online horse auctions

[kales]

OK so not trying to step on anyones toes, but I just don't know if I agree with the online mini horse auctions.

You have no idea the people or place your horses is going to go, or the transportation it will go through to get there.

I would personally never sell mine at auction let alone an online auction. I like to talk to buyers and get a feel for them, get vet references, and just find out who the people are...and yes, I have turned down people I didn't get a good feeling about. To me it feel unresponsible breeding/horse owning. Like people don't really caring where their horses end up as long as they get the money for it.

Just my opinion.

I don't know is it just me?

 

[ohmt]

I personally like the online auctions to a point. Buyers have more time to research the horses and talk to the sellers and the sellers can keep the horse at home, keeping them from getting stressed or picking up something at a live auction. A larger target audience is reached-there are many overseas sales. Often the sales have the normal selling price listed as the reserve anyway and putting the horse in the online auction is more a way to advertise than anything else i think. Last year i put a few horses in an online auction-did not receive any bids, but i got a lot of inquiries which led to the sales of all but one afterward. They went to fantastic homes

Many put on their own online auctions specifically so they can talk to potential buyers beforehand. I guess to me an auction is an auction no matter live or online, but i prefer online (as a seller). There are many things that can come up in some people's lives, it is not for me to judge.

 

[Minimor]

Well, I have never consigned a horse to any auction and likely never will, nor have I purchased one from auction. But, considering that there are many, many people who sell horses without ever checking references, without even asking for references, I don't see the online auctions as being any worse than private sales. One can check references all one likes, and there is still no guarantee that the person one sells to will not turn around and resell the horse to the first person who comes along with the money. The only way anyone can guarantee the horse's future is to not sell at all.

The online sales are an excellent way to advertise and I know a number of people that do consign horses to those sales just to advertise--they don't really expect to sell, but it gets the horse and their farm out there and that can result in future sales.

 

[circlesinthesand]

One can check references all one likes, and there is still no guarantee that the person one sells to will not turn around and resell the horse to the first person who comes along with the money. The only way anyone can guarantee the horse's future is to not sell at all.

Not only turn around and sell to whoever, but the people you think you trust can turn out to be not what you thought. I free leased a horse to a family with the provision that if they couldn't take care of him he came home. Long story short, I'll never do that again, I yanked him home quickly after a surprise visit. Same pony was later sold to a family who he stayed with til he died @ 23 yrs old of colic (and we all know even the best of care can sometimes not be enough when they colic) The person I trusted let me down but the gal that I didn't know kept him beautifully and became a friend.

 

[StarRidgeAcres]

Hmmmmm..... Don't really agree, at all, with the original poster.

In my experience (I realize others may have different experiences) I LOVE the control and benefits of an "online" auction!

The horses don't have to leave the property - saves me expense and the horses stress and possibility of catching something nasty at the auction barn.

I DO get to know the buyers and only have to provide bidder numbers to those I see fit. If I don't know someone, I ask for references (and actually check them) before giving a number. That's how I ran the one online auction I did and it worked GREAT for me. You have more time to actually check references whereas at a "live" auction, you have no time to decide. It's either let the horse go or no sale.

The exposure you get to your farm is HUGE in an online auction. You will sell horses after the fact even.

The farms (for the most part) doing online auctions are the nicer farms. The horses are well cared for, in great shape, etc.

And there is time to check on the status of registration papers with an online auction - great for the buyer!

Personally, I think the benefits are awesome - for both seller and buyer. I love online auctions!

 

[Riverrose28]

This is a tough one for me, as I do suffer from guilt when I sell at any auction, but you need to ask yourself is this a hobby or a business? We used to breed one or two mares a year, and retained for showing, either by a pro, or by us. Then we decided to start breeding more mares and sell, well on-line auctions are a great marketing tool, as others have said. Really in this economy you need to use all the rescources available to sell and IMP on-line is a good one.

 

[Carolyn R]

When I was breeding, I never sold at public live auctions. I did tentatively consigned my last mini to an online sale, but he sold prior to the sale. I agree, it is a way to check out buyers, for buyers to check out sellers, check up in advance on paperwork, offspring, vet references and such, no way for a horse to pick up a bug from other horses, it advertises the horses to a larger market base, let's buyers know that you are serious about placing the horse and willing to discuss the matter, and truth be told, many times people will look and look and look at a horse, they may really want it, but truth be told, they don't make a serious move on buying it unless they feel time may be running out and someone else may purchase. In other words, some won't make the commitment unless push comes to shove.

As already pointed out, al the references in the world and even checking out a home in person is no gaurantee on a horse's future well being. Once it is out of a sellers care, they truthfully have little to no say about the outcome.

 

[eagles ring farm]

I really do like the online auctions and limited time special offers. We have purchased 3 horses this way and have had a very good opportunity to talk to the sellers with any questions we may have. 1 on an online auction and 2 on limited time special offers. I would not hesitate to purchase again using this type of promotion. It probably does push you as a buyer to make a quicker decision than you might on someones sale page. But plenty of time to do your homework. We are thrilled with all 3 horses we purchased from online promotions.

We have never sold a horse in this manner but as others have said even when your sure its a great home there is no guarantee what the future brings. So given the right circumstances I would certainly consider consigning to an online auction.

The big plus is the time to study from the comfort of your home while the horses enjoy the comfort and safety of their own homes.

 

[ruffian]

My G.L.E.E. sale was on line as well as live, so not sure if you were referred to JUST online, but IMO it's a great way to market horses. As said, you can check out references forever, and still have a bad buyer. The Online part gets buyers attention, and they can check out the horses being offered prior to the sale, and the live part, if it's broadcast, lets the folks view from their own home how the horses moves and different angles. Take a horse to a sale isn't much more stressfull than taking them to a show or a fair. Actually they sit in a stall with hay until they go through the sale, so it's not too bad.

My farm is a business. I raise horses to sell. If I didn't want to do that I would have 2 riding horses. Selling Online or via auction isn't really any different than selling to someone pulling in the driveway. It's just a larger market.

 

[Suzie]

Personally, I love online auctions. I have bought horses through both and prefer the online myself. In fact, we have decided should we have to disperse, we will do the online auction route.

We recently bought a horse through an online auction. I would never have traveled that far to visit a regional auction. In my case, we had previously bought horses from that farm, although we had never been there in person (we had the horses shipped closer). And we bought from a picture only at that time. We were more than pleased with the horses then and when the online auction came on, we jumped at the opportunity to buy again. Only problem was deciding how many we wanted to buy! To be honest, we spent more than we should have, but still got an AWESOME deal. We did travel to pick up our new horse and loved the opportunity to see the farm in person.

The one MAJOR plus for the online auction was that the horse remained in his home until bought. I have bought horses at a regional auction and brought them home and they had gotten sick from being exposed to so many other strange horses at the sale site. Although we quarantine our horses here for 6 weeks, dealing with a horse that has picked up a disease at an auction site it an experience I would just as soon have avoided. I do not think this horse was brought to the auction site sick, he picked it up from someone or some other horse there. I know some would argue this point, but I would rather pick up a horse in his usual environment any day. I still quarantine but have NEVER had a horse bought directly from a farm come home with any disease.

I see online auctions as the new wave of the future. Anytime you buy a horse online, you run a risk. I have run the risk now for over 12 years and I must say, I have never, ever been disappointed with any horse I bought online. Maybe I am just lucky. I hope if that is the case, it never runs out. I have to add that I bought a horse online from a picture many, many years ago. When we went to pick her up, the owner kept apologizing to me about the horse. I loved the horse and brought her home, 7 hours away. She has been here ever since and will most likely end her days here. She has produced the most gorgeous foals I have ever seen, many have gone on to be instrumental in other farms. Her previous owner has come by over the years to visit her here and I have never quite understood why she apologized for this horse at the beginning...maybe her pictures were not the best, I have no clue. Again, if it is just Luck, I hope I never run out of Luck..