House move has stables!!

[time2changeCharlieBrown]

We’re due to move location and house in February
we have found a property on the edge of new city my husband will be working and commute is great
the house is an ex farm house and a bit of renovation project but it also comes with a couple of fields and a stable block that will house up to five horses plus a tack room and a storage barn
they are in need of a bit of Ttc but otherwise solid buildings

so ideas!! We are not a family that has ever had anything to do with animals other than pet fish , dogs and cats! We have these pets we are bringing

are horses very difficult to care for? We have two teenagers and then two younger kids so I feel be nice to learn
or would something else be a better idea?

we’ve never had land either
were moving from down south to a lot more space! But wondering if we should have gone for a new build
but my husband and the kids loved this house and we do like a project to get nice how we want it!

We had a house with 3 acres and stables some years ago. We could already ride so got two two good natured native ponies who were fairly low maintenance and allowed another person to keep her much flasher horse there for low rent. We used to cover for each other during holidays and she offered us loads of good advice and helped us find a local farrier and instructor. The arrangement went on for several years until her horse collapsed and died when out competing. It worked really well for us.

I didn't get to see your reply to me @peasyeasy9 unfortunately. Assume it was more rude than your others, since it's been deleted.

I’d create a wildflower meadow and keep bees and chickens and have a lovely big allotment.

Hell would freeze over before I’d have horses again 😂

That's what I was thinking. A couple of donkeys and maybe some goats.

Oooh definitely goats! And alpacas 😍

What animals?

I have a horse on a DIY yard and I would never have my own land. Too much hassle.

Below are absolute basic considerations to think about as an owner:

Basic costs:
Stable, water, electric, trailer parking: £152 a month (you obvs would only pay for water and electric)
Bedding: £48 to set up stable, £48 a month thereafter (one bale a week)
Feed and supplements (my horse has arthritis): approx £40 a month
Hay in winter (4 small bales a week): £90 inc delivery a month
Shoes full set every 6 weeks: £75 (next time I’m having a barefoot horse, much cheaper)

Basic routines:
Winter - visit twice a day to feed, muck out, put in field, bring in later, ride 4 days a week. Often very muddy off the immediate yard around the fields, need decent wellies, coats etc.
Summer - visit once a day to field check and feed, ride 4 days a week. Bring in if too hot, therefore two visits a day and need to muck out.

Riding:
I learnt in a school 4 years of lessons, loaned horse then bought her after 18m. I can jump competently and school a horse myself after 3 years owning.
We have fantastic hacking around and an outdoor school.

Considerations for you:
If running it as a DIY livery yard, you may have to pay business rates. Constant water supply is essential both on the yard and in fields. What happens when the pipes freeze in winter?
Where would the horses on your yard be able to ride? Nearby hacking away from busy roads is a basic essential.
Where will your muck heap go? How will you manage this / may need to have it taken away.
Field management - rotation, harrowing if not poo picking, rolling, fencing, water supply in fields.
Horse health - ensuring your liveries test for worms or have a worming programme, what happens if a horse is injured and the owner is not there (horses are SO fragile for their size, it’s untrue!)
DIY Liveries - even if only 5 horses there will be quite a bit of coming and going, you might be ok with this around your home or see it as disturbance.

Letting out stables for livery isn’t easy. You’ll get people easily enough but there’s all the other stuff to deal with.
Horses are not easy to look after.
Ducks are great fun and would happily sleep in a stable every night. I got ducks last spring and they’re great. Very easy to get in a row. Geese if you get them as goslings are also easy to look after. There are some really rare geese on the RSBT list
A couple of pet sheep ideally raised as bottle fed pet lambs, would help with the grass cutting. Sheep are easy as long as you don’t breed from them. Goats are hard work more than horses.
Apparently male alpacas are nice but I’ve never had an alpaca.
Could buy a couple of weaners and fatten them for your freezer. Pigs are very easy if you’ve only got a couple.

Agree with all PP re keeping horses.
If the land is suitable and depending on access/parking, you could probably rent it out for someone to use as a Forest School site. Especially if the buildings could be included so that they have storage and a dry place if weather is very bad.

Don’t get donkeys they are also complicated to look after and are very prone to laminitis a life threatening condition. They form strong bonds and with their companion and can die if separated for any reason.
They are difficult to anaesthetise and vets generally find them stressful to look after.
i know nothing about alpacas or goats (although O do you will need very good fencing with the latter) but they might be a better option.

If it’s good weed free land growing hay and selling it in small bales would be an easy way to make money. Get a contractor to make the hay for you.
Can also have a campsite without planning permission for 60 days a year

Donkeys also can make a racket which your neighbours might not like and horses are often terrified of them.

I've got a total of 11 acres but I don't live near the land anymore. To keep on top of it I do an arrangement where I have tenants..they graze sheep but in return they cut my hedges and deal with any issues (eg tree fallen onto lane etc).
This works well as you need some way of managing the land and hedges or else you'll find they get out of control very quickly.

Horses are half ton toddlers with metal feet, that make poor life choices which cost a fortune, and that's on top of the running costs.
They suck up all of your time & money, and you can devote all of both that you have and they'll still do something ridiculous meaning you need to sit up with them all night, with the vet visiting regularly costing a couple of hundred each time. And they'll be right as rain the next day, shoulder barge you and send you sprawling in a lovely puddle on the way to the field, take off bucking with those metal feet centimetres from your head and spraying mud at you the next day because they're excited to be out, churning the field to shit that you'll need to repair, while you stand there praying they're not going to damage themselves Again in the process.

Horses were my absolute passion, from as early as I can remember. I read, watched, listened and got involved and immersed in them at every available opportunity. I had my own for knocking on 25 years (different horses) and spent far more time caring for them, fixing things, doing the mundane day to day care than I ever did doing the fun stuff. Except of course working, which I needed to fund my obsession.

It's relentless, and although I still love these wonderful creatures, I will not have another because there is no other life but them, forever. Even I resented the level of commitment sometimes and I knew what to expect, and had enough knowledge and experience to make things a bit simpler.

It really does need to be the families or at least one person's passion for having your own to work properly.

We've done the same. We don't have horses, but have chickens and it's lovely to have the barn space for storing tools and so on. We debated horses, but have decided on balance we'd rather not, they are too much of a commitment and only fun in the summer, when it's not a mud pit.

We've turned the fields into wildflower meadows, which are great for nature.

I am now geoblocked but I used to lurk on https://www.gardenlaw.co.uk/phpBB2/index.php.

Have a search on here before you think about renting space to others.

I grew up with horses and would advise checking out the local area. Where can you ride them? Is it off-road, or will you be on the road every time you leave your property? How busy are the roads? Ours were kept outside all year round with access to a shelter, and they were mostly unshod as there were plenty of off-road grassy tracks around us. This reduced cost. Don’t buy a Shetland pony unless you have shit hot fences.

Bear in mind that horses can live to be 30 - it’s a very long commitment!

Good luck with your move to the wide open spaces. We did the same 5 years ago and the house itself is enough of a money pit without taking on horses too.
As you may have gleaned from some of the responses here, many "country folk" and evenmoreso many "horsey people" like nothing more than to lord it over you that they possess knowledge you lack.
I have been fortunate to move to a countryside location with mostly friendly and helpful neighbours, but you will need to display due deference in order to be accepted into the community. There will also be some chippy ones who will never accept you, and my advice is to ignore those people, or kill them with kindness.
Get on friendly terms with the local farmer, who will top your meadow (trim the grass) a couple of times a year for an hourly fee.
Enjoy your property.
I second the above suggestion that chickens make good "entry level" animals. Start small.
Personally, I'd turn the stables into an entertaining space- maybe guest accommodation. Horses are lovely to look at but I would never take on the burden of ownership.

Definitely get someone in to look at the condition of the buildings and fencing. Rent them out for a while.
Our riding school does "own a pony" days, try something like this first, and then learn to ride. Take it from there.
Horses and ponies are expensive even with your own land. My dad always said you may as well feed them fivers!

Rent them out. I’d love to look out of the window and see horses without the hassle of caring for them 😁

I’d be seriously tempted to take in a rescue donkey or two, though. (Have plenty of time)

Lucky you! How exciting to have a new home with some land.
Horse wise, as someone who has ridden since birth basically, and owned/competed forever -DON'T DO IT. Not only is it excruciatingly expensive, horses are delicate little flowers who like to break frequently and cost you lots of heartache and vets bills. Even the native "tough" ponies. You've got things like laminitis -you can't just throw them out to graze on acres of grass and hope for the best. We had a welsh C who had colic often for no apparent reason anyone could figure out despite thousands of pounds worth of investigation.
It's very much a lifestyle. An every single day, rain, wind and snow lifestyle. You smell of horse piss, you get trodden on, you get muddy. I love it so much, but pick another love. Oh, and not sheep. They are almost as bad 😂

OP you can’t just get a horse in the same way as getting a cat! They take huge amounts of care/expertise/expense/time. If you’re keen, once you move book some riding lessons first and take it from there.

I would turn the stables into a home for a feral cat colony.

You'll never be bothered with mice/rats.

Oh fucking hell. Do you realise the amount of work, legislation and expense that a riding school needs?

Honestly, i think some people see horses grazing in a field and think that's all that's needed to look after them

Just pay a local farmer to top field for first year. Get to know the new place and what you might want to do. Do not rush into anything until all the seasons have passed.
we had similar and bought male alpacas. Very easy to keep, and keep grass down. A world easier than horses donkeys or even goats.
if it was me now though, I’d rewild it. Maybe an orchard, pond, ducks and a meadow? Little clearings to hang a hammock and flowers for the bees. Field animals without a need are just not worth it, so much work and expense and so much to sort if you even need to go away overnight.
having said that…enjoy your new adventure !