Avoiding the meat trade!!

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Painthorse64

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If I gave my pony away free to good home, how would I avoid him ending up with the 'meat man'?
 
You couldn't. There is a risk selling any horse that it will end up as burgers but the very cheap and the free are most at risk. Having said that there are worse fates that a bullet for a "free" horse or pony..

Why are you giving him away ? (I'm nosy and it's OT - ignore that question if you prefer!) IMO you would be a bit safer with a loan, permanent if necessary, than simply giving the pony away.
 
As BIrish says, you dont. If you give away or sell a horse you have no more control over what happens to it. All this "first refusal if you decide to sell on" isnt worth the paper its printed on. Once a horse is sold you have no more say in it.
 
Hi, Thanks for your advice. The pony I have is too young and green, (and has almost jumped on top of me when spooking frequently recently and this has made me loose confidence in him and myself), for my daughter and I, and is not a suitable pony for an 11 year old child for pony club as I was lead to believe by the dealer I bought him from. Since then I have also discovered he needs dental treatment 6 monthly and has developed a sarcoid in his ear, which will soon be treated by my vet with the Liverpool cream and I am concerned this will make it more difficult to rehome him. He is however very good in traffic, and is not at all nasty and jumps really well, but I don't have the time to work on a young horse and don't have the experience to school him, I do, however, care very much about him but feel I now have to consider finding him a new home and possibly get an older, calmer, more experienced horse that is suitable for a mother/daughter (suitabilty for daughter most important factor) share -which silly me should have done in the first place!!
 
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Hi, Thanks for your advice. The pony I have is too young and green, (and has almost jumped on top of me when spooking frequently recently and this has made me loose confidence in him and myself), for my daughter and I, and is not a suitable pony for an 11 year old child for pony club as I was lead to believe by the dealer I bought him from. Since then I have also discovered he needs dental treatment 6 monthly and has developed a sarcoid in his ear, which will soon be treated by my vet with the Liverpool cream and I am concerned this will make it more difficult to rehome him. He is however very good in traffic, and is not at all nasty and jumps really well, but I don't have the time to work on a young horse and don't have the experience to school him, I do, however, care very much about him but feel I now have to consider finding him a new home and possibly get an older, calmer, more experienced horse that is suitable for a mother/daughter (suitabilty for daughter most important factor) share -which silly me should have done in the first place!!


What breed is he? What height? How old is he?

Most horses need their teeth checking every 6 months to a year, so you will need to do that with your new horse too! The Sarcoid is more of a problem, but is not a reason to give him away.

How long ago did you get him? If he was sold to you as a PC pony by a dealer and he is not suitable i would contact the dealer and arrange for him to be sent back there either for a refund or an excahnge. It seems a bit hard on the pony to give him away just becasue you have lost confidence. It must be hard on your pocket too!
 
I wouldn't give him away! he doesn't sound that bad!!! Echo about the dental checkups anyway, ours have their teeth checked and rasped if necessary every 6 months - so that shouldn't be a problem. I've known horses with sarcoids and its not the end of the world - granted they do need treatment and it depends where the sarcoid is. You say ear, so its not going to rub on tack or anything? (not that I've had a horse with one but I do know of people who've had them treated successfully). I'd try and loan him out first - I think giving any horse away is going to carry a risk. Specially in this horrible economic climate! Have you contacted any ofthe horse charities for advice? I know they are all busy and are getting full to capacity but they'll always lend an ear for advice.
Can you advertise him for sale at a reasonable price but put emphasis on him needing a confident rider? Good luck - hope you find a solution.
 
Ditto Spiggly. And to be honest, the sarcoid isn't the end of the world, just means he probably won't make it as a show pony.

He may well be a superb Pony Club pony that isn't being challenged enough - my friend has one like him - amazing, quick, fun pony with a confident kid on board, but leave him in a field 6 months and he's a flighty, spooky nightmare.

What dealer did he come from?

Rather than giving him away, I'd be inclined to send him somewhere either on schooling livery or a part exchange plan where he can be regularly worked by a confident and experienced person who can then be responsible for finding him the right new home. Should also be less painful on your pocket, especially if you can part exchange him for something more suitable.

Good luck! :)
 
He is a Welsh section D, aged 5, 14 hh. I got him from Cobs n Plods in Lancashire. My vet and dentist said he has had a fractured jaw probably when he was very young, and has a tooth missing, so hence the need for dental treatment every 6 months, by the equine dental technician with a sedative via the vet so costing me around £100 a time (sarcoid and teeth are not my main concern however, I just want a safe steady pony now). It is also thought that he was kicked above the eye sustaining a fracture, so it seems that he could have been kicked in the face by another horse and I am wondering if this is why he has become so spooky lately and it is a very panicky, frightened type of spook and I have had difficulty holding onto him when he does it, and in December he did it in a field knocking me over and nearly breaking my legs, the speed and power in him was immense and it was scary, he just came right at me, (since March we have just moved to a new yard, which is actually very nice and quiet, he has had daily winter turnout and has just gone onto 24 hour summer turnout). Had I known his history I wouldn't have bought him as it may be difficult to cure his fear of something jumping out at him and kicking him in the face. I will see how he goes on and give him a chance as it would be heartbreaking to let him go, but my daughter's safety comes first and foremost (she is a novice although won't admit it!), which I am sure everyone would agree with, so I have to consider that most. Thanks for support and advice though x

PS: Showjumper - you mentioned part exchange plans - do you know of anywhere I could send him for this - thanks.
 
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Sounds like he could do with some serious schooling to give him confidence. What length of warranty did the dealer offer? Could you ring them and ask for them to take him back/do an exchange?

If you vet potential buyers/people who offer him a home, you shouldn't be too concerned. I just got a French trotter rehomed after advertising him free to good home to a fab new ride/drive home. I was stunned at the lack of interest, frankly, but delighted at who got him. (Am waiting for pics, if you read this!!!!)
 
is there no way the dealer would take him back in exchange for something more suitable? Failing that I would agree with the suggestion to advertise him as a project on project horses.I would not give him away but perhaps advertise him for sale at around 500 - £1000. That way you should get some genuine interest rather than risk him going for meat which quite possibly would happen if you were to try giving him away. It is a shame you are not closer to me as my YO has just put an ad up looking for a horse and although he is 2 inches shorter than he wants he would have been guaranteed a good home with his issues ironed out before being sold on only to a suitable home.We are in the unusual postion of having far too much grass for the horses that are turned out in the field.
 
lots of people over here see if they can trade there horse for what they need. I also would free lease him, if you are worried about him hitting the meat market.

My mare has her quirks and when it comes time for me to start riding my colt I will free lease her to a beginner.
 
Thanks for all the advice. I will try to do more work with him, when we first got him he was living out in my friend's field with just 4 other ponies and then he was great when ridden out, not at all spooky, and a gem on the roads, not afraid of buses, waggons, motorbikes, people - anything. It is only since he has moved that the spooky, scary behaviour has started - usually at things behind fences and bushes but not at traffic. I was told by the dealer that he had trouble settling in when they first got him so maybe he needs more time to settle. However, I don't let my daughter handle or ride him alone, and always walk out with her when she's riding.
 
He does not sound that bad - most ponies are not perfect and some can be cheeky and need firm handling.

A 6 year old pony is still very young and sometimes ponies go through teenage phases which they call the kevins where they test out their owners and become very cheeky.

Is this a registered welsh - some welshes can naturally be quite spooky or highly strung. If he jumps and is good in traffic then he does have his good points and an experienced adult or teenager could probably help him out after all he is young enough to change his ways.

He may not be suitable for you but someone else might be willing to put up with his quirks if he is a good jumping pony. I would suggest perhaps you contact the local pony club as they may know someone who is looking for a loan and you never know in a few years time with if your daughter and the pony have more experience then he might be suitable for you again.

Most people get their ponies teeth checked at least once a year so the teeth thing is no so much of an issue. A sarcoid on his ear should not effect his performance either.

I would not write him off just yet and give him to someone for free as I think he is worth more than that. I know you are probably desperate to get a new more suitable pony but have you thought of perhaps getting a RI or someone in to help you a bit with him so he can be improved enough to give him a better chance of getting a good home?

It can take along time for a pony to settle in a new home. What are you feeding him? Perhaps you could try a calmer? Also if has been used to living out 24/7 and then came in at night and was getting more hard feed than he was used to this could have made him more spooky - as can the spring grass. My normally very steady pony was lively when the spring grass came through and I can't feed him any cereals as that makes him fizzy too,
 
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have you tried advertising him at the localpony club? he sounds ideal for a confident kid. and if hes a good jumper, people prpbly wont mind the teeth issue (whats wrong with his teeth?) so much. chin up, im sure you will find a nice home for him and a fair price too.
 
Horses are animals of prey and have used this instinct of theirs to survive - The spookier the horse the more likey it will survive in the wild, so you have yourself a very smart pony!

Mine (sect d x) hates things happening outside of the school, behind the hedge anything she can hear and not see, or then see a bit off. But, alot of horses are like this - You just need to put together a plan of action and work through it,it does work, believe me. Do some bonding with him and some depsooking work. No horse is perfect but with time and correct schooling I think you will have a fab pony on your hands. Plus look at things from his point of view, he has moved yards when you brought him, moved again new owners all very scary for him too. Also he needs to get his confidence in you, so you need to be calm and consistant around him and he will soon follow (if your scared, he'll think, god this is scary even my owner is frightened now I am even more scared) OK - they don't think like us per se, but you get my point.
x
 
I am sorry to hear you are having these problems, must indeed be very scary to have him leap into you like that. Obviously the poor boy has his reasons, and as you say he may well be better when he is more settled and confident in his location/place in herd etc.
As others say may well be worth getting someone who understands out to give you some support and tips on how to help him, and how to keep yourself safe. Maybe have a look in the Intelligent Horsemanship boards for a local R.A.?
However, only you will know whether you can work through his issues with him, and if you do I am guessing it will depend on to what degree as to whether or not he is the pony for you/you are the humans for him. I am so glad to hear he has someone like you who cares so much about his future, wish they all did. I am sure I would be like you and couldn't send him back to the dealer if I wasn't sure where he would end up. Could you look at a longterm loan until you had complete confidence that his new home was right?

Could also think about the project pony website. Or our local free equestrian web (www.nfed.co.uk) has a project horse section and a friend of mine who is a vet got her lovely horse from there and he was a spooky nervous sort of boy and he has the best home ever now. I am no expert by a long chalk but if you did and anyone down this way was interested would be happy to give their situation a look over for you to see if all seemed suitable :)
 
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