If I had 100....

[not again]

If I had 100 horses of a certain type I could have sold them all in the last couple of weeks. Horses like Miss Deb and Miss Bee. Unfortunately those two are NFS. But it reminds me, however, that all markets are driven by the consumer.
Just food for thought, but believe me, there are lots of buyers out there. It seems that they are having trouble finding what they want.;)

[Donella]

May I ask what kind of horses these are?
Last year I bought an untouched 4yr old perch x tb stallion that was probably headed to a not so good fate as a fun project. Practiced my young horse skills on him for a few months and put an ad up for a pretty darn decent price..not really sure or not if I would get any calls. He sold a few days later and I could have sold a hundred as well. He was a very unique looking horse though..blue roan and legs a mile long, stallion neck and the most beautiful face with movement that would put alot of wb's to shame. Anyways, it still suprised me.

[not again]

These are horses who are :
a: mentally grounded
b: don't spook, bolt, buck under saddle
c: ride with a light touch from the hand, prefer a correct seat aid, and are quiet off the leg.
d: attractive, with three correct comfortable gaits
e: are between 16 and 17 hands
f: go down to ground poles or a jump on a soft rein and a natural collected canter and land in the same soft canter

Point being, we have laughed about needing a cloning machine for these girls. It seems everyone wants a mare so if an injury occurs there is a second option for a breeding career while the injury heals.

They also have good, but definitely not fashionable pedigrees and are appropriately registered.

Like I said, this is what the market seems to want right now....

[Evalee Hunter]

not again - so glad things are going along in the sales department. We have several that might come close to your description (I'm SURE your horses are much better bred & trained, however) but I don't think you-know-who is in any mood to sell.

[WBLover]

My friend has such a mare....and she is NOT for sale. She can be ridden by anyone from a rank beginner where she is patient, quiet, and slooooowwww, to an advanced rider where you can jazz her up and really sparkle at a dressage or eventing show.

This mare is a GEM, and my friend has gotten many offers on her!

[Mozart]

Well heck, who WOULDN'T want a horse like that!

[Rocky XVI]

I see many such ads in the "horse wanted" forums, but the hopeful buyer usually states a budget of no more than $10,000 dollars. :) I too have such a mare and for $10,000 I'll keep her and show her myself, thank you! :D :D :D

[AdAblurr02]

I see many such ads in the "horse wanted" forums, but the hopeful buyer usually states a budget of no more than $10,000 dollars. :) I too have such a mare and for $10,000 I'll keep her and show her myself, thank you! :D :D :D

Oh yeah.... they ALWAYS want them for under a third what they are worth! Got one of those star mares right now - approved RIDSH, proven broodmare, beautiful, sane, talented, etc etc etc.... I'd rather keep her than give her away! She makes a stunning sidesaddle mare :)

[not again]

Actually buyers seem very realistic about true value and are prepared to spend accordingly. It is an observation, but if the horse has some correct basic training and potential there are many buyers out there. ;)

[YankeeLawyer]

Actually buyers seem very realistic about true value and are prepared to spend accordingly. It is an observation, but if the horse has some correct basic training and potential there are many buyers out there. ;)

I think how realistic buyers are completely depends, but I agree that if the horse in fact is priced appropriately and is a nice horse, one can find a nice buyer for him/her.

I get inquiries frequently about my NFS / never will be FS mares and have had some very generous offers for them, including one about a week ago while I was pondering whether breeding in this economy was a good idea. That person is now interested in the mare's 09 foal, and would be a great owner, so that was heartening.

Anyway, from Tasker's recent detailed description of your program, I am not surprised there are people interested in your horses. It sounds like they are really well prepared by the time the buyer would want to take them home, so all the buyer has left to do is enjoy them :).

[not again]

Thank you for the compliments. We try to have a lot of fun and keep to correct basics, both in riding and breeding.
BTW, both mares trace back to "D" line Hanoverian blood. One is by Dahlwitz out of a Wendekreis mare, 16.3 beautiful head, lots of bone. The other is by *Dekor out of a Viking Spirit mare, 16.1 also a beautiful head with appropriate bone. Most shoppers can't get over their substance and athleticism which used to be very characteristic of "H" horses. One competed through third level and is MMB, and the other show jumped, evented, fox-hunted and competed through Grand Prix dressage.
Nothing fashionable, but solid, traditional and long lasting (my favorite trait)!;)

[YankeeLawyer]

I like the ones with a lot of bone; I think sometimes people are breeding too light these days. I like my Hanoverians to be modern, but still look like Hanoverians : ).

[Edgar]

Ah, I just got of one of those mares, she was the mare champion last year of her inspection, very atractive but solid and correct. After not even twenty rides she apears to have been ridden all year. Having done nothing for weeks I rode her a bit tonight and she was perfect, nicely forward, soft, happy, we played football pushing a big horse ball around the arena, she is a nice one. NFS but I can not complain as we sold 11 horses in the last 2 months and have a lot more sales interest which is ussually not something we have enough time for during our busy foaling and breeding season but what seems to have been a slow start of the year is catching up fast.

[goodmorning]

I like the ones with a lot of bone; I think sometimes people are breeding too light these days. I like my Hanoverians to be modern, but still look like Hanoverians : ).

Yes, it is strange to see the sale's horses come through the barn (WB's with papers - largely imports), have less bone than the 2 TB's in the barn....I love bone, you can find it in the TB's, I have two with quite substantial bone, hate to see loss of bone for type.

[buschkn]

How are people finding your horses? Word of mouth, shows, ads? Just curious. Obviously the mares who are NFS are not in ads. Interested to hear how people are generating the most interest? Guess this is a bit OT, might start a new thread.

As relates to this thread, I do think that quality horses will always have a market. However, sometimes people with those horses may not know how to get them marketed properly. OR as evidenced by the OP, owners of them don't want to sell!

[facinated]

I am also interested, and involved in sales. I think there are always people who talk about buying a horse that is not for sale, or being made offers on NFS horses. It is more useful to me when people talk about actual sales which have occured, actual $ received for specific type/size/age horses.
I have a very nice hunter type yearling with lots of white. Tb/Old by Silvio who is almost sold for $15k. He was sold for 8k at weaning. Older horses which combine an occasional limp with the need for a decent rider need to be free!! Decent broodmare types can be found for free also, I turn down a few every week. The fact that the bottom of the market is so low is a bad thing for the horses.

[Tasker]

Older horses which combine an occasional limp with the need for a decent rider need to be free!! Decent broodmare types can be found for free also, I turn down a few every week. The fact that the bottom of the market is so low is a bad thing for the horses.

Ummmm, older, well-trained (think PSG & higher) horses should NOT be free! They have many things to teach a new rider and while they should not be priced the same as a competitive show horse, they are 'schoolmasters'...These beasties have skills that many people are willing to pay 5 figures for - for example, I know of an experienced GP mare who sold for 20K even though she failed a big vetting with flexions. Her new owners got 7 years of showing (even at CDI's after resolving her issues with saddle fit) and 8 National Championships...not too shabby in the end. With horses like that one, you pay for their training & knowledge, not for the perfect vetting or jog on a single exam.

Free broodmares are usually free for a reason in my experience.

[not again]

Actually this is not about what is not for sale, it is about what sells. Good mind, good looks, good talent. And for any breeder recognition, dna testing and registration papers. The label doesn't sell the horse, the horse and the seller sell the horse. And to be trite but true, service after the sale.
Kudos to breeders who keep a young horse until riding age, who help the novice young horse owner get that horse started, who offer support emotionally and educationally.
Pricing? Quality sells appropriately. Would horses such as Deb and Bee bring bring "decent" money in their prime in this market? More than $50K--yes. Under $100--probably. I chatted with a friend the other day who has a horse under contract for $175K, similar to my girls and showing.
Breeders take a real hit financially putting in the first three years of a young horse's life, and are usually the last to benefit from all that expense. It is just important to remember what the market wants historically and currently.
It isn't the label, or the hype, it is the horse.

[Tasker]

Yes, it is strange to see the sale's horses come through the barn (WB's with papers - largely imports), have less bone than the 2 TB's in the barn....I love bone, you can find it in the TB's, I have two with quite substantial bone, hate to see loss of bone for type.

I was at a breed show in the not too distant past and somewhat shocked at the lack of bone for many of the big name operations (offspring by 'famous' stallions, farms, etc). Then again, the epitome of the term 'substantial bone' is standing out in the barn with a pile of kids in various paddocks...all with solid bone & build, so I forget that other horses will not be the same.

I don't know if the 2 mares mentioned by not again would qualify as 'modern' as they are not lacking in type but the bigger one would get dinged like my entry at the breed show for having 'warmblood type'...but as I am not breeding for the Arabian halter market with our stock, I took it as a compliment! :lol: They ARE warmbloods after all!

A few year's back, a horse was brought for evaluation. He was 11/16ths TB on paper but an imported registered Hanoverian. No bone, incorrect foundation and HOT & reactive...:uhoh: A few months later the horse was retired for soft tissue trauma...at age 5!!!!

This will probably put me in a minority but I'll sacrifice the glory of having a 'modern' label for the good bone, correct legs & long term soundness due to the fact it takes too much effort, time & sweat to make a Grand Prix horse.

[TKR]

I think everyone has a type they prefer. However, "good bone" is not necessarily related to how much substance or circumference there is. The integrity of the bone and the proportion of substance to mass there is to support is the important part. Big, porous bone does not hold up and Thoroughbreds and others with finer bones that are hard, solid and flinty and been holding up for centuries. Unless you ultrasound or otherwise test for density, the substance of the bone means nothing. JMHO!
PennyG

[Sixth Sense]

Yes, I remember reading about this is several publications. It was also mentioned that drafts, although very large with large bones dimensionally speaking, have "lighter" bones than a TB has. I found it very interesting....

[not again]

There is a difference between bone and substance. Many draft horses have narrow feet. A seventeen hand horse weighing in at 1500 pounds with size four shoes, versus an eighteen hand horse, 1600 pounds, with size one shoes. Proportionate ratios help determine long term soundness. Which one would you pay more for?

[YankeeLawyer]

I am also interested, and involved in sales. I think there are always people who talk about buying a horse that is not for sale, or being made offers on NFS horses. It is more useful to me when people talk about actual sales which have occured, actual $ received for specific type/size/age horses.


I agree to a point, but I was not referring to casual chit chat ringside, where if I had actually said yes, no check would have materialized. I actually have been tracked down by some people and contacted out of the blue -- and when I decline the offers, in some cases they have contacted my friends and/or trainer to try to get them to talk me into it.

I do not advertise or have a website. People who contact me usually have seen me at shows (and we show infrequently), or have seen my mares at an inspection or at my trainer's barn when they are there for training.

[Picasso]

I see many such ads in the "horse wanted" forums, but the hopeful buyer usually states a budget of no more than $10,000 dollars. :) I too have such a mare and for $10,000 I'll keep her and show her myself, thank you! :D :D :D

Or worse. The hopeful buyer says "Oh if only I could find a pony that did blah blah blah" or (at the shows) "I love her she is perfect for little Susie" but only want to spend $2000. I am flexible because I want a great situation, but come on!

[YankeeLawyer]

I think it is important to always be polite to people who express interest, even if their offers are off the mark. You just never know. That person's situation might change, or they might pass on your name to a friend who does end up becoming a client. And if nothing else, treating everyone well will help build a positive reputation, which is very valuable.

I am not suggesting that anyone said to do anything other than be polite, but I know some buyers are intimidated by the thought of calling breeders, particularly if their budget is less than the asking price, and I think that is unfortunate. If I don't have something that suits a caller, I try to recommend someone good who does, if possible.

[Signature]

We too have had a ton of calls lately for our packer types. Something must be in the water! :) It seems to come in waves, and right now we must be at the peak! :)

[TKR]

Do you think this is primarily for wbs? What about TBs? I have TBs bred for sport and I don't know if they get the same amount of attention, including those going well and super athletes.
PennyG

[not again]

Tb or warmblood seems to make no difference. The key is the mindset.;)

[Signature]

Honestly we have an Appendix g. and a Han/TB g. in our program right now, both almost equally awesome, and there seems to be more interest in the Appendix! I think people like the idea of having a WB or cross, and generally they are still more valuable in the end, but also people just want a good horse they can trust and have fun with.