riding

[quietann]

BTW, in case anyone is wondering, yes, I do things besides ride Minnie! But nothing especially interesting has been going on.

Minnie was very very good today. She seems to be getting used to the routine: I show up, she gets loaded on a trailer with Trumpie, we go up to the barn where there are **other horses**, she gets groomed and tacked up and I ride her. Afterwards, depending on what else is going on, she gets turned out in a grassy paddock or just led around to eat grass on the lawn behind the house, and then goes back on the trailer and back home.

She has become a complete doll about having her bridle put on, which makes me think she's enjoying being ridden. We did a lot of transitions today and overall it went pretty well. Minnie collected herself a bit more which made her much easier to ride. I still feel a bit all over the place when riding her, but J assures me I look a lot better than it feels to me. Today she *trotted* over poles rather than jumping over them.

Afterwards, I had lunch with J and her daughter and we went to look at a horse J might be interested in buying, because Trumpie is starting to get old and is not up for the next level of eventing competition. So this was my introduction to a serious horse business -- expensive horses, beautiful facilities, etc. The barn people didn't have time to take the horse out of his stall, but J had a favorable first impression. All I can say is that he's HUGE -- well over 17 hands, which is really, really tall. He seems friendly. J will go back again next week for a better look.

Comments

[cogitationitis.livejournal.com]

Have you ever thought of buying a horse? You probably have room for one.

[quietann.livejournal.com]

I am in no way shape or form ready to own a horse. It's a huge commitment of time and money that I just don't have right now. There are certain things that could happen that would change that, but since they involve inheritances, I'd rather that they not happen soon!

We *could* have a horse here but there is really not enough room to ride. About half the property is hilly and wooded and the other parts are closer to our neighbors' houses, and we don't want neighbor issues. So I'd still be boarding...

[unclebooboo.livejournal.com]

Buying a horse can be a very complicated business. My advice:

1. Unless you're stark raving mad, you shouldn't be interested in purchasing a horse for breeding purposes. Since geldings are usually less expensive, there's little reason to consider most breeding age mares. One exception is that you can sometimes get a bargain on a mare that hasn't been successful at producing foals. Besides, geldings are much easier to deal with.

2. Think carefully about breed registration and pick the right breed for your competitive interests. For the performance disciplines this doesn't really matter, but it's a very serious issue if you want to show in breed oriented shows. Registration papers are also very helpful in documenting the age and breeding of a horse- don't believe anything that you're told about an "14 year old" unregistered horse.

3. Age has a huge effect on selling price. First time buyers are often encouraged to buy older horses because they're generally better trained and less like to do something really stupid. On the other hand, if you buy an older horse, you might not get too many years out of the horse. Getting rid of an older horse that is no longer sound can be emotionally difficult.

4. Training has a huge effect on the horse's price. Don't listen to anything that you're told about a horse's training unless it's negative
information. Don't bother to get on a "green broke" horse! On the plus side, work with the horse and see what you can get it to do. If you don't feel qualified to do this, then get a more experienced rider to check things out for you.

5. Ride the horse as much as you can before buying. 30 minutes in an arena really isn't enough time to fully appreciate the horse's behavior but it is enough time to figure out how well the horse moves (at least on that day with whatever drugs the horse might be on.)

6. Get a vet check from a vet that *you trust*. Make sure that vet check includes observation of the horse under saddle with a rider (preferably you.) X-rays are also worthwhile if you have any question about soundness. If you can arrange for the horse to spend a long weekend at the vets before the vet check then this will go a long way towards eliminating any possibility that the animal has been drugged or given some "quick fix" treatment. Even if you're buying a very inexpensive horse, the few hundred bucks that this will cost are money well spent.

7. Think of the vet check as being like a home inspection. The vet should tell you the truth about anything that is visible, but many things aren't visible without expensive tests and other issues are very subjective. No horse is in perfect condition- the question is whether there's anything that is likely to make the horse unsuitable for your use in the near future.

Sometimes there are specific and easily treated conditions that can lower the selling price. Sometimes the conditions are more serious and the price goes down a lot. For example, we bought Pace even though we knew he had a case of skin cancer. We probably saved a couple of thousand dollars on the price, but ended up paying that back in vet bills over the next several years. In retrospect, the price we paid was probably fair.

8. Remember that as a group people who deal in horses are even more dishonest than used care salesmen. However, many of them are perfectly honest. The trick is recognizing the honest ones.

9.Be careful to make sure that the sale and transfer of registration papers is properly documented. Do you have to pay property tax on livestock in your state?

[quietann.livejournal.com]

BTW, it's not *me* buying a horse! It's goddessfarmer, otherwise known as J, who owns Trumpie and Minnie and has owned horses for most of her life. Given that the horse in question costs more than what I make in a year, I'm sure she'll be as thorough as you suggest, and then some. J has a whole long list of criteria, most of what you cover above plus some extras (like the horse must be calm enough under saddle to carry her husband on a trail ride. He's not a "horse person" but he knows that riding is a good way to spend time with J.)

The horse is a 6 year old gelding who's from good sport-horse lines and has been winning at training-level dressage. He is trained to jump, though there is some question about whether he *likes* to jump, and this would be an issue for J given that she wants a 3-day event horse. The woman who has him on consignment is someone J has known for years, and gave J's daughter lessons when she was just starting out.

I know I am not ready to own a horse and it may turn out that I just ride other peoples' horses.

[goddessfarmer.livejournal.com]

"Do you have to pay property tax on livestock in your state?"

I have never lived in a state that taxes livestock, and anyone that did is out of it's freakin mind. NH is an agricultural state, which, thankfully, generally gives farmers leave to do a wide range of activities even if it annoys the neighbors. We all have to eat, don't 'cha know. Horses, here in NH, are considered agriculture.