So, we found some older girls being offered at meat prices at a kill pen. Before you go on the “scam rescue tangent,” these girls came from a legit situation. Tagged and ready to load to Mexico. I’m from the Midwest where auctions, breeders and horse riding in general has really begun to disappear. To find a horse auction in my area you are going to have to go to Amish auctions. To buy off of an individual is very very risky as most available horses have obvious issues and their price tags are ridiculous. To buy bombproof, senior plodders for beginners is impossible around here. They usually have a person standing in line to be their next owner. I’m shocked to see how many senior, well broke, ranch horses go through auctions out west in ranching country. Some have issues that can limit their use but many can become 4-H horses or beginner, confidence builders. Our local therapeutic riding stable has expressed interest in these mares for some of their special needs riders that just want to groom and lead the horses. Both of these little mares are broke to death and are in your pocket. I just want to say, “there are some good horses going to Mexico” and I can provide anyone with information who you can contact to purchase one. This particular lady has been saving good horses from this kill lot for years and she has a trained eye for the best prospects. Her local 4-H kids ride many of her slaughter saves and she isn’t in it for the money. I’m anxious to get these two girls home, because in no way, did they deserve that fate after serving someone for years. I would like to see pics of your horses that came from similar situations.
I am happy @LeatherLover seems to have a good outcome to her rescue from the kill pen at an auction endeavor. I too am from the Midwest and agree that it appears that well-trained, sound horses suitable for novice riders are hard to find and expensive if one does find them. I also agree that horse riding in general in my area has shifted from kids to mature women --at least that’s what I’m seeing at the local horse park and at the horse activities I attend (fox hunting, dressage shows, mounted archery --although mounted archery is about 1/2 men at the upper levels) --few kids. I don’t attend things like roping and barrel racing, so maybe that’s where the kids are.
“There are some good horses going to Mexico,” --maybe --but not from what I see.
Suggesting that the average horse person will find well-broke senior horses that are sane and sound at auctions in the west readily available is a statement I take with a gain of salt. There are horse dealers near me who make a living buying and selling horses --in the past, the practice was to take a semi, and make a circuit out west stopping at well-known ranch horse auctions or dealers who provide saddle horses for dude ranches and pick up 10-20 horses. The dealers would work with the horses, make videos, take pictures, post on the web and once or twice a year have an auction. There are (or were) three not far from me (4-6 hours). All were honest men who guaranteed the horses were what the were stated to be. The one I bought came with a “7 days, do what you want, return for any reason” guarantee. Great horse.
However, only two are still in business and on a limited basis --maybe 5 horses a year, mostly 2-4 year olds they have personally trained. Prices about what one would expect.
Talking with them --the statement was made that there are not enough horses “out west” to justify the effort it took to make the circuit and try to find 10-20 to offer at their ranch horse auctions. And these fellows are professionals. If they can’t find that kind of horse, I wonder that a little old lady like me could do so --and that’s a lot of time, driving, and shipping to consider!
What I have personally seen are three women who did as OP suggested. And the results have not been good. Granted, everyone has a “Disney Story” of someone they knew who rescued a horse and it became Snowman --but in my 57 years of horse ownership, I have yet to see it myself. What I have seen personally (my 3 acquaintances) is one found a horse in a kill pen on-line, took her trailer and drove from IN to OK, paid $500 and brough home a horse she loves! And it put her in the hospital. The horse bucks. Not just her, but her trainer and BO. Maybe not the horse’s fault --he was advertised as a driving horse --she never drove him, but figured she could ride him. The woman still has back issues from the fall she took when he bucked her off. The trainer tried and sent him back to her as unsafe. Next was the acquaintance who rescued (from a horse rescue) a “former police horse.” He is quite old (I think), does not load, and will not walk away from a group --maybe he’ll work out for trail riding --but then there is the loading problem . . .finally (and most sadly) gal-pal bought ($1K) rescue horse from what she thought was a ligit rescue – after a year, horse still bucks. It is now at a trainer who might have some success --although the horse is now 10 and has had 2 years of “training” --the current trainer has done mustang make-over --but the woman is now $10K into this rescue horse, with board and training and still can’t ride it. Oh, and it put her in the ER.
I think people who want to buy a horse that is safe, sane, and sound, need to adjust their thinking on what it will cost. A good horse costs money. It has been well-bred, well-cared for and well-trained and all of that takes time and money. If someone (anyone) has put that effort into a horse, they are not putting it on a truck to Mexico. Those horses are out there --I just bought one --but he wasn’t cheap and he didn’t come from a rescue.
I think OP is just putting it out there that if you have a good eye, you may find a gem at the auctions. I think many of us (myself included) don’t consider that sometimes people who don’t know anything about horses decide to buy one. Then they either get in over their heads, or lose interest. Wanting to unload it ASAP, they ship them to the auction. Or horse owner dies and non-horsey relatives ship the horse to wrap up the estate quickly. These are the gems that can occasionally be found at auction. Definitely takes time, just like people occasionally find that super valuable designer shirt at the thrift shop.
Leatherlover, your post is so heartwarming knowing these girls found a soft landing. We really are such a throw away society and how this happens to so many horses is heartbreaking. I’ve got a pasture ornament I adopted knowing there was no guarantee of bringing her around and omg the money and time I have spent. But she has taken me on a journey that is still worthwhile and I’m grateful for her.
It’s good to know you’ve got a good contact and someone with a good eye saving horses from horrible endings. I would like to know her too.
Good job LeatherLover!
There was a fb page that wasn’t around long, but it was for a kill buyer in FL. I went and picked up a great little qh, there was nothing wrong with him. He was very kind and green broke at three. His owner had a herd out with cows and decided they didn’t want the horses. That is what I was told. The herd all went to a sale and ended up at this kill buyer’s.
The horses there were definitely going to Mexico. I went back and picked up my horse’s mom. She looked just like him and I couldn’t leave her there. Nothing wrong with her either.
A friend gave away two older horses (teens) to a “great home”. The next day they were in a kill pen states away. A rescue looked up the mare’s tattoo and contacted my friend. The other horse was not so lucky, he had no brand, tattoo or microchip. There was nothing wrong with these horses, and the owner was promised a great home with the grandkids. Yes, she should have done more research on the home. But a lot of horses go to slaughter that if a past owner or the breeder knew, they would save them. And some just about put the horse on the truck themselves.
I also knew of a farm out west who used to breed horses just for slaughter. The farmer would ride them until he got bored, then ship them. So strange
This is so sad. My farrier always says to sell a horse for a couple hundred over slaughter value rather than giving them away. That significantly reduces the chances of them ending up shipped
For sure! The people who took my friend’s horses are quite the charming scammers. They know all of the right things to say. There are fb posts about Mary when a large thoroughbred rescue she “helped”, went not as it should.
When my friend called the new “home” to see how the horses were doing, as they sat at a kill auction, he was told the horses were great. AND the granddaughter was riding one right then!
It has always been this way. I know many who have found a great horse at a local auction.
My first horse ( i was 14) was auction bound . My best friends father told me about him and I took a chance on him sight unseen. He was a weanling, looked like a donkey, ugly as sin.
Shed out to be a beautiful buckskin appaloosa and was the best horse I ever had for decades. Best $75 I ever spent!
I agree with you , that in our area, “good horses” aren’t going south. Attending sales out west, is another animal and a different experience. Those states have the highest number of registered quarter horses and those states also have a much, much larger number of people who ride, ranch, rope, compete. Ranches are expansive and their horses work, they have to be fast, stop hard, good minded, etc to do ranch work. The auctions in these areas have some wonderful broke to death old ranch horses that are no longer suitable for that line of work. Auction horses in these sales aren’t anything like auction horses in the Midwest. Comparing the Midwest horse market and the Western horse market are like comparing apples to oranges. In these times, a high price tag in “no way” means a sound, safe horse, ever. I can fill this page with newbies who have been stung on extremely, expensive horses, $20,000-$30,000 horses. If I’m going to get stung, I would rather take a chance on a $500 horse than a $30,000 horse. In the Midwest, I would say, if it’s in an auction, you can be sure, it has a problem that you will find out after you bought it. It’s drugged, the papers aren’t good, etc. Out west, I see a bunch of surplus riding horses. Experienced riders don’t really need plodders and those horses are invaluable for beginners. As far as going "cold turkey " to a CO, NE, TX, OK sale, it’s doubtful the average horseman would be successful. There are experienced advocates however that can go there, physically, to a kill pen, handle the horse, ride it and observe the horse for weeks before the horse ships to Mexico. In that amount of time, you can take a gamble, if everything else passes muster. The prices aren’t bad, just what they are worth at a meat price, generally $700-$900. I wouldn’t expect anyone who hasn’t handled 100’s of horses to be able to assess kill pen horses. I hope to assist with some of these wonderful old-timers because they are worth their weight in gold and generally “bad horses” don’t make it to their late teens and twenties unless they weren’t pretty good mounts.
Thank you. I hope people spread the word to visit these kill pens. the horses are there for weeks before shipping to Mexico, so a person has a lot of time to assess a horse, handle it, ride it, observe behavior in the holding lots, etc. It is NOT an auction type situation. Auction horses are generally a disaster, but some people do know what they are doing and pull good, gentle, broke older horses. So many have been saved and their stories are on FaceBook. Painting them with a broad brush that they are all sick, dangerous mounts is so far from accurate. Now, I just need 2 good names for the girls that represent Christmas!
I wish I had known sooner. I have been making the mistake that there are no good horses to find at kill pens and that is so not true. I think Charmayne James’ barrel racer, Scamper, came from a feed lot like this. He was a 10 time World Champion barrel racer and millionaire purchased for $1200. “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.”
There are lots are people who “think they are qualified,” to evaluate horse flesh, and that’s the problem. Yes, actually there are many, many well broke mounts auctioned off, that are older and end up in the slaughter pipeline. Spending a lot of money on a horse and thinking you’re safe doesn’t always work out that way… Everyone has their 'typical horror stories" about horses they should have never purchased, but you cannot compare those people with schooled, experienced horsemen who have handled hundreds of horses and know what they are doing. Purchasing a mount is always be a crap shoot, but if you visit a feed lot, where slaughter horses are held for weeks, you have ample time to ride, handle, vet and observe a horse before it ships. If you can’t buy a safe horse in that way, at only meat prices, then you’re probably not going to have a good eye buying a horse anywhere. I would rather lose $700 than $20,000.
Yes, this right here. lf I can save a darned good horse and recruit a new equestrian in the process, it’s a win/win.
Oh man, my heart would have been broken a million times over. I have heard so many stories like these myself. One of my friends gave her precious old saddle mare to someone she trusted for a lifetime home. Within 2 years the horse disappeared. My friend finally bought her at a sale and this was one perfect little riding mare. The diamonds are out there, we just have be open minded enough to see them.
I can’t believe anyone could put a horse in harms way like this. Were you able to get her back? To think so many meet this fate makes my heart hurt.
Yes, I have heard that too. Horses are expensive to keep but the joy and love they give us you cannot put a price on. My old man passed a few years ago and Im sure I will never replace him. He was bought by a kill buyer for $500. Someone else bought him, broke him and he was the absolutely most honest boy I have ever owned. He was worth his weight in gold.
That’s downright deranged. I would compare that to Halter Horse breeders who raise 50-60 foals per year, just to get “that one” good one. With their breeding, the others have no residual value as performance horses, and many are HYPP N/H, further ensuring their destiny to slaughter. But these horses can make good companion riding horses.
Two female horse names that represent Christmas? Holly and Noel or Noelle.
Also Elf, Mistletoe, Mrs. Claus, any of the reindeer names that fit, Rudy, Snowflake, Tinsel, Garland.
And there’s the dog’s name from The Simpsons, Santa’s Little Helper. 
Also Nicole (like Saint Nick). Merry or Joy. Or Angel
