How much is the average cost to keep a horse per week?

Question

in field in the day, stable at night
average horse, hacking only

Answer 1

$1800 per week.

Answer 2

Firstly are you going to be looking after the horse yourself ie. a diy yard or part livery or full livery ? So rent would be first, then insurance which is crutial not just for yourself and others but for any vets fees arising from injury or illness, not to mention the things that happen in any horse herd when out in the field or stable injuries... There are alot of equine ailments so you need to be prepared,you cant just turn up at the P.D.S.A. !!! So then you need an equine vet and be registered with them. Then you need a farrier as you will be needing shoes on an average of every 4-6 weeks.Then a feed supplier and maybe a seperate one for hay and straw [you would find it cost effective to buy hay and straw in bulk and in season as buying in small amounts is expensive- you've been warned!!!] and the same goes for wood chippings but this depends on what your horse does best on.. All the better if you can find a friendly wood yard where you can buy chippings cheaply or even free if you load them yourself.. Once you have the basics in order the rest is maintaining a good routine of bill paying ON TIME. Try not to get caught out with everything due at once. DIY is obviously the cheapest option but only if you are truly up to the dedication. Dont bite off more than you can chew. I hope this has been of some help. I know you asked HOW MUCH but only you can calculate that when you have added all of the above items as these will vary, and I have no idea where you are. I am in London. Where are you? I hope you get on ok. Good Luck. Owning a horse was one of the.best things things I ever did. They are a huge commitment. B x.x.

Answer 3

If you have a field and stables you cannot keep one horse as they are herd animals.
Many people use livery yards. There are three types of livery;
- D.I.Y. - You are responsible for all of the chores, all of the day to day care and expenses. You usually supply your own feed and hay although some yards will sell to you. The yard will only call a vet in an emergency; you are responsible for the bills. The cost depends on the size of the horse, I'm out of touch but I'd guess at least £40+ a week. Try to fond a yard that will provide cover if you can't get there, expect to pay.
- Part livery. Staff will provide a minimum amount of care for an increase in the fee. You may have to let a riding stable use your horse for lessons. I'd guess £60+ a week.
- Full livery. Ataff provide all of the care and excersise, you just let them know when you want to ride. £100+ a week.

On top of that you have routine healthcare; annual vaccinations, worming every 6 weeks, farrier every 6 weeks. A set of shoes and a trim will be about £30 - £40. Wormer £10+ depending on the size of the horse.

Weekly feed can be best hay if you are only hacking and you buy a good doer. Best hay is at least £5 a bale, a bale every couple of days.
Bedding is expensive; oat straw, peat or shredded paper, about £5 a bale, 3+ bales a week.

You then have the upkeep and maintanance of tack, shouldn't be too much if you're only hacking. A saddle will cost about £400, another £100 for a bit and bridle. Add headcollar, rope, buckets, grooming kit; about £150. Add rugs, another £150+. And your hard hat will need repacing every time you knock it.

Then you have travel expenses, the cost of petrol adds up over the week. If you take do it yourself livery you'll need to go at least twice a day every day.

Plus you need insurance to cover the cost of replacing your horse if he dies; third party liability in case he causes damage; health insurance in case he needs emergency veterinary care. Premiums are linked to the value of the animal.

You are looking at a minimum of £300 a week if you buy a thrifty horse. You also have the initial expense of purchase plus all the equipment. The livery yard will also expect to be paid by standing order or direct debit due to the number of people who don't pay. If you don't pay the bill they are entitled to take your horse to cover their costs.

Answer 4

Horses are expensive to keep. Not only do you have stable fees, which can be very expensive, but you have to consider hay, straw and grain. If you have your own farm with a barn, you can cut expenses a bit, but there are still expenses. You also have to consider vet bills, the ferrier (which horses NEED to see), worming, and also the brushes, combs, picks, salt licks, water trough and tack.

Research it carefully and talk to a large animal vet before getting your first horse. They are beautiful animals and can be a rewarding companion, but they can't just be stuck in a pen and left. Soon that pen will have no grass in it, the animal needs a certain amount of excercise and health care. Jumping in too quickly without knowing exactly what you are doing means you will have a sick, abused and neglected horse.

You also have to consider the work. Horses aren't just a decoration. Having a horse means getting up every morning early so you can feed them, clean the stables and feilds of waste, brush the horse and care for it's feet. Leaving the horse to stand in it's own waste causes thrush, a disease that rots the hoof away and leaves the animal crippled and in serious pain. Then you have to consider your climate. Remember if you live in an area where water freezes that means dragging water out to the horse daily when his water trough freezes.

You might want to consider going to a local stable and taking lessons first, both in riding and in horse care. Most stables have a program for people who are considering buying that first horse.

Answer 5

It varies- type of horse (the bigger the more they eat) the health of the horse (younger they are the more likely they are to do somethin dumb and injure themselves- the older they are the more health problems are prevalient) you have to add in the cost of feed (10% grain costs $6-12 a bag in my area, how much you are going to feed that particular horse- and it varies from horse to horse) the cost of shots ($50 vet call+the cost of the shots in my area) the cost of feet trimming and if you are going to use shoes($75 for a 4 way trim and shoe setting in my area which lasts my mare 6 weeks exactly)the cost of wormer (cheapo ivermectin type $7) the cost of a mineral block ($4 for small w/ holder $15 for large-yet again in my area)and any supplements that that particular horse may need (my mare eats horseshoers secret- $25 for 6 weeks approx)Then add in the cost of shampoo($6+),conditioner($6+), fly spray($6+ buy the more expensive though -it works better and lasts longer), (I LOVE FLY DROPS! can't live without them! $11.00 for a 6 week supply I use them then on really hot humid days I mist her w/fly spray too and she stays virtually fly free!) show sheen type product $6+(yes this isn't really needed but who doesn't want their horse to look their best when company comes over?) hoofpick $2-, halter $10+, Bridle 10+ (And before people gripe at the price I put down for a bridle you can get them at garage sales,barn sales and tack auctions for that price I have several that I have gotten that way)Saddle 100+ (around here english saddles aren't too popular and you can get a decent 2nd hand one for that price) a riding helmet ($30+ The ones I have seen cheaper usually aren't in that good of shape so $30+ is what I'd expect to pay- and it is MY head after all)and there are many other things that you will see that you will think your horse (or self) definately needs- so to get back to your original question: How much is the average cost to keep a horse per week? My answer is a reasonable amount that will keep you broke but not put you in the poorhouse--- plan on eating a lot of rice. By the way when I say in my area I mean in Ohio.

Answer 6

depends on where you are n where you wanna stable it, prices could range from 15 to 30 pounds per week for just renting a stable n use of field, but dont forget other costs feed, hey, straw or shavings and shoeing fees plus ur vet bills. im not trying to put u off all im saing is maybe do some research before you commit to anything ive had horses in the past and i know how expensive it all can be. if you carnt afford to own one put an advert in your local riding tack/feed shop offering to help look after a horse or even part loan, i worked for somebody and ended up with one of my own which she payed for. i wish you look for the future. heres a good site for finding local buinesses
www.ufindus.com again good luck x

Answer 7

Pretty hard question to answer. I suggest you ring around some agistment centres in your area and find out. You also need to know what and how much food, condition of the paddock, does the price include feeding them morn and afternoon, rugs on and off etc. Don't forget other facilities like yards, arenas and land to ride on. All these will affect the weekly price.

For $85 aus. I get a half acre reticulated and electric fenced paddock with a walk-in walk-out shelter (not stable), hay in the morning and a hard feed of Lucern chaff, oats and pony pellets with apples/carrots in the evening. They do put rugs on and off in morning and evening as well. The facilities include a round yard, dressage arena and heaps of bush riding. I also have to pay about $15 every 6 weeks for worming and $70 about every 2mnths (varies) for shoes on my horse. Unshod is about $25. Teeth every 6 mnths for about $50, but that depends if your horse needs sedation or not for this, you can pay over $100. I pay pretty much the bare minimum for my horse. You can pay less for agistment, but that usually means paddock with bad grazing (not enough grass, too many weeds), no shelter,you have to clean the paddock etc. You have to be prepared to spend at least this on your horse, not to mention lessons, training etc.

All the best

Answer 8

we pay approx£120 a month for the stable. . on top of that there are vet bills. dental bills,equine insurance,worming,blacksmith.innoculations,hay,sawdust,vitamins, transport up and down to the field.
each month it cost approx £250,and a little more in winter.
and as heartless as it sounds,the cost of having the horse taken away,when it dies is over a £1000....its very very expensive. my daughter has a beautiful horse ,she loves it to bits- they have a amazing bond. but her horse has had surgery on her fetlock. and is lame again...she knows her horse will nnever be able to enter shows again or hack across the fields-but cannot bear to part with it! so it is costing her alot of money at the moment for nothing... i think she is looking into breeding her. this is something you also have to consider...having to go to the horse twice aday, you have a lot of hands-on time with your horse.and its easy to get a close bond with your horse..but would you be able to part with your new friend if you are spending out alot of money and cannot use it for the reason you bought it? ithats the situation my daughter is in.

also- having a horse may be fun in summer- but its not much fun in the cold months.

Answer 9

It costs me about 9 a day to feed strategy and good hay to five horses on a dry lot and they are in perfect shape but I would not be able to afford that many if my husband was not a farrier so that saves me about 265 dollars a month. Then you add in vet bills for shots and emergencies,replacing fly masks, fly spray, tack, manure disposal, and numerous other things so it is not something to go into lightly.

Answer 10

The answer to this can vary from state to state, area to area. If it's your property and you have a well established pasture and supplement his pasture feeding with hay in the evening and maybe a little 4 way grain. Where I live, cost of a bale of hay is about $13.00 (it varies however) If you are only supplementing once a day 1 bale could last about 2 weeks for one average horse. (about 1,000 to 1200 lb horse is what I consider average.)
Now, You also have to take into account, are you giong to keep shoes on the horse or leave him barefoot. Blacksmith costs vary as well. In my area a normal shoeing (no clips, pads, or specialty shoe) is around $100 every 6 weeks or so. If you're leaving him barefoot, I would say about $45 every 6 weeks. You also have to take into account water usage. Horses drink alot of water. I'm guessing at about $50 a month added to your water bill unless of course you are on well water. Keeping the stall that you keep him in at night clean is on you. If you are too lazy to muck a stall and want to hire someone to do it...you shouldn't own a horse. Now.....my answer is based only on best circumstances.....the perfect time of year when your pasture's growth is at it lushest. You also should seed regularly to keep it growing. So you might add grass seed as well to the bill. I can't come up with cost of that because it would depend on the square footage of your pasture. You should also factor in the cost of vaccinations yearly as well as what happens if your horse gets ill. One vet visit for Colic can cost a small fortune depending on how bad the colic is. My horse cut his knee open on a metal feeder once. This took three vet visits. The first one costing about $300, the second about $500, and the third $150. that was over 3 weeks. A good friend had an Arabian who got what they call "Stones"...this is a calcium build up in the intestine forming actual rocks. Surgery to remove them (they took out one the size of a cateloupe and multiple smaller stones) was neccesary in order to save the horse's life. "Stones" are deadly as is Colic. However Colic doesn't always require surgery but "Stones" does. In any case, the surgery cost over $12,000. While that's not always something that you would have to consider into weekly costs of caring for your horse, it is something you MUST be prepared for.
In conclusion, there is no set average cost to keeping a horse. It depends mostly on circumstance. But under the best of conditions as I described with a nice lush pasture and supplenting at night....no illnesses.....and say....barefoot horse....my vague estimate of weekly average cost would be about $50.00 a week. Again, that is during the best time of year for pasturing....etc. Not including your annual vaccinations or unexpected vet calls.

Answer 11

depends how you look after it & where you keep it.

I've got 8 stables so I get discount & pay £12.50 per week per horse. Most place round here are between £15.00 for basic facilities to £35.00 for posh schools etc on a DIY basis.

An average 16 hand horse will get through about 3 bales of hay in summer & up to 8 per week in winter at about £3.00 per bale (some areas charge up to£4.50)

Bedding - straw is the cheapest - 4 bales at £1.50 - £2.00 is proably about right per week. Shavings or paper can be as much as three times that amount

Shoes - approx every 6-8 weeks expect to pay £60 a set or there abouts. Some farriers cahrge up to £80.00

Feed - bog standard pony nuts & molichop - pony nuts approx £6.00 per bag which will last two weeks, molichop £4.50 again will last about two weeks. If you horse has any special dietry needs you could be spending up to £30 per week

Insurance - depends on value of horse & cover but you are looking at a minimum of £25.00 per month to get vets fee cover on £1000 horse & the sky is the limit as to how much it goes up to. To insure my dressage horse for £10,000 I'm looking at over £1000 premium per year.

Vaccinations & tooth rasping - approx £120 once a year (usually unless your horse need his teeth doing every 6 months.

Then you need to take into account extras like tack, rugs & vets fees which can all add up & don't forget worming!!!

I would say that for a one horse owner depending on the area you keep it & the yard you keep it in then you are looking at between £55.00 & £100 per week.