Went to the local horse auction today...

We have a monthly local horse auction and I headed over today to see what the prices were like - unbelievable.

Three AQHA weanlings selling with transfer papers went through that were pretty nice looking, the buckskin filly went for 315.00. The others 250. And 125. A few riding horses that were decent and papered went through for less than 400.00... our sale is bad in that you can't ride the horses and the ring is too small to let the horses do anything but turn in a tight circle - so it's a big gamble... but I have never seen the prices so low. Of course that is probably in direct relation to the fact that hay is so high- we had a great growing year here in Colorado, but the folks in Texas have apparently been coming up and so our prices are nearly double last years - I spent 10.50 a bale for barely decent alfalfa - yuck.

Kind of a fun day window shopping though -

Here in Florida I pay anywhere between $19 and $22 for Alfalfa - and sometimes its not even that decent ! I wish I could get it for $10.50 - I'd be happy !!!!!

Dang, 19.00 a bale - 22.00 a bale?? For 75 pound bales? That's crazy high. You are right, 10.50 a bale seems downright reasonable now :)

It's times like these I am thankful for only owning 2 horses...

Sorry about that OP! Us Texans have gotten pretty desperate though...hay is almost impossible to find unless it's from out of state, and prices are pushing $150 for crappy cow round bale, $175+ for simple grass hay, and $210+ for alfalfa/alfalfa mixes. $16-$19 for a 50 lb bale of grass hay, and $22-25 for alfalfa mixes (if you can even find it). It's killing us!


It's sad to hear about the weanlings selling so low... hopefully they didn't go to meat packers? It's downright impossible to get money for unbroke horses, much less babies these days...no one can afford to pour feed and hay into something that won't return any profit for two years or more. Weanlings are catching less than $250 in our area, even with fair conformation and lineage, and the unbroke 2-3 year olds are either 'free to good home' or $2-300. Anything old or with health problems won't sell at all, and broke, bombproof horses aren't getting more than $700.

I mean... we bought a 7 year old, papered, fully trained header a few months ago for $300. No vices besides being a bit hot and hard to keep groceries on, perfect health, fair(ish) conformation...she probably has atleast $800 of training on her, yet people were balking at the $300 for her.

Ecomony is horrible right now, and we're all paying for it- unfortunately.

I can't believe they went for that much! Go up to Shipse in Indiana and you can pick up a trailer full for $25 a piece! I'm not kidding either. They had a buttload of Haflingers a few months ago. They all went for $25 to $300 a piece. Even a mare with a foal who was bred back only got $175.

And I'm in the boat with the hay thing. We just bought 150 bales... I know it's not going to get us through winter and I'm afraid that we won't be able to find more because our hay guy only got two cuttings this year. And some of it's being shipped east and south because of the drought/fire and the hurricane.

Are you guys talking about little square bales? I think I'll bite my tongue. We only paid $3 a bale and $30 for a big round bale.

Here in Oregon I just paid 17.00 a bail. They are nice heavy bails about 120lbs.

Ours are only about 50 pounds each. The square bales I mean.

Totally understandable, Endiku - our family is in Magnolia, and my SIL nearly lost her home to the fires - the drought has done such damage on so many levels... If I was there I would be going in on an out of state hay run with my neighbors as well... the horses have to eat, after all...

I don't think we had any slaughter buyers there... I didn't notice anyone bidding over and over, and some horses didn't even sell - there were over 10 that got less than a hundred dollars - some decent looking by birth, but had been starved, feet were terrible, manes and tails matted and/or gone - I just wondered why anyone would go through the bother of sending them through without the most basic attention given to them... the weanlings were actually still cute and fit...

A kind of funny side note, when I got home from the auction I was talking to dh about me and the kids at the auction and he said, "I was a little concerned that you were at the auction so I swung by the house and made sure you didn't take the trailer..." I guess he knows me too well :)

Sounds like he does, lol!!