AM I READY TO OWN A HORSE?

Horse ownership is a huge responsibility and is life changing.  It is a decision not to be taken lightly and should always be informed by professional advice.  Hopefully, after reading this post, you will be feeling either more confident in purchasing a horse or, maybe even delay getting a horse till your either more knowledgeable, more prepared financially or, have a better horsey support network. 

This blog post was inspired by a recent experience I had that left me wondering why?  Why did a genuinely well-intentioned couple end up in such a dangerous situation?  And why is it that an untrained young horse is sitting in a 12 x 24 pen with no access to turn out or, the companionship of another horse?   Well, there are two reasons; the first, is that the people who purchased the horse are uneducated about horses, and what it takes to keep them, a true case of “you don’t know enough to know what you don’t know”.  The second reason, and the party to which I point most of the blame, is that a “professional” sold a green, virtually unhandled horse to two people who were very clearly not prepared to have a horse, let alone the one she sold them.  

Here’s the abbreviated story.  I received a call from a potential client that had just gotten a new horse and they were interested in training.  The horse was bought as a gift by the husband who had some experience but, no professional instruction with horses, he knew just enough to be dangerous and, had already been seriously injured in the month they had had the horse. I agreed to meet the couple at their house where they keep their horse, and upon arrival I realized that there was nowhere to work with the horse.  As a trainer this is extremely frustrating but, that’s a different blog post. I worked with the horse, it was exactly what I expected.  She was a kicker and a biter but, after an hour I was able to get her to start move away from me and responding to pressure.  At the end of the session I suggested at the very least, moving the horse to a boarding barn to be near other horses and so they could be around more knowledgeable horse people.  The couple graciously listened to my suggestions, thanked me, paid me and said that they only were looking for one session, not a regular training schedule, and were interested in the mountain trail course that the neighbors ranch has. 

These people are kind people so no hate.  But if they had some more knowledge maybe they would have made different decisions.  The three most important factors in deciding if you are ready to buy a horse are:

·       Do you have YEARS of experience working with horses?

·       Do you have the financial means to care for the horse properly?

·       Are you part of a horse network with professionals to help you?

Really? YEARS of Experience?  But I…..

Yes, really.  You need years not months of experience.  First off, horses are complex fragile beings, if you look at some of them wrong, they colic.  They are the reason that the saying “if it can go wrong it will” exists.  It takes years of just being around horses to be able to experience the myriad of things that can go wrong with a horse.  Some of these things can be career and life threating to your horse and, as an owner, it is your responsibility to identify when there is something wrong with your horse, treat and care for injuries and illnesses, of which can sometimes be long term exhausting commitments. And most importantly, you will decide their fate, do they live or die if, or rather when, something catastrophic happens.  Over the years I have seen people keep horses alive to long, put them down to quickly, and spend a ton of money on useless gimmicks or risky surgeries.  Having seen so many different situations and how the owner’s decisions and capabilities affected the horses outcome and quality of life, I truly feel you need to have seen others go through this to be able to be prepared to go through it yourself and do right by your horse. 

The other reason you should wait years to buy a horse is because you don’t learn to ride overnight, spending a few years moving up the skill levels on lesson or leased horses means that when you do buy a horse, you have one that will take you where you want to go long term.  Additionally, there are many different disciplines, types of horses, physical builds of horses, and temperaments.  Until you have ridden different types of horses it is hard to make an educated decision on what you want.  Personally, I like an uphill, forward ride, around 16.2 with a big barrel as compared to one with a low-neck set, that’s a kick hunter type ride. 

Do you have the financial means?

I am sure you have heard it a thousand times.  Horses are expensive.  Like, super expensive.  Like so expensive you might as well just put dollar bills in the hay feeders and let them eat that because it might be cheaper.  Now obviously, that’s a bit of an exaggeration and what you want to do with your horse makes a huge impact on the level of financial comment you are committing too.  For simplicity sake, let’s just say you want a safe sound trail horse, and a barn where your horse is on pasture board with a round bale.  A clean well-run facility with a decent ring, a place to put your tack, a wash stall, cross-ties or a place to tack-up and groom in a mid-size city such as Spokane WA or Raleigh NC, you should expect to pay at-least $300/mo.  There are places for less but remember, you get what you pay for.  And when your horse wont drink because the water trough has never been cleaned or gets a respiratory infection because the hay is so cheap even cattle won’t eat it, it takes just one vet bill to wipe-out all the savings you made on board, and then throw in another grand for good measure.

The next biggest expense other than board and feed are preventative health and vet bills.  Once or twice a year, depending on where you live you need to have a vet out to do health certificates and coggins (if your hauling off property).  Your horse will need their teeth floated and their feet need trimmed, you need to sand clear if you live in the south, deworm them, and most horses should be fed at least loose minerals or a balancer pellet if otherwise on a forage only diet.  Prices vary greatly on the region you live in and your locality to a quality vet but, below are some basic costs.

·       Barefoot hoof trim costs $50 every 4 – 8 weeks depending on location, actively level of horse and weather.  A shorter trim cycle is recommended so you should plan on $650/year.

·      A teeth float for a middle-aged healthy horse with no dental issues $250 once a year.

·       Vaccinations, annual wellness, coggins, health cert, sheath cleaning and other small misc. $350/yr

·       Board at a conservative $300/year is a total of $3,600

·       Supplements, balancer pellets $360/mo, deworming (quarterly) $60

That is a conservative, nothing bad happened, easy keeper grand total of $5,270 a year. 

Please note, as a first-time horse owner it is my opinion that you should NOT have the horse at home.  An exception to this is if you have knowledge neighbors who are around to help keep an eye on you and the horse.  Also, if you are taking advice from your neighbors, please be sure you like them enough to listen to them.

Are You Part of a Supportive Horse Network

Having a supportive horse network is very important.  The most important person in your horse network is having a reputable trainer you trust. Someone who you feel comfortable asking questions to, and not fearing a belittling snarky comment.  Your trainer should also be able to recommend a farrier and vet and, a boarding facility if you are not stabling with them.  In addition to a trainer, you need to have horsey friends to kiss little Buster on the nose and feed him carrots while you are on vacation. Your horsey friends will sympathize with you when you fall off, have a bad day, and will chase your horse home while you walk a mile back after your bomb proof, been there done that faithful steed dumps you on a trail ride because he saw a squirrel.  Your horse family will help you keep your sanity when everything “horsey” goes haywire, like it so inevitably will on occasion.

In summary, horses are amazing, and I wish everyone could have one but, they are expensive, time consuming, complex and dangerous to an untrained or novice person.  And as with everything, there are exceptions to all rules.  If you have the money and network, and are in a training program, go for it.  Get a horse! But, for many out there they are at that point where they know just enough.  And they think, just maybe if they watch enough YouTube videos, read all the books about equine health and wellness that will be in a good place to buy a horse.  Please remember, that although videos and reading are a great thing to help increase your knowledge and learn new things.  There is no substitute for boots on the ground and butts in the saddle experience. 

Good luck if you have decided to take the plunge and get a horse and good for you if you have decided that the time just isn’t right.

I hope this blog has been helpful to you or someone you know.  Please leave a comment or questions below.  I would love to hear your thoughts and if this was helpful. 

Happy Trails,

AJ