony to be sold then they find they can't cope for whetever reason and then sell him on - they won't be as careful who they sell it to if they haven't got on with it and had they years of fun out if it i am guessing you have had...
Why can't the girl come upto the yard you are on whenever she likes for a month and treat it like her own pony and see how she gets on that way? And although you want to sell if you aren't in an immedate rush if its a nice pony someone else - maybe better will come along?
 
I used to produce & bring on childrens ponies.

I would never let anything go on trial.

As said above I would be happy for new purchasers to come & try over a couple of weeks at my place, have also let them ride at shows & have taken ponies to PC for them to use, but have never let a pony go without full payment.
I used to film my daughter & pony at home & out & use this for sales. Then when under offer, would film purchasers child & the pony working together and keep this as a record - for them and for myself.

Ponies, particularly small ones can pick up bad habits (even dangerous ones) by being in the wrong hands in a very short space of time.
 
I definately would NOT...there's very little to gain for potentially a huge amount of hassle and lots of things that would go wrong.
Far better for them to spend a couple of weeks coming to your yard to see the horse.
Hope things work out and pony finds a nice new home :)
 
The Fuzzy Furry said:
I used to produce & bring on childrens ponies.

I would never let anything go on trial.

As said above I would be happy for new purchasers to come & try over a couple of weeks at my place, have also let them ride at shows & have taken ponies to PC for them to use, but have never let a pony go without full payment.
I used to film my daughter & pony at home & out & use this for sales. Then when under offer, would film purchasers child & the pony working together and keep this as a record - for them and for myself.

Ponies, particularly small ones can pick up bad habits (even dangerous ones) by being in the wrong hands in a very short space of time.
Click to expand...

Yes I never thought about that regarding picking up bad habits. I have offered to take him to some pony clum rallies for them however she said there weren't any dates out yet so hopefully as soon as she knows some dates this could be arranged.
 
Thaks for the replies. I've decided he won't be going on trial but I'm definitely open to them coming over and riding him as much as they want to. I am also going to offer to take him to any pony club rallies they want to attend as I think this would give them a good idea of what he's like out and about.

If they won't buy without a trial then so be it. I'm sure there's someone out there for him :)
 
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