Robinsons Blog

Buying a horse is an exciting but often daunting time, there are many pitfalls and even the most experienced horse person can find themselves the owner of an unsuitable horse, by using the information provided anyone looking to purchase a new horse should be able to avoid any major problems. Wherever possible take your instructor or knowledgeable friend with you for a second opinion and moral support.

 

Field Behaviour and Catching

Ask for the horse to be in her normal field when you arrive.

A          Observe how she behaves in the field with other horses

            She and all the other horses should be grazing or resting and looked relaxed, there should be

no running around apart from the odd bit of playing or if something spooks the horses but even then it should only be for a short period of time.

Look for signs of aggression either from her or towards her

B             What is she like to catch.

Just being turned out in a small field or sand paddock won’t give you a true sense of this so specify you want to see her being caught from her natural surroundings.

When going to catch her, ask if you can do it as she should accept being caught by a stranger. Don’t be too strictly correct in your catching method though, let her see the headcollar and realise you mean to catch her. Put the headcollar straight on without putting the leadrope round her neck so she does have the chance to run away from you.

 

Grooming

How does she behave whilst being groomed, and ask for her to be tied outside her stable or on the yard whilst this is done.

A             Observe how she feels about being tied up for a period of time

She should stand quietly without fidgeting or showing any signs of anxiety, she shouldn’t need to have a haynet or any other feed in order to stand still. Check that she will stand for periods of time on all four feet without continually resting one foot.              

B             Does she pick all four feet up easily and in the same manner

She may be difficult with just her back feet or just one foot, possibly because of an injury or just ill manners. Watch someone else do it first, then ask to do it yourself too and check that she supports her weight herself and doesn’t lean on you.        

C             Is she happy to be brushed all over, especially any ticklish areas like between her back legs

                She may try to kick or bite if she is sensitive or has had any injuries or ill treatment.

 

Movement

Observe her being led in a headcollar and loose lead rein in a straight line away from you and back towards you, then the same thing in trot.

A             Can she move in a true straight line,

The back feet should follow the front and should land in the same place or slightly in front of where the front foot landed (tracking up).

Also watch for any signs of brushing (inside of one set of legs rubbing the inside of the other).

There should be no dishing (quite common in cob types) as she trots towards you her front feet should not flip outwards

B             Does she nod her head as she trots

If there is any lameness she will raise her head up and down as she trots in a nodding action, this can be masked by holding her lead rein very short and keeping her head up so make sure there is a big loop in the lead rein whilst trotting.

 

Tacking Up

Ask if you can tack her up

Again this should pose no problem in her accepting a stranger tacking her up, you can then check that she opens her mouth easily to accept the bit.

 

Observational Riding

Check she’s safe to ride

A             Watch her being ridden by her normal rider for at least ten minutes

You want to see the horse and rider looking relaxed and comfortable with each other, explain to the owner that you would like her to be ridden for at least ten minutes by someone else so she has time to warm up gradually and you can see plenty of work on both reins.

Make sure you see her walk, trot and canter on both reins for a sustained period of time. Watch how much work the rider has to do with their legs or hands, especially in faster work.

B             Will the rider pop her over a few small jumps

This shouldn’t be a problem as they did initially buy her to do jumping. Even if she’s not cut out to be a show jumper she should still jump willingly without too much effort from the rider and without getting over excited about jumps.            

She shouldn’t clear the jump by much more than a few inches but should go over with an alert expression and a calm willingness.

C             Is she spooky

Try to get a feel for her personality by making a few loud coughs or laughs just as she goes past to see if she spooks. This is a little difficult to do without looking crazy but it should be possible. Maybe even ask if you can see what she’s like going past an umbrella as many horses are extremely upset by these.                               

D             Does she get out of breath quickly

You can get an idea of how fit she is by how heavy her breathing is after fast work, and how quickly she recovers.

E              Watch her being ridden on the road, in the heaviest traffic that’s reasonably possible

Its probably best just to watch someone else doing this in case something too big and scary goes past.

F              See her ridden in a field or open space in fast canter and gallop

                Does she behave calmly in the big, wide world, its acceptable for her to be a little excited but she should still be well mannered.

                Does she gallop willingly and stop without too much difficulty, expect for stopping to take a little longer as her blood will be up and she should be enjoying herself so will take a little longer to respond. You want her to have a little fun in her so she enjoys moving at speed when asked.

               

 

Practical Riding

Is she safe for you to ride and is she comfortable

A             Can you get on from the floor and a mounting block

You need to physically be able to get on her from the ground in case you have to get off on a ride. You need to be able to do this with no help from anyone else and no one holding her still.

Its also worth knowing whether she will accept you getting on from a mounting block and stand quietly while you do so without assistance.

B             Does she stand quietly while you adjust stirrups

                Purposely take your time with this and checking your girth to see if she fidgets or stands still

                for a period of time.

C             Does she respond promptly to your aids, in both upwards and downwards transitions

Spend some considerable time doing transitions in slower paces and halt to see how she responds to your aids.

D             Does she canter on the correct lead on both reins, and maintain the canter around corners and straight lines

                Does she strike off on the correct leg naturally or do you have to get your aids accurate in order for the correct lead? If she canters easily on the correct leg when asked on a corner, try asking on a straight line with the correct aids and see if she still canters on the correct lead.

E              Try a small jump maybe

                Don’t be too worried about having to jump yourself on her, if you’ve seen her jump competently with someone else she’ll be fine for you when you want to.

F              If possible ask to ride her a short distance on a quiet lane or road

                She may feel completely different outside the confines of a school and be much more forward going or maybe much more spooky so if you are happy with her in the school its worth going outside too. If you have doubts in the school though don’t even bother going outside with her.

 

If you are completely happy with everything you’ve seen and heard, you may well have found the right horse for you. You should always arrange a thorough vetting of your potential purchase and have a written agreement of what is and isn’t included in the sale detailed on your receipt. Remember no horse is perfect, but it should be right for you and your current riding capability.

 

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