What DO You Think Of These Horses?

Question

I was curious to what made your decision on what horse you bought?

And what do you think of there horses? Honestly I am not that experienced but my husband is. I like personality but I have young kids. Thank you. Oh And I am 5'6" and weigh 115 lbs too.

http://boise.craigslist.org/grd/77457787...

http://boise.craigslist.org/grd/75204434...

http://boise.craigslist.org/grd/76308617...

Answer 1

DO NOT get a horse that isn't started, just started, or green-broke for you or your kids. You want a seasoned, been there-done that kind of horse that you and your kids can learn with. I am suprised that those parents are letting there 3 year olds climb all over and lead horses that aren't even started. Thats very dangerous. You want something that you can trust with your children.

Answer 2

the links dont work :-(

Answer 3

Please I beg you, do not buy either of the horses off the first link. I also wouldn't recomend buying the mare in the second link, sense she's only 4 and already has a filly! Last but not least the yearling has the best ad, and I believe these people have taken more time then the rest to train her, but over all I wouldn't come near any of these horses with a 10 foot pole.

Answer 4

All of those horses are fairly crappy and defiantly not a good choice for an inexperienced horse owner. You will want to find a good broke older (at least 6-7 years or older) gelding or mare. The best way to find a horse that is right for you is to ask your trainer (or if you aren't taking lessons, check out lessons) to help you find a horse. Most of the time a good horse is going to cost more than $1000 (I noticed that all of the horses you had linked are under $1000), the majority are at least going to cost $3000-$5000. Kid broke (and safe) horses are going to cost more. Just because the seller says the horse is "kid broke" doesn't always mean that it is, remember that they are trying to sell you the horse and will say almost anything to make you buy it. Craiglist isn't the best place to find a horse, try www.dreamhorse.com or www.equine.com if you want to look online.

Answer 5

None of the links worked for me. ):

Answer 6

I like the paint mare and foal but they are all beautiful but then again what horse isnt

Answer 7

They're all cute, but make sure they're what you really want.

When I bought my horses (I have 5...) I asked myself

-Is this horse at a level that I can work with safely?

-Will this horse be useful to me, and can I afford it?

When you visit a horse, you just know... you know that it is a horse that you must have, its not a maybe. It is a must have.

:)

Answer 8

For the first horses, you can't even see them properly. I would ask for a better picture. Legs are probably the most important part of the horse, so if the seller isn't putting up good photos or refuses to put up better ones, don't buy the horse.

And it's usually a safe bet to avoid those who show their kids riding on an unbroke horse, or their kids riding any horse without a helmet.

Also avoid those whose horses are in a cluttered paddock or have a long leadrope just dangling from their halter all of the time.

Presentation is the best indicator of a well-taken care of horse. Out of the three you've shown us, just based on presentation, the second listing looks best.

Given the age we're in, the ad should contain very few (if any) spelling or grammatical errors. They should hit on the most important aspects of what a potential buyer needs to know, such as gender, age, level of green-ness, breed, registration, etc., as well as bad habits, such as cribbing, bucking, and rearing.

By the sound of your inexperience, you should NOT consider a stallion whatsoever (or a cryptorchid for that matter).

Also, color doesn't matter. Solid Paints are just as good at their jobs as Painted... paints.

As for conformation, you should hire your riding instructor to help you look for potential horses.

I can't tell you much about the first horse in the first link, but I can tell you that if the only picture they have of the horse is with it saddled, there is probably something wrong with its back. She looks like she has a roach back.

In the second link, you can't really see much of the mare for sale, but it sounds like the owner would definitely get you some good pics. The horses are very clean and well-groomed.

In the third link, her back looks long-ish, and I can't put my finger on it, but something looks weird about her back legs (I need better photos, she is resting on one foot).

So, if I were you, I wouldn't get any of these horses until you can get better photos. If you want something you can ride right away (which I would suggest for a first horse), you should get a well-broke horse, probably older than 13, with a height of at least 15 hands.

All of these horses are too young for a first-time horse owner. Especially the palomino, who is just a yearling.

They shouldn't be broke until at least the age of three, and they shouldn't start harder riding (i.e. jumping, barrel racing, sliding stops, etc.) until they are 4, 5 for the bigger breeds.

With your inexperience, you do not want to be responsible for training a horse. If you don't know what you're doing, you can really s***w them up.

And this is just a personal preference- get a gelding. A mare can be a very tough first choice, especially when they get into their moods... then they become "nightmares" (couldn't resist) and are difficult to deal with.

Answer 9

The paint in the 1st link(http://boise.craigslist.org/grd/76308617... looks likes she already has saddle work in. If your wanting a riding horse I would choose her.

The paint mare and foal(http://boise.craigslist.org/grd/77457787... would be my next choose for a riding horse, however foals take a lot of work!( My horse was 4 hours old when I bought her we've grown up together, but it was a lot of hard work.) And you have to think if you take the foal, Are you going to have a place to keep her from the mother while you wean her? I heard of people not take the foal away from the mother but I've found taking the foal away is better for mother and baby.

My last choose would be the yearling palomino(http://boise.craigslist.org/grd/75204434... She not broken to ride and probably has little or not ground work in. Also most horses need to be 3 or 4 years old to start riding, if you start riding them before that you can seriously mess up their knees.

Answer 10

1. I don't really like either horse, neither have great conformation and the 3 y.o. sorrel must have been started either really early to be child-proof, or was started and hides her fear, and will eventually just explode from it, because there's no way a horse that's started at the correct age (preferably 3 years old, mostly 2 1/2 though) is going to be that bombproof.

2. Nothing strikes me a lot about mare or filly, other than the filly is pretty cute. But still, if you don't have a lot of experience, it's better to get a not-so-green horse. If you still want a little challenge, take a horse that knows basics and train in dressage, WP, whatever, just be specific. I know your husband is a trainer, but what if you want to ride without him there, but don't really know how to handle a small problem like pinning ears, and suddenly it turns into rearing and bucking?

3. Again, green on green makes black and blue. Green horse and green owner is not a good start. She's cute and correct, but maybe get her as a companion and once she's ready to start in 2 years you'll have some more experience? I wouldn't get her as your only horse though because you may want to ride more than get a young horse used to flapping objects, etc. and she's way too young to ride.

If I were you I would do a minimum search of 5 years old, and depending on your legs (long/short) a 14-16 hand horse, maybe 16.2.

Check out equine.com, horsetopia.com, dreamhorse.com, and equinehits.com for more horses for sale. There's plenty of them, and I'm sure you can find your perfect horse out there! Good luck in your search!