I am twelve and have not been horse riding for long yet I am desperate for a horse! I am totally an animal lover and vegetarian and would totally love my horse and look after her! The thing is, my family doesn't earn that much (￡30,000) and we live in kidderminster in the worcestershire area of England, and I need to know if we could afford a horse (with part livery as no-one could turn the horse out in the morning) and how much it would cost annually for a horse? Thanks for your help and please answer!
are you looking for a horse to ride or just to take care of. horses are expensive. they need the vet to come out to give them shots twice a year. there feet done every 7 weeks and there teeth should be done every six monthes. you have to pay for hay and grain too.
if you are looking for a horse just to take care of that can be very cheap if you find one without health issues. many people have retired horses just looking to be let out in a field to enjoy the rest of there days. and some you can still take light rides on.
if you are looking for a horse just to take care of that can be very cheap if you find one without health issues. many people have retired horses just looking to be let out in a field to enjoy the rest of there days. and some you can still take light rides on.
I would have to say no, probably not. Im not sure about prices in England but here in the US, on average, I spend about $600 a year on hay, $75+ on grain, $200 on shavings (bedding), $200+a year on vaccinations/wormer, $100/horse/month on board (and thats really cheap),$40 every 6-8 weeks for hoof trimming, plus tack which isnt cheap Ive probably spent around $1200 for all my tack, acquired over the years and most of it used, plus the actual cost of the horse, my gelding was around $1200 and my mare was $500 but neither of them were very broke and I know how to train so, it was a good deal for me. It adds up to be quite a bit plus money for emergencies. I would maybe suggest working at a stable nearby and maybe getting lessons instead. Love of a horse just isnt enough to own one, you need dedication and time and of course, money. Im sorry to be such a downer but, horses cost a lot of money. Hope this helps.
17 years of owning/riding, 14 years showing, 7 years training, own 2 horses.
You really need to think and have a chat with your parents but this is a rough guide!!
Livery or Field Rent
Farmers or others may have fields available to rent for horses and these are usually the lowest cost at around ￡10 per week. However, these usually have very few facilities available and horse owners may be responsible for the maintenance of the field...
The choice for most horse owners is to keep their horses at a Livery Yard and these often have a range of facilities available including tack rooms, schooling arenas, muck heap, jumps, etc. Another advantage of a Livery Yard is that they fully maintain the fields used.
Grass Livery can be expected to cost in the region of ￡20-￡25 per week and covers field rent. Depending on the yard it may also include use of the yard facilties.
Stabled Livery can be expected to cost around ￡30-￡40 per week and this covers the rent of the stable and use of a paddock or field for turnout.
Any care of the horse or duties carried out by staff at the livery yard will cost extra.
Hay, Straw and Shavings
For horses kept on grass livery hay is normally only required to be fed in winter when grass is scarce and the amount required will vary depending on the type and size of horse or pony. It should be expected that some hay will be needed to be fed for around 5 months of the year with up to ￡10 a week being added to the costs during the severest winter weeks when grass is totally unavailable!!!
For stabled horses hay is required all year round to compensate for the lack of access to grass whilst stabled and so can add around ￡10 a week to the costs throughout the year. Also some form of stable bedding is required, usually straw or shavings, and this can add a further ￡10-￡20 per week to the costs throughout the year!!!
Feed
The amount of feed required will depend on the type and size of horse, its exercise routine and whether it it is stabled or at grass.
A hardy horse or pony living out all year and only receiving light exercise may need little additional feed if any. However a horse receiving regular exercise may require some hard feed and a stabled horse, with regular strenuous exercise will need additional feed throughout the year costing around 5-10 a week.
Vet's Fees and Insurance
A horse or pony requires annual innoculations against Influenza and Tetanus and can be expected to cost in the region of 35 a year for the vaccination plus around ￡35 callout charge from the vet.
Vet's fees in cases of illness or accident can be costly, and rather than risk having to pay out several hundred or thousand pounds for an incident many owners prefer to insure their horse against such fees. The cost of insurance to cover vets fees will vary depending on the type of cover taken and the value of the horse or pony but should be expected to be in the region ￡20-￡40 per month or more.
Farrier
A horse's feet continually grow and so even if unshod will require regular visits from the farrier for trimming. Whether shod or not the horse will require attention from the farrier every 6 weeks and this can cost around ￡25 for trimming and ￡50-￡55 for shoeing per visit.
Dentist
It is recommended that a horse has its teeth checked by a vet or equine dentist every year to ensure that there are no sharp edges or other tooth problems that may be the cause of discomfort to the horse. This costs around ￡50-￡70 per visit.
Worming
Horses and ponies need to be regularly wormed whether stabled or at grass. Worming costs around ￡10-￡15 and is usually required every 6-8 weeks.
Summary
This is a little table made by me, the prices on top are the ones of a Horse or Pony at Grass and the ones on the bottom are Stabled Horse or Pony. This is per year!!
Item
Horse or Pony at Grass
Stabled Horse or Pony
Livery
￡1,040-￡1,300
￡1,560-￡2,080
Hay, Straw and Shavings
￡140-￡220
￡1,040-￡1,560
Feed
￡100-￡200
￡260-￡520
Vet's Fees
￡70
￡70
Insurance
￡240-￡480
￡240-￡480
Farrier
￡225-￡495
￡225-￡495
Dentist
￡50-￡70
￡50-￡70
Worming
￡90-￡135
￡90-￡135
Total
￡1,955-￡2,970
￡3,535-￡5,410
Wow that took me ageeeesss!!!!
xxxxxx
Livery or Field Rent
Farmers or others may have fields available to rent for horses and these are usually the lowest cost at around ￡10 per week. However, these usually have very few facilities available and horse owners may be responsible for the maintenance of the field...
The choice for most horse owners is to keep their horses at a Livery Yard and these often have a range of facilities available including tack rooms, schooling arenas, muck heap, jumps, etc. Another advantage of a Livery Yard is that they fully maintain the fields used.
Grass Livery can be expected to cost in the region of ￡20-￡25 per week and covers field rent. Depending on the yard it may also include use of the yard facilties.
Stabled Livery can be expected to cost around ￡30-￡40 per week and this covers the rent of the stable and use of a paddock or field for turnout.
Any care of the horse or duties carried out by staff at the livery yard will cost extra.
Hay, Straw and Shavings
For horses kept on grass livery hay is normally only required to be fed in winter when grass is scarce and the amount required will vary depending on the type and size of horse or pony. It should be expected that some hay will be needed to be fed for around 5 months of the year with up to ￡10 a week being added to the costs during the severest winter weeks when grass is totally unavailable!!!
For stabled horses hay is required all year round to compensate for the lack of access to grass whilst stabled and so can add around ￡10 a week to the costs throughout the year. Also some form of stable bedding is required, usually straw or shavings, and this can add a further ￡10-￡20 per week to the costs throughout the year!!!
Feed
The amount of feed required will depend on the type and size of horse, its exercise routine and whether it it is stabled or at grass.
A hardy horse or pony living out all year and only receiving light exercise may need little additional feed if any. However a horse receiving regular exercise may require some hard feed and a stabled horse, with regular strenuous exercise will need additional feed throughout the year costing around 5-10 a week.
Vet's Fees and Insurance
A horse or pony requires annual innoculations against Influenza and Tetanus and can be expected to cost in the region of 35 a year for the vaccination plus around ￡35 callout charge from the vet.
Vet's fees in cases of illness or accident can be costly, and rather than risk having to pay out several hundred or thousand pounds for an incident many owners prefer to insure their horse against such fees. The cost of insurance to cover vets fees will vary depending on the type of cover taken and the value of the horse or pony but should be expected to be in the region ￡20-￡40 per month or more.
Farrier
A horse's feet continually grow and so even if unshod will require regular visits from the farrier for trimming. Whether shod or not the horse will require attention from the farrier every 6 weeks and this can cost around ￡25 for trimming and ￡50-￡55 for shoeing per visit.
Dentist
It is recommended that a horse has its teeth checked by a vet or equine dentist every year to ensure that there are no sharp edges or other tooth problems that may be the cause of discomfort to the horse. This costs around ￡50-￡70 per visit.
Worming
Horses and ponies need to be regularly wormed whether stabled or at grass. Worming costs around ￡10-￡15 and is usually required every 6-8 weeks.
Summary
This is a little table made by me, the prices on top are the ones of a Horse or Pony at Grass and the ones on the bottom are Stabled Horse or Pony. This is per year!!
Item
Horse or Pony at Grass
Stabled Horse or Pony
Livery
￡1,040-￡1,300
￡1,560-￡2,080
Hay, Straw and Shavings
￡140-￡220
￡1,040-￡1,560
Feed
￡100-￡200
￡260-￡520
Vet's Fees
￡70
￡70
Insurance
￡240-￡480
￡240-￡480
Farrier
￡225-￡495
￡225-￡495
Dentist
￡50-￡70
￡50-￡70
Worming
￡90-￡135
￡90-￡135
Total
￡1,955-￡2,970
￡3,535-￡5,410
Wow that took me ageeeesss!!!!
xxxxxx
I have one.....
Here in the US on average on one horse i spend $2,700 on one year of boarding, for grain $600 on grain. then you have to consider the price of the horse,the price of tack needed, i spend about $700 on farrier, then you got vet costs. Its alot. My suggestion lease a horse instead of buying.
Hi, when I was about your age(I'm now 14) I wanted a horse so badly too!
Anyway, I knew my family really couldn't afford a horse-remember, you have to pay for an awful lot, not just the actual horse!
So because we couldn't afford a horse, I just hung around my stables nearly every day and helped out in them. This actually helped me sooo much because I learned a lot about taking care of horses and also that I hardly knew anything about them in the first place!!
My advice is to try and organize to do something like that. As you say, you aren't very wealthy, so you don't want to put your family under any extra financial strain.
If you still really want a horse, talk it over with your parents, and then talk to someone who lives in your area to see how much it might cost around(livery, shoes, vet bills, tack).
I am now sharing a horse with my friend and it's great, that's something else to consider.
Good Luck:)
Anyway, I knew my family really couldn't afford a horse-remember, you have to pay for an awful lot, not just the actual horse!
So because we couldn't afford a horse, I just hung around my stables nearly every day and helped out in them. This actually helped me sooo much because I learned a lot about taking care of horses and also that I hardly knew anything about them in the first place!!
My advice is to try and organize to do something like that. As you say, you aren't very wealthy, so you don't want to put your family under any extra financial strain.
If you still really want a horse, talk it over with your parents, and then talk to someone who lives in your area to see how much it might cost around(livery, shoes, vet bills, tack).
I am now sharing a horse with my friend and it's great, that's something else to consider.
Good Luck:)
me