Can anyone afford to keep a horse anymore?

[lynz88]

I'm not going to lie....I'm a bit afraid with the way things are going. I have just received a fairly large raise at work that I am extremely thankful for but it basically keeps me "equal" to my disposable income about a year ago because of the price rises. I am however, starting to go into my "squeeze every penny from my bank account" mode and shopping only sales and yellow sticker. Thankfully I am very creative with food and can create almost anything from seemingly nothing which helps save.

 

[maggiestar]

I'm not going to lie....I'm a bit afraid with the way things are going. I have just received a fairly large raise at work that I am extremely thankful for but it basically keeps me "equal" to my disposable income about a year ago because of the price rises. I am however, starting to go into my "squeeze every penny from my bank account" mode and shopping only sales and yellow sticker. Thankfully I am very creative with food and can create almost anything from seemingly nothing which helps save.

Same here, I've had a raise but it seems to be swallowed up by the tax/national insurance monster and the insane price of just about everything. It's going to be a tough winter for many people I think

 

[Regandal]

I too have gone into ‘tight’ mode. I fear that the current incumbent will be my last horse, and he’s 16 ?
I doubt that I will be able to afford a horse as a pensioner, 5 years away, and my back is fooked anyway.

 

[Denbob]

I've just moved up a paygrade at work, and all of that change has been eaten by increased costs. I'm thankfully somewhere where (all being well) there is a clear but quite long route for progression if I choose to take it, but I hate feeling that I'm going to have to take it in order to afford to live if things continue to spiral.

I'm slowly realising that my dream of buying a horse within the next 5-10 years when I can also afford a box/lorry to do things is just not going to happen. A share is just going to have to be it for me, and I don't know if I can do horses halfway so even that might not work.

 

[Sussexbythesea]

The yard I’m on had doubled the number of horses increased the livery charge, reduced the size of my grazing and restricted us to day turn-out from the 1st October to 1st April. This in itself increases my costs.

The lack of rain means my fields are bare and I’ve used both my summer and most of my winter grazing up. The overflow paddocks used to rest the main grazing are now permanent paddocks for other horses. My oldie can cope with grass but not hay so my winter feed bill is going to be extortionate. I reckon I’m looking at £5 a day on hay replacer alone. Not looking forward to it. Fortunately an Aunt left me some money which is buffering me at the moment so I’m lucky on that respect but it won’t last forever.

 

[lynz88]

Yup. I get where everyone is coming from. I honestly am worried for myself but can't imagine those who were already struggling. My mortgage deal is up next year as well which has be doubly worried if things get worse as I am also a single income. I also deserately need a new bathroom and am now wondering if for the time being, I can just have the sub-floor replaced as an interim as it is rotted and starting to feel a bit "softer" than it was. I bought the house a year ago knowing I would need a new bathroom but underestimated my desire to get rid of things like lime green walls, castles painted in acrylic paint, furnishings (seriously....lime green lamp shades as well?!?!), garden equipment, tools, etc. which wouldn't be a problem had the cost of living crisis not ensued. It isn't as if I'm living paycheque to paycheque but that's not really the point especially as said almost useless horse costs more and more and more as well (at the same time he is becoming less useless as a result which is great but it's a long road.....)

 

[NinjaPony]

I keep my retired Welsh on cheap DIY on a single income and it is tough. Absolutely no way that I could afford another at the moment. The plan is to keep him going whilst trying to move up the career ladder then buy another when I’m earning a reasonable amount more than I am currently. It’s had to become a 5 year plan and I’ve had to make my peace with being without a riding horse for the next few years. When the time comes, I’ll be looking to loan for a couple of years before I buy.

 

[dogatemysalad]

Currently, for single horse owners who drive to our yard, its cheaper to pay for full livery, particularly in winter when turnout is restricted.
So far, people seem to be carrying on as normal, buying new stuff and paying for competitions and fun rides etc. In winter when heating and mortgage costs kick in, things may change.
Like other have said, vet bills are my biggest deterrent. I used to always have three horses, I'm now down to one and he'll be the last. We have two cats and two dogs who won't be replaced, except for just having one. Life without an animal would be miserable.

 

[xDundryx]

We currently only have 1 for the first time in many years, looking at the rising cost of everything else this has made the decision for us not to get number 2 for the foreseeable future. One is affordable, two as well but it would be a bit of extra pressure financially. This is the first year as well that the yard isn't on 24/7 turnout in summer/autumn due to the heat and grass burning off/ lack of rain so usually that reprieve of extra costs is welcome for 5 or so months. Having to hay and feed as normal has been noticeable in my bank account. We sold our trailer to upgrade to a lorry due to youngsters size however that's now well and truly on the back-burner along with house renovations. Hopefully thete will be light at the end of the tunnel somewhere.

 

[AShetlandBitMeOnce]

Yup. I get where everyone is coming from. I honestly am worried for myself but can't imagine those who were already struggling. My mortgage deal is up next year as well which has be doubly worried if things get worse as I am also a single income. )

ETA: Caveat by saying I'm no expert!!
All of the mortgage advisors we have spoken to have said that the prediction for mortgage rates next year is about 6%, currently (well, as of 2 weeks ago) they were 3.59% so it might be worth you paying an early exit fee (OH's is £1200 to get out a year before his fixed rate is up) and fixing at 3% less. It would depend on the figures involved but might be worth speaking to someone in the know now rather than see where things are next year.

 

[Goldenstar]

I'm not going to lie....I'm a bit afraid with the way things are going. I have just received a fairly large raise at work that I am extremely thankful for but it basically keeps me "equal" to my disposable income about a year ago because of the price rises. I am however, starting to go into my "squeeze every penny from my bank account" mode and shopping only sales and yellow sticker. Thankfully I am very creative with food and can create almost anything from seemingly nothing which helps save.

I think afraid sums up how I feel .
I am afraid for those who don’t have the ability to absorb energy costs and cut use because they are already keeping use to a minimum.
I am afraid for all the horses and dogs and other pets whose owners are not going to be able to afford them .
I worry people are going to die of cold if the weather has a severe cold spell .
I have cut back spending and because I commit to spending locally worry about it.

 

[lynz88]

ETA: Caveat by saying I'm no expert!!
All of the mortgage advisors we have spoken to have said that the prediction for mortgage rates next year is about 6%, currently (well, as of 2 weeks ago) they were 3.59% so it might be worth you paying an early exit fee (OH's is £1200 to get out a year before his fixed rate is up) and fixing at 3% less. It would depend on the figures involved but might be worth speaking to someone in the know now rather than see where things are next year.

OMG thank you for that suggestion!! As of the end of September it will be 1 year left on my deal so I will get in touch with my mortgage advisor to see what his thoughts are (and will dig through my paperwork!). I feel like today is turning into a life admin day as I'm also (right now) figuring out whether it is worth locking into an energy tariff. So far, it's actually been cheaper to stay on a tracker/flex plan even though I am paying...believe it not....double the amount that I was last year even though I'm using less energy overall in my house than my flat (house is double the size of what the flat was too!).

I think I am also planning on BBQ'ing throughout the winter. Used to BBQ in -15 so I'm sure I can stomach doing it in -5 .....it's really saving on the use of gas and electricity believe it or not and propane is far, far cheaper!! (perhaps another reason why my usage of energy across the board is down more than when I was in the flat)

 

[suestowford]

My two are elderly and I don't think I will be getting more once they have gone. If I didn't have their bills to pay I'd be able to buy fuel for my car a bit more often. Luckily they are at home so I don't have to drive to see them.

 

[AShetlandBitMeOnce]

OMG thank you for that suggestion!! As of the end of September it will be 1 year left on my deal so I will get in touch with my mortgage advisor to see what his thoughts are (and will dig through my paperwork!). I feel like today is turning into a life admin day as I'm also (right now) figuring out whether it is worth locking into an energy tariff. So far, it's actually been cheaper to stay on a tracker/flex plan even though I am paying...believe it not....double the amount that I was last year even though I'm using less energy overall in my house than my flat (house is double the size of what the flat was too!).

I think I am also planning on BBQ'ing throughout the winter. Used to BBQ in -15 so I'm sure I can stomach doing it in -5 .....it's really saving on the use of gas and electricity believe it or not and propane is far, far cheaper!! (perhaps another reason why my usage of energy across the board is down more than when I was in the flat)

Hopefully you can sort something out!
I actually love the idea of winter BBQ'ing... perhaps I'll give it a bash too.

 

[Barton Bounty]

Right, where are you then.. I'm coming to move in. ?

Cmon then ???

 

[SatansLittleHelper]

Like ratface I have ME/CFS plus Fibromyalgia and a few other chronic issues. Working to top up my income would be fab but not doable
I have 2 horses (I never intended to have two but things happen ?) but am lucky to be able to keep them half a mile from my house on field livery. Hay is direct from the farm we are sited on. They just get a daily balancer and Chaff with added beet in the winter so feeding costs are relatively low. No facilities but I live in a fairly horsey area so plenty of hacking. They live out 24/7 so no bedding costs etc just hay over winter. So far none of our services such as the farrier (neither are shod)have increased but I'm suspecting that won't stay the same for long.
It's at home I'm feeling the pinch more. I have alot of animals to be fair but so far not noticed a huge increase in feeding costs, it's mainly the electric, oil and diesel costs that are out of control

 

[HorseMaid]

I've been incredibly lucky to buy some land recently with some help from a relative. The plan wasn't to do anything yet as funds are tight for sorting out a yard (was going to keep my mare where she is until next year at least), but if we get squeezed too much I'll be cobbling the money for a field shelter together and moving her up there to save some money.

 

[Spotherisk]

I was only saying to Mr StR last night that we could we bbq all winter. Just need to sort out a bit of shelter!

 

[lynz88]

I also need to sort out some shelter I think and also a light....TBH almost anything you can do in a stove or oven, you can pretty much do on a BBQ! I made BBQ pizza the other day (with homemade dough to boot)....I've some some perfecting to do but it was actually better than in the oven (apart from the pieces that cooked between the grill grates because the dough folded in on itself when I first put it on the grill and then fell between the grill grates and I couldn't then lift off the grill lol....next time I need to at least halve the size of my pizzas). a 5kg calor gas tank refill costs something like £25 and so far, my tank has lasted me 3 months with a 3-burner. I BBQ every few nights or so as I tend to batch cook and have done numerous BBQs with friends this summer.

 

[Fire sign]

Oh yes Equiport !! What a weird shop ...everyone I know has visited but no one ever has the courage to purchase anything .. it's like an equine artefact museum that you trail around speaking in hushed voices
There never seem to be any other customers ... I asked about brushing boots once and they had 3 in stock
Am so surprised they are still in business as they never seem to sell anything

 

[Squeak]

I've got some equiport saddle cloths and love them! Some are white and at least 15 years old but somehow they're still white even with being used as everyday saddle cloths and no rubs or signs of wearing out.

 

[Birker2020]

Oh yes Equiport !! What a weird shop ...everyone I know has visited but no one ever has the courage to purchase anything .. it's like an equine artefact museum that you trail around speaking in hushed voices
There never seem to be any other customers ... I asked about brushing boots once and they had 3 in stock
Am so surprised they are still in business as they never seem to sell anything

We have a feed merchant like that. You need nerves of steel to go in there!
As soon as you walk through the door "do you want any bags?" (feed).
You feel like their eyes are on you the whole time and when you go out of eyesight around the end of the shelving you feel like a shoplifter even though you've no intention of lifting a thing! It's a weird feeling and the blokes (two brothers) have been incredibly rude to a lot of customers so they haven't been back since. I get on all right with them, the one told me that i was really good at reversing my trailer but they told my friend off for her trailer skills.

 

[Goldenstar]

OMG thank you for that suggestion!! As of the end of September it will be 1 year left on my deal so I will get in touch with my mortgage advisor to see what his thoughts are (and will dig through my paperwork!). I feel like today is turning into a life admin day as I'm also (right now) figuring out whether it is worth locking into an energy tariff. So far, it's actually been cheaper to stay on a tracker/flex plan even though I am paying...believe it not....double the amount that I was last year even though I'm using less energy overall in my house than my flat (house is double the size of what the flat was too!).

I think I am also planning on BBQ'ing throughout the winter. Used to BBQ in -15 so I'm sure I can stomach doing it in -5 .....it's really saving on the use of gas and electricity believe it or not and propane is far, far cheaper!! (perhaps another reason why my usage of energy across the board is down more than when I was in the flat)

I cook off bottled gas I am amazed it’s cheaper than mains gas / electricity.

 

[GoldenWillow]

For us, it is not horse keeping costs that are a worry.

This is also our situation, ponies luckily cost very little, own land, live out a lot (they're actually in more during summer due to flies and expanding waistlines), no hard feed, barefoot, although the constant possibility large vet's bills does concern me. Sold our trailer which was a wrench so no expense of lessons or competitions fortunately after a couple of years of very limited riding due to my health I'm loving just being able to hack and school at home.

Our circumstances have massively changed in the last 12 months so we had already cut expenditure as much as we could but energy, food and fuel costs are making themselves known to us.

 

[ycbm]

Oh yes Equiport !! What a weird shop ...everyone I know has visited but no one ever has the courage to purchase anything .. it's like an equine artefact museum that you trail around speaking in hushed voices
There never seem to be any other customers ... I asked about brushing boots once and they had 3 in stock
Am so surprised they are still in business as they never seem to sell anything

They sold a woman who was the only other person in there something so small i couldn't see it in her hand for £170. I was there to return a mail order purchase of some UV horse goggles, which I didn't need by the time they arrived. I am certainly not their target market in my black cotton/lycra ebay jodhpurs!
.

 

[Lintel]

I am another who is lucky enough to have own land however the house that we have that was part of our land is making me very uneasy about costs... energy is ridiculous.... thankfully I have two fat ponies that live on near enough zilch!

 

[Mrs B]

I'm worried about the financial side of not just keeping my boy (who will never go without, whatever happens!) but of everything.

My line of work (freelance - live events and related areas) just shut down with the pandemic. It was sort of getting back on its feet but has not been helped by a combination of the possibility of more Covid, train strikes and potential financial meltdown.

Most events have to be planned a long way in advance and for many companies, it's just not worth the risk of the initial investment.

On top of that, I now have clients coming to me saying 'this is all we have in the budget - would you still be able to do it?' as they are trying to win business themselves by being cheaper than rivals.

So for me, it's not just that a pay rise is eaten up by inflation, my per day rate is being cut by a third or half.

But what can I do?

This IS what I do and I'm very good at it. But in this industry, there's always someone who will 'have a go' for not much more than 'exposure' ...

Sorry. End of rant-ette ?

 

[dogatemysalad]

I was only saying to Mr StR last night that we could we bbq all winter. Just need to sort out a bit of shelter!

We cook steak on the bbq all year round, but eat indoors during winter.
Fortunately, we have a good supply of wood, so using a Kadai, which also has a tripod and cooking bowl for stews, curries and veg, is easy. Some meals taste better when cooked on an open fire.

 

[GTRJazz]

Our life has completely changed since owning horses, first I got them a field in Essex which I still own but now live in Lincolnshire where for a short while you could get a house with 6 acres for the same as a semi in Essex. I never had or wanted a steady job and now am close to retirement. We have stables although they live out a lot the main cost is hay at £20 a round bale delivered and muck trailer emptied every two or three weeks, £20 a tip. The Biggest outlay at the moment is building a Menage, quotes around £26000 to £38000 for a standard 20 by 40

 

[cheekywelshie]

Ours are on full livery and out 24/7- now hay being given price has gone up. Not much change from £500 a month