Setting yourself up for success with your new horse: Expert Advice from Hook Norton Veterinary Group

Recently, we had the pleasure of attending one of the client education evenings hosted by Hook Norton Veterinary Group, offering valuable guidance for anyone considering buying a new horse and navigating the vetting process.

We’re grateful to Sam Cutts, MRCVS, for sharing her expertise and practical insights. In this blog, she talks through managing new horse risks in the first 30 days.

Maintain the "Status Quo"

The first six weeks are crucial. Absolutely, everything has changed for that poor horse and don't expect it to be instantly perfect. 
It's unlikely that your first ride on the horse is going to be everything you ever dreamed of.. There's almost always a moment where you say, what on earth have you done that had a complete disaster? You go through these and you come out the other side.

I think a lot of the problems are due either to having the wrong horse in the first place or just not doing everything to give the horse the best possible chance. 
So what do I mean by that?

Once you have the horse in your care, do everything possible to keep things the same as they were where the horse was before. Once you've got everything established, then you can start to change and improve things.

So if the horse has previously been stabled the whole time and you'd like to have it living out 24/7, you're going to have to move to that gradually, not least to give the horses digestive system a chance to adjust to that much more grass. 
And if it's the other way around, if the horses lived out the whole time and you suddenly want to have it on a yard where they don't have any winter turnout, don't be surprised if that horse suddenly becomes a lot fresher and a lot sharper than the one that you tried when it was living out of grass.

A sensible amount of riding

I've seen both options. 
I've seen people buy a new horse and think, I'm going to give it two weeks off so it can just adjust to its new environment... And then they get on and wonder why they're a fire-breathing dragon!

But equally, if you think you're going to take it straight to a competition this weekend, and then wonder why that's gone horribly wrong - this might be your answer!

Check tack fit

Do try to make sure that you've got tack that will work as soon as the horse arrives on the yard, even if you're then going to spoil the horse and order a bespoke saddle down the line!

Isolation & Bio-security

Don't forget that a horse coming onto a new yard needs at least 14( and preferably 21 days) isolation from other horses on the yard, even if it's coming from a professional set up.

So regardless of how beautiful it is, it still wants to be isolated when it first arrives!

Maintain consistency in farriery initially

At the vetting we might have looked at them and identified that we could certainly improve the farriery to better help the horse. But I would always say to start with, try to shoe the horse as close to how it was when it arrived. You want to get that horse settled, know how it feels, and therefore know how it's going to respond to the different changes.

What does happen if your new horse is a disaster? 


First of all, don't panic. You're in good company, and most of the time it will be fine.

Speak to your trainer about your issues and ask for advice. 
Don't be ashamed. Don't think you want to hide because I bought this perfect horse and it's all gone wrong. Sometimes the trainer might get on it for you or it could even go to livery with a trainer for a while just to try and get you over that little hump and set you back on the route to success. 


Contact the vendor to make them away from the beginning. They might have some helpful suggestions. 
If it's a professional dealer and things really aren't working, you may have an option of return their exchange, but obviously that's much less likely with a private seller.

...And don't forget, you'll have those blood stored if you do want to run them.

If things are progressing and the horse really isn't turning out to be what you expected, make sure to keep all of your records.

• You want the original advert that says it was good to box, shoe loads suitable for a nervous novice, anything like that...

• Your messages, emails or WhatsApps

• A a record of what you did in the trials - or what you asked to do and weren't allowed to do.

• Your receipt of sale and any warranty or declarations.

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To find out more about Hook Norton Equine Vets, visit -

https://www.hooknortonvets.co.uk/departments/equinevets/