Horse shopping continues, blogging stagnates, Dressage Cow remains wonderfully fun.
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| Oh hey, I never introduced her. This is Madonna, a 16 yr old APHA, also known as Dressage Cow. Her owner is letting me ride her whenever since the owner doesn't have time. |
I've seen 3 more horses, vetting one.
Horse 7: Beautiful 4 yr old Canadian Warmblood relatively close to me. His background was a little mysterious- he came from Canada as a herd dispersal. Didn't matter to me: He was quiet, fun to ride, had a wonderful canter, and despite me communicating with him poorly that resulted in me scraping BOTH of my knees on the wall, he didn't get flustered. I was in love. He failed his vetting... I was heartbroken.
Horse 8: A super interesting cross (coming 4) that oozed serious dressage potential. He was out of budget, but a good home was more important. We talked price first, because I didn't want to go any further unless the seller could meet my budget. That worked out, they put him back to work so I could come try him. I didn't shop or try anything for the couple weeks between horse 7 and this horse because I was so burnt out from shopping. Long story safe for the internet: I made some riding errors, his owners made errors, and the story ends with me hitting the ground HARD. Despite having the entirety of it on video, no one can figure out what caused the bucking fit that dumped me.
Horse 9: This one isn't ruled out yet, but he's kind of the back up plan. 6 year old RPSI that's getting back to work so I can come back and try him out. I texted his owner ringside from horse #8 and said I'd be passing by that afternoon and could I stop by. Cute (but needs TLC), sweet, laid back. Probably not enough hutzpah to go above 3-1, but should be safe and would make a nice resale project. He's a several week long wait though. After the last out of work/put back to work horse dumped me, I'm leery of horses not in active work.
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| Took the cow on a short trail ride last weekend. |
I'm heading back out this weekend to see two more horses, a 2 yr old warmblood and a 6 yr old OTTB. I have a feeling that I am nearing "the end" of the search now that I'm looking at thick OTTBs too, which is really the only reason I'm saying anything about these guys before I see them:
- 6 yr old OTTB- he looks more like a warmblood than TB and seems great. My favorite size too, 16.1ish. I'm excited about him. I could show him training level dressage almost immediately based on his videos. Barring something hidden in a PPE and if he can tolerate pressure, it doesn't look like there's any reason he couldn't do at least 3rd/4th.
- The 2 year old comes from a very specific set of circumstances that do not need to be defined for the internet, and they are the only reason I am considering him. He comes from good circumstances. He should be ready to back in the fall after a spring and summer of routine, manners, tack wearing, long lining, and in hand travel to different places. And by "back" I don't mean work. I mean, back as in, put a person on him before he's even bigger and make sure he's comfortable with that walking around. I wouldn't plan on actually doing anything with him until spring 2020. He should be a NICE horse. A possible upper level prospect if he can handle pressure. I just have to wait a year-ish to ride him. If he ends up too much horse for me, he should be relatively easy to resell. I can ride dressage cow for free for as long as I want, and take her places, so that's not even an issue.
I think I'll end up picking one of these guys. I feel like it's a choice of real talent with a small wait vs moderate talent available immediately. My long term brain says if I love both, pick the 2 year old. Instant gratification of course says, pick the 6 year old. They are essentially the same price. What would you do?
Argh, so sorry to hear about the near misses with the other horses and that fall.
ReplyDeletere: new options - I'd go with the 2 year old! But I really enjoyed my process of raising Grif and would absolutely do it again. Besides, a small wait for huge potential and dreams come true sounds like a really good trade-off.
I'm a bit afraid to raise him, I've never done that! Beyond teaching him things like stand, be groomed, have general manners, I'm not sure what to do. He would be an experiment for me!
DeleteGet both, obv! 🤣🤣
ReplyDeleteIf only! They're both under budget, but not enough to buy both! That was a serious thought (because you know, keeping two for a year+ doesn't matter lol)
DeleteI'll fedex you a haffie.
ReplyDeleteI know! I still think I need something taller, even if the one is a literal table hahaha!
Deleteoh jeez, im so sorry about the fall :( hope you are ok.
ReplyDeleteas far as which one to pick... that's a tough call. it depends if you want to invest $$$ into feeding and housing a horse you can't really do too much with just yet.
I'm fine, surprisingly. Not even a bruise.
DeleteWell, I'm currently paying to hold my stall, which is of course no reason to rush. I don't look at is as paying to feed and house something I can't do much with, because I'd be paying board on something. And there's plenty to do with a 2 yr old! Everything I would do on the ground to teach an older horse how to be a good reliable citizen.
What does GP trainer say?
ReplyDeleteI haven't asked because I haven't seen her in almost a year now. I've reached out about a couple things, but I'm mostly going this alone. To be perfectly honest, I think she'd say neither, keep looking.
DeleteI know I am just a random person on the internet, that doesn't know you or these horses, but in all honesty, that is exactly what I was thinking. Unless either of these two horses are really exceptional, I would say neither. I know it must feel like the search is taking forever and you are ready for your next partner and to move forward in your dressage career, but I think there are better options out there.
DeleteHaving combed through months and months of ads, because I was casually searching long before January, getting fewer and fewer responses to ISO posts... I could easily spend the next 6 to 8 months looking for "the one". And at that point, I could have bought the 2 yr old for a song, been working with him, and have him almost ready to ride.
DeleteBelieve me, I'm well beyond "eager to move forward". I've moved into apathetic.
:( I feel your pain! I recently spent 7+ months on my horse search, had 3 failed PPEs (including the one where I flew out of state to try the horse). Horse shopping is not for the faint of heart! I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you, whatever you decide!
DeleteI think Shauna poses a good question with "what does GP trainer say." I tend to think the two year old could be your best bet however, there's never a guarantee and sometimes the horse that is ready to go is the better bet. How was that for a helpful opinion!? Haha. Also, I had been wondering where you were at with the horse shopping so I was excited to see an update.
ReplyDeleteHahaha! The debate that rolls over and over in my head! The 2 yr old is really only an option because of his circumstances, and the fact my barn is full of lovely people who are more than happy to share horses. So I won't be without something to ride. There's a lot to think about: quality, age, price, time. I need to take a good long hard look at my end goals and when I want to get there, and HOW I want to get there.
DeleteI’d vote the 2 year old. Raising babies is tough but so is undoing other people’s mistakes. I’d rather make them myself and then undo those lol
ReplyDeleteHaha! The 2 yr old will def have a bunch of my mistakes on it, that's for sure. I need some very young horse guidance!
DeleteI would go with the 2 y/o, but I'm biased in that I could never have afforded either of my girls at riding age, so I bought/bred them and waited for them to grow up 😁 I think that in this instance, the payoff (talent) is worth the wait. But obviously, YMMV!
ReplyDeleteFrom the time I started casually searching last year, I knew the only way I'd find a very solid prospect I could afford would be to buy it very young, like you did. I like this 2 yr olds situation, he could be worth the wait.
DeleteAnd in your case, since you have something to ride in the interim, I'd be even more inclined to buy something young and let it grow up a little. You can get way better quality for your budget if you're willing to deal with some delayed gratification 🙂
DeleteSo when I went to look at Dante he had a younger, fancier, cuter half brother, but I opted it would be better to get the still nice coming 3yo and have something to ride sooner (for my own sanity) than wait another year on the coming 2yo to be ready to do stuff. Still happy with my choice.
ReplyDeleteI think there's a big quality difference though between what's available and started and this 2 yr old, at my current price point. Otherwise, yea, it would be a no brainer for me to go with the started horse. We're talking warmblood vs OTTB, not warmblood vs warmblood.
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