First thought was a problem with her ovaries, second thought was tumor, third thought was teeth (throwing that out there since noone else has said it).
I don’t have a lot of drug knowledge but agree that it is really sketchy than old owner has “ghosted” you since most old owners like to know how the horse is working out, especially with something like this. 
Good luck to you and your frined, OP.
Bloodlines?
OP here. Thank you to all who replied. We sent in hair follicles and came back with an overwhelming positive to a cocktail of drugs. The vet said these were probably used in excess to make her rideable for a few weeks at a time.
Wow. :no:
Wow, that just sucks. Thanks for the update OP. I hope this mare can be rehabbed and her owner made whole.
Is that an NRHA reining horse you say?
If so, let the NRHA know, they have ways to handle that on their end.
If AQHA, they may also want to know.
Dang it. That is discouraging and so disappointing.
For me, this is the sort of thing I would have no problem bringing to the attention of the “seller” and whoever else I come across … or even take to court if need be.
Of course, the victim in all this is the poor horse. :no::no:
And what are those ways?
OP - sent you a PM.
I hope the owner goes after the seller and the trainer in any way possible. this is sad and discouraging. I am glad you were able to do the drug test, but so sorry this was the result. Poor horse.
The OP needs to find out.
I ran the medications and protests programs at NRHA. There is nothing NRHA can do.
They do suspend individuals …
Not for things that happened off show grounds. If the new horse owner files criminal charges and the seller was convicted, then yes, NRHA will suspend for a court of law conviction.
For someone purchasing a drugged horse from a private individual on a private farm, they have no jurisdiction.
Exactly.
The OP should ask them how her situation fits and where to go from this.
May get some interesting advice.
That trainer/horse seller and their horses when performing may get a bit of attention to see that all is ok with them.
Exactly what? Her situation, while extremely unfortunate, does not fall under any NRHA rules.
That’s a real shame, OP. I really wouldn’t have thought that someone could administer such a high volume of drugs to a horse that they’d last weeks. Or that they would want to. Suppose you learn something new every day.
Sounds like the horse was being shown while on some drugs?
Surely the associations may want to know that, to at least monitor the situation?
Would not hurt to ask the associations about this, there may be more that they can advise the OP about.
The person who ran NRHAs drug program just filled you in blue on the fact that there’s nothing NRHA can or will do about this…what’s hard to grasp, exactly?
I’m sorry for the lot of you
It’s February. What was in the “cocktail?” Hair follicle tests go from about a week back to several months back. And it doesn’t identify WHEN. When did the horse leave the prior barn?
“Back in November, a close friend of mine traveled several states away to go look at a reining horse 2 weeks after a neutral party preformed a PPE on the mare.”
It’s not uncommon for a horse to internalize stress and not show a change in behavior even though something bothers them. These horses seem fine until their stress level reaches a breaking point, then you have a big reaction. I’d say that a move to a new barn is very very stressful to a horse, and maybe this mare has little things that happen that push her over the limit, and the people around her just don’t see it. They say, “She was fine and then all of a sudden with no warning…” No, there were warning signs, you just did not recognize them.
You change behavior with training. But in this case, we have a positive drug test, although we do not have enough information to make the call as to whether or not drugs are causing the behavior.
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