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So where do I get a project?

I know of at least four that colicked or fell ill and were dead before the weekend was up. All were in the middle of a career in their teens, had not been retired, and were in excellent care. I don’t know if it had anything to do with their race career. They’re also just not my type of ride. But the argument for/against TB has been beaten into the ground on COTH.

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I will look them up. I saw one out of TN as well. I browsed a few available mustangs this morning and the variety of conformation was astounding! Some really cute creatures and some seriously ugly ones too.

I’m in New England. I have been considering a ranch broke QH! My first horse was a QH who went to third (albiet not well). Did you find yours “cheap?” I saw a number of auctions out of the southwest.

Mine was cheap (relatively)-- $2k – but he’s a palomino and there’s a bit of an upcharge for that. His breeder had less flashy weanling - 2yo relatives for sale $500 - 1500k.

I’ve never tried buying through any of the sales/auctions but would expect there to be a premium associated with the ease of browsing that many horses.

Honestly, have had the best luck just keeping an eye on local advertisements (craigslist, fb marketplace, etc.).

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I totally agree with you on the TB thing. I’ve got a 16 year old with conformation and movement to die for who’s just not up to the job physically. I now have a giant dog (that I do love) who will live another 15 years and deliver zero value to me as a sport horse. Sigh.

I was going to suggest that you hang your shingle out as a rider. I did a lot of riding for ladies with naughty horses, or ladies with nice horses who were just too hot. You’d be surprised how many people will pay you a little bit to come out and warm their horse up for them and give them a little coaching because they’re concerned about riding on their own. I got soooooo much good experience that way and earned a small amount of money along the way, it was great. Got to experience many different warmblood and TB bloodlines and that has helped me so much.

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Serious question- Can you really buy a decent “project” for $500-1,000?

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You would have to increase your budget significantly where I live, to get anything that’s sound, unless it’s a BLM horse.

Since you’re in New England, have you considered a Morgan? One of my favorite breeds!

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I had hoped at least one of my first 2 OTTBs would make it to 30. First died suddenly at 22 in the prime of health, second colicked at almost 26.

Above horse that died at 22 had leg x-rays earlier that year and they looked like a much younger horse. He started 47 times. He was so sound that I’ve been bitterly disappointed with horses 3 and 4 of my lifetime.

But I get that OP just does not want a TB. I have seen some very nice ranch bred QH on video; I’m thinking I might want one someday. Or I might try for Super OTTB, the sequel.

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No, not if you pay for bloodlines and the prospect price. If you’re willing to work with a 3-7 year old who hasn’t been handled or fell through the cracks who is an off breed or no papers or a mutt, then yes, they exist.

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I seem to be leaning BLM direction! Wondering if it’s feasible, if I could get something that’s been through TIP/whatever since I currently don’t have a 6’ fence. :rofl:

I know lots of nice Morgans. I don’t consider them an off breed project though. I don’t see them cheap.

You will probably see much similarity within the same HMA. I have three from Warm Springs, all three large beasts! One is iberian/drafty looking and calm. Other two are so similar in lool and personality type they could very well be closely related. My four Beatys Buttes are also very similar to eachother…and i’m guessing two of them are father/son or bros/half-brothers. I can pick0ut an Antelope Valley mustang a mile away. So, if you come across one you like a lot, write down the HMA s/he comes from and search on that.

You know what’s really great about them…all the little western girls want color so the colorful ones are scooped up first. So, if you are dressage hunting, you’ll be able to find a HUGE selection of sorrels and bays. Both my bay mustangs i picked up for almost nothing! one was 80 one was 25 (and they were adoption incentive, so i actually got paid 1,000 for having adopted them)

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So sorry for your losses! My best friend had two: one passed at 17 from an internal abscess that poisoned him, the other colicked at the tail end of a summer heat wave and went downhill unbelievably fast. I know of other people who have had similar things happen. I understand they are sensitive souls, but we’ve both said no more OTTB.

Good information about HMA! And about color! I saw this girl this morning:


:heart_eyes::heart_eyes:

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OH!!she’s pretty! and sure looks the part.
i also like two of the black 2yr old geldings from SilverKing. The first two. 8888, 8952

You might check on this, but as far as I’m aware TIP horses still have to have adoption approval, including the same pen construction, height, shelter etc. requirements that are there when you adopt out of the corrals. It’s just a head start on the very basic training, some take to it naturally and others are still pretty… wild. :rofl:

If you get serious about it, talk to the mustang trainers that are very HMA-savvy. They can tell you what type of temperament (and build, height, etc) the different ones are known for, not all of them are easy and it might help narrow things down for you. One of the TIP trainers near me does a fantastic job and will note in her ads which individual horses would be good for first timers, and which need a more experienced hand. Sometimes she ends up with ones that need a long-term stay to learn how to cope with human-involved life.

Good luck! I’d like to pick out a 2yo someday for a similar journey, but my place is not set up for that now and it will be a few more years before I get to it (or have time for it). I owned a lovely Murderers Creek mare a while back, she was gorgeous.

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It depends on region, and circumstance.

I don’t want to say it’s not possible, because my best TB ever cost me the whopping sum of $800 (and my second best one was FREE) – but it’s not easy either. I looked at two before I got him, both were listed at $3000 but one didn’t vet clean and the other didn’t really seem interested enough in me for me to take the chance. I was devastated that the first guy didn’t vet well (surprise ankle chip) but the trainer didn’t want to come down in price and I wasn’t about to pay that for a horse who needed surgery. In hindsight that was a blessing in disguise – this $800 horse has been my horse of a lifetime though it didn’t seem that way at first.

I think if you (g) are shopping in that budget, you are going to kiss a lot of frogs before you find your prince. Meaning you’re not going to the high end sales… You are combing feed lots, kill pen candidates, and seedy back yard sales before you find your gem. While some of them are there genuinely because of poor circumstance like a dishonest trainer or someone wanting to make a quick buck, by and large the horses in those situations were dumped there because someone else already tried their hand at them and got hurt or worse.

And if OP is firm about writing off TBs, well there goes a huge and very accessible stream of horses – many with little to no baggage too. Most know me as a big OTTB fan, so I may seem a bit preachy – but I wouldn’t be writing off one of the hardest working, cheapest breeds there is simply because of two not-so-great experiences in the 15s-20s. Horses die all the time. They spend their whole lives finding devastating and inconvenient ways to die; some live to be 30, some live to be 5. There’s no logic to it (and I say this bitterly, as someone who loves the retired-for-20-years horse in their pasture dearly, but lost several very talented horses from freak accidents like lightning or a kick, at an age so young it seemed I was robbed of them.)

f your goal isn’t so much climbing the levels as it is the journey and the partnership, I’m not sure if there’s anything out there more rewarding than bringing along a TB (or STB) to a show where every odd is stacked against them. I don’t want to sound overly emotional, but there’s something vindicating about trotting down the centerline on a project you made and having people be surprised it is a TB and exclaiming how nice it is. Of course it’s nice. You knew it was nice the day it came off the trailer – but it’s also a whole other side journey educating people on what a good horse can do regardless of breed. They can do almost anything you point them at, if you are a good trainer and their jewelry from the track isn’t limiting.

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That’s a cutie!

I have a BLM burro that I got from a TIP trainer. He was basically wild, and I had to meet the same criteria that I would have if I’d adopted him from the pens. He is absolutely charming, and does everything I ask of him, which isn’t much. Just be aware that your mustang may arrive as wild as my burro was. But he was a joy to train.

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not need the 6’ fence for TIPed mustangs. And yes, must get approval from BLM. So you might just send in an app asap. (It is verrrrrrrry easy to get approved btw)

Can you point me to where that is outlined? I’m not seeing anything in the documents or on the website. All I’m seeing is the standard adoption requirements across the board - 5’ fence for yearlings, 6’ for 2+yo.

From what I can gather from folk’s anecdotal experience, the fence req is for horses that can’t be handled. AKA you need to be able to approach it with a halter and lead if it escapes from your 4’ fence.

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