As a horse lover, even I would balk at spending that much on a horse.
I definitely question what your girlfriend’s motives are for trying to get you to spend that much money so early on in your relationship.
It’s also worth noting that horses need to be several years old before you can even start riding them, so if you wanted to keep the foal and try to train it to be a show horse, it would definitely be a long term project.
If you can picture yourself becoming interested in horses, there are many far less expensive ways to get involved in the hobby. I can’t imagine spending tens of thousands of dollars on something I don’t know anything about and am not even sure I’d enjoy owning.
Thought of something else… You said the mare is 8 yrs old. Is she a maiden mare, meaning will this be her first baby? If so, that would lead to a few questions and concerns.
If it is her first baby, why? Was she being shown all this time and they’ve retired her from the show ring? Or has it been difficult to get her in foal in the past? If it’s hard to get her in foal, that means more money to try again.
If it is her first baby, then there are potential concerns there also. Will she be a good mother, will she be a good milker, will the baby be born without complications? There are so many variables to consider for future breeding of the mare.
If it’s not her first baby, where are her other foals now and how much did they sell for? Just a few more things to ask and think about before making a decision.
She’s not a maiden mare, she’s had three perfectly healthy babies that have sold from 20k-30k. I was told that a mare at 8 years old, that has produced three foals, is the perfect age for purchasing.
[QUOTE= TriPolar]
mil0, you would be the partner providing most of the money, and a result taking most of the risk. Yet you are relying on the partner to ensure that the value of your investment is maintained. The partner has no risk, and no impetus to maintain the value of the investment at her own expense. How will you know if she is obtaining the proper medical care, insurance, or choosing the right sperm for breeding? The partner’s contributions to this deal could be offered by many people for a known price, but in this circumstance you will be bound to the partner for those things.
All this would be different if she had an established record in producing profits from this kind of investment. Otherwise it doesn’t make good business sense. IMHO, if your motivation is profits then you would be making a mistake.
[/QUOTE]
She doesn’t personally have a record of producing profits but she’s the protege of someone who does. Her boss (who is friends with the owner of the mare) was going to move on this mare, but was convinced to give my girlfriend a chance to purchase it.
Perhaps I was too naive here, though. I wanted to help her out, and have seen her boss turn horses consistently for a profit, so I surmised that I’d be able to at least able to recoup my expenses, especially if the horse is insured.
I’m still planning to check out the horse this week while roadtripping. Any questions I should ask?
As an aside, I wasn’t coerced or anything into this decision. I just wanted to help her out and thought my money would be relatively safe in this kind of venture. Perhaps I’ll bring up the loan-route.