Can anyone tell me why my recently purchased AQHA gelding does not show the brand that his papers says he has? I"m just curious if this is a “thing” with quarter horses- he is suppose to have a brand on his left hindquarter and I can’t see it. All the other markings are correct. Why would the papers say he is branded but he doesn’t have one??
It’s winter, maybe it’s not much apparent?
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What does the former owner say?
Have you asked the seller about it?
I do not know of a thing with any breed where they say they are branded but do not brand them.
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OK I will say it, might very be a mix up in horse and papers as even a freeze brand should be visible even though it may be muted
One reason I like the breed we have is they have DNA records that go back forty years, even a horse that is of unknown parents can be positively identified
Back in the 1970s I worked with some saddlehorse breeds who would “repaper” a horse as would have a hundred or so registration papers, then they would look through the blood lines to switch a better set of papers to increase a horse’s value. I know this occurred as I watched them.
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Or to change its age. There is no low to which some people won’t go.
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This IS a Big Deal, particularly in states where there are vigorous brand laws. And when the vet comes to do the Coggins and the horse does not match the description on the papers.
Go back to the seller and either get the horse branded as it should have been OR have the papers amended to delete the reference to the brand.
Trouble? Yes, this will be trouble. But you save yourself the trouble of explaining to a brand inspector or a police officer why papers and horse don’t match.
G.
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Oh dear. Are there any marks where the brand is supposed to be? Is the horse a grey?
I have seen some pretty faint hot brands over the years that are barely apparent, especially with a winter coat. Even smaller or less well applied freeze brands can all but disappear in winter hair. I rode a Standardbred for years whose brand looked like two little white dots in the winter. My first step would be to clip the area and see if that brings out the brand.
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Yeah, before going crazy, clip the brand area and see if it’s there. A winter coat really can obscure a brand.
Since the horse is registered, it might be possible to send dna into the AQHA to confirm with certainty if the horse matches the papers.
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Might be a light hot brand that isn’t visible this time of year. I have a couple horses with that issue and barely visible during the summer.
What state are you in? Did you not get a brand inspection when you bought the horse?
In some states AQHA papers are not proof of ownership, brand inspection is, so the difference in papers wouldn’t make a difference anyhow.
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Why not clip the area? Seems like a quick way to clear this up.
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I have a BSP with two brands. The one on his shoulder is only visible with “summer hair” ; the one on his flank is always visible (white hair on brown butt). The shoulder brand is faint --and the hair has grown in --maybe not done correctly or long enough or with a different device. It is clearly there --a Rocking Lazy 3.
Agreed. Don’t get too carried away before clipping the area. I know a Hanoverian who during the winter despite not having a significant winter coat, gives no indication that he is branded. When he sheds out you can see it, but, honestly only if you were right up close and looking for it.
My connemara cross was branded AWS but I could not see it in winter, and barely in summer. And if you didn’t know to look for it, you would never notice it. Like others have said, try clipping the area, or talk to the seller.
Some AQHA registered horses have pictures in the AQHA office.
You may check with them and see if they have any and if they do, they may show the brand/s.
We bought a horse with several brands on his papers, one supposed to be on his left jaw.
You could not see that one until we gave him a bath.
Once wet, it was easier to find.
I own a branded Oldenburg mare and when I purchased her we had to shave the brand site during the PPE to find it (January and she was shaggy) . Depending on the brand and time of year, they can be hard to find.
Sheilah
My Westfalian is like this. I had her for about a month, wondered why she wasn’t branded, then I was lunging her one day and the light was just right so I could see it. It’s invisible 95% of the time, or looks like a tiny bit of ruffled hair if you don’t know it’s there.
He’s gone now, but my SWB was branded when he was inspected. He was still almost chocolate colored then, who faded to grey, then essentially white by the time of his demise. I owned him for more than half of his life, and his brand wasn’t visible when I met him. I bought him from the person who acquired him as a weanling and had him inspected
My almost 16yo QH has a brand on his right flank…you can barely see it most of the year. In the summer when he is slicked out and a lot less white (he’s a bay roan and gets quite white in the winter) you can make out the general shape, but if I didn’t know what the brand was from his AQHA registry it’d be darn near impossible to tell.
So don’t panic yet.
