For those of you that keep horses at home

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

Sorry I've not read too many of the other posts, but IF your land borders a road hedge then don't forget that you'll have a legal obligation to trim the hedges every year (if you don't do it you'll get a rude letter from the council and/or they will tell you that their contractors will do it - at their price).

Also bear in mind if you're looking at properties with land then you might need to put up some decent fencing before you put horses in there. As well as possibly needing electric fencing to split up, i.e. energisers, fence poles, wire etc etc

Also check out whether the land is registered for "agricultural use" - coz some councils are very iffy about Change of Use to horses instead of farm animals.

You can save yourself a lot of money on land maintenance by asking a local farmer to graze it with sheep. This way you get all the convenience and none of the hassle of actually owning the sheep concerned.

 

[Adopter]

Like the post above, I have managed to keep costs down as neighbour (farmer) puts sheep or tups on our field, which helps with management and preventing grass becoming horse sick and in return I can have hay as I want when I need it.

Neighbour also keeps an eye on property when we are away and will help with rolling, scarifiying etc if we want.

Muck is always in demand for gardeners, try to contact a local garden group or allotment society!

Fencing is a really big cost, OH does it for me, so just have cost of materials but it is still expensive.

Don't forget as well blacksmith costs can vary according to areas and how in demand someone is.