[From the October 2011 Sho Times:Shannon Dueck is a contributing writer to the
Sho Clothes Sho News monthly newsletter]
by Shannon Dueck
(Photo of Shannon Dueck by Sue Stickle)
Some Thoughts on Purchasing a Dressage Horse
I am not in the business of buying or selling horses, but I do have some good and bad experiences to draw on when I am advising people about spending their money and losing their hearts to a beautiful new dance partner. Dressage horses can be relatively cheap or horrendously expensive, but the majority of the time the amount of money spent is about the maximum that the buyer can afford, so every new horse has the same relative value to it’s new owner. Each new horse has hopes and dreams attached, and it’s a wonderful experience if these can be realized. Unfortunately sometimes horses change hands and the new partnership is far from ideal, resulting in dashed hopes and dreams and a lighter wallet.
The first thing to do is honestly assess your riding ability, your training opportunities, and your goals with the new horse. Armed with this knowledge you can figure out what type of horse you are looking at purchasing. If you are an accomplished rider with access to top training on a regular basis, and you have goals of competing internationally, the horse you will be looking for will be vastly different from the horse needed for a rider of more moderate ability, less access to trainers, and modest goals. Its always a good idea to ask your trainer or coach to help you really figure out what kind of horse will be the best match.
Figure out your budget, and include any commissions you will pay (usually your trainer will charge a 10% commission to help you in your search), travel, and veterinary costs. After you have your budget, you may have to revise the requirements of your dream horse, perhaps you can be happy with less training if you have a good training situation, or maybe you can look at a slightly older schoolmaster than you originally desired.
Let’s talk commissions first. A 10% commission paid to your trainer is standard if they assist in all aspects of purchasing your new mount. It can be money well spent, and well earned. Your trainer will be invested in making sure the match will be successful if you value their time and expertise. There may be other commissions involved in the sale of the horse from the seller’s side, but usually not from the buyer’s side. Please make sure to talk to your trainer before enlisting their help, and talk about the commission you will pay. It will save many hard feelings in the long run!
I could write 8 pages on the ideal dressage horse, but I won’t. Let’s just say that at the minimum, buy a horse that has 3 pure gaits, has a tendency to move uphill, uses it’s body like an athlete, has good conformation (and feet!) and a trainable temperament. The most important of these is trainability, unless you are a good professional and don’t really need to resell the horse. From these basic requirements, horses can get much fancier and much pricier….
Begin your search and try not to be in a hurry, it’s rare that you find your ideal partner in the first horse you look at. Be ready to walk away from horses that do not fit your basic criteria, and try hard not to fall in love until you have actually bought your new horse! It’s very hard to do, I know, but if you can look at every horse clearly you will make a better decision. That said, the horse you buy should capture your heart and dreams, otherwise it is hard to justify the time, sacrifices and expenses we put into our addiction.
Once you have found a horse that seems to be “the ONE” - it’s time to negotiate price and the veterinary check. Unless it has been clearly stated that the price is firm, most asking prices have a little wiggle room, so it never hurts to make an offer. But expect a counter-offer. Agree on a price subject to vetting and usually it is industry standard to put down a refundable deposit. This ensures for the seller that you will buy the horse if the veterinary exam is satisfactory, and is mostly to reassure the seller that you are serious about buying the horse because the seller has to take the horse off the market while awaiting veterinary assessment.
The pre-purchase veterinary assessment needs to be done by a vet without a conflict of interest - get some references from people in the area as to how thorough and experienced the prospective vet is. Maybe your vet at home knows a colleague in the area, while some buyers are only comfortable taking their own vet to do the entire exam (this can get very expensive). Some veterinarians are known to “fail” almost every horse they ever look at, while a few can be too lenient. Somewhere in the middle is a good choice! Veterinary exams can range from very cursory to very involved, and the cost is reflected in the depth of the exam. The horse’s age, training level, cost, veterinary history, and proposed use should all be taken into account when you are deciding how much detail and what diagnostic exams you want to use in the vetting.
Your own vet and your trainer can assist in translating veterinary findings into practical advice. There are very few horses that are perfect in a vetting (although the younger they are, the more perfect they should be) so it’s crucial to be able to decide what imperfections you can live with, and what management you will need to do to keep your new horse healthy and sound.
With luck your heart and your vet will agree on the same horse, and you can finish the deal - make sure to draw up a clear bill of sale and get original papers and any passports the horse may have. Get any signatures on papers (such as transfer of ownership papers for the USEF) that you will need.
If you enlist the right people to help and invest your time and research you will find your next dream horse and go onward with this magical journey - Enjoy!
International Grand Prix trainer and competitor Shannon Dueck is a Pan Am Games Individual Silver Medalist, and has competed at both WEG and the World Cup Final. She has trained with Bert Rutten of the Netherlands, Kathy Connelly, Lars Peterson, Hubertus Schmidt, Robert Dover, and most recently, Wolfram Wittig while in Germany this past summer.
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