Trial, short-term lease, or purchase and cross fingers?

[jcc813]

@bornfreenowexpensive

A going novice horse/ that schooled Training and priced under 10K…He either has a negative limiting factor (soundness issue or age), other negative factor (sub 16H, bad mover etc) or is a quirky type of rider (most likely as he dumped your husband). That is quite cheap for a horse with that level of experience So that puts a up red flag for me (but just a proceed with eyes wide open).

Yep I think it’s more the latter. He’s 17+H and his walk and canter are quite nice. Trot needs work. Also he’s only really been in training and shown for about a year under the leasee. Before that his owner didn’t do much with him. Current trainer had a working student on him who said he’s a fun ride but she wouldn’t want to own him because he was such a kick ride for her. Honestly that was what we thought might be the biggest hang up going into the trial. But he moved easily for my husband with no spurs.

@bornfreenowexpensive

Yes he’s green but the horse is competing above the level of husband so I get the interest—-and they could just want to move him fast and think you are a good home. But there are red flags for me…that said…I’ve bought green horses without ever even sitting on them…but then I’m an experienced rider. If it didn’t rattle your husband…and you otherwise think it is a good fit, then I might see how the next ride goes. You have to buy the horse assuming that buck stays there…and knowing that if you do NOT keep this horse in with good training…it very likely will get worse. I’d also really would want to see how they were xc together if possible.

Thanks for the balanced feedback. I know it’s par for the course when you ask for internet feedback, but it is funny how quickly people jump to all sorts of “certain” conclusions about how a person rides, their skill level, and mentality without knowing or having seen any of their training/experience. I have a feeling if my post had been “Would you buy a horse that occasionally bucks but otherwise checks more boxes than other prospects” I may have gotten some different responses.

In any case, if we did buy this guy we would definitely have our trainer, who has a masterful way with horses, do some training. The XC test is a big challenge this time of year–we just don’t have the option unless we’re able to do a trial and hope for an early warm spell. Otherwise have to rely on what the leasee has told us of her experience.

@bornfreenowexpensive

And I do agree…trying to shop to fit tack is a terrible idea. Just sell the saddle if you find a horse and it doesn’t fit. I put that in the same group as trying to buy a particular color of horse…look at all horses that suit your needs regardless of breed, sex, color or whether your tack fits them.

Ha, I’m just gonna drop the whole saddle thing. Honestly it’s not even close to the top of our priorities. It was a good thing we had it with us, though, as the trainer accidentally left his saddles in a different car that day.

[jcc813]

@punchy

The horse sounds green and fussy; your husband sounds green and a bit coarse. Bad combo. Buy a solid fox hunter and let him have fun ripping around the xc course.

My husband can be many things believe me, but no one’s ever described him as “course” either in or out of the saddle. :rolleyes: He’s particularly conscientious when it comes to riding and training. He’s not just yahooing it around a field.

He needs a bigger horse because he’s tall and of medium build. Smaller horses typically aren’t as comfortable. He prefers strong horses because he (like many people) prefers a horse with an engine over a kick ride, and frankly he’s generally capable of handling more forward horses that might scare off others (like me) who don’t like having their arms ripped forward.

He’s new to eventing, but not new to riding. That being said, yes we want to make sure this will ultimately be a good partnership and we’ll be relying on our trainer’s eye to guide us.

Getting back to my original question, if you have any tips on trialing or leasing would love to hear it!

[RainWeasley]

I’ve never done a trial for selling a horse before, but it might not hurt to discuss it with the seller just because of the bucking, see if it is fine or ends up being too much for hubby to want to have to deal with. Another option if the seller wasn’t in a rush to sell would be to lease for a month and buy if the lease works out, I have done that before (which basically ends up being the same thing really but sounds safer).

Since you didn’t answer about the bucking, I was going to say that it wouldn’t necessarily be a no-go for me depending on when/how the bucking occurred. A small playful buck while jumping wouldn’t be too bad. A full on, bronc-style, hind legs way up behind you, twisting buck I would pass on for me personally because I can’t sit it. :lol: I would rather a buck I can feel coming than a sudden twist and bolt though, bolting scares the crap out of me.

[rockyriver7]

I wouldn’t do an off site trial. Maybe a short term lease on-site at the seller’s property where the seller is still responsible for the horse’s care. There is too much unknown, and both sides have a ton of risk. For the buyer-- what if the horse gets hurt (your fault or not) while in your care? What about a serious career ending injury or illness? Are you on the hook to pay for and keep a lame horse? For the seller-- what if the buyer hurts the horse and refuses to pay? What if the buyer covers up an injury and returns the horse, who later will have issues? What if the buyer takes the horse and disappears? Not to mention taking the horse off the market for a month to be put into unknown training. Etc Etc Etc. Unless your contract is iron clad and very clear and both sides are honest, I wouldn’t do it.
As for the bucking, if he passes the vet check, your husband should decide that if it is something that doesn’t go away, is he ok with that? Even if the bucking does go away mostly, the horse may always have a tendency to duck or buck when the rider makes a mistake.
Don’t be afraid to keep shopping! When I first started I was very nervous that I’d never find the perfect horse, and almost talked myself into horses that would have been ok but not quite right. I’m glad I didn’t settle and persevered until I found my dream horse. For your budget, there are some great options out there.

[fordtraktor]

OP, given that you can’t try the horse XC, I would ask to do a month to month lease for 6 months. By that time, you can be assured the horse is sound, your DH can ride it, and he actually gets to ride it XC a few times before you have to decide.

There are quite a few red flags here, but some time with the horse will tell you way more than we can, speculating over the Internet.

Get a premium insurance policy for the horse during the lease! and if the horse doesn’t work out, you aren’t stuck with it forever or trying to sell a horse that has dumped your husband a lot. You won’t get your money back out of the horse if that happens.

I’m not going to get too worked up about the fall – I sold a horse once whose kid fell off during the trial ride. She hadn’t been riding recently and was out of shape and practice, and the horse was more sensitive than her usual horse, and he just got upset with her balancing on the reins too much, porpoised a tiny bit and she came off. I thought about backing out of selling him to her, but am glad I based the decision to sell on the rest of the trial ride and what I knew about the horse, as they are doing very well together and absolutely adore each other.

[polkadotedpony]

Crossing over from dressage land. I have done a trial on a horse before. He had some weird findings on the neuro during the vetting and the vet basically didn’t want to endorse the horse, but also admitted it could have just been an attention/behavioral issue that day (windy day, uneven surface, 3yo just gelded, very green). The sellers really loved us and we really loved the horse so we agreed to a 30 day trial with a repeat PPE that would determine if the sale was final or the horse was returning. He was pretty good during the trial but really weird about his feet/seemed to be having balance issues while picking out so we got our local lameness vet out at 3 weeks and she said yup- horse is absolutely early neuro and we sent him back.
We paid the whole balance up front, had a contract stipulating use limitations during the trial (shoeing, no cutting tail, not off our property) and then the seller refunded us when they picked him up. We were very honest and gave them copies of all the vet reports which they were skeptical of and obviously they don’t love us anymore since no one wants to hear that about the prize 3yo they bred, but I had zero desire to own a likely neurologic 3 yo.
Regarding your situation I wouldn’t do a trial because honestly the horse sounds like it was hurting. Horse that’s usually a lazy non-bucker becomes very forward and bucks multiple times while jumping with a heavier rider rounds like it’s bc he’s tying to evade discomfort to me. I will also say if anything I expect a horse to be better on my test ride than when I get it home, not the opposite. At the test ride the horse is in a familiar environment and a pro familiar with the horse has ridden and tuned the horse up before you even get on. I’d say it was almost 2 months of owning my current horse before he felt as consistently good as my test ride and I don’t think that’s unusual. If you’re really set on this horse maybe your husband could do weekly lessons at their facility until you’ve made up your mind. That would reduce risk to the seller and minimize travel for you.

[JustTheTicket]

If you’re absolutely set on it being this horse, I would do a lease to buy situation.

Personally, I think you should keep looking, though. It sounds like the horse might not necessarily have the patience to put up with the occasional caught in the mouth, found the wrong distance kind of stuff that your husband might hit him with, since he’s new to eventing. It’s not a dig on either of them, just that if the horse decided on the first ride that he was going to buck off your husband, unless he’s a quick study and rides the horse exactly how he wants to be ridden, it sounds like the horse is going to develop a bucking/shoulder dropping habit. (Of course, I’m also assuming you’ll be under regular trainer supervision, so that means things could play out totally differently. Just something to think about. )