You know the horse market is crazy when

[Horse_Rider]

I’m aware that there are “Canadian Warmbloods,” just like there are “American Warmbloods,” which is to say a bunch of crossbreds, at least half of whom are Appendix Quarter Horses being “rebranded” for the English crowd. Plenty of PMU babies were registered as either - again, branding. As far as I’m aware there are still PMU mares in Canada, just less. Where I live, the same trainers still get horses with the same “look,” just like they have for the last twenty years. They are described as “from a Canadian breeder” and many successfully go out to the hunt field with their weekend warrior riders.

I don’t see why PMU foals would go to rescues? Once upon a time, sure. But now they’ve figured out how to breed very classy looking draft crosses who bring 5 digits in the United States at 2-4 years old. They’re money makers for a lot of these breeders.

[Scribbler]

If PMU farms still existed in Canada I am sure the rescue and welfare groups would be all over them for mare care. There was a huge anti PMU movement in Canada.

We are sending some very nice draft horses live to Japan for sushi.

[GutsNGlory]

Actually, there are. There is an Amish community in Northern Indiana where my mom attended one of the pony auctions. Flashy large ponies going for $25-35k to be used as the fancy Sunday church horse. Also high prices on good bombproof kid ponies. Kind of crazy! The auctions down here in the Southern Indiana Amish community are NOTHING like that, though.

[GutsNGlory]

Usually some cross of Dutch Harness Horse/Standardbred/Saddlebred/Thoroughbred/Draft. Also occasionally Hackney thrown in there. I know a few who have these crosses from the Amish community. Know of one “Amish Warmblood” like this that was bought as a project, evented up to Prelim, and then sold as an unregistered “Dutch Warmblood cross” for $$$. Technically not wrong, but technically not 100% honest on the breeding. And I think the horse was worth the price just in general as a quality horse with experience.

[Scribbler]

@Horse_Rider

Ah, I must apologize. Apparently there is still a small PMU industry going on in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, multiple farms with about 1000 mares total.

Very much under the radar.

https://www.naeric.org/buyingguide.asp?strNav=4

[Moneypitt]

Some fantastic horses being raised in Canada.

July-Aug2010_BreedoftheMonth_CanadianWarmblood.pdf

Always seemed legit to me.

[TheJenners]

@Moneypitt

After the advertisement of a teenaged horse needing a retirement home for up to $50,000 price; all bets are off and anything goes.

Are you serious? Retirement, not “step down” home? That is unbelievable!

[Moneypitt]

Yep. Not what most consider a step down. Well maybe a really BIG step down.

According to the ad, the well trained, very experienced, competition horse needed an easy life, in a field, with possibly occasional light rides around the property type, home. Priced @ $35,000-$50,000.

Perhaps, a recent Vetting uncovered performance eliminating issues and the ad/price was not adjusted accordingly? I have no idea? To me, the ad described a horse needing a retirement home.

[Event_Horse]

@Moneypitt

Yep. Not what most consider a step down. Well maybe a really BIG step down.

According to the ad, the well trained, very experienced, competition horse needed an easy life, in a field, with possibly occasional light rides around the property type, home. Priced @ $35,000-$50,000.

Perhaps, a recent Vetting uncovered performance eliminating issues and the ad/price was not adjusted accordingly? I have no idea? To me, the ad described a horse needing a retirement home

I say the following tongue in cheek: The only way this would make sense was if the horse was famous for being in the Olympics or was a famous racehorse - charge people a fee to come pet it and have their picture taken with it like they do at the TB stud farms. But you’d need a LOT of tourists.

[Moneypitt]

Nope. Not famous or upper level. Lol. Just a crazy ad.

[Mersidoats]

Was just talking with a contact in Spain. She is saying similar things about how expensive horses have gotten in her country. I guess it’s all relative because I see the prices over there and think it’s a steal.

[Moneypitt]

That’s really good news.

I remember reading not that long ago about some beautiful Spanish horses being sent to slaughter because of the over abundance and low prices. Sounded like quite a crisis, with years of over breeding of baroque Spanish breeds, flooding the market.

[Mersidoats]

Back in 2010, the economy there took a huge hit, along with the rest of the world. The horses there ended up as victims. PREs were treated like the Arabs of the 80’s, people paying a premium for them and then the bubble burst. My coach found a confirmed small tour stallion there for sale for peanuts because the family was on hard times. I am very happy for my friend that she is able to make money selling horses over there again. It was hard for a while.

[rulex]

@foursocks

It seems to me that things are settling down a bit now in the sales market, though.

I’ve started to notice some price drops in my area too. Like the under 10k ones going from 15k to 10k. And not so many being marked as sold in 24hrs. And definitely seeing more inventory as well.

[Tini_Sea_Soldier1]

Sadly, it’s not that surprising. I rode a mare that was kicked in the face in her turnout group and had the boriums puncture her eyeball. Blinded immediately. After she recovered, barn stupidly put her back out with that group and because she was lower in the pecking order with injury, they went after her again and she got kicked in the face AGAIN. Needless to say, I threw a royal fit (even though she wasn’t mine and I was keeping her going for kid away at school), and she had private turnout and then worked up to turnout with a barefoot pony.
Mare ended up ok. Actually did really well in the 3 foot childrens. Got sold and then sold again… and I heard that the ridiculous trainer was telling everyone that she “had an injury when she got kicked as a foal”. I asked how she knew and she said she had her records. I just laughed and said, “Do you consider aged mares to still be foals?” Because she had that happen when she was about 10… and I know because I knew her when she arrived at 3 and I nursed her back from THAT injury at 10. Care to know the details? Or do you “want to recheck your records”? Shady trainer.

[Horse_Rider]

For the record, they have officially figured out how to breed nice babies out of these PMU mares and therefore aren’t creating a boom of slaughter bound young horses any more. At least that one thing was made right for this group of horses. (Plus the news that most people were on too high a dose of Premarin really shrank the number of mares they use.) They slap “Canadian Warmblood” on them when they sell here but you’ll never see a registration paper with any of them. Same goes for every “American Warmblood” I’ve ever met - a “shocking” dearth of registration papers.

[quietann]

I met 2 former PMU babies at a clinic, a 2YO and a 4YO. There’s someone in New England still bringing them in from Canada. They were both pinto and quite tall, and pretty classy for Draft crosses. The 2 YO was kind of a big dorky jerk, but I honestly think that was mostly because he was 2. He learned how to be ponied at the clinic, among other things. The pony horse was his older buddy, much smaller and very patient but still able to give the 2 YO an effective side-eye when he was being goofy.

The 4 YO was amazing- super brain, curious rather than spooky, and a nice mover. Close to 17 hands and probably not done growing, though. I’d take one just like him, but shrunk in the wash to 14 to 15 hands.

[173north]

@rulex

I’ve started to notice some price drops in my area too. Like the under 10k ones going from 15k to 10k. And not so many being marked as sold in 24hrs. And definitely seeing more inventory as well.

I’m definitely seeing the $10k - $20k market stabilize a bit… in that there actually seem to be horses marketed in that price range for the first time in months! And some cute grade horses / lesson types for under $10k, too.

[Always_WIP]

Same here. I’ve seen 4 decent horses that have some experience but are greener in the 10k-14k range. The market is finally starting to be more reasonable.

[OverandOnward]

Does anyone else remember that, pre-pandemic, 3-4 years ago, nice school / mid-level horses could easily be found for well under $10k? Horses that could jump around a .8-.9 meter course? They were everywhere, and the market for them was drying up.

Is this abrupt swing mostly due to pandemic fallout … or is something else going on?