I found my current horse in a cowboy’s pasture doing western pleasure and natural horsemanship. I paid $3k for this sound fancy imported Westfalen gelding. I got him home and discovered through trial and error that he schools all the GP. I don’t know how he ended up where I found him. I don’t know who trained him. I haven’t been able to find out. But once this stupid lockdown is over, I’ll be showing him for sure! There are diamonds in the rough, you just have to keep looking.
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Agreed that it can certainly be done. I think, if you haven’t shown PSG before, you might have an easier time finding an older schoolmaster for that price to take you there. It’s a gamble on how long they’ll be sound for, and they might be intermittently sound or need some investment in upkeep, but a horse that’s done it before is more of a sure thing IMO than a young one untested. Beyond the body, not every horse has the brain to ride PSG over 60%.
It takes some looking and networking, but there are folks looking to sell older horses to really great forever homes and enough people would rather find an excellent home than try to make money on these older horses. Of course, then you’d have to be willing/able to retire the horse yourself when the time came.
Best luck!!
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I love reading about all of your longshot horses. If any of you would be willing to share your stories for a possible story on the Chronicle’s website, please shoot me an email at kloushin@coth.com
Thanks!
Kimberly
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$3,500.00
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Me going “is that keen?” :lol:
My husband got me an older Thoroughbred mare that had ran a bunch of times, war horse. When I had gotten her nobody had ridden her in a few years. Well I got on and apparently she had also been someone’s nice Dressage mount because she offered to show me all the upper level movements. We were so surprised. Now she gives my teenager lessons and sometimes I pop on her for fun. Did she compete at Grand Prix? I have no idea, but she knows all the movements. She was a rescue and is now a loved family member.
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Ha! No, 15’2 TBx(QH). No papers whose dam came through the New Holland sale. She was from out west somewhere. I purchased this horse when she was 3 1/2.
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