[QUOTE=Madison;8504986]
Importing from Canada to the US is easy and cheap, not a lot of cost beyond the shipping, and no quarantine. It’s very different than bringing one over from Europe.[/QUOTE]
Right and my parents have a trailer, so we wouldn’t have to pay anything- even if we didn’t, I know of people constantly going back and forth between where I am currently and the east coast- transporting him and moving him is towards to bottom at my list of worries.
absolutley… NO… There are others out there who are sound and will capture your heart!!
Go for it! I bought myself a gelding for my 21st birthday present from me, to me from my MIL. The funny part is she bought him for $2,000 when he was 3 years old. Then she paid me an hourly wage (I was an employee at the ranch so it was just one of my duties) to turn him into a nice english horse. By the time he was 4 and a half I had him doing 2-2’6 courses and going around so nicely… I more than doubled his price by the time I decided to buy him for myself :lol:
Since I’m the one who did all the training, she gave me a bit of a break and sold him to me for $3,500. No special deals for the DIL! :lol:
Anyway, I did a PPE too just in case, but he passed with flying colors and the last 8 years with him have been the best! I say go for it!
I’d say no. I’ve seen this happen too many times. Injury aside, you didn’t actively chose this horse, he just happened to be around and be convenient. Do an active search to get a horse that you really want and who likely doesn’t have an injury history. You may find that after looking at many other horses that this horse isn’t actually what you want but he seems it because he’s the one who’s in front of you now.
It’s possible this is not his first round of rehab or there may be other things going on (like ringbone which is more common in drafts and crosses). It’s possible the current owner does not know the complete history of the horse, only going by what they were told.
Its also possible some information was left out if he has had more then one owner. Actual age and soundness are probably the details that most often get left out as horses change hands.
Who owns the horse? A trainer or just a client at the barn???
The way I read this you are heart set on getting this horse…at least investigate the actual severity of the injury. Was it a slight irregularity? A tear? A hole? Where, exactly was the injury? What is the recommended length of time for rehab? How much rehab did he actually get? Has he been ultra sounded recently?
IME the hinds are far slower to heal and more likely to reinjure, especially in horses that jump, even low. You need more information then you currently have.
Or you could heed the very good advice of very experienced horse owners and skip this one. At least you can ride him until June and PLEASE do that before buying him. Even if the owner says he’s got other buyers.
IT sounds like you’re pretty convinced already, so I really hope it turns out for the best.
One more bit of information for you, although I think your mind is already made up:
Both of my horse’s that had suspensories were jumping about 2’6" with some 2’9". Please do not convince yourself that because you won’t be jumping high, you won’t have to worry about re-injury. There are many more factors involved than just height of jump.
I would also advise doing a search on this forum for soft tissue injuries (use key words: suspensory, deep digital flexor tendon, check ligament, etc).
I am not by any means completely convinced- I’m more conflicted than ever at this point! I like this horse, and as most horse people can attest to, it’s very easy to romanticize and talk yourself into a purchase, but I am trying to gather information and advice enough to make an informed decision, especially since at the end of the day, it’s kind of a judgment call because there are a lot of uncertainties.
But thank you everyone for advice, concerns, and opinions, though! At this point I’m just going to keep riding him until June because I can (for free, I might add) and see how he goes. Luckily I have a lot of reputable and trustworthy trainers and horse friends to advise me, along with these posts.
Glad to hear you are riding him for free – the horse owner is getting a sweet deal of someone who is willing to do the boring (or overly exciting) job of bringing a horse back into work.
And I’m glad to hear that you will just keep riding him until June. Even then I don’t think you should buy him, even if he is still progressing well. I think you are making this decision with your heart and not your head. He does sound like a lovely horse, but his long term soundness is still a gamble and your own future sounds uncertain. Have a long hard think about what you’d do if he never came right.
I’d do a quick calculation about how much you’d spend on him over the next year – then commit to putting that in a separate savings account for a new horse.
Another thing to consider – you don’t actually know how he is to jump. He might have a terrible jump, or rush badly, or stop, or just have a jumping style that you don’t enjoy (kick ride vs forward ride). Again you probably won’t know that by June.
Other posters have bought up something that I didn’t put in my post but that is always in the back of my mind – that my horse may never fully recover or may reinjure. His chances of a full recovery are good according to my vet (who is a top surgeon) – the injury was mild, it was caught relatively quickly, his rehab has gone well (aside from the odd heart-in-mouth moment), scans are looking good etc etc.
But he may re-injure. He just might not heal right. I won’t know for months. And I’ll be holding my breath for years.
There is NO way I would choose to be going through this. I have my fingers crossed and I can afford to retire him and get another riding horse if worst comes to worst, but still . . .
Seems the majority of eventers are of a different mindset.
http://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/showthread.php?484667-Should-I-buy-this-horse
[QUOTE=RugBug;8505873]
Seems the majority of eventers are of a different mindset.
http://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/showthread.php?484667-Should-I-buy-this-horse[/QUOTE]
I event. I still give this plan a big fat no.
XC - galloping and jumping over hills… on questionable terrain ranging from packed gravel to mud on a horse with a previous suspensory?
It’s way way too soon to know if the horse in question could withstand that
My best friend has a lovely TB who had been an upper level eventing prospect before he injured a hind suspensory. She was given the horse after the rehab was complete. The horse hasn’t had a bad step since she got him 3 years ago.
Her husband hunts the horse first flight several times a month, and my friend trail rides and rides dressage with the horse the rest of the time.
It sounds like you are in a good position to make a thoughtful decision. Good luck!
[QUOTE=Feliz;8505829]
Another thing to consider – you don’t actually know how he is to jump. He might have a terrible jump, or rush badly, or stop, or just have a jumping style that you don’t enjoy (kick ride vs forward ride). [/QUOTE]
This is definitely something you need to consider - it is not fun to have one whose jumping style doesn’t match up with the ride you prefer to the jumps. I recently was shopping for baby green hunters, and how they felt to the jumps was a major distinguishing factor among the ones that I tried.
If this horse had at least 6 months jumping 2’6" courses at least weekly, preferably twice a week in lessons? I’d be more comfortable. He’s likely a few months and another ultrasound check away still.
If you or your family owned horse property or you had a trust fund or something, Might change my opinion too. But if you are going to be boarding out and can only afford one horse? That could be a 15 year nightmare, could happen anyway with a sound one but starting with a soundness question like this has more likelyhood of being a long running expense.
I love the TB/Clyde crosses. My mare is one and she is so much fun!
It is hard to know about the ligament injury without seeing the vet records and having a really good PPE exam.
My TB had a check ligament injury 2 years ago. It happened during turnout and I caught it that day. I didn’t do anything “special” except give it time and following my vet’s prescription for rehab, and he returned as good as new. My friend’s TB had a rear suspensory injury. Same deal - time and slowly bringing her back to work. She also completely recovered. But without knowing the details of THIS horse’s injury and without a current ultrasound, it’s difficult to speculate on his long term soundness.
I might take him for free or for a seriously low price. I wouldn’t buy him tbh, especially not for jumping. I know a successful 1* eventer given away for free after doing a suspensory, and I saw a stunning HOYS horse advertised the other day for <£3k because of his past injury, and that one had been fully rehabbed and was back competing.
One of my closest friends is an eventer, and one of her horses did a hind suspensory. Although he came back sound, she no longer jumps him - she said every time she landed from a jump her heart would be in her mouth about the horse re-injuring itself, and it took all of the fun out of it. So you need to bear that in mind.
I think you’ve been given a lot of great advice both here and in the eventing forum. I’ll chime in from the perspective of somebody who has worked with a lot of rehabbed (or rehabbing) OTTBs, and as the current owner of a horse that’s in the midst of what will be a long rehab.
There is no such thing as “risk-free” in the horse world. I’ve seen horses that passed extensive vet checks go down with an injury weeks later, or have an undiagnosed chronic issue crop up 6 months after purchase. That said, vet checks or PPEs and treatment records are incredibly valuable data points - so absolutely make sure that you have as much information as possible about this horse’s history, and if no ultrasound has been done get one ASAP (side note - if no US has been done by current owner, that is a huge red flag).
In parallel to taking a hard look at his health and soundness, think really carefully about your goals and what you want out of horse ownership. If you’re focused on competing or making significant progress quickly (particularly as measured by the height of jumps…), a horse coming off a soft tissue injury is not a great bet. Very slow and very steady is key with these guys. That said - for an amateur or new horse owner, personality, attitude, and trainability can in my opinion be just as important as a totally clean veterinary history.
Bottom line - since it sounds like you have the opportunity to work with this guy through his rehab without making the purchase decision, I’d stay the course and see where you are in a few months. You’ll learn a lot about his personality, athletic abilities, and probably about your own lifestyle and goals as a rider. Final thought - if you’re going to continue working with him and thinking about the long term (as the potential owner or otherwise), I’d recommend checking out a book such as “Back to Work” - fun and interesting reading but also very eye-opening information about what it can take to bring horses back from various injuries.
Good luck, and enjoy the time you’ll spend with this horse - wherever it may take you!
There will definitely be other horses that you fall in love with, other horses that are very good matches for you in terms of personality and training, but do not carry the risk of long-term unsoundness.
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