(Excerpted with
permission from Adventures in Owning A Tennessee
Walking Horse ©
Bansidhe Graphics)
At present,
buying a Tennessee Walking Horse in
the United Kingdom or Europe means
you might be looking at importing a
horse. Because this adds
transportation costs to the price of
your chosen horse, some things to
consider are the age, health, and
possibly, resale value of the
animal. There is really no point in
importing an ancient or poor quality
horse from a different country,
regardless of how well trained or
appealing they might be. DO buy a
horse that is registered with the
Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders &
Exhibitors Association. |
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You
can expect to pay anywhere from £1,500
(2,500 EUR.) to £5,000 (8,000 EUR.) for any
Tennessee Walking Horse worth importing,
regardless of age, gender, or training, and
a non-TWHBEA registered horse will cost you
nearly as much as a registered one, but
without the benefit of resale value. On top
of that, you are looking at an additional
shipping costs of around £3,000, depending
on where you are shipping from and to. This
is no small investment, so you want to find
the RIGHT horse.
You
need to acquaint yourself as well as you can
with the features of this breed that set it
apart from all other types of saddle horse.
This can be done by searching the net,
contacting the
Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders &
Exhibitors Association, or taking a tour of an educational website like
Walkers West in Texas. Be wary of forums and blogs as they tend to
be peppered with myths and hidden agendas.
The people you SHOULD be consulting
with seldom have time for spouting off on
forums. They are very busy raising horses.
Study photos of the horses to educate your
eye in the typical conformation points that
contribute to the gaits. Regularly check
the sales lists that have picture ads of the
horses, like
Moonshadow Trading Post,
Equine Estates Classifieds, or Horseweb-UK to give yourself an idea of what you can expect for
your money. Read the
history of
the development of the breed to get an idea of how this conformation has changed
over the years and generations of horses.
Familiarize yourself with the pedigrees of
the winners in the disciplines that you want
your horse to participate in. You will see
the same names appearing over and over
again. Don't be dazzled by championships
alone. Many of the most famous and best
Tennessee Walking Horses did not win World
Championships, and in fact, were not shown
at all. Subscribe to
VOICE of the Tennessee Walking Horse magazine.
Don't be afraid to email website owners with
questions. Walking Horse owners are very
friendly, and they love to talk about their
horses and the breed in general. You will
NOT be bothering them.
When you feel you have become a
knowledgeable buyer and are ready to select
a horse, get in touch with a
reputable breeder who not only has a
horse you might be interested in, but also
has experience in overseas shipping.
Once you have located a breeder, check THEM
out on the net. Don't rely on references
supplied by owner of the horse you are
looking at. Contact other breeders, and TWH
owners to see what they can tell you about
the breeder and the bloodline you are
considering. The nice thing about the
Tennessee Walking Horse world is that it is
not very big. You will find the same names
coming up, over and over again, and pretty
much the same information will be available
on these names, from a variety of
unconnected sources. The good reputations
will surface very quickly.
Above all, if you need help to find the
right horse, or with getting it delivered to
your door after you have found it, give us a
call at:
PH.
00-31-6590-78991
or
00-31-6467-32533
(mobile)
in Europe.
We will be glad to help you.
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