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Is it a fair adoption fee?

2K views 36 replies 14 participants last post by  Piaffe 
#1 ·
I decided to find my weanling filly a new home since her dam is likely pregnant again:-( I am not sure exactly how much to ask for a weanling. She is easy to catch most of the time, she leads well,picks up front hooves just by tapping them,working on hinds still:wink:isnt spooky,will walk on the road by cars,dogs,bicycles,etc. No problem. Would you say $400 is asking too much? Someone came and looked and said I shouldnt take less than $400, but I havent had a lot of interest. I want her price to be fair... I cant upload pics from the ipad,but she is the filly in the avatar :) opinions??? Thanks!
 
#2 ·
She's a baby, knows very little, and we're going into winter. You'll be lucky to give her away, since babies like her are going for literally next to nothing at auction.

Yes, $400.00 is far too much for an unregistered, grade weanling.
 
#3 ·
Hmmmm.....mostly I was asking is because the lady that came and looked has raised/shown welsh/arab ponies for 25 years and said she should not be sold for less than $400 as is. Eh, I might just keep her until this summer once she has more training and is shedded out and pretty. She is getting her winter coat now hehe. She can be reg. APRA. Thanks for the uh, nicely worded opinion ;)
 
#4 ·
Unfortunately if she's not registered and not fancy $400 is way too much for the baby (if you look at the prices in some rescues they ask about the same, may be little more for the riding horses). Plus we are coming into the winter meaning not too many people want one extra mouth to feed with expensive hay. If you want to get more for her may be wait till Spring and register her.
 
#5 ·
If she can be registered then register her.

What does APRA stand for?


I agree that $400 is kind of steep for an unregistered weanling. If you have a person who says she should not sell for less than that you should cling to them and have them buy her.
 
#8 ·
If she can be registered then register her.

What does APRA stand for?

Arabian pony registration of america i think.just for any part arab ponies.




Hmmm...thanks for all the opinions. I also dont want to give her away/sell too cheap because she could be resold the next day at an auction or something. I think you all misunderstood me,though. I was NOT saying that I thought she was worth $400:wink: just what someone told me and I was a little surprised hence the asking so please keep replies polite:? Thanks again!
 
#7 ·
Get her registered, put some manners on her, and then you might be able to get the $400.00 you want for her.

She's a weanling. At best, it's going to be 3 years before she's useful for anything, and in the meantime is only going to cost money. Plus, with a baby, you can't really tell her potential for anything at this stage.

It's a big gamble asking someone to pay $400.00 for a baby, especially when they can go to auction and pick one up for $25.00.

I'm not being rude, I'm merely telling you the truth. There are a glut of bad, good, and in between horses on the market right now. If you want money for your little one, she has to have something the others don't. Registration papers would be a good start.
 
#10 · (Edited)
To begin with, no one was being anything but polite so let's not get into that. Secondly, I attend 1 or 2 auctions per month, with last Saturday night being the latest. Weanlings, if they sold at all, brought anywhere from $10 to $45. One registered one brought $75 but she was AQHA and out of some nice cowhorse stock. Ponies that were ridden into the ring by little kids were bringing under $100.

Horses sell for what someone is actually willing to pay - not what someone just says they are worth. I know you need a starting point but, at least in my area, $400 would not even you a phone call registered or not.

Lastly, you are afraid of letting her go too cheap because someone else will make money on her?! I won't even go into that except to say that with that idea in your mind, you will never sell her.

On a side note, did I understand that her dam is pregnant again?
 
#11 ·
Why can't she be registered as a Half Arabian? If her Arabian parent is registered and DNA typed, she can be registered with the AHA.

I've never heard of APRA. It sounds like a made up registry for horses that are unregisterable with their actual breed organizations, for whatever reason.
 
#12 ·
Her parents arent registered as far as i know. Www.arabponies.com
Better than nothing IMO. $400 is really very little for a horse i think....but i suppose economy is bad. Anyways thanks for all the great replies and opinions I will consider what you have said:wink:
 
#13 ·
Maybe things are very different in your area. Have you shopped for a horse lately?

Good horses with training and ability are going for pretty cheap now. Way expensive horses are still way expensive horses. Every day horses are not getting what they used to.
 
#14 ·
I suppose it would depend on your area.. I went on horseclicks and looked up yearlings or younger for my area. They were between $400-$6000. However, I'm from North Dakota, and we aren't dealing with the economic problems nearly as much because our state has a surplus still.
 
#15 ·
I wouldn't trade my filly, Rain, for anything - but the simple truth is that she is a grade filly that is fairly well lead broke (hey, she's only four and half months old - nobody's perfect at that age!). She stands for the farrier, doesn't kick and doesn't bite. She's quiet and sensible, not spooky at all. She will make an excellent riding horse...eventually. Realistically, this time of year, I'd be lucky to get $25 for her - and that would probably be from a kill buyer. The low horse prices around here have closed down most of the local horse auctions - there used to be one in every small town around here.
 
#16 ·
Exactly, dee.

This is a grade, weanling filly, nothing more. There are quite a few others just like her out there, and they're going for pennies on the dollar.

I've been restraining myself to try and say nothing about the filly's unregistered mother being pregnant again, with probably the same unregistered sire's baby.

Because making more grade horses is such a great idea. :-x
 
#21 ·
I've been restraining myself to try and say nothing about the filly's unregistered mother being pregnant again, with probably the same unregistered sire's baby.

Because making more grade horses is such a great idea. :-x


It is a shame. If you read in the breeding section I got this mare and foal as a rescue project. The previous owner didnt even know when she had been bred.:evil: And no it isnt the same sire. They had the little dam in with another arab stallion. They are both being taken excellent care of now. I havent the foggiest notion as to why she is bred to be honest....think it is a real shame.

I suppose it also does depend on your area. I have seen MANY weanlings same as her going for much higher. I know someone that sold an unreg. Grade Colt for $700 a couple months ago....
Hmmmm...well...i was just curious. But now I know why curiosity killed the cat:wink:

At this point I will leave her adoption fee blank and work it out with her new home as needed. I am not worried about what I sell her for or trying to make money. That wasnt the point of this thread. I dont care what she sell for. I was asking what an average person would say... something between the $25 i can buy a halter for and the $400 the pony breeder says. Sigh....obviously not an easy answer. When I bought her for $200 I was happy with buying such a cutie.

Thanks again...didnt expect so much response:shock::lol:
 
#17 ·
SR, don't get me wrong, I think grade horses have their place - every horse I've owned has been a grade horse - most were pure QH, but unregistered all the same. However, that was back when the horse market was pretty decent. Nowadays, even the breeders of quality registered stock should be thinking twice about breeding, IMHO.
 
#18 ·
Shay-la paid $350 for her registerable weanling Appy colt sired by a local halter and performance champion and out of a broodmare with a futurity producing sire line. She couldn't GIVE him away right now with winter upon us - nobody is so desperate for an unproven weaner colt that they're going to spend hundreds of dollars feeding him until spring. And our economy is GOOD compared to the US!

It's hard enough to sell horses before winter, never mind worthless colts that are nothing but a mouth to feed. People know all these horses will still be available in spring and nobody is going to rush to part with their cash.
 
#19 ·
Dee, I also think grade horses have their place.

But not those that are being bred with no thought to their lineage, plans for the foals, or why they're being bred in the first place.

Just because a horse has a uterus doesn't mean it needs to have a foal every year. Especially ones that aren't registerable by any official breed registry.
 
#22 ·
SR - We are on the same page, then.

Breeding shouldn't be done without a specific purpose in mind, registered stock or not. That being said, I have no room to talk, since my Dancer was bred to son in law's fugly stud (registered, but why?) without my permission, and Rain was the result. We love her, but it had better never happen again. (So far, so good, no more buns in the oven, and he will be gelded very soon!)
 
#23 ·
Piaffe - one thing you may have in your favor - just mention pony and the price goes up a bit. Not much, but some - at least around here...
 
#25 ·
I for one dont read every single thread out there, so I wouldnt have known that the mare and foal were a rescue bundle, with the possibility of the mare being in foal again.

Just because papers do not mean something to you does not mean that they could be of value to someone else. It would probably help get you a few more bucks for the baby.

How well is she halter broke? Will she stand still to be groomed and bathed? Will she hold still for the farrier? Or for you pretending to be the farrier? Does she lead? How well does she lead? If the answer was yes to all of these, it will help her sell. If you answered no, then maybe work on them all winter so that when spring comes, you have a smart yearling to sell.
 
#31 ·
The site looks a bit dodge...I wouldn't send my money to them. I doubt it would help the sale either.

A little OT: When you say "grade" does that just mean unregistered? Where does "grade" (in this context) come from? Like are there "grade classes" at shows for non-registered or something? Maybe I've been living under a rock, but I've never heard it used like this in Australia.
 
#33 ·
Typically, a Grade horse is either a crossbred or an unregistered horse. The reason being if the horse is not registered, you have no way of proving it's bloodlines. Both my Arab mare and Paint filly are considered Grades, because although I was TOLD they're purebred, I really can't prove it.

And THAT is the biggest reason for registration - especially when breeding horses, it gives you the entire lineage to study disease, weakness or inbreeding. With a Grade, and these "joke" registries, it's a waste and time of money because it still doesn't tell you anything about the bloodlines which is the ULTIMATE reason for registering animals. You spend money to get a certificate saying your horse is an Arabian Pony when anyone with two eyes can see that at a glance.
 
#36 ·
If she is a rescue you shouldn't price her around the same price as the weanlings for sale in your area. Your price should reflect a good home and recooping some of the cost of her care. There is a rescue here who caters specifically to foals. Their adoption fee is never less than $75 and never more than $500 and $500 is for a registerable foal who is usually not easy to find or is very flashy.

Have you looked at how much weanlings are going for around you? I normally don't see many for sale around my area. The last one I saw was $200 on craigslist. I also saw one that was free with the purchase of either it's sire or dame.
 
#37 ·
She is in good shape now:wink: definitely NOT what id call a rescue now.

And finallllly someone has gotten my point! Thank you!

I was NOT asking a specific price for her ($400)....just wondering what an appropriate adoption fee would be. I could care less honestly if I recooped my costs....that is not why I got her.

From dreamhorse and horsetopia in my area i did not see even one foal reg. Or not for under $1000.... I didnt go through all however many pages so there likely was some.....but it wouldnt be the average price.
 
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