Moving to australia - do I take my horse?

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flurryjuno

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Long story short, dads been offered an amazing job opportunity in Australia and if all goes well we will be moving in a few months. However, what do I do with my horse?! I've not even had her a year and selling is not an option as we've really bonded and I couldn't part with her, I could take her with me however I know that will cost £4-5k+ and don't know if dads work will cover that and nor would I expect my dad to be paying that much (he's not horsey so doesn't really get it). Other option is to loan her but if it comes to loaning though I just know I'll be way too fussy and probably end up putting people off unintentionally:o

I'm trying to get as much information as I can eg. transport costs, do horses adapt well to the climate change, how different are the costs from keeping a horse in the UK, flight or shipping, how do the horses manage with quarantine etc. I know that she will be kept on livery, but how different is it going to be? I'm used to having her on a small private yard and quiet roads you can potter about for hours on and hacking to the beach amongst other things so I have no idea what to expect. Any information/advice is welcome:)
 
For me it would depend on the climate of where you're going and how much of a change it would be for the horse.

Also is your dad's job forever. Is there any likelihood that you would come back. Is so the horse would be put through the journey twice and you'd have double the expense.
 
Honey08 said:
For me it would depend on the climate of where you're going and how much of a change it would be for the horse.

Also is your dad's job forever. Is there any likelihood that you would come back. Is so the horse would be put through the journey twice and you'd have double the expense.
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^ This is a great post. ^
 
flurryjuno said:
I know that will cost £4-5k+ and don't know if dads work will cover that and nor would I expect my dad to be paying that much (he's not horsey so doesn't really get it).
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TBH I would be absolutely amazed if your dad's work paid for you to take a horse to Australia. For me, it would be as said previously dependent on how long your family realistically expects to go out there for and what the climate is like.

Top competition horses travel around the world 'regularly', so it can be done and they can adapt.
 
Its Sydney we would be moving to, and I don't think we would be moving back anytime soon. I'm 16 so it would be a good two years at least and even then I doubt I'll come back if all goes well. I don't want to take advantage of the work situation but I think in the end it would be my dad paying, but I don't really know all the prices and details!
 
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Horses cope very well with flying, climate change and the quarantine. It is very costly and is a lot more then the 4-5k you mentioned

Please feel free to pm me,
 
It sounds like an amazing opportunity, you must be very excited!

If this was me, I would consider the following:
- Is 2 years (potential time in Aus) long enough to warrant taking a horse across the world and back? Two years isn't realistically that long.
- If you do stay, are you realistic about how much time you will have to spend with your horse with upcoming school exams/possibly university?
- Are you moving to the city itself or outside of Sydney? (Are you going to be close enough for your parents to take you to the yard etc.)

That aside - I would suggest finding some Australian horse forums and asking them, as they will be able to help with more specific Aus questions.

Good luck!
 
rach1 said:
It sounds like an amazing opportunity, you must be very excited!

If this was me, I would consider the following:
- Is 2 years (potential time in Aus) long enough to warrant taking a horse across the world and back? Two years isn't realistically that long.
- If you do stay, are you realistic about how much time you will have to spend with your horse with upcoming school exams/possibly university?
- Are you moving to the city itself or outside of Sydney? (Are you going to be close enough for your parents to take you to the yard etc.)

That aside - I would suggest finding some Australian horse forums and asking them, as they will be able to help with more specific Aus questions.

Good luck!
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Possibly moving to the apartments in the olympic park? Emphasis on the possibly, that's what dads work have offered him but we're going out in about two months to have a look so I'm going to have a look at potential yards when we're there. I'm sure I'll have time, I'm being home schooled right now because I've been ill for the past two years and been in and out of school so I expect the first few months will be the same until I get back on my feet so can't really say right now. Good idea about the australian forums thank you I didn't think of that:)
 
When I looked into this 6 years ago I got quotes for 8k+ to go from the UK to Perth, Sydney is further but not sure if it would be more. I knew I wouldn't be staying forever, I thought at least and in the end we came home after 18months so I'm glad I left him at home with my mum and sister.

Think long and hard about the type of riding you enjoy and what's possible in Australia. You might be best selling your mare and buying again out there. If I'm honest there are so many things to do out there you might find having a horse more of a burden to a new lifestyle. You might turn into a surf bunny and never want to see a horse again :)
 
I would find out a rough estimate of how much it would cost to have your horse flown out there and approach your dad to see if he'd consider it, as unless he has the nicest boss in the entire world, his work certainly aren't going to pay to have his daughter's horse flown out! To be a grumpy grown up, there's no point getting excited about it if your dad is not going to even entertain the possibility.

The move is exciting though! :D
 
Just asking the obvious here, what did your dad say about taking the horse with you? I understand that he's not horsey, but realistically you as a 16 year old will not be able to get £10,000+ on your own without help from your dad, also being 16 you won't be allowed to sign any papers, quarantine stuff etc etc, so potentially your dad will have to drive to places and sort out the paperwork for you. So it adds a lot of stuff to what your dad will already have on his plate, moving his family across the world is going to be hard enough without having to worry about half a tonne of animal too.
I'm not saying don't do it, but i'm not saying do it either. All i'm saying is that because you're not legally an adult, and you don't have the funds to pay for it yourself, it's really not up to you but your dad, so if i were you, i would sit down with him and have a good long chat about it all :) Good luck!
 
hnmisty said:
I would find out a rough estimate of how much it would cost to have your horse flown out there and approach your dad to see if he'd consider it, as unless he has the nicest boss in the entire world, his work certainly aren't going to pay to have his daughter's horse flown out! To be a grumpy grown up, there's no point getting excited about it if your dad is not going to even entertain the possibility.

The move is exciting though! :D
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I know, thats why I'm not getting worked up about it. I know dad would do it but I don't want to be that kind of person haha. I'm trying to get all the facts first, for all I know the whole thing may fall through so I'm still trying to be as realistic as I can, yes it would be nice to have her flown out but at the end of the day it might not be the best decision:)
 
It's VERY expensive to travel a horse many miles in an aeroplane. But if you can afford it, go for it. Also think about the horse, how it would feel getting took away from it's natural temperature and climate. If the feelings unbearable you should put her on loan, or maybe try and sell her and tell the people who buys her, that you want to see her every 6 months. When you come back and vist your family! What height is your horse? X
 
PingPongPony said:
Just asking the obvious here, what did your dad say about taking the horse with you? I understand that he's not horsey, but realistically you as a 16 year old will not be able to get £10,000+ on your own without help from your dad, also being 16 you won't be allowed to sign any papers, quarantine stuff etc etc, so potentially your dad will have to drive to places and sort out the paperwork for you. So it adds a lot of stuff to what your dad will already have on his plate, moving his family across the world is going to be hard enough without having to worry about half a tonne of animal too.
I'm not saying don't do it, but i'm not saying do it either. All i'm saying is that because you're not legally an adult, and you don't have the funds to pay for it yourself, it's really not up to you but your dad, so if i were you, i would sit down with him and have a good long chat about it all :) Good luck!
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Luckily it won't be the whole fam, mum and dad have just gone through a pretty nasty divorce so it would be myself, dad and possibly my older brother:) I know I'm coming across very spoilt and I'm trying not to lol, even if it was to happen I expect I'd already be there 3-4 months before she would actually move out but at the end of the day its not my decision. Asked on here for peoples views and have been very grateful towards everyone's point of view, thank you:)
 
You're not coming across as spoilt, just getting ahead of yourself a bit :) Dw i know what its like, and i think its a brill idea to come on here to ask views of other people as you will get responses from a wide range of people who aren't attached to your horse so are looking at the situation from a different perspective :)
What would you do with her for the first 3-4months while you were out there and before she went over??
Easiest way in my opinion is to have a chat with your dad as to what he thinks is a realistic solution.
Saying that, it'll make the chat easier if you do some research as to approximate costs and the logistics of the whole move :) so no harm in doing that :) Just remember, whatever you work out, add a few grand on top and that will be a closer approximate cost :)
 
Shysmum said:
I moved to Oz in 2007. Had to sell my beloved cob. Had a breakdown. Had to come home. That's the potted version. x
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That's what I'm worried about but I didn't want to say, I have anxiety issues and depression to the point I had to stop going to school because I was having panic attacks non stop and was in and out of hospital for a while. I got Juno and she's helped loads so parting with her would be unbearable, and moving to a new country while it is exciting I am quite scared:o But then again I'm not being very practical, I can't use that excuse to justify that amount of money I suppose. It will probably be best to keep her here on loan so she will be mine, and maybe a year down the line I will be able to fly her out if we are staying long term:)
 
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I was under the impression that Australia requires a six month quarantine for animals coming into the country. I most certainly read somewhere that for the Sydney Olympics, they made the whole equestrian facility into a quarantine area, as it obviously wasn't practical to put all those horses through the six months of quarantine.

I moved my horse from the US to the UK, but would not have moved her to Australia, as I would not put her through a six month quarantine and it costs far more to fly a horse to Australia than to fly one across the Atlantic. Horse adapted to different climate, time zone, whatever fine (well, kind of), but that isn't the issue with going to Oz.

You also have to think, it might not be so easy for you to stay after your dad's two year work visa is up. I don't know how difficult it is for UK citizens to get long term visas for staying in Oz, but if the Aussues are anything like everyone else on the planet, they will make it a bloody nightmare.
 
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There aren't many yards close by to Sydney which may be a factor too. My friend has to drive an hour each way to get to her horse.

My OH was recently asked to take a job in San Francisco and it was a given the 2 horses would come too, even with the additional costs that we would of had because they are girls. If it is a 6 month spell in lock down then it would be a much tougher decision though
 
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Get yourself a plan, it will make u feel more in control of the situation, e.g.
Get a quote for transport
Ask dad if possible
On your visit find a suitable livery yard, again looking at costs, riding and making sure u would be happy
Work out if horse goes just before or just after u and find full livery this end or other
If all systems go, great, if not look at other options e.g loan, sell, buy another once there.....

All very exciting for u, hope u enjoy the visit and it all goes snoothly ....
 
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