Choosing a horse to buy, whether it is a childrens’ first pony, a four-star eventer or a future Cheltenham winner is always fraught with anxiety! There are so many variables which must be considered including suitability for purpose, freedom from annoying vices/habits, good temperament and, of course, soundness.

Most buyers employ the services of a veterinary surgeon to carry out a Pre-Purchase Examination before committing to buying a horse. The purpose of this article is to review the ‘standard five-stage vetting’, to explain both its scope and limitations and to advise how to get the most out of having your prospective new horse vetted.

Firstly, the pre-purchase examination is not a guarantee of a horse’s suitability for a particular purpose, but rather an assessment of the horse at the time of examination to help inform the buyer whether or not to continue with their purchase. It is a one-time examination of a horse, carried out on behalf of a potential purchaser, for a particular purpose. The veterinary certificate, if issued, is not transferable to another purchaser.

When a horse is being vetted, the veterinary surgeon is acting in the interests of the purchaser and not the seller. A veterinary surgeon may perform a pre-purchase examination on a horse where the seller is a client of the veterinary surgeon or his/her practice, as long as the examining veterinary surgeon is satisfied that there is no conflict of interest. The fact that the veterinary surgeon is familiar with the horse and/or the seller is a client must be declared to the purchaser. If the veterinary surgeon has any knowledge of the horse that is relevant to the examination, and the seller does not give permission for full disclosure, then the veterinary surgeon should decline to perform the examination.

The Examination

The standard examination is carried out in five stages as follows;

Blood Sample; A blood sample may be taken for storage (for up to six months) for possible future testing to detect any drug which may have been in the horse’s system at the time of examination which might have masked an underlying condition that could have adversely affected the horse’s suitability for the purchaser’s intended use. A blood sample is usually taken at the time of the vetting unless specifically declined by the purchaser.

Variations from the standard five-stage examination

At the specific request of the purchaser, the examination is sometimes limited to stages one and two. This is a limited (two-stage) examination and is not as thorough an examination as the standard five-stage vetting, thereby limiting the veterinary surgeon in his/her assessment of the horse for its intended use.

Additional procedures

If the purchaser so requires, additional procedures such as endoscopy of the larynx, ultrasound examination of the tendons or radiography may form part of the veterinary examination. The results of these procedures are reported to the purchaser and recorded on the certificate.

Limitations of the examination

If any part of the five stages is not completed for any reason or if the purchaser opts for a two-stage vetting, the examination is limited in its scope and may not detect important clinical factors that may affect the decision to purchase.

The horse may have had previous or concurrent medical treatments unknown to the examining veterinary surgeon even when he/she is familiar with the horse. A blood sample taken at the time of the vetting may be used later to attempt to determine this.

White the examining vet will identify the horse, it is not his/her responsibility to determine if the seller has legal right to sell the horse.

Without a passport issued at foalhood, it is not possible to confirm the age of a horse with accuracy. Estimates of age based on dental examination alone are just that... an estimate.

Vices are objectionable habits and may not be detectible during the examination.

Matters such as medical or surgical history, freedom from vices, height, temperament, non-administration of drugs prior to the vetting and the horse’s previous use or performance ability are not the responsibility of the examining veterinary surgeon. If a purchaser wishes assurances regarding such matters, a written warranty can be obtained from the seller.

‘Pass or fail’

Although the terms ‘pass’ and ‘fail’ are regularly used to describe the outcome of vetting, these words do not actually appear on the cert. At the conclusion of a vetting, the examining veterinary surgeon gives an opinion that, on the balance of probabilities, the findings of the examination do/do not prejudice the horse’s suitability for a particular purpose.

Therefore a pre-purchase examination is a risk assessment of the suitability of a horse both currently, and in the future, for a specific purpose.

There are many situations where this is not a simple decision and so the examining veterinary surgeon must use his/her experience and professional knowledge as well as taking the requirements of the purchaser into consideration before giving an opinion. A horse “passing the vet” is not guaranteed to be suitable nor is one that “fails the vet” necessarily going to be a dud!

I was at a night out recently and a colleague was asking me if I remembered vetting a pony several years before that she had connections with. She told me the pony turned out to be a Grade A showjumper, “a machine”. Not having much recollection of the vetting, I confidently asserted “I’m glad I passed it so” to which she replied “you didn’t”!! Most equine vets I know can think of “the one that got away.”

In order to get the most out of the vetting procedure, the purchaser should communicate clearly with the examining veterinary surgeon what purpose the horse is intended for. Clinical findings that may not adversely affect a horse for light hacking may be much more significant if the buyer is planning to ride the horse for several hours at a time twice a week in search of a fox!

Also the purchaser should insist that the horse be properly presented for vetting. I have occasionally driven miles to vet a horse only to find it was missing a front shoe when I got there. Good facilities are very important for the veterinary examination, and the purchaser should insist that the vetting be carried out at a location where the full five stages of the vetting can be safely performed.

Otherwise, the veterinary surgeon may not be able to carry out flexion tests and trotting in a circle which are invaluable when vetting riding horses. Remember it is in the purchaser’s interest to ensure that the horse is properly presented and that as much relevant information as possible is given to the examining veterinary surgeon

Finally... Caveat emptor!!

Andrea Ryan MVB Cert EP Cert EM (Stud Med) is a member of the Equine Group of Veterinary Ireland and is in practice in Kilcash Equine Centre in Clonmel

Email: hq@vetireland.ie

Telephone: 01-4577976