Is 30 year old pony just too old?

[MagicLlamaStrikesBack]

Weve been looking for a pony for DS1 for a while now as he has outgrown the existing pony he has.

He loves looking after our ponies, and going out on a ploddy hack but isnt interested in much more i.e no interest in pony club / shows / going anywhere at speed etc.

I put an advert on preloved and ive had a response from a woman with an aged mare - shes about 30ish.

Been to look at her yesterday, and shes lovely. Very friendly, easy to catch, let DS groom her, picks feet up, and he had a little ride and all was good. She seems in good health, I would be getting her vet checked for basic stuff, and the woman is happy to let us have her on LWVTB, but i am just a little wary about such an aged pony.

Thoughts please?

[BonkeyMollocks]

I would be wary too of a pony that age. Potential vets fees, health problems, expense of when said pony does pass.

At 30 a pony should be enjoying a nice quiet relaxed life. Yes the odd ploddy hack would be fine providing the pony is up to it, but what happens if she isn't after a few months?

I would be tempted to get a more in depth vet check done. Likely that any potential problems are not going to be picked up by the basic check.

LWVTB? Who will be responsible if the pony croaks it whilst with you? Vets bills? Will she take her back if you don't get on? Lots to think about. I would be tempted to either buy her or not.

[BonkeyMollocks]

I also think the woman is mean for selling on a aged pony who should feel settled in her last home by now. Just saying :)

Fwiw, I have known ponies live to 40 and still be up to the odd bumble down the road. But from experience, older ones do need more care and looking after. Even if it is just extra cuddles and carrots :)

[Butkin]

You're seeing her in the middle of summer. What will she be like in the Winter - presumably she needs to come in and be fed.

I tend to agree with Bonkey that it is either buy or not with a pony this age and really she shouldn't be charging anything. If you are going to give her a good - last - home then that should be enough.

[Alameda]

:( 30! What next, pimping out their grandpa's wrinkly bumhole to punters?

[MagicLlamaStrikesBack]

She already has a feed in the morning and evening and comes in at night. Thats no problem as my stables and grazing are right by the house, and my existing elderly shetland has extra feed etc over winter.

I have had a quote from my current insurer for £130 for insurance per year (exluding vets fees) which would cover death & disposal costs, but obviously to insure her for vets fees is going to be pretty impossible so thats the big thing really.

We only want something to plod up the lane and then back again once or twice a week, and alot of ponies we looked at obviously did alot more than that and hes not (and is unlikely) ever to be interested in anything else, so something elderly seemed like a good idea, but i wonder if shes just a bit too eldery if you see what I mean.

But equally I wonder where on earth she will end up, I mean the lady is in a bit of a mess really. Shes got a young baby and her parter has left her and she can no longer afford the livery costs so really wants her gone. This is precisely the reason I dont go to sales, because im a sucker for a sob story.

Im thinking then it might be worth offering a token amount (she said she was looking for about £500 for her, which seems too much really) to have her now and buy her outright or else walk away?

[cashmeresox]

To be honest, at that advanced age, really the owner should be offering pony for free but with checks on the kind of home pony goes to or make the tough decision to say goodbye and pts. I have an aged mare who is, like the one you have been to see, great for purpose. Ours is a darling old thing who is still game for cantering and fun rides but we do take it gently with her. And she has a number of almost inevitable health problems related to old age - cushings which is controlled with medication, arthritis which I occasionally have to bute for. I understand why a pony like this could be moved to a new home: ours is so good that I do actually think that another child would have a wonderful, safe intro to horsies with her but I would have to know exactly where she was going and feel confident that new owners would do right by her. I would much rather loan than sell too - that way I could take responsibility if life got too much for the old thing. It is almost in bad taste to sell a good old pony but not everyone feels like that. If you can give this pony a wonderful last few years then she would be lucky and far worse things could happen than her go to a lovely last home. 30 does seem a bit old to be selling though!

[Hebiegebies]

Agree that you should not be paying, she should be happy pony is going to a good home.
Our pony is late 30's and costs an arm and a leg in food as grass does not give her enough nourishment anymore.
We happily pay out as she is part of the family and we know she is good with children. However we would limit vets bills and would say goodnight rather than put her through mega treatment.
If you can afford it this pony seems ideal, but be careful about costings.

[cashmeresox]

Second that - our old pony costs more to keep happy and healthy than our other 3 put together (competition horse, OH riding horse and a foal!) I am very happy to fork out for her because she is part of the family and totally unphased by just about anything that DD (7) and DS (6) do or ask for but OH and I agree that if she had a big illness we would rather say goodbye than do heavy treatment/box rest etc. Having said that, if I was looking for first pony for the kids again I would definately head for the more mature type - hehe!

[Pixel]

It's difficult without seeing the pony, we had a 35 yo who would definitely have been capable of what you are suggesting (and would have thrived on it), but we currently have a 29 yo shetland who we think is ready for and deserves her retirement. So it's your gut feeling about her really. She could have a few more good years but you would have to be comfortable with the knowledge that you will be her last home and will be responsible for some hard decisions in the nearish future. A lot depends on how you view the effect on your ds when this happens. You might think it a hard but valuable lesson for him or you might think he is too young and better to avoid the situation altogether (although accidents/illness do befall younger ponies so there are no guarantees anyway).

However, I agree you shouldn't be paying £500 for her! The owner has a cheek asking anything at all IMO.

[50ShadesOfSaggy]

At 30, she could keel over and die, any day now. You could pay for a vet check, transport, the £500, and then next week, she might have a stroke, or become very poorly, and you need her put down and disposed of. You wouldn't get much change from £1000 all in! as others have said, you don't pay for a pony of that age!

[Booboostoo]

The current owner is being irresponsible. If she can't afford to retire the pony she should have her PTS.

If you do decide to take her on you should only pay a token amount (the owners should bite your hand off for the offer of a pound!) and you be left looking after an elderly pony which may or may not be up to the job of gentle hacking. I am a bit fan of vettings but in this case I don't think there is much the vet can say as the extent of problems like arthritis won't really be known at the vetting.

The main question is do you want to look after a very elderly pony in its retirement? If yes go for it, she will be lucky to have you as an owner!

[Callisto]

£500 for a 30 year old pony . I only paid £800 for DD's 10yo registered Welsh superstar. I would probably take her on, especially if you only need her for light work, but only if she was given to me or the token amount was about £50. Think the owner is taking the piss big time asking that amount.

I also wouldn't bother with a vet check. Anything really wrong will be pretty apparent, and at this age I wouldn't be spending £££ to keep her alive.

[50ShadesOfSaggy]

What is her condition like now? If she is being fed morning and night in mid summer to maintain a reasonable condition, it'll take bucket loads in the winter! See if you can get a look at her muck. Lots of recognisable matter, such as grains or fairly intact hay, means that she isn't digesting very well, which could get costly in feed terms.
I know you want something gentle for your son, but do you really want a pony who could conceivably go downhill or die at any moment? How's he going to feel? We have taken on aged beasts, but they can be serious hard work, and expensive. And we would NEVER pay for one! The usual arrangement we use, is 'purchased for a pound'. This makes a proper, binding sale, you can get a receipt, you bought it.

[MagicLlamaStrikesBack]

Hi everyone, thanks for your replies.

Ive told the lady im going to have a think about it for a few days. The mare is lovely, but I just feel a bit uncertain. Ive told her that I wouldnt be willing to pay for her if we do decide to have her.

Shes in lovely condition at the moment, healthy, nice weight, glossy coat, walks out fine and is not lame.

Her routine at the moment is, shes fed 2 handfuls of chaff with 1 handful of sugarbeet in the morning at about 9:30 and then turned out. Shes then brought back in around 4:30ish fed the same again, and then left in the stable with hay and water until the next morning.

So shes not fed loads at the moment, but im well aware that shell likely need alot more in the winter.

The age thing is slightly worrying because id like something to last son for at least a couple of years before it pops his clogs on him.

To be honest, offering her a nice retirement home is possible as I have my own field, stables at home so livery costs are an issue, itll be the feed costs that are the kicker. However we are looking at reducing sons riding lessons (currently goes once a week) as hes just not enjoying them as they keep trying to make him do more than plod to maybe once a month so that would be offset against her extra feed costs. The shetland that hes outgrown is also now on part loan, so her costs have halved, again meaning im not going to be substantially out of pocket for her costs I hope

Ive put a picture of her on my profile.

[Callisto]

She may well last for several more years in very good health. If she is in as good condition as you say, I would be far more happy about taking her on, and from what I can see in the pics, she doesn't look anywhere near decrepit. I also think that all of the expensive 'senior' feeds can be unnecessary unless there are serious teeth/digestion issues. Bran, beet, boiled barley and some cod liver oil will probably be quite enough for her.

Good luck with whatever decision you make - it is a tough one.

[Pixel]

Well she doesn't look bad at all does she, and it's always a good sign with oldies if they haven't hung on to their coat (unless she's clipped, can't see from pics). I don't think the feed you've described is excessive at all for an older pony, it doesn't sound as if they are desperately packing food into her just to keep her looking reasonable. I've got to admit, if I had my own field I'd be tempted by one like that for ds (has ASD and only goes on lead rein). She looks very sweet!

[Booboostoo]

She looks really good for her age, in fact you would guess she was a lot younger. The current feed is pretty minimal, hardly classed as a hard feed at all so it doesn't look as if they are having to fork out on loads of feeds in the middle of the summer.

Go for it I think!!!! :)

[hellymelly]

She's a really pretty pony. I am not knowledgable about horses, but it sounds as though you have fallen for her , and that you could offer her a lovely home, so I'm hoping you do get her! DH's cousin's very old pony was loved by him and everyone else, he was a wonderful pony for a young boy. He lived until 38 I think, and is buried in their field.

[Loshad]

i would probably go for it, if it was a no charge deal. You are doing the woman a favour taking on her old pony - £5 maybe as a deal - i know some folk are funny about some money changing hands.
My old companion pony is at least 30, but he was free about 5 years ago (he may well be 35 or more!)

[MagicLlamaStrikesBack]

Morning,

Well ive been pondering it all night actually up reading a book but also pondering and having written a list of pros and cons, I think the pros have the victory.

Looks like DS is getting a new pony!

[Hebiegebies]

That's great, enjoy the new arrival in your family

[cashmeresox]

Brilliant - well done you! Good luck and I really hope you all enjoy her. We adore our old pony and, as everyone says as long as she's pretty healthy at the mo, that's all you can ask for with any horse or pony at the time of purchase. You are also, being very very kind to have her and very sensible to take an older pony for your lad - they know their job and are so sweet. Aaah, what a lovely result!

[seeker]

My dd's mare is 18/19 and has much bigger feeds then that to keep the weight on her, even in the summer! But I agree with the rest- you shouldn't be paying anything for her- a token to seal the deal, but no more. Good luck!

[AlpinePony]

Congratulations - I think you're doing a lovely thing and I do hope "not too much" money changes hands. Tbh you'd be lucky to get 500 for her for meat...

I hope she brings your daughter many, many hours of fun! :)

[seeker]

Be really really firm about the money. A tenner at the most to seal h deal. No more. And she should be thanking you, not the other way round! Oh, and don't let her rip you off for the tack. It probably doesn't fit her properly now anyway, and it will have no resale value. Maybe offer her £20. If she has rigs they might be worth getting, particularly if they fit her well and don't rub her anywhere.