Experience the ENDURANCE of Foundation Breeding
HOW NOT TO BUY A HORSE
I had a very interesting email this morning. A lady has been trying to sell her horse for about six months and figured she was doing something wrong. She Googled, "How Not To Sell A Horse" and guess what she hit? My story about buying a TWH stallion (see story). Is that too funny?
Anyway, she wrote me an email and told me about her selling woes. Remarkably, I've become so passive about buyers, that it didn't strike me that all the things she wrote me about are all the things that I also hate to hear from buyers. I thought about it and decided to write a story about how to be a good horse buyer.
ARE YOU BUYING OR SHOPPING? You're thinking about buying a horse. So you start shopping. Remember here, you are shopping. If you do not have cash in the bank to buy as soon as you see the perfect horse, then do not send out fifty inquiries. If you're not "buying" right now, then enjoy the pictures, look at the ads, dream about the perfect horse and then DROP IT! Do not email the seller with questions that will make no difference to you anyway because you aren't buying right now. Seventy percent of the sellers on the internet websites like Equine.com and Dreamhorse.com are personal owners. They are listing their horse because they need and want to sell it. They are not a shopping mall, they are not a shopping catalogue, they work jobs during the day and are not able to access their email until the evening when they get home. They are people that most likely love their horse and it's painful for them to sell it. If you're shopping, do not email the sellers and there is no need to read the rest of this story. If you're buying, continue to on....
LOOK FOR HORSES IN YOUR PRICE RANGE. If you have $3000 to spend, then look at horses that are priced $3200 and under. Do not expect a seller to negotiate more than 10% of their selling price. They are not a Flea Market or a Yard Sale. This is a serious business for some sellers, and a personal financial need for other sellers. They list their horse for sale at a market value which they consider fair for their horse. They days of $1000 Kid Safe Family Horses is over. Yes, they're out there from the desperate seller in financial trouble or from the shady dealer that needs to dump a horse, but for the most part...if you want a good horse, expect to pay good money for it. If you cannot afford the initial cost of the horse, how can we (the seller) expect that you will have the funds to pay for the horse's care and feeding for the rest of its life? If you've found a horse out of your price range, then keep on shopping and don't email the seller.
DO YOU HAVE CURRENT VIDEO or PICTURES OF YOUR HORSE? When you find a horse that captures your interest, and is in your price range, and you're seriously interested in seeing if the conformation and overall "look" of the horse is what you want, do no hesitate to ask for recent photos or video. If the seller says they don't have access to video, accept that and do not email the seller about how cheap it is to rent a video camera. If the seller sends you photos that are obviously out of date (baby pictures of a five year old), do no hesitate to contact them and be firm that you want pictures taken TODAY, please. (Remember to be polite.) If the pictures they send are of good quality and show the horse in good positions, and you're interested in seeing more of the horse - be prepared to go visit the seller to see the horse in action.
TELL ME MORE ABOUT YOUR HORSE. Be specific! Again, most sellers are private owners and they love their horse and will tell you a million things that you don't care about and never tell you what you DO care about. You should only be looking at breeds that you are interest in buying. You should only be looking at colors that make you happy. You should only be looking at mares (if that's what you want). You should only be looking at the ads that are the ideal horse for YOU! Don't waste your time and the sellers time, before you start shopping for a horse, be honest with yourself, sit down and write a list of things that are important to you.
DO NOT LIE TO YOUR SELLER ABOUT YOUR SKILL LEVEL. Be very honest if you're timid or inexperienced. Some horses will sound good on the internet, but the seller will tell you if the horse will not suit your needs. It is very important to tell the seller about YOU when making inquiries because no-one knows the horse better than the seller. This is more than a safety issue, it is an honesty issue for you and the seller.
MAKE AN APPOINTMENT AND KEEP IT. If you have asked your questions, reviewed the photos, and are excited to go and ride the horse...make an appointment and keep it. Do not assume that the seller has all day to be your guide, keep your time limited to two hours. Ask the seller to allow you to handle the horse from stall or pasture through grooming and saddling to riding. If the seller will not allow you to do this, tell them THANK YOU and leave. If you are allowed to do this and the horse does not behave the way you expect or want it to, say THANK YOU and leave. If you ride the horse and it's not what you think you can partner with for the rest of its life, say THANK YOU and leave. Do not engage in unnecessary conversation, thoughts about trying different training to change the horse, etc. The horse is what it is and if you're not happy, say THANK YOU and leave. Time is very precious to both you and the seller, so do not waste time for either of you.
CAN I TRY IT OUT FOR 30 DAYS AND BRING IT BACK IF I DON'T LIKE IT? How foolish of you? Can you buy a car or house for 30 days for free? Can you buy a pool or swing set? Some sellers may agree to lease you the horse, on their property for a small fee, for a month or two and this is a perfect scenario for you as the buyer and them as the seller. It allows you to truly see if this horse is for you. Do not think the seller will allow you to take the horse from their property during a leasing period. If you take the horse home and it breaks its leg, the seller is out a horse to sell and you can be in serious liability trouble. If the seller needs to sell the horse for financial or health reasons, they've already told you this either in the ad or in email conversations so this is not going to be an option - DON'T ASK.
CAN YOU HOLD THE HORSE UNTIL I SELL MY HORSE? Are you insane? The answer is "NO" so don't even ask this question.
I WANT MY TRAINER TO COME AND SEE THE HORSE. GREAT! That's the best news I can ever hear from a buyer. HOWEVER, do not expect the seller to hold the horse until your trainer comes out for nothing. Be expected to pay a small, non-refundable deposit to hold the horse. The seller will have to turn away propsective buyers during the time until your trainer comes out so this is lost time and money for the seller. Do not ask this for this courtesy unless you are serious about buying the horse.
I WANT A PRESALE EXAM. FANTASTIC! Most sellers will expect you to give a deposit and sign a sales agreement pending a clean vet check. In the event the vet exam fails, they will refund your deposit and tear up the sales contract. The buyer is expected to pay for this exam, pass or fail. it is an inspection that you (the buyer) choose to do before purchasing the horse. Contact a local vet, set up the visit and give the vet credit card info BEFORE the vet goes on site to examine the horse. Do not start this process unless you are prepared to go home with a new horse. It is costly and wastes time of you, the vet and the seller.
IT'S GOING TO COST ME $500 TO HAUL THE HORSE. Yes, it is! If you purchase a horse through the internet and it's far away, it is going to cost you money to get it home. Or, if you decide to go and get it yourself, bring a trailer that will fit the horse. If the horse you're buying is 16.1 hands, don't show up with a 6' trailer.
WHY ARE YOU SELLING THIS HORSE? This can be a very painful subject to most owners. Some have run into financial trouble. Some have health problems. Some are just tired of owning and caring for a horse. Be tactful and understanding, this question should be one of the LAST questions you ask when you have determined that you are indeed interested in buying this horse and want to know why, if it's such a good horse, is the seller parting with it. If you like the horse, then this is a curiosity question that is just not polite.
The most important part of being a good buyer is in knowing exactly what you want and asking the right questions. Here's a list of questions I ask when I've found a horse I'm interesting in purchasing. Notice that no question is directed at the seller...I don't care about the seller, I care about the horse.
Does the horse have any health issues?
Does the horse have any vices (weaving, chewing, cribbing, kicking, etc)
Does the horse have any manner issues
Is there anything the horse dislikes? (ears touched, back scratched, molasses treats, etc.)
How is the horse on trail alone? (bold, timid, spooky, etc)
How is the horse on trail in a group? (competitive, forward, grouchy, etc?)
How is the horse with people? (aloof, timid, friendly?)
How is the horse with other horses in pasture? (aggressive, passive, playful, timid?)
Does the horse have any special shoeing needs?
Does the horse have any special feeding needs?
Does the horse LIKE to go riding/driving?
Does the horse enjoy grooming and people attention?
Does the horse like to be out in pasture, or prefer being in a stall (NOTE - this question is loaded. A horse that prefers to be in its stall usually has social issues)
How is the horse with traffic? and off road vehicles like 4-wheelers?
How is the horse with barking dogs?
How is the horse with small children?
How is the horse with changes to its environment (what happens if you change the tarp on the sawdust pile?)
Is the horse current on shots? worming? farrier? coggins test?
Is the horse registered and do you have a proper transfer?
How does the horse trailer?
How does the horse tie?
What happens is a screaming kid runs through the barn dragging a rattling wagon behind him?
The answers to all these questions will tell me more about the horse's personality and needs than anything else I can ask. If I don't get the answers I'm looking for, or if some of the answers don't make sense (like the horse is bomb proof questions 2-5) but will have a heart attack when the kids runs through the barn screaming, then I know I don't want to look at this horse further.
Also! Some sellers will like to "lie a little" to get you interested in their horse. These questions are asking the same things over and over in different ways so I get a good feel for what the horse is about. And most sellers want you to think their horse is the most perfect and steady horse in the world....the answers to some of these questions will tell me that the horse is too laid back or too hot for me.
The answers you want will be different from the answers I want and that's why these questions took me years to develop.
Dodie
BELOW ARE EXAMPLES OF BAD BUYERS (If you have a Bad Buyer story you'd like to post here, send me an email with your story!)
I have another bad buyer
(shopper) story* for you.
A lady contacts me about a horse.
After several emails mostly about her empty nest syndrome and deciding to
get a horse to fill it she gets around to answering my question about "What
facilities do you have for keeping a horse?"
Oops, she had not thought of that and figured she better look around in her
area to see what was available and how much it cost.
When I replied that I already knew the cost of boarding in her area and told
her the price range (pay rent or board horse, rarely both), I think she
nearly dropped dead from shock. In fact, I'm sure she dropped dead because I
never heard from her again.
So please add to your buyer list to have somewhere confirmed to keep your
horse before shopping/buying. Some horses will not tolerate being left
in a 10'x10' stall all day with a 30 minute turn out', others will. Other
horses can't handle the wide open spaces of acreage, others can.
*So many stories to tell; so little time. :-))
Lady spent two weeks pestering me with
questions, I sent her numerous videos and photos. Her trainer called me and
spent over an hour on the phone with me. Then they purchased plane tickets
and came up to ride the horse and spend the afternoon (wish I had that kind
of money to burn).
They spent two hours with the mare, doing all kinds of things with her. I
have to tell you, I was super impressed with the mare through all that. They
left me a deposit and took the numbers for the three vets in the area to get
a pre-vet exam.
Now - this mare is in foal. She is advertised in foal, we had two
conversations about her foal via email, they looked at the stallion and
played with him a little but while they were here.
After the vet exam, the lady calls me and SHOUTS! "You didn't tell me she
was pregnant. The vet says she's pregnant and I don't want her."
I forwarded the two emails to her where we discussed that she was in foal.
She writes back...."Oh, I didn't know that meant pregnant. I thought you
were telling me that she is still young." I refunded her deposit
because she was too stupid to live.
OMG - I have one like that ... lady drove from
NY (3 hours) to ride two walkers I had for sale. While her husband was
riding the walker she was going ga-ga over a filly I had no intentions of
selling. She finally offered me MORE for the filly than the two horses
combined, so I took the money and ran!
I am sure after we get over
our initial frustration we can each relate some humorous tales on buying and
selling.
Like the people that drove 3 1/2 hours to look at horse A, but spend 90% of
their time here oohing and aahing over the one horse that is not for sale.
Or the lady for whom I left work early to show her a horse and she takes one look and says, "Oh, I thought he was a different color." You're kidding, right? You drove 1 1/2 hours to look at the wrong horse?
Since no one has added to the
"How Not To Buy A Horse" page I am sending more details on an ignernt (Texas
slang for ignorant) buyer story.
Yep, the same couple I told you about that brought a trailer two sizes too
small for the horse in question. I suppose the premise of bringing a smaller
trailer to save on gas was a good one except the horse plain would not fit.
Back to my main tale. After several calls and emails the couple arrives to
see a gelding I had for sale. They have zero tack of their own so they
borrow a saddle from a friend to try out the horse. It is a child's saddle.
Huh? Okayyy. The wife is about a size one so she'll fit the saddle fine. She
rode alot until college and marriage. So it was that old 'never forget how
to ride a bike' thing going on with her. Wisely got on the strange horse in
the round pen. Then after getting acquainted rode around the large paddock
area. All is well.
Now it is hubby's turn.
He adjusts the stirrups as far down as they will go( no adjusting the seat)
and prepares to hop on the horse.
Me: Um, you should be in the round pen first.
Him: Nah, I know how to ride.
Me: But this is a strange horse.
Him: I know how to ride.
Me: The saddle is too small for you.
Oh yeah, did I mention this guy is about 6'4" and about 240 Lbs? Unlike his
5'5" 98lb wife.
Him: It'll be fine (as he struggles to mount) I know how to ride.
Me: Thinking 'Riiight'.
As he steers the horse toward the fence with his knees around his ears and
reins uneven I am mentally reviewing my insurance policy protection against
egotistical idgit brain guberhead.
It took about 4 minutes for this gelding to decide "I do not like you, I am
NOT going home with you in your Shetland pony trailer,
aaannd ..... you are getting off me NOW!
So through the air Mr. Iknowhowtoride goes.
I was horrified, terrified and several other fied's!
Amazingly he lands on his feet, or so he will tell you, because "I know how
to ride".
Although I am still trying to figure out how he got grass stains on his
shoulders, knees, butt and elbows.
They decided to not purchase the horse as Mr. IKHTR reasons " I don't think
he likes me."
This story goes under the heading "Do NNNOOOTTTTT Lie about your riding
skill level to the seller, your spouse and especially to yourself.
Also - Use proper fitting tack when riding.
Instructor/Manager: Dodie Sable
Located in New Smithville PA at 37 Fenstermacher Road, 3 miles north of Kutztown University
Call us at 610.756.3836 or email us at dodie@newpromisefarms.com