What are all of the major financial obligations of owning a horse(s)?

Question

I have about 10 acres of nice land and would like to own a horse and am not sure what kind of financial responsibilities there might be. Obviously, food and shelter, but what other major expenses might there be?

How much should I plan on spending per month per horse?

How much could you expect to

Answer 1

Well, having horses will up your water bill. Especially if you end up with one of those fellows who drink a lot. That seems to be an expense that gets forgotten a lot, but it can change your water bill drastically. And a lot of times horse troughs can be very expensive.

If you need to put in a shelter, that can cause some expense, but its only a one time expense.

Feed. I spend about 40-50 dollars a month on hay for one horse. One flake day and night, in the summer. I don’t do grain in the winter, because we don’t have harsh winters, but he was grained when I first got him, and that was an extra 10-15 dollars a month for a 75lb bag of sweet cob.

If you are planning on riding, there is tack expenses. Saddles run about 1000 dollars each. A lot of the time you can’t use one saddle for several horses because of fit issues. But my farrier did tell me about a pad he used that had three pockets on each side that had foam inserts you could use to raise or lower the thickness of your saddle pad in needed places.

Birdles can be anywhere from 20-100 dollars, with or without reins. Reins on the side cost about 10-40 dollars. Bits, most, around 50. Saddle pads can be anywhere from 30-200 dollars, you might want two if you have more than one horse, but generally you can use the same pad for multiple horses, wit two at least you have a back up.

Halters and leads. Around 20 dollars. Rope halters are the best. Gives you a lot of control.

Trimming and shoeing. From 25-100 dollars from trim to shoeing. Your horse may need special shoes. About every 6-8 weeks they need their feet trimmed/shod, though it depends on the horse and their hoof growth rate.

Vet bills. They need their annual shots. Its cost about 100 dollars just for the vet to come out. And I think my spring shots cost me 70 dollars. So you’re looking around 200 dollars each home visit per horse.

Wormer, which you can buy and administer on your own. About 10-25 dollars depending on brand. Annually.

Fly masks, so you don’t end up with eye problems, they are about 15 dollars, and fly spray, about 20. Fly masks often need replaced, and fly spray is a repeated buy.

A manure fork, around 15-20 dollars for cleaning. Hay hooks, about 20. Bins to keep your grain in, anywhere from 10-50 depending on the container and store. 50 or more if you buy a feeder. About ten dollars for a grain pan to feed your grain in. 5 dollars for a scoop. But those are one time buys.

If you have severe weather, you may need a cooling or heating system in your barn, or just turn out blankets for cold weather. There are leg wraps, splint boots, bell boots, tail wraps, breast collars and other assort goods. Depends on your riding style and what your horse needs. They may need supplements too. A lot of your expense will depend on your horse(s) and how many you have.

Hope that helped, though I just know I’m forgetting something.

Answer 2

I was going to mention what the last person said. Horses need a buddy. One horse by himself will most likely go crazy.

Also, I really wouldn't recommend getting a horse unless you are fully aware of all that you are getting into. Horses can't just be turned out and left be. They require SOOO much work that it's not for someone who has a casual interest.

You mentioned that you have ten acres, but are the acres fenced in? What kind of fencing? Some kinds work better than others. Do you have a barn or run-in shelter? No matter how nice your pasture, horses need at least a run-in.

If you are thinking about how nice and pastoral it would look to have a horse on your property, and you have the facilities to handle them, why don't you advertise for a couple of boarders? Advertise for self-care. That way, you won't have to do ANY of the work (other than maintaining the facilities) and you can even make a couple bucks.

Answer 3

Owning a horse can get spendy!!! Worming every month hoove trimings ever six weeks, and the vet bills are killers!!! Worm is about $13, dont get the cheep stuff because it doesnt work for crap. Triming of the hooves can be any where from 25 to 35 dallors. Hay isnt all that cheap either. Then you have Grain, fly spray,horse shoes,blankets for winter and summer,stock tank heaters,and dont forget all the tack for rideing. I love my horses and would trade them for the world, but you should know what your getting yourself into, and if you've never owned a horse before I would get some books and read up on them, there a ton of things to know. I would look in your area and see if you could find a rideing club, go and ask them some question, horse people Love them and easily talk about them for hours on end and would have no problems anwsering all of your questions!

Answer 4

Horses are an incredible joy, but they can also be an incredible financial strain. Fencing (SAFE!) is a big expense but do it right, it lasts forever. Veterinarian visits (plan on these at LEAST 2 times a year for WELL checks) but plan on the emergency call at 2 am at any time. Monthly: feed, hay, supplements, farrier, equipment, horse trailer (you have to have a trailer) Depending on where you are, plan on at least $200 per horse per month. If you dont spend the whole $200 set it in a seperate account for when you need it. You will need hay storage, too. Plan on at least 1 bale of hay per horse per day esp. in the winter months when there is no grass. Remember, they (horses) NEVER stop eating. ;)

Answer 5

We spend about 1000/per month. We have to pay board(360 a month something you won't need to worry about) however you'll have to deal with stable up keep. Stable up keep is pretty expensive depending on how much damage your horses do. My horse also needs 4 shoes every 6 weeks thats $110 per visit. Another thing you need to look at is how much are your horses going to eat. My horse its a bail of hay a DAY. He also gets fed 4 quarts of grain a day not including supplements. Owning a horse is expensive another thing is most horses can't be by themselves! I know my horse would be very unhappy by himself! Also by state law you have to have 2 acres/horse where I live so you might want to look into that where you live. Goodluck!

Answer 6

Hay, Grain, Farrier, Vet.
Depending on where you live, and what quality Hay you choose to feed, you're looking at spending about $6.00/bale on Hay - and the average horse can go through 50lbs of hay/day. Grain (again, depending on the quality and type you decide to feed) will run you about $10/bag Minimum and one bag for the average horse will last you 1 week.
Farrier trims, assuming the horse is unshod and has sound feet, are about $20+ every 5 weeks. Then there's the vet: Vaccinations twice a year and a coggins pulled once a year (assuming NOTHING ELSE goes wrong) will run you, at best, $300/year in vet bills. That's not counting trip fees, etc.
It's costly, for sure.

Answer 7

As you can see by all these detailed answers, there are many expenses! If I were you I'd do alot of research about horses online, they are so complex and there are certain ways to handle them too. Be sure your horse is well trained and has no "bad habits."
Be really careful and if you can take someone with you who knows all about them, as people will lie thru their teeth to sell their horses, I went thru 6 horses before I found one that is great. Always ride the horses after the owner has, to be sure the horse is what they say he is!

Answer 8

ok,first of all starting out u might pay $500 on buying the horse.supplies would be around $500 and vet bill would be around $500 all year to make sure the horse is always ok,then after u have had him a while the monthly fee will go down to about$200 -$250 for food and grain,horses eat about 20 pounds of food a day and drink maybe 6 - 15 gallons of water a day, and if you get him will you send me pictures at [e-mail]

good luck

Answer 9

Johnny boy, don't get a horse yet. If you don't know what you're doing - that is, having taken riding lessons for several years, and learning first hand from others the proper care and feeding of horses - buying one right now will be a waste of money for you and cruel to the horse.

Try volunteering with a reputable stable to get some real-life manure under your fingernails - and then consider getting your own horse. But get the experience, first.

Answer 10

I see you have had MANY answers to your question, almost all are very accurate, but I haven't seen any of them mention that horses are herd animals, they NEED the companionship of at least 1 other horse or pony. There are literally thousands of horses in need of adoption, some perfectly healthy, others just looking for a place to retire. Perhaps you would consider a buddy for the horse? One of many places you might look to adopt is petfinder.com. Best of luck!