The gem of an ad today was just one of those that seemed fine, then had that whammo last line or two - but the Whammo didn't hit till you looked at the pictures they included.
This is an ad for a OTTB that the owners state "TB Needs to go". It starts out wonderful, doesn't it.
Ad Text: lob is a 8y.r old layed back very kind and willing of the track TB he good 4-H prospect comes with papers. He could go back to the track but would rather be a dressage or kids horse. thanks would trade for broke TW 300 obo only vice her does crib but is controlled. 300 obo please call Marty xxx-xxxx
Ok, I'm going to stop here... there IS one more line... but I can't help myself. Ignoring the absolutely atrocious grammar and spelling mistakes I just have to ask why this horse could go back to the track? That just sounds shady to me... I keep thinking if this horse goes back to the track at 8 years old, 1st off... he's too old to run. 2nd...unless they use him as a track pony (doubtful as most ex-race horses wouldn't be able to get near a track without wanting to run)... I just keep seeing "auction, KB, dump the horse" when I read that line. I hope that wouldn't be the case, maybe this horse does have an ex-owner/trainer that would take him back and find him a better home, but I just doubt that.
I guess that would tie in with the title "TB needs to go".
If you were to give any horse a chance to go back to a life full of stress, no turn out, and 24 hour stall life vs. a new life as a 4-H horse where he gets to have some fun? Well DUH he'd rather be a 4-H horse! LOL.
But thats not why this ad is the WTF Wed ad.
The last line of the ad, "pics suck sorry".
So... here are the pics...
NO YOUR PICTURES DO NOT SUCK BECAUSE THEY ARE CRAPPY PICTURES... THEY SUCK BECAUSE OF THE DISGUSTING FILTHY STALL YOUR HORSE IS STANDING IN! GET THE F**K OUT TO THE BARN WITH A HOSE, A RAKE, AND A FEW HOURS AND CLEAN THE DAMN STALL! AND MAYBE, JUST MAYBE ... YOUR BARN/STALL WOULDN'T LOOK LIKE A FRIGGING PIGSTY! BTW, a hose to the horse wouldn't hurt, either!
This poor horse is living in filth! I will excuse the dirt on the horse. That is at least normal. I WOULD hope that one would make the horse look his best for a sale ad... but if that were always the case then I wouldn't be writing this blog! Looking past the horse though (I know hard to do, his eyes are just is screaming out for help), to the barn walls... and the floor... Looks like the horse might have stall mats, but the material on the mats/floor is weeks old, filthy, and theres manure that hasn't been picked up.
Something else I just noticed... some black spots on the metal back wall in the first picture. That looks suspiciously to me like when a horse has been kicking at the same spot and the paint on the metal has been scraped off...its right about hind kick level too... *hmm* think maybe this horse is a stall kicker? That might be one of the reasons "TB needs to go"?
Bottom Line: Was this owner so lazy that simply taking the horse outside and tying him to a fence or a tree for the picture was that difficult!? They REALLY just had to take the pictures of the horse in the conditions he's living in? Then try to excuse their lack of barn care by throwing out the excuse "sorry pictures suck"?
If you are selling your horse on Craigslist, you aren't paying for the ad. That means waiting until the morning isn't going to cost you any money. Would waiting until the next morning really made a difference? Seeing this poor guy in the conditions he's in now is truly heartbreaking. If I were this horse... I think I'd crib too, just for the mental escape.
I can't email at work, so I'm just going to post a link to this one: http://stlouis.craigslist.org/grd/1667250414.html
ReplyDeleteThat's right folks, this is a magical color-changing filly!!
Yeah. I would "throw a little fit" if I was a 2 year old being ridden by a rather ignorant owner.
It's a nice enough looking horse, but definatley in need of an upgrade. I also can't figure out why you would send a horse back to the track if they have already proven they don't possess the speed or talent to win. Maybe to 'ditch' them in a low level claimer and get them off your bill?
ReplyDeleteThe stall looks as if it could be a stall at the track. If this is the case, there could have been a nuber of horses in there before this one and one of them may have kicked the walls. Doesn't explain the bedding and manure, but a possibility all the same. I am thinking the horse is still on the track and 'needs to go' to make room for a horse that will run. One that will make some money, not just keep consuming it.
Zanthia - reminds me of the 'horse of a different color' from oz... hehe. its been capped.
ReplyDeleteCut-N-Jump - you might be correct, but I shudder to think of any track barn that would keep their horses in the condition that horse is being kept in. The one bad thing about using these ads is unless I email each one for more information I have only what they write to go off of.
I sure hope this guy gets a decent owner next.
awww poor guy.. it does look like a track stall.. and few hours on the stall.. hell a halfway motivated person could strip it and put fresh bedding down in 15 min
ReplyDelete(spot cleaning 12 stalls and refreshing the bedding as needed took me about an hour and a half.. this included 2 fresh buckets of water per stall.. and a few trips way out to the manure pile LOL)
As a photographer, it hurts me seeing people post shit photos to try and sell something, especially something like a horse that depends on it's looks in an advertisement. As a horse owner and rider, it hurts me to see how sad that horse looks standing in the dirty stall. Ugh.
ReplyDeleteSeriously a word of advise for anyone that might come onto this blog and be thinking of selling their animal.
1. BRUSH IT. Brush the damn horse, nothing turns away serious buyers faster than a filthy animal. It's not hard! Just brush it! Pass a damp cloth over him to shine the anima up, brush it's mane and tail out.
2. Clip it's feet if it needs it. Unclipped feet scream "I don't give a shit about this animal"
3. Put it in a halter and take it outside.
4. Don't take the photo with your broken down car in the background, you fugly barn or your unkept fences. You want people focused on your horse, not the state of the stable/farm.
5. Take 4 photos that will actually sell the horses conformation. One from each side (no funky angles), one from the front (make sure you can see from the top of the animals ears to the ground in front of the hoof) and one from the back (from the highest point of the rump to the ground behind it's feet.) If you're trying to sell that horse for anything over 5k (in this economy) A picture of the horse under saddle doing the work your advertising him for isn't a bad idea either. Do NOT put a photo of a child without a helmet on the horse, a photo of someone doing something stupid, like standing on the horse, or a photo of anything else deemed unsafe being done to the horse in your photo package.
It's so EASY to take good photos of horses. Take good photos and you might actually SELL the animal instead of wondering why your 'handsome' little horse who looked fugly in his advertisement photos hasn't sold.
Well Said. I decided that in starting this blog, while education is a huge motivating factor, those that are going to do this kind of thing anyways won't listen to higher educated people than they. They are too busy, too annoyed at helpers, and too stubborn to ask for help.
ReplyDeleteI can still try though.