Buying a horse in Switzerland: vetting, sales contract and price

What a horse costs in Switzerland

Price depends heavily on training, age, bloodline and health. As a rough guide for the Swiss market in 2025/2026:

• Leisure and companion horses: roughly CHF 2,000 to 8,000. Older, solidly ridden leisure horses are often at the lower end.
• Well-schooled riding horses: CHF 8,000 to 20,000, depending on rideability and experience.
• Sport and competition horses with results: CHF 20,000 and up, with no real ceiling.
• Ponies and young horses: very variable, often cheaper than schooled adult horses but with training risk.

What matters is the total cost. On top of the purchase price come monthly fixed costs for the stable, farrier, vet, insurance and equipment. If you cannot carry the upkeep long term, a riding share or half-loan arrangement is often the better fit than buying.

Private seller, dealer or breeder

Three seller types advertise on RideBase and other Swiss platforms:

• Private sellers usually sell their own horse, which they have ridden themselves. Upside: an honest read on character. Downside: often no written warranty.
• Dealers offer more choice and experience, but sometimes have only known the horse for a short time. Ask how long it has been at their yard.
• Breeders know the bloodline and rearing in full, but often sell young, not yet fully schooled horses.

None of these routes is inherently better. What counts is transparency and a written contract.

The pre-purchase exam protects both sides

The pre-purchase exam, often called a vetting, is the most important safeguard. A vet documents the horse's state of health at the time of purchase.

• The basic exam covers the clinical check: heart, breathing, eyes, limbs, flexion tests and trot-up.
• The extended exam adds x-rays of the key joints and sometimes further imaging.

The buyer normally commissions and pays for the exam, and therefore chooses the vet, which keeps it independent. For a more expensive sport horse, choose the extended exam. For an inexpensive leisure horse, the basic exam may suffice. Without a vetting you buy blind, and later issues are hard to attribute to the seller.

Equine passport and TVD: your duties in Switzerland

Every horse in Switzerland needs an equine passport and a microchip for identification. The passport must be handed over at sale.

All equids are also registered in the animal movement database (TVD). A change of keeper must be reported there, generally within 30 days, and the new location is recorded too. Confirm before handover that the passport and TVD entry exist and are correct.

Sales contract and warranty

Horses are a special case under Swiss law. They fall under livestock trade. Under Article 198 of the Code of Obligations, the seller is only liable for a defect if a quality was assured in writing or the buyer was intentionally deceived. The ordinary statutory warranty does not apply automatically.

The key takeaway: a written sales contract is essential, not a formality. It should contain at least:

1. Identity of the horse (name, passport number, chip), seller and buyer.
2. Purchase price and payment terms.
3. Explicitly assured qualities: health, level of training, suitability for the agreed purpose, known vices or prior conditions.
4. Handover date and reference to the vetting report as an annex.
5. Arrangements for the passport and the TVD report.

When in doubt, get legal advice, especially for higher prices. A clean contract protects buyer and seller alike.

Payment and transport

Never pay in full before you have seen the horse and the passport. Payment on handover is standard, or a small reservation deposit with a clear written condition. Transport needs a suitable trailer and, depending on distance, transport insurance. Agree in advance who organises and pays for it.

Checklist before buying

• Visit the horse several times, watch it at rest and in motion.
• Take a test ride, ideally with your own instructor.
• Have an independent vet carry out the pre-purchase exam.
• Check the equine passport and TVD status.
• Draft a written contract with assured qualities.
• Budget realistically for stable, farrier, vet and insurance.

Frequently asked questions

Do I really need a contract for a private sale? Yes. Precisely because the statutory warranty for horses is limited, the qualities assured in writing are your only reliable safeguard.

Who pays for the pre-purchase exam? Usually the buyer, who commissions it and chooses the vet, which keeps the exam independent.

What if a defect appears after the sale? Without a written assurance or provable deception, unwinding the sale is difficult. That is why the vetting and the contract matter so much.

Can I take a horse on trial first? Some sellers offer this, many do not. If so, put in writing who is liable for care, insurance and any damage during the trial period.