What's the true cost of owning a horse?

To keep mine its around £250 in the summer and £350 in the winter per month. He's on a cheapish DIY yard but he is a TB so lives in at nights in the winter and he eats a lot of hay. I also get his teeth done every 6 months, back done every 3 months, saddle checked every 6 months, shod every 6 weeks by a decent farrier who costs a fair bit, wormed 4 times a year ect.

I think it depends on how often you are going to want to ride your horse a week. If you just want to ride him once maybe twice a week, it *might* work with the working livery but then whats the point of buying one? Why not keep your current deal... If you want to ride more then the horse will be worked an awful lot, twice a day for 6/7 days a week. That is a lot of wear and tear on your horse.

The fact you only have to pay £59 a month says to me that they are going to have a lot of say over your horse!
 
you would be best to ask around your local yards& tack shops for prices and get insurance quotes online. Theres too much variation accross different parts of the country. Also what one might class as as necessity may not be important to the next person.
 
Loss of your lie-ins forever. . .

Never being able to grow your fingernails, or wear a dress with bare legs 'cause of the bruises, horse fly bites. . .
 
I worked mine out and was pleasantly surprised (unless I've added it up wrong :o :p )

I'm not on a yard, I rent my own field with stables :)

Yearly Costs:

Rent £300
Injections £50
Dental Rasp £20
Physiotherapist £40
Saddle Fitter £50

Other Costs:

Hay - 2 Bales of Hay per Month from November to March at £30 a bale = £300
Straw - 2 Bales = £60
Shavings - 1 Bale of Shavings per Month from April to September at £7 a bale = £42
Alfa-A original - 1 Bag every 2 Months at £10 a bag = £60
Spillers Fibre Nuts - 1 Bag every 2 Months at £10 a bag = £60
Farrier - Every 2 Months at £20 a trim = £120

£1102 A YEAR = £92 A MONTH :D
 
Ah, but do you have lessons? Insurance? Travel costs to get to the horse? Do you ever buy rugs, fly spray, saddle soap? Are you a member of a riding club or the BHS? Do you compete? Do you worm? :p
 
ABC said:
Shavings - 1 Bale of Shavings per Month from April to September at £7 a bale = £42
Alfa-A original - 1 Bag every 2 Months at £10 a bag = £60
Spillers Fibre Nuts - 1 Bag every 2 Months at £10 a bag = £60
Farrier - Every 2 Months at £20 a trim = £120

£1102 A YEAR = £92 A MONTH :D
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One bale of shavings per month? How often is your horse in the stable?

Also, you only feed one bag of feed every two months. This is far less than most horses would need. You obviously have a very good doer, but I would question whether he/she is getting all the nutrients they need? If I were feeding this little hard feed, then I would want to feed a balancer.

Also, you do not list worming costs. Do you pay anything for water or electricity? What about maintenance costs, and fuel costs to get to the yard?
 
Ok. So I did some sums very quickly (Maths is not my strong point) so came up with the following:

These are for a year for 4 horses.
Livery and insurance = €12,000
Blacksmith = €1500
Physio/Osteopath = €300
Saddle fitter = €160
Worming = €190
Other food = €300
Supplements = €100
Lessons = €840

The above does not include competion fees, travel, trailer insurance, membership of Riding club, KWPN and Fjord studbooks, KNHS membership, horse magazines, various clinics, own risk costs from vet bills, costs for cleaning rugs etc. and all the other incidentals that are 'needed' thorughout the year.
I reckon that if you add everything up it would be in the region of €18,000.

OMG hope my OH doesn't see this!
 
Haha, I thought that woulds be mentioned so I added up all the things I have bought in the 2 years I have owned him. And that comes to £33 extra a month.

I pay for my injections/tooth rasp/wormer and fly spray on a monthly basis, which is included in the price mentioned above.

The shavings are for the field shelter he uses in summer, he's a bit strange and prefers to wee on a bit of bedding so I just chuck a few handfuls of shavings down every now and again.

I did try him on a balancer but he got too excitable, and after speaking to a few feedlines I decided he's fine, in winter this might not be the case so then I will add it.

Field is next door to my house, so no fuel costs. Water is collected off the rooftops, so is free and electricity comes from a 12v leisure battery that needs charging every now and again.

I haven't included lessons, because at the moment I don't have them, but if I did it would be an extra £35 a month.

My horse isn't insured, which he probably should be, but even then it would only add an extra £25 - £30

I probably don't spend as much as other people but I'm lucky because I rent a field rather than livery, and my horse is a good doer.
 
On DIY my horse costs a minimum of £300 a month.

Just be aware that working livery has a lot of downfalls. One of my friends bought a horse and kept it at working livery but lots of problems occurred and as soon as she could afford to move it and have the horse to herself she did. On working livery you are at the mercy of the riding school and many things are out of your control.
 
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Per month for the TB:

Livery £150
4 bales of cardboard bedding £22
Haylage £40
Feed £40
Joint supplement £30
Shoes £48
Insurance £40
Extras such as wormer, dentist, fly spray, lotions potions etc £20
One competition entry fee £40
Fuel to compete £100

So over £400to a month. Less in winter when not competing and his shoes come off. My arab costs less on feed and haylage but everything else is the same.
 
Rough monthly figures for me on DIY are

Livery £120
Shoes £65
Hay £40
Feed £30
Insurance £40

Annual MOT - teeth, vacs, general check over by vet £80-£100

Wouldn't do working livery - a yard near us does it and liveries have to work their riding time around lessons and if the horse is injured in a lesson, the livery is left with the bill.
 
archiepoo said:
im too scared to actually leave the amount written down!!
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Ditto.

Ah what the hell.

Schooling livery: £650 (includes absolutely everything except shoes and insurance).
Shoes: £40
Insurance: £50
Petrol to vist: £40
Not sure what vets are going to cost yet but spent £150 on dental work this month.
 
Rough estimate, I have a very good doer that lives out 24/7

Livery - £0 as work YO's horses
Shoes - £70 every six weeks + new sets of studs every few months
Lessons - £20
Competitions - £40
Feed - £15
Hay - £10
Bedding - £8
Diesel for towing - £70 + drive to yard twice a day
Lotions & potions eg fly spray, hibi scrum, sun cream, sudocrem - £15

so roughly 170 a month plus:

Other annual fees

Saddle check + reflocking - £30
New rugs - £80
Annual vaccinations (would have to check)
Worming and worm egg counts - £30
Clipping - £50
Teeth checked - £60
Back checked (maybe twice a year) - £60
New numnahs/ boots/ bridles/ headcollars/ etc - £150
New hats/ boots/ gloves/ breeches/ show jackets etc - £200
Insurance - I think about 400 a year?

so bout 1500 in other bits so per month an adverage of around £295? I think I may be being a little kind realistically probably pay a lot more just thought of other extras, rider insurance, trailer insurance, trailer check once a year hiring of schools and xc courses for schooling hate to think how much I really pay in fuel for towing..... hope this helps :)
 
Crugeran Celt said:
Does your horse seriously cost you that much? Thats scary! So glad I have my own place it obviously makes a massive difference in costs, I keep 4, soon to be 5 for far less.
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Livery alone is £133 a month, so everything (inc wormer/vaccs/farrier/ins/bedding/feed etc) else is only £117 a month which is pretty good going I think!


Would be so much easier with my own land and if I could feed hay as then could get a large bale instead of small bale haylage :rolleyes:
 
@CC - presumably your mortgage on your house/land is a fair whack which negates the extra I have to spend on my livery? Does that not count as your 'livery' payment. Unless you paid for your land outright in which case I hate you even more ;) x
 
Crugeran Celt said:
Does your horse seriously cost you that much? Thats scary! So glad I have my own place it obviously makes a massive difference in costs, I keep 4, soon to be 5 for far less.
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If that is the case then they must be out 24/7 all year round and not need feeding extra hay?
 
To be honest, think of a number, double it and put a 0 on the end - only joking. In reality it will end up costing more than you think. Our made costs me approx 300 a month for diy and including feed, trim by farrier and bedding. Then add on insurance for the horse, insurance for the trailer, maintenance for the trailer, trips to the tack shop, rugs, bandages, first aid kits (one for horse and one for human) supplements, additional livery costs to cover for human illness, family commitments, weddings etc, holidays (if only) competition fees, ....... I could go on but am getting depressed.
I have two bank accounts, one horse one and a normal one, my oh doesn't know about the horse one, he would be horrified.

All being said and done, with all the pro's and con's I wouldn't change from horse ownership at all.
 
Too frightened to actually work it out.

Whatever they need, I buy it for them.

£183 for grass keep for 3 (including water and 2 stables).

I pay for haylage, hard food and bedding on top, plus farriers for 2 and a half sets (Thunder only has fronts) and all the worming and veterinary type things.

Seems to be manageable so far. Nearly done a year at MY new yard. I LOVE having them there :)
 
Broke_But_Happy said:
Livery alone is £133 a month, so everything (inc wormer/vaccs/farrier/ins/bedding/feed etc) else is only £117 a month which is pretty good going I think!


Would be so much easier with my own land and if I could feed hay as then could get a large bale instead of small bale haylage :rolleyes:
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I am astounded how much people pay to keep a horse! My OH thinks I am mad but he would colapse if he saw how much most of you pay! Mine have no hard feed at all as so much grass even in winter, I don't need to feed hay untill January as they are all good doers. I am able to buy that in large bales so that saves money and they are all barefoot, trimming is cheaper than shoes it seems.Don't worm as have a count done now as one of my mares gets colic after worming so only worm when it shows up as needed. They have their teeth checked once a year and that costs £35 per horse so not to bad and the two large horses have their jabs once a year also. They are not insured (long story as to why not) and am a BHS gold member so have 3rd party cover. Couldn't afford to keep one horse at livery let alone 5!
 
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