buying a horse in France?

[Ferligot]

I am moving to Brittany and as a keen horse rider will be buying myself a horse. I have looked into transporting one from the UK which on a shared load is approx 400. Can anyone advise me whether i would be better buying a horse once in France. I was a bit concerned about the language barrier as i am not fluent in french and need to communicate when spending this kind of money on a family pet which my children will also ride. Any advice will be most appreciated.

Cary

[Richardbk]

you can read through the various previous posts on this. If you want a horse/pony for competition it will need breed papers and will generally be 10-20% more expensive (and more! ) than the UK. If you want something without papers(i.e it will not be able to compete) it will be much cheaper than buying in the UK - perhaps as much as 30-40% cheaper.

regs

Richard

[Fil]

Hi,

where in Brittany will you be? Instead of buying one, come and ride with me. I have four. Hercules is 15hands and a solid but very forward going cob, Eclipse is 14.2 and a welsh cob cross anglo arab, Penny is a welsh mountain and Favour (Eclipse's mum) is retired anglo arab. May also be getting a 14hh welsh cob (my daughter's) over from the uk. All are great fun rides and all I want is someone to ride with! I am in the Morbihan.
Fil

[Lepoulailler]

If you're fairly confident about your knowledge of horses, and prepared to take a bit of a risk, the season of the horse fair is nearly upon us.  The Foire de Lessay is one of the biggest horse fairs in Europe - there is nothing you can't find there, from ponies and donkeys to decent papered sport horses.  The foire de Gavray is another great place to go.

Do go, even if you don't buy.  If you love horses it is the most incredible experience to see acre upon acre crammed full of horses and ponies being held on bits of binder twine by your sterotypical french farmers.  Be warned, I went to buy a kids pony last year and came back with an (unbroken, but now going very nicely) sport horse - oops, there goes our central heating for this year....

Look also in OuestFrance where there are ads every week.  Local fairs such as St Hilaire du Harcouet, St James, the Foire des Anes at Rennes, Ploubalay, etc etc.  This really is the season for it.  For better quality horses you also have all the auctions coming up soon, 'Vente d'encheres' (Look at the ADECNO, FENCES or FEDEB websites for example).  Try also the small ads for Cheval Magazine, l'Eperon (nearest equivalent to Horse and Hound) or their internet alternatives.  Cavadeos.com or Equiweb... google search on 'cheval'.  There are loads of things out there.

Ask your local riding club, as they often hear of horses coming up for sale, and will have a good idea of your ability.  In any event you will need to see someone if you want to be insured to ride over here, as you should have your 'Galop'

Hope that gives you a starter for ten.

Peta

[Bella]

Hi,

Only trouble with the horse fairs is you never know the history of the pony or horse. Great if you have plenty of experience to bring something on or get it over possible psychological problems but if you want a childs pony you cannot be too careful. Think it will cost you a lot more than 400 for a very reliable one and if you already have one which you like and trust he or she should enjoy it in Brittany. We brought ours over and they have tons more freedom.

[Brumble]

Hi Bella

Do you live in Brittany?  I've bought a horse here in the Uk now, were picking her up on 19 september so hopefully i'll have time to bond with her before heading for France.  I am definately not experienced enough to buy from the fairs as i havn't been riding for long enough yet.  I'm really looking forward to coming over and settling into a more laid back life with our children.

[Bella]

[quote]Hi Bella Do you live in Brittany? I've bought a horse here in the Uk now, were picking her up on 19 september so hopefully i'll have time to bond with her before heading for France. I am definately...[/quote]

Hi Cary,

Yes, we are in Brittany and our horses originally lived in the UK. If you want a horse to buy over here there are hundreds and hundreds of miles to travel to see one. When we first bought a French horse we looked around for a long time as most of the so-called riding horses were half wild!!!! We still ask her to do things in French but still talk to our English horses in English!!.

Sorry if you are someone else but I cannot figure out this web-site such as who replied to who. How is it done, any idea?? It seems even more time consuming and it took ages to find a particular thread. Best of luck with your new horse. You must be quite excited. Has he got a friend to keep him company when he gets here?