Zapata Ranch Horse Sale
View the CatalogThank you for your interest in our horses. We greatly appreciate you helping us find a good home for them. Nearly every aspect of parting ways with the Zapata Ranch has been difficult for Ranchlands and our community, and the process of deciding the future of this horse herd is no different.
The horses have been the heart and soul of the ranch, defining the experience for our staff and for our guests. We realize that many of you who know these animals have formed strong bonds with them and are very invested in ensuring that they end up in good homes for the next chapter of their lives.
We want to balance several things (in order of importance):
1. Find the best home possible for all the horses
2. Honor the relationships that visitors to the ranches have formed with individual horses over the years
3. Realize a fair financial value for these horses.
OUR PROCESS
We have designed our process in a way that we believe best meets the objectives described above.
- Each person interested in bidding on a horse will be asked to complete and sign an Intent to Bid form which includes a questionnaire that will help us determine whether the home will be suitable for the desired horse(s).
- Those who do not demonstrate a suitable home through the Intent to Bid form will be asked not to submit a bid for their preferred horse(s). If you do not hear from us after submitting your form, please move ahead with submitting your bid.
- Through a closed, two-bid process outlined below, each candidate will submit their maximum bid for a horse.
- After the bids have been submitted, we will select the best home for the horses based on the responses to the questionnaire, the bidder’s relationship with Ranchlands and the desired horse(s), and their ability to offer a fair and reasonable financial bid.
- Any horses remaining at the end of the sale will be rehomed according to the first two criteria, regardless of the ability to pay.
- There are some horses that we will be making exceptions for, depending on specific circumstances that we have determined should be managed differently.
- We will only sell a horse to those who are buying it for themselves or their family.
- We reserve the right to make the decision about where each horse ends up, according to our best judgment.
- Final sale prices for the horses will not be published.
We understand that this process is subjective, but we are upholding the right to use our best judgment for what is best for our horses, and our family and business.
Please reach out to us directly at horse@ranchlands.com if you have any questions at all. Thank you again for your interest in this special group of horses. We are confident that together we can ensure that they are able to live out their lives under the best possible circumstances.
General Information
- We are very happy to answer any questions about the horses before the bidding takes place. If you have questions about a horse, please ensure that you are in touch at horse@ranchlands.com no later than 8am on October 10th to give us ample time to respond to you.
- To bid, you must submit a signed “Intent to Buy” form by 5pm on October 10th. The form is available here.
- All bidders will remain anonymous to each other.
- All winning parties must pick up their horse(s) between October 28th-November 11th. Remaining balances must be paid on or before the date of pickup.
- Buyers must coordinate transportation of the horse during designated pick up dates. We will help catch and load the horse, please plan to arrive with a halter.
- We will provide current health and brand inspections for travel purposes only, available at the time of pickup.
- We are unable to accommodate pre-purchase exams and riding the horses prior to purchase. If you would like more information on a specific horse, please reach out to us.
- All horses have a minimum bid amount.
Auction Method
We have chosen a closed, two bid auction format rather than a live auction, which is designed to achieve the highest sale price possible. As outlined above, our top two priorities are to find the best home for the horse and to support the people who we and the horse have a relationship with. A fair financial value is important, but we are not looking to maximize our financial return.
Round 1
Round 1 will begin at 8am MST on October 11th and end at 5pm MST on the same day. To bid, you must submit an opening bid on the horse(s) you are interested in, via email to horse@ranchlands.com. This email should state the horse's name and the amount of your bid for the first round.
- You will receive an email back confirming that your bid has been received.
- You must have a signed “Intent to Buy” form on file for your bid to count.
- All parties will be notified of the current high bid on the horse they are bidding on between 8am MST and 12p MST on October 12th.
Round 2
Round 2 will begin on October 13th at 8am MST and close at 5pm MST on the same day. All interested parties will submit a 2nd and final bid for the horse(s) that they are interested in.
- The highest bid from the second round will win the horse.
- If there are 2 equal bids, the bid that was received first will be the winner
- All parties will be alerted to their bid status by 8pm MST on October 13th.
- A 50% balance due by 8pm on October 15th via credit card (will incur 3.5% processing fee), bank transfer, or check. The remaining balance is due at pickup via credit card (will incur 3.5% processing fee), bank transfer, check, or cash.
- If payment is not received by the deadline, the horse will pass to the 2nd highest bidder.
Intent to Purchase
If you intend to bid on any of our horses during the aforementioned period, please click the link below to register for the auction and agree to the terms of sale.
If you have any questions about the process or the horses, please feel free to reach out to us. Thank you very much for your interest and support. We look forward to working with you all to find this very special herd of horses their next homes.
View the Catalog