Horse is becoming costly-what are my options?

Question

I am a high school student with a horse. Not only do I no longer have as much time for a horse as I would like to have, but money is very tight. I have been trying to sell my horse for the past 5 months, but still no luck. He does not have any issues, but he does need some work. What are my other options besides selling him? I am hoping to find a home for him VERY soon where the owner will appreciate some of his challenges.

Answer 1

I don't know what part of the country you are in, but maybe look for a   4-H family that is in need of a horse.  A horse with limited training has limited value, so selling my not be a viable option, especially now.  You can drop the price and thank your stars if you sell him before fall/winter.  You can look for someone to free-lease him to have something to ride, but there are liability issues and the person may not take good care of him.  You can give him away to a equestrian college, vet program or similar.  You can choose to euthanize him if you think he will end up at a slaughter auction.  These are all big decisions.  Good luck with his placement.

Answer 2

I wonder if you are asking too much for him. I also wonder if you are at a stable that does lessons. If he is the kind of horse that could handle a less experienced rider you could inquire to see if the stable would use him in lessons to cut the board bill. Or maybe you could offer him to a kid at the barn who can't afford to own a horse, but may want to lease him and share the costs.

Answer 3

With the cost of hay at this time, horses are selling for much less than they were a year ago. At auction in Southern CA, horses are selling for $50 each.

Lower your asking price.  

Answer 4

try to sell hom on e-bay jk. try to put up posters saying you can't afford a horse or can't have one and lower the price or let her run free in the wild but leave some food and water outside occasinaly.or try call horse racing companys and ask them if they want a horse.

Answer 5

There are some places where you can send a horse for a while, like boarding it for less than real life-ish money. They will let you visit and such, but keep you updated too. They train and such.

You could also just keep trying to sell him, and tell people about him more often. Try training him a bit before selling him again..?