Why bother bump an old post?
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Oops sorry. I didn’t know it was a sin.
I think it’s eminently useful to kick this thread because even in this short time the market has changed considerably. A nice quiet OTTB with show miles that will PPE will get 10-15k…easily.
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No, its not a sin to resurrect an old thread on an always pertinent topic helpful to many readers.
It is frowned upon to dredge up an old trainwreck full of insults, accusations and third hand gossip. Particularly if its brought back by a participant in the mud slinging or its author (under an alter).
Mukluk, you are fine.
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I’ve sold two with very, very minimal show miles for that in the past year—and very, very quickly.
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Yes. There are a lot more people doing the jumpers on the west coast and they tend not to care about breed very much.
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Interested in the thread because it seems like the prices for Canter California horses have gone way up (the ones at the track). I also looked at dreamhorse and equine now and it looks like many TBS are getting up there in price. I am looking at a green OTTB tomorrow (bad for resale in that she is a mare and apparently weaves)- on the other hand she is bay which is said to be a plus.- I don’t know how badly she weaves. If I decide to get her, I will have her turned out almost all the time and provide her with free choice hay 24/7- so maybe that would help. She would also have my current OTTB mare for company. I don’t know if I will decide to take her on as a project horse. If I am in LOVE with her I could keep her. However, if I plan to sell I will probably advertise her to the southern CA crowd. I will also make a comprehensive list of pros and cons for the buyer as that is only fair to the horse in addition to avoiding wasting my time or the buyers time.
Weaving certainly is not helped by 22 hours in a stall, high energy diet and being fine tuned and conditioned for speed. But be careful how quickly you ask her to do a complete 180 in her life. Just throwing them out after being used to a very specific schedule with crowds of other horses around 24/ 7 and getting worked daily can increase anxiety. Most adjust fine but maybe not right away.
Mare and potentially continuing to weave may restrict her appeal to a smaller buyer pool but that could allow you to get her for less and offer her at an appropriate sale price. I would not rule her out based on just that.
How tall is she? Use your smart phone measuring app. Right or wrong, height can turn off buyers and you cant fix it.
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“Use your smart phone measuring app.”
I cannot wait to try this.
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Um. Say what? A measuring app?
I’m evidently behind the times
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We have an OTTB that weaves at our barn. He is dead quiet/bombproof in every other respect, and just never shook that habit from the track.
I’d probably weave in a stall if I’d been stalled so long for so much of my life too.
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On Apple, its just called “ measure”. Showed up on the dashboard all by itself. Little black badge with a ruler on it. Just point at what you want to measure then drag it to where you want it to stop. Takes, maybe, 5 minutes to figure it out.
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Have you verified how accurate it is? In other applications I’ve heard it’s only accurate to within a few inches, which isn’t a big deal if you’re measuring something 30’ long, but on a horse could mean the difference between 15 and 16hh.
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Okay not to derail further, but I tried it on my horse last night and it didn’t work for me. My estimate is that my gelding is anywhere from 16.2h minimum to just shy of 17.0h. I’m guessing he’s a true 16.3h, but was curious. The Measure app gave me a few different heights that I know aren’t accurate.
Its not a measuring stick or substitute for an actual card but Ive found it to be an effective ballpark estimate with some practice. Usually comes within an inch or two of the horse or Pony’s official USEF card.
Or you could buy or arrange to borrow a regulation stick with a swing out arm and level, if you are going to buy or sell more then a couple, its not a bad investment.
A real easy way to estimate height is with your own. For example, I’m 5’4” at the top of my head. 64”. Thats 16 hands, If I stand next to a horse and look over its withers, its not over 16,h, 15.2 max. When you see pics or videos with a handler with their forehead above the top of the withers, its not 16h. Good idea to mention handler/rider height when you post sales ads as well as ask for it when trying to filter through sale prospect ads. And if you are looking at track pictures…remember most track workers are not so tall.
Height is a delicate issue to many horse owners and it can influence a sale. Target your search for prospects and buyers accordingly.
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Two inches can make a difference. Most people will get annoyed if they turn up to find out that the horse is 2 inches smaller or taller than advertised.
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I realize that 2 inches can be make or break ( my last one was bought as 16.1 and measured 15,3 with the stick, did not derail the purchase) did not mean to suggest its not. My bad for bringing it up trying to help sellers avoid stating something 4-6” off on horses that are never going to need a measurement card anyway.
I use the gauge by my height method as well, and was just curious/excited for a more foolproof method without borrowing a stick. I’ll have to play around with it a little more because I definitely struggled a bit at first. His height doesn’t actually matter to me (I’m 5’1”, and I know he’s big) but I was curious. He’s also growing, so I’d like to know what he is currently.
