Poor Sylvester, no one wants him!

[summerhorse]

A horse is only as valuable as long as he is sound or reproducing (whatever his job is). After that they become expendable sadly. Ferdinand was certainly no $2,500 horse, neither was Exceller. Both were worth more to the right people then what they brought at the slaughterhouse. Unfortunately the first was in the wrong place at the right time and the second was owned by a lunatic and cared for by a wimp. Once a horse is out of your hands there are never any guarantees.

I saw first hand while working as an animal control officer that people either are responsible or they aren't. I saw mangy mutts that only a mother could love treated like kings and queens and dogs that cost $500 or more on chains in back yards with no shelter, no flea treatment, no shots, lucky to get food and sometimes starved to death. But if asked to give those animals up the owner would say HELL NO, HE COST ME $500... I'd rather give an animal to someone who would value it for its own unique self than someone who thinks of it as a piece of property worth $500 because what happens when it isn't worth $500 anymore. Heck look what happens when it WAS!

Most of the horses seized in cruelty cases would be worth well more than meat price if they were in good condition. It isn't their worth that made the people abuse or neglect them (mostly it is pure neglect and stupidity), it is something wrong with the PEOPLE. There is just something missing in them. They will genuinely look at a dying bag of bones and get INSULTED when they are told they are arrested for cruelty. They think that animal looks FINE and its only an animal after all. There is just something plain WRONG with those people and it has nothing to do with relative market value.

Anyway right of first refusal is not a price guarantee usually, it is the right to say yes or no at FAIR MARKET VALUE which may be $1,000 or it may be $25,000, that's why you can say no! That is why you should write it into the contract that all owners must put that and require that in THEIR contracts too because you may NOT be able to afford the horse but someday down the road that horse might just be in need of salvage rather than commanding a high price. And by staying in touch with each owner you can ensure that it DOES get carried on hopefully.

[Laurierace]

Unfortunately this is a timely thread. Kirby whose real name was On The Phone as you see in the reply above was named after the Minnesota Twins baseball player Kirby Puckett. They both had butts like a quarter horse! Godspeed Kirby Puckett, I hope my Kirby is out there somewhere carrying on the name for you both.