Just realised the title might be confusing as to what i'm asking. I'm asking specifically on what you do as the potential new rider do get a feel of how the horse is.
.
I know you absolutely have to get the vet & farrier to check the horse and i'll do that if i like the horse :)

Hi Lucie,
I'm not an expert, but still I'd like to give you some thoughts on your way to checking this new horse...
. See how he is "into-pressure", from the ground. How sensitive is he when asked to yield from your fingertips, standing next to his flanks.
. Standing at his shoulder, ask for a "neck-yield", to see how responsive he is and if there's any tension, giving his head to you is a sign of trust.
. Put your hand on his poll, does he lower his head, or does he go against the light weight of your hand. Can you touch his ears?
. Look at his eyes, do they seem dull or bright, does he let you into his personal space, without a reaction.
. Can you tie him and then walk away?
Of course you need to see him ridden and ride him yourself, as you said...
Good luck and let us know!
Miriam

Hi. I know it's exciting but try & take your time. Take note of the circumstances - is the horse in the field when you arrive or is he stabled or saddled. Ideally you want to see him go through the whole bringing in, grooming, saddling & ridden process. Depending on his age, check for scars & lumps & bumps. Just like us, horses gain a few scars through time. Too many may mean he's accident prone, too few & he's possibly less experienced than your being told. When you ride him see how light you can be with your aids & whilst you may ride in an arena, ask to take him to an open space. Take him to a revving vehicle. Be aware of his tack - is it simple & relatively mild or does it suggest he has issues. Check his feet are strong & healthy. Place your thumb & second finger either side of his spine at the withers with your forefinger on his spine. Press firmly & slide your hand right down his back to his tail. If he flinches he maybe sore - best to do this before saddling him. Write a list of questions & take it with you - shows you're serious. Listen to his breathing, especially after some fast work. Once you've finished riding suggest that you unpack him, brush him over & turn him out. You'll learn loads about him by handling him. Most importantly, enjoy yourself. Good luck. Cheers, Jo.

Thank you Miriam, i'm adding all of that to my list.
.
Jo, yes I have asked the owner to be with her when we get him. I saw too many horses when I was bying my first horse, their owner said they were "perfectly handled" and when you got there you had to bribe them with food to even get close enough to try to catch them...
.
This gelding is 13 years old, 100% on the trail, so i'll check for those physical signs of previous experience too. I didn't know the procedure for checking the spine, thanks !
.
This is just the first visit, then if I get a good feeling i'll go back with a neutral friend, and then if we both think the horse isright there'll be a third visit with the vet & farrier. I did that for Dayka last year and it prevented me from buying a horse i'd had a crush on but turned out to have terrible manners and bad feet, so i'll definitely keep to that process :)
.
I'll let you know how it goes ! Lucie

I'm so glad you're planning several visits- didn't want to bring that into the mix as it can put folk off other important points if you bring too much all at once. You don't become firm friends on the basis of a brief meeting- horses & people! At 13 he should have some scars. Don't be put off - he's had a life. If he's completely clean I would suggest he's been wrapped in cotton wool all his life in which case he may not be what you are looking for. Let's go to the deep stuff. How does he greet you? Does he seem pleased to have a new friend or does he regard you as being a bit scary? Why is he for sale? Be aware that 13 is an odd age - teeth can't be accurate after 8 so look at the angle of his front teeth. Older horses front teeth project further outwards - he may be significantly older, hence the need to off load before he becomes less physically able & a medical liability. I bought Apollo at 14 & we were together for 24 years, until his death in 2005 at the age of 38. We won our last cross country - pairs, when he was 30. Daytona was 6 then, she had to really try to keep up & sadly past away earlier this year having suffered cushings & possibly surcoming to a stomach ulcer at the age of 25. My point is, even when horses are older they can still have significant life left & continue to give their owners great pleasure for many years - Apollo ran off with me on my birthday, aged 37! Much to my huge amusement & pleasure that the elderly old boy still had the will to do that. Cheers, Jo.

Just got back from the visit. it was... confusing... lots of good things but also lots of bad stuff. Maybe you guys can help me with this.
.
Power bourbon, 13yo gelding, french trotter, ran 18 trot races from 3yo to 5yo. Gelded at 5, after retiring sold to slaughter house then rescued and then sold 4 times in 5 years. The current owner knows at least his 2 first owners after the track used to beat him.
.
Catching him was something ! The owner was very honest and told me right away it'd be hard. He came towards us as we walked into his paddock, the second she showed him the halter... he ran for his life ! Absolutely no aggressivity towards us but, man, was he scared ! He was definitely not confident as long as he was being haltered, then as soon as we were out, he was a different horse. He was extremely weary of me when i first reached my hand to him, took about 10 minutes of grooming him to not have him throw his head up when i brought my hand to his nose. Very headshy on his left side, an ear twitch was used on him regularly so no surprise there.
.
Grooming was very easy, he did not move, whatever i was doing, whereever i was touching his body even when using sprays. Gave me his feet easily and was very patient even when i was alone with him. Hard to believe it was the same horse when'd caught just moments ago. Tacking up was no problem either. He would not move away from pressure from me when we were preparing him. After the ride, he did it with minimal pressure.
.
His feet... my oh my... he hasn't been trimmed since January so it was hard to tell for sure. They felt nice enough but it was honestly hard to tell.
.
The current owner bought him last septembre to compete in showjumping but he does not jump and he's very difficult in the arena. When she was riding him she was alright with the walk, the trot she was very tense (while he liked & chewed) and she refused cantering him, telling me she was afraid to do it because he would act out. The whole thing gave me the impression she had no idea how to deal with this horse the way she was taught to ride. On the lunge she could not get him to canter either and she looked scared.
.
My turn riding him. He's a very energetic horse. Definitely wants to go forwards, got under pressure pretty fast walking in the arena with other horses around. He stands still really well. Stopping is not 100% but he mostly did it nicely. I did not trot or canter, I wasn't feeling very confident after seeing her riding him. The mouting block is perfect. Direction was pretty good. His owner rides with tight reins, I rode with loose reins and he still went nicely, he seemed more relaxed. She confirmed that the lighter the hands the more relaxed he is.
.
Then we went for a ride outdoors. The environement was great, there were bicycles, dogs, someone using a brushcutter, accross the road there's a racetrack where a trot race was starting. Power wasnt scared of any of it or overly excited. He did get frightened by a piece of plastic on the ground, stopped dead snorting at it, but he never tried to run away, just had to close my fingers on the reins to stop him. When we rode past that "monster" on the way back he didn't react. We rode at a walk, he definitely feels like a reformed racer, but also very obedient, very focused on his rider, the lightest aids i used the better he responded. At one point he got a bit frustrated because I was keeping him at a slow pace, made him go a few circles around the haunches and he cooled down. Not so good at riding behind another horse, but again, no disrespect of the riders instructions, i could feel he REALLY wanted to go in front but he waited for me to actually ask him to and didn't pull on the reins to fight me while i was asking him to stay behind.
.
After untacking we tuned him out in an indoors arena, when i let him go he didn't realise he was free at first. When he did he stopped and as i was continuing to walk away he chose to follow me around. Returning him to the paddock he was very relaxed, he's got good gound manners, he didn't try to go away from me when i took off his halter.
.
So yeah... confusing... lots of things that tell me he could be really great, and lots of alarms ringing as well...
.
My impression of the whole thing is that this horse has absolutely no trust in humans (with good reasons) but he wants to. He is very respectful of the rider if you don't pull on his mouth. I think the owner has no idea how to deal with this horse, the state of his feet and how much mud was on him is disturbing because on the other hand he's up to date on all medical, dental & osteopath things. It's a bit like when she realised she couldn't use him for competing she put him in a paddock and that was it. Or maybe she's scared of him and can't do those things, I honestly have no idea because there were such huge gaps between his behaviour in the arena and outdoors, it confusing.
.
What I liked was how easy he is to handle, how respectful he is under saddle, how he reacted when he got frightened (and how calm he was outdoors). Here we'd describe him as "having a lot of blood, but good blood".
.
What I didn't like is that he has no trust in humans. If I didn't have Dayka, I would definitely want to buy him, very little question about that because the change he showed towards me in just 2 hours of handling and riding him show that with patience he would trust a human i believe. But my number one priority is to be able to ride the new horse with Dayka on a rope so if she freaks out, the other horse absolutely cannot get out of control.
.
I'll be going back next week. The owner will ask a friend of hers who's got a very spooky horse to join us for a ride in the country around the stables. That should help me see if he could be a match.
.
So what do you think? Do you have the same doubts, how would you approach a second visit? Would you forget about this horse altogether? (please do not hold back, be sincere)
.
Sorry for the extra extra long message ! hehe^^
.
Cheers !

Oh, for your answers. What I'm looking for as i said is a teacher for Dayka, however, since I have to make her rest her foot at least all summer, I don't mind having a bit of work to do on the second horse. The mental aspect is top priority.
.
I was thinking of trying to join up next week if the owner will let me, to see how he'd respond to this kind of gentle approach.
.
(alright i'm done this time, promise ! ;)

I can tell you have a lot to think about here! :D
My two cents on the matter:
If he's a raced trotter, that absolutely explains his good behaviour, his calm with scary and noisy things and his energy.
They are handled A LOT and taught to accept lots of things as well as respect for their handlers. They are also usually well taught and handled too. His fear of humans probably didn't star there.
.
It is also no surprise that he goes ballistic when asked to run faster or canter. He is raced, for crying out loud! Of course he thinks he should run. :)
Also, trotters are seldom bred for canter or trained to do it on command. On the contrary, most race trotters are taught NOT to canter. He may be very unbalanced in it and very confused about the whole thing.
.
You say nothing of what the earlier owners did with him (except beating him...) under saddle, but if she bought him for jumping it seems to me that unless she was fooled pretty bad, they had to have done some of that. Maybe current owner just isn't experienced enough to handle this?
.
My experience of reforming trotters is that while you have very willing, very clever, very agile horses; it might take years to rebuild them - physically and mentally - for riding if you want more than just hacking out. It can absolutely be done, they tend to be great mounts, but it does take time and energy.
.
My sincerest advice here is to make sure you don't take him on to "save him" from current owner! Not unless you change your mind about what kind of horse, or project, you are after. Be honest with yourself and make sure you are absolutely clear about what and why you choose the one or the other. Don't accept reasons like "but I feel sorry for him" or "I can always sell him on later" from yourself!
Make a list of the htings you want in your new horse, and the things you can cope with. Then you make a list with pros and cons about "Bubba", like you wrote here but in list form and without the narrative, and compare the two.
.
Finally, I'm also thinking that with his history, and from what you tell of the ride outdoors, he probably can be a great and safe companion to pony your other horse with, BUT unless you can handle him at all gaits it might get tricky, so maybe you would want to test that out more before you make any big decisions?
.
PS! Have his feet checked thoroughly before any purchase is made!

Hi Lucie,
Great to read so much about your visit to Power, it helps us get a wider picture of the horse and his situation. Your idea to do a Join-Up next week seems a good start, you'll feel if you get his full trust or just part of it...., sometimes it takes a couple of Join-Ups before it setlles all in. Riding him on a loose rein sounds great, you should realise that trotters are being punished for cantering, so he might have a big reaction when asked to canter. I used to ride an ex-trotter, who only agreed to canter, when I gave him a slight slap with my flat hand on his shoulder, which was nothing he'd known before. Still his canter was not very comfortable...
Main thing is if you can gain his full trust, he's had too many owners and quite some nasty ones, but from what you describe it could be that he needs a friend more than any other horse! Try to get some "quality time" with him after your Join-Up, so you can offer him total freedom of choice to be with you. It wouldn't surprise me if he'd stick to your side.
There are some issues like the feet, that I think you need to have a trusted farrier check out.
Take your time and if you decide to go for this horse, rest assured this forum is at your side to help you! He might be very grateful for a new owner like you!
I think it's a good thing that you go back next week, which gives you some time to reflect on your own needs, and those of Dayka.
Good luck,
Miriam

Hi Lucie
:
Well you asked for an honest opinion.....
:
There are too many problems here to outweigh the good points based on what you tell us you are looking for. You are looking for a cam role model for Dayka; this horse is not the one.
:
Untrimmed feet alone are a massive warning for me, did you try picking any of his feet up? Another huge warning is 4 sales in 5 years. It is very rare I disagree with Kicki (in fact this may be the first time!) but I think his fear of humans could easily have started with his trotting career; some trotting/pacing training is barbaric - it depends who the trainers were. It may be different in Sweden Kicki I don't know, I can only speak from the little knowledge I have about UK and Ireland and of course I don't want to generalise but there is a lot of cruelty.
:
If you were looking for a project horse and as Kicki says you have energy and time to give (months and months of work at the very least!) then this would be an interesting horse to work with because you know what you are getting. Difficult to catch is a great challenge and it's lovely to finally get your horse to trust you and be caught BUT this horse has clearly had YEARS to practice not being caught so is very good at it and it's no fun when it's wet and windy and you can't catch your horse. In addition, there is some evidence that a hard to catch horse can teach other horse to be hard to catch!!
:
I'm sorry to put a downer on this Lucie. I, along with everyone else will of course support you every step of the way if you decide to take him as a project. But that's what he is - a project, not a partner for Dayka. There are thousands of good horse looking for good homes; there are thousands more like this poor guy who need more than the vast majority of owners can ever give them sadly.
:
If you do decide to buy him, I would advise extreme caution as some fearful horses go into 'shut down' when they are in a new place and he may seem docile which could lead you to believe he has settled in and is a "reformed character" however you will only truly know him after he has been with you for about 3 months so I would go slowly and carefully with him.

Hi-hi, I love when you disagree with me, vicci!
Makes me put my thoughts in perspective and think again. :)
You are right, I was thinking in Swedish terms. (Sadly, there are some horrible trainers here too.) Of course his fear could've started much earlier. I was just giving that option the benefit of the doubt. ;)
.
Lucie,
As I read my own earlier post, I feel I need to clarify what I meant in my "sincerest advice". I'm not really saying "don't buy!", but rather: "don't fall for the temptation of saving the badboy!". Not unless you are perfectly clear on what you are taking on and that's what you want to do, with all the consequences - good and bad - that may have.

Hi Lucie. Really well done - you gave a great report on your visit, you've been honest about your concerns & our friends have supported you in whatever you decide. Ok, the perfect horse has never been born but you could find an easier one than this guy. However, he clearly likes the idea of you & your attitude towards him. I'd expect him to remember you next time & to be positive towards you. Join up, if you've got your body language correct, will vastly improve his trust. Nevertheless, you should think long & hard before continuing. This horse is going to be a LOT OF WORK & will require commitment on your part. He has reached out to you by reacting favourably when you offered a loose rein, quite possibly the first time he's ever experienced that. But, unless there is a spark in you that nags at your subconscious when you think back to being with him, unless there's the beginnings of a long, true friendship starting in you, don't do Join up. It would be the cruellest thing to offer this horse possibly his first chance of a happy life to then walk away & leave him in his dark place. Did you like his smell? All horses have their own scent. Yes, they smell differently depending on how they live - stabled is different from living outside but each one has their own smell. If his scent, tainted by fear as it will have inevitably been, was attractive to you, if thinking of him pleases you & makes you smile even just a little bit then perhaps you can find the time & commitment for this horse. Cheers, Jo.

Thanks for all your answers, you've confirmed pretty much all the contradictions i was left with yesterday after this visit.
.
I couldn't understand why meeting this horse hit me this hard, why i was so emotionnally involved already... another horse this bad i wouldn't even have gone through the whole visit but something inside of me was telling me to stay there with him.
And this morning, I realised what it was : I did know him before, i actually almost bought him 4 years ago from the refuge that rescued him in the first place... :(
.
I called the refuge this morning just to make sure i wasn't just going crazy and it's him. I can't even explain how bad I feel right now. That poor little guy could have had such a different life !

What does your stomach, or gut feeling say to you Lucie?
Sorry to not be so 'business' like , or come with any professional comments, it's just that sometimes I feel that we don't listen to that 'primal gut feeling' that we all have inside us.

It's usually never wrong.

The word i was looking for was instinct.

Hi guys, good morning. My first comment here is that I am so-ooo pleased and proud to be part of this forum. YOU LADIES ARE AWESOME. I have been finding new owners for 27 yrs to love the horses that we have bred here at Skyhaven, so I am most aware of what I would be looking for in a horse to buy. You all have covered so many of the areas of question when folks are looking for a mew horse.
.
.Lucie, the one thing that I might mention to you is about the horse`s personality. I believe that a horse that possesses SOFT LEADERSHIP CAPABILITIES in a herd setting are at the top of the list for training and riding in a trail environment. Not every horse will be comfortable on the trail. The trail experience will probably take some time to bring the comfort of a relaxed ride. I want you to know this and to think about you two out on the trail. I believe that you two have an emotional attachment already, so please do some thinking about all the commentary above; I KNOW YOU WILL.
.
.As a farrier, I would suggest that you look for #1 hoof wall disconnection, #2 around the frog area for thrush pathology #3 the depth of the collateral grooves at the heel and at
the apex of the frog { this will tell you the depth of the live soul material] Also, hoof test for soul softness..If he passes all these areas of concern, a good trimming regimen should be enough to keep him going strong through his years.
.
.I wish you a strong wind to guide your direction with your decision, Lucie. You have armed yourself with a boat full of strong sailors.
.
All my best Bud

Hi again; after reading what I wrote above, I thought that i might elaborate on my description of a horse with soft leadership qualities.
.
.When there are more than two or three horses that kept together in an area, the one with soft leadership skills will be the one who seems to always fit in with most scenarios. No matter if he is with a dominate horse or one that is totally submissive , HE KNOWS HOW TO GET ALONG, as serenity is his companion.. This horse could be an alpha, but he chooses not to be. He might be the last drink in a long line of horses,but he chooses to hold the line;ike a serene soldier. For in his confidence he knows that he will drink in time. CONFIDENCE is a by-product in the make-up of this individual. His job is to keep peace in the herd and does so without much notice. These horses are not easy to find in today`s corrals, but they are out there. If you are lucky enough to locate a horse with these qualities, he is a treasure. He is very easy to train and will guard your life and safety more than his own. I do believe that these horses can be developed in the right setting. I am rambling now so forgive me. Anyway, if I were looking for a horse these are some of the parameters that I would use in my selection process.
.
.All the best;
.
Bud

Thank you Bud, i was going to ask you what you meant by that. From the info I got out of the owner it seems that this horse gets very possessive over his field mates. Which isn't surprising considering he must never have had a stable environment. At the moment heis being kept alone, each horse is in a paddock, stallions have a companion. It's a very stressful environment over there so it's tricky to get a good idea. Should I decide to go for this guy I would have to keep him in a separate pen for the first few months because he's got too much negativity to put around my girl.
.
Dionne, you are right, and I usually follow my instinct, the problem here is that at the moment it's split 50/50. Maybe it's from reading this forum and watching all the lessons but i am very aware that a lot could go wrong, and given this horse's history I would not forgive myself for inflicting more pain on him. I still need to think about this and hearing different opinions helps A LOT !
.
Meanwhile, I am seeing other horses on thrusday and on saturday, and power again on friday for a ride with a spooky horse (& i won't do join-up, thanks jo for pointing this out). My hope is that one of those two other horses will be very close to perfect and then if i still can't stop thinking power's the one then there's something there even if it's a long way down the road.
.
Like you Bud, I am so glad to be part of this amazing forum, it's such fun and comfort to be able to work thing out with you guys !!

Hi all,
reading Bud's comment on soft leadership made me go to my horse-bookshelf and take out Mark Rashid's "Horses never lie, the heart of passive leadership".
It could be a good read for all of us, to help with the awareness of what it is we're looking for in a horse and in ourselves. Any "ego" is out of the scenario....
Happy horse hours,
Miriam

Best of luck Lucie,
When I saw Shilo for the very first time I wasn't even looking to buy a horse.
Months past but I thought about him a lot and kept seeing his face in my mind.
I have met a lot of horses before I became Shilo's owner and not one of them touched me like he did.
When I visited Shilo for the second time I knew , my instinct told me so.
I was not a horseman, had never owned my own horse,I had last ridden a horse at aged 12, Shilo was only just turning three years old and was as inexperienced as I was.
I can't tell you what is was, and if you look at it from a more logical side, I should have bought a horse who was bomb proof from the start- because of my spine disease, but logic has little to do with it.

I am a firm believer in that things, people and animals come into your life for a reason.
The feeling (gut) was so strong that it could not be ignored.
My husband bought him for my 45th birthday., the rest of the story , and ongoing story you know already.

You will know when it's right - you just will.

Dionne.

Hi everyone; I love the honesty of this forum. So much WISDOM is found in HIND SITE.
.
.Lucie, I so glad that you are looking at different horses. I feel the you will be richer for the experience. Horses have way of speaking to us because our receptors are often times tuned to the vibrational frequency that they communicate on. I believe that they since our receptivity to their beingness in a New York second. This can be tough on a person who is looking for a horse as the two souls mingle with one another in the initial meeting. The connection can cloud our thinking and disturb that part of us that wants to be deliberate in our decision making. We often times fight with ourselves to make a quick decision. I have been there and done just that.
.
.Lucie, there is an OCEAN full of available horses. My advice would be to sail slowly,
.
.All the best.
Bud

Lucie,
I was about to come in and say "do look at other horses before you make up your mind!" But apparently you are already doing that. :)
So, my next advice then would be to be careful to NOT compare them with Power. At least not at first. Take them all on as fresh pages and measure them only to what you are looking for. Don't even compare them with one another until you have a couple of favourites. THEN you can start to pick and compare pros and cons. Anything else would be unfair to these horses as well as to Power and to yourself and Dayka, who really is the main target in all of this.
Remember why you are buying another horse! (And have you decided what to do with him/her once Dayka is trained?)
.
All that said, I feel wholeheartedly for you, having landed in this coincidence drama. It's the sort of narrative that speaks volumes to us as sentient beings. It's almost more heartfelt than the "reforming the bad boy-syndrome". How do you fight off these feelings and survive emotinally? I sure don't have the answer to that.
Maybe you don't!?
Hopefully, in the end, you will know what to do! Fingers crossed!

Well, you could buy two horses, power for what HE needs and another one for what YOU need! Just a thought....
:
Miriam, I too thought of Mark Rashids book, it is a great philosophy, great that you brought this up Bud. The quiet, patient leader rather than the one who had to keep insisting on his her leadership is magical. Yet another lesson that horses can teach humans

Vicci - I'll be honest, the thought has crossed my mind and if I can make it financially viable, this might well be what happens because I don't think i'll be able to let him go a second time.
.
Kicki - I'm planning on simply going to those horses with the same check list and do the same things I did with power, then think about it (and probably tell you all about them in the process ;)
.
And once Dayka is trained and has enough stamina to become my main horse I plan on riding both on the trail. I am part of a horse owners association that oganises rides all around the region. From March to November we do a full day every weekend, sometimes two or three days in a row when there's an extended weekend holiday. The season is very intense, i plan on keeping my horses barefoot if they can handle it so i need to have 2 horses if i want to do the full season, it's just too staining on them otherwise. I also plan on riding by myself a few hours during the week so it would be difficult physically for just one horse long term. That is if I find the "perfect" horse, I am also prepared to let the second horse just live out his life as a fancy lawnmower and companion do Dayka if it is too old after she's trained and keep leasing my friend's horse as i'm doing right now for the trail. So, many possibilities.
.
Dionne & Bud - I agree 100%! It would be so much easier if we could be totally objective and logic about it but that's the "price" we have to pay to have the privilege of being around those amazing creatures !

*Straining not staining, altough... we usually come back covered in dirt (or worse...) from racing each other in the woods ! ^^

Miriam, You`ve manage to slip in a comment regarding what we are looking for in a horse and for in OURSELVES. Wow, i never looked that way. You could be on to something HERE..
.
.Mark Rashid has much to say in his books. He`s a modern day cowboy that brings old wisdom combined with eastern meditational thought. HE is LIGHT YEARS AHEAD of most modern day trainers with his simplistic confident approach to being with horses.
.
.Miriam, you are right on to suggest for all of us to take a good look at what this man has say. Thank you for reminding me again of his great works.
.
.Warm regards.
.
Bud

Something unexpected happenened yesterday, the owner of the field Dayka is in right now has informed me that he wanted to sell it and was giving me a heads up in case i was interested.
.
It is agricultural land (so very cheap) and it truns out for just €400 more than i was planning on spending on my second horse I can actually buy the land. So i'm gonna be smart and take this opportunity to have security for my future and that of my horse. Land is hard to come by, Dayka will remain an only-horse a little while longer.
.
Meanwhile, i've been constantly chatting with Power's owner, she'd like to keep him if she could find a way to fix him so i've encouraged her to look into getting a professional to help her, given her some names, and told her about the Uni, hopefully she's sincere about this and will see it through. I chose to be hopeful, who knows !

Wow, isn't fate an amazing thing ?! I totally agree , get the land, you are then safe. You may yet end up with power in one form or another, I share your hopes for his future, you may have just changed his life without having to own him. As you only have one horse I strongly recommend starting with one or getting three. Two horses risk overbonding and when you try to take them away from each other it can be nightmarish. I'm so pleased for you Lucie, a brilliant outcome and a secure foundation for you and Dayka.

Staying with one that should say not starting sorry.

I am not usually one to use words like fate but you are right what were the odds to get an offer like THAT right NOW... that's awesome ! And reading about Mel's ordeal honestly i'd feel really stupid passing on it.
.
Thanks for the advice on 3 horses, you're right, it was really hard for Dayka when i had to separate her from her friend so i'll try putting her with my lambs like i thought initially (hopefully she wont flatten them)

Vicci, the advice to Lucie about having three horses as opposed to just two is so RIGHT ON. I think sometimes in our efforts to be a good steward with our horses, that we overlook the obvious.
.
.Lucie, buy the land, recover, and then you can really go horse shopping HA HA. Seriously, think hard about the land. Not having its use would color your world much differently..GOOD LUCK my friend.
.
Bud

That is an amazing turn of events, Lucie! Isn't it wonderful how things can turn out some times! I hope you will find a way to cover all costs and get the land! Chances like that seldom knocks twice on your door.
.
Heh, if I were of the romantic persuasion I would love to believe that Fate put you in Power's way to help him out - and the other offer is your reward for doing just that. ;) ;) ;)
Fingers crossed this will work out for all of you!!!