This mare is for sale on Craigslist. She’s an aged gray Trakehner mare, just like my first horse. According to the seller, she’s a daughter of one of the greatest jumpers ever, Abdullah.
I presently have a TB gelding and a mini, and 14 acres. My horses can’t keep my pasture grazed down, one more wouldn’t over-graze it. I easily have the resources right now to afford a third horse. My horse expenses right now are probably about $60/mo. But I don’t really need another horse. I haven’t been riding enough to justify the one riding horse I have now.
My first gray mare was a wonderful horse who died of melanoma. in part, I want this mare because she reminds me so much of Phelan. And such breeding! Abdullah was a favorite to watch when Katie Monahan was riding him.
There are pros and cons. So I need impartial opinions.
She is a beautiful horse but horses require a lot of work but you already know that. It depends on how passionate about you are with the ones you have. I wouldn’t do it at all if you are thinking about her being a rescue of any sort if your mind drifts that way but it doesn’t seem like a ton of money and a good opportunity. If you like horses that much, you will probably be kicking yourself in a few years if you don’t take advantage of the opportunity. I am not passionate enough about horses to take really good care of them but I have family members that do and they never regret having an additional one as long as they have the space and can afford it. It sounds like you have all that. I say go for it. The worst that could happen is that you would have to sell her if things don’t work out assuming she has no serious health problems. She probably has a few good years left in her.
You seem to be excited about her and not having huge expectations about riding/showing, so if you can work out a good deal (they seem willing to negotiate), I’d buy her just to keep such a lovely mare “safe”. It’s a really bad time to be a horse right now, although it seems she has owners now that at least care that she doesn’t end up on a truck to Mexico- but if you have extra room in your pasture to take up some of the surplus, I say go for it.
Edited to add: I wish I could keep a horse on $60/month! When I was a kid it cost me about $120/month for corral rent and feed, now days I doubt you could board a horse here for under $250-350 a month. Which is why I have sheep and dogs now…
Hello Again - 19 still has several good years left. I would have a vet check, of course. But with me, once I’ve fed an animal, it’s “til death do us part”. I couldn’t just sell her on if her health went downhill. It’s a long commitment for me.
Shagnasty - My horses are treated well, if not princely. They get grain, hay (always down, rarely needed), dewormer and regular farrier care. They don’t often see a vet, but then, they don’t get injured or sick.
LVBoPeep - When I had to board my horse, I paid $100/mo for pasture board, plus feed, vet and farrier costs. Things went downhill at my barn, the owner got into drugs and care went down. That’s why I bought my farm.
Well… I am probably the wrong person to be asking.
She’s the daughter of ABDULLAH! She’s a piece of history, in my opinion. Even if you never fork a leg over her, the old girl deserves a loving forever home.
If I were in your place, I wouldn’t have a second thought. I’d be looking at her, and most likely buying her.
If you get her, can I come down and get her autograph?
PapSett - I’m glad to hear someone else remembers Abdullah. What a great gray stallion! And who knows - I might even breed her. 20 isn’t too old, if her health and fertility aren’t compromised.
I’m a western gal, through and through, but that boy made my heart besat a little faster. And yeah…I was actually thinking that she’s not too old to breed, if she’s healthy. She sounds like a genuine find to me!
No, seriously, I agree with all the good arguments for buying her outlined above. A daughter of Abdullah? I remember him well – magnificent!
In November I bought (for “one dollar in hand and other valuable consideration”) a 19-year-old Morgan gelding to buddy with my 17-year-old Thoroughbred gelding. Ben (TB) is a beautifully trained and marvelous ride despite some arthritis issues, while Commander (Morgan) foundered three years ago but is totally sound and a blast – in his very different way – to ride. Which doesn’t matter much since they’re primarily pasture pets, and likely to stay that way.
So why did I do it? When my horse-keeping costs per month are so much higher than yours? Because now the farm owner where I board can hack out with me (her two horses aren’t rideable) on the rare occasions when (a) we both have time; (b) the hay fields along whose edges we’d hack aren’t too boggy to ride on; (c) the flies aren’t too thick and the greenheads haven’t hatched out; and (d) the weather is nice. I figure this boils down to about a dozen rides per year.
But every day when I muck and feed and water and skritch my boys, I feel happy. They fill my eyes with beauty, they amuse the hell out of me with their interactions, and they satisfy the mommy urge in me. Who cares whether I ride them? Not I. The pleasures of owning horses, for me, go far beyond using them.
So maybe you’ll ride the old girl, and with her breeding, training, and conformation – as far as one can discern it from such an unhelpful sale photo – have an enjoyable mount. Or maybe you’ll breed her and get a superb foal. Or maybe you’ll just look out your window every day and see a piece of Abdullah enjoying life in your pasture, and your heart will be glad.
Go for it.
P.S. If you don’t buy her, someone else could who’d be a crappy incompetent owner, or cruel and abusive, or a good owner but for whatever reason would then sell her on to a bad home – or worse. As LVBoPeep said, “I’d buy her just to keep such a lovely mare “safe”. It’s a really bad time to be a horse right now.”
EddyTeddyFreddy… you made me cry dammit. You put into words so elloquently just how I feel about the magnificent beasts. A little bit of me dies inside every day that I am without a horse, without even the means to touch, to smell a horse. They get inside your soul and never leave.
StG…I hope beyond hope that this mare works for you, fits into The Plan. I shall be living thru you the first time you touch her velvety muzzle.
Well, I called about the mare. She was bought and bred to a Dutch warmblood stallion and had her last foal last summer. She’s sound and sane, and has been trail ridden recently. These folks had been breeding Connemara ponies but decided that horse breeding was too stressful and gelded their stud.
I’m going down to see her. They’re being very picky about who gets her - they have one other prospective buyer whose husband is an equine vet. I’ll post when I get back.
Well. I’m the proud owner of a third horse, which I need like I need a hole in my head. She seems very sweet and has beautiful gaits - no visible signs of arthritis or lameness. Her foal is exceptionally nice, and the seller said her vet said if she was going to breed again, he’d recommend doing it this spring. According to the seller, all her previous foals have been inspected by the Trakehner Assoc and have been accepted. The last before this summer’s colt was actually exported back to Germany. I got her for $1500, and the seller is going to haul her the 100 miles to my place for free.
I gave the seller a check, but asked her to hold it until I talked to her vet.
I’m very excited! I wonder if I can call in sick to work tomorrow?
