Vets & Paperwork

The Importance of a PRE Purchase Exam (Vet Check)

Lusitano Horse Finder highly recommend when choosing a Lusitano horse that you ensure the horse has a full 5 stage pre-purchase examination prior to purchasing the horse.

What to Expect and Include

It is advisable to include blood tests and x-rays within the examination. See what a pre purchase exam involves

We have formed links with the best equine vets in Portugal and other countries and are very happy to provide you with their contact details or to contact them on your behalf. Once contacted they will deal directly with you when it comes to the examination and the results.

João Crespo FEI Vet  Click here to read the editorial about João Crespo.

In addition to a full vet inspection there will be an additional vet check required within 48 hours prior to transporting the horse within the European Union. More is required for further afield such as America, Canada, Australia etc and will include quarantine procedures.

Having a stallion castrated

Very few Lusitanos are offered for sale in Portugal as geldings, it’s more traditional to keep all males entire. The stallions are generally kept stabled from the age of 3 years old and only a small amount of yards have turnout for them. For many buyers, it is better have a gelding or mare, to fit with the living environment they have for their horses. As a result most people prefer to have a horse castrated, this way you can keep your horse in most livery yard situations and can often have a more rounded life than stallions with turnout etc.

In addition if you are not experienced in handling a stallion it makes much more sense to you and and your horse to consider castration.

How long is the Recovery?

We can refer you to top vets that offer this service and we recommend that you take into account approximately a one month recovery period before transporting your horse. The process to castrate a male horse is a fairly simple surgical procedure with few risks but there are things to consider when making this decision about Castrating your Horse.

It is important to understand that geldings (castrated Horses) can take up to 6 months to finally finish producing stallion-like behaviour. It is also important to understand that castrating a younger male compared to an older male with a more established behaviour and personality will most likely be different. Some older males will even after castrating keep some of their stallion characteristics and it may mean they will always need to be turned out separately and a little care required when around lots of horses.

Lusitano geldings available for sale Lusitano Geldings for Sale

Documents, Passport etc

It is also very important to have all paperwork and the horses passport with you, when a pre-purchase exam is happening, this is so the vet can identify the horse, through the outline diagram, and also check the microchip, they can also check the horses vaccinations are up to date and any other relevant queries during a vetting. It is mandatory to have the passport available at a pre-purchase exam. If the horse doesnt have a passport, some sort of paperwork has to be made available, such as an outline diagram from the APSL, so the vet can idenify the horse. All paperwork can be downloaded and any other questions answered on the APSL website http://www.cavalo-lusitano.com/en

Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions teresa@lusitanohorsefinder.com

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