i have been looking at some of the on-line horse sale sites where horses are advertised from all over the USA. I have heard of people buying horses and having them shipped, but never knew anyone who has. Does anyone here have experience with it? Did you travel out to see the horse first? How did you handle the purchase, from checking the horse out to vet check, etc.? I am skeptical, but the type of horse I’m looking for is not common where I live, so I’m wondering if going out of state is feasible.
not from some generic web site but we have bought from breeders we know horses sight unseen until the day we picked them up
we picked the horse up since no shipper wanted to trek into North Dakota in the winter
all others we took the time and spent the money to go see first… well most all I believe daughter bought her buckskin sight unseen
I buy horses sight unseen regularly to help my buying power.
I do not go see them. I do ask for specific video or photos and make sure I am seeing the horse’s current state.
I do vet check and I make sure the vet knows I have never seen the horse. I try to use a vet that someone at my vet’s clinic knows in some way. I have x-rays and the report sent to my vet. I have the vet assess the temperament. I try to have the hauler arranged BEFORE I arrange the vet check so I know the cost and time line of shipping.
I try to do as much online research on the seller as possible. Searching their name, their phone number, their farm name, and the horse’s name. I also tend to get some feedback on the seller from the vet…
Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t, but I have never lost money as I am usually buying from a market where horses are much less expensive, so just moving the horse adds significant value. I don’t think I have any better success buying sight seen vs sight unseen.
(two have come from the US, two from out of province, and four 5+ hours away in my province.)
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Yes. Dead of winter, horse in upper michigan. He was NOT as advertised . Yes I spoke at length to owner. Yes I spoke at length to vet. And yes, he has a new home. Seller outright lied to me.
Second time, DID go see the horse. He is now happy in my field and I love riding him.
:lol: I bought a horse from out of country, so I probably qualify here.
I did visit the horse before I purchased her, but I found the ad online first (and then perused the breeder’s page/website thoroughly). In my situation, the breeder had a peerless reputation for being honest, professional, and helpful (and a number of repeat out-of-country buyers) which left me comfortable doing business with them.
That said, I did visit the horse before I made an offer.
“Buying online” doesn’t necessarily mean “buying sight unseen”.
Do have a vet check - if possible, the seller will tell you who their vet is so you can find someone different to perform it. Do expect to pay someone a handling fee for the vet check plus the fee of the check itself (many sellers won’t charge because they consider it part and parcel of a sale but you shouldn’t take it for granted - it can be a time commitment, especially if scheduling goes poorly).
Shipping was the biggest issue for me. Depending on your location you may have to wait to have your horse shipped/experience difficulty scheduling a trip. Some people forget to factor this in. You may have to pay board on a horse out of state (or out of country) prior to their arrival to you. Oftentimes this is the horse remaining with the seller. Some sales contracts specify that board will be paid after a certain date (e.g. if the horse isn’t off the property within 7 days the new owner has to pay a daily care fee - again, don’t assume you have a grace period. many sellers will, but it isn’t right to assume). Do discuss this when constructing a sales contract.
Yes but I did fly to see the horse before I bought her. I also vetted the breeder/ seller who had a very good reputation. Shipping was not a problem because I was on a route that Equine Express was using to transport several other horses at the time. The seller had a list of vets to use and I talked to the vet after she had examined the horse and I had the x-rays sent to my vet that I use here.
I would do it again. I would probably not buy without personally seeing the horse to get an idea of the horse’s temperment and overall personality though to see if we might be a good match.
Yes, I’ve bought from out of state, sight unseen til horse came off the semi transport truck at my farm.
Ask lots and lots of questions to gauge seller’s honesty and experience.
Do as much checking on seller’s background as you can to check integrity and honesty.
If you are inexperienced shopping for horses you may want to enlist an experienced person’s help.
Request video and photos, and hopefully seller provides all you need to show horse is as advertised.
Always do a vet check.
If you’re uneasy or unsure of anything about the transaction, don’t do it until your concerns are resolved.
If you’re dealing with an honest, experienced seller ( is that an oxymoron?) you will be fine, if not you will have problems.
I bought a 2 year old from a breeder that I knew 1200 miles away sight unseen but had an extensive vet check. Only regret is horse was taller than I was told and not as well handled for a 2 yr old and did not think to ask vet to measure horse. But overall it was fine. I would never buy a riding horse sign unseen, I am not a trainer and ride mostly alone so it has to be an excellent match.
Keep in mind many of advertised horses are sold by dealers who have zero knowledge of the horse’s history despite the claims in the ad. How do they know horse is “safe” if they have only had it 2 weeks?
I have a friend who is a timid rider who bought a lower priced “solid citizen” horse sign unseen, it did not end well and she gave him away. But I believe her inexperience made the thing go into a downward spiral as the horse behaved like a horse, not a robot. She has some romantic view of these online ads and is probably going to repeat the same mistake…
Friend of mine bought unseen. When she first met the horse, she didn’t like the personality.
I think it’s worth meeting a) the horse -is there a ‘wow I like this horse effect’- and is the horse as described or shown in a video, b) the seller in person and c) the vet in person.
I bought my current mare off the (small) breeders website as a weanling. It was a 4 hour ( one way) trip and I didn’t see her in person first.
She will be 15 this September and I have never regretted it.
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No way. I have too many trust issues especially when if comes to horses!
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I bought a 2 year old sight unseen from a breeder, who I saw on FB. I was able to vet the breeder through mutual connections and my own sleuthing, got loads of photos and videos of the horse and a full PPE done with rads etc.
He’s now 6 and doing great. I absolutely adore him, and thank his breeder regularly for the great horse he is and the manners he came with.
So, definitely a mix of experiences here. I certainly would not buy now without a PPE and xrays. My show horse recently foundered (very unexpectedly) and was diagnosed IR/Cushings, so hidden health problems in a healthy looking horse are on my radar.
I am uneasy at the thought of buying without meeting the horse, but wanted to hear what others had done. I have talked to a MFT breeder with a great reputation not far away that a friend dealt with. She does not have what I want but will be going out of state to the MFT national breed show in September and often brings back horses to sell. So that might be a compromise.
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I’ve done all the above, i.e., bought after a conversation, with photos and video; bought after a vetting; bought with out a vetting; bought with a known issue; bought and then went to pick up; didn’t buy a few after vet checks; viewed online then went to see in person; bought and did not buy.
I had one buyer do a bait and switch as in she presented a different horse than the one I was buying, for the vetting. Fortunately the vet picked up on that. I’ve had sellers not comprehend actually how tall their horse is by overestimating. One mare the seller swore was 17hds when she was actually 16.1. Have gone to look myself and horse was advertised as 16.2 but was lucky to be 15.2. Bought another who was supposed to be 15.3 but turned out to be 15.1; was absolutely gorgeous but still lost my ass on that one. Another, I spent $150 to send a vet out just to check the height where the horse was represented to be over 16hds but was 15.3.
The TB’s I bought always seemed to have more anxiety issues than represented; all were swimmers; all either weaved, stall walked or both, or had ulcers or separation anxiety despite being represented as having no stall vices. Another Hanoverian mare represented as having repeated abscesses in a hind foot actually turned out to have mildly foundered in front when I drove 6 hours to go look, and turned out to have a sensitivity to alfalfa.
But I’ve bought quite a few that were exactly as represented and really lovely. Appaloosas, Trakehner, Dutch Warmblood, Draft crosses and a Fjord. I only completely lost my ass on the shorty stallion; the rest I either broke even or actually made a bit of money after improving them for a bit; the rest I’ve kept. My current three draft crosses were bought sight unseen other than photos or video. Well one was in-utero, but same went for his full Percheron dam. My Fjord yearling I bought off of photos and pictures from his breeder.
I tend to go with my gut and if there are red flags, walk away. Some sellers are absolutely great; others not so much. If it’s a lot of money, do the due diligence and go see for yourself.
I won’t buy a horse without seeing it in person. Full stop.
I’m also not shy about a big PPE.
Buying is a crapshoot anyway, might as well stack the odds in my favor as much as possible.
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The first Fjord I ever bought was off a single photo on the internet (it was back at the time we mailed video tapes!) from a known breeder. She was perfect and lived with me until the day she died at age 28. Since I am a breeder, most of the horses I buy are for bloodlines and from breeders I know. I almost never see them in person. I am also lucky that I have a farm, so the marginal cost of making “a mistake” is acceptable. I once bought a mare without checking the height; nice mare but too short for my program. My fault for failing to ask but I got her a good fit in a pony riding program where short is a plus.
I will sell youngsters to buyers on the internet. I do my own checking and will only sell to someone that has a farm, has experience with youngsters and has good interactions with me during the sales process. Obviously it is much easier to get videos out now and I never discourage a PPE. I have been very lucky with the buyers of my youngsters – they are doing a nice job turning them into solid citizens and breed ambassadors.
Now if you only can buy one horse and it is for your personal use, then I think you have to go see and try the horse. This goes triple if you have to board the horse. The real cost of a horse is not the purchase price but the upkeep, so you need to know if this is the horse for you. You need to be prepared to travel to see the horse. The risks are too great that it is not going to be a good fit otherwise. I believe the OP is looking for an uncommon breed, but even so, if it is for personal use in riding or driving, you have to go see the horse in person. It is not money lost if you travel and find the horse not suitable for your needs. It is money saved from buying and shipping an unsuitable horse that you now have to sell yourself.
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The best horse that I have bought was purchased primarily because of the way she looked at me. Admittedly she was a nice long yearling but it was actually her eyes and the way she followed me that made me go back to purchase her. We kept her all of her life.
This latest purchase was sight unseen as a weanling… he is Mr Personality … really an interesting dude
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Bought my OTTB mare sight-unseen and no vetting from an ad on Facebook. I was in Ohio, seller was in Michigan. I’m impulsive. I also paid the seller to haul her down to me.
She’s amazing, I love her to pieces, have had her for 5.5 years.
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I am the beneficiary of a “bought sight unseen off the Internet” transaction. He was not the perfect horse for the person who bought him sight unseen, he has been the PERFECT horse for me for nearly 7 years.
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For schoolmaster or very expensive horses I will fly out to visit them in person to make sure the training is as represented. For young horses, I always buy sight unseen. I assume they know nothing and it’s not worth the time and expense to confirm that. I do ask the vet to measure and take note of temperament when they do a PPE on horses I’m buying that I haven’t seen. I’ve also paid a local trainer to go try the horse for me and give feedback.
I have found certain Breeders that I know and trust now. They are always my first stops when horse shopping. I try to avoid agents. It’s funny how honesty gets you repeat customers… I wish others would take note!
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