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Veteran
Posts: 150
 
Location: Okla | Know I am going to ruffle some feathers here, but have been thinking about this for some time now, so here goes....I am seeing ALOT of older horses for sale lately on this site and other sites as well, my question is (and I understand fully about money being tight and some need to sell to replace old ones for younger horses)--BUT--if our faithful, realiable and trusted horses did their jobs to get us all where we are up to this point, why dump them, forget about them and go to younger ones instead of retiring them at our homes to live out the rest of their lives ?? Guess I am old school and believe the horse has earned his right to live out their remaining years in the home he has known and loved--and earned the right to do so.... instead of being shuffled to a new home and new people, sounds scary to me if I were a horse....Just something to think about....  |
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 Midget Lover
   
Location: Kentucky | I think a lot of people sell old faithfuls so they can go on to help someone else... I don't find it as "dumping". I'd rather have my old faithful be of use to someone rather than wasting away in my pasture. |
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 Water Weight Barbie
Posts: 6829
Location: Oz, Kansas | I have sold 2 of my older horses that were still rideable to families with young children to learn on. I've been fortunate enough that mine have still been healthy enough to continue. Now if I had one that was really old & already had one hoof in the ground it would live the rest of it's life comfortably at my moms. |
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 I Want a "MAN"
Posts: 3610
Location: MD | If I buy a horse to use and run barrels on and I become interested in a younger faster horse. I'm going to sell the "step-up" to buy the younger one. My horses are my pets but if they're not working out they're going down the road to a better suited home.
Edited by CE's wrapn3 2014-01-30 10:05 AM
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 Experienced Mouse Trapper
Posts: 3106
Location: North Dakota | Call it what you will, but I HATE making the decision and burying them. There are a couple at my place that will not go anywhere, but, when the time comes I will probably take the wimpy way out and try to find someone else to eventually make the decision. Selfish, whatever, I can't stand watching them get old. |
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Who Wants to Trade?
Posts: 4692
| I have several older mares (23, 23, 22, 20, 18) and of those, the 22yo is my most recent addition and I am honored to have her standing in my stall. She was bred and raced by one owner, sold to her 2nd owner who had her for 20 years, and then I bought her. She has some issues, but she was well worth the money I paid for her, even at 22!
I have no problem with people selling their property. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 612
| Besides what has already been said about letting the horse help a younger person, I don't have room to keep every horse. As much as I am attached to my horses, I don't have pasture or barn space to keep them forever. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 602
| I sold my 16 year old mare to a younger gal. It was a step up horse for her. Plus in my current situation I will only own one horse at a time. So if a horse (young or old) doesnt fit my riding or barrel racing program then I have to move on. Ive seen alot of older rodeo horses go to other homes with younger kids or older people wanting a competition horse that wont blow their socks off when they want to compete. I dont think its a bad thing to sell older ones that are still healthy. |
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 Expert
Posts: 1218
Location: Great NW | What drives me nuts is that a lot of people have been lead to believe that horses in their mid teens are old when in fact they are just coming into their prime. just is mind boggling to me. |
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 Accident Prone
Posts: 22277
Location: 100 miles from Nowhere, AR | The few oldies I have had died or will die with me. I'm sentimental that way. If I had one that wasn't getting used but needed to be used, I think I would loan out or lease rather than sell so I could still have control over their treatment. I would feel like I owed that to them. My daughter's horse is 26 and will die here. I promised her, and I think he deserves it. That's me, but I only have control over my own actions and not going to worry about someone else. |
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 Scorpions R Us
Posts: 9586
Location: So. Cali. | I wouldnt hesitate to lease my old faithful to a young rider, if he wasnt such a prick sometimes 
Now the ones I see that are in their 20's, lame, going blind, etc. that are no longer ridable, that people have had for years but now just dont want to 'care' for. Those are the ones that bother me. |
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 Good Grief!
Posts: 6343
Location: Cap'n Joan Rotgut.....alberta | mine live out their days with me.......i have a couple 30 yr olds and i keep a close eye on them and if i see them starting to go down hill i will put them down and bury them........i also have a couple 14 yr old mares that had to be reitred due to soundness issues and they will both live out their days with me.........op i agree with you 100%
m
Edited by mruggles 2014-01-30 10:29 AM
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 Coyote Country Queen
Posts: 5666
| We have several retired horses in our pasture that are no longer able to be ridden, and they'll stay there until they die. We are lucky to have pasture available for them. Our retirement herd's ages are 30, 25, 24, and 15. Honestly, we'd probably find a way to keep them even if we didn't have pasture, because they don't owe us anything and we owe them plenty for what they've done for us over the years.
With that being said, I would not judge someone for selling an older horse that can still be used. About 10 years ago my husband sold his old rope mare to a family with young kids. That mare was a perfect babysitter and teacher for those kids, and that family loved her until the day she died. We had just gotten married and had no plans for kids anytime soon, so it didn't make sense to have that mare standing around doing nothing when she could have a loving home with another family that could use her. |
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 Worst.Housekeeper.EVER.
Location: Missouri | Three 4 Luck - 2014-01-30 10:21 AM The few oldies I have had died or will die with me. I'm sentimental that way. If I had one that wasn't getting used but needed to be used, I think I would loan out or lease rather than sell so I could still have control over their treatment. I would feel like I owed that to them. My daughter's horse is 26 and will die here. I promised her, and I think he deserves it. That's me, but I only have control over my own actions and not going to worry about someone else.
Mine stay with me, even though it means I can't have all the younger/faster ones I want. I feel obligated to care for them properly and couldn't live with myself wondering what happened to them if I sold them. If I had a youth suitable horse, I would consider leasing, but not selling.
This is a hobby, not my living. So, I can see both perspectives...
Now, my one dirty bucker..........she's gone and I'm glad! 
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Hungarian Midget Woman
Location: Midwest | IMO there is a big difference if the horse is able to be ridden vs retired. Selling an older horse that is still running/riding is okay if someone can learn! However, if the horse is a pasture ornament, I think it is best to keep them or put them down yourself. I see a lot of those "free to good home deals", and to some degree it does make me sad. Of course there are exceptions, but I feel a good horse earns a comfortable end, and does not deserve to be passed off if an owner does not want to feed a horse they can't ride. JMHO
I plan on keeping mine until I can no longer run him, and then he will live out his days with me. |
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I am a Freak
Posts: 3326
Location: Nowhere Special | I think it depends on the horse and the situation. Like others have said if its just a horse that you used for a few years and have out grown in ability and its still a good using horse that can go on to teach others then sure why not. Now if its a horse you have owned for decades or more and used up all the usefullness in that horse and now want to pass it on after it has no usefullness then shame on you. I have sold lots of horses I have kept a handful till the day I put them in the ground. If I grew up on them as a kid and then they were no longer arena sound but trail ride sound I let a local girls club use them for a few years just so they can teach kids to ride two days a week, get brushed everyday and pampered. After they are to old for that or not working out then home they come and stay till their last day. I just put down my 32 year old mare in Oct it was time. It was hard and we still miss her but for 28 years she was loved everyday of her life and well cared for not much more anything can ask for then that.
Edited by jetgetset 2014-01-30 10:53 AM
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  Champ
Posts: 19623
Location: Peg-Leg Julia Grimm | kuhlmann - 2014-01-30 8:09 AM I have several older mares (23, 23, 22, 20, 18) and of those, the 22yo is my most recent addition and I am honored to have her standing in my stall. She was bred and raced by one owner, sold to her 2nd owner who had her for 20 years, and then I bought her. She has some issues, but she was well worth the money I paid for her, even at 22!
I have no problem with people selling their property.
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 Northern Chocolate Queen
Posts: 16576
Location: ND | Just my opinion but there's a big difference between dumping them and finding them a good home where they can continue to do what they love. Dumping them is dropping them off at the local sale & walking away with no regard with what happens to them.
I'm lucky, my feed costs are low and I have enough pasture that I can retire both my old riding horses & broodmares and allow them to live out their lives. A lot of people do not have that option or cannot handle making that final decision to let them go. For some it's easiest financially or emotionally to let someone else spend the last years with them. And some of those good old horses are not happy retired but cannot pack a full sized rider anymore so finding a youth for them to teach is best for everybody. Everyone's situation is different and it is their choice to do what is best by them and their horse. |
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 Miss Laundry Misshap
Posts: 5271
| I've never sold a horse. Those horses have been worked until they can't work anymore. They enjoy being used and keeping them around saves me the cost of buying all the time and the emotional stress of selling one to someone who would do something nasty to it. Not saying any or all would be horrid, but you never know.
Right now I have a 20 yr old gelding who's my main mount. He'll be here forever because he's earned it and he's weird enough that I'd be worried to sell him to anyone. Sad part is he loves kids and is great, but I couldn't take the chance of someone not accommodating his quirks. |
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I Wanna Go Fast!!
Posts: 12556
| speedjunkie - 2014-01-30 8:15 AM What drives me nuts is that a lot of people have been lead to believe that horses in their mid teens are old when in fact they are just coming into their prime. just is mind boggling to me. I was just given a 17 year old mare back - literally given, did not have to pay a dime for her - because the lady thought she was too old to run barrels now. This mare loves barrels. A year ago she was running 2D/3D times with me before I sold her to them. I could easily have resold her or ran her myself but I found a great home for her to be used as an occasional trail horse. It kills me to know she's going to waste, but I have a moral compass that prevents me from making money off of a horse that was given to me....
Came back to add that I would have loved to keep her forever, I ran my first 17 on a standard on this mare and ran my first rodeos on her, she taught me a lot! But we have limited space and I can't justify feeding and caring for a horse that I'm not using.
Edited by Whiskey_Girl 2014-01-30 11:23 AM
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