The grey horse pictured above came from the Conways via Jess Redman. Trainer Dan (RIP) really knew how to put an incredible brain and a foundation on a young horse.
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Iāve gotten a few from Finger Lakes Finest, and they are a great listing service. I donāt think its as easy to just go to the backside as other posters make it sound, especially after COVID (and I say that as someone who has shopped on that backside.)
That said, what I did was facebook message trainers that keep horses at Finger Lakes that had advertised some for sale recently and ask if they had or knew of anything else. That is how I got my third one.
Also second buying from the Conways - I have ridden/seen a lot of the Conway retirees go in their second careers and they are always lovely horses. I also have seen a few from Dana Saul and she would be one I reached out to as well.
Personally, FLTAP would not be my first choice of where to look for a future 3ft hunter.
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OP mentioned PPE budget is separate from horse purchase budget, which is smart.
Also OP, I got my first horse from Second Chance (over ten years ago now). I specifically wanted to be able to sit on it and see a personality with some let down for my first OTTB re-sell, and looking through Second Chance as opposed to the backside let me do that. I ended up with one of the best brains Iāve seen on a horse. On the backside, youāre going to see a walk and jog on a lead of a horse that is race-fit and raring to go.
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oh absolutely. Iāve vetted 2 horses already. that budget is separate from the 10k, ill do as many ppes as I need. would you personally buy a horse for jumping who had ks but minimal symptoms?
I know there were options for my mare but I couldnāt justify spending thousands on management for her to maybe be sound and comfortable one day. just hoping to avoid that again. I see so many people in my area doing 3ft+ with their cheap ottbs who vetted clean so I just thought I could join that club. its harder than i thought!
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FLTAP does tend to get the horses who had catastrophic injuries necessitating a quick retirement, so some of them are limited in their athletic careers. I can totally see that being a hangup for someone with 3ft goals. Others just need R&R. I think Melissa Porter does a great job of assessing them fairly. Itās not my first place to go for UL prospects but itās probably one of my firsts for CHEAP TBs. I donāt know how they generate a profit there, they put months of retraining on these horses and then sell them to adopters for $2-3k.
There is a chestnut mare on FLF right now that if I had room in my backyard would already be on a trailer to me, sight unseen. Sheās listed at $2500 OBO.
OP, you may not have the whole picture on āvetting cleanā - did they vet their stifles? Knees? How about their entire spine? Most people just do fetlocks and hocks.
As for the KS, it really depends on how many processes are affected and your management. I have a horse in my program right now with moderate KS who is schooling Training level height fences, which is 3ā3". For him the right management is a balance of shoeing, therapeutic modalities (meso 1x yr), 24/7 turnout and lots of poles.
I noticed probably the same mare. I am not in the market for one but darnā¦
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I really like that chestnut too - the quiet jog and kind eye is incredibly endearing.
I echo the sentiment that I sincerely doubt there are leagues of cheap OTTBs vetting ācleanā. My second horse sold with a PPE that showed a small chip in his fetlock - he flexed sound on it, vet was confident it was cold and set, and buyer was willing to take the risk. Very few horses, of any breed, vet with absolutely no findings. Its just what you can live with.
For me, KS of any kind would be a deal breaker. I had an OTTB on trial in the beginning of the year whose back x-rays showed mild KS, but who vetted completely, totally sound. Horse was green over fences and jumping crossrails - my goal was minimum 3ft.
My vet told me if the horse was that sound already doing the job I wanted she would not have any hesitation recommending him, and I agreed. But for a 3ft prospect (and knowing I had gone heartbreak with my previous horse) she thought there would be a better fit out there for me.
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Unfortunately Dan Conway passed away last year. 
Yes, but his daughter is still very active at the track and was moving horses into late last year. She was the first person I reached out to when I started looking.
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Cool! I didnāt know her. I was sad to hear about Dan.
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Sheās small and chestnut mare so I bet has that against her. When Iām shopping OTTBs, that elasticity over the back, neck, and shoulders is what I look for. She has it. Of course, a nice one comes along for dirt cheap when Hotel Beowulf is MAX capacityā¦ 
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I agree that the small and chestnut mare part will make it harder to find a home.
But darn, she is cute and appears to have a good brain.
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But also probably why she is $2500. If she was a 17h grey gelding, sheād be triple that at least.
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I need to come live where you are, because I have spent over $3k multiple times, with different vets, for PPEs that include full set of x-rays with neck. That doesnāt include back x rays, which probably adds at least another few hundred.
OP, youāll be very unlikely to get an OTTB that vets and x rays completely clean. And even if they do, itās no guarantee of future soundness. I just took a bath selling a horse I had bought with squeaky clean x rays as a 4yo. Imagine our shock when the buyers vet came back with findings of significant changes 4 years later, which we had confirmed by our vet (the buyers were kind enough to share).
Figure out what findings you can live with that are manageable, and use that to negotiate price. I wouldnāt touch kissing spine or neck arthritis with a 10ā pole. A small osselet, mild juvenile hock arthritis, a quiet chip in a place that wonāt cause an issue? No problem for me at all.
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Oh boy, there was one with Southern Belle yesterday for under 10K CDN I would have snapped up in a second if I was in the market. Spitting image of my gelding but with my mareās sire. Moved like him too, but bolder with a more successful race history.
He was placed before the ad even went up.
I like this oneā¦ if I had the money to board a horse right now.
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If I were still doing hunters, Iād be all over this one, too. He is dreamy!
And the little chestnut mare, Fifi, is really cute, too, even though sheās a little small. Maybe sheād make a western dressage horse?
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I like Tap Fast Anna, personally, but have no business owning a 3 year oldā¦ Sheās just described as very sweet and level-headed.
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I like her too.
