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

[ShadowRooster]

Ah whatever.

Chickens and emus are for low-life peaple. Horses are truely the kings pet. I dont ever deserve to own one. Thats what I got from this post.

I love my emus. They are the stupidest animal ever, but they enjoy hugs and neck rubs. I am happy watching my chickens free-range in the sun. Lets leave it at that.

 

[michickenwrangler]

Quote:
This is an extremely naive view of things.

The largest demographic of horse owners consists of middle aged women. Most trainers compete in some way/shape/form and most trainers/instructors do it because they enjoy it. There is not a lot of money in the horse world and those whom I've known to be wealthy at it, started with money either from family, business or marriage. Trainers work hard, most of them cleaning their own stalls and feeding their own horses in all kinds of weather.

You asked for advice, we've given it.

And no one has said that you don't deserve to own a horse. What we are saying is that they require different care and considerations than a dog or chicken. It is not safe to just climb on a horse and go. Please relax and look again at the posts.

 

[turney31]

Quote:

 

[welsummerchicks]

When someone reacts that way when told horses require a big commitment, work, preparation and care, I'm glad if they don't get horses.

 

[Chickerdoodle13]

I definitely think you are doing the right thing by researching first. That is always a step in the right direction, no matter what you are thinking about.

Some of the others are right...owning a horse is not easy or cheap, but it can be fun and very rewarding. It's great to see new and educated people getting into the hobby the right way, and I am always glad to help them whether its looking at potential horses, giving them tours or information, suggesting books, or referring farms for lessons or work experience. Unfortunately, horse people are a breed of their own and many of them have very strong opinions. It is important to remain open to suggestions, but don't get discouraged if this is something you would really like to do. There are a thousands different ways to have horses and many of those ways are perfectly fine. If you get into the world of horses, you will find your own ways to do things, and you may find some ways that just don't work as well for you. Horse ownership is a neverending learning process. I've been around horses for 16 years and I still learn, every time I am around horses. Unfortunately, college has put a huge dent in the amount of time I get to spend with my horses, but I will always have a love for them.

In general, horses ARE expensive. Shoeing, vet care, and feed can be pricey depending on where you live. Here, shoeing is about $120 per horse, trimming is between $60 and $80 if you keep your horse barefoot. However, I've found trail horses in my state do much better with at least front shoes. Remember, once you begin shoeing a horse, it is much more difficult to go barefoot again. Also, depending on where you live, horses with shoes can be a pain in the neck during the winter and that is something to keep in mind. They tend to get ice balls in their shoes which need to be chipped out. We usually have to do this twice a day when we feed. Luckily only two of our four horses have shoes, but when we get the third mare on the trails we'll have a third horse to worry about. This can be kind of time consuming in addition to feeding.

Someone mentioned horses need to be fed three times a day, but most of the time, unless under certain conditions, a horse only needs feeding twice a day. It takes me about half an hour per feeding at my house and we don't stall our horses. Feeding usually consists of throwing hay over the fence into piles and a scoop of feed each. Now it takes a little longer because our old gelding has to be separated for food and he takes his good old time eating when he doesn't have to rush around other horses. Feeding round bales can really cut down feeding time and in our case hay costs. Otherwise, generally for four horses we are doing about two square bales a day. In the summer less because they eat grass. We buy a bag of feed about once a week, sometimes more often. We supplement with beet pulp. The cost of feeding horses is probably a few hundred a month. It is MUCH easier caring for horses in the summer months though. The winter can be a royal pain in the butt, not only because feeding and care takes longer, but because its really difficult to ride in the winter if you have an open arena. Lack of riding during winter CAN make for a sour horse come spring, so its important to spend time during the winter, even if it's just ground work in between throwing the saddle on a couple times a week. Our more trained horses do not need riding every day, however we find it is helpful to put a saddle on or do some sort of ground work daily with our greener horses. Our seasoned trail horses get most of their workout on the trail and my dad goes out multiple times a week now. Before he retired, they were worked on weekends on the trail and I would take them out after school about three times a week. I certainly saw a difference when I worked with the horse consistently, but for an older, well trained horse, I don't think daily riding is a MUST. There are lots who will disagree and I will say that finding an older (in it's teens) well trained horse will probably not be an easy task. If it IS an easy task, you probably haven't found the perfect horse for you. Horse shopping is actually not as fun as it sounds!

I do have to say I disagree with the other posters who say you cannot keep a horse on five acres. You can certainly keep a pair of horses on five acres if you plan the fencing right. I would certainly plan on having at least two decent sized pastures to rotate during the spring, summer, and fall. The winter is not so important because you are mostly feeding hay. Do be sure to check out the trees in the pasture before putting a horse out there. Some trees are very, very toxic to horses so you'll want to know whats out there. I would plan to have separate pastures from your emus though. In some cases that can work ok as I've seen it done sucessfully down the street from me, but generally I think it would be much, much easier to just have separate pastures.

As far as keeping a single horse, I would not plan on doing that forever. Short term it is ok. The situation is not ideal, but I would not rush to buy two horses just because you feel you need two. Buy your riding horse first, get him or her situated, then look for a companion. Rushing into two horses right away just does not seem like a smart thing to do in my opinion. Single horses in the long run are generally not very happy horses, but for a short time, in my experience, it does not cause harm for most sane horses. Having a single horse for about half a year gave us time to focus on her before we bought a second one. We did have goats when we had a single horse and she spent time with them, but there is not much that can replace the company of another horse. Granted, your second horse does not have to be full sized and that is useful information to keep in mind. However, you should have NO problem finding a compatable older horse for a companion when you need to.

As far as experience goes, I would start with taking lessons and volunteer some time working around the horses. Go to horse expos, seminars, and shows. Talk to horse owners. Many of them will be more than willing to talk to you and give you information. Making connections with other knowledgeable horse owners is a VERY important thing to do. When you go searching for a horse, you want to make sure you bring someone who knows horses along with you. This can either be a trainer or friend, but I would not go look at a potential horse by yourself. You may want to look into leasing, or leasing to buy. There are some awesome horses out there available for lease and it is a smart option for many people. You might also want to look into leasing a horse at a barn, even though you have your own property.

If you have kids and they are interested in horses, see if they might like to join a 4-H club. It may be a club for kids, but I can gaurantee you will learn A LOT as a parent.

Tack sales and fairs are another great place to go and make friends and get information. People are usually very willing to talk about their horses! Just keep in mind you will come across some nasty people, or people who believe they know it all. Its frustrating, but keep an open mind and if they are too pushy, just move on. When it comes to horses you will hear a lot you don't want to hear and some of it is important information. Just read, read, read. Ask questions, and when you think you've heard all you can hear, ask more questions.

I HAVE seen some horror stories, but I don't like to push people away from getting into horses. Like I said, it is a very rewarding hobby. However, it can turn nasty very quickly and I think that's what some people here are trying to prevent. Most everyone on this thread has had some kind of bad experience with horses. It's not a question of "will something happen" but more of WHEN will it happen. Horses are dangerous creatures, but the more knowledgeable you are, the more prepared you will be to deal with situations. Even experienced people still have problems when it comes to horses. I've seen people who claim to know it all and who have had horses for 25+ years have issues with loading a horse on a trailer. Owning horses is a real exercise in patience and that's probably the best word I can think of to describe my experience with horses. It takes a LOT of patience and it can be really frustrating at times. You just have to ask yourself if after all the frustration, will you still love horses enough to be enthusiastic about keeping them. If the answer to that question is "no" or "maybe", horses may not be the animal for you.

If you have more questions, feel free to PM me. I don't claim to know everything about horses, in fact I know relatively little when it comes to the grand scheme of things. However, I can offer 16 years of experience or suggestions on where to find the answer if I cannot fully answer a question. Sixteen years and seven horses later (seven owned at least), it's been a long, heartbreaking, and frustrating road, but I would not trade it for the world!

 

[ShadowRooster]

Thank you.

 

[Chickerdoodle13]

Quote:
Uh huh. I am speaking from 36 years (since I was 9) experience in the horse industry when I tell you that it is generally OTHER PEOPLES' horses that do fine that way. It is not something to depend on for YOUR horses.

Also if you are suggesting that you will take the attitude of "don't worry, let whatever happen happen, if they get sick or injured just euthanize it and get another".... well, man, I'm not even TOUCHIN' that one <walks away shaking head and starting to get a whiff of trollishness here>

most animals are alike in the way they show unhealthyness.

No, no they are not. Not, really, all that much at ALL.

Also they are even less alike in how to HANDLE them, and you cannot handle horses like dogs or cats or goats or emus or whatever else, unless you have a horse with a particularly stellar personality and solid training (for long enough that it will not deteriorate too fast when you don't maintain it). And when you mis-handle a horse, the result is not just that he doesn't do what you want, it's that things can get dangerous real fast, also scary and unhappy for the horse, also result in the horse developing enough behavioral problems that it can be fairly difficult in some cases for even a very very good trainer to ever really fix them.

In your original post (#1 of this thread) you wrote:

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

We have told you. Almost everyone has said, basically, "there is no reason you should not get a horse or preferably two, but first you need to obtain a lot more experience and knowledge, and it is not generally NEARLY as cheap or easy as you seem to be envisioning."

Do you actually *care* what we say, or was this thread started just to have someone to argue with?

Pat​

As usual, I have to agree with Pat. Horses require regular vet care. Horses in the wild do not live as long as horses in captivity. And generally, sick wild horses die fairly quickly as nature does not allow for them to live a sickly life very long. That's generally why you don't see sick horses in nature very often. Captivity is not quite the same. Sick horses can live miserable lives for a long, long time. Mostly because they are given feed and water and they don't have to "fight" to survive. That is the main difference between wild and captive horses when it comes to "do they need vet care or not". Prepare to give them vet care. If they need less than you thought, great. However, don't go into horses thinking you can get away with less. It is usually better to prepare for more and be surprised with less.​

 

[Chickerdoodle13]

I'll also add:

Even though you may not want to "hear" everything they say, take some good notice of what some of the other posters are saying. It may not be presented in a way that is the nicest way of saying things, but many of them are presenting points that are quite valid. Many of these posters have helped me out a lot of times. I admit I have gotten defensive at times, but when I think about what they were saying now after the fact, I realize many were right after all. Sometimes it is best just to nod and say thanks for the info and then do your own research if you don't believe what they. As I mentioned before, you'll come across a lot of people in the horse world that have a lot to say. Just keep an open mind and do your own research when in doubt.

 

[Karrie13]

Quote:
I really agree with you, things could have been said in a less offensive manner! I am a horse owner and have been for 35 years (since I was a kid); I have done everything from boarding, training, showing, giving lessons, to helping newbie’s. I truly hope my guidance to people over the years was better phrased. Some people that I talked to had NO business owning a horse (they just wanted to say “they owned a horse”) other people made great owners!

If you truly want to have a horse why not take some advice that other posters mentioned and go to a local stable (or horse owner) and get a more behind the scenes view of what work is involved in keeping horses. They are not the cheapest animals to have but in my opinion they are the most rewarding. What about leasing a horse for a year? That would also be a way to figure out if you really even want one.

You can also save money on shoeing by getting a horse that has really sound hooves and go natural. My mare has never had shoes and she is 17 years old, never needed them. I have had her since she was 4 months old and just weaned off of her mama. I had a gelding that if he looked sideways at a fence it would wrap itself around his leg, but the mare I have now has never had any injury problems (she just has to have her teeth done every year). For bedding, don’t buy those bags you get at the feed store they are way overpriced. Look at local saw mills, furniture manufacturers, or run an add wanting wood shavings or saw dust. For many years I got mine free. I have a friend that has it delivered to his stables for minimal cost… there are other options.

If it is your dream don’t be discouraged, just learn all that you can by word of mouth or experience. Most horse owners started from somewhere, not all were born into it like I was. My mom is an example, she didn’t know anything about horses except what she read in books as a little girl dreaming about owning one sometime. She made that dream come true and had to put her first horse down about 5 years ago at the ripe old age of 38. If a complete newbie that learned as she went was able to successfully have a horse for 36 years, you can too.

 

[ShadowRooster]

I read all the posts atleast twice.

Things are repeated. Mostly the cost.

Maybe people should read this sorta post before they have kids...