From: Vivian
Dear Jessica, I have gone very suddenly from having no hope of owning a horse, to having a choice of two horses. I have not had very many riding lessons, but have ridden off and on for about two years. I think I am ready to own a horse, but good horses are expensive as you know. Now very suddenly I have been offered two different horses. Both of them are young, three years old, and neither one is sound at the moment, but I would be willing to give the horse some time off to heal before I begin asking it to do hard work. One of the horses is pure Thoroughbred. He was trained for racing and participated in four races but did not win any of them, in fact I believe he was last in all of them. A friend of mine knows the trainer who trains him and she thinks that I can get this horse for very little money. He is a little bit "off" on one of his front legs but she says that the trainer told her it is nothing serious because "The horse can't run fast enough to hurt himself". He says that a lot of race horses are too lame to make good riding horses but this one will be fine. The horse's owner doesn't want him but doesn't like the idea of selling him at an auction where he might be sold for meat. I have seen a photo of him and he is a very pretty gelding, a little bit on the thin side but I think they keep race horses thin so they can run faster? Anyway I am sure I could fatten him up. My friend says that he is a very quiet horse with a nice calm personality for a racehorse (maybe another reason he is too slow).
Now, the other horse. This one is also a gelding, half Thoroughbred and half Hannoverian. He is a little bit sore in his hocks according to his owner but there has been a lot of mud lately and she thinks that he played too hard in his turnout and got sore. He is a very energetic horse. He is a little older than the race horse, almost four years old, but he is very good at First level dressage and his owner was teaching him Second level before he hurt himself playing. She loves him very much but says that she would sell him to me for cheap because she knows he will have a wonderful home with me. She wants to do Grand Prix and says that she realized that this horse could only do Third level so she needs another horse anyway and can't afford to keep two horses, which is the only reason she would sell this horse.
I called the lady who gives me lessons sometimes, and she said that she wouldn't want either horse and that I should take lessons for another year before I start looking for a horse of my own. I know that she is probably right that I need more lessons, but I don't have a lot of money and even if the horse I buy has a very low price, it will take all of my money just to pay the board and upkeep, I will be lucky to afford one lesson every three or four months. Which horse do you think would be better for someone like me to train and ride, the quiet race horse or the energetic dressage horse? I have already found a place to keep whichever horse I buy. It will have a stall 12x12 and a "run" 12x12 off the stall where it can come and go all the time, and at this barn they turn horses out in small groups for three hours at a time, every other day (they only have one pasture so they can't let all of the horses go out every day). Do you think that one of the horses would like this arrangement better than the other one? Also, I want to do mostly trail riding but also dressage. Some day I would like to show dressage, so maybe the dressage horse would be better, but the lady who gives me lessons has two pure Thoroughbreds that are trained dressage and they are just beautiful, and they both came from the race track so I know that pure Thoroughbreds can do dressage too!
Please advise me on this matter. I have been waiting all of my life (I'm 27) to own a horse, and I can hardly believe it that now there are two horses waiting for me to choose one! I never thought that this could happen.
Vivi
First, here's my advice about which of these two horses would be more suitable for you: NEITHER ONE IS SUITABLE.
Both of these horses are young and green - you need a horse that is mature and well-trained.
Both of these horses are lame - you need a horse that is sound NOW, not one that might (but also might not) become sound after a great deal of rest and therapy.
You need a horse that is already successfully doing and enjoying the activities that YOU want to do with your horse - that is, trail riding, and elementary dressage. That doesn't describe either one of these horses.
The OTTB (off-the-track Thoroughbred) may never have been anywhere near a trail, and certainly hasn't had any dressage training. The "dressage horse" is far too young to be worked at any level - he probably shouldn't even have been backed yet, he certainly should not be doing First Level work, and there is absolutely no excuse for asking him to do anything resembling Second Level work. He's too young for it - full stop. Horses of this breeding typically do better if they are allowed to grow up in their fields, and not backed until they are at least four years old. "Allowed to grow up" doesn't mean "abandoned" - they can and should be handled daily, brought in for regular lessons in manners and deportment, taught to stand for the vet and farrier, get in and out of trailers quietly, etc. But the bigger a horse will be at maturity, the greater the possibility for damaging it by starting it too early and asking too much of its immature body. Sore hocks in a large, growthy three-year-old (and I've never seen a TBxHannoverian that was anything BUT large and growthy at age 3) would be surprising if the horse were living in a field - but as this horse was probably started under saddle as a two-year-old, his sore hocks shouldn't surprise anyone... and shouldn't be blamed on turnout. Does this horse's veterinarian believe that the horse was injured in turnout?
Most people have some understanding of the damage that racing inflicts on very young horses, but alas, comparatively few people seem to realize that too-early ridden work of ANY kind is damaging, and that dressage is no exception. The laws governing equine skeletal development have no exclusionary rule, and although the purpose of genuine dressage is to build up a horse and make it strong and sound, dressage training attempted too early and/or incorrectly can and will break a horse down. I should be very surprised if this horse's hock soreness is the result of playing in turnout. I should be even more surprised if his hock soreness is the ONLY thing that's wrong with him.
Given what I know about the damage caused by racing and the damage caused by this kind of "dressage training", I'd have to say that if someone put a gun to my head and forced me to take on one of these horses as a rehabilitation/retraining project, I would take my chances with the one off the racetrack.
I wouldn't CHOOSE to take on either of these horses, though - and you shouldn't either. Neither one would be a good prospect for you to try to train or ride, for several reasons.
Even a "mild" unsoundness is worrisome in horses as young as these. There's a sliding scale of "acceptable unsoundness", and much depends on a horse's age and training. A mild, manageable unsoundness in a horse of 17 that has dropped down a level or two in competition because of arthritic changes? Not a huge problem - the horse was sound for many years, and its current work level is less stressful and less demanding than its previous work level. But the problem that might be perfectly acceptable in an older horse doing easier work is NOT acceptable in a very young horse just beginning - or about to begin - its career as a riding horse. You can't be sure how much damage has been done, or how quickly additional damage will manifest itself. It's a little bit like the difference between buying an older car that has a few dings and scratches and ten years' worth of normal wear and tear, and buying a car that's almost new but has been damaged in a crash or a flood.
Even if soundness weren't an issue - and it is a HUGE issue - at the most basic level, this comes down to what I call the "Clue Factor". To be safe, have fun, and make progress, a horse and rider combination must have a clue - at least ONE clue. A competent, well-taught, experienced rider has a clue; a well-trained, experienced horse has a clue. A beginner rider has no clue; a green horse has no clue. When you put a beginner rider together with a green horse, the clue total adds up to zero. This is why the old saying, "Old horses for young riders, young horses for old riders" has a lot of truth to it - an experienced horse can help a green rider learn, and an experienced rider can teach a green horse what it needs to learn. An experienced rider on a well-trained horse can have a wonderful time together, but - as another saying goes - "green on green is a colour combination that leads to black-and-blue". When you've become an experienced and well-taught rider, and have owned a horse for some time, you'll be in a position to consider a green (but, I hope, not lame!) horse for your second or third horse.
Personalities aren't always apparent - and neither are energy levels. If you brought home that race horse, you might find that his sweet, calm disposition has less to do with his nature and more to do with the fact that he is seriously underweight. Given enough food to "fatten him up", he might well display a much higher energy level than you would be prepared to deal with. Similarly, the "energetic" dressage horse might merely be displaying "stall courage" - the frantic activity that horses often demonstrate when they are confined most of the time and turned out only at rare intervals. Some horses are "prancy" because they are anxious, apprehensive, or physically uncomfortable... and the kind of injuries that produce unsoundness may cause a horse to exhibit anxious prancing - or sullen immobility. In neither case does the behaviour express the horse's basic personality.
Right now, with only a few lessons and a couple of years of intermittent riding, you're not ready to take on a horse of your own. You ARE ready to start making yourself ready for horse ownership, and that means taking lessons. The time to acquire basic riding and horsemanship skills is now - that is, BEFORE you buy that first horse.
I understand how it is when money is tight, and lessons may seem like an indulgence, but really they aren't - they're essential if you want to become a good rider, and they're a necessary prerequisite for horse ownership. Look at it this way: Money you put into a horse can disappear overnight. Horses are delicate creatures, and a horse that is sound and healthy one morning can be unsound or unhealthy the next morning. Injuries and colics can happen very quickly, and medical treatments are rarely cheap. If all of your disposible income is going to be required just for your horse's board and upkeep, what will you do if there is a medical emergency? And what if there is no medical emergency, but a lot of long-term therapy and a lot of vet visits to try to get either of these horses sound enough for you to ride? A horse that you CAN'T ride costs just as much to keep as a horse that you CAN ride, but if you own and have to maintain a horse that you can't ride, you won't be riding you own horse AND you'll have no money for lessons. Please think about this. Y
On the other hand, if you put money into your lessons, you're investing in your own education, and that is something that can't be taken away from you. Once you begin investing money in a horse, you'll quickly discover that horses have a way of absorbing ALL of your disposible income... and then some. Please invest in YOURSELF for at least one year. Figure out how much it would cost you to take weekly lessons for the next year, and then figure out a way to pay for those lessons. The money it would take to keep a horse at a well-run boarding stable for a month should be more than adequate to cover the cost of four lessons each month, no matter where you are.
After a year of weekly lessons, you'll be in a much better position to look for a horse to part-lease, lease, or purchase. And there WILL be a horse available - believe me. You're amazed that there are two horses available to you now, but there are many, many more horses out there, and there will be many, many more horses available to you after you've had a year of good lessons. There are always many more horses in the world than there are people to love and look after them - just ask anyone involved with horse rescue. There are ALWAYS horses available, and many of them will be infinitely better-suited to your needs. When the time comes for you to buy a horse, I hope you will have a vet you trust, perhaps your instructor's vet, conduct a thorough pre-purchase exam that will help you make the right decision... and avoid making the wrong one.
So take your lessons, talk to your instructor, and ask for her help in finding you a horse to lease or buy in a year's time. Meanwhile, look for every opportunity to make and save some money that you can put in the bank, waiting for the day you finally do acquire a horse. You'll need it - even if the horse you get is free. ;-) Give yourself the time you need to get to the point where you can enjoy a horse competently and safely, and then, with your instructor's help, you'll be ready to go out and find a horse that you can enjoy.
Jessica
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