First horse monthly budget?

[Ponymad21]

I am hoping to start and apprenticeship in September and will be earning at least £396 a month, I have worked out a budget of keeping a horse on this, my parents are willing to pay show entries, lessons ect. And I have money saved for rugs, tack ect.

Grass livery £100
Feed £10
Hay £70
Insurance £55
Farrier £40
£275

 

[Moomin1]

Depends on the individual horse you buy. I find that whatever you work out on paper as being the monthly cost, you can usually add on another 80-100 for extra unforeseen costs, ie vet bills, replacement tack/rugs etc. There's always something that needs replacing.

 

[Ponymad21]

As I said, I have money saved for tack, rugs ect. And I know my parents will help out with anything that is needed.

 

[Moomin1]

As I said, I have money saved for tack, rugs ect. And I know my parents will help out with anything that is needed.

What you've got to take into consideration is once that saved money is gone on the first lot of replacement rugs/tack/vet bills, will you be able to save for the next lot? If your parents are 100% sure they are happy to pay for any eventuality, then that is fine.

What sort of horse/size etc are you looking at?

 

[Ponymad21]

I'm looking at a 14-15.2 coby type, something that is pretty lazy but can jump a small course when asked
I will be able to save for the next lot, Im very careful with money

 

[BarnesBridge]

It is possible - I bought my first horse while I was still working part time, although I had quite a large amount in savings at the time. Like you, I was fortunate to have parents that were willing to help me out when I needed it. However, I really did struggle for money after a few months, particularly when he started going wrong and the vet bills came rolling in. Insurance covers the majority, but the excess is still usually quite a large sum (mine is £350 per claim). You might also want to factor in for vaccs, dentist, saddle fitter, worming etc. as these less regular costs still add up. Eventually, I really couldn't afford to keep him on the £600ish I was earning part-time, as alongside the horse I also had my car to run. There's also just your own living costs too which I didn't initially think about! I rarely saw friends or went out for dinner etc. as every penny I earned went on Barney. Its only now that I have a full-time job with a good salary that I feel comfortable knowing I can afford the best care for my boy should the worst happen (again!). Like I say, it can be done but having been in your position, looking back I would probably tell my younger self to look at a part-loan or a share first until I was a little more financially stable. Being a horse-owner is much more fun when you're not worrying so much about how you're going to pay for the next bill! I hope that helps you make your decision, I don't want to put you off at all, just sharing a few things that I learned!!! X

 

[Ponymad21]

I don't have any friends really and those that I am friends with have horses or are experienced with horses, I don't have a car to run or rent ect to pay.
I am looking for a share first so I can save up more funds so I'm not as reliant on my parents

 

[BarnesBridge]

You're lucky that you don't have a car to pay for! If you're only looking for a horse to share, you may find that the cost is actually a lot less than you are anticipating, depending on what you are looking for. You certainly sound like you're being a lot more sensible than I was, best of luck to you, hope you find your dream ned X

 

[MileAMinute]

I would get a car/vehicle first. Speaking from experience it's bloody difficult owning horses and having no transport!

 

[MuddyMonster]

Whilst you are on a training wage and no transport, I'd definitely look more towards a share rather than ownership. Then if all is going well, you can look to loan before buying and hopefully your income will have increased enough to comfortably afford your own

 

[Ponymad21]

I am looking for a horse share at the moment but in a year or so I am hoping to get my own horse

 

[Theocat]

Definitely start with a share. No matter how careful you are, it will cost more than you have budgeted, and even on a good week you'll have an average of £40 per week for travel, clothes, toiletries, socialising, birthday and Christmas presents, holidays ... Good luck finding a lovely share

 

[FestiveFuzz]

It won't be what you want to hear but in your shoes I would find a share and put money into learning to drive unless your parents are willing to do two trips to the yard a day 365 days a year?

In my experience horses have a sneaky ability to haemorrhage money at the exact moment you don't want them to. My boy for example managed to wreck a bunch of rugs in just over a week and then ended up needing weekly Physio at a cost of £60 for 6 weeks. Lost shoes are £10 a time down this way and you also need to factor in what you'd do if the horse ended up on box rest for any length of time?

Sadly the cheapest part of horse ownership is buying it...it's just downhill from there!

 

[Zoe67]

I bought my first horse nearly two years ago, and my parents very kindly paid for her for a year until I started my apprenticeship. I am earning a bit more than that (around £800 a month) but my livery fee was more as I am on mates rates part livery at a family yard and I spend more on my feed and hay and farrier, I run out of money every month and have to borrow off my parents.

Would your parents be happy to be giving you lifts to and from the stables? And to and from your apprenticeship? If not you'd need money for a car and petrol, or a bus fare or train tickets. And there's always unexpected costs, like rug repairs, excess on vets bills, supplements etc

I think it's a bit tight, but if your parents are willing to lend you money when you need it, go for it!

 

[Damnation]

I would get a car/vehicle first. Speaking from experience it's bloody difficult owning horses and having no transport!

This.

My parents said they would help but soon got fed up and it ended in alot of arguements and bad feeling.

 

[FlyingCircus]

Lost shoes are £10 a time down this way and you also need to factor in what you'd do if the horse ended up on box rest for any length of time?

I feel like crying is probably not the answer you were looking for... :')

 

[EQUIDAE]

Grass livery £100 - fixed
Feed £10 - I pay 30-50 a month depending what is needed
Hay £70 - a bale a day in winter at £5 a bale would be more like £150 during 6 months of the year
Insurance £55 - If you're lucky
Farrier £40 - that's a conservative estimate - shoes tend to be around £60 a set and trims £25-30

£275 - more like £400

You are missing a few things though

Wormers - approx £100 a year
Dentist - £60 a visit (more if you have a vet doing it) twice a year
Saddler - mid summer and mid winter to adjust for shape change £50 a time
Back person - I have the sports massage person out every 3 months to prevent soreness £50 a time
Vaccinations - £100 a time with callout

There are other things you need to factor in - ongoing repairs if your horse damages anything, replacement tack, lessons, paying someone to visit if you can't make it down for whatever reason - even a grass livery horse needs to be checked on daily (preferably twice daily).

So even not accounting for those thing, the other missed would add another £50 a month so you're looking at £450 a month as a conservative estimate. Of course you could always cut corners, but if you can't afford to pay for these, how are you going to cope with an unexpected vets bill or if the horse needs box rest and you need to factor in stable and bedding.

I'd say wait till you are working full time.

 

[Leo Walker]

Mines on full livery, but I could easily keep him for much less than Equidaes figures! Hes the stereotypcial easy keeper cob

Grass livery £100 - fixed
Feed £10 - I pay 30-50 a month depending what is needed. £0 for a fat cobby job like mine. He does get a balancer in some chaff though, so £10
Hay £70 - a bale a day in winter at £5 a bale would be more like £150 during 6 months of the year. There would be no hay 6 to 8 months of the year, and a big bale at £30 lasted him 6 weeks in the winter, and that was stabled a lot so no grass to fill him up
Insurance £55 - If you're lucky. Mines £24 a month for 5k of vets bills with a £135 excess
Farrier £40 - that's a conservative estimate - shoes tend to be around £60 a set and trims £25-30. My barefoot trimmer charges me £20 and hes done every 8 weeks as he self trims to a certain extent

Wormers - approx £100 a year, probably not far off. Hes worm counted every 8 weeks or so and wormed once a year usually
Dentist - £60 a visit (more if you have a vet doing it) twice a year. £50 a year
Saddler - mid summer and mid winter to adjust for shape change £50 a time. As needed
Back person - I have the sports massage person out every 3 months to prevent soreness £50 a time. My physio is £40 and again as needed
Vaccinations - £100 a time with callout. My vaccinations were £40 I think on free call out day

So works out £220. Not that I would advise anyone to do it on a shoe string, but there are cheaper ways of keeping horses to good standards

 

[Fox5]

I am looking for a horse share at the moment but in a year or so I am hoping to get my own horse

Hi

I think it also depends on which area of the country you live in particularly for livery.
Its also possible to shop around when buying tack
When buying new rugs - buy at the end of the rug season when stockists are wanting to replace stock with new season colours etc.

Could you work a few hours at the yard in return for lower rates? Or help turn out horses/feed/supply holiday cover for other owners to get extra money.

If you are unfortunate to have an injury illness you can also buy prescription medicines online (plenty of reputable companies) far cheaper than direct from the vets (they will not sell drugs unless you provide a full prescription from a vet if it is an ongoing problem you would need to return to the vet after 3 months for another prescription) - I learnt this valuable lesson from when my precious Labrador was diagnosed with a heart condition

Please get a horse before you settle down with a potential partner (they have a habit of being time consuming! !!!!) And definitely buy before you have children - they are the biggest drain on your finances! !!!!!!!. I am thinking of buying a pony for my kids but never had one when I was younger. After looking and seeing some stunning animals thinking of buying for myself and making my kids wait! - Sorry I love my kids to pieces!!!!!!!!!

Good luck. I hope that you find a way to follow your dreams. Life is short and you need to enjoy your time on the planet.

 

[Equestrienne]

Owning a horse seems much more expensive where I live - I've been reading these comments with absolute jealousy!!

Paddock only, full DIY: $200 per month
Farrier: $120 for 4x shoes and trim
Feed: ~$100 p.m
Hay: $10 a bale ($20 in shops!!!!)
Haylage: $140 for all of winter, so ~$46 p.m (we're coming into winter now)

Dentist was $80 for just a check up... don't even want to think about my saddle fees....