Horse Talk

[abigalerose]

Easy, now. I've been a bit rough on the OP myself at times, but I think this is going a bit too far. She is young, and like a lot of young people, she has let herself get carried away at times. She has made mistakes, she admits to them, and she is learning from them. With the possible exception of Indie and Reno (who, if I recall, came as a package deal) I believe every horse the OP has had was acquired with the intent of keeping that animal long-term. Horses don't work out, people make you offers you can't refuse; there are lots of reasons that one might sell a horse that I don't consider "flipping." I worked for a time for a woman who was buying with the intent of selling, and I must admit, a lot of the time, I felt like an enabler. She wasn't cruel, just indifferent, and I reasoned that she'd do what she did whether or not I was involved, so I made it my job to try to make their time with her have as little chaos in it as possible.

I do remember Penelope (a champagne colored gaited horse - was she a Tennessee Walker?) that I seem to think was brought in because her gaits would make her easy for an older family member to ride. I believe abigalerose is trying to do right by the animals, which is part of the reason that the geldings are getting moved on. Recognizing that they are in over their head or getting stretched too thin and so need to scale things back is a responsible move for anyone to make, even if it means more disruption in already disrupted lives.

Thank you! You're spot on. Reno and Indie are the only ones I intended to sell, but then I fell in love and kept them, now I'm selling them anyways but for completely different reasons and for their best interest.
And close! Penelope was a fox trotter, I actually took her on trade because the original rescue wasn't working out (injuring June), and I had hoped that she would turn into a good smooth horse for my grandpa but I never got around to starting her, or restarting her, I should say, she needed a lot of work because she was trained as a show horse (?) and responded to weird cues.
But I could give a complete, detailed history on every horse I've owned, how much I gave for them and how much I sold them for, and why I sold them, if anyone wants to hear it.
I definitely care about them all, but it's been a learning experience for me, being the only horse loving one in my family (besides my cousin who sees horses as a business), and having parents who aren't into ANYTHING farm related, and an old fashioned grandpa who doesn't believe in riding lessons and trainers etc., ive had to figure some things out for myself and make a few mistakes, but I like where im at now, I've learned SO much, I have a plan, and I have the two best horses I could ask for

 

[abigalerose]

Really? Why?
Ohhh okay, yeah i didn't mean hire people but they could post an ad for volunteers

Agreed. They might have some now, but they didn't last time I was there, they've made a lot of improvements over the last year though, they're still a fairly new rescue so hopefully they can keep improving and get all the kinks worked out

 

[ShrekDawg]

Agreed. They might have some now, but they didn't last time I was there, they've made a lot of improvements over the last year though, they're still a fairly new rescue so hopefully they can keep improving and get all the kinks worked out

Ohhhh okay, I hadn't realized they were new

Hopefully they do get everything worked out

 

[tastyacres]

I have found if someone actually wants her then they will be willing to do what ever you want them to!

 

[PeepersMama]

Although the horses they take in are taken out of a bad situation, have their health addressed, get trained, and get a shot at finding a really good home, I do think they should take a step back and downsize a little, I'd hate to see them go overboard and flop, they're some of the most honest and kind hearted horse people I've met.

Don't use craigslist!! There's a lot of great groups on Facebook, start there. And make the ad a little more vague than what I said, then when people inquire you can start a friendly conversation and cover all the things that need to be addressed without doing it all at once and making buyers think you're a big scary crazy person who doesn't really want to sell their horse.
Or you know, you could just bring her to me! Lol.
P.S. I do want to see a picture of her because I can't for the life of me picture what she looks like right now and there's way to many posts on here to go back and find one.

Oh, and what do you mean by she needs a boat load of work but is bomb proof? Am I reading something wrong?

Good idea. She used to be a pack horse, so she let's people on her back no problem, but once she's off-lead she's either too stubborn to do what she's told or she doesn't know what to do - hard to tell with her

She doesn't really "like" plastic bags, but she doesn't react super crazy - and she's.... An unridden, CRAZY moody, 20 year old Arabian, sooo.... Haha

Lemme switch to desktop so I can post a pic of her for you

 

[The Moonshiner]

I'm also not "flipping" any horses and I remember every single horse I've had and who and where I got them from, and what their names were when I got them and what I renamed them, etc. and have only accidentally placed ONE in a dishonest home, and that was the first horse I sold, and he should've been a horse I kept for life but I thought it was best. So that was a lesson for me.
And I do understand the commitment of owning a horse, in fact I understand it so much that if I own a horse I don't click with or don't have time for but still like (like Reno and Indie), I do the right thing and find them good homes where they WILL get time spent with them. Maybe you can't understand that, but I would rather resell a horse than have it sit out in the pasture and never get messed with because we don't get along, that's not fair to the horse and IMO worse, because I'd be keeping, and neglecting, a horse that I don't care much about for no good reason when I know there's a better home for him or her out there.
If you found just the right horse on the first try than good for you.
I have the right horses now, I could NEVER let June and Jasmine go and I have lots of plans for them, and I also don't plan on bringing home anymore horses unless it's under very particular circumstances, which probably won't happen. And I'm not happy about selling Reno and Indie, I do really like them, but the thought of having a green broke horse, a weanling, and 2 that need started was too overwhelming and I knew I'd end up not doing

Thats all well and good. And I do understand what you are saying. Youre right about getting a better home. But my thoughts are you need to quit dragging horses home just because the opportunity presents itself. All this not clicking with a horse or not having time or not this or that should of been thought about before getting the horse and putting it in the position of needing rehomed again.
If you dont have time for another one you should know that and not bring another home. You need to spend more time with one before bringing it home and see if you click. That whole idea of bringing one home then figuring out if you will click makes me cringe. You need to know exactly what you want and work with the seller to make sure its a great fit before purchase. I cant see treating a horse like a pair of shoes and getting rid of them after you get them home and dont like the fit.
Im not trying to be on your case just giving you something to think about.

 

[KaylorFarms]

My avatar is a paint horse.

 

[PeepersMama]

Okay i found the post easier than i'd expected to

 

[The Moonshiner]

Easy, now. I've been a bit rough on the OP myself at times, but I think this is going a bit too far. She is young, and like a lot of young people, she has let herself get carried away at times. She has made mistakes, she admits to them, and she is learning from them. With the possible exception of Indie and Reno (who, if I recall, came as a package deal) I believe every horse the OP has had was acquired with the intent of keeping that animal long-term. Horses don't work out, people make you offers you can't refuse; there are lots of reasons that one might sell a horse that I don't consider "flipping." I worked for a time for a woman who was buying with the intent of selling, and I must admit, a lot of the time, I felt like an enabler. She wasn't cruel, just indifferent, and I reasoned that she'd do what she did whether or not I was involved, so I made it my job to try to make their time with her have as little chaos in it as possible.

I do remember Penelope (a champagne colored gaited horse - was she a Tennessee Walker?) that I seem to think was brought in because her gaits would make her easy for an older family member to ride. I believe abigalerose is trying to do right by the animals, which is part of the reason that the geldings are getting moved on. Recognizing that they are in over their head or getting stretched too thin and so need to scale things back is a responsible move for anyone to make, even if it means more disruption in already disrupted lives.

Its all good and sorry you feel I took it to far with her.
I get the reasons horses are rehomed. IMO 5 or 6 or how ever many shes rehomed in the last year or so is too many. She needs to use better judgement about bringing horses home in the first place.

 

[abigalerose]

I have found if someone actually wants her then they will be willing to do what ever you want them to!

Yes!! After the first incident I had where I sold my mustang to the wrong person, I'm not afraid to say what I want and if it's too much for someone then fine, I'll find a better home who loves the horse enough to agree with me on my terms, the right person is out there.

Good idea. She used to be a pack horse, so she let's people on her back no problem, but once she's off-lead she's either too stubborn to do what she's told or she doesn't know what to do - hard to tell with her

She doesn't really "like" plastic bags, but she doesn't react super crazy - and she's.... An unridden, CRAZY moody, 20 year old Arabian, sooo.... Haha

Lemme switch to desktop so I can post a pic of her for you

Someone will want her! I'm sure you can find her a good home where she gets to be a pasture buddy for a younger horse who's feeling a little lonely

Thats all well and good. And I do understand what you are saying. Youre right about getting a better home. But my thoughts are you need to quit dragging horses home just because the opportunity presents itself. All this not clicking with a horse or not having time or not this or that should of been thought about before getting the horse and putting it in the position of needing rehomed again.
If you dont have time for another one you should know that and not bring another home. You need to spend more time with one before bringing it home and see if you click. That whole idea of bringing one home then figuring out if you will click makes me cringe. You need to know exactly what you want and work with the seller to make sure its a great fit before purchase. I cant see treating a horse like a pair of shoes and getting rid of them after you get them home and dont like the fit.
Im not trying to be on your case just giving you something to think about.

It's not that I don't have time, I could make the time to train all 4 of them and spend time riding them every week/day, but it's that I'm feeling overwhelmed by it, and I've never had this many horses at once before, so I couldn't have predicted that I'd feel overwhelmed, it just happened. And as for spending more time with them before hand, that's not always realistic, a lot of the horses have come from hours away, so I have to base my decision off of one visit, if I'm lucky I can spend time with them for an hour or so before deciding, and a lot of people won't hold a horse for you while you think about it. I was lucky when I got June because she was local and I did go and see her twice before making my decision and having someone pick her up for me, but that's not always how it works. And they told me straight up that if I wanted her, to pay for her because if someone else came along they were going to go ahead and sell her. I'm glad I didn't take more time to think about and miss out on her, and it sucks it didn't work out the same with the other horses, but sometimes it just doesn't.
And I've already said I won't be getting any more, so.

But you're still being judgey, why does it matter how many it took me to find the right ones? At least I take good care of them and make sure I get them into good homes and stay updated on them. And I've taken in 2 rescues and got them back to a healthy weight and I've learned something from every single horse I've owned. There are a lot worse people than me out there.
I'd also like to say that the first three horses I had were picked and bought by my grandpa, and weren't the right horses for me for MANY reasons, and not because I didn't "click" with them, I LOVED two of them, but I was super inexperienced and a lot younger and 2 were not trained and one was a high strung young green broke horse with a big motor.
I don't think there's any rule saying that you have to buy one horse and stick with it forever to be a good horseman.
I only know 3 other horse loving people, 2 are girls I went to school with and don't really talk to (one is a single mom with not a lot of money who always gets cheap project horses and the other is a barrel racer with high dollar horses and she buys young ones, trains and shows them, and sells them for $5,000 and up) and the other person is my cousin and we already know how she is with horses. And all 3 of these people have owned more horses than I have.
So I'm not understanding why it's such a big deal that I've bought and sold a few horses.
I mean take a look at @PeepersMama, she's going to be selling a 20 year old horse because she's getting a new one, and it's even a horse she likes, so why aren't you judging her?