Think of it this way: A lot of people don’t BUY walk/trot horses because they think they might outgrow such a horse quickly and then they will be in the quandary of selling or retiring the horse. A lease might allow someone to enjoy a reliable walk/trot horse for a year to work on riding. A young kid or even an adult rider might be in a position where that is useful. Think about a rider that has suffered a bad fall and needs a very quiet horse to just get back on and then maybe work on posting and sitting the trot on a horse that isn’t going to take off. However, that rider might not want to commit to, say, 10 years of caring for a horse that isn’t going to be able to center or do harder things when the rider’s confidence grows.
The upside is absolutely that you will be able to always know where the horse is and what kind of care she is getting because she’s still you’re horse. The downside is that the rider might terminate the lease in a year even if it works out perfectly because the rider might be able to move on to a horse that can do a bit more, and she’s still your horse 
I hope you’re able to find the perfect situation for her. She sounds quite sweet.
Thanks for this, it definitely makes me realize the advantages of a free lease of this type of horse. I’ll look for that type of situation for her - I think it’s an acceptable compromise. She has a job and the attention she wants and thrives on, and her future is safe when she can no longer meet the needs of the person leasing her.
There are people out there who would like a horse like this. I know, I am one of them. I have managed arthritic animals for years and it really isn’t that hard. If I was looking for a horse and could afford one now, I would say send her my way. However, this is an expense I cannot take on right now.
My last horse had arthritis so bad. He was still rideable but you had to be careful and not overdo it. He was also medically manageable from that standpoint but he started telling me that mentally he was done with the whole riding thing and wanted to retire. I was happy to make him a pasture puff and the barn I boarded him at treated him like he was a king and his last years were actually pretty happy. He had a number of “girlfriends” - both human and equine. Not too bad for over 30. And still able to leap around and be a complete a** when he felt like it.
Keep looking and there really is someone out there. And as a lease horse, you get to dictate the rules and keep an eye on her.
Anyone who has met her loves her. We just don’t click, I feel no warm and fuzzies towards seeing her in my pasture. She has a safe place here but she truly thrives on attention from people (hence hiring someone to groom her, before moving her home). She’s not unpleasant, bad, or unlikeable for any reason. I simply have not developed a liking for her or a bond with her but I can appreciate her for being a beginner safe horse who loves being doted on.
I’m with @Nancy M. This is still a worthwhile horse, and the people who NEED this horse shouldn’t mind the moderate maintenence costs for NSAIDs and shoes. However, no one necessarily wants to own a horse like this, but lots of people would like to use one like this. (Until the novice rider is ready to move on to something more challenging.) Donating is problematic because of what happens when she’s no longer useful for the donee.
I could see a series of short term leases as long as she remains useful. You retain control, and have a stipulation that she comes back to you when she’s no longer useful to current leasee.
No, this isn’t a clean break, and it requires some effort on your part, but it’s the solution the minimizes your ongoing expense and maximizes her quality of life.
When she can no longer be leased, you then either retire her if she can be comfortable or euth her.
@McGurk
Thanks for the perspective. I definitely better understand how a free lease could work in a leasee’s favor now and that’s the route I’m going to take. I don’t need a clean break, I don’t even need her to go anywhere at all. She’s welcome here even if we aren’t BFFs. From my perspective I have a horse that loves attention and to be doted on and have a job, who is currently sitting in a pasture doing nothing with no attention from anyone except me feeding them twice a day… so if I can find a person who would appreciate her worth as a kind, sensible, safe horse for their kid, husband, friend, disabled student, etc. then I would love to do that while still maintaining control of her long term future. A free lease would be perfect. I need to shift my mindset from “I don’t click with this horse so let’s rehome her” to “Someone else will appreciate her for the next few years and then she can have a safe retirement with me later”.
We just got one in our barn for exactly this reason (low cost lease). There are people looking for basic horses who would lease them and take good care of them
I have ummm three of my horses free leased out.
One is a difficult but talented mare I finally gave up on doing the sport I loved but wanted to make sure she found the right human doing the sport she loved. I’ll sell her to them if they want.
One is a permanently lame 5yo I got off the kill pen pipe line. I’ve leased her out twice as a companion pony. She’s a delight to handle and eats nothing. She’s on her second lease assignment and has a waiting list.
The last one is a 29 yo horse I had rehomed when my barn owner died suddenly in a riding accident. That home didn’t want him anymore so I took him back and registered him in my name. He’s leased out to a 8yo girl and she just trotted off lead with him this week. He’s very old but you couldn’t buy a horse like this for a kid for a million dollars, he’s utterly perfect in every way.
OP I’m not going to beat you up, as I think you have done a wonderful thing for this mare by giving her those 11 months and medical care and training. I am of the free lease camp. I gave a mare to a very good friend a little over a year ago. Kept up with her, visited her once a month, and then life got busy and I didn’t get out there for several months. She was skin and bones when I arrived. Animal Control got involved, the mare is finally on the mend, but she refused to send her back to me. Since I had technically transferred ownership of her, there was nothing I could do legally. A free lease contract with an easy OUT clause (if the horse is underweight or isn’t being cared for properly, farrier care, vet care, etc…you can take the horse back). The Animal Control officer told me had I leased her to her, and had a contract with basic care outlined (and that I had the option to pick the horse up without notice should she not be receiving proper care or losing condition), I would have been able to load her up that day. Good luck OP.
I don’t really understand this line of reasoning, TBH, but that doesn’t matter; it’s not my call to make.
All things considered, the free lease sounds like your best bet.
Best of luck with it.
Free lease and honestly I’ve been looking for this exact type horse/free lease for my son, who likes to stroll around the farm and trot a few steps every once in a while.
So good homes can be found, arthritis is one of the easier things to manage on a safe horse.
