by Denise Conroy

exceptional, but they are still horses. I decided to write this article to dispel myths and share some tips

about buying your first Curly and to add some realism to this adventure.

Over the past year or so I have heard stories of some really sad situations involving first-time buyers and

green Curlies. Before the breed gets a bad rap and people get hurt, I thought maybe if we educated the

buyer a bit, we could create a good situation for both the buyer and the horse. The one thing that we

probably have more of than any other breed is beginner/novice buyers. This is partly due to the fact that

first-time owners are drawn to that steady temperament, but the other factor is that people who would

otherwise never be able to own a horse due to allergies now can fulfill their dream. One allergic buyer

said it well: "A childhood dream reawakened with the power of adult determination is a double-edged

sword." Such people start with determination but little education. This enthusiasm rushes them into

resources for new horse buyers would be helpful.

1. Take a year to invest in an education. "A year?" you ask. "But I’ve waited my whole life to own a

horse. I can't wait a year! Life is too short. I can learn as I go, can't I?" Not if you want to live your

dream, not a nightmare . You may be forgetting that these are 1,000 lb. animals, not dogs. Many people

I know take more time to buy their family dog than to buy a horse! Even the sweetest Curly can

intimidate the unknowledgeable. Due to the breed's feral heritage, they tend to be very herd-oriented. If

you don’t understand herd dynamics and behavior, you will never establish your dominance with your

horse or earn his respect. This is a very dangerous situation. Here are some basic areas that you will

need to focus on before you buy your first horse.

A. Basic Care: Farrier, deworming, teeth floating, feed and nutrition, vaccinations, and preventative care.

The number-one cause of death in horses is colic. They have extremely sensitive digestions. The tiniest

bit of mold or bad hay can kill them. How do you prevent proud flesh, founder, thrush, or rain rot? Learn

how to prevent problems through proper feeding schedules, proper fencing, and providing environmental

surroundings.

B. Tack and Equipment: You should also have knowledge of tack you will need. What's the difference

between a snaffle and a curb bit? If a horse is trained English versus Western, what does that mean?

What type of saddle do you buy? You must understand how a saddle should fit so your horse doesn't get

sores or pinched by one that’s too narrow and bucks you off! What is a narrow tree compared to Semi QH

or Full QH tree? Find out!

C. Basic Training Techniques: Even if you buy a well-trained horse, you still must understand the

hindquarters, gaining a horse's respect by establishing your space and boundaries. Learn the way a horse

thinks. He is a prey animal, and they don't have good depth perception. Get into their minds so you

understand better how to work with them.

D. Learn to Ride: In order to have a happy horse, you must have a certain level of riding ability. Allergic

folks will have to find a Curly to take lessons on or take their allergy medicine while they learn on a non-

Curly. Videos can help, but they aren’t enough. You need to learn to ride a horse like you learned to ride

a bike. It takes balance and an independent seat so you aren’t pulling on the horse's mouth. You have to

learn to relax and go with the movement of the horse. This takes practice and time. Can you imagine

what a horse must think when a beginner gets on him and they barely hang onto their backs, lean on their

mouths with the reins, give them mixed signals by kicking yet simultaneously pulling back on the reins?

What about that unbalanced rider bouncing on the horse's back to the point of making the horse sore?

Even a well-trained horse would get frustrated by that, and it won’t respect such a person. Then it begins

to test him to see what it can get away with.

Videos on items A-C are a great option, especially for allergic folks. You might spend $500-800 on a

library of good videos, but they really help. Also, take the time to visit Curly breeders and owners in your

area or out of state. Find out what works for them in training their Curlies or working with them, learn

about bloodlines, feeding programs, and more. Make a mental note of which horses you liked best and

what their bloodlines are. That makes a difference when it comes to shopping for your dream Curly. If

you are not allergic, I would suggest you attend as many clinics as possible, and take private lessons. The

best option would be to lease a horse and really learn what horse ownership is about. Pat Parelli says that

80% of new horse owners sell their horses and quit riding within the first year! Those statistics would be

reduced greatly if buyers invested their first year in gaining an education, then bought a horse.

research on the Curly breed. Below are some resources for good information on the breed. In my

experience I have found most Curlies, no matter what bloodline, give a smooth, enjoyable ride. I have

truly a wonderful breed and offer great variety. Many breeders have strong opinions concerning what

they produce, and rightfully so. Don't let that intimidate you. Every breeder should have a program he or

she follows. Look for common goals and seek out those breeders.

Other great resources:

About Curly Temperament: It is true that in general, the Curly horse is extremely quiet, friendly, people

oriented and intelligent! My first Curly was a 3-year-old halter-broke stallion, 15.2h. After just 30 days of

natural horsemanship training, I rode him out on the trail, and he was amazing. I felt safer on him than

any horse I had ridden before. But don't assume all Curlies are carbon copies of each other. A lot has to

do with genetics and environment. The other attribute about some Curlies that not many people talk

about is their innate desire to be a one-person horse. In our years of breeding we found this to be true

about 50% of the time. Some breeders and owners feel this is one of their best qualities. Curlies also

don't forgive as easily, so if you make a mistake or do them an injustice, it will take a while to regain their

trust again. This could be one of the problems we see with beginner buyers and Curlies.

A trainer once told me a story that made it clear to me the difference between a QH and a Curly. He said

when he was a child, he would go out and ride his QH like a wild kid and end the day with the horse stuck

in mud up to its belly. They had to get a truck to pull him out. The next day, they would get up and that

horse was ready to go again. He said you could never do that with a Curly. If you did that just once with

a Curly, you would probably never be able to catch that horse again. Call it extreme intelligence or lack of

Curlies are also well-known for not being spooky. They would rather plant their feet than turn and run.

issue that many fail to discuss. Whether people realize it or not, planting the feet is also a form of

instinctive behavior. If Curlies are not taught to think properly and are pushed too hard too fast, they

tend to use that planting-of-the-feet instinct pretty well. Sometimes they just won't move, but in other

cases, they tend to buck instead of bolt. The good news is that if you handle them right, build a

relationship out of trust and respect, use natural horsemanship techniques with consistent daily handling,

you will have a bond with your Curly you never thought was possible with any horse. When they give you

their heart, they give 100%. That is the magic and wonder of this breed.

Links to Natural Horsemanship Trainers:

3. What is your Dream horse? OK, you’ve got an education. You have at least an advanced

beginner’s riding ability, and you feel you’re up for the challenge of buying your first Curly. The first thing

you need to determine is, "What will I use my Curly for?" Trail horse, Show horse (English, Western, or

both?), Family, or Youth horse? What level of training and what age? I realize there are very few wellbroke

beginner-type Curlies available, so if you absolutely have to settle for a fairly green horse, plan to

work with a trainer for the first year. For heaven’s sake, do not buy a weanling! Yes, they are small, but

they have the mind of a baby and will take more skill and patience than a three- or four-year-old. If

you’re buying a fairly green horse, take into consideration that animal’s temperament. If they are the

boss in the herd and you are timid, that’s not the horse for you. It is always best to pick a horse that gets

along in the herd, because that tells you the horse has an easygoing personality. He is confident but not a

bully.

A strong word of caution: Please don't consider breeding until you have at least five years of horse

ownership under your belt. Breeding Curlies should be left to people who not only understand

conformation, genetics, and care and handling of a mare and foal, but more importantly, they know how

to market and sell horses. Anyone can put a mare and stallion together, but the last thing this breed

needs is random, careless, and casual breeding practices. Those who take on the responsibility of

breeding Curlies should be ready to invest a fortune to make a little money. I see more new buyers

distracted into breeding simply because they buy young colts and don't have the heart to geld them, so

they think, "Hey! Why not breed? I can make some money and recoup some costs!" Wrong! In my

opinion, if you don't have the education, experience, and the marketing skills to raise and sell foals, leave

it to the professionals or get five years under your belt before you do.

4. Your Experience: Be realistic about your experience and knowledge of horses. If you have worked

with a trainer, ask for an unbiased opinion. You are setting yourself up for disaster if you overstate your

ability. Be clear to the seller what your level is and what you want in your first horse. Check the seller’s

references. If it's a breeder, be sure he takes the time to match rider and horse.

5. List Priorities in Your Future Curly : Make a list of qualities you want in your Curly. Start with the

most important traits and end with the things you can live without. Color should be the last thing you

consider. A great horse is never the wrong color. Also, be mindful that if you are looking for a reliable,

ridable Curly, plan to spend a minimum of $5,000 US. Save ahead of time if need be and wait until you

can afford it. Do not settle for a horse that is unsuitable but inexpensive. In the end, you’ll end up paying

more in the long run and cause yourself years of grief. You’ll end up being one of the statistics Pat Parelli

talks about.

6. Finding Curlies for sale: The best resources to shop for Curlies are:

7. Other Resources: You may also be a bit more resourceful and contact the ABC Registry to buy their

stud books. If you’ve done your homework, you should have a favorite bloodline that interests you. It’s

fun to dig and find horses that have those bloodlines and contact the owners. There are many awesome

Curlies that could be for sale if the right person approached the owner. This happened to me when we

were shopping for my daughter's horse. I found Cheyenne in the stud books, loved his bloodlines, and

saw he was registered as a gelding, so I knew he was gelded at a young age. I contacted the ABCR for

the current owner and wrote her a letter stating my interest in her horse. She told me she had

considering selling him and sent me pictures. He was perfect! We flew to Washington state to see him

and bought him before she could change her mind. Sometimes the best ones sell long before they hit the

Internet sales pages. Dig a little deeper and you may find that diamond hiding in someone's backyard.

8. Asking Questions or See a Video: Once you’ve found a horse you are interested in, be sure to ask

as many questions as you can. A good seller shouldn't mind answering them. If you are buying a riding

Curly and can't make the trip to see the horse in person, ask for a video. The video should consist of

everything from the horse in the pasture/corral with other horses and how they react to being caught,

handled, longed, tacked up, ridden and anything else they claim the horse can do (within reason). I

would strongly recommend, if you are buying a horse that you want to become your lifelong buddy, you

spend the money to see the horse in person. You will want to know that you connect with that horse.

Once you have owned horses for a while, you can make judgments a bit better and may find video and

pictures adequate for a purchase. Be sure to set yourself up for success.

9. Deposit & Purchase Agreement: After doing steps 1-6, you feel you have found the horse of your

dreams. What now? The first thing you want to do is put down a deposit and get a signed purchase

agreement. Be sure that the seller agrees you are a good match. Be sure to work out any details such as

who pays for transfers, transportation papers, etc. Work out all the details and work together with the

seller for a win-win situation. Remember, it's hard on both of you. Coming from both sides of the fence, I

enjoy being the buyer much better than being the seller! Selling a horse is very stressful, not just in

being responsible but in emotionally letting go of the horse. At some point in the sale, it becomes real

that the horse is leaving, and you have to come to terms with it. It is time for you, the buyer, to reassure

the seller that you will provide the best home for their horse. For many breeders their life blood is poured

into their foals and horses. When a buyer appreciates that, it means a lot.

10. Living your Dream: Now it's time to actually live out your dream of being a horse owner. Keep in

mind that the first 30 days are an adjustment period. The horse needs time to settle in, so don't expect

him/her to act exactly like he did when you saw him at the seller's farm. There will be a time of testing as

to who is in charge, too. Some horses test more than others, but you will need to set those boundaries.

Until that horse understands the pecking order, he/she will be frustrated. Recall your videos, clinics, and

lessons, because you will need that foundation every day for a while. Even with all your preparation, it

still could be 6-12 months before you feel a real bond and true partnership with your horse. I suggest

that first-time horse buyers work with a trainer for the first year, so they ensure they’re reading their

horse correctly and nip bad habits in the bud.

Horses are large animals, and we can easily feel intimidated by them, but with preparation and

forethought, you can eliminate almost all of the hassles, frustrations, and financial woes of your first

purchase and find the horse of your dreams.

frustrations and financial woes of finding the horse of your dreams.