Question Regarding Transfer of Ownership/Registration

Averett2 · Jul 9, 2013

I've come to a bit of a dilemma. I got my first two horses (minis) when I was twelve as a birthday present from my parents. It was a mare (who was also pregnant) with her one month old colt by her side both registered in AMHR. Well, the deal with my dad was he would help pay for hay and vet care until I was old enough to get a job but I would have to pay for anything extra, including any fees that came with the registration. Well by time I finished buying all the brushes and very necessary treats I was out of birthday money and couldn't transfer them until I got more money. However, I still looked through the papers the owner had given me to see what was there and what I needed to do with them. I had the mare's and colts registration papers along with a stud service certificate but She only gave me a half filled out transfer slip for the colt. Of course at that age, I figured that I didn't really need to get them transfered under my name in the registry and that I didn't even really need to get the colt permanantly registered when he was old enough since I would only be able to show them locally anyway (don't you just love typical teenager logic) and being the only horse person in my family and group of friends there was really no one to guide me in the right direction.

Well, five years later, I find that not only would I like to have them officially in my name but I would also like to show them in larger shows rather than just locally, especially since there are no longer any local miniature horse shows in my area. Plus this mare not only had the foal she was pregnant with but also had another when I rashly bred her to a stallion when I was sixteen (again, the lovely teenage logic of the here and now, but thankfully I was smart enough to breed her to a registered stallion and get a service certificate for it).

So here is my problem in short: I was recently looking through my horse papers so I could finally finish their registiration and found the half filled out transfer silp and read that it must be completely filled out by the owner to be valid. I did not recieve a transfer slip at all for the mare. I do have proof of ownership thankfully however. I can no longer find the owner since she got out of minis and has completely dispersed her herd some years ago I believe. So is it possible to still transfer these horses into my name with the proof of ownership I have or do I have to find the owner and get her to fill out the transfer slips? And can I still register my mare's latest colt or do I need to wait until I have his dam in my name?

Thank you for your help!

Field-of-Dreams · Jul 10, 2013

What do you mean by "partially" filled out? What info is missing?

Also, on some papers the owner signs the registration paper and there is no transfer slip.

Averett2 · Jul 10, 2013

My information wasn't filled out on the transfer slip but it says on the instructions that it must be completely filled out by the seller? And it looks to me like the mare's registration papers could be transfered to my name but I do not have a transfer slip for her at all. I think their previous owner simply forgot to give me one for the mare and to finish filling out the transfer slip she gave for the colt. So is there any possible way to still get them in my name?

MountainWoman · Jul 10, 2013

Do you have the actual AMHR papers in hand? If so, turn them over and on the back at the very bottom, look to see if the seller signed where it says horse was transferred to... If the seller signed there, you don't need the other kind of transfer slip. Just send that in with a work order form and the proper fees. Lots of people don't complete the entire top of the transfer even though it says they are supposed to do. I've had sellers just sign and date it. Also, you can call AMHR and ask for the registration office and they are very helpful and will walk you through it too.

Averett2 · Jul 10, 2013

Oh my gosh! Thank you so much!! I never even thought to look at the back of the registration papers

(I don't know much about how this works, can you tell?) Both are signed and dated but not completely filled out so would I need to write in my name and information? Would it still be valid if I did? Also do I just need to send a copy of the registration or the original (that's a stupid question but I want to make sure I do this right) I'll definitly call the registration office and make sure it's still all in order before I send them in. Thanks again!

Barnmother · Jul 10, 2013

Get a "work order" off the AMHR website I think it is shetlandminiature.com and complete that for pricing and what you wanting them to do. Yes you need to complete the top portion of the transfer, make sure that you use your name as you want it to appear on the papers (and also in show programs etc). Yes, you have to send the original papers to the registry for the transfer, also a good time to add updated photos if needed and doing so now won't cost you anything additional. I always keep a copy of the papers just in case they get lost in the mail. (I haven't had that happen but an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.). Be sure to include that you would like a printed copy of the rule book on the same work order as you will find that you will want it if you are going to start showing. The online one is great but I like the printed one as I keep it in my trailer for reference. Certainly wouldn't hurt to talk to the registry before you send them in, they are wonderful to work with and will give you the most up to date information.

BSharpRanch · Jul 10, 2013

If you have a smart phone you can download the rule book in pdf format and keep it on your phone. Makes it really easy to look up rules because you can search what you are looking for. Or go to a specific page.

Averett2 · Jul 10, 2013

Thank you explaining it so thoroughly, I'm feeling a little bit better about all of this now. I'm really wishing I had done all of this in the first place. Oh well, lesson learned.