The three things I've learned about buying horses are; always trust your gut feelings, vets can make mistakes, horses, buyers and sellers all have good days and bad days.
I am firmly of the opinion that you should test drive a horse away from his home turf to see what they're going to be like at rides. Riding a horse on his home turf is a great test too (want to check for barn sour and other games), but if you can't ride it where you want to ride it, what's the point of buying it? I now also firmly believe in test riding a horse in a purposely stressful environment, as that's what they're going to get at a race start (playdays are great test grounds-- pretty safe, enclosed arenas, usually tilled ground, lots of noise and excitement and there's usually somebody with first aid training to come pick you up out of the dirt if you really seriously get in over your head). I suppose you could always arrange to meet the seller at a playday or a ride and test ride there. . . Guys and gals, there's no way to 100% CYA in buying and selling horses. You should close your eyes, make your choice and commend your soul to the god of your choice. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
