Working horse owners, tell me what you do

You Wont Forget Me

You Wont Forget Me

Well-Known Member
Joined
5 April 2011
Messages
762
Location
Sunny Scotland
Visit site
(also in careers and education)

Okay, i want you all to tell me what you do for work??
For years i have wanted to be a vet and open my own practice ect but now i am in my second last year of school ive hit realitly and realised that it is not going to happen as im not going to get the grades i need! So basically im looking for a career path to take that will allow me to keep my horses whilst having a good/wealthy lifestyle, it doesnt have to be animal related (i know they jobs are paticuarly well paying) but anything would be of intrest really... so let me know what you do
 
Teacher too nice compromise between earning (just about) enough whilst still leaving me with some spare time to ride (theoretically!). However I do work my arse off. I've done approx 55 hours this week and still need to work this evening, so you can forget leaving at three. This is the worst term though it gets easier into the year. I LOVE my job, I'm never bored or watching the clock but I do take it seriously and its important to me to do it well. There are people who rock up at 8.45 and leave 3.15 and don't do anything outside school hours but they aren't good teachers. I agree you need to find something you enjoy. You spend most of your life at work its important that whatever you do makes life better not worse
 
Dont write yourself off yet - there is time to pull your grades round - its all about hard work, perseverance and not being afraid to ask your teachers for extra help. attend revision session after school during holidays etc. If the school/dept doesnt openly advertise the revision sessions then approach head of Dept and get some started. Any teacher worth their salt will bend over backwards to help you achieve what you want.
 
ajn1610 said:
Teacher too nice compromise between earning (just about) enough whilst still leaving me with some spare time to ride (theoretically!). However I do work my arse off. I've done approx 55 hours this week and still need to work this evening, so you can forget leaving at three. This is the worst term though it gets easier into the year. I LOVE my job, I'm never bored or watching the clock but I do take it seriously and its important to me to do it well. There are people who rock up at 8.45 and leave 3.15 and don't do anything outside school hours but they aren't good teachers. I agree you need to find something you enjoy. You spend most of your life at work its important that whatever you do makes life better not worse
Click to expand...

I'm a teacher too- completely agree with the above. I love my job too, and the hols are a godsend for riding.
 
I am in IT and I am technical. There is a demand at the moment as there arent many technical people out there. We have 7 jobs available at work and about 5 applicants for the lot and 4 were from india asking for us to pay their expenses for interviews. There really is a shortage of good technical IT people out there especially test engineers and developers.
 
Armed forces! You are paid well (not first year or two mind!) and they really encourage sports (including equestrian!). If your based where there is a saddle club, its cheap livery and they pay for you to compete at Armed Forces equestrian comps!

Although some thought needed into what role you would want- you don't want to be fighting some war for half the year! :rolleyes:
 
Im a Health, Safety and Environmental Consultant i work in construction so the money is good (however no pay rises / bonuses due to recession) and it gives me the flexibility i need with the horses.....however it does involve alot of travelling and sometimes i consider whether i need to move yards and go part livery (although this isnt something i would want to do and would feel guilty about this) however i manage fine at the mo swapping and helping other people however there will come a time and place as i progress in my career that it will be inevitable.

Dont write your vet career off now there is still time to pick your grades up, retakes etc however it may also be worth looking at a gap year or two and entering as a mature student .....

K x
 
Kaylum said:
I am in IT and I am technical. There is a demand at the moment as there arent many technical people out there. We have 7 jobs available at work and about 5 applicants for the lot and 4 were from india asking for us to pay their expenses for interviews. There really is a shortage of good technical IT people out there especially test engineers and developers.
Click to expand...

Oh i wouldnt be great at that not a very technical person haha.

KerryDevon not totally writeing it off just needing to get some back ups
 
I'm a medic. I do event coverage, ie XC pc sj events etc. also the odd dance competition (yuck) Also do some work for the ambulance service.

money is ok but sometimes have to work when I want to be competing
 
I was a chef in a previous life that was my chosen career, however after 10 years I gave it up because the split shifts gave me no time at all with my family or horses. I was shocked to find that 3 small part time jobs paid the almost the same wage, so now have time for family and my 4 horse/ponies.
 
I would agree that teaching allows you the holidays to spend time with your horse. I have been teaching 11 years in primary and it took me a while to be able to afford a horse AND a house, so it's a long-term plan. I have worked my way up to senior management now but can't go any further without giving up my horse. I find I can usually sneak off early one night a week to get some horsey time in, and horsey lives near school so I can get to the yard quickly. It is hard work though and some nights I am just too tired to ride, and because the job is stressful I find I need time to wind down. I had originally wanted to do dressage on my horse but I couldn't fit in the lessons and concentrated schooling required as my job took up too much of my 'head space' - so I don't compete any more, I do a bit of everything for FUN. And there is no way I could have a youngster either.
So don't think teaching is too easy an option, though the holidays are fab!

Oh and sorry to say it but no there are no jobs in primary any more!

My friend however is a hospital nurse and SHE manages well with her horse, she fits her riding round her shifts and gets to ride a lot more often than I do, especially in the dark nights. Don't do vet nursing though, you get minimum wage.
 
I'm a GP... brilliant for owning horses, I have enough cash and can always get extra work if I'm short and can work days evenings or weekends... basically whenever I choose. I also get 2 days off in the week and most weekends off unless I want to buy a new saddle/horse box when I just work a few weekends and job done - new thing bought...

It's HARD work and loads of responsibility and sometimes quite depressing but not as depressing (to me) as earning minimum wage and worrying about where the next set of shoes is coming from... I would suggest get a job that earns a decent amount of money and live without the stress of living from one pay check to the next..

BnBx
 
I'm a technical manager in a food factory. Pays well, mostly decent hours (have to stay if we have a crisis!) and my boss let's me do flexi hours
 
I managed to keep one horse whilst working part time at McDonalds during 6th form thanks to hotel Mam and Dad. I now work for the LA and I've only just managed to keep three through last winter, sadly one had to go :(
 
My sister has just become a primary teacher (year 4) and she never gets time to herself anymore. She spends all her free time planning and marking books. She isn't a rider though, but just saying she doesn't get time to herself.

I'm a Government account executive sales assistant. I enjoy it and it's set hours so me and my Horse are in a lovely routine. I get weekends to myself and never work outside my office hours. Pays decent enough to keep my Horse on assisted livery.
 
Don't become a lawyer - the money isn't nearly what it is cracked up to be (You'd earn more as a secondary school teacher than as a lawyer for at least the first 10 years of your career) and the hours are long. Many firms have a culture of starting early and finishing late, overtime is not paid.

It is also massively oversubscribed there are far more law graduates than jobs, and many law graduates are filing and photocopying for minimum wage just to get a foot in the door.

Get yourself a good degree is a solid subject (science, history, english, geography, languages) and apply to graduate training schemes with big corporates. Or consider becoming an optician, or pharmacist if you are going to get good grades. Dentistry and medicine will be as tough as vet school.

Avoid subjects where there is oversupply like design, media, journalism, law, etc
 
Well I went from a 'weathly' lifestyle in a job I loved to a very very 'unwealthy' lifestyle in a job I tolerate...why? Cos the well paid interesting job with lots of travel meant I couldn't afford the time to give a horse, cos believe it or not a good salary usually comes with major strings attached!

So I gave up my big house, my lovely fast car and my limitless shopping sprees for a tiny cottage, a 10 year old van and a just above minimum wage so I could have a horse to enjoy, the time to spend with him and beautiful countryside to do it in. Wouldn't change anything now for the world (well...lottery win would just be the cherry on top) but otherwise I've got all I need despite being skint!

Money isn't everything quaility of life most certainly is. :D
 
I would strongly advise doing a vocational degree. Most of my friends who did vocational degrees found employment relatively easily, those with a degree i.e. geography or history or politics are all either unemployed or about to do their PGCEs to be teachers.

Agree with others, don't do primary, it's really really difficult to get primary teaching jobs, secondary jobs are much easier to come across. (Parents are Science teachers, and the holidays and weekends are lovely, be prepared to do work in the evenings though, you do have to take the job home!)

I'm an Optician, LOVE my job. 9-5, 5 days a week, when I leave that's it I'm done, I don't have to think about work at home. It does mean limited in the week riding (in the winter), but the money is good, even when newly qualified. Does still need reasonable grades now, think most uni's are asking AAA or AAB.

Don't panic about your exams. Get good revision guides and learn them from cover to cover - they really do work! Goodluck x
 
Im 23 and work as an estate agent for the past year, i dont like being in an office and im looking into working on a competition yard again taking my horse with me. Reasons being i want to compete my current horse whome i feel does not get enough attention at the moment. Although the pay wont be great Im also doing my stages and joining TTT so i will be able to teach privately eventually. I cannot stand being sat down for most of the day and i find the work boring and tedious. My usual routine is summer - straihght to work to be there for 9am, i pay the yard to feed and turn ross out and bring him in after 5 or 6 hours. I then get to the yard after finishing at 5 for 6pm and muck out, ride and pamper :) I get home no earlier than 8 which is fine in the summer but in winter a pain as im the only one down the yard at that time! In the winter the horses are in except for an hour so im down the yard at 6.30 to muck out, turn out for an hour etc then go to yard. I then come back at 6 to ride as usual etc. I want to change this though! Its taken me a while but ive realised what I am and what I want to do with my life and its all horsey related, so money (slighty) aside this is what I am going to persue!
 
Last edited:
I'm a Technical Scientist in a university orthopaedic research group. I work 8-4 and get paid around £27k, enough to cover the mortgage on a nice house in a lovely area and keep a very low maintenance horse. This is however as far as I can go unless I do a PhD or become a Lab Manager and you have to get a biology related degree to get into this area. I like it, it is low stress and flexible if a little boring at times. I am by no means wealthy but live comfortably.
 
Last edited:
I'm a medical rep, hard to get into, and hard work for the first year, but hardly ever in the office, and get to set your own appointments with customers, so flexible enough to get to ride the horse most days!! There are also jobs as veterinary reps if you're more interested in selling those kind of products!! Wouldn't change my job for anything!! Good luck deciding what to do!!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top