Should I or am I Out of My Mind -to get a horse-

[ShadowRooster]

Hello, there seems to be tons of horse people on here, so I thought I would post this to see what people think of me getting a horse.

We are moving this spring to a five acre "horse property". (huge barn, hundreds or miles of trials!) and we are making a perimeter fence for our three emus, about an acre of five foot strong fence. I could not have even thought about getting a horse where I live now, but now it seems like it might work out. Not that I’m saying I have not dreamed of having a horse.

I know horses would prefer to be with there own kind, I am the only one in my family with any intrest of riding. We have goats and emus out there (the goats are in their own pen.) and I work at home. Would the horse still be lonely?

Would a run-in type shelter be better than a stall in the barn?

I’m in the woods so there is no grass, how much hay would a horse eat? I have goats, so I am buying hay already.

Vet care... how much would a hardy little trial pony REALY need?

I’m going to try to find a barn I can help at in change for some lessons, its been a few years before I had lessons. Everyone wants a "horse experienced" person to help. How do get there without spending $50 a minute?

I have lots of "emergency money" for the animals.

The kind of horse I want is one that you can hop on bareback with lead rope rains and go down the trials for an hour or so with a friend. There seems to be a ton of horses on CL that need a home. Anything I should stay away from?

Please tell me if I’m not thinking about something right.

 

[welsummerchicks]

It is not fair to a horse to keep it alone away from other horses. I don't care who does it 'successfully'. It is a herd animal, humans are flattering themselves too much if they think they can keep the animal company, provide socialization, etc.

Emus do not keep horses company, either.

Also, do not assume you can keep emus and horses in one enclosure. Most likely, they will need to be separated. Separate paddocks are expensive. Fencing is expensive.

It often works out a lot better if people, especially those on a property as small as your new one, instead of collecting different species of animals they know nothing about, concentrate on one type of animal, and take really good care of that type of animal.

Too, keep the total number of animals on your property to a minimum, and over-estimate by a factor of two, how much land they will need. Don't crowd in more animals.

Yes, I know that this flies in the face of the wisdom of many here on this bb. But I am sick of hearing people unwittingly kill animals due to lack of effort in learning about them and providing properly for them.

I suggest you look at what a horse costs. You can bed it in its own manure and urine, and risk disease and injury and even crippling lameness, you can pen it up in a tiny area (keep in mind your 5 acre farm will have less than a fifth of that available to the animal, and it must be kept off pasture at certain times of year), you can starve it, you can do without vaccinations, worming treatments, hoof trimming, exercise and the whole nine yards, 'to save money', or you can take decent care of the animal.

And that decent care is likely to cost at least several thousand dollars a year.

In winter, horse owners in most parts of the USA, need to buy hay. Hay is expensive. Bedding is expensive. Vaccinations, spring and fall, are expensive. Horse shoeing or hoof trimming is expensive. Exercising an animal every day takes time. THis is not like chickens or emus where you just put them in a pen and feed them. Horses need exercise, and no, eating in a pasture is not exercise. They need exercise daily. Exercise prevents injury and keeps them and their feet, healthy.

I would suggest you spend some time at your new property, get it in order, find out what the local laws, deeds, covenants and restrictions are, how tolerant your neighbors are of animals, and do a whole lot more homework about getting a horse first. And get two, so they can keep themselves company.

Additionally, a horse weighs from 700-1500 lbs, and that puts an awful lot of pressure on the ground, the fences, barn, but most importantly, the ground. When you put a horse out in a small field or pen, it turns into muck, manure and urine filled muck. Horses on a property require drainage to prevent everything from turning into a mud hole. That mud hole isn't just unsightly. It risks injuring the animal or making it ill, and further more, most communities now have Environmental Protection legislation, and you are not free to keep whatever you want, however you want. Mud, runoff and other environmental concerns will indeed earn you a visit from people who can require you to ameliorate your property, or even, get rid of animals.

Horses have been described as 'an accident waiting to happen'. Especially on a small property, holes, stumps, junk left around, small lanes and passageways and aisles, inadequate gates, proximity of vehicles and farm equipment, barb wire and smooth wire fence, these are all just waiting to injure a horse. These injuries are expensive to get treated an can even kill an animal.

I would also suggest you spend several years getting riding lessons and attending informational seminars and reading really good quality veterinary books for horses.

Finally, I would suggest that you please, please, please not become one of the many, many people who gets a horse and then can't afford to have the horse's feet cared for by a farrier every 2 months or more often, who have a horse that they decide doesn't need shoes despite it being lame and sore, to save a few bucks, and can't afford to have a veterinarian out when the animal is lame, injured or sick.

Please don't be one of those people. You'd be so much better off leasing a horse at a riding stable for a year or two, and taking riding lessons, and learning what it is about. A horse is not a piece of sports equipment or a lawn ornament. It is an animal that requires daily exercise (eating is not daily exercise).

I a sorry to be such a downer, but I just saw a situation that I am very, very upset about. And I hope it never happens to another horse again. Now I will bow out and let all the enablers come in and tell you I'm so wrong and being so unfair, LOL.

 

[ND]

I always want to tell people that aren't horse people...that are wanting to get a horse... to run the other direction! That's probably not fair... after all, at once point, every great horse owner knew nothing about horses even if they started very young... it's just very hard to find GOOD information/mentor-ship for a total newbie...even harder for them to know when they've found it or when they are being led terribly astray with every bit of bad information out there...

First- Cost. No matter how much you pay for your horse, it will most certainly be the cheapest expense of horse ownership.
With no pasture grass (which isn't necessarily a bad thing... except for cost... lush/green grasses can be very bad...), you will spend considerably more in feed. Let's say a typical horse weighs 1000lbs-- that size horse should eat about 20lbs a day. That's generally feed (grains) and hay combine...and a healthy, well fed horse should be fed mostly forage materials (hay, good grasses) and limited to NO feed/grains unless under a heavy workload.
20lbs of hay a day is approx 1/3 of a small bale of hay, give or take. (good hay with no 'junk' in it) Of course, bale weight can vary greatly... as you know if you hay your goats. I must say that what goats (and cows) will accept as appropriate hay... even LOVE it... horses won't necessarily. My horses wouldn't touch what is typically sold as 'goat hay' around here... "goat hay" equaling poor quality with a lot of weeds, etc.

Vet: Horses can maim or kill themselves on a feather in 20,747,351 ways. Seriously. There is no such thing as a "freak accident" with horses...because EVERYTHING is a "freak accident" or injury... it's just what they do. And... the vet care can be costly. Very. I'm not sure I could list everything I've either had happen OR seen happen, personally, with a horse... and I'm not sure you'd REALLY want to know. Btw- they will have 99% of their injuries or illnesses on a holiday weekend to further make it more difficult and far more expensive to get vet care... if you're going out of town, they will do it 5 minutes before you leave. Just sayin...

Hooves: They will need trimmed or shod every 6 weeks approx. Year 'round.

Deworming: They will need dewormed regularly on a schedule suited for your environment and the horse's living conditions. (ours are every 8 weeks minimum)

Vaccination: You may want to yearly vaccinate.


Training and/or your horse's behavior: There is no such thing as a perfectly trained horse that will stay that way. You are either ALWAYS training or "un-training" a horse... every single time you are around it in any way whatsoever. You can buy the most perfectly behaved, trained horse for yourself, and unless you know how to properly handle it, ride it and discipline it... you can have it "un-trained" in a matter of weeks. If you reinforce the wrong behavior, if you DON'T discipline the wrong behavior, you are 're-training' it. If you cue it differently, rein it differently, you are 'training it' to do it this different way. Now, that's not ALWAYS a bad thing... but it can also be devastating. I can't tell you how many people buy really great horses then have them 'ruined' in no time... all blaming the horse for turning into a brat... or even becoming dangerous. Well, no...they essentially trained it into that place...

I have both a run in shelter and barn stalls. They run-in shelters are available always... they don't use them. They are only stalled when necessary... most recently for a day while we had this snow storm move through and they were wet and icy. Stalled them so they could stay dry and fluffy during the storm. Now they're back out since it's not actively falling anymore. They prefer to just be out in it...no matter WHAT it is. I only intervene when it's freezing and they're wet...


Do you have anyone that you know that knows A LOT about horses... has ridden most of their lives, has owned...competed... etc?
It is literally impossible to list what to tell you to stay away from in terms of buying/looking at horses... there is SO much... much of which only a very experience person would *see* or even know to look for... I mean, every second when looking at a horse to purchase can tell you something or warn you of something... from seeing it in it's pasture (with buddies if present) to how it handles on the ground by it's owners, how THEY handle it (or don't), how they ride it...what equipment they use (or DON'T!)... to it's conformation to how it moves and lands...

I guess my best recommendation would be... look at MANY... ride and handle MANY. Don't get hung up on color or other things that do not affect the soundness or sanity. Each and every one feel different when being ridden... some are easier to *sit*, some styles are preferred over others by individuals... some are more honest than others. Don't 'fall in love' with the first horsey face you find... AND *listen* and look for what the sellers AREN'T telling you about the horse. A great majority of the time, you have to figure out what's NOT being said....

 

[turney31]

Get the horse you always wanted. I have had them 48 years or so, some people make it sound a lot worse than it is. Do your homework. Enjoy!



Edited to add:

 

[michickenwrangler]

A lot of what WC said.

I second having a second equine. If you're the only one who likes the ride, find an older, companion animal to keep your riding horse company.

2 horses on 3 acres will wear the grass down quickly unless you subdivide it and rotate ruthlessly.

Take lessons and read, read, read.

 

[ShadowRooster]

This was not "Im getting a horse" I am just thinking about it. So tell me, If they cost so much, need so much time, can and will get hurt if the pen they are in is not perfect, why keep them? I can see why so many horses need homes, you make sound as if no one could keep a horse without tons of money, and no job, so you can be there with the horse 24/7 to exersize it and keep it from falling into a hole. Money is not realy a problem for me unless somthing went wrong with a job. That could happen to anyone. A good friend on mine had a horse with her alpacas in a smaller pen then I did. The horse seemed happy to me, but I dont know how to tell, realy. If my chickens liked being held, brushed and played with, you could bet I would be out there now insted of on the comp. - even though is FREEZING today-

 

[Rusty Hills Farm]

Actually, welsummerchicks, I agree with you (now don't go and faint on me now!

) I'm guessing the OP is pretty young (I'm 64 so to me EVERYBODY is pretty young!) and very green. Horses are so much fun! But they can be the biggest heartbreak if you don't know what you are doing. Take some time to learn BEFORE you invest your heart into a pair of soulful eyes. Personally I started going horse crazy in my early teens but was well into my 20s before I actually bought one. I spent the intervening years working in barns and on horse farms learning everything I possibly could from folks who really knew their stuff. And believe me when I say there is a LOT to learn. They are a TON of work and sacrifice, so you really have to love 'em to be able to make the kind of commitment they really need.

Good luck. Take your time. Learn all you can so you can make a good choice.


Rusty

 

[Kansaseq]

Horses ARE a lot of work, and can be expensive to keep. Really depends on the individual horse and where you live. Is there a barn near you where you could take some lessons? I took years of lessons and hanging around barns and horse people before getting my own horse. Learn as much as you can and spend time around them before you actually get one; you'll have a lot more fun when you do finally get your own. It can be a very rewarding experience if you go into it prepared. Good luck!

 

[joyous]

Everyone has an opinion, with excellant intentions and information. The number one thing is, if a horse is your dream, you can make it work. Spend a lot of time researching, take lessons, make friends of local horse people, and make sure you have a knowledgeable horse person with you before you buy horse. I am 53 and finally got my horse 9 years ago! It has been a dream come true. On three acres I do rotational grazing, and have to supplement with hay year round. My horse has never been sick or lame, and has had only one minor injury. I have ridden, camped and met wonderful people! I have a companion goat, and have had a second horse both, both options worked out fine. Good luck!

 

[ND]

Quote:
Honestly, I ask myself this often....