Reptile & Amphibian Forums

O.K. I am seriously considering getting a horse of my own. And now it may finally be possible for me to have one somewhere where I can get free or reduced board. So the big thing is that my parents think that it will cost way too much, no matter where i board. My dad was like, a friend of his payed $600 a month on each of her horses without board (she kept them at her house). I was like, there is no way it could cost that much!! I live in CT, if anyone was wondering, and I wanted to know how much everyone else pays a month on the general upkeep of their horse without board and without showing/training expenses.
Thanks
*~*elcheal*~*

well, board covers the cost of bedding, labor to clean the stall, and grain, correct?
The cost of a horse depends on several things.
How much grain you feed it
what kind of grain you feed it
Time of year (hay factors in in the fall and winter)
Vet bills
farrier bills
Tack
Type of bedding/how much bedding

This doesn't even count the cost of fenceing, water, power, troughs, land, etc. (you don't even want to know what's involved in THAT)

It's pretty variable. What I will say is this... take advantage of the green grass growing in the spring and summertime. You'll waste a ton of money on grain if you even bother feeding them more than a 1/4th a scoopful a day, assuming the horse is an easy keeper. I don't even grain mine this time of year, not unless it's a treat, a snack, or some kind of reward really.

The cost of keeping a horse for me at the moment is 0, because we already have the trough, the fence is up, I'm not graining anyone, and no one's in training. However, in the winter, a horse will easily go through 1 square bale of hay in 2 days. Around here, square bales cost about $6, so that's $3 a day in hay, correct? Then there is grain. Say you give your horse a scoop a day. A scoop's about 3 lbs or something, and they feed comes in a 50 lbs bag. That's one bag of feed for every 15 or 16 days assuming none is used as treats or lost to mice, so about two bags of feed a month. A bag of feed averages around $10. You're already at $120 a month in food. Then there's the glory of bedding... straw bales are about $2 a bale here if you're lucky, but that stuffs crappy for bedding unless you're NOT the one doing the cleaning. I use woody pet, it's $5.25 a bag. We use 10 bags per stall in the beginning, but then you simply add a new bag once every other week because it fluffs up and dries and stuff. Much like cat litter, except less clumping and more expanding and drying. Either way, for a starter, that's $52.00 in bedding, then an extra $5.25 at the end of the month for that one replenisher bag.
But wait, there's more!
Can't forget to get your pony some good fly spray! This can range anywhere from $7 a bottle to $20 a bottle.
You'll want some first aid medicine, so figure at least $20 in that
Grooming kit! Figure about $6 per brush. You'll need the soft, medium, and harder brush, plus a mane and tail brush, and a hoof pick. If each is $6, that's $30 right there. Want a place to keep all these things? Add another $5 for a little bucket or grooming kit box.

Basically, all the costs are going to hit you in the face up front, but after that life gets much better. You'll have all your bedding established, your supplies will be handy, and some items, such as flyspray and hay, are seasonal.

I had a horse boarded for a while in which I didn't pay for the board. In grain I went through about 3 bags a month. This only cost me about $36 a month for that.

Your main costs, if the board covers bedding and supplies and feed and everything, are going to be in personal items, farrier bills (which can be anywhere from $30-120 depending on what's needed), vet bills (annual teeth float $100 at least, shots $100 total for all of them, coggins test $35 or something, try to get everything done in one shot though... then there's always that colic to look out for, at least a $200 bill for those freaking wonderful things), and gas money to go to and from the barn. If your Dad wants to fuss, try saving up your own money to cover the costs of the other things yourself! The other thing you'll have trouble with is tack. My saddles have all cost me from $200-$400 for saddles, and then the rest varies. Oh yes, and the cost of the horse. Connecticut, ya say? I dunno what horses go for around there. Different world!

I hope this was more helpful than confusing... HEH!

Best of luck to ya!

From the top. I reside in Michigan.

I do agree that horses can be a expensive hobby. They are far from a profit for our enjoyment. At least money wise. Most boarding does include the care for your animal and the space. It also comes down to the choices of where you want your animal to spend most of it's time. Personally if you can get it, let your horse be a horse and be out on pasture. Providing the fact that the pasture offers some sort of shelter from the weather. No that does not necessarily mean you have to have a lean-to. Tree's provide ample shade and protection from most weather. Horses are not dumb by far and know how to protect themselves and when they need it. I do not have lean-to's and my horses spend as little time in the barn as possible year round. Better for them health and mind wise. Had one horse colic in over 50 years on this farm and that was because he got out into a real green field. Was my grandmother's pony. Yes items do cost a pretty penny, but having every type of brush is not mandatory. One brush will get you by. You can use any dollar store hairbrush for a mane and tail brush. That's what I do because you will go through them. Why pay a ton of money. A hoof pick I would consider a mandatory item. Never know when you need to get something out of a hoof but mind you a stick comes in just as handy if you don't have a hoofpick on you . It's also a good idea to pick out feet on a regular basis, especially before every ride.

Hay prices vary on location and type of hay. Personally we feed a grass hay w/alfalfa mix. More grass than alfalfa as alfalfa will burn out the guts on your horse if not fed properly. We just purchased hay for $2.50 a bale, but then that's direct off the field we brought it home and all the labor. Grain is a good thing to have. We no longer buy commercial feed. All feed is made for us in a elevator which is a better buy than any commercial feed is and has in most cases better products, vitamins, and higher protein that your basic commercial feeds. On average a 12% commercial feed around here on sale is about $7.00. Our stallion alone get's a minimal of 4lbs of grain daily. He recieves anywhere from a half a bale up to a whole bale of hay a day. His pasture is not of the greatest quality so he require's suppliment for it, being hay and grain. Our grain run's 16%, just as good as Omelene 300 which is a very good grain for broodmares, stallions, and growing foals and horses. Your also going to need a mineral block of some size. The small mineral block's cost about $4.00 something. If your horse has a stall area to come into these can easily be kept in their grain bucket that is hanging up. They can eat their grain around it. They don't have to have a holder, and it's a good idea to keep it up off the ground. All the fancy suppliments you see today are not mandatory. Providing you feed your horse a good quality hay, a good quality grain if required, and have a simple mineral salt block your horse should be fine. Trimming comes every 6-8 weeks. Around here a regular trim is $10.00 a horse. Shoe's from our old farrier was $20.00 per foot, including the trimming portion. So $40.00 for front shoes and trimmed all the way around. If pads are required, your talking more and getting into a larger expense. Personally I'd find a horse with good legs and feet and you can avoid these problems right away. My horses go barefoot year round. Only a select few require shoes. One being our Percheron mare who requires pads and shoes year round, she has soft feet. We also do a lot of hard road work with her. Worming, mandatory. Wormer can run anywhere from $7.00-13.00. We buy the 3 in 1 tube of Ivermec a good all around wormer. It has enough wormer to do 3 1200lbs horses. In most cases a average 15hh horse or less is not going to weigh no 1200lbs. Right now were worming every two months. We've had some new horses come in, better to be safe than sorry. Although if your other boarders don't worm religiously as you do getting it under control on the facility will be a real problem.

Tack and Equipment can be found for a good deal at auctions. Buying top of the line equipment to enjoy your horse is not a mandatory thing either. Just make sure you get item's that fit your animal properly and you as well. You can get a saddle anywhere from $50-$2200. Figure it this way though, what kind of riding do you plan to do with your horse. If trail riding that $200 and below saddle is just fine. Vet care is another cost that varies. If your lucky you won't have to see your vet very often.

Good luck and I wish you the best. Be sure to read up a lot and take in as much material as you can and learn from as many folks as you can.

Diane

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