Why does no one question horse prices?

[lenapesadie]

Love me some guac!

[StormyDay]

@self_made_hunter_jumper

Obviously, as you can see from this thread, the horse industry is full of some…”characters” and some very powerful people.

Do you really think anyone with half a brain would post names/dates/farms on a public forum? At the very least they’d do it privately, through an encrypted messaging platform, like Signal. And they’d only speak to reputable journalists to ensure the integrity of the story were to stay in tact. As you can see from this thread alone, there’s plenty of appetite to discredit truth tellers.

You aren’t telling any truths. You’d have to say something meaningful for that.

In decades past horses were used for laundering purposes. The Arabian market was somewhat notorious for that. But since the 90’s/00’s it’s really fallen out of favor because it’s a pain in the a$$ to launder money with horses, and things like art are a heck of a lot easier. Art doesn’t eat, get old, depreciate in value, injure itself. I doubt that anyone is laundering money anymore with horses. It’s just not a good way of moving money.

[Scribbler]

@FjordBCRF

@Jealoushe

@self_made_hunter_jumper

Because that horse is dangerous and it’s going to be some twenty-something that ends up dead or paralyzed. That’s why. Your lack of empathy for a sport with life and death consequences says a lot.

You made this up in your mind over seeing a horse spin and scoot. You have no idea if the horse is dangerous or what the person who bought it wants to do with it. Or are you scared someone might snap it up cheap and beat you in the ring?

I realize now you don’t have a lot of experience outsite your very tiny bubble so I will try and be easier on you.

Plenty of ammies and teenagers can take a horse others can not ride and turn them into solid citizens. You don’t know anything about these situations but jump to the most extreme that someone could get killed.

If you are THAT worried then contact the auction house. Otherwise, MYOEB

For someone who cries about being attacked, you make comments to me like “says a lot”

Every post you make is “saying a lot” about you.

This tells much about OPs experience. I would expect that from a green broke horse, as it’s pretty much the definition and far from a traumatized response. As a teen and in my 20’s, I would have been all over working with a horse like that, and would have been able to ride it out and make it a positive learning experience for the horse. That teens/20’s age range is GREAT for doing that type of work from what I have seen. We have a lot of it in my area as there is a college with several equestrian programs that many of the barns hire students from. Pushing 40, I tend to be a bit more conservative these days

I also think OP is confused about auctions.

Imported from Europe is a high end horse sale where the worst that typically happens is horse is a bit greener and hotter and used to a pro ride. Ammie might have to put on some training miles but typically these are quality horses that are brought along professionally to sell for premium prices at high end international auctions.

They are not “traumatized and dumped at auction.”

That’s a more likely scenario at a North American low dollar headed to slaughter auction. And even there, honestly most difficult horses are not traumatized. Very often they have long standing behavior issues no one has been able to fix and they’ve caused enough trouble that folks have given up.

The spinning at the jump made me laugh. What horse has not done that at times? Wrong distance, insufficiently forward ride, new arena, new poles, funny shadows? If the OP is seriously thinking this is an OMG moment then the OP has on fact shown they have not restarted any OTTB or projects.

[FjordBCRF]

@Scribbler

The spinning at the jump made me laugh.

Me too. I have had horses that are NOT green decide that jumping wasn’t on their agenda for that day. Or at least thought it wasn’t!

[beowulf]

@Scribbler

The spinning at the jump made me laugh. What horse has not done that at times?

Took my very seasoned hunter pace campaigner out on our first pace of the season last weekend. Haven’t jumped him a whit since last October.

First fence in he goes “huh, whut??” and pumped the brakes in front of a log he could have stepped over. Then on re-presentation, “oh, you want jump?.”

Really was my fault. I didn’t approach with enough momentum and we hadn’t even trotted yet before the first fence showed up on course. Even well broke horses have their moments when their rider does them no favors.

[KBC]

[lenapesadie]

@Scribbler

shadows? If the OP is seriously thinking this is an OMG moment then the OP has on fact shown they have not restarted any OTTB or projects.

Or worked with any green horses at all. No wonder OP thinks trainers/resellers are fleecing the poor ammies. OP hasn’t got the foggiest clue what it takes to train a horse.

[Dressurfrau]

I think the market will correct itself with not good results for the horses.

I believe our economy is on track for a recession and when that happens, some people won’t be able to afford their horses anymore. The rescues will be flooded then.

I work a lot with rescues and run the International Rescue Horse Registry and I’ve seen this play out over and over again. Horses are not for people who can’t afford the quality care they need. I wish they were cheaper but they are not and it takes finances to ensure they stay healthy and well-cared for.

[lenapesadie]

Funny!

Recently I was trying to lunge and video my horse at the same time (I evidently suck at that btw) and steered the poor fellow right into a rolling hole / waller in the paddock Horse could have trotted right through the terrain but instead gave me a jump worthy of Thellwell. Good thing I was lunging and not riding as no doubt I would have done a flyer. Guess I should go hassle the money laundering, illegal immigrant hiring, safe sport violating mobster that sold me his dam or something.

[Lunabear1988]

This is my fear as well.

[2DogsFarm]

Geesh!
I’m mashing as fast as I can & now somebody upthread wants hummus?
Gonna need some help here in the Blue Saddle kitchen…

[ThreeWishes]

Good on you for your rescue work. I’m not sure what the market / economy will do but sound talented horses will have buyers and homes. Lame, retired, broken ones will always need a soft landing or a kind exit. I doubt useable horses will end up in rescues. And I say that from the perspective of someone who has kept their old and or broken horses until the end and also taken in other peoples.

[lenapesadie]

I’m coming!

Got my apron and my cutting board!

[quietann]

I’ve been to the earlier show there, the Vermont Morgan Heritage Days, in 2014. Took my Morgan mare, did a couple of OK but not great dressage tests, and won or placed second in a couple of small rail classes. I’d entered walk-trot, but no one else had, so she got to show off her lovely canter. The classes were tiny, so I didn’t have to worry about traffic (no horse shall approach her holy butt!)

Maybe I’ll make it again someday, but the mare is retired and I am very much on the fence about getting another horse at some point.

[Dressurfrau]

Thanks for keeping them for life! That, in itself, is a type of rescue.

I’ve seen some nice horses come through the rescues. They are usually older and need maintenance and people don’t want to spend the money anymore. Breaks my heart.

[lenapesadie]

Oof. It’s the sweet oldies in rescue that break me the most. Horse done it’s job all it’s life and then no one to pension him

[ThreeWishes]

Same! I have the biggest soft spot for old or broken horses. Ever since I was a kid. I had this fantasy of opening a place called Pasture Prime. (Past your prime ) weird thing is that in this market I have 3 acres and an open 4 stall barn that sits empty. My show hunter I board a bit away because there’s a ring and my trainer. Sometimes I look through Craigslist or word of mouth for horses needing soft landings and there’s nothing. I keep telling myself it’s like kittens. Stop looking and one will show up needing a home.

[self_made_hunter_jumper]

I hope a horse lands with you! I went shopping at a few racetracks and left sobbing because I had multiple trainers tell me if I didn’t buy X horse (that was three-legged lame) the slaughter truck was coming to get them that evening. They don’t bother with Craigslist, some of them got burned by CANTER, so their solution is guaranteed destruction. It’s awful.

[Jealoushe]

@self_made_hunter_jumper

I hope a horse lands with you! I went shopping at a few racetracks and left sobbing because I had multiple trainers tell me if I didn’t buy X horse (that was three-legged lame) the slaughter truck was coming to get them that evening. They don’t bother with Craigslist, some of them got burned by CANTER, so their solution is guaranteed destruction. It’s awful.

Really? Which tracks? Which trainers? I call BS.

This doesn’t happen, and if it does, it’s rare and one bad egg.

Lame OTTBs are selling for $4k currently. No one is shipping them off to slaughter and honestly, for some of them that is actually the best end for them or euthanasia.

[self_made_hunter_jumper]

Gaslighting is a form of abuse. You don’t know me and I don’t know you. Not sure why you feel the need to continue to attack me - I hope you find help for whatever anger you feel the need to take out on Internet forums.