When looking for horses at a horse auction what are the most important things to look for?

Answer 1

First off don't buy a horse out of pity. They can cost you thousands in vet bills. list of things to look for and to avoid.
1) make sure the horses isn't coughing or has discharge from coming from his nose.
2) Make sure he is in good weight. You can tell by running your fingers gently over their ribs. If you can feel them easily the horse is thin. If you can't feel them even by pushing a little they are chubby. You want to be able to just feel them a bit. When the horse moves you shouldn't be able to see their ribs moving back and forth. But see the fat moving back and forth over the ribs.
3) make sure the horse has a bright look in his eyes.
4) make sure their is no sighs of lameness. Sighs are head bobbing, tenderness of the leg, swelling, and not putting weight on it when they are just standing. (remember sometimes horses take weight off of one of their back legs and tilt their body when resting)
5) Make sure the hooves are trimmed.
6) Make sure the coat is shinny and well groomed. That is a sign of good health and regular attion
7) take a exsperenced person with you. they will be able to tell how good the horses comforation and movment.
8) make sure you can pet the horse, pick up their feet, touch their bellly, touch their ears and rub their head. A horse that is head and ear shy could of been abused.
9) DO NOT buy a stallion unless he will be used for breeding and is high quility. No matter how "good" of a buy they are. Stallions will grow up and get mean. they need special care and are a huge handful.
10) don't buy a horse that is used in a different dissaplin then you ride.
11) Make sure a mare isn't pregnant when you buy her. It happends way to much. A stud got out and the mare is pregnant, you can't tell yet so lets just send her to the action.
12) the answer about horses being aced is right. Tons of people do that so whatch out.

I have always liked buying from respected trainers or horse dealers. Just use your head and don't buy anything that doesn't seem right.

Answer 2

Don't go unless there is someone really experienced on your side to help you choose the right horse. Horse auctions are renowned for having horses where you get what you pay for. They are not necessarilly cheaper, because these horses usually have a whole lot of problems (physical or emotional), which you will need to spend time and money fixing.

Apart from all of the usual things you look for when buying a horse, just make sure they are not sedated. You also need to be aware that there are also mild pain killers that can hide lameness or sore-spots on a horse, so beware. I'm not sure if a vet check is allowed at the auction you are going to, but you should push for one, and be very worried if the owner doesn't aggree to one.

If I were you, I would stay away from buying a horse at an auction until you've been to a few of them and seen how they work, and try to get as much information from others that may have purchased a horse through an auction in the past.

All the best to you :)

Answer 3

My advice would be don't buy a horse from a auction. Look at sites on the web that sell horses where you can go and ride the horse. Also if you do this go once announced and then another time unannounced and see if they will let you ride it again. If they say no don't buy it because they probably had it drugged with a calming drug the first time or on pain killers so you couldn't see it was in pain. You can buy these items at most farm stores like TSC and a lot of people do. A lot of people also lunge them before you come and see them. Dealers at the horse auction are known to do all of these things and many more tricks to make the horse look good. In my experience there are few if any good horses that go through the auction. I recently bought a 11 year old gelding at one, he rode like a dream, he even went through the drive thru at McDonalds and I was sure he was a good one. Brought him home, bonded with him a few days, went to get on him and he bucked and all four feet left the ground. He could have been a rodeo horse. I ended up having to sell him because even my experienced trainer couldn't get this out of him. I have had several bad experiences buying horses through the ring and should of learned my lesson long ago. Remember you get what you pay for and if these horses are so good, why sell them at an auction when you can get good money for them selling them from your home. Good Luck finding a good horse and if you still plan on going to an auction, take someone with you that knows horses and find a good trainer ahead of time. Another good thing to do is ask if the seller guarentees soundness in the horse for 2 weeks, if the answer is no, don't buy it.

Answer 4

If you don't know then I wouldn't recommend buying a horse at auction without a knowledgable trainer or vet with you. You will end up with a horse with either behavioral problems or medical problems. If you want a horse with either of those problems, you can easily find those around your area for free to a good home.

Look at your local horse rescue for a great family horse that needs a new home at a very affordable price, equal to or cheaper than an auction horse.

Answer 5

Know that a lot of horses that go into the auction are given sedatives to calm them down. What you thinking of getting a calm horse in reality, could be getting a hot horse.

I dealt with a few auctions myself and know a lot of people who experienced issues. A friend of mine who hosted one of the auctions one year discussed it with me when I brought it up of my curiosity of what was going on.

Do look at the body of the horse.

Does the conformation meet your riding ability and if this horse has good structure?

Is the coat dry and dull?
Does the horse have sound movement of the walk and trot? (no limping or favoring). Just remember, horses can be medicated. so, keep aware of any signs of that like droopy heads, sleeping/fatigue and dilated eyes etc.

Does the horse easily lead?

There is a lot of horses that go to the auction from being abused or handed down with out training.

Is this horse papered?
Have any markings/tattoos?

A friend of mine bought a really beautiful black and white paint from the auction. I believe $1,000 for him. This gelding I assure you can rope and rein amazingly. However, this horse was sold as a "kid friendly" horse. Which, this gelding is everything but for green small children riding. Too fast and hot headed. Excellent cow horse but not kid horse. He still kept him and allowed ranchers to use him.

So, sometimes you can get a good deal and other time you might not.

Answer 6

ok nicely before everything you acquire to be sure in the experience that your in a correct zone to carry equine/animals. searching for a horse is a lengthy procedure. bypass to a community horse barn and ask round if each person might want to be prepared that could want to really help you out that has owned horses. do not bypass to AUCTIONS! Thats the position alot of waste horses are offered and drugged as a lot as get rid of!!! (personal experience!) try going to a private proprietor. Your not likely to get a "sound" horse for in basic terms 800. thats a guarentee. Quarter horses are probable the whole guess for you and your hubby. they are nicely tempered and may want to carry a limiteless quantity of weight(comic tale) yet you get what I recommend. try getting something that has had some specialist education if achieveable like 30 days with more effective miles placed on by employing the owner. Geldings have sturdy tempers and under no circumstances get that season like mares do..yet personaly i appreciate mares!

Answer 7

Horses

Answer 8

well all the answers were answered but not all horses are bad at a auction but you have to get lucky and dont rush things. like my old trainer whent to the slaughter sale and picked up by jumper who jumps 3'6" well and a grandson of seattle slew but he was a nut so if you have anough experiense you can cope with it go for it but you must have a horse willing to learn. just remeber dont look a gifted hor in the eye.* dont feel bad and get your self stuck with 1,000 $ + vet bill
good luck finding a horse.

Answer 9

Good conformation, calm, alert, good weight ask if a vet can check the horse out before you officially buy it if its possibly. Make sure you see the horse ridden or trotted in hand to see if he's lame that sort of thing.

Answer 10

look for a alert horse. it has to act calm and look healthy. if you aren't sure what a healthy horse looks like one with bright eyes and little or no bones showing.
I hope you find a good horse.