(dressage) Should I buy this horse?

His shoulder is ok but he is weak behind however he would come on with training. His biggest confirmation fault is his long back which is what makes it difficult for him to track-up properly. (It's not horribly long but you might want something more short-coupled for dressage).

Also the way the girl in the video is riding him is doing him no favours. With more seat and legs and a more upright postition you could start to get him working from behind. She is infront of his movement and dropping all her weight on his shoulder. Have you ridden him? The best way to judge how much 'space to improve' a horse has got is to get on and see what difference you can make.

He looks calm and attentive and is obviously listening to his rider. It might help to make a list of all the things you think are important for a dressage horse and then tick the boxes to see how he measures up.

He seems very kind, quiet and willing. His rider isn't the person I would have chosen for a sale video, but he certainly is doing the best he can. I like him. His price is pretty vague though, and that's really the dealbreaker.

His conformation isn't ideal (what horse's is?), but I don't see anything that would hinder him from taking you where you want to go. It looks like that photo of him was taken on an incline - he looks uphill, but does not look that way under saddle.

If you have a good trainer, for yourself and him, who can work with both of you to progress through the levels, then I think he will suit your needs nicely. He seems like a happy, calm type and that is always a plus.

I know that Dressage and hunt seat are almost totaly different. If you want a dressage horse but are buying a hunter/jumper then I'd advise you don't pay much and you'd need to be ready for some confusion between you and the horse. Hunters lean lean forward all the time! It's kinda a bad habit but dressage is straight up and down. I hope you figure it out! :D

I really like this horse. How old is he? I am hoping he is under 6. I would expect a little more of an older horse. Less than 10k? that could mean anything. Find out the exact age. Find out the exact price and I will say if I would buy or not.

i like him. he's eye catching and looks quite sweet. his back end is lazy - i noticed he drags his back feet through the dust and his shoulder is a lil upright but not excessively so. obviously there is a dauntingly vast amount of work to be done with him although it looks as though he's got a good start off. Its tough to tell from this if he will ever be a grand prix or prix st george dressage horse but i think with good training and alot of work he looks like he will easy progress through to elementary. i dont like to push you to hard one way or the other as its your horse and youve mentioned you probably wouldnt want to sell any horse you've had so ill not say either way just leave you with these thoughts....!!!! good luck

At first glance, he doesn't really strike me as a dressage horse. Also I think he is traveling in a little bit of a false frame, during the trot his hind feet don't step in almost exactly the same spot that his front feet were in. Does that make sense? It's really hard to explain. If you have any more questions, just e-mail me at horses_4_life2942@yahoo.com

When I saw the pic, I thought not really but in the video he looked very nice, he's a good jumper and I think you could do something with him in dressage!

Im a sucker for Greys.! He looks great, get him if you have that bond with him. Not really into dressage, so cant comment on the horse and rider either. Good luck.

Agree with Nat. The rider is maintaining her balance by hanging on his mouth. (Watch her hands.)

Looked happy and willing to deliver what the rider didn't know how to ask. (Camera person should stop "clucking".)

Looked like he has the potential to (and was trying to) do a very nice extended trott.

He needs work on both canter leads, suspect that was the rider's fault. More seat and legs.

enjoy

Well, at the trot he looks like a fantastic dressage horse, but when they begin to canter his head pokes up and his form is worse. If you are looking for horse to work with, i think you should buy him, but if you are looking for a made horse, i would find another.