What should I do?

Boon

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Hello everyone!
Basically I've loved horses all my life but have never had the opportunity to loan/own one for myself. I've been riding since I was three and had loads of dry patches where my parents couldn't afford to take me riding, so I've worked out in Switzerland at a stud and volunteered at several pony clubs etc.
I feel that now is the time for me to have a real bond with my own horse and be able to train in the things that I would like to do such as endurance and natural horsemanship. I wouldn't say I'm an expert rider but I prefer to be on a level headed horse (after riding the mad selle francais stallions however the Fresian stallions where a lovely ride) I would be looking for a gelding of any breed so long as he is sound and healthy.

I'd be looking for grass kept livery ideally as I believe it's better for them, my mum knows a farmer who has tonnes of horse land so I could potentially move to Bedford and start my equine life there. How much would I be looking to spend a month on a grass kept horse? I'd be going barefoot also. Should I start my horse adventure? Or leave it for a while?

I have a million and one questions before I even consider buying! Thank you for your time everyone
 

FestiveFuzz

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Hey Boon and welcome!

You don't say how old you are, what experience you have and whether you have the finances to support owning a horse and the financial surprises that come with owning (my boy ended up having 6 weeks of physio at £65 per session and later destroyed 5 rugs in the space of 2 weeks!).

That said I keep my boy on grass livery so can give you a rough idea of costs for the south east. At present he's on part grass livery which includes checking on him daily, bringing him in for vet/farrier visits and his feed (though he's a hardy cob so doesn't really have much!). In the summer this is £216 a month and in winter it goes up to £266 as he has ad lib haylage which isn't included in our livery costs. At the end of the month we'll be moving to a new yard which is £190 a month which purely covers his livery and ad lib hay in winter. If you're going barefoot you might want to consider giving him feed that will support healthy hooves and then a trim every 6-8 weeks which is usually around £20 (though bear in mind you might find the horse you buy isn't happy unshod so I wouldn't bank on not having to shoe).
 

Boon

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Thanks for your reply :)
I'm turning 23 in September. Studied animal management at collage and have been around horses on/off my whole life and have a very good understanding of horse care through voulenteering/working with them for years. My parents used to have two before I was born. I work five days/nights a week and currently spend a fortune on my six ferrets (vet bills are hideous for ferrets) they get regular vet checks to keep them healthy and happy.
 

kinnygirl1

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Grass livery at the yard I am on is around £75 a month, but don't forget about the other costs you will incur on a monthly basis. Shoes, any additional feed, supplementary forage in winter, insurance, lessons, worming...they all add up so make sure you have a little extra put aside for things. Good luck with finding your special horse.
 
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