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  Discussion on 3 year old gelding, fainting spells?
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New Member:
katiep

Posted on Wednesday, Aug 15, 2007 - 10:56 pm:

ive been in the horse scene for a good ten years now ( i'm 18)and i recently decided to buy my first horse. I was referred to a certain individual who had a "not quite 2 year old" gelding. He assured me he was healthy (minus some abscesses under his jaw from foxtails) and utd on all shots etc. As a new horse he was quarantined in the hay barn to assure he was healthy.

A couple days after i moved him to my barn i went to his stall and he stumbled to the door, head DrOoped and almost fell. I asked around and most people said it was probably because he was young and sleeps really hard...the next day, same thing, the day after he even went to his knees and since then it happens quite often. In the turnout, at the tie rail and in his stall. After a vet check, it was concluded that he was not only three years plus but could quite possibly have a neurological disorder. Sooo i'm left with a few issues, one being the health of the horse, my safety around these unpredictable episodes, and what to do about the misrepresentation of this horse. The seller is refusing to refund my money in return for the horse and completely denies the horses true age (as vet concluded twice) and that the horse ever did such things while under his ownership.

I made the stupid mistake of not getting any paper work but i did pay by check which is traceable and there were witnesses at the time of sale.

ANY advice would be much appreciated!
Member:
hwood

Posted on Wednesday, Aug 15, 2007 - 11:38 pm:

Sorry to hear about the troubles with your new, first horse.

Is the vet testing for any particular neurological disorder? Could it be narcolepsy? Wobblers?

For legal advice you should really consult an attorney. Is the seller someone who sells a lot of horses? I would think that he would be sensitive to public opinion if that is the case.
Google: Julie Fershtman(n?) . . . a lawyer who deals in equine business. Also, Rachel Kosmal McCart at Equine Legal Solutions (rachel@equinelegalsolutions.com) is a lawyer whom I have met and e-mailed with. Very helpful to me and may be able to point you in the best direction.
Member:
mrose

Posted on Wednesday, Aug 15, 2007 - 11:39 pm:

I assume it is too late to put a stop order on your check?

Did the previous owner breed the horse, or buy it then resell it? If they bred it, is he a registered horse of any breed? Is the seller a member of any of the major breed or show organizations like USEF?

I don't know who you asked when you "asked around" but I've been around horses my entire life (I'm in my 60's) and have bred horses for well over 20 yrs., and I've never heard of a young horse "sleeping really hard" so that it stumbles when it walks. If your barn is dark and a horse is coming in from the bright sun, it would be possible for a horse to stumble as it tries to adjust to the darkness, just as you might.

I would have the vet do a good workup on the horse checking for some of the possible disorders. You can search this site and find a lot of good information on various neurological disorders to educate yourself a little; you might be able to rule out a few things. With the help of the vet you should be able to find out what the horse's problem is, or at least what it isn't so you can really know what you are dealing with. This will give you a place to start. If the horse has something you can't deal with, I'd try and find out if the seller knew about the problem, and how much they knew. I'd try and find out their vet and talk with him. I'd try and find other people that bought horses from these people...in short get all the "ammunition" you can, then either talk with the police re: fraud, or go to small claims court. You need to try and find out just what the horse's problem is though.

As to your safety, I certainly hope you aren't going to try and ride this horse, and just be real careful around him, never putting yourself in a position where he can fall on you. I'd would never leave him in a cross tie, or tied short anywhere. You don't want to cause further problems by him getting caught on too short a line and strangling himself or something.
New Member:
katiep

Posted on Thursday, Aug 16, 2007 - 9:33 pm:

thank you for your responses! to answer some of the questions, its too late to stop the order on my check. he already cashed it and the horse has no papers. the seller is just some horsetrader whom i was referred to by a woman at another ranch nearbye. His episodes werent due to light changes and after more research its looking more and more like narcolepsy. im wondering if it could be due to isolation since he is still in quarantine in a barn?
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Thursday, Aug 16, 2007 - 11:25 pm:

Welcome katie,
Assuming this is narcolepsy, see article for description and diagnosis, I do not think isolation has anything to do with it. There has been a recent description, albeit a somewhat subjective assessment, of horses that don't sleep well having episodes of falling asleep while standing, and perhaps being new might account for such a possibility but I would consider narcolepsy as a most likely possibility if the symptoms fit the description.

As to what might be done about the misrepresentation that will depend on your local laws, some places might give you a fair amount of protection while others take a very caveat emptor attitude. Check with your a local lawyer for what might be done.
DrO
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