Hopefully these post okay. We got back Friday night from the big Amish auction in Ohio, the first one I've ever been to. What an eye opener!lol They usually have about 1400 horses go through there, and it was packed with people, too. I really got to see how much chaos, noise, and close quarters that horses can tolerate if they are used to it, and worked on an almost daily basis. Here goes, I'll do these in more than one post......

These were taken in the area where they hitched or rode the horses up for auction....

The little girl driving this team of Belgians couldn't have been more than 7. You can see her dad following along nearby.

 

Same little girl, backing the wagon up into it's spot before her dad unhitches.

Here's a small sampling of the carts and buggies up for auction...

I'll do the others in a seperate post....... 

Second set of pics.....

This is down off the main intersection of Mount Hope....

This is outside the General Store......

 

These last two are of horses hitched while their owners are perusing the auction......

I had a blast, it's like Christmas for a horse lover.lol I'll write more later, right now I've gotta run- I just wanted to get some pics up.

Wow! That is really cool! It's definitely something I would love doing. I've actually never been to a horse auction before -- and how fun would it be to be like that little girl and drive a team of Belgians? What kinds of prices were these horses selling for?

Cool, thanks for the pics!!  I grew up near OH -- used to see the buggies now and again when we went up North, looks like it was a neat experience at the auction! 

Lauren:

Wow! That is really cool! It's definitely something I would love doing. I've actually never been to a horse auction before -- and how fun would it be to be like that little girl and drive a team of Belgians? What kinds of prices were these horses selling for?

This was my first auction ever, too. These are generally good, usable horses, so you won't find anything that looks like it's on it's last leg. They have two major auctions a year, one in spring and one in the fall. Fall horses always go cheaper, so seller's market in the spring, buyer's market in the fall. Horses went anywhere from $175 into the thousands, depending on age, registered or not, and level of training. Examples; A Standardbred/Percheron cross baby went for $175, and a team of 4 year old rather flashy carriage horses that were road-safe and also broke to ride went for $7000 apiece. There were lots of minis and ponies, tons of grade horses that were usually Standardbred crosses, some registered Morgans, Haflingers, Percherons, Belgians, and even afew Quarter Horses thrown in the mix, plus alot of others. You'd have a blast!lol  

Solaris:

Cool, thanks for the pics!!  I grew up near OH -- used to see the buggies now and again when we went up North, looks like it was a neat experience at the auction! 

Yes, I'm SO glad I took the time off work to go, even though now I'm broke.lol I would love to have a summer house there, but I doubt this desert rat could make it through the winters.

So I'm looking at your pics and thinking, "that looks really familiar..." Is that Wooster, Ohio? If so, I've been there, and that general store has THE BEST homemade Amish ice cream ever. Haha, we stopped there on a trip between Ohio & Illinois (lived both places.) it's a really nice town and I loved passing all the horses and buggies.

flakemusic:

So I'm looking at your pics and thinking, "that looks really familiar..." Is that Wooster, Ohio? If so, I've been there, and that general store has THE BEST homemade Amish ice cream ever. Haha, we stopped there on a trip between Ohio & Illinois (lived both places.) it's a really nice town and I loved passing all the horses and buggies.

 

Nope, Mount Hope, but it's extremely close to Wooster. I swear, the night after we left, when I was trying to fall asleep, I kept thinking I could here the faint sound of a road horse trotting along........ but I was way out of Amish country by then, guess it was just because I had heard it so much when we were there. It was a short visit, but I think I will miss that place's sights and sounds for a long time to come.    

Wow, KimW., sounds like you had an awesome time!   I take it you managed to come back without buying a horse?   And how was the drive back, hmm? (wink-wink-nudge-nudge)

Thanks for the photos! How fun! I would have LOVED to go... but I know it's better I do NOT, as I couldn't resists some of the wagons and horses haha! :) Glad you enjoyed it! :)
I know YOU didn't buy any, but did any horses come home with "you"?

Jessi

LOL, Jessi!  I used that 'he just came home with me' line on my hubby when I bought our first horse.  Actually, it was kinda true, as my MIL/FIL went with me to look and they couldn't bear to leave Lightning in the place where he was . . . so they paid, loaded him in THEIR trailer and brought him home.  LOL, I think they were trying to save my life or marriage until hubby warmed up to the idea.  We DID pay them back for Lightning, and we have never regretted buying our 'diamond in the rough'. 

 And that auction looks like soooooooo much fun.  I would love to see that part of the country someday.  Buggies are a rarity around here.

blueyedhorse:

Wow, KimW., sounds like you had an awesome time!   I take it you managed to come back without buying a horse?   And how was the drive back, hmm? (wink-wink-nudge-nudge)

 

No, I didn't buy any, although if I had had the money I probably would have bought something!lol The ride home was fine, but uneventful...... sorry, nothing juicy to tell you.

CheyAut:

Thanks for the photos! How fun! I would have LOVED to go... but I know it's better I do NOT, as I couldn't resists some of the wagons and horses haha! :) Glad you enjoyed it! :)
I know YOU didn't buy any, but did any horses come home with "you"?

Jessi

The only way you should go is if you leave your check book and credit cards at home, and only bring enough cash to cover your basic expenses.lol Joel bought three horses, one small pony. 

I would love to live in a place were i can drive a cart everywhere and not look weird  if i did you know i would take my horse EVERYWHERE with me. LOL