Over the years I’ve looked at the multitude of horses offered by Virginia Sport Horses on their website, and I’m contemplating making a trip down to shop as their prices always seem so reasonable for the horses described. There are a fair share of horses unattractive for various reasons, but it seems reflected in a different price than the “cream of the crop.” However, I can’t find anyone up here in NY who has bought one of their horses and I’d love some feedback - good, bad or indifferent? Thanks!
There have been several threads on these folks over the years. Search on the forums, or do a google search, you can find the threads that way too.
They were notable for being PMU foal resellers.
Do they still charge you for looking at horses ? I remeber if you buy one off their site, it was 50% off …
Yeah, search Off Course for the big thread of old. Very enlightening.
Yeah, wasn’t it like a $500 non-refundable deposit even if you didn’t buy one of their horses? That’s what set people off so badly. No way am I going to pay someone just to go look at their horses! :mad:
According to their website, it’s currently a “nonrefundable $200 deposit”, payable in advance, simply to make a “sales appointment”. Geesh.
Go to their website & read all their “rules” & monetary requirements just to take a look. Seems like monetary entrapment to me. They get you coming, going, up, down, & sideways as far as $$$$ goes.
http://www.virginiasporthorses.com/policies.php
I particularly like what looks like the fact that if you have a PPE done & the horse doesn’t pass, you apparently still do NOT get any deposit you may have put down refunded. You simply are allowed to move that deposit over to another of their horses. What a racket!!!
Hi,
Check with Kim Stack at Margie’s. I think she went down there before she bought Flash and had a hilarious story!
Susan
It’s interesting seeing horses listed on their site with the price jumped 5-7k from what I know they were listed for my the original seller (ie. who Virginia Sport Horse bought from).
[QUOTE=Cabaret SK;6764984]
It’s interesting seeing horses listed on their site with the price jumped 5-7k from what I know they were listed for my the original seller (ie. who Virginia Sport Horse bought from).[/QUOTE]
Huh. What’s even MORE interesting is that, according to their website, they repeatedly state that they don’t buy & resell what they call “used” horses. They only sell horses that they’ve bred, raised, & trained themselves.
Okay, I don’t buy or sell horses, but I think a charge for looking at horses might be a good idea. If you are a seller that would be the end of your frustrations with tire kickers, no shows and exasperation for cleaning and braiding your horse.
A nominal fee, like $20.00 would both make you feel like you didn’t waste your time.
If I were buying a horse it wouldn’t discourage me. I would hope that in return the horse be groomed and ready at the appointed time (unless I specify differently - want to catch him in the field etc).
She recently sent out some kind of email blast
I received 5 of them on the same day. I asked to be taken off their list, which resulted in more emails from her. I finally asked her just to stop.
She stated in on of her emails she’s “sold several thousand horses over the last decade”.
Alrighty then.
I too received a few copies of an email titled “Special purchase opportunity.”
Ooh, a “purhase opportunity.” Lucky me!!
"We are preparing to head into the frozen North on a horse selection trip. This is a unique opportunity to purchase a Canadian-bred Sport Horse that is personally evaluated and selected for you by Liz Booth.
Liz is the owner of Virginia Sport Horses and has bred, raised, trained, evaluated and imported several thousand Sport Horses over the course of the last decade.
Live/phone selection interviews available for Sunday January 6th, horses imported on January 20th. A limited number of horses can be imported at a greatly reduced shipping cost.
See website or call Liz at ------------ for details.
video preview of REFERENCE horses:
http://youtu.be------------------
preview webpage:
http://www.-----------------------------------
As always, VSH maintains a wide selection of draft and warmblood crosses suitable for fox hunting, eventing, hunters and dressage. Our horses are sane, sensible, sound and suitable for today’s mature riders. "
“Canadian- Bred Sport Horses” = PMU horses
One of my friends hunts a young gelding from Virginia Sport Horses. She loves him, and he seems like a steady, solid draft-cross type. he’s just learning the ropes and she hunts him 2nd and 3rd field, so I’ve not actually seen him in the field except at checks. It’s funny, I remember that thread from a few years ago (Is that the one that was something along the lines of “$500 just to look??” that had over a thousand comments) but I didn’t connect it to Virginia Sport Horses and my friend’s horse until this thread :lol:. I’ll have to ask her about their policies the next time we hunt together. Somewhere in the dredges of my brain I remember her saying she is thinking of getting another horse from them once her oldster retires.
[QUOTE=ridingagain;6767245]
“Canadian- Bred Sport Horses” = PMU horses[/QUOTE]
Most likely true. I had an acquaintance who purchased a horse through them or that was bred by them and I could PM you details, but it has not turned out so great for her… would very much hesitate to buy something they “import” from Canada or bred.
I don’t know these folks but…even if they ARE "Canadian"s they were imported/transported at some cost. So if its a good horse; then it’s a good horse. PMU’s can make super fieldhunters. I’m on my 3rd. Have some out in the pasture too. Knowing the horse is a pmu should bring the price down some but it depends on how much training/hunting it’s done. PMU’s sell for 20 K sometimes you know if they are worth it. Where it was born shouldn’t matter…what it’s done should; be it a pmu or an ottb or any breed. r
If the folks in Canada can hook you up directly then do that. You’d use a company like VSH’s as intermediaries. They take the risks and so you’d have to pay more than if you did the importing/transporting/breaking/training/feeding etc. lIf it’s a Canadian Sport Horse or Canadian Warmblood registered then it should have papers from those registries.
Use any knowledge you have in your price negotiation!!
Oh my - I’m an idiot - I read the whole thread thinking it was Sport Horses from Virginia Tech, becoming more and more aghasted. Royal Appearance stands there and I have a RA mare… their reputation is stellar.
Virginia Sport Horses
I can’t believe anyone would deal with this farm/horse seller. They have OTTB and PMU canadian horses and a brazilian “trainer” who, if you watch him ride (or better yet, JUMP! Haha) you would hopefully steer clear of the entire place.
Also, Bruno Carneiro, their farrier and their trainer, isn’t even legal to work in the United States… so I’m not sure how he’s still working there! Yikes.
[QUOTE=ridingagain;6767245]
“Canadian- Bred Sport Horses” = PMU horses[/QUOTE]
Not that there’s anything wrong with that 
But if you go to the naeric.org site and search through the farms, you can probably by the same horses much cheaper than you would through VSH. ravineranchsporthorses.com in particular
(hope I don’t get “blacklisted” for outing a source, hahaha)
