My first horse had such a bad PPE he was unsound for several days after flexions. What happened to him was a reduction in purchase price and my vet, trainer, and mother putting their heads together and deciding they thought they knew how to keep him well and happy for what I wanted to do. Horse had been in the barn for a year doing the job. I knew nothing about this- didn’t even know we were shopping. (My mom is a saint.)
He did not stay happy doing what I wanted to do, due to an emotional unwillingness to be in a ring, and we did lose him young. He was brilliant outside of the ring and a chicken inside of it. He died suddenly at 12 years old, out fox hunting, having the time of his life until the split second when he wasn’t. Aortic rupture. You can’t find that on a PPE.
Any time I’ve been shopping I’ve been looking for one with a hole that makes the horse affordable in my price range. For most of the horses I’ve ever looked at, that’s a veterinary finding.
