A Cowboy Dream
Thank you for your very informative site and I really wish I had seen it before I bought my horse. My whole situation fits your scenarios to a tee, although unlike most of the stories on your site, I’m a middle-aged man instead of a middle-aged woman. You may think it would be different for me, just like the common (and probably true) perception that men are treated differently when car shopping, but I’m afraid it wasn’t.
I have always loved horses. My earliest favorite books were about Billy and Blaze and my favorite toys were Johnny West and the wide range of accompanying action figures and horses included with the series. My dad had a black and white pinto pony as a child and I spent many years wishing for a pony, or horse, of my own.
Briefly, while in my twenties, I owned a really great Quarter horse cross. Life interfered and I had to sell her when my company moved me to a city. I am now settled back home in the west and am semi-retired. The first (and most anticipated) item to cross off my bucket list was the purchase of a horse!
When I went out to see a very appealing mare, I took a more experienced person (a farrier friend) along. He thought the horse was perfect for me. The seller was dang nice, and sure looked the part of a cowgirl. However, I chose to ignore several red flags and started second-guessing myself. My first real clue was that the horse was stiff at first. As we rode, she warmed up and the stiffness disappeared. She was also sleepy. There was only a small area to ride in, which my farrier friend thought was strange because of the large number of horses these traders offered for sale. I later found out that the seller had allowed a friend to work the mare for 10 hours at a nearby auction barn the day before we came out to look at her. No wonder the horse seemed so tired and stiff.
This horse sounded too good to be true, especially in my price range, but I suppose I was naive. I was looking for a mellow horse for a rusty, somewhat timid, older rider. The advertisement said the mare was a “beginner-go-as-fast-or-as-slow-as-you-want” horse. It did strike me as unusual since the mare had been trained and used for cutting. I repeatedly asked the seller if she felt the mare would adjust to a more sedentary life as a trail horse. The seller described herself as a "fairly inexperienced" lady, yet she could hop on this mare anytime, bareback with a halter, and she was always on the same horse. The seller said she wanted a faster horse “with more go and endurance”. I couldn’t help but notice that the other horse they were selling that day fit that description perfectly.
I bought that mare. Other folks thought she would appreciate a vacation, and some TLC. NOT. The mare had no ground manners! She kicked when I tried to clean her feet; she pulled back when her halter was unbuckled (my dog or any other small animal would have been killed). She would not stand still for mounting, even when held (I had previously introduced her to a mounting block). I’m 60 years old and I don’t jump onto moving targets well. TLC seemed to make her nervous. I was afraid the pulling back would progress to flipping while she was tied, and she was very hard to ride, so I returned her after two weeks.
The trader wouldn’t give my money back but wanted to do an exchange for another horse she had, already saddled and waiting for me to try. She told me that this one was a nice horse and just like the one I returned. Now, why would I want one just like the horse I returned? I didn’t even look at her, and again requested a refund. The trader said she was headed to a large auction in Wyoming soon, and would have access to over 300 animals, many of which were trail/pleasure horses. She asked what color I would like. I replied that I really didn’t care about color; I just wanted a nice pleasure horse. In fact, with all those horses from which to chose, maybe she would look for a gaited horse instead of a Quarter horse. I knew a gaited horse might cost a little more, but it sounded like a good idea. The seller said she would call me when she got back from the auction. Later, I thought about it, and was afraid the woman would take advantage of me again. I tried twice to call her but she never returned my calls.
Well…I checked out the auction website myself and noted that the 300 loose horses she had described were mostly destined for slaughter. The auction also listed a number of catalogued horses, but I was scared to death she would bring back only horses from the first group.
Almost two weeks passed before I heard anything from the trader. I was tempted just to walk away from my money for safety reasons, but she had never asked me to return the brand inspection and bill-of-sale on the mare (I guess she’d forgotten), so I hung on.
It turned out that she had come back from the auction empty-handed. Perhaps she never went at all. She offered to sell my mare for me “on consignment” without giving me any details or terms. I offered them a “restocking fee” in exchange for most of my money, which they eventually accepted and returned. I think it helped that I still had the brand inspection, and had never signed ownership back to them when I returned the mare.
I guess it worked out okay. I didn’t get hurt, and I surely could have. The mare was fine and healthy when I returned her. Might have been much worse.
I have always loved horses. My earliest favorite books were about Billy and Blaze and my favorite toys were Johnny West and the wide range of accompanying action figures and horses included with the series. My dad had a black and white pinto pony as a child and I spent many years wishing for a pony, or horse, of my own.
Briefly, while in my twenties, I owned a really great Quarter horse cross. Life interfered and I had to sell her when my company moved me to a city. I am now settled back home in the west and am semi-retired. The first (and most anticipated) item to cross off my bucket list was the purchase of a horse!
When I went out to see a very appealing mare, I took a more experienced person (a farrier friend) along. He thought the horse was perfect for me. The seller was dang nice, and sure looked the part of a cowgirl. However, I chose to ignore several red flags and started second-guessing myself. My first real clue was that the horse was stiff at first. As we rode, she warmed up and the stiffness disappeared. She was also sleepy. There was only a small area to ride in, which my farrier friend thought was strange because of the large number of horses these traders offered for sale. I later found out that the seller had allowed a friend to work the mare for 10 hours at a nearby auction barn the day before we came out to look at her. No wonder the horse seemed so tired and stiff.
This horse sounded too good to be true, especially in my price range, but I suppose I was naive. I was looking for a mellow horse for a rusty, somewhat timid, older rider. The advertisement said the mare was a “beginner-go-as-fast-or-as-slow-as-you-want” horse. It did strike me as unusual since the mare had been trained and used for cutting. I repeatedly asked the seller if she felt the mare would adjust to a more sedentary life as a trail horse. The seller described herself as a "fairly inexperienced" lady, yet she could hop on this mare anytime, bareback with a halter, and she was always on the same horse. The seller said she wanted a faster horse “with more go and endurance”. I couldn’t help but notice that the other horse they were selling that day fit that description perfectly.
I bought that mare. Other folks thought she would appreciate a vacation, and some TLC. NOT. The mare had no ground manners! She kicked when I tried to clean her feet; she pulled back when her halter was unbuckled (my dog or any other small animal would have been killed). She would not stand still for mounting, even when held (I had previously introduced her to a mounting block). I’m 60 years old and I don’t jump onto moving targets well. TLC seemed to make her nervous. I was afraid the pulling back would progress to flipping while she was tied, and she was very hard to ride, so I returned her after two weeks.
The trader wouldn’t give my money back but wanted to do an exchange for another horse she had, already saddled and waiting for me to try. She told me that this one was a nice horse and just like the one I returned. Now, why would I want one just like the horse I returned? I didn’t even look at her, and again requested a refund. The trader said she was headed to a large auction in Wyoming soon, and would have access to over 300 animals, many of which were trail/pleasure horses. She asked what color I would like. I replied that I really didn’t care about color; I just wanted a nice pleasure horse. In fact, with all those horses from which to chose, maybe she would look for a gaited horse instead of a Quarter horse. I knew a gaited horse might cost a little more, but it sounded like a good idea. The seller said she would call me when she got back from the auction. Later, I thought about it, and was afraid the woman would take advantage of me again. I tried twice to call her but she never returned my calls.
Well…I checked out the auction website myself and noted that the 300 loose horses she had described were mostly destined for slaughter. The auction also listed a number of catalogued horses, but I was scared to death she would bring back only horses from the first group.
Almost two weeks passed before I heard anything from the trader. I was tempted just to walk away from my money for safety reasons, but she had never asked me to return the brand inspection and bill-of-sale on the mare (I guess she’d forgotten), so I hung on.
It turned out that she had come back from the auction empty-handed. Perhaps she never went at all. She offered to sell my mare for me “on consignment” without giving me any details or terms. I offered them a “restocking fee” in exchange for most of my money, which they eventually accepted and returned. I think it helped that I still had the brand inspection, and had never signed ownership back to them when I returned the mare.
I guess it worked out okay. I didn’t get hurt, and I surely could have. The mare was fine and healthy when I returned her. Might have been much worse.
For the next story, click A Terrible Disease
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