All The Signs
I found your site today and love it. The contract you provide is outstanding.
I'd love to tell you my story, because it sure fits a lot of the red flags you mention on your site. I'm proud of myself for making the decision not to buy the horse in the story I'm going to write about; I knew something wasn't right and as much as I wanted this horse to be "the one," I was afraid the sellers weren't telling me the truth. After reading your information, I really feel like I made a good call.
I recently saw an ad on Craigslist (of course) for a "dead broke" 6-year-old Norwegian Fjord gelding who was a "doll baby" for $1,500. The only reason he was being sold was because the owner was "going to college soon" and had "too many horses." I also discovered that the seller currently had five other horses for sale on Craigslist.
I called the number and spoke to a very nice teenage girl who said she and her father had 30 horses (one of their ads on Craigslist said 40). She said she'd owned the Fjord for two years and that the horse was wonderful and quiet. She told me she couldn't show me the horse for a week (which I thought was odd). She also asked me to come at 2:30 p.m., "once it warms up outside," (we live in the south, where temps are in the 50s now, so not particularly cold).
I went to see the horse on Sunday, a week after spotting the ad on Craigslist. I arrived ten minutes early and saw a huge pasture full of horses being chased (!!) by two people on foot and a couple dogs. The herd was stampeding around the pasture, and I couldn't think of any reason why someone would be doing this with their horses, especially right as I was to be there to try out one of the horses for sale. So, even rolling up the driveway I already had my reservations.
I discovered that the Fjord was tacked up in the round pen (homemade from wood privacy fencing, with very tall sides) and had clearly already been worked. I realized this was probably the reason I'd been asked to come later in the day to see the horse. The girl said she'd taken the gelding out on trails that day and the ground was so slippery with mud that the horse "almost broke his neck." Since it's kind of hard for a horse to break its neck while walking along a trail, I assume they were running him. This teenage girl was the only woman on the premises. There was one guy (also younger, maybe early 20s) watching us, and a couple other adult men walking around the farm (this was a private residence, not a boarding or training facility) taking horses here and there. The girl said her dad had a broken pelvis. I had no idea where he was.
The gelding was somewhat agitated because the entire herd was running wild through the pasture and he was in the round pen. Eventually the horses in the field stopped running and the Fjord calmed down. The girl then told me the gelding "has been in the field since August," which wasn't mentioned in the ad or in our phone conversation a week prior. It's now February, so that's a long time for the horse to go unridden. The girl said the horse "just needs miles."
The girl rode the Fjord in the round pen and the horse was extremely lazy and refused to trot more than a few steps. She didn't canter at all. There was no riding ring on the farm as far as I could see, and the gelding stayed in the round pen the whole time I was there. I rode him around a bit and he would only walk, then stop at the gate each time around the small circle. I am an experienced rider, and I was able to get him moving past the gate, but that was it. He would not go faster than a walk. It was quite clear that something was off and this horse was certainly not "dead broke."
When I asked what they did with 30 horses, the girl said, "Show them, breed them..." I guess she forgot to mention, "give trail rides," which is what she had told me they were for in our original phone conversation.
It turned out the girl is a sophomore in high school, so not really "going to college soon." She said the Fjord came from a farm up the road, where a guy supposedly raises them. He hired a woman to care for them and she didn't do her job, so this particular gelding ended up way underweight. This girl and her father took the gelding in, broke him, and now had to sell. The gelding was not registered, "but could be."
I liked the horse despite everything, and started to wonder if maybe I should buy him. I told the girl I'd set up a pre-purchase vet exam and she quickly said, "They won't find anything." Hmmm. I discovered the horse did not have a Coggins, and the girl and her father do all their own farrier work. When I asked whom their vet was, the girl said, "Um, we use a bunch of different ones." When I asked again later via text message, she gave me a name of a veterinarian, but no contact number and no practice name.
So I ask you. Surely these are horse traders, right? Why were they running the horses in the pasture when I pulled up (and they probably weren't expecting me to be early)? Why was the gelding refusing to go faster than a walk? Was he drugged, or just exhausted from the earlier almost-neck-breaking trail ride?
I knew it was a bad sign when I pulled up and saw the girl already on the gelding in the round pen. I feel bad for this horse, especially since I don't know for sure what the deal is with him. He could be fine, for all I know. But it all seems sketchy. And can a teenager even sell a horse? How do I know she is the rightful owner? She never gave me a last name. All I have is her first name and her cell number.
Part of me really wants to believe that this is a great horse that just needs a good home, and that the sellers are being honest with me about everything. I can't help but feel that something wasn't right, though. Sadly, I've decided to pass on this horse. I vow to stop looking at Craigslist.
I still feel sorry for the horse. If he was what they claimed,
he would have been exactly what I was looking for. The girl did say,
"If you do buy him, I can keep your phone number and we can get
together for trail rides." I thought that sounded sincere, and figured
she wouldn't say that if she was selling me a
crazy/sick/unsound/unbroke/troubled horse. But now I'm not so sure. It
could have been just another BS line. If so, she was a pretty good
actress. I will also say that the horses all looked to be in good
physical shape (i.e., none were skinny). All in all, it was a very
confusing experience.
I'd love to tell you my story, because it sure fits a lot of the red flags you mention on your site. I'm proud of myself for making the decision not to buy the horse in the story I'm going to write about; I knew something wasn't right and as much as I wanted this horse to be "the one," I was afraid the sellers weren't telling me the truth. After reading your information, I really feel like I made a good call.
I recently saw an ad on Craigslist (of course) for a "dead broke" 6-year-old Norwegian Fjord gelding who was a "doll baby" for $1,500. The only reason he was being sold was because the owner was "going to college soon" and had "too many horses." I also discovered that the seller currently had five other horses for sale on Craigslist.
I called the number and spoke to a very nice teenage girl who said she and her father had 30 horses (one of their ads on Craigslist said 40). She said she'd owned the Fjord for two years and that the horse was wonderful and quiet. She told me she couldn't show me the horse for a week (which I thought was odd). She also asked me to come at 2:30 p.m., "once it warms up outside," (we live in the south, where temps are in the 50s now, so not particularly cold).
I went to see the horse on Sunday, a week after spotting the ad on Craigslist. I arrived ten minutes early and saw a huge pasture full of horses being chased (!!) by two people on foot and a couple dogs. The herd was stampeding around the pasture, and I couldn't think of any reason why someone would be doing this with their horses, especially right as I was to be there to try out one of the horses for sale. So, even rolling up the driveway I already had my reservations.
I discovered that the Fjord was tacked up in the round pen (homemade from wood privacy fencing, with very tall sides) and had clearly already been worked. I realized this was probably the reason I'd been asked to come later in the day to see the horse. The girl said she'd taken the gelding out on trails that day and the ground was so slippery with mud that the horse "almost broke his neck." Since it's kind of hard for a horse to break its neck while walking along a trail, I assume they were running him. This teenage girl was the only woman on the premises. There was one guy (also younger, maybe early 20s) watching us, and a couple other adult men walking around the farm (this was a private residence, not a boarding or training facility) taking horses here and there. The girl said her dad had a broken pelvis. I had no idea where he was.
The gelding was somewhat agitated because the entire herd was running wild through the pasture and he was in the round pen. Eventually the horses in the field stopped running and the Fjord calmed down. The girl then told me the gelding "has been in the field since August," which wasn't mentioned in the ad or in our phone conversation a week prior. It's now February, so that's a long time for the horse to go unridden. The girl said the horse "just needs miles."
The girl rode the Fjord in the round pen and the horse was extremely lazy and refused to trot more than a few steps. She didn't canter at all. There was no riding ring on the farm as far as I could see, and the gelding stayed in the round pen the whole time I was there. I rode him around a bit and he would only walk, then stop at the gate each time around the small circle. I am an experienced rider, and I was able to get him moving past the gate, but that was it. He would not go faster than a walk. It was quite clear that something was off and this horse was certainly not "dead broke."
When I asked what they did with 30 horses, the girl said, "Show them, breed them..." I guess she forgot to mention, "give trail rides," which is what she had told me they were for in our original phone conversation.
It turned out the girl is a sophomore in high school, so not really "going to college soon." She said the Fjord came from a farm up the road, where a guy supposedly raises them. He hired a woman to care for them and she didn't do her job, so this particular gelding ended up way underweight. This girl and her father took the gelding in, broke him, and now had to sell. The gelding was not registered, "but could be."
I liked the horse despite everything, and started to wonder if maybe I should buy him. I told the girl I'd set up a pre-purchase vet exam and she quickly said, "They won't find anything." Hmmm. I discovered the horse did not have a Coggins, and the girl and her father do all their own farrier work. When I asked whom their vet was, the girl said, "Um, we use a bunch of different ones." When I asked again later via text message, she gave me a name of a veterinarian, but no contact number and no practice name.
So I ask you. Surely these are horse traders, right? Why were they running the horses in the pasture when I pulled up (and they probably weren't expecting me to be early)? Why was the gelding refusing to go faster than a walk? Was he drugged, or just exhausted from the earlier almost-neck-breaking trail ride?
I knew it was a bad sign when I pulled up and saw the girl already on the gelding in the round pen. I feel bad for this horse, especially since I don't know for sure what the deal is with him. He could be fine, for all I know. But it all seems sketchy. And can a teenager even sell a horse? How do I know she is the rightful owner? She never gave me a last name. All I have is her first name and her cell number.
Part of me really wants to believe that this is a great horse that just needs a good home, and that the sellers are being honest with me about everything. I can't help but feel that something wasn't right, though. Sadly, I've decided to pass on this horse. I vow to stop looking at Craigslist.
I still feel sorry for the horse. If he was what they claimed,
he would have been exactly what I was looking for. The girl did say,
"If you do buy him, I can keep your phone number and we can get
together for trail rides." I thought that sounded sincere, and figured
she wouldn't say that if she was selling me a
crazy/sick/unsound/unbroke/troubled horse. But now I'm not so sure. It
could have been just another BS line. If so, she was a pretty good
actress. I will also say that the horses all looked to be in good
physical shape (i.e., none were skinny). All in all, it was a very
confusing experience.
For the next story, click Sale Fail
This work by horsetradertricks.com is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.