How much do you charge a sharer to ride your horse ?

I'm very lucky and I pay nothing!

2 horses (1 on rest through injury) on rented field.

My payment is my commitment to ride twice a week in the evenings and do all the stable chores.

My sharer (or sharee?) is very lovely and lets me ride wkends if she's not free, plus go to shows etc...

I think it depends on what you are looking for. For me, I "share" but when it comes down to it, she is the legal owner and bill payer so has the say in what happens...and that arrangement has worked fine for many years!
 
cbmcts said:
I can see both sides of the sharer/owner debate.

But when people say that they could keep a horse themselves for say £100 -£200 a month, especially in an expensive part of the country I laugh hollowly :eek: Yes, that may cover livery, maybe even feed and a contribution towards the farrier but have they taken into account

Original purchase price (some one either had to pay a hefty price for a nice horse OR put countless hours into making a safe, sane ride)
Insurance
Wormers
Back/dentist once or twice a year
Vaccinations
Tack/Rugs
Vet bills and or insurance excess

Now if you were to add all put the first on that list and divide by 12 you're probably looking at another £50/60 a month conservatively. Even when I had a horse on cheap grass livery, unshod and with no physical issues he cost me at least £150 month and that was years ago. Last year a DIY stabled at night good doer was costing me £300 a month or over £3.5k a year....no new rugs/tack, no vet bills, no competing or any other luxuries.

I agree with the people who say that you shouldn't be 'charged' to school someones nutter but a sane hack/RC type horse is worth it's weight in gold (look at the purchase prices!) and it's not unreasonable to contribute both in time and money to have the experiences both good and bad that are not generally available in a RS. After all, how many people wouldn't put some extra fuel in a car after borrowing it as a thank you and a realisation that the cost of running a car is much more than the price of petrol at the pump?
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Purchase price shouldn't be included as you don't pay the cost of a loan horse or a riding school horse- and the way i see it is often the sharer is doing a favour. I see the financial cost as a tie to the share as a bit of responsibility, and more the fact that they should cover the cost of the additional feed/hayshoes the horse needs as its being ridden more- I dont think it should ever be used so the owner gets to have a horse virtually entirely for free!

Livery £105 per month
Insurance £16 per month
Wormers £8 per month when divided out
Vaccines £5 per month when divided
Feed £10 per month
Dentist £3 per month
Excess £8 per month
total £155
 
Years ago my mum and I had an agreement with a lady who didn't have time for her horse, he was a little fat hairy cob type thing that you could do anything with, and lived out all year round.

It worked really well for us, his owner only had time to ride him Sunday mornings due to work and family commitments but didn't have the heart to sell him. The agreement was that we could have him the rest of the time and do as much or as little with him as we wanted, as long as she could take him for a hack for a couple of hours on said Sunday mornings, or could ride him if she had days off from work. We paid half of his livery, shoes, vaccinations etc but got a really good deal from it. We had him for several years and it always worked well for us. :)
 
shadowboy said:
Purchase price shouldn't be included as you don't pay the cost of a loan horse or a riding school horse- and the way i see it is often the sharer is doing a favour. I see the financial cost as a tie to the share as a bit of responsibility, and more the fact that they should cover the cost of the additional feed/hayshoes the horse needs as its being ridden more- I dont think it should ever be used so the owner gets to have a horse virtually entirely for free!

Livery £105 per month
Insurance £16 per month
Wormers £8 per month when divided out
Vaccines £5 per month when divided
Feed £10 per month
Dentist £3 per month
Excess £8 per month
total £155
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You must live in a cheap part of the country.... some of my costs are a lot more than yours.... and I don't go OTT

I keep my horse in DIY.

some of my rough costs....

Livery £130 per month(pretty standard around here)
Insurance £30 per month
Dentist £5 per month (seen every 9 months)
Haylage £30 per month
Bedding £25 per month
Shoes £60 per month (seen every 6 weeks)
Physio £10 per month (seen twice a year)



That's already £265 plus other costs (feed, wormer, vaccines).... I budget around £300/month for my horse. there's no way you could keep a horse for £100/ month around there. That sort of contribution certainly does not mean I get my horse for free!! (my horse isn't on part loan at the moment. But I have loaned in the past)
 
I am charging £10 a week, no chores just want him loved and a bit more attention than what he is getting at the moment, can ride as much as she likes, no competing.
It basically pays for his shoes, I don't mind doing everything else, as i would anyway, the attention for him is more important as I have a young horse to concentrate on.


£200 a month...wow I only pay £160 a month to keep four on grass livery, around here it would be cheaper to buy your own horse than share on that cost that much and only a couple of days riding. :eek:
 
It would depend upon the ability of the horse or pony and what the sharer was allowed to do, were their oppotunities for them to compete etc

In this area you are usually charged about £25 a week for three days a week (including one weekend day) and sharers expected to do all the chores on those days or £10 a ride.

My current sharer pays £30 a week and can ride four days, I am flexible about days, even if she doesn't let me know until lunch time that she wont be up.
He's an ultra-safe schoolmaster and she gets a discount on lessons from my YO/RI and will have the chance to compete him if she wishes too. The only chore involved is a bit of poo picking if she does a weekend day. I'd be happy to pay this and she originally offered more.

My three cost:
£190 for my broken gelding on DIY
£200 for my semi-retired pony on DIY
& £410 for the above horse on livery
There would be no way you could afford a horse for what my sharer pays unless it was on grass livery, having no hay, feed and was barefoot and not insured.
 
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My livery is £300 per month
Insurance is £30 per month
Shoes are £40 per month (every 7-8 weeks)

I cover everything else myself so these are the only things I calculate when working out what to charge sharer.
 
I pay £50 a month, for 2/3 days a week (the 3rd day being every other sunday), including mucking out, providing one of the days is his day off.
I intend to give her more when I am able too. I think it depends on how much you need, and how much the right sharer (which is most important) is able to pay.
 
Yes but area makes a massive difference.

My DIY livery is £150 a month (more if I needed moring turnout but I do it myself)
Haylage at least £35 a month
Bedding - shavings at approx £40 a month - just over 1 bale a week
Cheap feed at £15 a month.
Shoes £60 a time so roughly £30 a month
Insurance £30 a month (I think)
Wormer
Etc!!!!

So costs are high!! So why shouldnt I expect someone to pay if they are getting to ride my schoolmaster a couple of times a week and not do any chores :) I am SO jealous of the people who keep their horses on livery and all costs in for £100 a month!
 
NiknKia said:
Wow some of these figure i find ridiculous for someone helping YOU out. Yes they are getting to ride your horse but I mean they could keep their won for what some people are charging :eek:
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Disagree with you there. It costs a lot of money to keep a horse in the South. My horse is on part livery for near £500 a month minus all the extras, shoeing et al and my sharer pays £180 a month which given a lesson on a riding school horse is averaging £30 / 40 an hour, this is more cost effective for two days a week and she gets to do more and treat him like her own

They are helping you out but they are also getting the pleasure of the horse - works both ways
 
I might also add that if a prospective sharer finds the cost too much and its stipulated already on the advert, dont enquire about the horse! I advertised my warmblood at £180 and had well over 35 enquiries in two weeks
 
I share a lovely fun horse in Surrey for £150 a month. I usually ride at least 4 times a week including a sat and i compete him. I do poo pick, clean tack and buy him bits and bobs but I dont have to muck out. I could never afford my own in Guildford :(

I have seen people wanting up to £200 for fewer days which i think is a bit greedy but i guess it depends what you can afford and what suits the owner.
 
I do think some of the prices quoted on here are ridiculous, and think that some people do take advantage of sharers, when often it is a mutually beneficial arrangement.

To me, for reasons already stated, the riding school argument isn't really valid. Yes, its more expensive - but then you get instruction, insurance, no chores whatsoever, no responsibility.

The price asked depends vastly on the circumstances of course; but even then I don't think it should ever be more than the proportional costs of keeping the horse - I don't believe its right to use a sharer as a cash cow to pay for your horse.

Unless the horse in question is an absolute superstar, there are no chores, sharer gets weekend riding and comps etc, and the owner is only doing it to help cover costs, then it is an arrangement that benefits both parties as the owner is saving both time and money, whilst still maintaining ownership and ultimate control over the horse.

I've always been lucky never to have had to pay for a share horse - except on one occasion when I paid £5 a week for up to 3 days riding with no chores. I'll always pay my way for lessons/competitions etc and help out with yard work when I'm around of course. I do consider myself very lucky but I also think it works out pretty fairly - I get to ride, and compete - but equally I help exercise which saves the owner time, and I'm also happy to school the horses I ride too. Also with that type of arrangement, it is very much up to the owner what I do and when I ride - it suits me fine but if I paid a fair chunk I'd want a lot more say so over the arrangements.

FWIW I had a sharer for my horse for a time and I didn't charge her either, as she was saving me time! So I'm fair both ways :)
 
I charged my sharer £10pw for use up to 6 days a week (he had to have one day "rest"), mostly hacking but she had planned to do some local shows with him. I didnt ask her to do any chores or anything, but her mum often groomed my mare as well as she liked to brush the horses :D He was hers to treat as her own, she didnt have to check in with me or anything and I didnt ride him so she could take him out when she wanted.

I could have asked more probably, certainly looking on here a lot of people make money out of the shares and each to their own. I just looked at it as I would have had to cover the cost of his livery/vaccs/worming/feet/insurance anyway so just asked for a small contribution towards that (obviously £40 a month doesnt go far!) just to help a bit, but it was nice to allow someone to ride who wasnt in the fortunate position I am of owning horses and it got my boy out and about more than I would have. If I were to look for another sharer in the future I would only charge the same amount :)
 
I charge £10 per day but only have a sharer for purely financial reasons as I have two to keep on a very low income. Mine only do chores if they want to as I enjoy doing them myself, also I give my sharers the oportunity to compete if they want to as have own transport. I think they get a good deal, I paid loads more when I used to be a sharer and I'd have to pay towards shoes and for job service on top if I couldn't make my days for any reason.
 
I have owned, loaned and shared over the last 30 years and in my opinion the charges involved need to be based on what you want out of your sharer.

When I was at college I part shared my horse to someone in the village who was a good little rider but there was no way her parents could ever have afforded to buy / pay for a horse for her and so I charged nothing. I just wanted her to have fun and spent time with & ride my horse as I did not have the time and my horse needed work as she got bored in the field doing nothing, so both sides got what they wanted.

I have also shared a few horses over the years, the last of which I think in all honesty I ended up paying far more of the horses’ costs than the owner did!! I took her on as the owner asked me to do some work with her as she was having problems (bucking / spinning) so I did, and me being me, when I have a horse, whether it’s my own or a share or loan I always ensure that if there are any problems I get them investigated. Hence me then paying for her saddle to be checked every 6 months, her back to be done / checked every 6 weeks, her feet / shoeing being done regularly ( I even arranged the farrier visits and attended them) EDT etc. I wasn’t happy with what the owner was feeding her so discussed it with her and ended up buying her feed for her. Not to mention time spent schooling, mucking out, poo picking, grooming, pulling, trimming, clipping (my clippers, my blades) using my equipment, my rugs …I could go on. She was only on DIY livery at £25 week (owner paid) and I did her 3 / 4 days a week, so in this case the owner certainly got the best deal, but I fell for the horse and she gave me my horsey fix when I was working full time so I didn’t begrudge spending the money.

I think it is wrong to assume that sharers are people from just a riding school background (maybe with limited experience) sometimes the sharers have far more knowledge and experience than the owners!!.

If you have a horse on full livery and need help financially then I would question whether you should be keeping the horse on full livery. I wouldn’t have a share on full livery as part of the fun for me is doing all the chores, getting to know the horse whilst you groom it etc. I don’t think anyone can say that there is a cut and dried amount that should be charged. If you have a safe sensible hack and that is type of sharer that you are looking for then I think it is fair to pay a proportion of the total costs – both sides are getting what they want. However if you are looking for someone with the ability to school / compete / improve your horse then I would say that an equal proportion of the costs is not right as the owner is benefitting from the sharers work / input. At the end of the day the owner has the final say what happens with the horse and can even turn round and sell the horse once you have put the hard work in.

Sorry to have waffled on.........:rolleyes:

PS where are all these sane horses that you cant find a sharer for???? I have given up looking to buy after 3 failed vetting and nearly a grand down the toilet, and the only shares I can find are aged (so would worry about what level of work they could do) or the nutters that that the owners are too scared to ride:confused:
 
I pay £15 a week for 3 days and I do all the chores on that day which works for me. I ride only on the weekend as I work full time and the days aren't light enough yet. The owner has said I can do what I want with him and compete him in the summer.

I wouldn't pay more though as I simply can not afford it. I do buy the horse odds and sods, and the owner was really nice saying that whatever I buy for him, is mine and if I decide to not share him again, all the items I bought are mine.
 
I Remember my parents paid 150 a month for my teenage share eleven years ago. I rode 3 or 4 days a week and this was half his livery costs which they considered perfectly fair - half the time for half the cost and none of the responsibility of ownership (or vet fees!)

My teenage sharer recently left to go to equine college after two years and her parents paid me 155 a month for 2 days a week on DIY, although I offered and wanted them to do 3 or 4. I was the only person prepared to let a tall 14 year old to sharer a big (16.2) horse and let her jump / go to pc rallys and camp / compete. I will add i live in Surrey and DIY and hay/ bedding / feed Alone is 320 a month, and i also paid for someone to turn out on mine and sharers days at 2 a day as well as shoes etc

Sharers get a good deal, a lot of the benefits of ownership (ie a bond with one horse, independant hacking etc) without any of the responsibilities and often cherrypicking the days they ride. They can move on at any time, dont pay vet bills and its the owners problem if they cant do a day or go on holiday.

To the person who said anyone on part livery who has a sharer for financial reasons should move to DIY - some people work long hours / shifts or live in a city a long way away from their horses. Or they might have a physical or famíly issue which mean they need the extra help. I know i can afford part livery but only just. A sharer would mean I might be able to go out for dinner once a month or buy my horse a new rug, or even save a little bit for emergencies.

If the sharer is happy and so is the owner what is the problem?
 
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xspiralx said:
I do think some of the prices quoted on here are ridiculous, and think that some people do take advantage of sharers, when often it is a mutually beneficial arrangement.

To me, for reasons already stated, the riding school argument isn't really valid. Yes, its more expensive - but then you get instruction, insurance, no chores whatsoever, no responsibility.

The price asked depends vastly on the circumstances of course; but even then I don't think it should ever be more than the proportional costs of keeping the horse - I don't believe its right to use a sharer as a cash cow to pay for your horse.

Unless the horse in question is an absolute superstar, there are no chores, sharer gets weekend riding and comps etc, and the owner is only doing it to help cover costs, then it is an arrangement that benefits both parties as the owner is saving both time and money, whilst still maintaining ownership and ultimate control over the horse.

I've always been lucky never to have had to pay for a share horse - except on one occasion when I paid £5 a week for up to 3 days riding with no chores. I'll always pay my way for lessons/competitions etc and help out with yard work when I'm around of course. I do consider myself very lucky but I also think it works out pretty fairly - I get to ride, and compete - but equally I help exercise which saves the owner time, and I'm also happy to school the horses I ride too. Also with that type of arrangement, it is very much up to the owner what I do and when I ride - it suits me fine but if I paid a fair chunk I'd want a lot more say so over the arrangements.

FWIW I had a sharer for my horse for a time and I didn't charge her either, as she was saving me time! So I'm fair both ways :)
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My sharer has no chores to do whatsoever, can ride him as much or as little a week she wants can make lots of suggestions to me (Im not precious) and I want her to feel like she has a voice. She can compete, have discounted lessons and I'm happy for her to pretty much do what she likes with him. All I ask is she loves him, fusses over him and enjoys his company. He's a stunning dressage warmblood with impeccable manners so I do think she is getting a good deal with this as I'm not sharing him to take advantage of anyone.
 
maletto said:
WHAT?!?!?!?!


In the end I decided I just wanted him ridden rather than the cash.

QUOTE]

i've just gone thru the process of finding a 'sharer' for mine, but she doesnt pay anything towards mine for the same reason. When i was looking for someone i only wanted someone to ride him for me, but i felt bad as i couldnt afford to pay them for the riding. Now she keeps offering to muck out ect on the mornings or afternoons she rides, to save me a trip up there, and i still feel like I should be paying HER, not the other way around!

If i didnt have my own horse, and wanted to share something, if i had to pay £200 pcm like some other people have suggested, i might as well get my own horse (as it costs me not much more than that to keep mine in livery atm!)
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I used to share horses before I got my two as a way of breaking in the commitment to both me and my parents (was only 12ish at the time). My first share we paid nothing for, and for this I got full use of the horse 7 days a week, but bearing in mind it was a private family yard (so complete DIY!) and I was responsible for caring for 3 horses 5 days a week, I'm not going to lie, it was damn hard work, but worth it. Next share, ex-racer, only 4 (complete nutcase!). Paid £15 a week for her, 3-4 days a week, no school, but lots of off-road hacking. Then we decided to buy a couple of our own as neither of these had happy endings so bought our 16.1wb and 15.1cob. We keep them both on part-livery. At present, we don't have sharers (when I say we, I mean my mum and I, who rides twice a week at most), but when I head out to uni, hopefully next year, we will probably get a couple of people to ride in the week to keep them fit.

I am expecting that we will be charging them £25 a week for 5 days of rides. No, it won't be for financial reasons, but I feel £25 a week for a very decent horse on part-livery, wonderful facilities/hacking and chance to compete is very reasonable.
 
What is fair, depends on local RS prices, what the sharer can do with the horse, facilities and costs etc. I've varied from not charging at all but getting help with chores/hacking out nannying help for babies etc, to charging up to half the cost. One sharer didn't pay and ended up taking a lot of my time too - another paid but I had to be around a fair bit just in case, and one paid and did it all on her own (bliss!). It's usually easier and less time consuming to exercise them myself, so any sharer either has to contribute help with chores or help towards costs.

I'm not willing to provide a horse for free for someone to ride, AND do all the associated work. We'd all love that!!!!!
 
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A few years back I had a sort of sharer for my old boy who was a total schoolmaster. A friends daughter started riding him 2 days a week, I turned out, mucked out etc in the morning and she brought him in and rode him, they paid me £10 a week. This sort of grew and when I got my youngster she started doing him most and eventually, every day and her mum offered to pay his stable rent and shoes as she was mainly riding him. During term time I would do the stable in the morning but in the holidays she would do him all day and most the time would do my youngster as well! When she outgew him she sort of took over the youngster and I bought another, and on and on! I taught her weekends and we competed with him at local shows and later with the other horses all over the country (M&M's on the county circuit) So really it was more of a loan with support than a true share. Her parents could never have afforded to buy her a pony and they really appreciated the oportunity she had.
 
Echo what some people have touched on, i am surprised with the number of people asking a large amount for a horse who need work.
Someone round me wanted £215 to ride a 5 year old ex race horse, who required an experienced rider as she was a little difficult.
Whereas, i had someone wanted £140 a month including shoes etc for a 13 year old, well schooled horse who could do xc, jumping, dressage. This was a much better deal for someone who was serious.

Eventually the share i was looking at was a v. slightly cheeky 13.2 for £10 a WEEK for up to 5/6 days. Okay, facilities were not great, but the area was accesabile and the owner was flexiable.
 
WOW I've just seen 200 per month?!?!?! :eek::eek::eek::eek:
When I started I paid 40 quid a month for two days to ride, do the stable jobs and compete if I liked.
Now the owner doesn't want me to pay, I just try and give some financial help wherever she will let me:p we're more like friends than anything now, I've been sharing her horses for 8 years and we ride together daily. I help out with her other horse if she is working, including riding and jobs andI will (hopefully) share her horse as long as possible now :)
K x
 
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If it makes you guys feel any better about what you're paying per month, our sharer pays half of everything (board, shoes, etc) and in return rides 3 days per week plus 1 weekend day. Our barn charges somewhere around $600pcm for board alone. Half-training board is somewhere around $800pcm and full training board is more than $1,000. That being said, our farm has a 100x200 indoor school, a large outdoor, heated tack rooms, 12x12 stalls, individual grass turnouts, 2 wash stalls, unlimited hay (included in the price), hard feed of choice (included in price). Also included, all rug changes, there is someone living on site at all times, boots are changed, horses are brought in/turned out for you, stalls are mucked out every morning after turning-out. Yes, it is a lot to pay but if Mum can't get there she knows our horse is being taken care of. And it's perfectly reasonable in the States for the sharer to pay half of everything. They're using the horse half of the time so why not? Our sharer is allowed to go to any competitions/clinics within reason. It's a good set-up for us all.
 
Charge!!! I would love to find a sharer for my horse & wouldn't charge anything. Mind you they'd have to be the 'right' person for him.
 
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