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It Has Begun
Jan. 19th, 2008 11:20 pmThat's right, I am now actively searching for a horse of my own to buy! ^o^
My requirements: at least 16 hands high, age 6-15, trained for hunter-jumper, dressage, and trails, no more than $5,000.
I've come across ads for about a dozen or so horses that meet my requirements, and I've made plans to see them. Today my friend Tracy and I looked at two horses, a 10 year old 16 hand paint named Confetti and a 15 year old 16.3 hand Thoroughbred named Eddie.
Confetti was pretty much right out. She was extremely pig-headed and marish, wouldn't be caught, hadn't been ridden in ages, danced around in circles and kicked out when we attempted saddling her, and even after a good 20 minutes of round penning would not show any signs of submission at all. She also had a peg leg and it showed when she cantered on the right lead. So yeah, we passed on her.
Then there was Eddie. He's an absolute doll, incredibly sweet and friendly, completely easy-going and not fazed by anything. He's trained in something like 2nd level dressage and jumping, and is a nice ride with huge gaits. He's a bit on the lazy side in that it takes some work to keep him moving at a good pace, but part of that may be that he hadn't been ridden in a while. He'd probably be a perfect first horse if it weren't for my main concern, that being his age: he's the absolute highest age I'm willing to look at, and I'm worried about how many good years I could get out of him and what old-age medical issues might pop up in the not-so-distant future.
I'll be taking a day trip to see another 4-6 horses next Saturday, so we shall see what else I can find out there. Wish me luck!
My requirements: at least 16 hands high, age 6-15, trained for hunter-jumper, dressage, and trails, no more than $5,000.
I've come across ads for about a dozen or so horses that meet my requirements, and I've made plans to see them. Today my friend Tracy and I looked at two horses, a 10 year old 16 hand paint named Confetti and a 15 year old 16.3 hand Thoroughbred named Eddie.
Confetti was pretty much right out. She was extremely pig-headed and marish, wouldn't be caught, hadn't been ridden in ages, danced around in circles and kicked out when we attempted saddling her, and even after a good 20 minutes of round penning would not show any signs of submission at all. She also had a peg leg and it showed when she cantered on the right lead. So yeah, we passed on her.
Then there was Eddie. He's an absolute doll, incredibly sweet and friendly, completely easy-going and not fazed by anything. He's trained in something like 2nd level dressage and jumping, and is a nice ride with huge gaits. He's a bit on the lazy side in that it takes some work to keep him moving at a good pace, but part of that may be that he hadn't been ridden in a while. He'd probably be a perfect first horse if it weren't for my main concern, that being his age: he's the absolute highest age I'm willing to look at, and I'm worried about how many good years I could get out of him and what old-age medical issues might pop up in the not-so-distant future.
I'll be taking a day trip to see another 4-6 horses next Saturday, so we shall see what else I can find out there. Wish me luck!
