Best Type & Place for Horse Purchase

[Pony Soldier]

Personally, I would look at morgans, saddlebred or tennessee walkers. I cover a lot more country - peacefully. I have found the prices lower and the personalities better. $1500 - $3,000 is the best range and if at all possible 10-12 years old. However they have been harder to find.

I have avoided cowboy horses as much as possible.

 

[doverpack12]

Personally, I would look at morgans, saddlebred or tennessee walkers. I cover a lot more country - peacefully. I have found the prices lower and the personalities better. $1500 - $3,000 is the best range and if at all possible 10-12 years old. However they have been harder to find.

I have avoided cowboy horses as much as possible.

How well do the gaited horses mix with non gaited? I’ve found even at a walk the gaiteds tend to outwalk some non gaited. If they are a good gaited horse they seem to be able to regulate their speed if they are following. A lot of the gaited horses from the south are trained to just go full out and don’t know how to regulate their pace.

 

[Pony Soldier]

The saddlebred can easily make the rest hustle but they seem to adjust. I run a string of morgans or at least part. I've had couple of morgan- paso fino crosses that have been very good. I like to cover a lot of miles with minimum problems. I've only had two vet visits in 50 years.

 

[BKehoe05]

For 5k you might be able to find a decent horse but I would plan to spend $7500.00.

My deal when purchasing from an unknown person is as follows-

Here is a check for the agreed upon $$$. I want the horse for 30 days and I will have it vet checked etc. If the horse is healthy and works I will keep it. If the horse gets hurt while under my care- I own it... If the horse just is not a good fit or doesn't pass the vet check I am bringing it back...

If I am buying from a known individual/trainer or other that I trust I generally have the horse vetted and bring it home. In Idaho I would be looking for a horse that comes out or off of one of the Simplot Ranches or better yet feed lots...

IMO you are not going to find a better horse for trail riding and/or packing than a gelding who has spent several years in a feed lot.

I’m sure not calling you into question here but I have yet to see anyone who has a worthwhile horse agreeing to hold a check without cashing it and let you off the property with the horse.

In Texas if you want to play with the horse for 30 days as you suggest, it usually involves a lease fee.

Vet checks are/should be done before Any agreement or money (even checks) change hands. If the seller won’t let you vet check, pick another horse. Anything over $5k consider insuring.

Also as one of the posters above stated, good solid grade horses can be had for less than $3k. If you spend over $5k on a grade horse (especially a trail/pack horse) you better be able to shoot off it.

Going to a sale barn auction you are likely to get junk but if you go to a monthly catalogue sale in which the seller is required to provide photos and videos as well as a background on the horse, you can find solid horses.

 

[wymtnpounder]

You guys saying you're getting 5000$ mountain horses, either haven't been to a horse sale lately or are getting a hell of a good deal. I watched some of the billings horse sale last night and it seemed more horses over10k than under.
And I've never heard of someone letting you try a broke horse for 30 days.

 

[missjordan]

Horse market crazy right now. Lots of ‘trail’ horses bringing performance horse prices at auction

Not saying you can’t find a needle in a haystack but today’s market definitely makes it a lot harder to do so


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[TreeWalking]

How the heck do you unlike or unthank a post? Not that I don't like it. Have no idea how that showed up.

Click the symbol once to activate, once more to deactivate. So if accidentally "thumbs up" then click one more time and poof, thumb is gone.

 

[stumpy waters]

Click the symbol once to activate, once more to deactivate. So if accidentally "thumbs up" then click one more time and poof, thumb is gone.

Man that was from almost 5 years ago. Covid is over can stop reading old threads now.

 

[Fordguy]

Some people.might think this is a strange idea, but if you just want an inexpensive horse to ride and pack through the mountains, why not consider an off the track Standardbred, that is if you or your family members have any experience training horses. You might be able to find one that has been used as a brood mare for a few years for under a grand, sometimes a lot less- heck, one of the farms I worked for as a kid used to almost give away the broodmares who'd had 4 or 5 colts that didn't make money.

I've made several of them into riding horses, just make sure the one you pick isn't retired because it broke down on the track. They can be incredibly tough animals, they're usually easy to train for riding, calm around vehicles (if they've been on the track) and they have a lot of endurance (which doesn't mean that you won't have to keep them in condition). A horse that's been used to pull a sulky will tend to tolerate a lot. They're used to things bouncing along behind them, they've worn a harness, so saddle training and packing isn't usually a difficult step for them. Oh, and if you plan to do more than walk, buy a pacer that didn't need hobbles. For gaits it will walk, it will pace, and it will lope (after some work). A trotter will have a walk and a huge trot (not what you want on the trail) and usually a very short strided gallop instead of a lope.
I'm not saying it's the best option, Just a thought for the DIY bargain hunter.

I've always enjoyed putting in the work myself, but I grew up with horses and there were decades of my life when I probably spent more time on a horse than I did on my own feet. Everyone has different expectations and experiences so ymmv.