The Search: Evaluation Pt. 2

The Evaluation Process Pt. 2: The Search Continues! We have revamped our “In Search Of” ads on Facebook and Craigslist. We had hoped that it would beyond REALLY SUPER CLEAR as to WHAT we are looking for. We even broke the posts/ads down into titled paragraphs! The posts/ads clearly state WHAT our goals were for this project horses and HOW MUCH our budget is. One would assume that if a normal person of average intelligence were to read the posts they would have a rough idea of what we hope to find.

One would assume incorrectly.

While the (literally) blind in one eye, over 20 years old and lameness issue horses were not suggested this round, we certainly got the “can you stretch your budget to $1200.00” and “have you looked at rescues” and “I have an untouched horse that has scared me but I want $1000.00 for it” and “why won’t you take an off-the-track Thoroughbred/Standardbred/ Warmblood breeds (we are not fans and don’t want to work with them at this time) and “you almost sound like a horse trader” commentary. We have been told by several wise ass people that “you can find what you want for that price in the same barn as the unicorn” too. Have to repeatedly ask “did you actually read the post/ad” and having to say “no thanks” over and over is wearing pretty thin. We actually had a woman try to offer us an obviously OTTB with some real issues for $5000.00 I kid you not. Another woman hounded us on Facebook because we would not increase our budget to meet her $1200.00 so she could get her money out of the horse. Her choice to spend the cash. Not our job to recoup the crazy lady’s money. We even had a woman berate us because we would not consider some Standardbred horses off the track (cart racing) and got angry with us because we kept saying “no thanks.” The best was a girlfriend trying to sell her boyfriend’s horse whom she said “didn’t have time to ride because of working so many hours” but then the boyfriend said “WTF woman! I don’t want to sell my horse!” That must have been one hell of a domestic conversation.

People are just nuts…rude and damn nuts. Makes you just want to walk away from trying to work with a project horse. These poor horses become “project horses” because of these crazy ass people. It is people like this who damage the horse industry.

Sigh.

Out of all the crap leads and crazy people this week we have two (maybe three) possible prospects to evaluate this weekend.

14 year old Quarter Horse Gelding (we were not given a name). He was rescued a few years ago. Supposedly he has had some form of training before these folks got him. Then supposedly these folks got some training on him and put about seven (7) rides in the saddle. H still has some fear issues (so much for training) and they were going to send him off for more work in 2-3 weeks. The reason the want to rehome him is they have too many horses (sigh). If you can’t manage the number of horses you have then yeas, you have overdone it. This happens all the time. This fellow is in Marysville. We see him in the morning on Friday.

14 yr. old QH Gelding

 14 yr. old QH Gelding

“Cali” is a 5 year old Quarter Horse Mare. According to her current human “Cali is 5 yr old bay roan AQHA (does this mean registered/papered) mare that's was in training for over 2.5 years (so she was started at 2.5 years old). She has a scar on front foot (he sent us a picture, it is not bad at all) but she is not nor has ever been lame. She needs more ground work done as she can be pushy sometimes She needs finishing as well. She is a sweet horse that needs some time in saddle, and a person whom wants to trail ride her. I sold her to my x-Ferrier a year ago. I bought her back because she was being abused (major karma points right there). She doesn't have any major issues... just some things like doesn't like to be clipped (we usually do not body clip our horses as it gets cold up her in the mountains). Paws in trailer (she loads) but needs more work in that area. She's is a lazy type.” So this piqued our interest. He is a friend of a friend so we are going to double check on the human but we have an appointment on Friday evening.

 5 yr old QH Mare

8 year old Quarter Horse Gelding (didn’t get a name). The humans are acquaintances in the same social circles. Bought the gelding for the husband who is a novice rider. For some reason the horse bucked him off. Husband gets disillusioned with horses and wants to rehome the horse. When we asked “when/how/where does the buck happen” the wife shared this with us. “He generally bucks when put under a lot of pressure under saddle, at least when I've seen it. He's a very sensitive horse, I really don't know much about his past other than he came from the Rio Linda area. I've had a chiropractor and vet look him over and there isn't anything obvious. The chiropractor said he had a really old rib injury but that's it. The horse needs a job! He's not spooky and was taken on the trail on Sunday and was fine.” So again we were piqued. We have seen this horse briefly before as we all ride at the same public arena. Sounds like a communication issue mixed with a bit of attitude. We may have a fix for this (grin). We hope to see this fellow on Sunday.

 8 yr. old QH Gelding

We are compiling a “B List” which includes a Friesian/Andalusian cross, and another Quarter Horse. These human have not gotten back to us to set up times to meet so they get put on the back burner.

 Friesian/Andalusian Cross

It is a journey, not a race. We are not in a rush but we also know that the days are getting shorter so any project we get will need some 4 days a week training session for the first few weeks to get things rolling along. We will have to see how it goes.

…and just for the illumination of the Reader, here is the “I.S.O Project Horse” post we crafted:

ISO: PROJECT HORSE

THE SEARCH – WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR: We are in search of a great “project horse” and could use some good leads. We have checked with all the rescues in our area and continue to do so but have not found the right candidate yet. Sadly, the horses we have be contacted about from folks (and drove many hours to see) recently have NOT been good candidates because the horses were not what the humans said they were on many levels from health issues like being blind in one eye (seriously), lame/not ridable to being WAY older than they said to…you can just imagine - so we are still looking!

HERE IS WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR – PLEASE READ FULLY: The ideal horse-candidate would be a Quarter Horse or Mustang (QH and Mustang crosses are fine. Cross Breeds are fine. We would just like to avoid Warmblood Breeds if possible for a variety of reasons), between 4 and 15 years old with some experience BEING RIDDEN ideally with at least ten (10) rides but we can be a little bit flexible on this point) with a good enough frame to handle a 200+ pound rider (that is a must, sorry). Having some positive trailer loading experience is also plus but we can work around this as needed. NO MAJOR HEALTH/LAMENESS/BLINDNESS/ DEAFNESS ISSUES (we have seen horses that are partially blind, lame due to all sorts of reasons, foundered, metabolic issues, diabetic and more) because of the expense and the time to rehabilitate them. Being underweight/overweight and general hoof and health care issues we can deal with. We get our horses on a really good diet of quality forage plus pellets, mineral and joint supplements to help them feel good again. We are prepared to deal with “typical” fear and/or neglect issues as well. We don’t care about scars (as long as they don’t impede the horse’s movement and enjoyment of life), pasture dings and the evidence of living outdoors. They are HORSES for goodness sake! We would like the horse to be LESS than 200 miles/ 3 hours away from our home in Placerville, CA.

THE GOAL: Our #1 “goal” is to help the horse get a solid foundation of ground skills, social skills and skills under saddle so that they can eventually go in any direction that they have an aptitude for which will (in theory) help them be valued equine citizens that would appeal to the average horse owning family. For this to happen we need a horse as described above and why we have such specific needs listed who can stay in some form of consistent training for at least four (4) months or longer as the horse may need. It’s a journey, not a race. Our #2 “goal” is to improve our horsemanship. Working with a variety of horses helps us improve our skills (no, we are not professionals) and helps us grow as students of the horse. We also have a great network of professional trainers to call upon should we run into any issues that fall outside our own skill set. This means the horse and the human both get the support they need. This is a labor of love and we only take in 1 to 2 horses per year if we find the right candidates. Our #3 goal is to find the right family for the horse. The family gets interviewed to ensure that they understand the horse, its strengths, challenges and communication needs. We also try to offset the expenses incurred with a fair market price if possible.

WHEN WE VISIT: When we make the trip out to see a possible candidate we will hopefully be able to do the following: Work the horse on the ground on and off a lead line to see how the move and react to a variety of exercise/skill requests (we are looking to see how well the horse “tries” with a human). We are looking at overall health/conformation. We will bring our saddle to make sure it fits the horse. We want to see the CURRENT OWNER ride the horse if possible. If everything checks out we will ride. If we can test trailer loading and standing tied we will.

OUR BUDGET: Because this is a project horse that we KNOW is going to need quite a bit of work on a variety of skills and that the market is flooded with “cheap horses” that cannot be rehomed we are willing to go as high as $500.00. We are going to put A LOT of sweat equity into the horse and take care of the equine issues that may be contributing to the need to rehome. Please understand that the condition of the horse (mental, physical and skills known) and the time of our visit is going to affect the value of the horse and our offer.

LEADS: If you have a lead please PM us with the following information: Age, Breed, Sex, Experience, Why the horse is being rehomed and a picture or two of the horse unsaddled. If we feel the horse would be a good fit for our “program” we will make arrangements to come and meet!

Thanks!