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[findeight]

[QUOTE=heatherk33;7810006]
Again thanks everyone. I in no way am looking down on the breed, just looking for a better value for my money. The horse in question does not have changes, hasn’t been shown, and is green. They are asking 35k which is why I posted the question. I feel that jumping to conclusions on other peoples intentions and assuming the worst says a lot about a person. I think the breed is amazing, just want a great horse for a fair price like everyone else![/QUOTE]

If you are looking for the best value for your money? One that’s Green without a change who has just started jumping and has never shown? For 35k? I wouldn’t use the term “value” with that one regardless of breed, type or size. It may be a fair price based on breeding (not breed, but achievements of parents and their offspring) or spectacular looks and movement but it’s on the high side with no change.

How much money do you have put aside for training this one over fences or do you have experience teaching young horses to jump show courses up to 3’? That is part of the total picture of “value” when pricing horses.

Without seeing the horse, we can’t really say much about worth. But…seems a bit high for what it is doing right now unless you are looking to show AQHA and he’s a son of great performers in that arena.

[OveroHunter]

I can imagine a big young QH with enough promise to warrant that kind of money. I can also imagine someone hoping on a 16.3 QH and jumping it a few times and wanting to get a lot of money for it without a lot of work because it is big.

You really won’t know until you go out and try the horse. Bring a trainer with enough knowledge about youngsters who can determine if the horse is worth the money.

I have a 5 year old 16.3 Paint/TB cross mare that is registered APHA, schooling 3’ courses with plenty of scopr to go higher, a clean change, the roundest, most beautiful hunter jump around, and tri colors from her first show. You can bet if I wanted to sell her, it would be for a pretty penny because she has A/AA potential. I trailer in to a fancy H/J barn and ride with a great trainer and whenever someone watches her go around and then hears that she’s a registered paint their jaws absolutely drop to the ground. She doesn’t have typical paint coloring and everyone assumes she’s a WB cross. It drives me nuts that they think a horse that goes around like her couldn’t possibly be anything other than a WB of some kind.

Sorry, my panties might have been a little wadded too… Good luck OP and let us know if you go see him! Post his pedigree if you can. I’m pretty good with AQHA bloodlines and might be able to give you an idea of what he’s bred for. If he has halter lines in him, you’ll want to absolutely get xrays done. I have a halter bred gelding who just can’t hold up to a lot of jumping because he’s built like a tank with tiny feet.

[findeight]

If he’s Halter or Pleasure bred, he likely is not going to have the kind of shoulder and hip angles that allow for a long, sweeping stride at the canter/gallop or allow for a round tight kneed jump. Just not built for it, built for something else, not making the lines and jumping with style.

With the right build, any breed can be a decent Hunter.

[Sunflower]

Horse preferences go in and out of fashion it seems, often without regard to whether what is going out of fashion still has the ability to do the job as a hunter or as a jumper or as whatever. I can remember in the 90s in my area when imported warmbloods became all the rage. It must have cost ( and no doubt still does) cost a pretty penny simply to fly a horse over the Atlantic and keep them in quarantine, on top of whatever price was wanted for the horse.

I remember adult ammy riders who only rode at local non rated shows splashing out the cash for imported warmbloods. OK-- its your money, do with it what you wish. but…it did seem a bit extravagant, more like conspicuous consumption instead of buying a horse suited to what they were doing… and some of the imported warmbloods were hot tempered, hard to manage… def too much horse for the level of rider, IMO. Incidentally, in Europe, warmbloods do not have the “dumb-blood” reputation, but are thought of as hot and flighty and far less reliable in some instances than a TB. Warmbloods were fashionable, people had cash to spend, and so that is what they got.

I wonder if horse showing damages horses with extremes in the same way that some dog showing has damaged certain breeds. Extreme breeding for certain characteristics has created some breeds that have chronic health issues and would be unable to do the jobs their ancestors do. Might the same danger or risk occur in horse showing? I do wonder. Preferences are not always utilitarian, helpful to horse or rider, or even healthy.

I have seen some gorgeous QH and Appendix QH go around in the show ring in hunters. Is a QH built for the hunter ring really so different from its warmblood counterpart? A warmblood is a mix of a heavy draft breed with a lighter riding horse that was meant to create an all purpose horse that could plow, pull a carriage, and be ridden.

The horse-y set that looks down their noses at anything but warmbloods might not be aware of the warmblood’s humble origins or the fact it is not necessarily venerated just because it is a warmblood in Europe. There are great individuals to be found in any breeding or breed.

Edited to add

Technically, I suppose a TB is a warmblood-- as the origins of a TB were crossing heavier draft breeds with Arabians or other lighter breeds-- which by definition surely is a warmblood-- a heavy draft breed crossed with a lighter riding breed! :winkgrin:

[RugBug]

[QUOTE=OveroHunter;7810283]

I have a 5 year old 16.3 Paint/TB cross mare that is registered APHA, schooling 3’ courses with plenty of scopr to go higher, a clean change, the roundest, most beautiful hunter jump around, and tri colors from her first show. You can bet if I wanted to sell her, it would be for a pretty penny because she has A/AA potential.[/QUOTE]

Is this the one you mentioned on the other thread that has to be in front of your leg to get the distances?

Potential is just potential. some people will pay, some won’t.

[City_Ponies]

We have one in the barn as described, except he has show mileage and while new to fences has the step and form to be a nice A circuit hunter, and we know his medical soundness. He is priced accordingly… closer to what people have said. $35k seems too much but in our area of QH (we show both circuits) $20k can get you a very nice horse … not TX or AL hardcore HUS pricing.

[sandsarita]

Well, in my area and the shows I show at, and I literally just bought my new 5yo green o/f horse yesterday after months of looking with my trainer, 35k for a 4yo could be a very reasonable price if it is for the right horse. But at the same time, some prices are very inflated. I had numerous instances where the price changed drastically after we said we weren’t interested. Amazing how that happens sometimes. Anyways, feel free to PM me the info on the horse if you want someone to look at it as I was shopping in that price range on the QH circuit.

But there are nice QHs priced for less in the same age range that can jump nicely as well. It is what can you afford, and what do you like. But I also personally know of a 6 figure QH for sale at the moment, and he was bought for that last time he was sold, so they definitely aren’t cheap sometimes.

[findeight]

Mmmmmmm…looks like OP bugged out and thought she could erase all traces of her post and the discussion of her question? Her trainer read it and get on her over it? Barn gossipers get ahold of it?

If so, I would urge her to carefully consider the admitted fact she is relatively inexperienced at shows and this 35k Green horse is going to need a lot of work both flat to develop that change and over fences from an experienced rider as well as show miles under one.

Matching less experienced rider with inexperienced horse is considered job security by many trainers. The horse may not be suitable for the client but it sure suits trainers wallet.

Be careful about that, especially with that fairly generous budget.

[OveroHunter]

[QUOTE=RugBug;7810363]
Is this the one you mentioned on the other thread that has to be in front of your leg to get the distances?

Potential is just potential. some people will pay, some won’t.[/QUOTE]

Yep, she’s the one that easily gets the stride and is easy to keep in front of my leg with that beautiful huntery ground covering stride. I lucked out with her and thank my lucky stars every day. Not the gelding that doesn’t like to be in front of my leg and has to gallop down the lines to even attempt the stride. He’s the one I changed over to jumpers (and the one in my profile pic).

OP, I second F8’s comments. With a budget like yours, you may want to look into an older school master. There are plenty in that range that will take you to the bigger stuff. I got to lesson on an older gelding the summer of 2013 that would probably be in your budget. He was a dream to ride and was still very competitive in the 3’ ring.

ETA: RugBug, I can see your confusion. I listed her as 16.2 in one post and 16.3 in another. Technically she’s 16.2 and a half and I tend to round up or down sometimes :lol:

[Firebug]

[QUOTE=findeight;7811031]
Mmmmmmm…looks like OP bugged out and thought she could erase all traces of her post and the discussion of her question? Her trainer read it and get on her over it? Barn gossipers get ahold of it?
.[/QUOTE]

Her bugging out might be due to me. I sent her a PM suggesting she look into x trainers website and while I was looking at the page of sale horses I saw a QH that fit the OP description and I asked her if he was the horse she was talking about. Apparently it was.