So, I think I found my unicorn! I rode him at home and at a barrel race, he was picture perfect every way around. We have decided to move forward on a pre-purchase exam. I have never bought a horse long distance, I currently live in Idaho, but I'm down in Oklahoma checking out horses right now and this horse lives in Texas. 

I have a very good friend who is an amazing trainer, and knows a lot of people. She's been a big help as far as looking at horses, picking out horses to look at, and now she's grabbing quotes from shippers and also checking out vets in the area where the horse is. I have not purchased a horse in about 8-9 years (The last three I had I ever kept till they passed or sold them) so I'm a bit rusty on the pre-purchase side of things, and I have never done one with me not being there watching the vet. They do have their own vet and I am going to call and get a quote on them, but my trainer suggested to find a different vet to take him to so we can get a set of fresh eyes on him. 

Is there anything that you do besides pay for the exam, and wait for the results when they get a prepurchase done and you are not there to watch it? We are going to get blood work done on him just because he was SUPER calm throughout both times I rode him, we just want to make sure he wasn't drugged in any way. We don't think he was but just want to be sure. 

Also, the second thing is my husband is military and he is going down south for six weeks and is actually picking me up to go with him for 3 weeks (so we can spend more time together) before I go back home. For the sake of saving money, I thought maybe the owner could hold onto him for those three weeks after purchase and then I have him shipped to Idaho. In my mind that is where he would be most comfortable because he is the top of the herd and he is on pasture. There is a slight worry about him getting hurt while he is under her watch after the purchase, that maybe I should draw up a contract, pay HALF upfront then pay the other HALF when he gets picked up, on the clause that if he gets injured under her watch I will get my money back. 

The other option is that we pay for him and then have my trainer friend come and pick him up and take him to her place until we can ship him to Idaho. Again, I worry about the stress of hauling him somewhere twice, but I do know my friend takes super good care of her horses. 

This is all contingent on if he passes his pre-purchase exam. 

Has anyone ever had an experience like this? 

Nope - prepurchase is pretty easy so you don’t need anything else! I always ask the vet to video anything they see as a problem and send it to me (that’s only happened once and I still bought the horse). 

As far as your delay. If you want the horse, pay in full up front and ask if you can pay board for them to keep him for the 3 weeks. 

If that’s not an option, you can bring him home OR wait until you get back and hope he’s still available. 

I dont think it’s fair at all to pay half in case something happens while they board him for 3 weeks. Horses can get hurt any time, any where. 

I hope this guy works out for you!!!! It sounds like you really like him!!!!!!!

Oh, also do you pay for gas for them to haul the horse to the vet? Or do you just pay for the exam? Forgot to ask, thanks!

you pay for the exam, and you may pay for them to haul him. If you were dealing with and depending on the price of the horse I may or may not charge you to haul him. 


You pay fort he horse, no halfsies, no promises no nothing. You want him you buy him. 

Again, if me the price of the horse is going to dictate how many hoops I jump thru to accomadate a buyer. If were are talking a $5-10k horse, your going to get a cordial me with smilling face, you hand me money I shake your hand and tell you good luck. And that's about all. 

If we start getting above that price I may be more accomadating as far as what the buyer asks me to do. 

IMO. It is reaching to ask the seller to keep him, then if he gets hurt you get money back. 

If you want him to stay there, pay for him and get insurance on him.  I would offer to pay for his time there as well.

If they are hauling him to the vet, depending on how far away it is I would offer to split fuel.

As for Pre purchase, its always best to find a vet that has NOT seen the horse previously. Start with a basic pre purchase, flex tests and general health. If the flex test turns up a possible issue, move on to Xrays etc. When I do a remote pre purchase I always make myself available over the phone during the exam. THat way the vet can call me and discuss any findings etc. Also, be aware that vets no longer " Pass" or " Fail" horses for prepurchase. THat protects them. What they will do hopefully is give their opinions based on the exam they have done. SO do expect a " Pass" . In my experience, vets always find SOMETHING wrong no matter what. Always. You can ask questions based on those findings. In my mares case, ( She was a cutter most of her life) the vet said " I am seeing slight arthritic changes in the hocks, just starting". Well, that makes sense, she was 12 years old and a cutter. I then asked if that arthritis would inhibit her to be a barrel/Rope horse. Nope, vet said it was so minor he considered it normal wear and tare for her age and job. And that if I ever needed to inject I could. Hope that helps, they always find something. LOL 

Also if you are doing exrays find a vet that does digital.( I think most do now a days.) so if you want to you can have them emailed directly to your vet to look at. Assuming you  have a regular vet that you feel comfortable with doing a second look. 

As for the rest. Buy him insure him and ship him to your friends. Pay her board until he is shipped to your place. That is how I would be most comfortable with the transaction. It also is removing a couple hours on his final journey? yes? maybe? I guess it depends on where in eachs state the places are. :)

As far as a PPE honestly the horses I buy are not expensive < $5,000 or broodmares.  I don't do PPE's as a general rule. Except for the stallion I bought 10 years ago.  I wasn't worried about his soundness, only his fertility so we collected and evaluated his semen. 

So I'll only speak to the after the purchase. I would go through with the purchase as if you're taking him home.  Have him picked up and delivered to your friend in that area and have her ride him while you're enjoying time with hubby.  She will be able to tell you more about how to ride him etc... It would be worth it.  Then get insurance on him in case he were to die or get badly hurt.  It won't cost a lot to get insurance on him until you get home. Then you can decide if you want to keep it on him or drop and get a refund of the unused policy period. If I buy a mare that is $5K or more I will get insurance on her for oopsey's like colic, trailer accident, etc....

^^^^^ This.

There is many great horse vets in Texas, I would not use their Vet I would want a vet that has never laid eyes on this horse so that you will have a fair/fresh exam on this horse.

And for the buying of this horse, if I were the seller I would not take half now and half later not fair to ask this of them, you either buy the horse are move on, a horse can hurt themselfs at any time or any where, if you like the horse pay for it and get insurance on her/him and ship to your friend, I would be paying board on this horse where ever it gos. Even if you did pay half for this horse and if it did get hurt while waiting for you you are not entitled to get your money back, 3 weeks is a long time for waiting for you to come back for this horse, when the owner could have sold this horse already..

Good Luck with what ever you do.  

This!! There is something with all of them. What people should consider is if the issues presented are something they can and are willing to manage. Unless of course it is something very serious that is absolutley career/life altering for the horse. 

If the horse is as great and calm as you say he is...if I was the seller and you came to me with the business deal you outlined...I’d probably pass and tell you we weren’t on the same page. It doesn’t sound like he’d be hard to move. You want him, you pay the full price. He gets hurt, that’s on you as his owner. Where he is at is beside the point. You wouldn’t take him home and expect them to refund you if he got hurt at your house. It’s the same thing at theirs if you purchase.

As for the PPE...it really depends on how far away the vet is, the price of the horse and how long it will take out of their day. 1Dsoon stated it best as far as the hoops a seller is going to jump through.

Thank you, everyone, for your HONEST feedback. It has been a while since I have been in the buying/selling game and I have never spent this much money on a horse, so my nerves are kind of high! I made some calls and I'll be taking him to Outlaw Equine to get him his PPE, I have never been there but I have heard some amazing things about them. Their prices are pretty fair too (Got a quote for another vet for $400 for a pre purchase, did not include xrays or bloodwork!)  So I am pretty excited. 

You guys are right, my original plan is not fair. I am now seriously considering just picking him up and bringing him back to my friends. I just am looking for the most cost-effective way of doing this. I will also look into insuring him, I have thought of that but I think it would be a great idea even if it's just for the month, so we are all covered. 

If he passes his PPE I will for sure post pics!! I have shown some videos to my friends and they say it looks like I have been riding him my whole life! I'm super anxious and excited!

Sounds like a good plain , and yes I have always heard nothing but GOOD about Outlaw Equine, you did good on picking them Good Luck

Does anyone have any recommendations for horse insurance? I have never insured a horse before.. would need to be a national insurance, not a local once. Especially since the horse will be traveling. 

I always tell people that if the price is high enough to justify that its always a good idea to insure them for at least the first 6 months. By then the horse has adjusted to all the changes in environment and you have really gotten to know the horse inside and out. Then make the call if you want to continue with it or you feel ok dropping it. My horses are always cheap so i don't but have friends that spend money on them so that is what I would do. Good luck!

Youre going to get a million replies as far as insurance. I use Star H Insurance. They are underwritten by The Hartford. Affordable, FAST, great to work with on both sides of the company. 

I had a pre-purchase exam done by Texas Equine Hospital while I was home in California. The owner was already taking another horse there for some x-rays, so I didn't have to pay her to haul. The vet called me when she arrived to see what exactly I wanted to do. They actually then called back a few minutes later saying they were going to have a different vet at that hospital examine the horse for me, since they wanted it to be someone who had never worked for that owner before. I appreciated that. I told them to do an overall exam and let me know if there were specific things they thought I should look at, but I for sure wanted x-rays of the horse's feet. The vet went over the plan, how they'd do an exam, then X-ray feet, then if those looked ok, x-ray hocks, etc - but they would stop and call me if they found anything questionable so that they didn't just run up my bill. I really appreciated that, too. Overall, really good experience and I'd recommend them if you're buying a horse in that area. They also e-mailed me the X-rays. I got shots of front feet, hocks and stifles for under $500.

So I got too excited, the horse had excellent hocks, stifles, ankles etc. But had advanced kissing spine and 3 vets that I consulted suspected the horse was possibly drugged, due to how bad it was vs. how calm he was. I'm not saying he was or wasn't, but I was so sad! I was advised by all 3 vets not to buy him, two of them I have known most of my life so I definitely trust their judgment! 

Onto the next one!

Thats awesome you found the kissing spine issue! That is not something usually looked at specifically in a pre purchase type exam. I'm sure your heartbroken but the right  sound horse is out there for you!