I want to get a horse in the future. What do I need to prepare?

Question

When I say future I mean in about 10 years. I just want to know what I should be researching before I get into such a commitment. I did do riding lessons when i was a kid for many years but it's been almost 10yrs since I've riden one. That makes me seem really old but I'm still under 30. It's just a dream I've always had.

I'd also like to know what I should look for when buying a property to keep a horse?

Answer 1

You need Lots Of Money to get them and their needs,

get a stable built

get prepared by getting the hay and other foods for them

make sure to have water

and make sure you Know You Have enough Money

and

NOT BOARDER!

Answer 2

Start taking riding lesson again it won't hurt to do that. Lease a horse and show it.

Answer 3

money

Answer 4

Unless you know what you are doing, I'd board your future horse until you understand fully what is required of you (money, emotional and physical wise). This is fine - I board my horse, even tho I know enough to keep them at home (and have done in the past, we also ran an agistment center).

Have money! And lots of it - I am on min. wage, and don't earn that much a week (am a student too at tafe) - but I do have a seperate account which I don't touch. I call this my "vet" account - why? Its money I have saved in case I need a vet. I have almost a grand, which isn't that much, but should I need to borrow money, it'll be very little compared to if I wasn't prepared.

Learn - learn as much as you can. If you can, get a job (even just twice a week) at an agistment center, that way you can learn about different things, such as rugs - which ones for what weather and why, feeds - different feeds for different horses/purposes,  mucking out - learn to read the manuer, leading - there will be some difficult times, and easy times. Also you'll learn about farrier visits, dential visits, saddlery visits etc.. plus you'll get to watch how others come and train their horses. You'll learn first hand at the responsibility of full ownership.

Experience is the key with horses. Take up riding lessons again if you can, to refresh yourself, with a good instructor.

Good luck.

Answer 5

well, save tons of money, because horses can be in the hundreds of thousands.  and make sure you have a stable place where you can keep him/her.  research the different breeds and what kind and size will suit you best.   defenitley start back into riding lessons before you get the horse.

Answer 6

don't let them scare you for having your horse at home, I have three horses of my own and did have them where I lived and they were fine in my care, if anyone knows whats good for your horse it would be you, I am now still caring for my horses but I am leasing a barn to keep them at, all I can tell you is take some riding lessons and think about leasing before you buy just so you can get the feel of owning your own horse.

with the property, you need to look for a place that has enough acreage for as many horses you are going to put on it, ether look for a place that already has a barn or go to the town hall of that town and look up the zoning for horses.

yes there's allot to do and look up but in the long run its worth it.

best of luck!!!

Answer 7

It would definitely be great to find a place with land and a small barn. You can always put up fence but when you start getting into building a barn your bill racks up fast! I would try to find a house that has a couple acres and a small barn if you can.

Next, I think you need to evaluate what you want to be doing with your horse. Do you want to ride english or western? What events do you want to do? Do you just want to trail ride? That decision will help you decide what tack you need to buy, what type of horse you need to buy, what your monthly costs may be if you're competing or not, etc etc etc. Take some lessons in both english and western and you should be able to decide which direction you would like to go.

The only preparation you really need to do is make these decisions and save $$. A place with land is usually more expensive and horses are CERTAINLY expensive. You will need a horse trailer, saddle, and hay to name a few of the large expenses.

Hope that helps!

Answer 8

Haha, save up your money!!! Yeah, it is much safer to board your first horse at a boarding stable, and make sure you get a good trainer!!! That's probably the most important. You could try leasing a horse first... that helps you learn a lot more before hand. Also, read a lot of books about riding, horse care, and veterinary care.

Good luck!

Answer 9

Make sure you have land to keep it on lots of land. Think about it do you want a young horse that is crazy or a older more trustable horse. You have to have time to be with your horse every day to groom and feed. Feed your horse at the same time everyday because they have this internal clock thing. Make sure you know the horses body, types of illnesses, and what the horse really likes. Best luck to you and your future horse.

Answer 10

unless you have heaps of experience, board your horse. DO NOT keep them at home. it may seem like fun but this turns into a huge commitment, going to the feed store it seems like everyday, and vacation? there will be next to nothing of that.

Look into the costs, take some lessons. but more importantly take your time. lease a horse before you buy.

=D good luck, you will love having your own horse

Answer 11

Figure out the style of riding you would like to participate in. I started out with english lessons as a child and now mostly ride western, but still pull out the english gear ocassionally.

The type of riding and/or possibly breed of horse (if you absolutely have to have a certain breed) you decide on will determine where you go from there.

Don't decide on a breed of horse just because you think that they are beautiful. Get the right breed, age, training level and temperament for yourself and your style of riding. You'll both be more happy.

Check out all the facilities, trainers, and instructors you can find in your area. If you find someone you are comfortable with, take as many lessons and learn as much as you can. Especially the CARE aspect. I took 10yrs of lessons as a kid and learned more about care from one summer working as a trail guide.

Don't go with a horse professional just based on how pretty their facility is and how many blue ribbons they can display. Go with an experienced person who's animals appear well cared for, and whom you are comfortable with and is willing to take the time to fully answer all of your questions.

Don't worry about horse property for now. You'll figure out what you might want as you gain more experience.

Answer 12

Money!  Wait, no.  Experience should come first - start taking lessons now, and make your instructor(s) aware that you eventually intend to own your own horse, so you want to learn as much about handling and care as you do riding.

Open up a savings account and put some money from each paycheck into it.  It doesn't have to be a lot - $5, $10, $50, whatever you want.  Several banks have online-only savings accounts with high percentages that will get you more interest than a regular savings account that you'd open up in person at the bank.  (HSBC has one for 3.75% interest, I believe).  Let that money build and don't touch it.  When you are ready to buy a horse, you can use some of that money.  The rest of the money should remain in the savings account as your horse's "nest egg", to be used in case of an emergency.

As for buying a property, I will leave that to people who actually own horse property (I don't - yet!)  Use this time to build up your knowledge, experience and money.  Good for you for planning ahead!

Answer 13

Start doing research on what type of breeds interest you, and what problems they have, and what benefits they have.  Think about the purpose of your horse....do you want to trail ride, show, jump, etc...this will help you decide what breed of horse you want to consider also.  What style of riding?  Western or english, saddle seat, sidesaddle even?  If its been awhile since you've ridden, I would suggest getting some refresher courses, and make sure you know how to handle tacking up your horse, and daily care, or you'll be clueless on your own.  Do some reading about wound care, common diseases, etc, so you aren't totally unprepared in case of an emergency.

Make sure you have somebody knowledeable to help you pick out your horse and to try it out for you also.  When looking for a property, think, where will my horse live, where can I turn him out, where can I get water, shade, where can I ride him, get rid of manure, etc?  You want to have level ground for riding, some sort of shade in the pasture, safe fencing, running water at the barn, available hay/grain, know the vets, know the worming and shoeing schedules, etc.

Like another poster was saying, if you've never owned a horse before, it might be better to start by boarding.  You will be surrounded by other people who are more advanced than you, and it might help you learn until you are at a point you feel comfortable doing it yourself.  Also, most boarding barns have 24 hr survelience, so if something happens to your horse, they find it right away...its better for identifying injuries, colic, etc.

Good luck!  (buy a Quarter Horse, I'm partial :)    )