how do i know what horse/equine career is right for me?

Question

i absolutly love horses i own my own. hes wonderful. and i know i want to have a career in horses or equine feilds. but i do not know what i want to do. i dont want to sell feed or tack. i dont like blood. it has to be all year round. so breeding and training is out. i dont want to own my own barn and give lessons. i dont want to be a farrier. and i also want to go to college. i live in PA but i dont know what colleges give equine courses with majors.
please help me find my career and college

Answer 1

Well, lets see.
You have a lot ruled out, so here is what is left.
You can be a barn manager (you can go to college for that), you can do a rescue program for Mustangs (which means you will have all year to soften and train them, then sell), and I think that Genetics should also be considered as equine genetics are not as commonly understood as dogs and cats. You can also be any professional manager (show, breeding, racetrack, etc) which is a year-round job which takes careful planning. Don't rule out training, its only year-round if you want it to be (ex young horses are not only ridden in the summer) and of course, horses do NOT have to be your main spiel. If you want to be something along the lines of riding teacher, schedule lessons only after normal working hours. Not all 'horsey' jobs are day-long deals.
I would suggest Lake Erie College (Which is in Ohio, but you can take any horse class you can imagine) or Wilson College, which is in Penn. Wilson is a professional women's college, if you don't mind that, then that would be a good college for you.
Good luck!

Answer 2

All horse work is seasonal, prepping yearlings, sales, polo, showjumping, racing, breeding. You have to be flexible and practical about what you are getting into. I've worked full time since leaving school, 20 years ago. I have 2 equine related degrees and done so many different things. I used to do polo in summer, break flat yearling/work with NH steeplechaser as a gallop rider in winter then I did the QH circuit and then into breeding with both QH and TB's.
You have to ask if you are prepared to work 6 or 7 days per week, be on call at night, work Christmas Day, rain or shine from 5 or 6am until it's too dark to get anything done. Are you prepared to pack up and haul to sales, shows, races etc and be away from home? Even a degree won't put you in on some upper level upon entry into the work force. People want practical experience and knowledge and that comes before anything else. We had a girl that had a degree and when you sent her out to a pasture, she couldn't catch a thing. I've then had people with no formal education that are worth their weight in gold. They are the ones that get hired and get ahead. It's a hard, tough game and the rewards in terms of pay are not great for what the work entails. If you aren't up to dealing with that, get a horse of your own for a hobby and get a "normal" job.

Answer 3

Sorry but I think you are in the wrong field. I do think you have ruled out a lot possible equine careers. Here are a few possibilities for you, equine feed/nutritional specialist, massage therapy, acupuncture, how about training horses. You can train/gentle young horses at your clients barn. Keep searching I am sure you will find something.

Add:
Been thinking about this for a while. If you enjoy working with people also, you could consider being a Therapeutic Riding Instructor. This involves working with horses and disabled people. I believe Pennstate has a few equine majors you could check out.

Answer 4

I have a girl who boards her horse with me who is starting at the University of Arizona in December as a member of thier "Racetrack Management" program. Sounds pretty interesting... Also, I have another friend who works as a Pharmacuetical Rep for Equine drugs, and she basically travels around California and gives samples/talks about new drugs to Vets and Equine Centers. She originally had a VERY good job as a rep for a large feed production company that was working on some cutting edge "grain" that she would travel around to all the major barns, racetracks, feed stores, etc. in California and leave samples. She loved that job because it was year round, she got to visit MANY different horse facilities and see all kinds of horses and people, but she switched positions because the new job offered her slightly more benefits. For either of these jobs, you're looking at making anywhere from $60,000 to upwards of $100,000 a year including benefits and vacation.

If you're not going into a specific program, like "Racetrack Management", you'll want to major in something like Animal Science with a focus on Equine Nutrition or Physiology. Most colleges, especially the ones in agricultural areas, offer these kind of degrees. Good luck, and keep your eye on what you want to do!

Answer 5

You don't want much, do you?

Since you put so many restrictions on your likes and dislikes I would look for a career that allows you to make enough money so that all you have to do is show up, tack up, ride and go home.

Every career with horses in some way, shape or form involves blood-feces-urine-vomit, lessons, managing a stable etc. Breeding and training are year-round jobs, by the way.

Answer 6

sounds like you have pretty much ruled everything out

maybe a better option would be to keep horses as a hobby and go to college and get a well paid job ( as in the horse buisness, this is rare)

then you will have enough money for your hobby as horses are VERY expensive!

sry if this is not what you wanted, just my personal advice

Answer 7

hmm, you don't like blood. i would say to be an equine dentist, but sometimes there are surguries involved. If you were willing to settle for something part-time, you could be an agriculture teacher, and teach an equine science class and spend your summers eventing your horse.

Answer 8

well i love horses and i hate blood too. but i no that i can get used to it and so im going to be an equine vet. you can get used to it.