How did you "find" your trail horse?

It give me a reason..............

I guess you could say I was kind of pushed into buying my trail horse by my VERY un horsey husband.I was very seriously injured on a horse last year and lost all confidence. When I could ride again I rode a friends bomb proof horse simply because the thought of not riding was more terrifing than the thought of riding,but I was just a scared passenger. Even taking riding lessons all winter did nothing for my confidence.I felt I was broken.I wasn't looking for a horse, I was happy with my mini and my Morgan pasture puff that I would "someday" send to a trainer. 3 months ago my husband seen this appaloosa on Kijiji (its like CL) and he kept pushing me to go see him. I had all kinds of excuses like I didn't want another horse, I had no money, the horse was too far away, horse was too old etc etc. My dear husband just kept pushing. He even made an appointment for me to go see the horse and asked a very experienced horse person to go with me. We drove the 8 hour drive to see this horse and I must admit I was nearly shaking with fear when I got on him in the round pen. He almost immediately shied violently at some imaginary thing. Somehow I didnt fall off and he literally turned his head and looked right at me. We walked around for a couple minutes and the owner suggested a trail ride. 10 minutes into the ride all my fear vanished and I was in heaven. I knew he was the one for me. I feel that Little Foot (thats what I named him) has given me back my life and I couldn't be happier. We trail ride several times a week and we have even participated in cattle sorting events, and an Old Timers Gymkhana. We are going to start dressage soon and tonight for the first time ever we loped out on the trails. He has never hesitated to do anything I ask and he has never spooked since that first time. He is the perfect horse for me and I will be forever grateful for my husband for pushing me into getting him.

Artemisblossom - that was such a sweet story. Glad you found a boy to give you back your confidence. Riding and having my horse has done a world of good for me. I love them.

HN, I'm very glad to hear that you didn't lose your spirit and confidence after that accident!

I'm no help really, because I trained my horses for the trails myself (I bought my qh as a yearling with only trail riding in mind, which we did till I decided to switch to arena work couple years ago :) ). But if I'd look for the trail horse for my beginner friend I'd spread a word around at my local forum as well as would look for the help from the friend who works with trail horses (making them "safe" on trail). Definitely NO to auction horses (yes, I know some coming from there are very nice, but there are too many rip-offs as well), and NO to horse dealers that has a bad reputation in my area (I know several).

I found mine in an ad in the local paper, actually.

I knew I wanted a younger horse, sort of a "project" but not a total baby. Size/height didn't matter so much to me. Actually, the gaited/non-gaited thing didn't mean much either. I grew up riding hunter/jumper and dabbled in dressage, so I wasn't biased about whether the horse trotted or gaited.

He was advertised as a green broke three year old - a registered TWH gelding. I drove an hour or so to "try" him. Rode him in the arena and took him for a spin around the perimeter of the owner's farm. They had some "trail obstacles" set up in the arena and that little gelding would try anything you'd point him at. Not that there wasn't some nervousness or hesitation, but he would try it.

By the time I drove home that evening, I called my parents and told them "I just found my new horse."

That was 11 years - and several thousand miles - ago. I still have him.

At the time, I was working for a woman who was big (and I mean BIG) into the WP QH thing. And I think she was offended that, not only did I not buy one of her youngsters, but I didn't even buy a Quarter Horse. Oh well. . .

Another option is to try calling some trainers in your area. Lots of trainers either have or know of someone who has horses for sale. If they're honest, then they could match you up perfectly with a good mount.

Reading your posts, I am so proud of you for already planning to get back in the saddle. I'm sure there will be some moments of doubt, but you've got such a great attitude those moments will be very short lived.

I actually found my boy on here! I saw his ad on google when I was searching for a new horse (my last girl just wasn't working out, she was a fruit loop). I had looked at several other horses with no luck, they were all either too small, too old, too expensive, or too far away. I wanted something that was 15hh+, 5-9 years old, within an hour away, level headed and my budget was $1,000. Skip met my standards perfectly, and then some. The only thing I would have changed was his color, he is a chestnut and I absolutely adore bays, Grullas, roans, and greys. Now, I wouldn't change anything about him. Chestnut has to be my favorite color now lol.

My only suggestion is to not settle for a horse. Don't let small things turn you away, but don't settle on the first horse that fits one or two of your criteria. I did that with my previous mare, and it was a pretty big mistake(and a huge loss of $2,600). It would have saved us time, money, and a few hospital bills if I would have said no, she isn't what I am looking for.

You seem to be off to a great start, good luck finding "the one"!

Vet and farrier are good honest referral sources.

They aren't going to want to work on a horse that is a jerk . . .

Thats how I found Rick!

Take a few lessons like you are planning and then after you know and trust the trainer, ask them to help you locate a horse.

Amazing how many "bomb-proof" horse sellers fall all over themselves and then give up the truth when a trainer contacts them and lets them know they are a trainer representing a client that is looking to purchase a horse. Another bonus is having the trainer to test out prospective horses before you get on them and a pair of trained eyes examining prospective horses for any issues.