Help?

So, on my spare account I rescue neglected horses and horses in the RC that will most likely be deleted and sell them for a small profit (usually about $300 to $600).

It was going great for a while, but people started buying horses from me and then starving them or just dumping them back in the RC. Someone nearly cleaned out my account the other day (someone who has bought and starved my horses before), and I took my remaining rescues off the market.

Now, I have nothing against the people who do that, play the game however you want, but I'd rather it not happen, y'know?

I don't want to increase the prices, since I like being able to sell them at cheap prices to new players or people who want horses for riding schools. I also haven't been putting them up for private auction since horses are REALLY tough to sell that way.

I don't know what to do, any suggestions?

if you genuinely want people to play the game the way they want to play it, then you have to be okay with them buying and starving your horses (if they so choose). 
there’s no easy way around that and no suggestions that can change that. 

I have to say I have the same views as you when it comes to deleting horses. I don't want to see them starved/deleted but I have nothing against the people who do it, let them play the game how they want. 

Right now I am running a rescue center on a very large scale because its fun for me and I enjoy rescuing horses and putting them in good homes where they are taken care of and put to use. I have only been doing this a couple of days though so I haven't run into this problem yet. Everyone who has bought a horse from me has taken care of it. I on the other hand don't have horses up for public sale nor do I have them up for super cheap (right now I prices them as $1,000 per year old with the exception of 0 years old=$750 and 1 year old=$1,500). That way the people that are buying my horses are more likely only buying a few and the ones they are buying are horses they actually want and that way I can also make sure they go to a good home so that they are taken care of. 

As you said though it will take a lot longer to find a good home for them and it will take a lot more work. If you want to keep your prices low for new players maybe put that on your page and say if you are a new player you can adoption the horse for this much. You can even add to it and say, if you prove to be a good owner you can have the horses up for this much. But it is completely up to you. This can be a pain if you are already working on a few lines and other projects and if you don't really have the capacity or the time to commit to it so its really kinda up to you how you want to do it. You could also just have them up for private auction and any player that buys a whole lot just to dump them in the RC again or starves/deletes them then just don't accept the bid for them again. Another thing too to help with them getting adopted is you could post in the forums the ones you have up for adoption. Also, since its your spare account you can even have people message you on your main account when they bid or if they are interested in your horses, reducing the time that they have to wait for you to accept/decline their bid. 

Sorry for the rant-ish response I am super sleep deprived and am just about to go to bed but I saw your post and really wanted to respond to it. If I think of anything else I will be sure to let you know! :)

Last edited on 2018-01-22 at 03:06:22 by Abigale's Rescue Center

Your answer is honestly to put them up for private auction.  If you put your horses up for sale, the new owners can do anything they like with them, and you won't be able to pick who they go to.  You can't have your cake and eat it, too.

I'm curious about how buying an RC horse for $200 and then jacking up the price anywhere from 150% to 300% is helping new people in any way.  Not to mention that we need less foundation horses in the game, not more, since that is what is screwing up horse sales.

I get that having a "horse rescue" is fun, and I can see the emotional appeal of it, but it really does impact the game when too many people do it, so I'm afraid it's hard for me to have a lot of sympathy.  The people who are buying and putting the horses back in the RC or culling them are doing so to try to undo the damage.  Personally, I don't care if a few people are doing it, because it's hard to run a horse rescue on a profit and still have room to "rescue" huge numbers of horses.  

What you see as a huge frustration and inconvenience is probably what is keeping the horse rescue movement from seriously impacting Equiverse in a very negative way.

A possible reason why people buy them is because they want to see their base stats and for that price, it's easier to buy them instead of waiting for a reply. So while it may seem pointless to you, it isn't for them.

Last edited on 2018-01-22 at 07:01:25 by marigold sunshine

@Kahzie I do want people to play the game however they want, I'd just prefer that it didn't happen to my horses. That's just how I prefer to play the game.

@Abigale's Rescue Center I thought about posting on the forums, maybe just making one post and updating it often (as some people do with art sales). I'm definitely going to be putting them up for private auction and updating my account from now on.

@Confessor I do understand the impact large rescues have on horse sales and the economy, which is why I'm not against kill buyers and I keep my rescue on the small side(right now I'm keeping my horse limit at 55, and I usually have less than 40 at a time). I just think it's fun to take in some of the nicer foundations, like some with nicer colors or good conformation, keep them for a few weeks, and sell them for a profit(honestly the only way I'm able to keep going is through riding schools and shows). I also don't plan to sell every horse I rescue, I keep some for their entire lives and never breed them.

The way I see it "helping" newer players is because I keep the horses for a bit and increase their stats(hence the increased price), and sell them for what I think is pretty cheap.

@Marigold Sunshine Huh, I didn't think of that. I'll probably put the horse's base stats in public notes from now on.

@nova - I did that once, but in the horses notes it please send back if you don't want it, so I just sent it back to the previous owner! Public base states would be really helpful and might mitigate your problem a bit.

Ya I forgot to mention I put all the base stats of every horse up for adoption in the public notes as well. That way they know what kind of horse they are buying :) Also I think that is a really easy way to promote your rescue horses on the forum! :)