How many horses and what kind of job?

Lillybob

Lillybob

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This was something I was thinking about the other day. I'd love to own my own little herd one day but then I keep thinking about how that would be possible timewise if I want a good career and a family eventually too. So although I am sure it's possible, I'd like to hear about everyone else! How many horses do you have (and what type are they?) and what kind of job do you have? Do you ever find it a struggle to manage both or do you manage just fine? Pure curiosity here!
 
Good question, lillybob. I'm in a similar situation and wonder if I'll ever be able to own my own.

Looking forward to people's replies.
 
I have one 6yo 16hh TB gelding and two mini shetlands. I keep them on livery so that is the most i can afford for now although if I ever got my own place i would probably get another big horse (and undoubtedly another mini or 10 :) ) At the moment i am just hacking and schooling but in futue I would like to compete him. I am a solicitor so have a fairly demanding job with long hours and my horse is on DIY so it is very time consuming but still manageable. I don't imagine I will ever have children though. I admire anyone that can manage the horses, job and children combination.
 
Good idea Lillybob, I have two and I don't like the thoughts of owning three! I'm a Montessori school teacher, usually 6/7 hours a day Monday to Friday (which isn't all that much!) and I find two is a bit more time consuming than I would like. Mine are in at night so I suppose if you had enough land to keep them out 24/7 it would be less work, I only have 1.5 acres and like to mind it.

I really would not like to own more than two, I would find it difficult financially but mainly it would be too time consuming. I worry about the two that I have a lot as well, I imagine having another would push me over the edge!

I like that I can spoil two of them, whereas everything would be stretched that bit further if you had "a little herd".
 
I'm a solicitor and have one, my 8yo ISH Jazz. OH and I are in the process of buying a house with land and stables, so Jazz and my sister's horse Harley will be coming to live with us :)

I don't have masses of time during the week at the moment (I do go to the yard every morning before work, but my mum and sister bring the boys in at night), but hopefully once they're at home I'll be able to do more.
 
I have 3 on DIY livery - 14.2 20yo Welshie who is ridden 2-3 times a week with assistance from a young girl who is learning, 15.1 13yo Irish Cob who has had some time off and is very slowly being brought back into work, and a 16.1 5yo Hanoverian x who is worked 5-6 days a week. I have a 9-5 full time office job.It's a struggle, more so with bringing my 13yo back into work. Without him, it would be fairly easy time wise (unless I decided to have kids..), but at the same time I wouldn't be without him and I will work out how best to manage it all somehow, I hope!
 
I have one, a 9yo 15hh Irish (prob connie x) gelding. I also have a newish job which now involves a 50 min commute to the office each day. when I worked from home in my last job it was easy to fit in everything but now things are far more difficult. I can now only manage to ride 4x a week (less in winter) so I have someone who hacks him out 2x per week and sometimes my YO schools him once. I can occasionally get up to the yard 5x in a week but rarely now - fuel and time costs are too high.
I'm getting married in August and would also like to have a family. I now compete far less, since starting this job, as I don't have the energy or time to put in all of the practise and training needed in the week. the job involves a reasonable amount of European travel too so that impacts on horse stuff.

We are looking to move house but unfortunately are not in a position to afford somewhere with any land. One day though as it would make life so much easier!
 
I have a 9-5 office job, horses are 20 mins away I own 3 of them and ride another 2. They all showjump upto Fox atm. I live at home and am single so no family/commitment ties! Just me the dogs and the horses,and I LOVE it! It is all I live and breathe,but for the moment that's how I prefer it
 
I have one and I'm a New Business Manager... aka sales. I probably could afford two long term but I wouldn't be able to enjoy life much in other ways!
 
I have one and am an editor/writer for a busy international agency. Involves travel and long hours, but luckily yard is 15 mins away and have a v. good friend who's always happy to chuck feed in/chuck out if I'm going to be late. I live pretty much at the yard, there every day before and after work.

OH and I live together, and if we didn't , I don't think we'd see each other!

Would love another one in a few years, am gunning for a house with some land (just have to convince the OH to give up city life and escape back to Devon...)

However, I don't want kids and am not particularly career focused, so horse and OH get all my time.
 
I have just bought a 2nd. My horse of a lifetime is slowing down now so have just bought a younger lad. Currently in the getting to know each other stage so he is ridden about 5-6 days a week and the older boy is ridden 4 times a week. I work in a hospital but have fairly nice hours 8am-4pm. Thankfully I have a very supportive husband who helps out a lot :)
 
Eight horses - three pure Lusitanos, one Luso-Arab, one Luso/something, an Arab/TB, a Welsh section D and a Percheron! My job? Running a horse riding centre :D
 
I have 3.. all ridden at least 5 days a week, I work 8-4 5 days a week. On call every evening and every other weekend. Its hard work but doable. Just get very used to early mornings!
 
Hannahgb said:
I have 3.. all ridden at least 5 days a week, I work 8-4 5 days a week. On call every evening and every other weekend. Its hard work but doable. Just get very used to early mornings!
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That's good to hear, i'm expecting similar hours one day :)
 
We have 5 all in week ranging from 5 to 8 yrs old. I work full time, but the kids and I do them before and after school/work and accept that in the winter during term-time they don't get ridden as much. They are in at night during the winter and during the day in summer and our yard is about a mile from our house.
 
I currently have 5, I am trying to cut down but I sell one and another appears :( How does that happen :o ?
I work from home, painting literally anything that doesn't move and can be delivered. Horseshoes from the UK recently would you believe! They will have done about 7000 miles by the time they get back to their owner. I make enough to keep my horses and feed the other animals. Nowadays I have a far better income than running a livery yard which is what I did before :) I make the same with one painting as I charged per month for a horse at livery!

My horses are at home, they live out all year round so managing them is easy. My routine is such that I have no routine. I do what I want, when I want.
 
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You just learn to be organised. I get all tack etc out at the same time so I can go from one straight to the next. Fill as many haynets as possible at the weekends etc. I am also on a complete DIY yard. I have no help up there.
 
I have 11. All out 24/7, which is the only way I can manage. Work is full time, usually at least an hour away, long hours and can include travel at short notice. Contracts are a few months at a time, so the good thing is that I often have time in between. It's easier now that the girls are older, as my husband is happy to run around after me, but hasn't a clue how to deal with a horse emergency.
 
chestnut cob said:
We are looking to move house but unfortunately are not in a position to afford somewhere with any land. One day though as it would make life so much easier!
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well, it does and it doesn't-trust me, more than once this year I've longed for the days when I just went and rode and didn't have to do fencing, paddock clearing, mucking out, fence creosoting, strimming, weed killing etc etc I do love it but when you're working 60 hour weeks or if you are ill, its less fun.

I am a research assistant (lab) 5 days a week with a 90min round commute. I tutor part time from home with hours per week varying from 2-20. Three equines, one retired pony, one young pony in light work and one 4yo horse who's just being rebacked and educated in the ways of traffic etc. I have some of my own land and stables plus rent land roundabout. Do I cope? Barely sometimes but some of that has to do with the land and location. I do all the horses and land/building maintenance myself.
 
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I have five (well six including my OH's) and work full time in finance. Three live out and three are on DIY at the moment but last year I had six on DIY whilst still working full time and it was VERY hard work. It costs me a small fortune as they are mainly high maintenance TB's but I work hard and don't have children and the nags want for nothing :)
 
I currently have 3 at home. Up until last year I worked part time in finance with a 2-3 hours a day commute. It is certainly a lot easier now I am not working. When I worked I didn't manage to much else other than work and look after the horses. I didn't have much time to ride either. It was ok when they were all well but when 2 needed to be on box rest it was very difficult. It can be done you just have to be committed and organised. You can end up spending most of your time on field maintenance though.
 
I have two new forest ponies. They are kept on DIY livery and live out 24/7. Herbie is my competition pony who I do a little of everything with Dressage, showing, jumping, pleasure rides and Merryn is my happy hacker and driving pony.
I work nights in a carehome and also work in the daytime as a freelance groom. I exercise my ponies every day (I mean who needs sleep anyway ;) ) It's bloomin hard work but worth it to have my two amazing boys :D
 
1 on full livery. I have a 9-5 office job and finish bang on 5pm most nights.
1 is enough for me, he gets 100% of my attention and the yard staff are fab with him too so he is very pampered. My OH and I also have lots of other outdoor and time consuming hobbies and we both like to travel. And we have 2 little rescue cats who like lots of fussing and hanging out with us too.
We have no children. Basically, we have structured our life together to be as indulgent as possible, and that includes our animals!
 
I have five , two RID's they are hunters, a TB who hunts and I enjoying training for the flat work but don't compete , a American saddle bred ( on kwpn papers ) who was a carriage horse but now hunts and a near TB ISH who I bought for fun and I may do some low level eventing for fun on him at some point we will also get him hunting .
I have help seven days a week .
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I have one horse, on part livery, 2 low paid part time office jobs which give me 2 half days a week which I usually use to ride during the week, then I also ride on weekends. I also do evening duties 7 nights a week at the yard where horse is kept to get some money off the livery bill. My husband is a massive support and although he was completely unhorsey when we met, he prob knows as much as me now so usually helps me at the yard. We have no spare cash, house is a tip, we don't go on hols or nights out and our last three vehicles (and last two tv's!) have been hand me downs from better off family and friends. Yes we are the poor, often slightly smelly (Eau de equine), country bumpkin relatives! But we have the most beautiful creature in our lives x
 
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