Cost of keeping a horse

[g16]

Looking for advice as to what people pay pcm to keep their horses and a breakdown of costs involved. I've always had horses growing up but they were kept on rented land in Ireland so obviously costs are very different. I'm considering getting something in the future but want to know if I can afford it and ideally still put some money aside each month for emergencies etc.

What I've been thinking so far is
Livery - I've found part livery for 45 per week with nice facilities, I would need to discuss being brought in one evening a week so may pay more. I'm looking in the Shropshire area so livery yard recommendations would be appreciated as well
Hay for 15-16hh horse roughly a bale a day at approx 5 per bale so 35 per week
Shoes is 60-80 typical?
Insurance - don't know what's standard so about 30pm?
Shavings 7 a bale so about 30 a month?
Then vet bills, tack, lessons etc on top
Does this seem reasonable? I would prefer to over estimate!

 

[Mongoose11]

I make sure that I can 'afford' £400 a month and that keeps me covered for everything. One horse, full livery five days a week in winter and DIY the rest.

 

[LOZHUG]

Expensive!!

No seriously though over budget for everything your are budgeting for and you need to budget for the unexpected also.

When I was on livery I used to pay £25 p/w for livery and use of the school. £30 for a Heston bake of straw which lasted approximately 2 months or so. Haylage was charged by the weight so approx £20 p/w. Shoes were £60. Vet bills we won't even go there. Insurance depends on what you want them covered for but I haven't insured mine and would rather pay there and then as there are so many clauses etc - read the small print. Hard feed I used to spend about £30 a month.

Sorry these prices are approx as I haven't been on a livery yard in about 7 years now as I have been fortunate enough to buy my own land ��

 

[Jinx94]

My colt is out at grass and gets fed twice a day. I pay £35 a week for this and over winter when he had hay too I paid £45 a week. I pay £30 a month for insurance and am currently waiting on a vet bill to come through so have got into the habit of saving £100 just for that. Trims are every 8 weeks, £20 a time.

So monthly it comes to £280-£320.

I know some people put money into a bank account rather than paying for insurance, but imo if you can afford it, it is better to have insurance and put extra money to one side that doesn't get confused with other savings. If I'm lucky and the money that I save isn't needed other than for the odd thing here and there, I'll have money ready for tack when my boy needs it so I won't be scrabbling for money from my "personal" savings.

 

[Morgan123]

I agree with £400 per month, this keeps me covered with a diy horse but competing relatively regularly.

 

[Firefly9410]

A messy horse can get through 2-3 bales of shavings per week so you might want to revise your estimate. Alternatively big bale straw can be about 20-30 and last a month or two. That would depend how much storage space there was at your yard though. Horse costs for me are aprox 350 total per month for two on DIY livery stabled nights winter and out 24/7 summer.

 

[windand rain]

Depends on the horse and what you want to do Mine cost roughly 2000 per year and we have 3 that include field rent feed and day to day care but not emergencies or out of normal activities. So as happy hackers about £75 er month average over the year each

 

[Lintel]

Far to scary a thread.
"retreats back in shell of denial and avoidance".

 

[WelshD]

I don't expect my costs are relevant as I have two under 13hh but here they are

This is for one

Rent £75
Feed £18
Hay £45
Feet £15
Insurance £12
Put aside for jabs/wormers/teeth etc £25
Medication/sprays etc £20

 

[FairyLights]

Dont forget to factor in transport costs of getting to the yard and back. it all adds up. some people reckon their horse coststhem £60 a week but by the time transport petrol etc is added in it can be more like £100 a week.

 

[stormclouds]

Same as others, I budget for £400 a month, then know I'm covered in case something happens. Usually works out as £220-250ish which is livery, hay (try to get big bales if your yard has the storage - so much cheaper!), shavings, shoes (two fronts), vaccs, worm count, feed (as and when needed, rarely every month thanks to a very good doer).

I pay my insurance yearly so don't have that £30/40 outgoing a month

 

[Annagain]

A few years ago I kept a diary of everything I spent on the horse. In a year it came to about £3600 so about £300 a month.

This is for:
DIY livery at £25 p/w, with ad lib haylage at £15 p/w while in overnight in winter,
Insurance at £32 a month,
Shoes £60 every 8 weeks (then, now £70),
Worming programme at £10 a month,
One dental check up (£30),
2 back checks (£40 each)
Minimal feed (none in summer) as he's a good doer.

It also includes the odd lesson and competition.

The only thing I didn't include was fuel costs (to farm and back and to tow the trailer) as it was also my everyday car so impossible to calculate. I don't go mad with buying for the horses, but equally I don't skimp. They get what they need and the odd treat and so do I! This was about 4 years ago so I'd budget £400 to be on the safe side.

 

[JoClark]

I personally think you are well within what you are saying for basics. Decent insurance is more like £50 though, my hay is £3.50 a bale and on a bad day in winter goes through 3/4 of a bale. He is out from 7-5 in winter and 7-7 now and will be living out shortly. 16.2 ISH which is more TB built.

Dentist, injections, worming, throwing a shoe, lessons, tack, rugs etc all extra. I pay about £600 a month inc lessons.

Unexpected extras, ulcers, £3.5k, luckily insurance paid but i have to manage, no ulcers equal happy boy. Competitions always work out a lot when the cost of getting there etc is factored in.

Also just noticed feed has been missed, average that at £50 a month throughout the year, summer unlikely to need much but winter a lot more.

 

[g16]

Thanks for all the replys, I had in my head a ball park of 500 per month all in so looks like I should be easily covered. Just need to work out if I can afford that and still put a bit aside. Also need to price other livery yards and see if I can get it cheaper but still have good facilities.

 

[catwithclaws]

Livery - £130 per month DIY
Feed - £0 as he lives on air and gets none!
Hay - approx 6 bales per month @ 6.50 a bale (this was in depths of winter, small bales but about 50% longer than a standard bale)
Shavings - 5 bales per month @ 6.00 a bale
Insurance - £0 he's a veteran so I have money aside instead
Farrier - 32.50 for fronts every 6 weeks

That's about it as I don't compete or go out anywhere

 

[Theocat]

I budget £500 a month including a couple of lessons and a cheapish competition.

I'd look at costs for full / part livery including hay and bedding - I get seven day part including bedding, haylage and basic hard feed for £68pw in Yorkshire. It will be more expensive where you are but you can probably still get a better deal by buying the "package", especially if you're likely to need extras and if you can save of making a few journeys a week.

 

[VickyVaporeon]

Oo that's a lot of money, I'm looking to get my own horse in the future, but thank you everyone for giving me a rough idea of how much I'd be spending each month. Ideally I thought it'd be about £250 a month but DIY is quite cheap where I live and I plan to just be a happy hacker as competing doesn't interest me. Its a lot to take in!

 

[biggingerpony]

I have 2 horses, one on retirement livery at £200 per month for everything. I only pay for vets jabs/dentist

Horse 2
Livery (part) £280 a month includes hay and bedding
Farrier £80 every 6-7 weeks (full set)
Physio/massage/saddler £60 every other month
Lessons £200 a month (2x weekly)
Insurance £400 pay annually
BHS gold. £63 annually
Food and supplements £50 a month (poor doer)
Odd bits of tack, new rugs £50 a month

Oh god I daren't add that up!

 

[Ponycarrots]

I've got 2 in a rented field which is £25 per week for both (bargain lol!)
Neither are shod and rarely need trims.
They get through a large swirl of hay every 2 weeks ish (£20 per swirl)
Feed is probably about £25 a month ish (only one needs a feed)
Insurance is £40 for one and £30 for the other.
I have a lesson once a fortnight which is £25 a time.
Dentist every 6 months; £150 ish including sedation for my mad boy!
Can't think of anything else that's regular...
That comes to about £300 a month on average and I do the odd competition and hunt in winter so can be a bit more. Ends up being a lot more as I like to spoil them with treats and presents

 

[Ponycarrots]

Oo that's a lot of money, I'm looking to get my own horse in the future, but thank you everyone for giving me a rough idea of how much I'd be spending each month. Ideally I thought it'd be about £250 a month but DIY is quite cheap where I live and I plan to just be a happy hacker as competing doesn't interest me. Its a lot to take in!

Get a barefoot good doer and you'll manage! if I just had my little dales who's hardy as anything I'd only be spending about £150 per month! awesome username btw!

 

[wench]

My livery is £200 a month - includes hay. Can be looking at anywhere between £30-£60 on food, depending on what nag is eating. (She's allergic to molasses, which means she cant have a lot of feeds.) £35 for shoes, £35 for insurance.

So the very, very basic is £270 a month. I then have a couple of lessons on top of that a month.

Also, dont forget, you may "just" want to be a happy hacker, but you will find that flatwork lessons will help you. Every horse needs schooling, even in its most basic form, ie stop, go and turn when I want.

 

[VickyVaporeon]

My livery is £200 a month - includes hay. Can be looking at anywhere between £30-£60 on food, depending on what nag is eating. (She's allergic to molasses, which means she cant have a lot of feeds.) £35 for shoes, £35 for insurance.

So the very, very basic is £270 a month. I then have a couple of lessons on top of that a month.

Also, dont forget, you may "just" want to be a happy hacker, but you will find that flatwork lessons will help you. Every horse needs schooling, even in its most basic form, ie stop, go and turn when I want.

Oh yes of course I'd need the flatwork lessons too, I just wanted to clarify that because I'm not interested in showing I assumed I'd be a little cheaper than some. I'm looking to loan for a good few years before I'm certain I want the complete financial commitment anyway.

 

[Carrots&Mints]

I pay £195 a month livery that include haylage and feed, my feed bill its probably £30 a month then my insurance is well over £40 a month, lessons at £20 a week then you have the shoes (luckily mine has his feet trimmed at £15 every blue moon as they hardly grow) then all the other extras like buying rugs, buckets, supplements, grooming stuff, fly spray, entries to shows, deisel to get to the yard, wagon deisel, horsebox insurance & breakdown cover, i dont actually know how much i spend but would probably cry if i added it all up lol! Probably going towards £500 a month in reality.

 

[twobearsarthur]

PCM
Full livery £368
Extra Hay £30
Feed £46.50
Farrier (trim) £10
Worming £6.50
Dentist £8.50
Supplements £30
Insurance £25
Total £522.50

She is only 2 1/2 so no lessons/tack etc in that budget yet.

 

[g16]

I budget £500 a month including a couple of lessons and a cheapish competition.

I'd look at costs for full / part livery including hay and bedding - I get seven day part including bedding, haylage and basic hard feed for £68pw in Yorkshire. It will be more expensive where you are but you can probably still get a better deal by buying the "package", especially if you're likely to need extras and if you can save of making a few journeys a week.

Ya I'm trying to find more places that offer livery but it's very difficult to find information online, places don't seem to have websites!

 

[Jim bob]

my boy ( PCM)
Livery £100
Hay £30
Straw £20
Insurance £50
Feed £50
Shoes £65 every 6 weeks
Then the extras
Worming £12 every 4 months
Physio £ 40 every 4 months
Saddle fitter £50 twice a year

 

[ihatework]

I think if you were to budget £500 a month then you would be able to comfortably keep an average allrounder on a nice DIY/assisted yard, part stabled - with a little bit spare to cover non essential extras that always seem to crop up!

You can certainly keep many horses cheaper than this budget, but it kind of depends on what you want out of horse ownership. OP you have a realistic overall budget, hope you find a nice horse!

 

[Firefly9410]

Ya I'm trying to find more places that offer livery but it's very difficult to find information online, places don't seem to have websites!

A lot of yards do not run as proper businesses and those that do still might not have a website. Visit the feed store and look on the notice board lots of smaller places advertise this way, check Preloved website too. To find large equestrian centres which may or may not do livery as well as lessons, search for horse shows because these venues often hold them or buy an ordnance survey map where some will be marked with a horse shoe symbol. The BHS publishes a list of approved livery yards so you can find some that way too. The least effective method of finding livery is to run a Google search.

 

[DabDab]

I pay £55 per week for DIY livery, but that does include straw, feed and fetch in from the field during the week. I buy hay from the yard and am charged by the weight used - for a big young horse I pay about £35 per month. Over and above that I budget for about £100 extra per month for insurance and other extras. Competition costs would be extra. I am in Shropshire on a lovely yard

 

[Leo Walker]

Oo that's a lot of money, I'm looking to get my own horse in the future, but thank you everyone for giving me a rough idea of how much I'd be spending each month. Ideally I thought it'd be about £250 a month but DIY is quite cheap where I live and I plan to just be a happy hacker as competing doesn't interest me. Its a lot to take in!

Mine lives out, so livery £21.50 a week, plus £9 a week for hay for about 4 months, trims £20 every to 12 weeks, feed £16 a bag and it lasts for months! supplement £12 a month, wormers/worm counts work out about £10 a month, insurance £22 a month and covers him for 5k of vet bills with a £125 excess. Then other things like jabs,dentist and back/saddle checks.

I put £250 a month into his account and it more than covers his costs. Things he doesnt really need but I want, like new saddlecloths etc and trips out come out of my general spending.