Money saving tips!

Miss L Toe said:
Be careful buying anything designed for sheep as they have strange dietary needs, re salt, I am going to ask my Fishmonger if he can get me some without additives [table salt is refined stuff]
I buy micronised cooked linseed meal [equimins] as I understand the nutrient value is higher, I could not go through a daily grinding procedure, and there is some thoughts that linseed MUST be cooked.
Oats are fine if mature and organic, but modern farming has messed up traditional feeds, they use too many chemicals, barley is not for every horse, and traditionally any whole grains would be fresh, ie bruised or rolled every few days. I like the idea of feeding straights, if only to prevent my horse getting filled with rubbish, we can't buy grains round here, unless branded [expensive] .
I must admit to feeding Allen and Page, but I know they are very careful to avoid animal products and obviously research and source finest ingredients [sorry if that is an obvious plug!]
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The Rockies mineral salt licks are safe for both sheep and horses except for the red one which is not suitable for either due to the high copper content and is designed only for cattle. But stick to the yellow one for most horses or the blue one if you want extra magnesium and they are fine for horses and sheep. Double pack 2 x 10 kg well under£20 squid and last months. You can get holders too to stop them dissolving in the damp although my Doberman has stolen the holder as his new gave toy and carries it around the field for hours :-))))
 
WelshD said:
Lamb castration rings are an excellent alternative if you lose the black rubber rings from the T on your surcingles
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Read through the whole lot before I got to this one. Discovered this today when I looked on ebay & someone was selling about 15 for 99p. Went out to the yard & dipped my fingers into the box of calf rings!
 
For snow & ice -

Buy a £1.80 bottle of spray cooking oil from a supermarket.
Spray onto the hoof before you turn out.
When it comes to bringing them in and picking out the ice it will come out in one block easy ad anything! :D

Tabula Rasa x
 
Natch said:
Ooh my fav topic!!
Own brand baby shampoo instead of horsey shampoo, baby oil, wet wipes make good eye/bum wipes etc
Many things like cotton wool rolls cheaper from Chemist not saddlery
Wash rugs that don't need re-proofing in the bath yourself
Stock up on swedes from supermarket end of day reductions, they still keep for ages.
Learn to sew or make a friend who does - lots of things easily repairable instead of throw away, e.g. velcro comes off something.
Do an occasionall reccy shop around for best price/quality straw, hay, shavings etc. don't assume you are still getting a good deal from your current supplier
See something you like in your local tack shop? If you can wait a few days for it, go home and mooch the internet to see if you can get it cheaper
Ebay is amazing!!
Get together with others to buy feed/straw etc in bulk
Look after your things - maintain tack and rugs etc, and if you have a theft problem on a yard a lock and chain is cheaper than constantly replacing things
Visit the pound/cheapo shop for storage boxes, sponges, vaseline, dustpan and brush, cheap small brooms make good yard brooms if you don't have to sweep the whole yard, laundry baskets make good skips

... told you it was my fav subject
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With you all the way on this - for years Ive said anything thats prefixed with horse or equine the price magically doubles, even had this a couple of years ago with haylege - I phoned said it was for horses the price was £40 a bale, got a friend to phone the next day and say it was for sheep and the price was £25 for exactly the same bales.
I always buy everything I possibly can for my horses away from tack shops, I make my own mane and tail conditioner, coat shine, fly spray, buy baby shampoo, use nappies as poultices, buy supplements from supermarkets and things from £1 shops where I can. I also wash my own rugs using a power washer in summer and let them dry on nice sunny days on my gates. I buy second hand where it is viable and admit over the years have become very savvy when it comes to certain things.
I would sooner spend the saved money on things that matter like good quality feeds, and care of my horses.
Think its about time the big guns stopped thinking people with horses have endless bank accounts and joined the rest of us in the real world! :)
 
Just thought of more - sorry.

If your horse is on long term medications - Dont Buy them from your vet, ask for a 4 to 6 months prescription, as you have to have a review of the horses condition/illness at least once every 6 months depending on what it is. Prescriptions usually costs about £10 and then buy the drugs online from places like Hyperdrug or VetsDrugs2Go. You will pay upto a 1/4 of the price and save loads, they exactly the same drugs but imported so the packets/instructions inside maybe in an European language, but still the same. I had a old horse that had Cushings and to buy his tablets would have cost £100 a month from the vet, from an online site it was £25!!

Dont buy expensive tack cleaners, a spray bottle of leather feed and condition does wonders from the £1 shop and to feed your tack buy cheap tins of Dubbin from shoe shops!

Learn how to sew and repair minor rips on your own rugs using Fishing line, its durable doesnt rot and is strong - if repairing an outdoor rug seal the repair by rubbing a candle over the sew line.

Save money by buying shavings in bulk, when you phone your supplier ask if they will discount you for a bulk load - the worst they can say is no. If you can source a main distributor near you and buy by the pallet load.

Dont feed more hard feeds then you need to, be realistic, if your horse is a once weekly happy hacker does it really need the diet of a race horse?

If you have more then a couple of horses, or can join up with friends on the same yard ask farriers and dentists if they will give you a discount for a group booking - they will usually knock something off for you.

If you again have a few horses or can join up with others, buy yard packs of wormers, it saves alot of money rather then buying individual wormers.

Im have loads more but I wont bore you now xxx
 
This is such a good idea i've already saved money buying stuff online on equinecompare.com. Whats that website where people post stuff they don't want and all you have to do is pick it up and its yours?
thanks :*
 
I think you mean Freecycle.

When my galvanised trough started to develop little holes (it was absolutely ancient), I was mortified by the prices. £60 plus VAT for the smallest size in the farm shop - WHAT! So I ordered a plasterers bath from ebay for £29.99 and it's so much lighter to empty! It's also mega thick plastic and nowhere near as unsightly as an old bathtub!

I keep my horses next to a builders/roofing yard. They have big wooden crates of tiles and when they're empty the crates get thrown on the bonfire, so I've claimed a few and use them to put hay out in the field to minimise wastage. My dad cut down some gridwall sections and we drop that over the top so they eat slower and waste less. I also have a limitless supply of solid-top pallets that I line the floor of my hay barn with to keep hay off the floor.

Additionally, pallets make excellent jumps! Cut them in half diagonally so you have two triangles. Stand them up on the long side and nail on half round rails to make XC jumps. Get your half rounds from the wood yard instead of the local fencing company - much cheaper! I have three which cost me about £10 each to make instead of the £75 plus delivery you'll pay online

Drain pipes make great poles too - as do plastic fishing rod tubes - 3 x 6'6 from the local fishing shop for a tenner!!!!! And they come with capped ends so you can put sand in them!

Someone else put on another thread recently that a poundland potty at either end of a pole make excellent cavaletti.

If, like me you have a shetland that likes to wander through the fencing, go buy some 1m scaffolders netting. I get the old stuff my local scaffolders can't use any more because it's got holes in, and tack it to my fence stakes. She can't get out of that, the little toad! If you can't get it for free, you can buy 50m for about £15 delivered. They even sell it in green/black!

On the subject of scaffolders, I used their old boards to make stable doors. All it cost me was box of screws and a couple of hinges! In fact, I used scaffold boards to build the partitions in the barn too. The pony's stable door is made of pallet wood.



 
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Bought a load of childrens hair detangler from avon it was £1.50 a bottle on offer it is great ans smells lovely as good as any horsey version for a minimal fee
 
3 big sponges for £1 at poundland-great if, like me, you lose your sponges all the time!
Second hand tack shops. Catlips is great. They also sell new stuff and buy stuff from you for a great price-I got a brand new medium weight full neck turnout rug, brand new headcollar and leadrope and second hand jodhs for just £40 after turning in a small bag of stuff.
Car boot sales are the best though. If you find a horsey person you're in luck- my finds include mountain horse fur lined riding boots, neoprene wellies, back protector, new show browband, new leather headcollar for under £40 just from one couple. I also got a pony saddle in great condition for £35 and hat silks for 20p each.
Got 10 rolls of vetwrap off eBay really cheap. Also 4 adjustable jump wings with 16 iron pole cups for £120 delivered from eBay.
Freecycle- got a bundle of random horse stuff, stable forks, hoof poultices etc.
Sell stuff you don't need- I sold the weave bar that came with my horse as it didn't fit her door. £30 eBay! And I sold her cribstix which went for quite a lot considering I got it free with my horse.
Look in every skip for things you could use as rustic/cross country style jumps. I found some pallets which are good as fillers. Also found some tires in a hedge and lots of uneven wooden poles which I nailed together in a triangle shape (5 on the bottom tapering to 1 at the top) to make a log jump. Also since I was teaching my horse to jump I used uncoloured poles (less spooky) which are cheaper to buy or you can find them lying around. I used spare fencing planks for a while, though they're flat not round. I also used straw bales which are really fun to jump.
 
Things we do at our yard are:
Sharing the jobs - one person feeds in the morning, another turns out, someone else brings in, then there is someone around to give evening feeds and nets. Means that even with a horse that is stabled overnight you can get away with one trip a day most days.
Also, a few of us feed our horses normal supermarket own sunflower oil, but with peeled garlic cloves in it to make garlic oil. The horses love it.
With tack cleaning, I put a teeny spot of cheap soap (fairy or shampoo) into hot water and give my bridle/martingale/girth/leathers etc a quick dunk and the grease and mud wipes straight off. Not necessary for day to day cleaning, but after hunting or a muddy or sweaty hack it makes light work of a normally tedious job! Just remember to give a good oil or soap afterwards.
 
izi said:
oh and pig matting . . . .near as damn it as good as horse rubber matting , went got £5 for 10 sheets .... fitted out 2 stables with it and it's still going strong 5 yrs on , fence posts and the like ... Go and have a look for one , look on farmers weekly website for any that might be coming up !
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Wow! could you send me details on Pig Matting and where to get it?
 
Feed tubs from Asda for £2 and water ones £3 and come in pink too!

Shop around and do your research.

Grow your own herbs.

Buy supplements such as Fenugreek and Turmeric at your local supermarket or Indian shop. Lot cheaper than a horse supplement company.

Get out your sew machine. Make your own gear. I made my own stocks for dressage. Took an old one. Made pattern and used scrap of pretty Kath Kidston material. Cost £2! Also made a hay bag. Cost me £4 and these retail at anything from £10 upwards. I re-designed my exercise sheet and turned it into a wrap around one with tail flap and flashing lights.

Flashing light arm bands from Lidl / Aldi cost £3. Sew onto your exercise sheet.

Hi-viz jackets. Ask local police station for de-badged jackets. I have my fathers old padded winter jacket. ( All badges taken off so no excuse to be mistaken as a serving officer).

Old fabric conditioner bottles are ideal as slosh bottles if you compete in endurance or for taking to rides / shows etc to sponge horse down. With a drop of citronella.
 
Avon skin so soft dry oil spray in original is a great fly repellent works really well and is only £2.50 but even better when it's on sale :P

I've also saved a lot of money buying my horsey stuff off eBay I got two haynets for 99p and a headcollar for £2.85 recently so well recommended x
 
Magicmillbrook said:
Overalls - I bought myself and daughter a pair each (£4), it saves me a fortune on stained jops/washing powder etc. I can do morning stable in my work clothes, its also very liberating not having to worry in the slightest about getting mucky, they are also lovely and warm without being sweaty and bulky. On downside my daughter was hacking out in hers, made eye contsact with very disshy farm worker, then remembered she was weraring her fetching brown overalls!
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actually an amazing idea... overalls-- no more horse muck smell on the bus!! you GENIUS you!!
 
Im tempted to change my brand of chaff, I currently feed Dengie Alfa A Oil which is £15.79 from my local countrywide for 20kg. The countrywide own brand equivalent has the same oil content (12%) and is £9.49 for the same weight.

I go through a little under a bag/month, so at £6 saving a bag, thats £72 per year saving!
 
One of my best buys was a broom from pound land! It's lasted amazingly well! Also round our way we have a sort of hardware shop called proper job (they basically sell everything :p) they are great for brooms, rakes, buckets, water canisters (great for taking in the trailer), torches, Yard gloves, all really handy around the yard and 100 times cheaper than anything associated with horses :p
 
cobsarefab said:
Buy hi viz from non equine sources. Also the cheapest quarter sheet:https://www.kramer.co.uk/Universal-...kraemer-pferdesport.47-GB&pi=340196&ci=262556
Also make things instead of buying them, much cheaper! Buy a good quality fly rug instead of constantly using fly spray. £40 for about 8 yrs or £16 every week for fly spray in summer.
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On fly spray that works but costs £16 for several weeks, try Equi-Aide Fly Buster. You can get it via e-bay. Comes in a small bottle and you dilute with water to spray / sponge on, and it only has natural ingredients. My mare is not too fond of fly sheets and damages them pretty quickly!
 
My "top tip" if you like, is to studiously try and avoid buying anything specifically marked "equine" coz that just is an excuse to charge stooopid prices.

My cheapie tips:

Make your own fly-spray, I use a mixture of one capful of Dettol, mixed in with cold stewed tea and a splash of vinegar, add-in about a thumbnail's worth of liquid soap, then your oil of choice (I use Neem). PLEASE PATCH TEST if using on your own horses tho'

If horse on supplements, don't ever buy Brand Name ones. Look at what's in them and look-out for ingredients separately. E.g. mine has sweet itch, so I use Cider Vinegar, Brewers Yeast, Micronised Linseed, Clivers and Nettle (can pick your own and dry the last two on the list).

First aid kit: nappies and sanitary towels are excellent for wounds (and one helluva lot cheaper than Animalintex! - also because they're in a packet should be sterile). Sudocrem is a good fix-all, but don't buy from the Chemist, look at places like Lidls as much cheaper there!

Double-up products: like, I've used Sainsburys Tea Tree shampoo for me! AND the Neds. Ditto Udder Salve (fantastic for slapping on your face and hands in the winter), also does for the horses. Nice and cheap and cheerful. Ditto Sudocrem. Ditto mane & tail conditioners.

WD40 is fantastic for de-tangling manes and tails, and for spraying on feathers to keep them in good condition! Also if you apply on a sponge and go over the coat gives a lovely shine! (note: NOT if the weather is hot and sunny!). Ditto liquid paraffin which is what the Horse Masters of old used to do to get a nice shine on their draught horses for shows. But again (warning!) don't use on your Neds without patch-testing first.

Wormers: go on-line, or even better search out and find a good farmers agricultural unit i.e. one without the expensive shop surroundings, I've found one round here which is tucked up a side-road on an industrial estate - no shop, no frills, more like a depot/warehouse atmosphere, but much cheaper!

Riding clothes: if you're just a happy hacker like me, then you may find that hi-viz for runners & cyclists is much cheaper than specific "equestrian" stuff is. Lidls & Aldi are good places as they often have stuff in their bargains aisles. I bought a lovely comfy pair of cycling trousers (with padded bum!!) for a silly price, they were made of a special fabric that wicked away sweat but kept you cosy if you got caught in a shower.

If buying say a hat, by all means go to your equestrian outlet and let them "fit" you with something which suits; then excuse yourself (somehow!) go home on-line and get what you want a lot cheaper, naughty I know, but we've all done it surely.

Some good tips elsewhere on here!
 
I use the waterproof patches for tents on my rugs and I also buy a lot of my fly spray in winter when there being sold cheaply! Last year I saved a fortune on fly spray and I still have more than enough for this summer coming
I also buy stuff in bulk or you could buy things in bulk with other horse owners to get it even cheaper :)
I also buy the huge bags of left over carrots the ones that are too ugly or small to be sold in the shops there like £2 for a massive bag
 
Jenz said:
I have no idea how good the quality is but Aldi and Lidl occasionally have exercise and stable bandages, headcollars, rugs and odd things like that at super cheap prices! The big Tesco stores also have riding things. Because of the quality uncertainty I wouldn't buy tack, but a stable bandage surely is just a stable bandage that is going to get bedding stuck in it anyway!

Talking of supermarkets, according to moneysavingexpert.com the dead-and-dying sections get cheaper roughly the same time every day, perfect for picking up apples and carrots!

(Up to 25% off - Up to 50% off - Up to 75% and up)

Asda 12pm - 5pm - 9pm
Morrisons 5pm - 7pm
Sainburys 10am - 5pm - 8pm
Tesco 8am - 4pm - 8pm
Co-op 8am - 5pm - 7pm
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I got a 200g Stable rug from Aldi (£15),2 years old and going strong, and a large haynet (£3) both have lasted me 2 years i have had my horse.

I read a few reveiws saying they have clippers for really cheap that are better than the £200 ones you can get, although i dont own them to test this but i am waiting for them to come back in stock to try for myself!
 
Get teeth, feet and saddle checked regularly. Could save a fortune if problems are picked up early!

My 2 best money saving discoveries this year were allowing the horses to live out 24/7 with access to shelters (saving a fortune in bedding), and laminated boards that come from the inside of old lorries. They are SO heavy but that makes them excellent for kickboards in shelters- really weighs the shelter down so it doesn't take off in a storm, and because they're laminated you can hose them down if they get really mucky. I got mine from a chap who repairs lorries. He gave them away for free as they're expensive to dispose of.
 
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