Lately, as I have been (re)introduced to the world of horse shopping, I have come across several questions about the process. Here are my 11 questions I’d love to have answered while I am on my horse shopping journey:
- Is a bowed tendon a deal breaker? If not, what would I need to know about having a horse with this type of past injury?
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If a Thoroughbred’s last race was a claiming race and he did not finish and the official equibase.com report comments say “gave way, eased” does that mean he was pulled up for an injury?
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What websites should I be looking at to find my perfect horse? Dreamhorse.com, BigEq.com (thanks for the recommendation, Liz. I think 90% of the horses on that site are out of the realm of a teacher budget, sadly), Craigslist? Is there something better than a sales website?
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Is it possible a horse will move better in real life than what is shown in the seller’s poor quality cell phone video that was sent to me as a text?
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Is it possible to find a 100% sound horse through a rescue?
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Is it possible to find a 100% sound horse under the age of 4?
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If I go look at a horse by myself, but then have my trainer come with on a second visit me for a follow up, how does the trainer get compensated (flat fee, hourly rate)? (I asked her in an otherwise long email and she did not respond to that one point. I know I will ask again, but I’m curious what other people have arranged with their trainers).
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If I sit back and relax while my trainer does the searching, what is the percentage I would typically expect to pay her for doing the horse shopping for me?
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Since everything is so expensive in Southern California, does that translate to horse shopping? Should I be looking in other nearby states where the market and pricing might be different?
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Do the vast majority of horses need their hocks injected? If so, how frequently is that procedure done? Why are hocks injected in the first place?
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If I find a horse and it’s not close to home, how do I go about finding a good vet in that area to conduct a pre-purchase exam?
Do you have any answers or related advice you’d like to share to those horse shopping? Please enlighten me!
What is your one go-to question that you ask prior to even making an appointment to see a horse?
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I'm Susan and this is my horse Knight. We have been a blogging team since 2015 and we're glad you're here. Tally ho!
You sound prepared! Good luck in your ongoing search
Thank you!
1. I had a horse who bowed a tendon and was perfectly sound after rehab. But, let me say that we caught it immediately, paid a bunch of money for treatment, and took care of it every single day. So don’t assume all bows are the same. I think you are safe if the bow looks good (not like a banana), the horse is sound, and you have a vet check.
3. I think you hit all the good ones! Don’t forget Facebook groups. Like around here we have Ohio Horse Tack and Sales or Midwest Hunters and Jumper, etc.
4. Yes. And don’t forget a number of things play into movement. If the horse is under muscled, not ridden, and has feet that are too long, he is going to move differently than being in shape, correctly ridden and with a good trim.
5. 6. If you are shopping for a young horse, I believe it needs to be sound. Since their younger years are such a critical time for growth and development, if they have been worked hard in those years they may not have finished growing, which could lead to a plethora of issues. If you are looking for a horse that is 10+, except things such as arthritis. It’s just a fact of life. But I would question any horse under 4 that isn’t sound.
10. Unfortunately, yes. Although it really isn’t a “bad thing,” it’s almost a pain in the ass. My mare had to have her hocks injected every month. It made a world of difference, but I had to schedule my shows around it because she would be noticeably sore without it. She was like 15 though. You shouldn’t be looking at a 4 year old who needs his hocks injected. Red flag!
11. For all of my horses, I have just asked around. I try not to use the same vet that the current owner uses. Google and Facebook groups come into play here! For Estella, my vet happened to be traveling back from Indian and was able to stop and do hers. So grateful for that!
I totally appreciate your comments on 1 & 4. Not all bows are the same. I’m learning so much from all your wonderful comments. Thanks. I’m grateful all 3 of the horses I’ve owned have been super sound. I feel slightly sheltered since I haven’t experienced many of these concerns.
3. I’ve heard that Craigslist horses can be trouble, but it’s not a given. I’d be wary but definitely go check out a Craigslist horse if it matched my criteria.
4. Probably yes; if I was able to I’d still go and look at the horse.
6. Frankly, if it’s unsound before the age of 4, I’d be very worried. That young they should really be pretty sound.
10. Hock injections are usually injections of long-acting painkillers given directly into arthritic joints. I personally have never dealt with them or even heard of them being done in my country, but I dislike the idea quite a lot especially for horses under the age of 12 or so. If it needs injections to be kept sound it’s probably not going to stay sound for awfully long. I really don’t think the majority of horses should be given painkiller to be kept sound. Still, if a horse matches all the other criteria, it’s worth looking at one that needs injections – ultimately it comes down to your feelings on the subject and what you want the horse for. I know horses can be kept sound and happy for years on injections.
Good luck!! I love following your horse shopping journey. It’s so exciting!
Thank you for following along on the horse shopping journey. It is exciting but overwhelming too. Good point on Craigslist. What country are you from? So curious. 🙂
I’m in South Africa 🙂 Gorgeous country!
Nice! I’ve been there. It was in the late 90s. I really enjoyed it but never made it to Capetown. Then worked my way to Botswana for a safari. One of the most amazing experiences of my life. I’d love to go back but I am such a nervous nellie of a flyer. That was one long airplane ride!
I hear you… a long plane ride with nowhere to land but the sea…
I agree that facebook groups are good places to look and craigslist can work out, but also be careful. I think having your trainer help is the best, she knows people in the area who sell horses who might have what you are looking for. I have a friend in the SF bay area who does sales, she’s got a variety of horses for different budgets and disciplines. I can reach out to her if you’d like.
Carey, do you know of CA FB groups? I would love to get connected in with your friend in the Bay Area? Should I private message you with details on what I’m going for or you can seems me her email?
You can email me details of what you are looking for at careyanne at gmail.com also try CA Hunter jumpers for sale Facebook group
Hello! I hope this helps some (disclaimer: from my own recent experience only)
1. depends on the extent of the bow. If it is hard already that’s a quick no. Many can be recovered from, though and won’t affect the horse long term (why a vet check is so important).
2. don’t know … though I learned through my own search that DNFs don’t necessarily mean they’re injured. In my quick search, it means the jockey made a judgment call. It could be injury, also could be the saddle was slipping (an example that came up).
3. I used Canter and other horse rescues … depends on what you’re looking for but a lot of them have horses with some training, too. I think I remember you mentioning you’re in SoCal … NeighSavers is fantastic, too. I went this route as it’s a lot easier for me to pay month to month than a ton up front, plus I get to bond with my boy in the training process. 🙂
4. My horse moves better in real life than he did in the video, although under saddle he’s still a hot mess.
5. My horse through the Canter trainer listings came up 100% sound (I did an extensive vet check). I found that the ones the rescues were working with were hit or miss but the trainer listings seemed to be better on this. I also tried to keep an open mind about the extent of injuries and recovery possibilities. Many of the injuries rescues have are fully recoverable.
6. Mine wasn’t under 4 … but again I saw a number on the trainer listings at Canter (they have NorCal and SoCal listings). It seems they’re usually the ones that were raced maybe a handful of times and weren’t fast enough. They’re still very young and sound but it doesn’t make sense for the race program to keep them. They’re likely to be very green, though.
7. I compensated in a flat rate … my trainer and I are very close friends away from the barn, too, though. Sorry not much help there.
8. Again, not much help. I looked for horses then ran them by my trainer for her thoughts. She didn’t charge me for that since I did most of the legwork.
9. I found, in my search, that there appeared to be a correlation. However, I think it’s the whole west that is that way. At the same time, it’ll be cheaper than shipping a cheaper horse from the East Coast. I did notice that with the trainer listings many of them were more concerned with the horses going to a good home, so you have negotiating power there. As an original SoCal resident, now NorCal transplant, I feel for you. The whole state is freaking expensive. I joke that while my job takes all my time, it’s what I’ve got to do to make enough to keep a horse in this state. As an aside, my trainer also pointed out that there tends to be a reverse correlation with the price and number of warmbloods available, so watch that on the sale sites.
11. This happened to me. I asked my vet if she could recommend anyone. She did. If you are looking at a horse at a track, consider calling the TB aftercare program at the track. They were very honest with me about which vets would be good for a pre-purchase. If you need a reference in NorCal, let me know.
If it helps, I posted about my process finding my thoroughbred here: http://ottbincali.wordpress.com/helpful-posts/finding-your-next-thoroughbred-on-the-track/
Can’t help on a lot of these, but honestly I would find a trainer you like and ask them to find you a horse. Yes, you’ll pay a commission but they have word of mouth and often access to horses that aren’t listed on sales sites. And no, I don’t think it’s possible to find ANY horse that’s 100% sound… but I’m a bit jaded 🙂
Hey Lauren, you raise a great point about trainers having access to horses that aren’t listed on sales sites. I thought about that word of mouth thing. I’m just not that connected yet out here in CA (except for awesome Carey doing a bit of networking on my behalf). On to Facebook groups! 🙂
No, the. vast majority of horses don’t need their hocks injected. It seems to be the go to treatment for hind ends, but a lot of the times the problem is higher up or just weakness. In the last five years, my fiance and I have never injected the hocks of any of the racehorses. This includes older horses that have been running for years. We give them Adequan and Legend if they need it, but never injected the hocks. We focus a lot on building their strength over the top line and in the hind end. Usually the “hock problems” seemed to disappear as the horses became stronger. I’m not saying that a horse never needs the injections, just that it is way overdone. I find people have a tendency to compensate for bad training with injecting and find it infuriating.
That’s very interesting to know. I appreciate your view in that you work with lots of horses. My previous TB I had for 16 years. We did his hocks once. Once. Thank you!
I will give you my $0.02 on the questions I have thoughts about 🙂
1. Is a bowed tendon a deal breaker? If not, what would I need to know about having a horse with this type of past injury?
– This is personally a deal breaker for me.
3. What websites should I be looking at to find my perfect horse? Dreamhorse.com, BigEq.com (thanks for the recommendation, Liz. I think 90% of the horses on that site are out of the realm of a teacher budget, sadly), Craigslist? Is there something better than a sales website?
– I would look everywhere (with special focus on rescues) but be more wary of the craigslist/kijiji type sites.
4. Is it possible a horse will move better in real life than what is shown in the seller’s poor quality cell phone video that was sent to me as a text?
– Absolutely, depends on the rider and circumstances (was the horse warmed up etc) but it wouldn’t be a lot different.
5. Is it possible to find a 100% sound horse through a rescue?
– Yes, but I purchased two 6 month old from a rescue. Lots of people have to surrender horses when they encounter rough times (many of those horses were in fine “working order” before surrender). I generally trust a rescue to be honest. I would still get a PPE done.
6. Is it possible to find a 100% sound horse under the age of 4?
Absolutely. I bought my gelding at 8 years old and he wasn’t/still isn’t on anything for maintenance now at 15 years old besides a bit of devil’s claw (for my benefit not his…I worry that he will one day develop arthritis…but he doesn’t have it)
10. Do the vast majority of horses need their hocks injected? If so, how frequently is that procedure done? Why are hocks injected in the first place?
– I find this can (sometimes) be a symptom of horses that were started too early. Many high level performance horses have pretty extensive wear and tear on their joints, so I would expect it more with a horse that was/is performing at a very high level of the sport (ie showjumping/dressage).
Good luck on your hunt!!! 🙂
Thank you, Kate! I am glad to hear from you. All advice and 2 cents is welcome. 🙂