Nolan Auction Report & Free Horse Roundup

Happy Thanksgiving! 

Thanks for being faithful readers. My family has a tradition at Thanksgiving, where we go around the table, and each one of us talks about what we're grateful for. The fact that I'm able to express my opinions freely, have a dialogue with fellow horse lovers, and even have the internet and horses in the first place, are all things I am extremely grateful for. Thanks for being part of that.

Now then, on to some horses who are not as lucky this holiday.

WARNING: Wall O' Text Ahead!

The Saturday before last, I attended the huge Tim Nolan auction near Clintonville, WI. It's probably the second largest regular horse auction in the state. I had a lovely blog post typed up for you,with TONS of pictures... and then my laptop died. Probably permanently, so there went my pics.

So, due to technical difficulties, here's a very much abridged, yet still mind-numbingly long, rundown of what went on at...

Tim Nolan Auction

11/9/12

-Over 200 head of horses went into the ring, probably close to 250

- I estimated about 1/5th were no-saled because the owners wanted more

- About 300 people attended, of course not everyone stayed from beginning to end

- Average price for a broke horse was $400, including registered horses

- Top price paid was $1,500 for a young, dead broke red dun gelding, the Amish guy riding him jumped over his ears, crawled between his front legs and under his belly, jumped up on his butt, etc while he stood stock still in the middle of the ring. Trotted and backed nice.

- Bottom prices were lots of $30 and $50 ponies, including some adorable Hackneys broke to drive, $90 - $110 each for a couple of older broke horses

- Bottom price for a really good quality broke horse was $50, paid for a '98 registered bay Arabian mare, youth-sized, great confo, had been shown and done speed events, hadn't been ridden in 2 years, was nervous but did okay in the ring.

- One of my personal favorites was a 4 year old unbroke AQHA mare, led okay, GORGEOUS buckskin, decent confo: went for $325

- Second saddest was probably the 23 year old sooty buckskin gelding. He was old, and a grade, but dead broke and super quiet, would have been a GREAT first horse for a little kid. Sold for $200. Bastard owner couldn't be bothered to put him to rest.

- Absolute saddest was a lanky, sorrel, ewe-necked ex-lesson horse, could jump, knew some dressage, broke absolutely to death, had been used at a vet tech college for student practice, sold for $225. Don't know how old he was, but it was absolutely heartbreaking that no one he'd served in his life could be bothered to give him a home. I guess it was just because he wasn't very "pretty."

Best T-shirt seen at the auction:













- Crowd favorites were the mini donkeys that fetched up to $150, and 2 weanling foals, one a registered paint stud colt that went for $175, the other a QH filly selling on application, she went for $75.

- No recent injuries or starvation cases that I could see

- All horses provided with water and okay hay

- Scariest and most adorable sight was the tiny Amish boys, no more than 5 or 6 years old, riding full-sized horses around the property and in the auction ring.

-Tack and junk was pretty damn cheap; $20 for folding aluminum saddle stands, $5 for leadropes if you bought two, pony saddles for $75-$120, western saddles for $60 to $300 depending on condition-- a couple of nice used ones went for $80 and $120 respectively.

- I bought two leadropes and a huge purple bucket for Annie's huge pink head, but no critters. Not sure whether I was disappointed in myself or relieved I had avoided temptation.

*whew* That's all on the auction. Are you sick and tired yet?

But wait, there's more! It's time to give you a quick...

 Craigslist Free Horse Roundup

Free to a good home: Paint gelding near Madison. Rescue case.

A huge THANK-YOU to reader Carol for rescuing this poor guy and finding him a great home! SUPER kudos!!


Insane lady wants $120 to re-home her 5 year old, non-neutered dogs (they also need shots).
Black and yellow labs, she says they're housebroken but mostly outside dogs (read: they will have fleas and chew your house up). "You may feel free to tyranny or call me at 608-450-0330" Endeavor, WI. Ad here.


Actual ad text: "They may be dirty, but the bows make it all better!" *facepalm* It would by funny/cute if Broken Foot Ranch weren't asking $500 for the paint filly and $750 for the black/grey. Jesus people, try reading my auction report: registered horses are going for peanuts, yet you still feel you can market these guys like this and get big bucks out of them?!




Three free horses here: an 8, 10 and 22 year old mares. None of 'em broke.

Free yearling QH pony here-- not gelded or halter broke. Ugh. Lafayette County.


CUTE 2 year old paint pony, free to good home. Nice medium size, hard to find. Leads, loads. Ad here. Picture below.




Free 8 year old paint gelding near Madison. Not broke. Click here.

Free white molly mini mule, not easily caught but somewhat touchable. 8 years old, near Portage.
Ad here. 608 438 9361




Donkeys!! OMG, free donkeys wantwantwant. They're only about an hour from my farm, too. Pair of standard donkeys, young, one male and one female (doesn't say if the guy is gelded). Apparently they need hoof trims. Ad here.




Rescue closing
At least seven horses need new homes as a Deerfield, WI horse sanctuary closes its doors. All but two are unbroke or too old to ride, but there are some quality horses there. They're all free to a good home, but references are required. Full descriptions here. I will try to find out more about this soon. In particular, I would like to know why a supossed sanctuary is dumping 4+ 20+ year old horses on Craigslist instead of euthanizing them. Hmmm...




$20 mare
She's an adorable, 16 year old fat little QH/Mustang cross, broke to ride but needs experience. Sounds like she's had some founder trouble in the past (gee, no kidding, just look at her!). Doesn't stand well for messing with her hooves, but for $20, geesh, this would be a nice kid's horse with a little work. Near Randolph, WI-- ad here.

Free APHA mare, I think this girl has been on Craigslist for a while, maybe something is wrong with her... ad just says she's healthy and a futurity winner.