Why is it down?

Question

I know that the horse market is down. But why?

And yes i do know about all the foals that need homes, about people sending more and more horses to the slaughter house. I know about all of that. But why are there people not buying horses any more. My nieghbor had to give his two foals away for free.

Im going to be rescueing horses next year. Im just wondering why people arent buying horses, and if its going to change?

Answer 1

Simply. With out getting into a economic debate. The entire economy is down, and the first thing to go is luxury item. Fancy cars, ridiculously huge houses, and horses. Horses are livestock but they are also a luxury item as well. Its not a really nice thought but that's they way things are.

Things are not going to change anytime soon. When the economy picks up. At best 5 years.

Answer 2

....Also too many people got into breeding low quality, plain looking, non-athletic, mutt horses which caused the glut in the low to mid range market....the best reason in the world to take extreme care when deciding to breed a random mare to a random stud "just for fun"....I've seen some pretty weak  ideas tossed around by some kids on this forum about breeding this or that grade mare and I hope folks consider doing so very very carefully, knowing that it only adds to the problem.

Answer 3

Horse slaughter is now illegal in the us. Great idea, people. There are now too many horses for the people who want one, because there is no where for the unwanted horses to go.

Hay is also expensive, and with intrest rates rising, people have less money to spend on other things, like horses.

Animal rights people do good, but instead of rushing this bill, how about you guys slow down for a minute, take a step back, and say "how can we make this work?". Humaning the slaughter system would be better than letting the unwanted horses starve. People aren't going to stop breeding them, and now the unwanted horses are going to mexico and canada, where we can't control the humaneness of the slaughter.

Answer 4

The market is down because of the anti slaughter laws.

Used to be there was a bottom price for any horse - the meat price.  Around $1,000.  Horses did not sell for less than that.  People could expect that as a minimum; with training and so on they could expect more.

Now, there's no bottom price.  Horses that went for meat have to find homes; horses with a little training need homes; all the premarin foals and blm mustangs and backyard breds need homes.  People who spent money on stud fees and vetting and produced good foals can't sell them for what they cost to produce.

People who would have sent their old/infirm/insane horse to slaughter so they could buy a new one instead have to pay big bucks for euthanasia and disposal.  They can't afford to buy a new one, so those horses they would have bought need homes too.

There's a glut of low to mid range horses on the market.  As a result, the price has dropped to next to nothing.

Add to that the economic picture, with people trying to cut back on their excess horses and so on, and you get a really down market.

Too much supply.  Too  little demand.  Dead market.  It's that simple.

Answer 5

the horse market is down because people are breeding and breeding their horses. there are so many horses so the value if horses is going down while the value of hay and feed are going up. yes it is exciting to have a new baby from your favorite mare but to help the prices please stop breeding. i am guilty of this but its true. instead save a foal from slaughter! <3

Answer 6

I think a lot has to do with hay prices, and the price of gas. Last year hay was up to 6,8,and even 10 dollers a bale. This year, so far, doesen't seem as bad. I just bought some for $4 a bale. But the cost of gas is crazy it will cost you close to $100 to trailer your horse even across the state. I'm lucky we have woods right down the road to ride in so there's no need to travel.

Answer 7

The market is down because people can't afford horses anymore. Wages aren't very high, and most people are having trouble making ends meet without a horse. And horse's aren't the cheapest animal.

I don't see it changing much in the future, unless something is done about the outrageous prices and low wages.

Answer 8

the cost of living has sky rocketed, what used to be 5 dollars is now 15 and so on. horse feed used to be quite reasonable i remember hay bales for 5 dollars but now i'm paying 23 dollars a bale. I used to by pelleted feeds and horse cereal mix for around 15 dollars a 30 kilo bag and now it's 30 dollars a  25 kilo bag. vet bills have gone up, house prices have fallen but interest rates have risen. fuel has jumped so high it's insane. people are breeding horses so that they can't hold their weight anymore and so they need to be hardfed to stay looking good. farriers are charging more because it costs fuel to get to your house. Horses are very expensive and all but one of mine are up for sale right now as i just can't afford to keep them. I doubt anyone will by them right now though. my family is actually going self sufficient and plating and growing all our own veges and getting into aquaculture because everything is just outrageously priced and going up.

Answer 9

I want to say that i believe everything is linked in some sort of amnor to the high gas prices and the mortgage crisis. The economy is not at its best right now.