Horses, do you really need to ....?

Question

i asked questions this morning, and i only wanted to save up to get the horse, first few months of feed, and any mis bills that come up (vet, blacksmith, ect).

do i really need to save up 1000 a month for 1-1.5 years?

i am only going to use the horse for light trail work and later on (once i've worked higher up the levels at work) do more with the horse/get more horses/lease horses (whatever is most logical to do with the time/economy.

i want to get a horse in the next 1.5-2 years, i do plan on saving as much as possible, but do i really need to save at least 1,000 a month? i do have a line of credit at the bank already, for emergcy funds and i am building my credit, does that help at all for getting ready for a horse?

our field/s will be about 3-5 acres when said and done and spilt into 2-3 fields, so there's enough grass/space for the horse(s), we'll have enough h20 for the horse(s)... now i'm wondering if i'll ever be able to save up enough money for a horse in the time frame.

Answer 1

Hello! If you have your horses at home you are cutting MAJORITY of upkeep but not all. Okay so heres a run down:

At home, if they are on mostly pasture, you can cut down on hay but you will need to provide it when they are in a stall and in winter, then there is grain, depending on the horse and work load this can range from $12 a month to $80 per horse per month(what most of ours cost us). Then there is bedding, if they are not to be in a stall much, you will save big time,. no with worming, farriar, vet,fly spray ect and emergencies, I'd save up a good $300 a month for upkeep/emergency and then it depends how much you are looking to spend on a horse, thats the least of the worries! Any how, no not $1000, thats riciculous, our board is $1200 and we have a brand new state of the art equestrian facility with thearpy center....you don't need any of that type of thing! Any how good luck and just make sure you are prepared so that the horse will never me neglected, even when there is no way out financially! :)

Answer 2

If you just plan on doing trail riding, and don't need the extra money for shows and stuff, I don't see why you would need $1000/month.  Also, if you are keeping the horse at your own property, then it lowers the cost even more.  Right now, the place I board my horse at, says that their horses cost them about $200/month for feed, shavings, electricity to the barn, etc.  Now you have to add on shoes ($80 every 6 weeks), wormers, $10 every 6-8 weeks, and 2x a year vet bills for shots and teeth floating.  Overall, I would think that if you saved $400/month you would be totally fine for the basics, plus having a little set aside for an emergency fund on the off chance something unplanned for happens.

So if you buy a horse for $1500 or so (for just a trail horse), and already have most of your equipment, I think you can have the horse for under $400/month.  To be sure, check prices for things in your area, calculate how much hay/grain, supplements, shoes, wormers, etc you need on an average month, and put it in a spreadsheet with totals.  I'm sure you'll be in a manageable spot, but just itemizing it will help you see exactly what you need to expect.

Good luck!

Answer 3

Don't worry, it doesn't cost that much to keep horses at home.  I have 4 horses at home and expect to spend an average of $275/month on all things horse related this year.  So, plan on maybe $200/month and that should cover almost everything.  If you have an emergency, you can use your line of credit, but try to avoid using it for routine expenses or you'll have a debt problem in no time.

Your expenses will be higher at first as you buy all the things you'll need like buckets, tack, etc.  Also, fencing is really expensive and it sounds like you don't have a fenced pasture yet.  How are you planning on paying for that?

Answer 4

First, it depends on the kind of horse that you want.  That's the real variable in this scenario.  The feed, vet, shoeing etc will cost the same regardless of the kind of horse that you purchase.  So you can rescue a horse for very little...... or you can buy a well bred, well trained, registered horse for lots of $.  If you really just want a nice gentle broke trail horse you can find one for $1200 in our area and in some cases less.  Gotta know what you want to pay for a horse before you can decide how much you'll need to save.

Answer 5

Relax and breathe.

Depending on what area you live in the US a horse will cost a very different price. There is a horse at the barn where I'm boarded that has a $250,000 price tag (at least that was the price before he won the Region 8 championship).

I read your original question but didn't answer because there are SO many variables involved depending on where you live in the country. In the Northeast you have to worry about having hay year round, which means also having grain year round as a supplement.

The horse itself is a variable. A Thoroughbred or horse that is mixed with a lot of Thoroughbred (sadly, in New England that now includes the QH - ruined the breed!) will need four shoes year round. A pony or horse with tougher hooves may not need shoes at all. That makes a difference. A blacksmith is different from a farrier - farriers cost more but can do more complex shoeing.

If you plan on eventually having multiple horses that are not yours you will need to look into a special type of insurance so that you personally are not liable if something happens to someone else's horse.

All I am going to say is save up as much money as you can as you go towards your goal. Keep an eye on Equine.com for horses you think you might be interested in and note the prices. If you want an easy going trail horse you'll want something around 10 years old and that will be much cheaper than trying to find a two year old that will go to Grand Prix.

When I bought my first horse I was stunned how much it cost to buy all the tack, blankets, supplements, shoes, etc. Sit down and write a list of all the things you'll need for your one horse and the expectations you have.

I think you can e-mail me if you want to. I hope this was helpful!