buying OTTB questions

[waterkm]

I have some basic questions for those of you who have gone through purchasing and retraining OTTBs. Currently I ride a 20 year old OTTB gelding, he is great, he is a forward mover needs ridden every day, has a ton of energy and jumps well at low levels, he can be spooky and if you let him he will go faster and faster. he is not a balanced horse which I understand is normal he also likes to be heavy on the bit. I am wanting to compete in XC and though he has the energy his joints are starting to wear and jumping is becoming more difficult. He was horrid confirmation but decent feet. overall I really enjoy riding this ottb and am very interested in starting a younger one. Like I said I am looking to compete in XC and I want a horse that is going to also be competitive in the jumper ring. I love his forward movements, his trot is super bouncy though, and his transitions are ROUGH (is this normal for ottbs?) I will pay for a vet check.


What are the pros and cons of training your ottb yourself vs sending them to a trainer to be restarted?

I am wanting a mare because all I have ever had or road are geldings and am hoping for a different experience, will this raise any issues? I have read some about the hormone therapys that can be used for competing mares that have been successful, are there any other issues pertaining to OTTBS specifically?

Confirmation seems to be very tricky with the OTTBS. I have attached a picture of a chestnut Canter.com Mare horse that I thought had decent confirmation possibly for XC and Jumping. Any thoughts or perhaps advice about confirmation are appreciated.

have any of you ever bought a horse sight unseen? I am located in Kansas and will search locally and even travel but a lot of the horses I have seen are a day away at least. What are your opinions on looking at videos, the vet check, medical records and buying without seeing in person. I'm willing to travel, I just thought I would get your opinions.


Any advice or information will be greatly appreciated as this is a new endeavor of mine. Thanks. 

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[ZenRider]

Likely a day late dollar short. Was hoping one of the more experienced buyer / seller ER's would step forward. Hope it worked out all right. I don't like doing conformation based on photos, as photos can be deceiving. Best thing to do is go look at the horse, if you have a vet to go with you, even better. Otherwise, I've never regretted the horse I didn't buy. Go with your gut, if something doesn't seem quite right, it probably isn't. Age doesn't matter as much as training. Meaning if an old and younger horse have the same amount of training, go for the younger horse. If the older horse has a lot of training for the same money as a younger untrained horse, take your vet to the older horse and if approved, you will save a lot of money. That said, it depends entirely as to what your needs, abilities, and goals are.

Sorry to be a bit late, but have too many projects and such in the works lately. Hope it worked out for you either way. As with searching for a used car, horses are generally best not rushed in to. Especially, if you have a set goal in mind.

[ZenRider]

BTW, the set of the photo seems to be they were trying to make her look more uphill than she is. Which is why I would never purchase a horse based on photo alone.