I may (and it’s killing me to even think about it) have to move to the San Diego area in about a year, year and a half. I’d prefer to keep my horses at home like I do now but I don’t know if that is an option. If it is an option, what, other than Del Mar are horsey areas near San Diego within I’d say an hour commute? I do that commute now so not out of the question. I am so struggling with even the possibility because if I can’t keep my horses at home it may mean, selling two of them and only keeping my retired mare. Tell me there is hope?
Well…what’s your ballpark budget for a home on horse property? What’s your budget to board out? Where in “San Diego” will you be working? Compared to most places, it’s not what you’d call affordable in any case. Not for most people and not for more then one horse. Horsekeeping is quite different, no lush turnouts, lots of pile corrals with shelters. Lots of good, fresh alfalfa though.
If you go inland, you’ll do better but that’s going to depend on exactly where you will be working and how much time you want to sit in the car. Mileage and Google drive times mean nothing out there, it’s all about the traffic. Often it’s faster to drive 40 miles then 10 depending on traffic,
It is a lovely place to live though, despite traffic and fires.
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Op I am in your position, although my probable move is sooner. After much research and what will work for me and my horse, both her well being and my finances, I will not be bringing her with me. I’d rather her have her grass pastures with people I trust then try to make it work in SoCal.
I will most likely be working on the Naval Base, not Coronado, but mainland side. Yeah I know traffic can be ugly. Budget, Probably under 500,000. If I could spend in the millions this would be easy. Or if I was going to be working in Temecula, not so bad. I am hoping, praying to all the listening powers that be that I can find another option. I can’t afford to board all three of my horses. One most likely, two would be less likely and no way can I do three. My retired mare, I’d rather not bring west unless I can keep her at home. If I can’t find an affordable horse property that won’t leave me sitting in the car 3 hours a day I guess I’ll be looking for retirement board for her in North Carolina. Anyone have recommendations for retirement places in NC?
Sorry. I’m just venting here because there is no where else I can talk about my frustration with the very real possibility of having to move to California. I mean anywhere else in the US this wouldn’t be an issue. Even the Northeast part of the US I could most likely easily find a small farm. But California is the most horrible place for equestrians.
Found these today in the listings: Both horse properties within 45-mins to San Diego Proper. There are a lot of options, you just need to find a good realtor to help you look.
https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/427W-W-Haverford-Rd_Ramona_CA_92065_M27610-66315
I don’t agree that California is the most horrible place for equestrians. We have some of the most beautiful show facilities, too many accomplished trainers/riders to list, and a thriving equestrian community that definitely looks out for our own here. Would I like it better if we all had access to acres and acres of lush pastures like I did when I was back east? Of course. But you can’t beat the equestrian community out here. It doesn’t matter if you are a backyard, county level, A Circuit, or World Cup level rider - there is something for everyone (Western, Dressage, H/J, Vaulting, Trail, Endurance or any other discipline I’ve missed.
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I’d look into Rancho Santa Fe, San Marcos, and the Elfin Forest areas
First of all, I agree with @GetSpotted that California is not a horrible place for a horse owner. The main downsides are lack of spacious turnout, affordability, and lack of green lushness. All of those can be overcome depending on where you board, but there will be tradeoffs. Clearly, in a high-density area there will not be large pastures available. In a high-end barn with all the fancy amenities there will be no bargain basement prices. There are turnouts with grass but they tend to be out in the country and you will pay for that irrigation.
On the plus side,
- there is comfortable riding weather year round. No frozen water lines or hauling water through the snow. No horses standing in mud for weeks in the fall and spring.
- you are in good company; in a 2005 study, California ranked second to Texas in horse ownership.* There are lots of like-minded equestrians here.
- there are tons of public parks with horse-friendly trails including camping amenities with corrals.
- the state has some of the most prestigious and respected venues for horse stuff, like The Oaks in San Juan Capistrano, Galway Downs in Temecula, and the state-owned Del Mar facility – that’s just in the southernmost part of the state near where you will be.
- on the useventing website I see that there are several Californians listed among the top riders.
As for your situation, it will be great if you are working at Miramar Air Base because it is north and east of the main congestion of the city and you will have a much closer commute to less expensive boarding options. What kind of facility are you looking for? Simple board where you would trailer in to shows and lessons, or a training barn with all the amenities at hand?
*2005 study by the American Horse Council Foundation (AHCF)
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I feel your pain. I relocated to San Diego from the East Coast in 2016. If you haven’t visited the area before, try to do so. You might be in for a MAJOR cultural shock compared to the east coast scene.
I ended up leaving my retired horse in a big green pasture with trusted friends on the east coast - for a fraction of the price it would cost to keep her in a dirt pen in SoCal.
I brought my young horse with me, and after the initial shock have really come to like the horse community here. There are some REALLY good professionals around in many disciplines, and all in a pretty concentrated area. The community is pretty tight knit, in a good way. My horse even enjoys daily turnout on grass pasture, for which I unfortunately pay an arm and a leg.
I found just about everything (grain, supplies, training, trailering, etc) except vet and farrier care to be significantly more expensive than on the east coast. Keep in mind that it’s rare to find “full service” board prices in SoCal. Things like feeding, grain, turnout etc are charged a la carte in addition to general board. Things are cheaper the further east you go, but the weather is less pleasant.
P.S. - IMHO, anyone who considers Galway Downs and the horse park in Del Mar to be “top” facilities either hasn’t visited them in a while, or hasn’t traveled much. They are okay at best, but NOWHERE near the caliber of places like the VA Horse Center, KY Horse Park, Lamplight Equestrian Center, etc.
Oh snap!
We recently moved to San Diego and now for the first time my horse lives with us. We’re in Ramona and have just over 4 acres and it does grow some grass this time of year. It’s about an hour commute to La Jolla/Del Mar area. We love it. My horse is so much happy here than in Virgina where we boarded and we adopted a mini as a buddy for her. You can access a trail from our house and I have enough space for a ring. About every third house on our street has horses. I think you can make it work if you find a realtor who understands what you’re looking for, we used someone who specificity did equine property. We only had one to board before the move but none of us liked any of the boarding options we looked at.
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My “home” will always been Ramona. I miss it terribly.
OP, SoCa horse culture is very different, but there are a lot of benefits: Weather, trails, beaches, plenty of various shows within short distances…etc. Definitely check out Ramona. DH was stationed at Miramar and made the drive every day. Unless there was an accident it was a 40-45 minute drive. We could have kept my horse at home but didn’t. We lived in an area that had trail systems throughout so all I had to do was drive five minutes to the barn, tack up and go. As an eventer it is a very close second to “eventing mecca”. Copper Meadows, Galway Downs, and Shepherd Ranch are super close. Head a bit north and you have Fresno County Horse Park, Twin Rivers, and Woodside. Head East and you have Coconino. You have trainers such as Hawley Bennet-Awad, Taren Hoffos, Tami Smith, Andrea Baxter, Gina Miles, Bunnie Sexton, Deborah Rosen, Erin Kellerhouse, and more.
Seriously, go visit. Yes it’s dry and there’s not as much turnout or grass, but nearly all the “stalls” are runs and horses are quite happy there. When we first moved to the Midwest my horse didn’t know what to think. He enjoys the grass (when he gets to go out) but being in an actual stall was a whole new ballgame for him.
