Good investment despite the arthritis?

Question

My aunt is looking for a pony/horse for the grandkids to ride. She set the price limit at $300 so I am having a hard time finding one that is appropriate.

Facts: must be within 200 mile range

$300 or less

Kids age run from 6 to 11 years old

experience of kids is little to none

must be big enough that they will not outgrow it in the next few years.

As you know it is hard to find one with experience enough for kids but young enough to hang around for a while. So take a look and see if you would recommend this one. It is at the 200 mile limit so that means 1 day trip to see it and another if she decides to buy as well as renting a trailer and borrowing a pick-up.

is the 4th ad down # 58039

http://www.horseweb.com/classifieds/ads/Alabama/Horses_For_Sale/Tennessee_Walking_Horses/index.htm

Thanks

Answer 1

I think he sounds great as a first horse for the kids to mess around with.  A little light riding might even be good for him to keep things moving.  Obviously try him out and have him vetted, but if that all goes well, I think a little arthritis will be okay.  Hey, it's better than getting a young horse that runs away with or hurts the kids.  Some people are so opposed to anything over 15 years old, and I think that's silly.  18 isn't necessarily that old.  I have an 18 year old that jumps still.  Granted this horse you are looking at won't be jumping but my point is that it probably still has a lot of good years left in it.  I say she's definitely worth the drive to at least look at.

Answer 2

You have a very tough set of parameters to abide by for this purchase!  By "investment" I'm assuming that the return which you are expecting will be in terms of years of pleasure for the grandkids and the auntie (as horses never really give you a monetary return, unless we're talking BIG stud fees for a stallion).  

The arthritis would not be a concern, per se, and can often be well managed with joint supplements, especially since you are looking at light pleasure riding.  As others have said, a prepurchase exam is well worth the money.  It's no fun to bring a pony home only to find he has serious, limiting or life threatening  problems, and now you've all become attached to him and he either has to become an expensive-to-maintain lawn ornament, or worse, you have to put him down.

That said, he' s very cute, but the most important factor (beyond reasonable soundness) for children, is his temperament.  You would do well to bring an experienced person with you who is small enough to ride him, and is able to read him well in terms of his temperament and tolerance level for inexperienced handlers.

PS - I agree with the comment in re the age - at 18 you should be able to get him for next to nothing, if the current owner cares about his welfare  he or she should be happy to find a good home for the little guy.  People are giving away sound, sane, young horses, right now.

Answer 3

will she be vetted as the vet would be able to say how much her artheritus would affect her and how much any treatment she might need ouwld cost

she looks great though

take the most confident of the kids to have a toucha nd groom to see how she behaves around kids

i think aslong as her atheritus isn't to bad she should be ok :)

good luck

Answer 4

This is just my personal opinion, but.......I have a 24 yr old Percheron gelding that will stand up to any scrutiny when hitched to the carriage doing a wedding, Does he have arthritis?  Of course, what horse that age, doesn't?  I would rather start my little ones out on a decent looking, but more important, decent acting, safe horse.  If this horse can walk/trot, with a rider without showing a lot of discomfort, I would put my stamp of approval on him.  Having a horse that is 18 years old is not notice to start digging a BIG hole and just wait for the inevitable.  If your children are inexperienced and this horse is safe and sound enough to do what I mentioned, I feel that it is a good deal...what is your children's confidence worth, their safety?  This is their first exposure to the horse world and it should be as stress free as possible, to me, this looks like it.  There are so many effective products (supplements) on the market today that will alleviate not only the symptoms but the pain of arthritis as well, especially as this horse isn't going to be on a demanding schedule.  One thing that I would inquire about though is, just because they called the arthritis, I wouldn't just assume that is all that is wrong, physically with the horse...I would still have it vetted and call it money well spent...good luck with your horse hunt.

Answer 5

Any horse that you pay $300 for is not an investment you wont ever get any money back out of it. You most likely would be giving him away at some point if the arthritis got to bad or the kids move on from horses or move on to a nicer horse they can show. I wouldnt suggest a Tennesee Walker because most of them are gaited. If the kids can ride and handle it fine I suppose he looks ok for your purposes.

EDIT: I also didnt realize how old she was. At 18 years olf with arthritis they should be giving the horse away in this terrible horse market.

Answer 6

up to u