[QUOTE=mvp;8458177]
This is the infamous Camelot renamed and brought under new management, correct? And things have changed? IIRC, the Camelot folks had kill buyers and rescue organizations who were in bed with them? That’s over? Or that never had anything to do with the auction house?
Just curious. Carry on with the real topic of your thread.[/QUOTE]
Yes, this was formally Camelot. Things have changed in a big way and not for the better.
[QUOTE=mvp;8458177]
This is the infamous Camelot renamed and brought under new management, correct? And things have changed? [/QUOTE]
Yes, it has changed management. It’s gotten worse. As others have noted, new management has a less than stellar reputation for years. Buyer beware.
[QUOTE=SonnysMom;8457887]
So by good money are you talking $3,000, $5,000 or $10,000? The one she is interested in is a registered Warmblood with a decent show back round. She doesn’t want to show but the horse supposedly will make a good foxhunter and she want to trail ride and foxhunt.
I do wonder why that horse and a couple other with USEF show records are at that sale and not through the more select sale through a place like Professional Auction Services. They have one in mid-March.[/QUOTE]
I saw the ad for that horse, too-- I would be pretty skeptical about why a horse that nice is there (especially since they have all those pictures, so it appears he’s being consigned by the original owners.) And there is no reason to think he will be a great field hunter just because he trail rides. While I feel bad for the horse and hope he finds a soft landing, it seems like your friend would be better off shopping on Facebook or even Craigslist.
If you’re thinking about buying, definitely go there in person and don’t bid over the phone, bring a second knowledgable person with you, have your quarantine lined up, and get the horse out of there that night.
just a personal point. If you truly want a bargain, be patient. I purchased a coming 3 year old mare, registered, sold by the woman who bred her, including shipping from MS to eastern PA for $1500. I waited for the right horse and a mostly desperate owner. She was current on everything and even had shoes. A FAR better deal than an unknown from an auction.
Thanks for the feedback everyone.
Also have your friend check out some local rescues. The one by me, Helping Hearts (they have a fb page) is located about 20 min from the auction. They have a very nice tb gelding that is looking for a new home (show quality) and a lovely 15 year old trail horse as well as a few others i can’t think of off the top of my head.
If is truly as described, is an amazing find.
If the link does not work, this is :
#21
Elvis is an 8 year old, 13.1 hand medium pony gelding. He has been shown lead line through the pre children’s ponies. He has a clean lead change, great form over fences and is a 10+ mover. Safe for a beginner rider and fancy enough to be competitive on the “A” show circuit. Sells New Year’s Eve 100% sound, no vices.
http://youtu.be/PIxxLUt7jWM
It is definitely a big risk. But…it can work out If you get lucky. And if you don’t, you have to be the kind of horseman who can be practical enough to give a horse with serious issues a kind fate. It is not unlike buying from the backside at the track from some unknown seller.
Please be careful, I attend auctions on a regular basis and while you can get a fantastic horse you can also end up with a horse that has been drugged hard and falls apart when you get it home.
There is probably a very good reason that mare is at this auction, a horse like that should’ve sold through a private sale or advertisement, not ended up at an auction. Does she have a reserve?
[QUOTE=SonnysMom;8457606]
So we are basically talking New Holland pricing and the same precautions and expectations. I wasn’t sure if it was a slight step up in pricing and quality or not.[/QUOTE]
Many/most of this places horses come from NH.
Frank used to buy the horses at NH Monday, then start the price at his sale Wed at his NH price, running it up from there.
The horses who no sale also g back to NH.
And yes the new management is allowing animals to get WAY too skinny on their watch. One buyer spent $11k trying to save the horse she bought… they are getting sick [from crap hay there isn’t enough of or access to] as well.
Yes, I agree with enjoy the ride that anyone who buys a horse like this should take it with a grain of salt. It could turn out great or it could have serious behavior or soundness issues. I hope that would go without saying. I would never recommend buying at a low end auction unless you have the guts to euthanize the horse if it needs it, or can keep the horse as a pasture pet. Either fate is better than shipping to Mexico so I have no problem with taking that kind of risk myself. It is no different than buying one at the track really…
I would assume they are buted and reserpined, one or the other or both. But that is the risk you take when buying at auctions…frankly anywhere. I have known several people who bought privately who had the same thing happen. After a month the drugs wore off and voila, horse was in fact insane or lame. This was years ago before people started running blood. Experienced horse people, too, so not a matter of them just not handling it appropriately.
some horses end up in situations like this because they were owned by idiots and not because there is anything actually wrong with the horse. Or because the money runs out and the horse has to go, today. Sad but it happens.
And with the mare, I would assume that the mare is unsound but she could be a very good fit for a breeder. She is nice, has a record and isn’t so old she couldn’t have a baby or two as an alternative to going for meat. God knows she is better than half of what gets bred these days. And maybe she isn’t, and someone gets lucky.
With any of these horses, I wouldn’t spend more than you have to lose. But if they are cheap enough, it might be fun too see.
I hope that gelding gets out, it is absurd that he’s in such a situation.
Friend has decided she does not have the set up to quarantine so we are not going. In light of EHV-1 being in our area I think that is a good call on her part. Strangles is inconvenient but EHV-1 has been deadly at a local farm.
If it looks too good to be true… I just saw a horse on their FB page who I have known for several years jumping around a course and being sold as sound. I don’t know what they did to make him “sound” today but he has not been sound enough to do up-down lessons for at least the last 3 years, let alone jump. Buyer beware, indeed.
[QUOTE=Angela Freda;8459341]
Many/most of this places horses come from NH.
Frank used to buy the horses at NH Monday, then start the price at his sale Wed at his NH price, running it up from there.
The horses who no sale also g back to NH.
And yes the new management is allowing animals to get WAY too skinny on their watch. One buyer spent $11k trying to save the horse she bought… they are getting sick [from crap hay there isn’t enough of or access to] as well.[/QUOTE]
They don’t have the horses long enough for them to lose that kind of condition in a week or whatever. The horses come to them already in poor shape, generally. I think there is more to the story here as you can spend $11k trying to save any horse you bought without knowing the first thing about their health or history. “Getting sick from crap hay” is a pretty vague assertion especially in the same breath as saying they don’t feed or water the horses.
I’m not defending these guys but I think the idea that the horses who end up there are all fat, shiny examples of good health and soundness just waiting to be pulled out and given a weeks worth of food to be the next great thing is part of the reason that places like this exist and inexperienced buyers keep buying horses there.
They don’t treat horses well and its just another end of the line auction. Horses in that situation have usually been neglected by their owners to varying degrees before they got there for the cranbury people to buy and try to resell. I don’t think anyone expects that an auction selling horses with prices in the low hundreds is going to be buying them top quality alfalfa and ulcer meds while they’re in house waiting to be sold - and keeping them in rough condition encourages more bleeding hearts to pay money to “save” them.
[QUOTE=soloudinhere;8459724]
They don’t have the horses long enough for them to lose that kind of condition in a week or whatever. The horses come to them already in poor shape, generally. I think there is more to the story here as you can spend $11k trying to save any horse you bought without knowing the first thing about their health or history.[/QUOTE]
In the beginning after the management switch, they were holding horses indefinitely until they sold, sometimes for a month or more. There were several times when people posted pictures of the horse at pickup and the horse was clearly in far worse shape than when the auction photos were taken the week of the sale. Now they only hold them for about a week and a half tops.
[QUOTE=soloudinhere;8459724]
They don’t have the horses long enough for them to lose that kind of condition in a week or whatever. The horses come to them already in poor shape, generally.[/QUOTE]
At the end of November or early Dec there were horse that were there for a MONTH. I am not making this up, these horse got way skinnier on their watch, as we saw new pics every couple of weeks, and then when someone finally felt badly enough to buy them.
You can see for yourself on CHW Cranbury Horror Stories Facebook page…
Horror Stories page:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1633257936932998/
Fresh Start page:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/386067298235062/
[QUOTE=soloudinhere;8459724] I think there is more to the story here as you can spend $11k trying to save any horse you bought without knowing the first thing about their health or history. “Getting sick from crap hay” is a pretty vague assertion especially in the same breath as saying they don’t feed or water the horses.
I’m not defending these guys [/QUOTE]
Clearly you are defending that which you are not familiar, since there have been horses there for over 4 weeks who looked WAY worse after those weeks than they did when they arrived. It’s pretty well known that this is a concern now with this sales barn, that horses are losing weight and getting sick because they are there too long, with access to only round bale crap hay, and then having to fight with too many other horses for that hay.
[QUOTE=soloudinhere;8459724]but I think the idea that the horses who end up there are all fat, shiny examples of good health and soundness just waiting to be pulled out and given a weeks worth of food to be the next great thing is part of the reason that places like this exist and inexperienced buyers keep buying horses there.
They don’t treat horses well and its just another end of the line auction. Horses in that situation have usually been neglected by their owners to varying degrees before they got there for the cranbury people to buy and try to resell. I don’t think anyone expects that an auction selling horses with prices in the low hundreds is going to be buying them top quality alfalfa and ulcer meds while they’re in house waiting to be sold - and keeping them in rough condition encourages more bleeding hearts to pay money to “save” them.[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=rb5007;8459513]
If it looks too good to be true… I just saw a horse on their FB page who I have known for several years jumping around a course and being sold as sound. I don’t know what they did to make him “sound” today but he has not been sound enough to do up-down lessons for at least the last 3 years, let alone jump. Buyer beware, indeed.[/QUOTE]
Do you mean the grey? There’s been a lot flying around about that horse not being sound, the person running CS insisted they would post a video of the horse ‘this week’ but that was weeks ago and … nothing last I looked was posted.
No, chestnut gelding. We just saw him on FB this morning. I don’t know how he ended up with the person who is consigning him but the description of him is blatantly inaccurate. She may not know his history (I am giving her the benefit of the doubt because she didn’t change his name and he is well known in central Jersey).
He was on my FB last night. I linked the post for an individual selling him to his sales at Cranberry. She she said “Yes, if not sold privately in the next few days he is going to the sale.” He seems off or something not right
By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. You may also receive promotional emails from The Chronicle of the Horse. You can opt out at any time.
For Customers
Company
Terms of Use
