How to Read a "Horse for Sale" Ad

Here's the ad, more or less (this is from my imperfect memory -- I've underlined the parts I'm sure of; the rest is approximate):

"8yo reg. gelding, chestnut, 4 stockings. Lovely mover. Very affectionate. Clips, loads, stands for farrier. Loves trail riding. Always ready to go. Gets along well with other horses. Suitable for any discipline. 30 days professional training. Child safe."

Here's the truth, more or less:

A local trainer (Jane) known for working with difficult/impossible horses gets a call from a former client. They've bought their daughter a new horse, and she can't ride him. They want to send him to Hell Camp for 30 days. So Jane takes him.

The horse, though lovely, is very difficult. When Jane takes him trail riding, HE TRIES TO MOUNT THE MARES WHILE THEY ARE BEING RIDDEN. He has a host of other problems, and Jane determines that he is "proud cut" (hasn't been completely gelded). When the 30 days are up, Jane admits defeat. "Send this horse back where you got him. You'll never be able to use him for your daughter. In fact, I'm not sure anybody can use him."

So the people returned the horse. When they checked the seller's web site later, they found the ad for their horse, written above.

It is true that he  had 30 days of professional training (where he flunked out). It is true that he loves trail riding (especially if there are any pretty mares to mount). It is true that he is lovely. But he will never, ever be child safe.

Sometimes you have to read between the lines.

Comments

[I Gallop On]

That's very sad. Poor horse. And shame on those sellers for trying to pawn a problem off on a child. When we sold our old POA, who'd clocked so many miles carrying my little kiddos in the mountains, I ran down his entire list of bad pony habits and curmudgeonly ways in their entirety with the woman who did wind up buying him for her pre-school kids (she's a classical rider who's studied in Europe and also a very adept trainer) on the phone before she ever made the decision to come out and see him. Then I encouraged her to come out with the kids and spend some time with him on a few occasions, so she knew all about him.

Grrr. I don't have much respect for people who'd write an ad like that.

[Learninghorses]

I'm horse shopping right now, doesn't help my confidence.

[Sue]

Yikes! My eyes just about popped out of my head re: mare mounting whilst trail riding.
As I gear myself up to start thinking about seriously considering buying my own horse :), I'll be keeping my eye out for stories like this one.

[Anne]

Yes, it is sad. The good thing is that when people start doing things like this the word gets around. Eventually. I was going to look at some horses these people had and was warned off even before this incident.

[transylvanianhorseman]

Selling horses can bring out the worst in some people. Last time I bought a horse in Britain, the vet asked to take a blood sample to check for doping. Seems that doping is quite common. Luckily that horse was merely far greener than the seller made out. Putting someone's child at risk with a tricky horse is really wrong, how can someone like that sleep at night?