Minimalism and decluttering as it relates to tack and horse supplies

[Another_Poster]

So I purchased my small farm a couple years ago. Got the horses moved home. I currently have a draft horse, quarter horse, and pony at my place.

What equipment is good to have 2 of and what is excessive? I am trying to declutter but of course, the horses can’t share anything.

What sort of tack should you always have a backup of? Bridles, girths, halters, lead ropes, etc? What is ok to just keep the one of that you need?

I want to declutter but don’t want to end up selling things I may need later on.

[mmeqcenter]

I like to keep spare items around for high-use and/or consumable equipment - halters, lead lines, medical supplies, grooming supplies other than brushes, blankets if applicable location, fly masks.

Tack and training equipment - I don’t usually have extras “just in case.” Tack and equipment I would consider to be long-term use items. I have a few dressage girths right now, but that’s because I had to try several before I found one we like. I have one jump girth. Tack only makes sense (if you’re trying to minimalistic) to have multiples of if you have multiple horses you need different sizes for. I would not expect a girth to break often enough to keep an extra on hand, especially with Amazon 1- and 2-day shipping. I have one bridle for each horse. One pair of draw reins, one pair of side reins, one lunge line, one lunge whip.

Saddle pads are something most of us tend to hoard, but an easy item to get rid of extras if you need to clear out your space. I think I have like 6 dressage pads and 8+ jump pads, which is not a lot at all compared to some people, but I definitely do not need all of them. Theoretically, if you’re just riding one horse, I’d think two at a time would be enough. One to use while you’re washing the other one. Buy a new one to replace when overly frayed.

Bits, on the other hand, yeah I keep every one I ever buy. It’s nice to have a good selection to try when you get a new horse in, and I’m pretty spontaneous on buying new pones. If your herd is pretty closed and you’re not planning on buying another horse anytime soon, then sure, just keep the ones you’re currently using.

[Scribbler]

I do not understand the question.

Everything related to horses gives me joy. Therefore I am entitled to keep all of it.

OK, seriously. You do need a halter and a lead rope for each horse. These will be different sizes. You need a leather halter if you trailer out, otherwise a rope halter is fine for handling them. I would get each horse a different color halter and leadrope so that you don’t grab the pony halter for the draft.

The biggest source of clutter IMHO is people doing things like buying multiple saddles that don’t fit and have no resale value. Or not selling saddles horse has grown out of. Also winter blankets. Just get what you need, if you need them, fit to your horse. And don’t buy show gear that you will never use.

I have a girth for each of my saddles in use, I don’t have backups for those. I have two pads for each saddle, so I can wash them. I do have a box of old bridles and bridle parts, but I’ve never needed them as a backup for the two bridles I have in current rotation (snaffle and hackamore).

The other source of clutter is product that you never use, or half empty bottles of shampoo. Another source of clutter is keeping all the useful buckets that the expensive supplements come in. Another source of clutter is worn out hoof boots that you are keeping because maybe they’d be useful to wrap an abscess poultice on a smaller horse. Also muck forks missing one tine, and broken wheelbarrows.

You have three horses of very different size and build. You might or might not have more horses of very different size of build, like eventually an OTTB or an Arabian that fits nothing you own.

I would clean and pack up everything that you aren’t using daily, and put it away in a corner. If you don’t go looking for it in the course of a year, you can either just leave it in the corner, or offload it.

Most well used tack has about zero resale value, all those random reins and headstalls and bits and stirrup leathers.

[EVneo]

Hi, saddle hoarder over here! I learned the hard way when I went from a QH to an OTTB, sold QH’s saddles and bought new-to-me saddles for OTTB, then OTTB filled out and could fit into QH’s former saddles. I tend to keep all tack and bits - unless it’s broken beyond repair, and if it’s broken, it has a month to get fixed or it’s gone. With tack, too, it depends on what you’re doing. I event - if I blow out a stirrup leather on XC and don’t have a replacement for stadium, I’m SOL. If I casually rode at home, I wouldn’t worry as much about having spare leathers, reins, etc. Where I do tend to minimize is in the lotion and potion dept. One tub of Orvis, one fly spray bottle per horse (hanging on their stall), one bottle of silverado, and one bottle of MTG. I keep the first aid kit well stocked, but no half bottles or duplicates. It also makes a huge difference if your stuff is well organized.

[bip]

I’m the opposite of Scribbler. When I have horse stuff that isn’t in use, gathering dust or leather drying out, it makes me very sad. So if I really like something, I’m trying my best to use it myself or move it on to someone who will use it. I’m also trying to let things go when they are done, like not saving that cracked leather halter because I might need it in a pinch (let’s face it, in a pinch I will use the new, unopened leather halter I always have on hand, or the many many nylon ones that seem to spontaneously generate), or those torn up brushing boots with the worn out Velcro because maybe I’m being wasteful and they still work (they don’t, let them go).

This never used to be a problem, but I’m on my 9th horse (over 30 years or so), and in the last 10 years or so I’ve had multiple horses at a time and the collecting got out of hand. I just got my own barn and am trying my best not to let it be a place where things go to die of disuse. I gave away like 20 dressage pads that were given to me but I never used in almost 10 years because I’m a creature of habit and they aren’t the kind of past I use. I felt so relieved! And I gave away some other perfectly good, almost unused stuff for a benefit tack sale. I actually think I could safely get rid of half my bits, keeping only the KKs, French mouths, and maybe a Pelham (and definitely the Wonder bit).

About 10 years ago I gave away several older bridles, including my first horse’s, because they were O/S and I had a horse with a horse-sized head and somehow couldn’t imagine ever having another big-headed horse. Within a year, I had sold her and wouldn’t you know the new guy was O/S. So maybe I regret that? But they quickly replaced themselves and now I have like 4 O/S bridles, and two horses with horse-sized heads.

This past year I’ve worked a lot with a professional organizer, and I’ve learned so much from her about how to be honest with myself about what I need, and why I’m keeping a certain thing, and how to move things on that I don’t really need. She is a former horse person and has offered to help me in the barn, but so far I’m reluctant. At come point I will probably let her. I’m always relieved when we finish an area of the house that I’ve been dreading/putting off.

[streamline]

Lots of halters and lead ropes!! Especially lead ropes!!! I have… or my horses have gone through 4 lead ropes in the past month. So not impressed.

I use to have a ridiculous amount of nice horse stuff, I use to ride multiple horses daily. I had (still have) multiple horses of my own. Decided I hated horses and sold most of my really nice high end tack. Big regret.

Ive slowly accumulated some nice stuff again, but I’m not riding as much so I just have nice stuff stored in boxes!!

I have several saddle pads for each horse, 1-2 girth’s for each horse, horses have their own bridles and I have a small collection of different snaffles. Life got better when I got ride of 10+ extra unless bridles. I try not to keep stuff that’s falling apart. I do throw away lots of stuff, not just horse stuff but I don’t enjoy having junk around.

[cutter99]

I have 3 halters and leads for each horse- 1 in the barn, 1 in the house, and 1 in the trailer. Each rideable horse has 2-3 saddle pads and 2 girths. I don’t blanket regularly, but keep a couple blankets and sheets on hand in case of emergency, as well as a couple wool coolers. I have four sets of tack that include breast collar, bridle, and pair of reins. I do have 3-4 extra pairs of reins as I am a rein snob. I always have two helmets on hand.

Technically I own 4 saddles at the moment, but do have two out on consignment to be sold. I am waiting for delivery of a custom Allegany Mountain saddle. Once that gets here and I do some riding in it to make sure it agrees with me and my horses, a third saddle will go out on consignment.

I have gone through some changes in the last five years that have changed the amount of tack and type I use, and also made me realize I was a slave to caring for all of it. I moved to the South from PA, and my leather tack would seemingly mildew or mold overnight down here. I decided to try beta tack, thinking I would hate it, and ended up falling in love with it for both the quality and ease of care. I can clean all my strap goods in a few minutes after every ride, and it always looks new and never molds or mildews.

In January I was diagnosed with an aortic aneurysm, and every time I see the cardiologist, he lowers the amount of weight he wants me to lift. I had custom western saddles that weighed 36-38 lbs. without either cinch on, so the cardiologist was none too happy. I bought a saddle that was closer to 30 lbs., and the new saddle I have ordered will be closer to 25 lbs.

I have scaled down from three large tool trunks of tack, like the large Stanley tool box on wheels, to one large tool trunk in my tack room, and a small box that sits on the floor of the rear tack in my trailer.

I have found that down sizing has been a mental issue. It killed me to consign my custom made saddles I had been riding in for the last 15+ years, but I am feeling mentally lighter by getting rid of things, especially stuff I wasn’t really using.

But, maybe the biggest difference is I no longer feel a slave to my “stuff”, and don’t spend hours cleaning and caring for tack I hardly ever used!

[clanter]

If Minimalism and Decluttering is your goal be sure you never buy a Morgan horse…

[x-halt-salute]

@clanter

If Minimalism and Decluttering is your goal be sure you never buy a Morgan horse…

Because Morgans can have tricky backs for fitting saddles and delicate heads that require bridle pieces of different sizes, leaving you with spare parts and poorly fitting equipment to get rid of?

Or because Morgans are lovely and once you have a Morgan you’re likely to want more … and more horses = more gear?

[4LeafCloverFarm]

I am the worlds worse hoarder of horse stuff. :lol: When I got married 17 years ago, my non-horsey husband (god love him) lost my very first hoof pick I ever owned, for my very first pony, Marvin. I’d had that hoof pick, and treasured it since 1975. It belonged in a museum, I know. So silly to get upset about it, but it was the last thing I had specifically that was Marvins. Well, some future owner of our farm may come across it some day. Maybe someone new will treasure it.

Now, I’m not so attached to stuff as I was, say, 15 years ago. I go through my barn annually now - spring cleaning if you can call it that (because I usually do it in October).

• [B]Medications/Saves/Ointment/Sprays/etc[/B] - everything that is over a year old+ gets tossed
• [B]Halters/Leadropes[/B] - Anything ratty looking. tattered or needing repair gets tossed (I have no illusions now of "fixing" broken things to save money nowadays! lol) I keep one halter and one backup for each horse. I use breakaway halters with the thin leather crowns, so I order new crown pieces if I have no extras.
• [B]Bits [/B]- I've always found keeping all my bis of various sizes beneficial, so I've never sold or gotten rid of any of them - so after 45+ years, I have a nice collection. This is the one thing I sayalways hand on to.
• [B]Accessories [/B]- As fads come and go, I've gotten rid of certain things over the years (like thick fleece polo raps) by either donating them or selling them (if they are like new), otherwise, they go to the dump. If you've got anything you've not used on a horse in over a year, chances are you're never going to use it - so find it a new home
• [B]Blankets/Sheets/Coolers[/B] - Like accessories, if you're not using them, they no longer fit, are no longer useful to you, find them a new home. I bought all three of my boys fly sheets when I first bought my farm - nice ones. Never used them - not once. lol (back in the day, I had a bit of a spending problem too :o ). I sold them on eBay.
• [B]Bridles [/B]- Its fine to have an everyday bridle and a show bridle - or if you do Eventing, perhaps 3 bridles for one horse. But if one isn't showing or needs to constantly swap nosebands and bits due to different disciplines, one bridle per horse/pony should be sufficient. I have held on to one bridle since 1979 that belonged to my Morgan, Moe. Its a cob size and I'll probably never have anything that fits it, but I keep it because it is sentimental to me, a lovely raised, fancy stitched, Robeson bridle that I bought one piece at a time with money I made from jobs after school. The company doesn't exist anyone, but boy did they make lovely bridles
• [B]Saddles [/B]- I've never had more than one! lol So, no suggestions there.

I wish you luck in your endeavor to organize!

[XXS]

I sell or donate everything I don’t use daily/regularly. Feels better if someone uses stuff I don’t really need. I have 2-3 halters/horse and of course some medicine and care products, but in my daily routine I don’t need more than the bare necessities . I take care of my stuff and the horses don’t destroy things, so my stuff lasts for a long time. If I need ‘this one fancy saddle pad’ and can’t resist buying it on my favorite 2nd hand website, I’ll sell a saddle pad in return.

[clanter]

@x-halt-salute

Because Morgans can have tricky backs for fitting saddles and delicate heads that require bridle pieces of different sizes, leaving you with spare parts and poorly fitting equipment to get rid of?

Or because Morgans are lovely and once you have a Morgan you’re likely to want more … and more horses = more gear?

actually because the same horse often is often used in many disciplines thus track requirements are spread over harness, western, hunt then the light weight tack for distance competitions

[ReSomething]

You only need one of everything. I got by for three years although I did replace and upgrade, with only one halter, lead rope, saddle and pad and bridle. Of course it was inconvenient when I broke the cheekpiece on the bridle and a couple of other things.

When I got to a lesson program that had a fixed number of items and quite a few horses I got tired of having to wait on the previous lesson to end to get a particular bit for the horse I had and I had the money to buy things I got multiples, but as different set ups for the horses I might ride. So for example I had three different bits on separate bridles and would just grab the bridle and not mess with changing the bit, which I had done as a kid and really didn’t want to deal with anymore. I also had four basic girths in four different sizes and my own saddle and several pads because I always felt funny about using a saddle pad on one horse and then another without washing it. Not an issue for the single horse owner I had been. Not sure why I didn’t think of the fleece girths that way but they were used by the same horse or couple of horses, one had a huge heartgirth, a couple were slabsided, tall, small, like that.

Multiple halters and lead ropes can be useful if it is necessary to catch an unhaltered horse in a field or have a spare for catching a loose horse. I hadn’t considered the need until the neighbor brought in one of those houdini type mares and she would come to visit. She was sort of a jerk and a rope around the neck she wasn’t that respectful of, a halter would have been a little better.

[Scribbler]

I actually made up a tack inventory at one time. Most of the stuff I have acquired as a returning rider is in regular use, except for the saddle maresy outgrew that’s for sale. My big bin of gear is from my teen years, I got it all out of my mom’s basement and reconditioned it. Some of it’s in use, some of it is waiting for a use but it isn’t taking up that much room day to day (well, except for the two low end western saddles in my living room that don’t fit modern high wither horses).

I find upgrading is a good antidote to hoarding. I have two Ogilivy baby pads for the dressage saddle because maresy has high withers, and am ordering a LeMeiux square for the jump saddle. Between limited color range and insane prices, there’s no incentive to hoard these!

I find my tackroom clutter is more about where to put seasonal equipment and blankets that need washing and empty buckets and whatnot. My 11 by 11 foot tackroom doubles as a hayloft and when I have a ton and a half of hay up there, it gets pretty cramped!

I also have a trailer, and keep extras of stuff in there too.

[KBC]

Having moved from a farm to a small house in town, having gone from cough many horses to one being boarded, I decided to sell off sone of my collection.

Among the sales was my lunging roller, cavesson and side reins, because I have not used any of them in years.

I swear not two weeks later my new trainer suggests that we try lunging my new guy to help build his top line…

Moral of this story…be careful when selling stuff…

[Texarkana]

@KBC I hear you! In the past 2 years, I moved from farm to apartment back to farm.

Having to go through my horse stuff for that first move was painful. Having to re-purchase some things I sold (big farm equipment and barn supplies) was equally painful.

My problem now is I can’t remember what I own/sold/lost/whatever. I forget I have stuff I haven’t used in ages, then re-buy it. Other things I think I own, only to end up tearing the barn and house apart looking for something that I got rid of years ago.

[TMares]

We both ride, DH and I, and there are 3 horses in semi regular work. He trail rides, I trail ride and dabble in dressage.

saddles:
I have four saddles total, two dressage, two western. I have two dressage b/c I sometimes show both, and want the ease of tacking up both once, not going back and forth. Two of the horses wear the same western saddle, one horse has his own.
pads:
There are 4 western pads in rotation, maybe 5 english work pads? The few show pads live in my master closet LOL or the LQ.
bridles:
Each horse has his own bridle, so 3 western, two dressage. 3 spare western headstalls, a couple spare pair of alternative dressage and western reins, my one good pair of 8’ split reins I’ll likely never use again, but they are good memories of riding QHs growing up (not the upheaded TWH I have now).
bits:
I have a small collection of snaffles, hackamore, and mylers. Maybe 20 bits total? I sold a bunch over the years, and eliminated any duplicates.
other stuff:
there’s a bunch of spare girth latigos (western), cinches, girths of various lengths and fabrics.

two helmets

I am pretty spare about brushes, etc- there’s a color coded set that lives in the LQ vs the barn. I have about 8 halters floating around so some end up left in the Mule from moving horses around the farm, I keep a spare in both horse trailers. I love potions and shampoos, that’s my weakness, I guess. I don’t keep a ton of medical potions around- Wonder Dust, Desitin, Nolvasan, betadine. A tub of Bute powder. Banamine in the house fridge.

[x-halt-salute]

@clanter

actually because the same horse often is often used in many disciplines thus track requirements are spread over harness, western, hunt then the light weight tack for distance competitions

Ah. Of course! Makes perfect sense.

[clanter]

@x-halt-salute

Ah. Of course! Makes perfect sense.

With having five Morgans who all did multiple things we ended up with a very lot of tack

Regarding halters, those who say two enough I found that having a bunch more always is helpful as we have extras in the trailer, at their stalls, on their tack hook in the tack room, at least several in the garage in case we sight a problem we have halter at hand… just cheap insurance. Just a few of the halters are nylon, the rest are leather because if needed we can cut a leather halter much easier than the nylon

[sophie]

I didn’t think I was a minimalist but considering what I see at my barn, and read on here, I guess I am.

My horse has one bridle, one bit, one saddle, one set of grooming tools.
I do have 3 halters, 3 lead ropes, many saddle pads (on rotation), and she used to be a Klutz so I have a collection of bell boots, ankle boots, galloping boots etc. and a couple older bridles I can get parts off if needed.
It all fits in a normal-size locker.

I did accumulate “stuff” over the 3 decades I’ve been involved with horses, but I 'm in the process of giving away anything I don’t use regularly that can benefit someone else. Luckily, I board my horse at a huge barn where people compete. Every time I bring something with the label " free" and leave it at the barn, it’s gone the next day.

I might try to sell some of the nicer / more expensive stuff such as a nice quality Tb size bridle, a Courbette saddle, a leather cavesson, a Mattes 1/2 pad I don’t use, a bareback pad etc.

I find it so liberating to get rid of stuff I very seldom or never use. Especially if someone else might like it and use it!
Same for clothes/shoes. If I haven’t used it more than once in a year, I get rid of it.