York Sales

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spollard828

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Hi everyone,
I am braving my first auction tomorrow, any advice would be great! I have studied the cataloge and looked up the people who are selling the horses I want to look at and they either seem respectable from what I have read on here or I can't find anything so I'm presuming their private sellers...
What are the tell tale signs that your being taken for a ride? Does anybody know if there is a vet on site because I would want to have bloods taken, I have recently brought a pony which I suspect had a few smarties when I tried her so am cautious of this.
Thanks in advance for any advice.
 
It will break your heart, and you have to keep your opinions to yourself I would scary places are auctions if your not a regular. A lot are doped up to their eyeballs, or have issues but I always buy from auctions I like the challenge and giving the horse a second chance but I am one of those who will buy the ones that don't sell and they try to leave . Just be careful and every word that comes out of their mouth could be a lie so keep your witts about you. Good luck :-)
 
York is not that bad a sale, have bought a couple from there! Tbh I would presume most are dealers, don't believe anything you read/hear, don't touch anything that is sold without warranty & just trust your instincts xx
 
York sales, like any other auctions are only good for spectating! There may be 1 or 2 genuine horses there - but could you tell which is that one? I certainly couldnt , and I have been many times. There are very very few private sellers , and I imagine few private buyers also- except for the cutsy bedraggled youngsters that have the 'aaaahhh' factor and are bought on a whim.
If you are going expecting a bargain basement genuine ,non quirky,sound in mind and body,healthy,easy to ride horse - well I m, afraid you re going to be mistaken. Expect ex racers, dealers nags,unwanted youngsters, naughty ponies.
Go to look and watch- at least at your first time - and dont lt your heart rule your head.
 
I'd love to hear an update after you've been :)

Were you planning to buy, or just to have a good look at the 'catalogue version' versus 'real life version'?

York sales is relatively local to me, and I've always wanted to go and have a look, but more as a learning experience (since I know far too little). Tagging along with someone who is experienced and soaking up info would be my ideal.
 
As an "sales novice" you will be very obvious, I would have a wander, about chat in a non buying mode to some people with nice horses, but do not buy anything, sit near to a group of chatty experienced buyers, sort of not dealer types, more experienced people, you will hear a lot of interesting stuff as they chat amongst themselves. Take a friend but no cash or credit or debit card.
Read the catalogue for details of warranties and guarantee and veterinary guidance.
You can use the experience to get your eye in, but not for purchasing, there are plenty more fish in the sea.
 
Don`t know anything about York sales its too far away from us but it sounds like the same kind of place Melton used to be!

I would suggest you go 2 /3 times before you buy so you can suss out who the regular faces are (these will be the dealers!) and you will probably see the same horses back time and time again.

As above, dont believe anything you are told or read unless its in an official passport - even then its not guaranteed to be true!

Make up your own mind by checking everything you possibly can about the horse in the stall, get it trotted up and have a sit on if tack is available. Doped horses usually tend to be the ones that are too perfect or have a switched off dazed look about them. If they have a bit about them don`t be too put off a market is a pretty buzzy place and at least that way you know they aren`t doped up to the eyeballs! :rolleyes:

Ask the seller what price he`s looking for so you know reserve and you know if they are in budget or not, but dont be afraid to make a cut price offer they are looking for a buyer and once they know your interested they will be happy to do some bartering ;)

We have bought our last 4 horses from auctions and they have all been lovely animals :) As said above don`t expect they perfect horse as they will be at the sales for some reason, but its not always because they are killers or broken down!

Speak to people around the place especially the guys that lead the horses in and out / check passports etc as they are there every auction and will know whos who. Dont be put off by a dealer they may not know much history about the horse, but would probably be happy to swap for another if the one you bought didnt suit. Private sellers and dealers are the same at an auction they know you dont know them from Adam so they can say whatever they like with pretty much no comeback if its unwarranted :rolleyes:

People may disagree with the above but those are my personal experiences from attending Melton pretty much every time it was on for 2/3 years :)
 
Miss L Toe said:
I would have a wander, about chat in a non buying mode to some people with nice horses, but do not buy anything, sit near to a group of chatty experienced buyers, sort of not dealer types, more experienced people, you will hear a lot of interesting stuff as they chat amongst themselves. Take a friend but no cash or credit or debit card.
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Meant for OP, but not a bad idea, thanks.

I do know of someone who bought a horse from York sales - only saw the horse in the sales ring and the horse was tacked up. When they took the saddle off there was a surprise 'loss of use' freezemark underneath it.
 
BYR said:
Don`t know anything about York sales its too far away from us but it sounds like the same kind of place Melton used to be!

I would suggest you go 2 /3 times before you buy so you can suss out who the regular faces are (these will be the dealers!) and you will probably see the same horses back time and time again.

As above, dont believe anything you are told or read unless its in an official passport - even then its not guaranteed to be true!

Make up your own mind by checking everything you possibly can about the horse in the stall, get it trotted up and have a sit on if tack is available. Doped horses usually tend to be the ones that are too perfect or have a switched off dazed look about them. If they have a bit about them don`t be too put off a market is a pretty buzzy place and at least that way you know they aren`t doped up to the eyeballs! :rolleyes:

Ask the seller what price he`s looking for so you know reserve and you know if they are in budget or not, but dont be afraid to make a cut price offer they are looking for a buyer and once they know your interested they will be happy to do some bartering ;)

We have bought our last 4 horses from auctions and they have all been lovely animals :) As said above don`t expect they perfect horse as they will be at the sales for some reason, but its not always because they are killers or broken down!

Speak to people around the place especially the guys that lead the horses in and out / check passports etc as they are there every auction and will know whos who. Dont be put off by a dealer they may not know much history about the horse, but would probably be happy to swap for another if the one you bought didnt suit. Private sellers and dealers are the same at an auction they know you dont know them from Adam so they can say whatever they like with pretty much no comeback if its unwarranted :rolleyes:

People may disagree with the above but those are my personal experiences from attending Melton pretty much every time it was on for 2/3 years :)
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Thanks BYR.
TBH it sounds like a minefield to me. I know my limits (that said, not sure I'd trust myself if I took any money with me).

I've always got the general impression that people regard York sales as one of the better ones.
 
Well it was a very interesting day! Heart breaking to see what some of them were going for... Literally peanuts! Unfortunately I caved in and brought a 14 hand coloured pony... The guy had 3 there for sale and I rode 2 of them, he seemed very honest but whether he was or not time will tell! But after having to wait with the pony until about 8pm when she had been left on her own for several hours seeming unfazed I think she's quite sweet, loaded well and travelled brilliantly, just about to go and ride it now so fingers crossed she's still what I brought :)
 
Ooh well done!!


Like I said before, Ive bought a couple from York & they both turned into fab little ponies with w bit of care & attention! Good luck & have fun with your new friend! Hope to see some pics soon!! xx
 
It's nothing like Panel used to be. In fact it's very tame.

Just make sure it's got a warranty on it, as doping is a game they like to play.

Good luck x
 
Yep she has warrenty, she was absolutely brilliant today though, took some catching however so she now has a head collar on, the chap that had her there had warned me about this though. She wasn't doing loops of the field, just a bit nervous of you getting close but once you had her she was fine! Had a brilliant ride, met traffic and a JCB, and went past a field of pigs, all in high winds. Seems like a little diamond at the moment! Hope i don't end up eating my words!
 
teacups said:
Meant for OP, but not a bad idea, thanks.

I do know of someone who bought a horse from York sales - only saw the horse in the sales ring and the horse was tacked up. When they took the saddle off there was a surprise 'loss of use' freezemark underneath it.
Click to expand...

That happened to us too! We bought purely because he was heading for weeks of being dragged around sales rings before ultimately going for meat and was already emaciated. We hadn't seen him before he went in the ring and just bid at the last minute because we saw which dealer was taking him and knew what his future would be - total sympathy buy! We saw the LOU mark as soon as the saddle was removed and we probably should have complained to the auctioneers but he deserved a chance. He was a lovely boy and we had absolutely no regrets but it was impossible to find what the LOU was actually for because of the ridiculous (in this situation) data protection act.

OP, glad your girl appears ok and hope she turns out a good buy for you.
 
Glad you struck lucky .think i know which one you bought and the guy is honest

i sadly had a bad experience which i was well slagged off on here for ,wont go into details but horse was a wrong un !!

anyway got my money back eventually

good luck with you new horse
 
The 14 hand piebold mare was my buy, I'm hoping she's going to make a nice whp. She has presence and decent paces so hoping there's a nice jump in there... We will see tomorrow!
 
Dolcé;10830772 said:
That happened to us too! We bought purely because he was heading for weeks of being dragged around sales rings before ultimately going for meat and was already emaciated. We hadn't seen him before he went in the ring and just bid at the last minute because we saw which dealer was taking him and knew what his future would be - total sympathy buy! We saw the LOU mark as soon as the saddle was removed and we probably should have complained to the auctioneers but he deserved a chance. He was a lovely boy and we had absolutely no regrets but it was impossible to find what the LOU was actually for because of the ridiculous (in this situation) data protection act.
Click to expand...

Yes, it's odd that.

You'd think it might be a matter of public record, or at least that the insurance companies would be able to give info regarding the basis on which they paid out, ie type of injury/condition. No personal/vet details needed.
 
I think I may have found her 'fault'... Jumping her today seems to have brought back some bad memories, she was extremely nervous every time I moved my hand and shot off after her fences... Got a lot better after being told she was good and lots of pats, I wonder what has happened to her!
 
Sounds as though you'll be able to resolve it :)

Any update?

<cough> Also, did you say you were going to post a pic? <cough>
 
I'm hoping we can, the improvement after 2 days in extremely good so I'm hoping it's not to late for her and we can erase the thought that she's going to get wrapped or beaten every time she jumps... I'm afraid I'm not entirely sure how to post pictures on here... Sorry!
 
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