11 Questions I Have Had While Horse Shopping

Lately, as I have been (re)introduced to the world of horse shopping, I have come across several questions about the process. Here are my 11 questions I’d love to have answered while I am on my horse shopping journey:

1. Is a bowed tendon a deal breaker? If not, what would I need to know about having a horse with this type of past injury?

2. If a Thoroughbred’s last race was a claiming race and he did not finish and the official equibase.com report comments say “gave way, eased” does that mean he was pulled up for an injury?

3. What websites should I be looking at to find my perfect horse? Dreamhorse.com, BigEq.com (thanks for the recommendation, Liz. I think 90% of the horses on that site are out of the realm of a teacher budget, sadly), Craigslist? Is there something better than a sales website?

4. Is it possible a horse will move better in real life than what is shown in the seller’s poor quality cell phone video that was sent to me as a text?

5. Is it possible to find a 100% sound horse through a rescue?

6. Is it possible to find a 100% sound horse under the age of 4?

7. If I go look at a horse by myself, but then have my trainer come with on a second visit me for a follow up, how does the trainer get compensated (flat fee, hourly rate)? (I asked her in an otherwise long email and she did not respond to that one point. I know I will ask again, but I’m curious what other people have arranged with their trainers).

8. If I sit back and relax while my trainer does the searching, what is the percentage I would typically expect to pay her for doing the horse shopping for me?

9. Since everything is so expensive in Southern California, does that translate to horse shopping? Should I be looking in other nearby states where the market and pricing might be different?

10. Do the vast majority of horses need their hocks injected? If so, how frequently is that procedure done? Why are hocks injected in the first place?

11. If I find a horse and it’s not close to home, how do I go about finding a good vet in that area to conduct a pre-purchase exam?

Do you have any answers or related advice you’d like to share to those horse shopping? Please enlighten me! 

What is your one go-to question that you ask prior to even making an appointment to see a horse?

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