[QUOTE=Ambitious Kate;8155637]
So, OP, what changed your mind about wanting this horse? In the begining you said no matter what, you wanted the horse. You wanted to schedule to pick up the horse, now you don’t want the horse. Can you say what made you change your mind?
See, when you said
It is shady that they are avoiding the history on the horse, but it is what it is, I like him. But the fact that I can’t even schedule to pay off and pick up this gelding is worrying me. For all I know they could have sold him to someone else and are keeping the large deposit.
It made me think you wanted the horse, even though they weren’t responding answering your further questions. From the agent’s point of view, now, I think I would have been surprised and suspicious that you now wanted to know more about a horse, and you weren’t giving me the balance of the money and just going to pick up your horse. It sounds from the above, even though they avoid you, it is what it is, and you like the horse. It seemed your concern on this thread was - why can’t I go get my horse?
Now it seems the agent might have been right, you have backed out of the horse.
I am not sure what he expected from you, except I am sure he expected you to pay the balance and go pick up your horse. Can you say why you didn’t?[/QUOTE]
Without knowing exactly what OP said in her next day follow-up all, it is really hard to say whether the seller is being shady or if she said something that really spooked him and made him think that she was backing out.
OP did not give us date specifics on exactly how many days lagged between her going to see the horse and leaving the deposit, and when she finally heard back from the seller. It was outlined as a few days. Was it three or 15? That would also make a difference. If OP left a message the day after asking questions that spooked the seller and then did not call again for 10 days, that could be interpreted by the seller as her backing out.
I don’t think that it is unusual/unreasonable to ask some background info on your new horse. Continuity of care regarding vet care, and filling in some holes regarding the show record is not unreasonable if that is all she asked for.
So long as the document that OP described outlined particulars of the horse that she looked, and did not specify that the deposit was non-refundable if contract terms were not fulfilled by x date, it certainly appears to me that OP is owed either he horse or Her initial deposit back.