Buying a Horse ... here are some of the things you should consider!

by Katy Brown

(Reprinted from Paddocks and Perches, February 2003)

• Choosing a horse
• Vet check
• Basic healthcare
• Horse stuff
• Paddock
• Feeding
• Water Supply
• Shelter

So you’ve decided you want to buy a horse? Kiss goodbye to spare money and Sunday mornings in bed because if the bug’s bitten, you’ll be riding ... and spending!

First of all you need to give some serious consideration to the type of animal you require, your own ability and, most importantly, the cost of keeping horses or ponies and the requirements for their welfare. As many owners will tell you the purchase price of the animal is the cheap part!

Choosing a horse

When buying a horse it is essential that you look at as many as possible prior to making a decision on what type would best suit you. Assess your weight, height, riding/handling ability and confidence level.

Are you interested in pleasure riding (English or Western), performance (Dressage, jumping), showing, breeding, harness, racing, endurance or conservation?

Given that you are reading a RBTA newsletter, one of the Rare Breeds may be what you are after!

On deciding which discipline or breed you are interested in, contact the relevant association or society and speak to people who are involved, i.e. breeders, trainers, owners. Find out about your future “type”, meet with reputable breeders or trainers and look at the best possible animals as a benchmark. This helps ascertain what you will get for your money.

Investigate what papers or registration are issued and check that your animal is correctly registered. Finding a new horse is hard work and can feel like a wild goose chase, to help you get “leads” many breed societies maintain a sales list and magazines such as “Horse Deals” give a huge coverage to riding animals. Videos are also often available which save a lot of driving around. Try the web ... there are many sales sites there.

There is probably one exception to all the rules of horse buying and that is the chance to“inherit” a wonderful experienced old pony for a child’s “first” pony. If it is sound of limb and up to the weight of your child, then I personally would overlook conformation, age, breed, etc. in favour of temperament and experience (commonly known as being“bomb-proof”). Many a young rider never pursues the sport after being mounted for the first years on unsuitable ponies. They are hard to come by as they are often passed around the family. These ponies are worth their weight in gold.

Vet Check

On finding the suitable animal don’t be“barn blind”. It is advisable to have a “Vet Check” even if the animal looks wonderful. The vet (get a Horse Specialist) will examine the animal for soundness of conformation and limb, senses, heart and respiration, they will also check for basic back problems and any obvious signs of disease including ringbone or melanoma.

A more involved check may involve drug testing, limb x-rays (particularly in young performance horses or ex-racehorses) and even an ECG. It is advisable to ride the horse on several occasions, catch it, tack it up, groom it and load it on a float before you make your decision. If at any stage the animal is hard to handle, assess whether you have the necessary skills and confidence to deal with it. I always like to have the owner ride it first so I can see what I am in for and, if possible, take a friend or instructor to also ride the horse and see how he goes for someone other than his owner.

Be warned that horses purchased in poor condition will often “hot up” as they put on weight and start to feel good.

Basic Healthcare

The basic healthcare that your average horse or pony will require is to be wormed (four times a year minimum, depending on stocking rates), vaccinated (against Tetanus and Strangles). Have its teeth checked annually (maybe more if it is on a grain based ration) and its feet done approximately every eight weeks. The costs vary depending on the area and the tradesperson.

Sometimes working animals also benefit from massage, acupuncture, chiropractic care and supplements. Many horses are improved by holistic treatments such as Bach flower remedies or herbs.

Horse “Stuff”

Saddlery and equine paraphernalia are easy to accumulate and great fun to shop for! It is usually worth spending a little more on high use items.

The average riding horse will need the following basic tack:

• Bridle and stainless steel bit of good quality. (Don’t waste money on cheap nickel plated bits, the plating comes off leaving sharp edges. When choosing a jointed bit fold it in half at the joint, a well made bit will have a reasonable gap between the mouth pieces, mass produced bits generally have little or no gap and this effects the comfort.)
• Saddle to suit the style or discipline, i.e. dressage, all purpose, jumping, stock, Western. It must be professionally fitted as a poor fit not only causes discomfort and irritability in the animal but leads to long-term back problems, muscle wastage and soreness. Mounts include stirrup leathers, stainless steel stirrups and a well fitting easy-to-clean girth.
• Saddle cloth/s (wash regularly to remove sweat and dirt).
• Winter rug and neck rug (if necessary). Rugging makes life easier if you are riding in winter, however, many native breeds don’t need rugs unless they are very cold or they have limited shelter. There is a saying that a rug equals a feed — particularly in a cold winter.
• Summer rug/neck rug (mainly to protect from biting insects).
• Fly mask or veil if forelock is short.
• Headstall and lead.
• Lunging rein.
• Float boots.
• Tail bandage.
• Leg boots (performance horses).
• Grooming kit (body brush, dandy brush, rubber and plastic curry comb, hoof pick, sweat scraper, sponge, etc.) including shampoo and hoof oil ... and
• First aid kit (thermometer, bandages “Vetwrap”, cotton wool roll, gauze swabs, wound cleanser, wound spray, Betadine scrub, Bute, needles, syringes).

If you are interested in driving then obviously a well fitting harness and vehicle of suitable type is required.

As time goes on the list may include all sorts or show or performance gear and don’t forget an Australian Standards approved safety helmet and appropriate footwear is essential at all times!

Paddock

Your equine will need to be kept in a safely fenced area of at least one pastured acre per animal (preferably more which can be strip grazed to provide fresh grass). Electric fencing is an excellent choice for horses as they generally have little respect for other types of fences.

Poorly fenced paddocks can be disastrous as horses tend to graze over and through loose fences inevitably cutting themselves or tearing their rugs in the process. Horses require access to pasture, shade, fresh water and shelter.

Unfortunately, being hard on the ground, they will make a mess of poorly drained or steep areas during winter. They are also selective grazers, eating some pasture types and not others. They will not eat grass where they have defecated and these patches become tall and rank. If possible, cross grazing with another species (cattle, goats, sheep) helps pastures from becoming “horse sick” and helps control the weeds that this pattern of grazing encourages.

Bracken, Capeweed, Patterson’s Curse and Ragwort amongst others are toxic to horses and need to be controlled. Small paddocks of less than an acre should be“picked up” and the manure removed for use as compost. This helps to control parasites and preserves small grazing areas. During the winter or drought when the grass isn’t growing, many breeds may need supplementary feeding (although a lot of native ponies seem to exist on nothing!). Generally the bigger the animal the more likely that grass alone will not sustain it, this is also true of working or growing animals and pregnant or lactating mares. Careful observation will determine whether your animal is losing or gaining weight and therefore requires supplementation. In spring, ponies in particular may need to be yarded if they get too fat, as they can easily founder. It is sometimes good practice to let ponies go into spring a little bit lean (not starving).

Feeding

Many books are available on horse nutrition and it is well worth the research to help tailor your animal’s nutritional needs. Basically the essential thing is to source the best possible feed or hay. Horses are susceptible to colic or toxic reactions if fed mouldy or inferior quality feed.

At least 70% of the horses intake should be fibre such as chaff (oaten, lucerne) or hay (meadow, lucerne, clover, oaten, rye) as this is essential to digestion and too much grain without the necessary fibre to keep it in the gut can lead to ulcers (which can lead to crib biting or wind-sucking) or digestive upsets (scours, colic). A horse’s digestive system has evolved to receive feed constantly as a grazing animal so little and often is far better than one big meal a day.\

Also, feeding hay helps prevent boredom (giving the horse something to do!) and in winter it helps keep water in the gut and increases the production of body heat thus helping warm the animal. The choice of protein or grain varies depending on the energy requirement and workload of the animal. Any food not consumed should be discarded after eight hours if damp as mould can start to form. As many areas of Australia are mineral deficient, your horse should always be supplied with a mineral lick.

Water Supply

It is important to note that a pony or horse will consume upwards of 70-120 litres of water a day, this must be fresh and cool, free from algae or dirt. When siting water troughs, give consideration to deciduous trees and constant sun exposure (always make sure that the volume is high enough so it doesn’t heat up). Check the water supply daily. If your horse drinks from a dam or stream it may be better to use the supply to fill a trough as horses will damage the water’s edge, pugging it up and fowling the water. In drought conditions keep your eye on the water quality, as flow is restricted.

Shelter

Sometimes, particularly in treeless paddocks, it is essential to provide basic shelter/shade for your horse and an open fronted iron shed of at least 4m x 4m with a minimum height of 3m should suffice. It should be lined with “kick boards” (timber or rubber) to prevent injury.

If the shelter is to be used “at will” then sand or sawdust will provide a good base. Otherwise if you wish to “stable” the animal to help prepare it for shows or to save the pasture, stables should provide a minimum space of 3m x 3m for ponies, 4m x 4m for Galloways and at least 5m x 5m for big warm bloods, mares and foals or heavy horses. Doorways should be at least 1.2m wide and 1.2-1.5m high with double locks. Top doors are optional but valuable if you are weaning foals or your horse may jump out. Good ventilation is important and the box should be free from draughts. The floor can be well draining earth (add lime regularly to harden it), brick or concrete or rubber. Deep litter beds like sawdust or shavings are good, whilst straw needs to have the wet sections removed daily. It is essential that the bed is deep enough to prevent contact with the floor particularly when the horse is getting up and down. If possible after cleaning out the stable rake bedding to the sides to allow the floor to dry during the day, a few handfuls of lime help keep the floor clean. Deep litter should always be changed before it has any ammonia smell that is harmful to the respiratory tract. Water is best supplied in an automatic waterer as buckets are easily tipped or run out. Feed and hay should be fed from safe feeders that the horse can’t get caught in.

These are just the basic things that you should be thinking of when making the decision to purchase a horse or pony pony. . As time goes on you may wish to purchase a horse float to transport your new friend, an arena on which to ride, cavalettis and jumps to train over over, , another horse for your partner to ride ... as I said at the start — once the bug bites!

Last updated 24 April, 2003