I have a 16’1, stocky 4-yo warmblood cross who, shall we say, has a good future as bucking stock. He’s being assessed this week by a couple of people who supply stock to big rodeos like the Calgary Stampede (I’m in southern Alberta).
What should I expect his approximate value to be? I have no idea how to value bucking stock, and am just looking to get an idea of fair price.
Thank you!
That is going to be dependent on his ability to buck and style.
He will be worth more the more he bucks and keeps it up.
Many get tired of it after a few times and quit, so green buckers are not worth that much initially.
There are bucking sale reports you could check out for prices.
Don’t know today, but years ago, a good bucking prospect would bring about the same as a good ranch horse prospect.
A local rancher would get high school rodeo team kids come try his colts out of the bucking chute and then sell the good buckers to a rodeo company.
He said they brought the same as those sold for ranch horses.
I used to train horses for someone who bred bucking stock. Some of her horses were worth 6 figures as they had generations of proven bucking supremacy.
A non-purpose bred horse won’t sell for as much as a purpose bred bucking horse though. The latter can be worth big bucks, but for your warmblood, I would expect low 4 figures.
However, keep in mind, as soon as he stops bucking (unless he becomes famous)he will likely go to slaughter. Be sure you are comfortable with that.
Horses who buck a lot usually do so because of back soreness. Unless, I guess, if they are bred to buck.
Just saying’.
Ask me how I know.
Ditto to what has been said.
We have sent saddle horses to get bucked out and most of them quit after a few trips and at that point will come back.
Also know some kill buyers/stock contractors that will try a kill pen horse and when he won’t buck no longer he goes on the truck. Depends on he contractor and how many strings of horses they run. I know contractors that will take bulls to the PBR, buck out desert horses for practice and the high school kids and horses/bulls for everything in between. What I will tell you is that the price they offer you won’t be comparable to what they sell for in a decent bucking horse sale.
Thanks, everyone. I appreciate the help!
My equine chiropractor is flown to Alberta to attend to the backs of the CS bucking stock - they cannot buck their best if they are sore.
Now that so many are bred specifically and come from long lines of bucking stock, the demand would be less, and the price less for an untried horse.
The best bulls have fetched $60,000.
Favorite part of the Calgary Stampede is the names of the horses and their lineage and how they become so well known.
Avesane, Its killing me, how’d he do? Do you have any video?
I want to know too! Pictures please if you have them… pictures make all threads better 
He hasn’t been evaluated - weirdly enough all the stock guys are busy with the Stampede this week!
I will definitely update when I have news.
As a saddle horse gone rogue? Not much value. You can’t be sure that the horse will actually buck when asked and will continue to do so. Most saddle horses that buck are given to stock guys. If she doesn’t work out as a bucker, you can always see if you can find a handy pick up man to take her on. Even if it is only for a little bit. The stock contractor I work for on the West Coast thought my current horse was going to be a great bucker. Bucked everyone off. Seemed to hate life. Tried to kill the pick up man. Flanked him and bucked him at a small rodeo close to home and he goated. He was worthless as an actual bronc. So I got him and now he is my jumper. He just needed a change of scene and some good vet work. He has a little PTSD, as I like to call it, but he has never tried to buck in the almost 5 years I’ve owned him.
Honestly, they are cowboys. They aren’t going to take your bucking horse off your hands for $$$. They might give you meat price, if they are feeling nice. You’re talking about guys that eat 7-11 breakfast burritos and live very frugal lives. They don’t care if you bought a $50k warmblood and now it bucks. They have lines of people waiting to dump horses on them for free in this economy. People think just because they bucked ones with Joe that they will be the next PRCA Saddle Bronc of the year. In reality, they probably won’t.
Now if she was born and bred to have this kind of future, out of proven lines? She could fetch for a pretty penny. Though most people don’t let their good stock unless they are liquidating.
Also, a good point to make, is not all of one mans stock goes to every rodeo. Only the best horses and bulls make it to the big rodeos (Reno, Calgary, San Antonio, Salinas, etc). Contractors have young stock that generally go to your smaller rodeos, like Folsom, and they have some stock that is saved for college/high school/little britches stuff (if they do that). If your horse is good, it will take a few times to know, and it could fall into one of those “other” categories. Also note, most stock guys believe VERY MUCH in the slaughter industry. A horse or bull that is no longer doing its just and is deemed worthless generally will go onto a truck. The only other option is if one of the hands decides to take it. Everything has value on a ranch and it must keep its value, unless it is very special.
Just wondering- did your horse ever get evaluated?? How’d it go?
Yes, an update, please Avesane! I am so curious to hear more.
I have one of the rejects–I took him as a rescue who was a couple of days from a trip to Canada. He is supposedly from a breeder of bucking stock. He was branded with a running iron on his flank and across the top of his hips. Likely, he was roped, tied down, castrated and branded at the same time. When he was injured, he was sent to the kill pen.
Is that really what you want for your horse?
This boy is a beautiful horse, but still a mental basket case, terrified of any stranger. His right front hoof was sliced off into the laminae, and of course, was never treated.
If I were ever to meet the man who ran this string, there would be another dent in my pickup.
[QUOTE=Hermein;8235464]
I have one of the rejects–I took him as a rescue who was a couple of days from a trip to Canada. He is supposedly from a breeder of bucking stock. He was branded with a running iron on his flank and across the top of his hips. Likely, he was roped, tied down, castrated and branded at the same time. When he was injured, he was sent to the kill pen.
Is that really what you want for your horse?
This boy is a beautiful horse, but still a mental basket case, terrified of any stranger. His right front hoof was sliced off into the laminae, and of course, was never treated.
If I were ever to meet the man who ran this string, there would be another dent in my pickup.[/QUOTE]
It’s not really funny, but that line did make my chuckle :lol:
[QUOTE=Hermein;8235464]
I have one of the rejects–I took him as a rescue who was a couple of days from a trip to Canada. He is supposedly from a breeder of bucking stock. He was branded with a running iron on his flank and across the top of his hips. Likely, he was roped, tied down, castrated and branded at the same time. When he was injured, he was sent to the kill pen.
Is that really what you want for your horse?
This boy is a beautiful horse, but still a mental basket case, terrified of any stranger. His right front hoof was sliced off into the laminae, and of course, was never treated.
If I were ever to meet the man who ran this string, there would be another dent in my pickup.[/QUOTE]
Do you think that him being roped, branded and castrated is the reason why your bucking horse reject is a basket case?
You realize they aren’t bred for brains and disposition, right? Because I can show you literally hundreds of ranch horses that have been roped, branded and castrated without lasting effects if done correctly. I even have a bucking horse reject turned pickup horse in my yard that you can rope bulls, rope cows, brand calves, team rope off of, etc.
Most people I know who raise and run bucking horses run them like ranch or feral horses, they are turned loose and handled very little.
Not saying where your horse came from was a great place as there is good and bad stock contractors just like anything else, but don’t lump them all into one category based on one experience.
I think my horse is a mental basket case because of the way he was treated. I think that some horses could survive such a poor start and be okay. This one couldn’t. What happened to him–and I suspect I don’t know the half of it–terrified him. When he first came, he would try to kick me through the rails of his fence when I brought him hay—people were his enemy.
I don’t see horses as some commodity that you use up then discard when there’s a injury–especially when you caused the injury in the first place. I put those people who ruined this horse in the same category as the asshat “trophy hunter” who killed* the Cecil the lion. Kimmel had it right–re: killing or brutalizing an animal is what some guys need to feel like “real” men.
*But he merely injured the lion–who reportedly was tracked for 40 HOURS before one of the great white trash hunters finally finished him off.
You might be right about there being good and bad stock contractors–otoh, what’s good about abusing horses and calling it sport?
In the interest of full disclosure, I have a close friend who is a former world champ saddle bronc rider and now does bucking stock (in addition to being a real old school rope 'em brand 'em cowboy and rancher)
What part of the sport do you find abusive in particular??
[QUOTE=Hermein;8250372]
I think my horse is a mental basket case because of the way he was treated. I think that some horses could survive such a poor start and be okay. This one couldn’t. What happened to him–and I suspect I don’t know the half of it–terrified him. When he first came, he would try to kick me through the rails of his fence when I brought him hay—people were his enemy.
I don’t see horses as some commodity that you use up then discard when there’s a injury–especially when you caused the injury in the first place. I put those people who ruined this horse in the same category as the asshat “trophy hunter” who killed* the Cecil the lion. Kimmel had it right–re: killing or brutalizing an animal is what some guys need to feel like “real” men.
*But he merely injured the lion–who reportedly was tracked for 40 HOURS before one of the great white trash hunters finally finished him off.
You might be right about there being good and bad stock contractors–otoh, what’s good about abusing horses and calling it sport?[/QUOTE]
I started a wonderful three year old puppy dog personality colt.
He was big and came from lines that had strong personalities, you didn’t push them around, but if you explained things to them, they were the point and shoot kind of horse, get on and show them what you want, no rankness in there at all would show up.
I had ten rides on him, had been out in the canyons, when this neighbor came by one morning as I was just messing with the colt in the yard, bareback and with a halter.
He wanted him, we sold him and told him he had only ten rides, maybe get someone to ride him more before he went on with him, he was an older fellow and not a trainer.
Well, next we hear, the horse is in a pen of another neighbor, the horse is attacking people that even come close to the fence!
We run over and call him, he comes over and is the same puppy dog, but has a big wire cut on his nose and a huge hock.
We later found out, he had a feedlot cowboy ride the colt for him, he fought him, had a wire beartrap on his head that is what cut his face and the horse finally had enough of rough treatment and attacked him.
The neighbor that had him was going to try to get him over it and felt much better when he saw the colt was fine with us, said he had his wife on the fence with a 2x4 when he tried to go in there to protect him if the colt attacked him!
We tried to buy him back, but no way, the older rancher would not, said he would first try to rehab him himself and we had to stay out of that.
We didn’t hear anything more for some months, then we had a call from someone hundreds of miles South of here, that had bought the colt thru a sale and asked us if we had more like him, he was such a wonderful horse for them, even his wife and kids were riding him on their ranch, wonderful disposition for such a young horse.
The point of my story, you can assume all you want about who did what to your horse, but if you don’t really have the rest of the story, try not to blame a whole group of people because you assume “they” abuse horses, because yours came with problems, when you really don’t know what happened.
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