Hey I tried to send you a message, but it says your profile is hidden and I can’t find the message button.
Yes I think if buying from a reseller you have to already be somewhat knowledgeable in being able to tell if the horse is suitable or not. They are still pretty fresh off the track!
Try CANTER - in a number of states. They get OTTBs and evaluate, vet and ride them so they know what kind of rider would work for them. Some are still with trainers who can also give you the essential information.
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Or lie to get that horse off their owner’s bill…
I won’t buy straight off the track anymore.
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Weird! Sent you one
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Hmmmm…I don’t see any private messages in my Inbox right now, but I have gotten a few in the last couple months from other COTHers. I have no idea how to resolve this? I can send you a PM test and see if you can reply, @endlessclimb.
I’m all squared away, thank you!
Not all trainers, I just moved 12 miles from the Charles Town, WV track and have met a few trainers in the area, seem like good people but like everything else, one persons crazy is another’s dream ride.
I’d source one from the track, but the resellers jump on them so quickly that if you don’t have excellent connections, good luck.
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I have two pieces of feedback: there are few old COTH posts about TB bloodlines that are known to produce nice movers. I’d start there as a launching post for research and then start tailoring your search for horses with those bloodlines. Ken’s Kitten, ridden by Nuno Olivera, comes to mind.
I might also suggest another, somewhat new reseller: Ironfire Thoroughbreds. It’s run by Laura Welsh, an venter, so she will have an eye for what might be suitable to the sandbox.
Good luck–I love that you’re wanting a TB for dressage. I hope you’ll let us know what you find.
Thanks everyone for your advice, cautions and suggestions. Unfortunately, I haven’t found anything suitable yet. I even talked a former Olympian who has “2 fab moving TBs, both more than capable of scoring well at mid-level dressage”. After viewing their flatwork videos and recent LL eventing dressage scores on USEA, I was less than impressed. These are not TBs right off the track and they are priced like WBs! So, I’m going to look at a young WB next week. I haven’t made any final decisions yet, but it’s not looking promising on the TB front - though I haven’t given up the idea!
I don’t find many of the eventers bring out the best dressage in the TBs, compared to the dressage folks who are producing them.
A lot of eventers especially for resale are ridden and packaged quickly to get the job done, show record and out the door. They just don’t get the same patient, proper start that a dressage or even H/J barn might give them.
Keep in mind also that the trot can be improved, by miles and miles. So while they might not look like great movers, they may surprise you over time.
That being said the market is wild, so hopefully you find something suitable, TB or not! Good luck with your trial.
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Jessica Redman\benchmark sport horses here. The market for the truly athletic sound fancy Tb’s is extremely competitive and fast moving. I will tell you that I gave so many connections at the track and it’s still hard to get the quality of horses I’m trying to find. The prices are significantly higher and a majority don’t fit my soundness criteria. It’s just a lot harder than in the past.
I have never seen horses sell so fast but part of that is the demand from shoppers who don’t want to go to the track and would rather pay more for my assessment, pictures, videos, rides and ability to vet. All we do is Tb’s and we actually do ride our horses. I believe I can accurately assess what I have (hope it wasn’t me that sold the explosive horse because I can tell that right away) and it’s in my best interest to match the horse to the right rider and right job.
We generally only get to do a few rides and I’m looking at how the horse handles all the things we ask of them. It’s pretty easy to tell what they are like. I’m also evaluating ground manners, turnout, etc as that factors in to programs that best suit a horse.
Lots of riders do come in person but often I find they are looking at the wrong horses for their riding ability. People gravitate towards the big flashy movers but that normally is your extremely athletic type of horse that requires a more skilled rider to best bring out their ability.
There are Tb’s that absolutely will excel in the top levels of dressage. I have specific bloodlines I like. I’m also looking at conformation. I value a good walk and canter. Trot always comes but people just always look at the trot first 
I guess I’m different but I don’t like buying horses others restart. I prefer them off the track and not messed up. To many in gadgets, ridden backwards, not allowed to go forward, etc and it’s hard to fix once it’s created.
If you buy your Tb’s from top connections off the track they are every bit if not nicer than warmbloods but that is years of finding the people who start them right.
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I’ll be in the same boat soon. My gelding came home before Thanksgiving. He needs a friend & I’d like another OTTB to start from scratch. If it ever stops raining in Florida I can get the pasture fenced so there is a place for everyone in turn out while they get to know each other.
I’m not in a place to drop $8k on a blank slate. I also don’t want one restarted by someone else to fix problems later. I cringe when I see ads mentioning flying changes or jumping 3 yr olds under saddle. Teaching changes was nuts, I can’t imagine trying to fix them if they are late behind.
Most likely I’ll get something from Florida Trac, Rerun or New Vocations if they will let me adopt sight unseen. I’m ok with some minor track jewelry but won’t take a chance on anything with screws. I’m picky about bloodlines & would like the next one to have Bold Ruler in the pedigree like my current boy. It’s going to be an interesting search for sure.
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OK I’m old, and have not been looking specifically for an OTTB for strictly dressage. But, I have acquired numerous horses off the track, some for free, and some I paid money for, and have never used a “placement service” or “rescue” or “agent” to do it. I always deal direct, and have found it to be the best way, IMO. I’ve been a race trainer and owner and gallop girl, as well as a h/j competitor.
Go shopping at your local racetrack, and get to know the people there… the trainers, the exercise riders, the grooms. Get “contacts”. Get to know who are the people you want to deal with, and who to stay away from. Get to know who you can trust, and who you can’t. Get to know who you want to buy a horse from, and who you don’t. Know what minor injuries you can accept, and which you don’t want to deal with. Then put the word out that you are “looking”, and what you are looking FOR. Shopping at the track is like going to the grocery store, you walk up and down the aisles, looking at what is offered and available, and choosing what you want when you see it. Watch the horses train in the morning, watch them on post parade at the races. Go, and participate. Learn where horses might be racing (what level of racing) that they may soon become available for sale, and looking for a new career. Then, you just wait. You can express an interest in a potential purchase in advance if you like, go see the trainer. If you see one that you just HAVE to own, and it’s not for sale, you can claim it if it is running for a price… you won’t be popular if you do, but you will get the horse you want. Doing this, claiming a horse out of a claiming race, takes some help from your racing contacts (which you have developed), and there is some “secrecy” required… you don’t advertise it in advance to ANYONE. But it is possible. After being told that the horse is currently “not for sale”, you walk away disinterested, don’t argue. It has been done when someone really wants a certain horse as a sport prospect and it is not currently for sale willingly. No vetting or trying the horse first though LOL. Because racetrackers put their money down first, and check the horse out later.
Horses normally will come up for sale at or near the end of your local race meet. The trainer and most of the horses who still have a future at the track may well be moving to a different track to continue racing at another meet, or owners may have decided to keep horses through the winter and pay for spring training with the ones they want to keep. But, the ones that have won out their “conditions” and are not going to be competitive in later years will need to be sold, as will the ones with soundness issues (which you may or may not be interested in). For large geldings (especially in Canada), your competition to buy these horses will be the chuckwagon guys, who are always shopping for prospects too, and have some serious money behind them sometimes. But they are looking for horses with serious speed, their favourates are the old stake horses with lots of winnings behind them, and offer those horses the chance to keep on racing, carrying no weight, and only running half a mile (or so), so they may not be looking for the horse that you are looking for. They don’t want the slow ones, or the young ones. They also will NOT buy mares, so big, good looking, sound mares are easier to buy than geldings are. And cheaper.
Good luck, and happy shopping!
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@NancyM How is any of this possible In Covid times when places are closed to the public and/or no racing is happening?
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Most racing venues who are not permanently dying are racing this year, and did race last year. No attendance at the races though. Obviously, you can’t attend the races, nor gain access to the backstretch until Covid is under control enough for these options to be available. You can’t do this TODAY. To gain access to trainers and owners, a hand written sign with your phone number posted on the guard gate at the entrance to the backstretch can state what you are looking for, if it is necessary to buy a horse NOW. These notices are quite common, IME. My advice for those looking for OTTB prospects is more about establishing a “long term” relationship with the racing fraternity, to the benefit of both.
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Sorry to say that it was you. The explosions were very sporadic (though quite extreme when they did happen), so I’m not surprised you didn’t see any in the few days you had the horse.
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I can’t seem to message you but what horse and why not reach out about it?
Sorry, I need to figure out how to make my PM button show up. I did email you about the horse at the time. We don’t need to rehash anything, and I went out of my way not to identify you in my first post, but since you referenced my post I didn’t think it was out of line for me to reply.
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Oh I don’t mind at all. It’s rare that one does not work out so I can only think of a few people this could be. If you live in NC then I’m pretty sure. I think the horse went to a pro who did really well and did not run into the same issues when I followed up with them. I do find sometimes certain riders can really make a horse change drastically and I can’t reproduce it even when I try. Horses can be extremely ammy friendly but I have seen the quietest react to certain riders.
