Hard valuation - Clydesdale!

[chance encounter]

One of the liveries at my yard loans a Clydesdale. She has had him on loan for around nine months and the owner has now approached her to see if she wants to buy him which she did say at the beginning she would buy him a year later.

The owner has come to her with a figure of £1500 which has totally gobsmacked the loanee. I said to her I would try and find some information/prices to compare but I cant find anything to compare to him so any help much appreciated.

He is 18 years old was bought for £1000 as a yearling. He suffers really really badly with sweet itch and has abscesses in his feet quite regularly but I have noticed he hasnt had any since the loanee has had him.

His sweet itch is awful and the loanee has spent a lot of money trying to resolve the issue and also a lot of money on treatment for mites in his feathers. She also has bought him a dressage saddle as he is massive and she struggles to do up the girth so the long straps help.

The loanee only took him on as she felt sorry for him, she has said it is not something she would go out and buy so is not prepared to pay £1500, she said even £500 she feels is too much for him.

I just wouldnt know where to start. He is a gentle giant, a plod and is so safe out on the roads which the loanee liked in him.

Any suggestions?

[pendan]

thats a hard horse to value if he is safe as houses and has no vices than all counts however with all his problems and his age to an extent they all decrease his value i think £500 is a little stingy but i also think £1500 is way over priced if i had him in at my yard to sell i would be asking £900 for him if he is as safe as houses and i know a few clients of mine that would prob pay some where near that however as the loaner has payed to get alot of his problems under control the owner should take that into account so i guess between 500 and 800 would be a fair price . the main isue for me would be if his feet caused significant problems to make him unrideble for a spell every few months as a big horse like him is not cheap to keep if you cant ride him very often

[black crow]

What is he like ridden wise? If he was well schooled it would possibly go more in his favour

i'd probably pay upto £900 for him, and thats it im afraid

[My Crazy Clan]

£500 I think is to low.


I would pay atleast £800- £1000 max

[chance encounter]

He has never been schooled BC, he has always been a happy hacker so never been asked to work correctly or schooled.

His only vice is breaking the gates by itching his tail on them and letting all the other horses out into the other field! :lol:

His feet are hard work. They are like big dinner plates and I have often helped to dress them with his owner whilst he has had an abscess. He is so stubborn and it is back breaking. His feet are broken and cracked now but luckily no abscesses.

[CityLights]

breeds like that are always tricky to value, there really isnt much to compare to, i would say £1000 would be a fair price but not 1500, he is an older horse not something that would sell easily and doesnt sound that easy to keep,

tell her to try if she does get him cavalesse next year, im starting to sound like a sales woman for it but i cant rate it higly enough it did wonders on ours, its £70 for three months supply but might last a little less time for him and is fed over the midge season, you can get it off the vet have her ring them up and find out a little more about it and if it would work for him

[chance encounter]

Thanks S&W, I will mention it to her.

[Loony]

I agree that £1000 sounds a lot more reasonable, but £500 is far too low.

[mandy5775]

I think up to £1000 would be a fair price for him. He is 18 and does have various health issues going on, which are going to cost money to treat. If his owner truely cares about him, she should be more than happy that he is going to a good home, rather than focusing on the cash££. Maybe your friend could suggest to the owner that she would give him a home for life, but only if she is in the position to do that of course.

[bimba]

I reckon his probably worth about £1000 but the owner should be prepared to let him go for £800 - £900 to the loanee to take into account the fact that she's got his sweetitch more undercontrol, sorted his feet out to some extent and would give him a good home.

[chance encounter]

Thanks everybody for your input. I wont see her till the weekend so will relay all your thoughts.

[Stacey]

I don't think £500 is far to low personally, he is 18, not schooled and has various health issues.

I would pay anything around £500- £700

x

[Holly82]

Hi,
If both parties where in agreement at the start of loan, that there would be a strong possiblity that the loanie would want to buy, then a price should have been brought up and agreed at the very beginning. Nothing worse then putting your own time, money and effort into a horse that isnt yours only for the attual owner to gain from it.
I loaned out my sec D gelding out in summer'08 as i was pregnant. I found a real nice woman who took him on and about 5 months later i asked if she wanted to buy him. She did and we came to an agreement over price, which my husband thinks was very cheap, but i knew they got on brilliantly and knew most importantly that he was going to a good home.
1,500 does not suprise me. The amount ppl ask for on some horses at the moment is just rediclious, especially when they have ailments. Make them a fair offer and go from there, make sure your friend states that at least hes going to a good home which has to be the most important thing.

Holly

[chance encounter]

She did try to Holly. Buying him was discussed at the very start and she had agreed to keep him for a year but and then pay for him, after having him for a month she phoned the owner and it took her eight months to get back to her with a price. The thing is this is the only horse the owner has ever had so I do think she is out of the loop a bit when it comes to the value. I do hope everything works out as I personally think the owner will struggle to find someone else to take him on.

[Lizwillison]

if this horse was advertised at the moment i doubt anyone would look at him for much over £600. age feet and sweetitch really put people off. I would be thinking that he would be potentially very expensive to keep fit so would not spend a lot on him. as the person loaning him seems to have done a really good job I think the owner should just be grateful he has been looked after and sell to her for a nominal amount.

[helena]

Would agree with Lizwilson, I think he's not worth much at all due to age/health issues, and certainly not £1k. Big breeds often don't live far into their 20's, and often end up with additional health issues due to the strain their weight puts on their joints, so really at 18 mean as it sounds he is coming towards the end of his life as a riding horse.

One of our liveries recently advertised a 17 year old, 15.2 with no health issues as a happy hacker for £400 and didn't get a single bit of interest at that price, most people expected him to be given away.

[chance encounter]

Spoke to the loanee today and told her all your views. She has decided she will offer the owner something for him and if she refuses then she will ask to just keep loaning him. If the owner refuses then she will take care of him until she finds someone to buy him.

[Stacey]

I think that is a sensible thing to do

keep us updated on what happens! x