Everything I need to know

[cluelesshorser]

Hello everyone, I was hoping to pick your brains.

I'm hoping to buy a horse in a couple of years time (when DC start school) but realistically I don't know much about the realities of owning my own horse.

I've been riding for many years but have never been in a position to buy and, depending on a realistic look at costs, it might not be doable for a few more years than I am planning.

I'm looking at part or full time livery as would need to fit around work and wouldn't have time on work days to tend to the horses (3 days per week but two long days). From what I've seen in my local area this ranges in cost from £65-110 per week.

I'm thinking also about vaccinations, farrier (do they always need shoes and how do I know if they do or don't?!), teeth, insurance, worming... anything else that's likely to come up?

There seem to be a lot of variables that I'm not sure if the horse will or will not need (such as shoes and whether they'll need to go into a stable and how long for) so as many hints and tips as possible please.

I'm hoping to learn a lot more about owning a horse before I even think about buying my own.

Anything else can I expect to pay for on a yearly basis? As a "worst case scenario" how much would it be after livery costs to own my own horse?

I want to have a realistic idea. Thanks

I pay £90 for shoes every 4-5 weeks, insurance £37 a month but excess is £500 and max bill is £3500 per condition. I’m about to have the physio out £55, I try to have at least 2 lessons a month preferably more I pay £45 each, I feed a foot supplement (see my user name) £35 a month. I’m on DIY by choice (I don’t like part/full livery it’s never done how I want it done), it’s £40 a week including ad lib hay but I pay for everything else bedding turning out bringing in hard feed etc. Then there’s tack, buying it unlimited bill if you have the money, getting you saddle fit regularly checked that cost me £50, rugs again you can spend as much or as little as you want mines a rug wrecker, most people have at least a couple of bits the current one I’m using cost £95, at least an annual dentist (£50) fly spray (loads this year) worming varies from yard to yard some just worn the whole lot others do a worm count and treat accordingly it just goes on.
The big question is is it worth it?
I’m currently in two minds!! My horse is off work at the moment. When it’s going well I’d probably say yes but my Dc’s Have grown up so Im not being pulled in two directions but if and it’s a big if you can find a good share and you not aiming to compete seriously that could be a cheaper but equally enjoyable option with less of a commitment.

Dd has a horse on full loan so although we haven’t had to buy him we have to cover all the other costs. He’s on part grass livery at the moment so dd only has to go to the yard once a week, which costs just over £60 per week. In winter she’d like him to have a stable when the weather’s really bad so that will be around £85 per week. Her livery yard has different prices for different sized horses/ponies. Her horse is bang on 16 hands so fits into the ‘small horse’ bracket - if he were a bit bigger, the livery cost would go up. He has front shoes only which are £50 every six weeks or so, dentist twice a year is £40 each time and he’s just had his vaccinations which were £35 plus a share of the call-out fee (four horses on the yard were all due for vaccinations so we shared a vet visit). Dd has rider insurance through the BHS - gold membership for under 18s is £50 a year and includes insurance. Her horse is insured for vets’ fees which is £31 per month, the excess is £150 and the maximum claimable is £5000. We don’t have our own transport so hiring a box is £80-100 per day, event entries usually something like £25. Lessons are £45 for an hour when the instructor comes to her yard. Clinics are £35 upwards but she has to get there which obviously adds to the cost. Then there’s the cost of tack - either new or replacing stuff which is broken/worn out - stuff like fly spray, hoof oil, riding clothes etc etc ... You could spend a fortune very easily but dd gets so much pleasure out of it and has learned so many life skills through riding that in general I think it’s worth it.

I have an ex racer who although my livery is cheap (brilliant diy £25 a week including stable, 2 acres of grazing to myself and 240 acres off road riding - I hope to stay forever!!) he needs front shoes every 5 weeks(£40) feed supplements etc and it does add up. My old horse, a cob, was hardy as anything, no hay or hard over summer and a trim of his feet every 8 weeks ( £20). I think it depends on they type of horse you want and what you want to do. Transport and insurance add up, as does replacing tack rugs etc. It’s a bit of a money pit and an unpredictable one at that.

I have 4 ( 1 horse, 3 ponies). I rent a 4 acre field for £160 a month. In summer they are not fed at all, in the winter they go through about 1 large bale of haylage a week, approx £40 each, but no hard feed.
3 are unrugged all year and the other one wears a selection of second hand rugs.
Their feet are done approx every 3 months, all barefoot except for one who wears fronts shoes. £20 for a trim and £30 for fronts.
Essentially, owning horses can vary hugely in cost depending on where you live, what type of horse you want and what you want to do with it. Apart from our mini shetland who does nothing, they are all happy hackers and we do pony club aswell.

Good luck!!

Once a day obviously, not once a week ...

Thanks for your replies.

I don't want anything too fancy. I was thinking of getting something around 14hh that I'd be able to share with my children when they're a bit older, if they're interested.

I don't want to do much, just hacking and jumping. That sort of thing. I'm not planning to compete unless for a bit of fun locally (so not really planning for a horse box and lots of travelling to competitions)

I have been looking at cobs/Connemara, that sort of thing. Ideally something hardy!

I just want to ride for pleasure but more regularly than I do now and more varied. At the minute I just take an hours lesson every week or every other week.

Would you say that £7000 per year ought to be a reasonable budget based on livery costs where I live? Livery is likely to be £3650 p/a

In my now very extensive experience part or full livery is a nightmare. Its costly and there always going to be something thats not to your liking or more likely 2 or 3 things not to your liking. Secondly what you pay doesn't actually impact that much on what your getting. Over the years I've know people paying upwards of £300 per week for livery whose horses are on the yards of some of the biggest names in the horse industry and those paying £75 to be on a small slightly scruffy place all moan about the same stuff.
If you can do it DIY or assisted DIY is the way to go.

It sounds like a reasonable budget OP - until something goes wrong of course! Horses have an uncanny way of eating all your money and then some (sometimes literally!).

A cob or a native type seems the best for what you want although the connemaras I have known have (a) been mad as a box of frogs (b) had terrible feet - they don't do well with barefoot, so personally I wouldn't be sold on them as a low maintenance horse for a novice . Really though you'll find something negative online about every single breed (welshies are nappy/stubborn, cobs are lazy/bolshy etc etc) so I wouldn't fixate on wanting a particular breed and just look at the individual horse. You would want to buy an older horse (probably 8-15 ideally) that is currently (successfully!) doing the job you want and kept in the way you want. So in a family home (not at a riding school or dealers), being kept out 24/7 without the need for hard feed over winter (if this is what you want), currently barefoot etc etc.

Things you might not have thought to budget for (some mentioned above):

-Foot trimming - keeping your horse barefoot is usually cheaper than shod but you will still need to pay the farrier to trim and tidy every 6 weeks or so.

-Vaccinations, dentist, physio/back person visits, worming. A good insurance policy for yourself and horse.

-A slush fund for vet emergencies and call outs, up to the excess of your insurance policy. Assume you will use this at least once a year!

-Tack and regular saddle checks and adjustments. Even if your horse comes with tack it's important to get it checked and refitted regularly by the best saddler you can get. So many problems are caused by ill-fitting tack, so the money spent on the saddle man is well spent!

-Ad hoc help for when you are on holiday or if unwell, even if you go with full livery this doesn't usually cover things like exercise which you may need if you can't ride for a few weeks for whatever reason. Even if you aren't planning to go away often it's wise to budget for some extra help just in case.

-Other additional services from the yard such as holding for the vet, changing rugs, tack cleaning etc. Again even on full livery the yard will usually find a way to charge you for extras!

-Rugs in winter, and repair/replacement of same if you have a rug destroyer. Hardy native/cob types can usually live out in winter unrugged, but if you want to ride regularly/more than very gentle work you will probably want to clip and rug. Also budget for someone to do the clipping for you as it's a tricky job even if your horse is good to clip (my clipping always comes out wonky no matter how careful I am!)

-Hay in winter and possibly some hard feed if charged separately from your livery

-Regular lessons, at least for the first year. Even if you don't want to compete or ride at a very high level having access to some experienced help in the early days with your first horse is vital, IMO.

Agree with PP, I haven't ever known a Connie suitable for a novice although I'm sure they are about. Don't get to hung up about breed though, look at the pony in front of you.

A couple of years ago I asked this same question here. The response I got was that it's a very slippery slope; you get a horse but then you want to take it places so buy a lorry etc.

All I can say to that is amen. I bought my horse last year and less than 2 months later I owned a trailer and a car that could tow it.

My horse is an absolute money pit. She eats a shit tonne of food just to maintain weight so even though basic feed is included in my full livery, I have to buy special food; for ulcers, balancer etc.

She was seriously injured earlier this year and is still on box rest. The vet has cost me £6k so far, on top of £7k the insurance paid out.

Think very carefully and maybe consider a loan to test your commitment.

I have exracers, I rent a field for £80 a month and they live out year round. In winter they have hay 3 big bales a month £90 and hard feed which comes to about £30 . From end of March till November they have nothing.
Both are clipped and rugged but manage very well. Neither are shod so they have a trim every 8 weeks at £20 each. Dentist once a year £55 each, flu jab works out at about £40 each. Of course I had to buy a lorry and then I like to compete plus all the endless horsey crap you end up needing!

The majority of horses can. E barefoot though sometimes it can take a bit to transition and they may need boots. Most can also live out all year with enough hay/rugs/feed.

Ability to turn out/live out is very soil type dependent. We're on clay here and very few yards guarantee year round turnout, even those with lots of land. Last winter many horses round here were standing in mud above their knees/hocks.
Going barefoot is also dependent on conditions horses standing in soaking wet/muddy fields will struggle to do lots of roadwork unless they wear boots.

This ...

I have a warmblood x and my costs are roughly as follows:

Livery: DIY - £130 pm.
Hay pw summer - £10
Hay pw winter - £15
Bedding pw- £10 (he is on woodchip)
Feed pm - £10 (he is a reasonably good doer)
Insurance pm - £38 - my excess is £250 and my max vet per claim is £4000
Teeth annually - £69 - mine has to be sedated for this.
Saddle fit/check annually - £50
Back lady/physio - 3-6months - £40
Farrier - 6 weekly - £35 (mine is barefoot I.e no shoes)
Fly spray - pm this year - £16

I already have tack and rugs etc but if you need to replace a rug you could pay anywhere between £30-300 depending on what you want and if you’re worried about brand.

Tack cleaner lasts me forever but is about £13 for an all in one pot.

Worming depends on the yard but is approx £11-20 per go.

It’s worth investing in some good first aid materials also.

I think that is about it... my boy is worth every single penny xx