WWYD failed vetting/ trial period

[Adoni123]

Hi all,

Was a bit gutted when the horse I've been interested in failed vetting today. The reasons were reasonably little and if the horse was older or cheaper I might have been OK to go forward with this but I pulled out of the sale. The seller has offered her on a loan period until Spring next year and I thought that might be great.

The reasons flagged in the vetting were mild fetlock effusions/ tendon sheath effusions.

When lunged shown as lame in the hind but also was being super naughty (not bothered about the naughtiness, behaviour is good under saddle and proved that in the ridden and the handful of times I've ridden). Lameness wasn't seen under saddle and for the second lunge after ridden the lameness went down but a point when they started to behave. Owner thinks it's due to being unbalanced on the lunge and it did improve when the horse was bending properly.

Horse is only 9. I realise that the effusions are quite common. The horse will be used as a riding club, hacking type, low level eventer (potentially, I highly doubt I'd actually do this tbh).

WWYD in this situation? I think I would like to give it a go but don't want a broken heart either! Bearing in mind I am happy to get him proper physio and chiro and anything they need really and put in the work if it's needed.

TIA <3

 

[PeterNatt]

I would walk away and find another horse.

 

[SO1]

Will you be responsible for any vet bills whilst under your care. I think you would need to be careful as if the horse goes more lame or needs investigation you may end up significantly out of pocket if you are responsible for vet bills. What about insurance is the horse insured?

 

[Adoni123]

Will you be responsible for any vet bills whilst under your care. I think you would need to be careful as if the horse goes more lame or needs investigation you may end up significantly out of pocket if you are responsible for vet bills. What about insurance is the horse insured?

He's not lame under saddle or in the trot up or flexion test either. I would be looking to get vet bills covered on insurance but he will have some exemptions that I'd need to discuss with the insurance tomorrow before deciding.

 

[Christmascinnamoncookie]

I think I’d walk. The owner being willing to loan and not chase a sale with someone else strikes me as a bit dodgy given the current market. I think lungeing, I’d hope for a horse to look sound, not obviously lame. Other issues, I might overlook (if minor), dependent on price.

 

[AmyMay]

Walk - no run away very quickly!

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

A lame horse is a lame horse. It may get worse with work.

 

[Sossigpoker]

If my vet advised against the purchase I'd listen to them. And a horse presenting lame would result in them advising me against the purchase.
I wouldn't buy a potential problem.

 

[SO1]

If you are that keen on getting this horse on loan scan the lame leg especially if there is a windgall or swelling on the tendon in that leg.

Cheaper than having the horse on DIY livery investment in physio and then finding it goes lame and sending it back. It nothing untoward on the lame leg then you might want to take a risk and loan.

Owners probably know it now won't pass a vetting and if they loan to you over the winter at least they have the ease of not having winter jobs and costs. The horse will either in the Spring be ok and you may buy or you find out what is wrong with it and return it to them but you or your insurance has footed the bill.

 

[TheMule]

I would x-ray the affected fetlocks and scan the tendon sheaths before agreeing to anything. Perhaps offer to pay 50:50 with the owner

 

[VRIN]

You won't be able to insure for the things that have caused the failed vetting so will be you footing the bill not the insurers.

 

[PSD]

I’d walk away. Plenty of horses on the market that are sound and you don’t want to be stuck with a potentially unrideable horse and hefty vet bills.

 

[MissTyc]

Agree with the walking away. But if not, then scanning the area before taking him on.
I wouldn't be surprised if the "naughty" on the lunge was triggered by the pain (lameness) and then when warmed up/ less lame = less naughty, rather than the other way round.

 

[gallopingby]

Maybe ask your own vet what they think? How experienced was the vetting vet? I once was in a similar situation, seller was shocked the horse failed vet but he wasn’t very fit at the time. Agreed to have him on trial and get my vet to check 6 weeks later. If he failed the seller would reimburse transport costs and pay return transport which wasn’t cheap, horse was 250 miles away. After fitness work my vet passed horse as sound. He lived until he was 24 would have been 9 when we bought him. If you’re really keen on the horse maybe worth considering a second opinion.

 

[throwawayaccount]

walk away - save yourself from heartbreak and vet bills, as i'd imagine with what's been found there'll be exemptions on the insurance??

for what its worth, the 'naughtiness' could just be a pain response.

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

I never understand these WWYD posts.
I presume that you asked for a vetting because you wanted the vet's opinion on the horse. You have been given the vet's opinion and are now looking for opinions from the internet to circumvent that opinion. I havenever had a horse vetted, I have never spent a lot on buying a horse butif Ihad paid for the opinion, I would respect it. If the vet is saying it isn't suitable for the work you want to do, walk away.

The only thing I will say is that if the horse is already insured and you take it on loan, the owner could continue to be insured and simply tell the insurance company that you are the loaner - you don't need to take out your own insurance, many owners prefer to deal with insurance themselves, so that they are certain that the horse is covered while with the loaner

 

[teddy_]

Walk away, the market is saturated with horses. The high price bubble will burst at some point.

You never know what you're buying, really, but to buy with known problems unless you have a bottomless bank account and a string of 10 horses always baffles me.

 

[meleeka]

If the horse won’t pass a vet it’s value will be low. Apart from anything else, you shouldn’t be paying anywhere near market price for her.

 

[Goldenstar]

This the type of horse I might well buy despite the failed vetting .
However I don’t need to insure my horses and prefer the freedom that being able to do lots of preventative intervention because basically I don’t have to worry about how much I spend caring for the horse .
If you need to depend on insurance you must walk away this horse may well have a long working life with changes to its management but you need deep pockets and the ability to detach yourself if it goes wrong .

 

[timefort]

Just to go against the grain, how much do you like the horse and trust the seller?

As someone here commented, I vetted for an opinion but at the end of the day I believe it was up to me to collect opinions and decide what to do with that information. J failed the vet with 1/10 lame front left (and didn't lunge as too naughty). I spoke to the vet who vetted, spoke to the owner's vet and looked at history, asked other liveries and just had a good nose around in competition records. J has been with me for 8 years now, we've done all-sorts and until this year any lameness issues have been the result of field injuries. Ironically front left has not had an issue since (touches wood!).

Your situation sounds a bit more than 1/10 lame so if you decide to go ahead you'll be going ahead with eyes open. What else do you know about seller? If you loan what happens if horse gets worse? Can you ask for further investigation with the seller paying a contribution? What will happen with your insurance - are you prepared for legs to be excluded?

 

[scats]

I was in a not too dissimilar situation and I took a punt as I got the horse very cheap. It looked like all was going to be fine for the first few months, then the wheels fell off. Not a major problem as I needed a companion and had others, plus I had prepared myself that it was a project that might not work out.
If I was expecting this to be my next proper riding horse, I’d walk away.

 

[Antw23uk]

I can't advise you OP but I viewed a horse last year and the dealer (via a friend) let me have him on a very generous trial period (long story, not that interesting) I vetted him during that time and he didn't particularly 'fail' but my vet showed concerns over his high mileage and wonkiness which i took onboard. BUT, this horse was terribly shut down, not in a good position in life and needed a break, and at the same time my ridden confidence was rock bottom (I sobbed getting on him on the first viewing my confidence was so shattered) and i needed a horse who was safe, sane and would look after me. We both done each other a very big favour when i decided to buy him and not send him back (no horse deserved to be in that yard IMO!) Call me soppy but we needed each other and our paths crossed for a very good reason.

I've spent a fortune on this horse, he gets massage, physio, chiro ... this is what i do, i LOVE spending money on the nice things, he gets and deserves the very best. He has restored my confidence, my faith and i love him, even when he is being an overly sensitive knob over something completely trivial (apparently swiping flies from his face can be construed as trying to kill him by decapitation!) He's had a hard life and we look after each other. Neither of us would stand up to much more than happy hacking and the odd RC clinic and i keep him at home and, if so inclined, can retire him and get a second horse if i ever felt the urge to do more RC stuff and his body started to say no.

I made the mistake of falling in love with this horse and being too soft to send him back after the vetting. It was the best decision i ever made.

 

[mustardsmum]

So hard when you find a horse you feel is perfect - was in almost the same situation a month ago after a year of looking for my next horse. Absolutely gorgeous horse who was perfect for me, but who had issues that would have made him uninsurable. I actually could have cried because he has the most lovely temperament. Owner would not budge on price or loan so i had no option really. I only have room for one more - I have two both with ongoing vet costs so didn’t need a third! There are sound horses out there - I would walk and have one you can enjoy not one that is a walking vets bill unless you have the means and space for a field ornament. At the end of the day it depends whether you are happy to be a risk taker or not - and that’s an individual thing.

 

[Winters100]

I have always felt that it is one thing to own a horse with problems, but quite another to buy one. None of us have seen the horse, so if a vet has told you that it is not suitable for the job that you want it to do then I would find another.

 

[Bellaboo18]

Walk away. Theres plenty of sound horses out there why take on one you'll struggle to insure.
It's amazing the excuses people come up with for unsound horses.

I'd also agree with others that he was being 'naughty' as he was hurting.

 

[Adoni123]

It’s hard as I’ve seen this horse under saddle and then when he got back on the lunge much improved when he wasn’t so fizzy. The vet did write lameness improved a lot, not issue under saddle, on trot up on hard ground or on the flexion test. As it went down to 1/5 it’s thrown me a bit (this was an acceptable amount to me, 2/5 was not acceptable).
I’ve known the seller for a while, very good reputation in my area and says it like it is. I am always nervous going to new areas with people I don’t know so this was of course a plus.
Going to have another chat with the vet today, call my usual insurance company, see if price can go down etc.
Ive been having a bad time recently and I have bad depression. If this is just a 6 month project to get me out of the house I think it’ll do more good than harm. I sound ridiculous but that’s really how I’m feeling at the moment!
First to speak to all the professionals. Thankfully he’s very close so no ridiculous transporting costs at all. Would get my trusted physio and chiro out too and take it from there. I am not scraping by for money so am comfortable with paying for these things.
My heads a mess but will just see what the day brings and take it one step at a time.

 

[Birker2020]

What a nightmare for you, I don't envy you at all in that situation.

Its weird her wanting to put him on loan but if he is on LWVTB and then goes lame during that trial period can you honestly say you wont have already fallen in love?

 

[Antw23uk]

A neighbour of mine was selling a hunter, he was vetted a couple of times and failed on the 10 meter circle on concrete. We were chatting with her vet friend and he just came out and said 'well don't ride it in a 10 meter circle on concrete and you have yourself a lovely hunter' ..... He's been a fantastic RC allrounder for the last two years without a days lameness!

 

[Birker2020]

A neighbour of mine was selling a hunter, he was vetted a couple of times and failed on the 10 meter circle on concrete. We were chatting with her vet friend and he just came out and said 'well don't ride it in a 10 meter circle on concrete and you have yourself a lovely hunter' ..... He's been a fantastic RC allrounder for the last two years without a days lameness!

I know, some of the vetting is nonsensical in a way but when people are paying such a huge sum of money its the only cover that is acceptable if something goes wrong under the terms of that vetting, ie vet missed half blind horse or sarcoid, that kind of thing.

 

[Adoni123]

What a nightmare for you, I don't envy you at all in that situation.

Its weird her wanting to put him on loan but if he is on LWVTB and then goes lame during that trial period can you honestly say you wont have already fallen in love?

I probably will have but I will know if I simply can’t have something and have to get over it ? might turn out that we don’t click at all in the end. He’s a lot of horse and the trial period is actually great in case I feel he might be too much for me also. Her horses are about to get turned away for the winter so that’s why she said why don’t I take him until it’s time to restart for next year.
Ant that’s what I thought. It is hard and it was a small circle and the naughtiness too. God knows it’s hard. I’ve seen a lot of unsound horses in my search and can’t quite believe he’s come up lame partly as he looks so impressive under saddle. Sent videos to every horse person I know under the sun and they saw nothing too!
Think I’ll let fate do the job here I’m sick of making decisions find it extremely hard when I’m already low. Not really got much to lose here anyhow lol. X