There has recently been a number of opportunistic people taking advantage of the booming Friesian industry by creating scams that people seem to fall for a bit too often.
We would like to take this opportunity to warn potential Friesian buyers and give them a few things to look out for when considering a horse and so avoid falling for scams that will probably put you off buying horses as a whole.
- When you are approached to buy a ‘registered Friesian horse’ familiarise yourself withthe registration system of the two societies in South Africa namely the FPSSA and the Telersgenootskap
- The FPSSA (Friesian Horse Studbook of Southern Africa)
- Horses registered with the FPSSA have laminated registration papers that stay the property of the KFPS in the Netherlands but are issued to legitimate members of the FPSSA in South Africa. If somebody is not a member of the FPSSA they will not receive these laminated papers. Membership of potential sellers can be checked with the FPSSA Office (Contact Information below)
- Horses Registered with the FPSSA will have the name of the breeder AFTER the name of the horse – Wendy van DOORNDRAAI or Delilah of MILLFORD. That means Wendy was bred by DOORNDRAAI Friesian stud and Delilah was bred by MILLFORD Friesian stud.
- When a horse is legitimately registered with the FPSSA it means that it is also registered with the KFPS (Koninklijke Het Friesch Paarden Stamboek) in The Netherlands. Horses are given their names starting with letters allocated to birth years for example 2013 names started with P,Q,R,S and 2014 names start with T,U,V. This is the first way to check the legitimacy of registration. If you for instance have a horse called Peta van Doorndraai you can then conclude that the horse was either born in 2013, 2005, 1997 etc. So if a potential seller tells you they have a ‘Peta van Doorndraai’ that is 4 years old you can then check and see that in 2014 a horse that is 4 years old will have a name registered with the FPSSA starting with G, H or I so it cannot be a valid registration.
- The Telersgenootskap
- The Telersgenootskap is affiliated to Stamboek in Bloemfontein and registrations are done by putting the name of the breeder (who is a legitimate member of the Telersgenootskap) in front of the given name for instance DOORNDRAAI BLACK Peta or MILLFORD Delilah. If you then have somebody telling you they have a horse bred by Doorndraai Friesian Stud called MILLFORD Delilah you will know it’s not a valid registration.
- Registration papers are also only issued to legitimate paid up members which can be checked with the Telersgenootskap office.
Here are a few tips to keep in mind when you are in the process of buying a Friesian.
- Ask the seller if he is a member of the FPSSA or Telersgenootskap and check this membership with either society if you have any doubts.
- Ask the seller if he can send you a scanned copy of the registration paper. On the FPSSA laminated KFPS registration paper the name of the breeder and current owner will appear in the top right corner. (See attachment.) You can then also check these details with the FPSSA Office.
- On the Telersgenootskap paper the information of the breeder will appear on the bottom left hand corner of the registration paper (See attachment.) You can also verify this information with the Telersgenootskap office in Bloemfontein.
- If you are approached by somebody claiming you have to only pay the transport of the horse from Botswanna, Namibia, etc. know that horses travel to and from these countries via float and not by air. This is most probably a scam. Always make sure you use a reputable equine transport company such as Mark from Marks Transport or TAC when transporting horses across the border. They will also advise you on all veterinary requirements.
- If possible scan for the chip which has to be the same as the chip on the registration paper.
- Ask for a copy of the identification page in the Passport that is stamped by a veterinarian.
- Organise a viewing appointment with the seller as you don’t really have a foot to stand on if you never physically viewed the horse.
- If you plan to buy a horse for use in competition ask for a pre purchase Vet Check. You can also take x-rays to determine if the horse will be suitable for the purpose you’re buying it for.
- Most importantly get in contact with either the FPSSA or the Telersgenootskap to verify membership of the seller as well as registration of the potential horse. Doing pre purchase research is very important in order to prevent disappointment and should be something every potential buyer does before spending a lot of money on a horse that is either not registered or possibly doesn’t even exist.
If you are approached by somebody you suspect to be a scam artist forward their name to altieclark@yahoo.com and we can compile a list that can also be used for reference in these cases.
Contact Details for more information:
FPSSA Admin Office – Chantal Fick 083 771 1550, fpssa@gonc.co.za
Marlise Botes 083 263 7800 botesm@mweb.co.za
Friesperd Telersgenootskap Bloemfontein – Elna 051 410 0954, elna@studbook.co.za
