Things to Consider When Buying A Dressage Horse
Things To Consider When Buying a Dressage Horse
By Maribeth Dunlap
July 2012
There are many important things to think about and consider before buying a dressage horse. Horses, in general, are expensive propositions and choosing the right horse can be a difficult task. Many owners make mistakes and end up with a horse that is unsuitable or one that they may even regret purchasing. Having a clear idea of your goals and expectations will help you to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses - yours and the prospective horse - and determine if prospective mounts are suitable for achieving your goals.
Before beginning your search, ask yourself the following questions:
1. What are your goals?
2. Do you want a trustworthy companion that you can enjoy learning on or do you have competition goals in mind and are looking for a talented dressage prospect?
3. Why are you interested in studying dressage and are you prepared to invest the time, money and energy in your education?
4. What are your abilities and skill level? Do you have the ability to train or have a trainer available to assist you with this horse and with your education? How far to you want to advance? Do you want to compete this horse?
5. Your budget? Do you have room to keep a horse? Can you afford the expense of feeding and caring for a horse which can cost an average of $3000 to $6000 for basic care?
6. Do you have time? Horses require lots of time and energy from us. Do you have the time to commit on a daily basis to your horse?
7. What is your personality type? Are you a timid, cautious rider? Or are you a strong, confident rider?
The next step is to honestly consider the qualities that you want in a horse while keeping in mind your goals and abilities:
1. Temperament/Personality/Trainability/Compatibility:
These are the most important things when looking for a horse and top on my list. After knowing what you really want out of owning your next horse, you need to make it your ambition to find the "right partner" for you. Many riders set out to find the best horse in their price range and don't consider the compatibility issue. Successful buyers take the attitude that they are searching for the best horse for them, not just the best horse they can get for the money. Assuming that you buy a horse suited to meet your goals, the three most important issues that will determine your happiness are compatibility, compatibility, and compatibility. Like a good friendship or marriage, a natural chemistry has to be there. Because dressage is mentally and physically challenging, it is important to find a horse that is willing and eager to please. Look for a horse with a good work ethic and enjoys the challenge of dressage work versus a horse who becomes sour and looks for ways to avoid the work. It is also important to look for a horse that is not easily rattled by mistakes made by the rider, but accepts them with patience. It is important to be comfortable and enjoy working with him knowing that you have a solid partnership. Just like people, horses have different personalities. It is important to find a horse that compliments your personality and doesn't clash with it. Just like choosing a spouse, you want a horse that works well with you, not against you. A high-spirited rider may want to consider a less-spirited horse to help offset his personality. Whereas, the laid-back rider could consider a higher energy horse. The horse and rider combinations of similar personalities can result in disastrous results as the horse feeds off the emotions of the rider.
2. Gaits and Soundness:
Then I look at gaits and soundness. All dressage horses must have 3 true gaits to start out with. This means that the walk, trot, and canter must all be regular and show good rhythm. The prospective horse must also be sound. Any irregularities in the gaits would set off alarm bells in my brain.
3. Conformation:
Ideally, a dressage horse has an “uphill” appearance and is the picture of strength, balance and symmetry. A dressage horse should be proportionate when looking at the length of the front end, back and hindquarter. Ultimately, the horse’s conformation affects his soundness, quality of gaits and balance. As the horse progresses in his training, conformational defects become more of a factor. When the horse moves, he should move with elastic, free strides and there should be a quality of harmony in his steps. He should appear to move like he is going uphill and should show a desire to move forward effortlessly.
4. Level of Training:
The level of training is another very important factor to consider in your dressage prospect. What is the prospect's level of training? Is the horse a young dressage prospect who hasn't yet started his official dressage training? Or does this horse have a substantial amount of dressage training? These are key factors that you need to consider along with your training ability and skill level. If you are a novice rider wanting to learn, then it makes most sense to find a horse that knows more than you do and is already familiar with the levels that you are interested in riding. The idea of "learning together" is never a good idea but many riders end up in this situation. The "green" horse and "green" rider partnership often leads to a lot of frustration, overall dissatisfaction, and negative riding experience. This is especially true with dressage where the learning curve is exceptionally large. The rider must be secure and clear with his aids if he wants to teach his horse, just as the trained horse must be secure in his movements in order to tolerate the inconsistent aids of a novice rider. I highly recommend buying as much training as you can afford and to purchase a horse who is trained at least a couple levels higher than your current skill level. This will help to ensure that you develop a strong dressage foundation before you experience the challenges of teaching a "green" horse. If, however, you are an experienced rider, then purchasing a talented young dressage prospect could be a fun and rewarding challenge.
5. Age:
An older horse, who has seen the world, is a great horse for the novice rider. Many riders make the mistake of passing up the older horse but many healthy, sound horses can be ridden well into their senior years. Older horses offer so much to the rider in the way of gaining confidence. These horses allow the rider to learn and make progress in a safe and enjoyable way. Daily exercise is good for the older horse and is what helps to keep them sound. Buying a young horse can be a risk in that you don't know if they can mentally or physically handle the challenges of advanced dressage work. So clearly knowing what your goals and personal objectives are will help you to decide which direction to go in.
6. Size:
Take your own size and fitness into account when choosing a new horse. A small rider on a large horse can be challenging as it can take a lot of strength and balance to ride a horse correctly while performing the movements of dressage. On the other hand, a tall rider on a short horse can sometimes not feel the most balanced. It is important to feel balanced and comfortable on a horse. You should be able to sit without much effort all three gaits of the horse.
7. Sex:
Many people have opinions about mares versus geldings but really there is no reason to choose a horse based on this factor alone. Mares have reputations for being more moody but they should be evaluated on an individual basis. Generally, only experienced horse people will look for a stallion.
8. Resale:
One of the last things to consider is the resale value of the horse. If this partnership does not work, can I sell this horse and not lose money and will I have enough money to purchase another horse? While it is strange to think about this in the beginning, it is a practical question to ask yourself when considering a horse. Sometimes the partnership doesn't form between the rider and the horse or something can change that causes the owner to have to make the decision to sell the horse.
The next things to consider, some worth repeating, are the following:
1. Does this horse fit my needs?
2. Does this horse have the desired level of training to achieve my goals?
3. Does this horse have a good temperament and is compatible with mine?
4. Did I do comparisons of other similar horses? How does this one compare?
Look at a lot of horses and make many comparisons. Don't buy a horse on first sight. Try the horse out, try it again, and maybe come back in a week and try it again. Ask lots of questions. Go home and think about it for a few days. Take plenty of time to be absolutely sure you've chosen the right horse that is most suitable for you.
5. Does the horse fit the selling price and my budget?
6. Can I afford the upkeep on this horse?
Horse ownership is a big responsibility. Horses don’t stop eating and drinking on the weekend when you want to go away. The expenses don’t stop because you want to spend the money elsewhere, or you’ve been unable to work. Be honest about the time and money you are able to spend on a horse. It might be worthwhile to investigate other options besides horse ownership. Taking regular riding lessons on schoolmasters might get you closer to your desired goal and better meet your current budget than absorbing the expense associated with horse ownership. There's a lot to be considered to taking the regular riding lesson and leaving all the other expense and fuss to someone else.
Here is a short, incomplete list of expenses that you should consider:
1. Cost of boarding a horse - usually a monthly expense,
2. Farrier expense - should plan on every 6 to 8 weeks,
3. Veterinarian expense - vaccinations, routine exams, emergency vet calls, etc.,
4. Worming, dental, miscellaneous expense,
5. Tack and equipment expense,
6. Riding clothing and boots expense,
7. Training and lesson expense,
8. Trailering expense - do I own my own truck/trailer or will I have to hire transport,
9. If I keep my horse at home - cost of hay, grain, maintenance of property,
10. Time expense - plan to spend a lot of time with your horse.
7. Did I get professional advice?
If you are an inexperienced horse person, it would be best to contact a local dressage trainer or instructor to help you in making your decision. Professionals are experts in the field and they understand the importance of a good horse and rider relationship. They often have horses for sale or lease or know many people that do. This will open options and help ensure that you choose the right horse. If they have not worked with you previously, they may ask you to come for a riding lesson so that they can evaluate your skill level and riding style to help in providing suitable options. They may also ask you to answer many of the questions discussed previously in this article to help eliminate those mounts that are not in your best interest. Ask the professional to accompany you in looking at prospective mounts. You will most likely have to pay for her/his time to do this but it will save you time in the long run to get a professional opinion right away.
8. Are there any lessons with this sale?
This is a really good idea to help establish a good partnership with your new horse. Working with the trainer or previous owner can help you to better understand the strengths and weaknesses of your new horse and help you to start out on a good path of understanding between you and your new horse.
9. Pre-purchase vet exam?
Always have your prospect checked out by a qualified veterinarian. Keep in mind though that nobody is perfect and this applies to horses as well. Most horses are likely to have something that is not perfect. The question though is how will this imperfection affect what you want to do with this horse? The answer to this question should determine if and how you will proceed. Consulting with your veterinarian will help to determine if this is the right horse for you or not in terms of soundness and use. Often, if the veterinarian finds something in the initial exam, he/she may recommend taking a set of x-rays. This is a good idea and will help to answer anything that might be questionable about the future soundness of the horse. I typically have x-rays taken of all horses that I am seriously considering purchasing. Not only does this help to assure that the horse is sound and has nothing going on "under the skin" but these x-rays are then kept in the horse's file and serve as a baseline for future evaluations.
So now that you have honestly answered the questions above and have taken into consideration many of the factors associated with horse ownership, the next thing is to have a plan about how and where to look for a dressage prospect. I always recommend working with a trusted professional. This can be your instructor, a trainer you've worked with before, or someone you don't know but has been recommended to you. Explain in detail to the professional your strengths and weaknesses, and your goals and skill level, and ask him/her to help you find the right horse for you.
You can also look on your own and then send the information to the professional for their opinion. There are many places to search. Classified advertisements in magazines and on-line classified websites are often full of horses for sale. There are also some very good websites that just deal mainly with dressage prospects and horses that are bred or already trained in dressage. Look at websites of professional trainers as they will often have a 'sales page' and list horses that they have for sale. Once you find some horses that might work for you, call the owners or sales agents, and talk to them about the horses. Write down a list of questions beforehand and have this list in front of you when you make the phone calls. If the prospect still sounds like something that might work for you, ask for a video and some photos to evaluate and to take to your professional to evaluate. Videos are very imperfect ways to buy a horse as they can often hide strengths and weaknesses but they will give you an idea of what the horse is like.
If you still like the horse, then arrange for an appointment to go see the horse. Ask your professional to accompany you. When going to see the horse, show up on time. Being late is unacceptable. Come in or bring appropriate riding attire. Meet the horse and look him over and assess his over-all appearance. Take note of his personality, does he come right away to meet you or does he stand off or go to the other end of his stall. What is his expression like? Is he curious and friendly, grumpy and sullen, flighty and nervous? These are all clues to his personality and compatibility. Watch closely as the owner/agent handles him, tacks him up, leads him. How does he behave? Is he calm or is he nervous? What is the environment like? Is it a calm, quiet atmosphere or a chaotic, hectic one? How does the horse respond to the environment and outside stimuli? Ask the owner/agent to school the dressage prospect first. Watch closely how he handles the horse and how the horse responds. Does the horse need to be longed first before being ridden and how does he behave on the longe line. Does the horse stand quietly to be mounted? How does the rider start the horse out? Is he started right away on contact and ridden forward or is he started on a long rein in the walk? Your dressage prospect should be calm and quiet the entire time he is being handled, longed and ridden unless there is a sensible reason why he would not be. How does he move? What is his expression like? Does he look like a horse I would enjoy riding? These are among the many things you have to consider. I never ride a horse first and always ask the owner/agent to first school the horse. This way I can determine if I want to waste anymore of my time, their time, or my professionals time. I also want to make sure that the horse is safe to ride. Depending upon the situation, you might want to ask your professional to ride and evaluate the horse first. He/she may say right away that this is not the 'right' horse for you. Or she may ride and suggest that you get on and ride the horse. It is often helpful to have the owner/agent or your professional to help you by giving you a mini-lesson. While riding the horse, ask yourself how this horse feels to you? Are you comfortable and feel confident on this horse? Does he feel balanced and in control? Does he have comfortable gaits? Take your time and be honest with yourself. Don't overwork the horse though. After riding the horse and you still like him, ask to handle him by leading him back to untack him. Pick up his feet, hose him off, hand-graze him, or things like this to get to know him better. Ask to come back to try him again. If you have traveled a distance, plan a weekend and ride the horse over a couple days. Ask if there are any lessons on the horse to better get to know him. And finally don't make a final decision about this horse until you have looked at other horses. Make many comparisons.
Once you have settled on a horse, go back and review all the questions above. If you have "passed go" and have gotten approval from your professional, then you need to arrange for the pre-purchase exam. This is where many sales end and people end up with hearts broken. So be prepared to hear some not so good news from your veterinarian. If you're lucky and the horse passes the pre-purchase exam with your goals and use in mind, then you make the final purchase arrangements with the owner/agent. Sometimes an owner/agent will require a deposit made on the horse prior and dependent upon the pre-purchase exam. If the horse does not pass the exam, then the money is returned, if the horse passes the exam then it is applied to the purchase price. If you decide against the sale and the horse still passes the exam, then you forfeit the deposit. Once everything has been finalized, then you can then arrange to have your horse shipped/trailered to his new home.
And this is just the beginning...
I sincerely hope that this article helps you to find the 'right' partner for you. Asking yourself and honestly answering the above questions and seriously taking into consideration all the factors in purchasing a horse can help to prevent any mistakes made and ensure a happy, productive partnership with your new dressage mount.
Best of luck and many happy rides,
Maribeth
Photo: Maribeth riding Miss Katie
This article was written by Maribeth in July 2012 – All Rights Reserved - Used With Permission.
