Full monthly cost of DIY livery

[Stacey_xo]

Due to all the price rises I’m considering DIY livery. I’ve never done DIY before so I’m wondering what the approximate total cost per month would be, and also any tips for adjusting from full to DIY.
I’m willing to put in the work as I 100% do not want to lose my gelding, full has just been a nice convenience until now.

I’m after the total cost, such as how much everyone is paying per month for the livery, including feed, hay, bedding and shoes etc. I’m paying approx £650 per month for everything right now (full livery, feed, shoes and insurance).

Thanks in advance.

 

[First Frost]

Mine is about 400 per month averaged out over the year. Much less in summer, more in winter due to additional hay.

 

[Fjord]

Everything averages out to about £350 pm I think.

 

[Wishfilly]

I'm in a cheap area of the country, so your prices may be higher than this, but here's a rough breakdown of what I pay:

£107 a month for stable and grazing- it's a smaller size pony stable, would be about £20 more for a horse size stable.
£33 for hay
£40(ish) for bedding dependent on how many bales I use

That's all paid directly to the yard owner. The YO also supplies wormer/worm counts which we are charged for about 3 times a year.

On top of that I probably spend around £40 on feed/supplements etc, and another £40 or so on services including turnouts, holding for the vet etc (obviously that's not true DIY).

Shoes are £45, fronts only.

On top of that, I obviously have insurance, occasional costs like saddler, physio, dentist etc, but those are presumably the same on full livery?

As well as this, you'd need to factor in petrol for more regular trips to the yard, potentially.


Biggest challenge (if you work full time) is probably ensuring yours isn't constantly the last left out in the winter, or has company to be turned out with in the mornings.

 

[Fieldlife]

It really depends on how much the base rent is. How good the grass is / whether you can only use small bales of hay, and how much of the year you are feeding hay.

Plus is there a shared rota for turnout and bring in or do you have to go both ends of the day and how much is fuel cost.

DIY can be a lot cheaper or nearly same price as full livery depending on set up.

If there isn’t a lot of grass / turnout limited in winter, you only have storage for small number of small hay bales, straw bedding not allowed, and you do have to go both ends of everyday, there might not be much saving!

Suggest finding out details of DIY yards in your area to do costings.

 

[Stacey_xo]

I'm in a cheap area of the country, so your prices may be higher than this, but here's a rough breakdown of what I pay:

£107 a month for stable and grazing- it's a smaller size pony stable, would be about £20 more for a horse size stable.
£33 for hay
£40(ish) for bedding dependent on how many bales I use

That's all paid directly to the yard owner. The YO also supplies wormer/worm counts which we are charged for about 3 times a year.

On top of that I probably spend around £40 on feed/supplements etc, and another £40 or so on services including turnouts, holding for the vet etc (obviously that's not true DIY).

Shoes are £45, fronts only.

On top of that, I obviously have insurance, occasional costs like saddler, physio, dentist etc, but those are presumably the same on full livery?

As well as this, you'd need to factor in petrol for more regular trips to the yard, potentially.


Biggest challenge (if you work full time) is probably ensuring yours isn't constantly the last left out in the winter, or has company to be turned out with in the mornings.

That’s great thank you! And I do work full time, there are a few on the yard who also work full time so hopefully that won’t be an issue. ?

 

[webble]

Depends on area but I pay £220 excluding lessons and insurance

 

[PSD]

I’m in a relatively cheap area. I pay 240 a month in winter for diy livery which is stable bedding and haylage. I pay 70 every 6 weeks for shoes and 38 a month insurance. Feed is around 30 a month in winter.

Summer I pay 88 livery a month unless I have to bring in for any reason then it’s 7.50 for half haylage or 15 for full - half is basically if they’re out partially and full if they’re kept in. Shoeing and insurance cost never changes but I don’t give hard feed in summer as the grazing is great.

 

[Sealine]

I pay £25.50 week for stable and grazing. Hay £4 bale - I use approx 2 a week. Shavings at £10 bale every 10 days. Bucket feed approx £4 week plus supplements. Shoes £80 set every 7 weeks. Insurance is extra. £20 month trailer parking.

 

[SEL]

I was £45pw inc ad lib hay but I think it's up to £50 now with straw bedding.

I keep my feed bills low with chaff and beet (we won't discuss my supplement habit). I probably spend £20 pm

If you're working full time I'd plan for some freelancer costs

 

[Identityincrisis]

I would highly recommend using straw as your bedding. I used it for the first time last winter, i deep littered during the week and did a full muck out on Saturday, what a massive saving on my bedding compared to shavings or pellets. I would also recommend sourcing your own, if possible, as I've been on a yard where you had to buy from them and the hay was double what i would buy it in at.

Timings are the hardest part of DIY, i used to get to the yard at 5.20pm to find the fields empty other than mine and 1 other horse, it stressed me out! Same if you start early, although mine did learn not to stress if he was first out and used to handle it quite well

 

[Dontforgetaboutme]

Unless you can do the labour yourself I’ve found you can’t do DIY any cheaper than part livery. The upside is you have a bit more control of the management. Some DIY yards don’t do extra services so what about farrier & vets appointments and cover when you are away?

 

[throwawayaccount]

£112 rent
£60 haylege
£7.90 per shavings bale
£80 shoes
£20-30 feed/supplements

x2 for two horses

 

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

My DIY livery pays £160 pcm for 4-acres grazing (all-round t/o) and her own little "American Barn" area which includes a stable/horse standing area, tack-room and feed storage area, all under one roof. Sole use of her area and grazing. Mains water & electric & owner (me!) lives on-site. This is Devon. Livery is responsible for procuring all their own feed hay & bedding.

 

[smolmaus]

I don't think my costs are going to be that relevant to you, since £650 is an insane amount of money for full where I live. But,

£120 basic rate
Halyage over winter £1/day
Shavings £7 a bale
If I was on proper DIY that would be £176/month, with added morning turnout and the occasional bringing in brings it to £205-210.

Full livery here (not really full, no exercise or grooming, just basic care) is £260, you supply your own hard feed.

 

[chaps89]

DIY livery anywhere from £150-280 pcm for stable/grazing.

Bedding is now nearly £10 a bale, a bale a week so £40/50 a month.

Hay, £5 or £6 a small bale or £35-40 a big bale. How much you use will depend on how big the horse is, how much they need and how much they’re in. As a guide 2 small ponies living out getting a section a day are doing 5 bales between them a month at the moment, in winter it was about 12 bales a month.
Previously I could get between 3 and 4 weeks out of a big bale (round or 4 string rectangle) for a 14.1 and a 12.2 (12.2 didn’t really get any though to be fair)
So £40-ish a month for hay averaged out over the year?

Freelance costs for assistance - currently I have 2 visits a week roughly at £10 a time (no on-site help), on-site help might vary or you might be able to swap favours with other liveries.
Definitley something to factor in if you ever go away though, personally I don’t like to ask for a weeks worth of favours but paid help can prove expensive.
My £10 a visit fee is also cheap, generally it’s £15 upwards now.

Hay and bedding costs will be variable depending on whether your horse is out 24/7 over summer and how much they have to be kept in in winter. I used to put aside extra in summer to cover the increased costs over winter.

 

[Expo]

No-one has factored in the "cost" of your own time when doing DIY. Of course you don't pay yourself for the time spent mucking out, turning out, bringing in, poo picking etc etc but it has to have some value in terms of having to be there when you need to be there, or paying someone else to be there for you in the event you're away on holiday, working late, ill, have other commitments etc which we all do have. If you add in just a very modest sum per day for that, the comparative cost of DIY versus other livery arrangements becomes less attractive.

I am currently on a full livery arrangement which includes all bedding, feed, hay and "work". Broken down to a daily rate and based on current feed/bedding costs, the "work" costs me about £5.00 per day - that's £5.00 per day to show up twice a day - every day (rain or shine), turn out, bring in, muck out, hay nets, water, feeds, poo picking .... we all know the drill. All of that needs to be taken into account when making livery decisions.

 

[cindars]

Wow. Just realised how lucky I am. Have been on same yard for years. Gradually got smaller so only two of us now. We pay £90 a month,get our own hay big bales delivered £45. This year they have lived out all year

 

[marmalade88]

I’d ask yourself why prices are rising at your current yard, if a livery yard getting bulk deliveries of hay, bedding etc are putting prices up you’ll also be paying more for all of that if you’re buying it yourself. I expect all hay and bedding prices to rise further this year. Large bales are at least 40 around here and small hay bales at least 5.50.

I‘m based in the south east and have done both DIY and part livery options (everything but exercise) and when I did the maths a few years ago it was only costing me another £40 a month to just stay on part livery vs DIY. I’m happy to pay that to reduce the hassle factor of me needing to be there twice a day, for vets, farriers, organising holiday cover and in the worst of the weather, when I’m ill, or if I‘b had a challenging day at work, missing social events etc. IF i went on holiday for a week if would cost 15 a day at least for cover for one week, so it netted off over the course of the year easily. If you are a on a good DIY yard close to home with lovely fellow liveries it can work really well, and it did for me until I changed horses and jobs But it’s not always the cheaper option in the long run. AS expo said factor in your own time and what that’s actually worth to you.

Your first port of call would be to call DIY yard int he area and ask for their prices and rules. Do you buy bedding hay from them, can you source your own, who else is on the yard, bring in times in winter (some yards want them in before dark) etc etc etc.

 

[Northern Hare]

When I had my horse, he was mostly on full or part livery as we relocated a few times around the country for work. I used to periodically do a comparison to see if it was worth trying to go back to DIY, which I would have done all along if it wasn't for work.

As soon as I added in all the extras I would have needed (ie. weekday bringing in), and the extra diesel which is especially important to consider nowadays, it was always a no-brainer to stay with part or full livery, it just didn't add up for me to go back to diy. I never added in anything for my time, but don't forget the independence that having your horse on full/part livery gives you, although it's difficult to put a price on it.

I think the figures could work out but it would depend on having the horse at a yard close to home or on the way to/from work, having an arrangement with a fellow livery to share turnout at the yard (not all yards allow it), going for straw bedding, having the horse out 24/7 for as long as possible during the spring/summer/autumn, and fine tuning feed costs - replacing expensive feeds with feed store own brands where possible.

Good luck! ?

 

[MuddyMonster]

I'm going against the grain of the last few posts slightly here but part livery cost me about £850- 900 a month all in whilst assisted DIY costs me about £450 in winter (only one visit per day from me) and less again in summer as out longer so using less bedding, hay, feed etc and assisted services are less available. I could do it cheaper (currently - who knows about price rises) as I use assistance services when they are available, don't buy the cheapest bedding, feed or hay as I tend to go for most convenient options etc. My hay delivery isn't the cheapest for example but they put it away for you so will happily pay that extra and I buy my feed and bedding from a store that delivers, again not cheapest but so handy.

But, I think it does depend on individual circumstances - my part livery yard was 40 minutes away from home where my DIY is miles closer so I save both petrol costs and time by being on DIY (in the summer I often cycle or I can drive there and do all my jobs in the time it took me drive to my part livery yard). The set up of the yard also means everything (including fields) are much closer so bringing in/turning out is much quicker than on part livery.

But, if that was reversed, its something to bear in mind.

 

[huskydamage]

I once added it all up and worked it out annually, I pay average 600 a month, that is for 2 horses.

 

[Backtoblack]

Rent £120, straw£30,, hay£60,petrol to and from the yard£150, Farrier£75, all monthly,add annual vacation, horse insurance, trailer insurance,worm counts,clipping,rugs and incidentals, realistically£500 to£600 a month.

 

[Stacey_xo]

I don't think my costs are going to be that relevant to you, since £650 is an insane amount of money for full where I live. But,

£120 basic rate
Halyage over winter £1/day
Shavings £7 a bale
If I was on proper DIY that would be £176/month, with added morning turnout and the occasional bringing in brings it to £205-210.

Full livery here (not really full, no exercise or grooming, just basic care) is £260, you supply your own hard feed.

where do you live? I will be moving there haha!

 

[smolmaus]

where do you live? I will be moving there haha!

Don't, we don't have bridleways ? (it's northern ireland, so there are many other reasons not to move here)

 

[shortstuff99]

I did DIY for over 20 years and then switched to full livery. In 1 year my livery price has gone from 400, to 500 to 750 a month per horse and I have 3!!! Back to DIY I go as I can do all 3 all in for about 500 a month.

 

[lottiepony]

Not that i ever like putting it down in writing but for my 2 (shetland & 17.1hh horse) I pay:
2 x stable and field £150
Bedding, bedmax - £72
Hay - £70
Feed/Supplements - £100
Farrier/physio/saddle/fitter/lesson/entry fees etc all extra as and when needed.

I would say you would save money by going DIY but don't forget things like fuel costs will be more as you will be going there twice a day every day. I'm very lucky as can walk to the yard I'm on as it's just down the road in the village.

 

[TealH0rse]

Might be worth looking into assisted diy. My yard is 300, turnout and bring in during winter with a rug change, 24/7 turnout summer. Hay included. Arena use at any time. Shavings bale a week in winter but can buy more.

I’ve seen a lot of people on diy end up spending more because they end up needing services. Assisted might be a good in between for you while getting used to diy.

 

[dogatemysalad]

Costs vary from yard to yard, even when the livery charge is the same.
Some yards restrict turnout which increases costs of bedding and forage. On yards where the farmer offers large bales of hay and straw, the price will be considerably less than yards where you have to buy in shavings and small bales of hay.
Some YOs insist all services are provided by yard staff and don't allow DIYers to help each other out.

 

[Birker2020]

My bill was almost £250 last month for assisted DIY which I think is very reasonable.

It works out around £7.20 a day (with either one turnout or bring in included). Trailer parking is 60p per day and weekend bring in (no rugs/feet) is £3.50 so I tend to do that myself most times. I supply my own feed, forage and bedding.