I’m the first to admit as a 30 year old that my mom is the reason it’s possible for me to have a horse. I pay for the shows and she supports everything else (MRI last year on the horse, purchase price of course, and ongoing feed/shavings). I pay for any equipment I want and all show & lesson expenses.
I have many friends like this, but I’m pretty open who pays for what.
31 year old here, only reason I’m able to do this (AO horse, 4-5 “A” shows per year), is because of my mom, and the fact that my husband and I live with her, essentially opening up costs for horse. Husband and I bought horse (inheritance following the passing of my father), husband/myself pay for shows/vet/farrier/miscellaneous, mom pays for board/training.
I just finished reading through this and now I’m curious. Are western and eventing barns following suit with the must have stall board, be in a full training program, etc.?
That’s my usual. My horse does better away from the stress of the stall at a show. Sometimes I even found a local farm that would rent me a field for overnight summer turnout rather than stable at a show. For now, I’ve given up on rated shows and I’ll just do unrated local shows when the desire hits. They’re under $200 in entries and fees near me.
we found that if the horse is to be shown that getting them into that environment at an early age really increases their confidence
our new weanling at a thousand plus head show, he was just over 4 months at the time
We don’t have many eventing barns in my area but those that are, are moving to the model.
The western ones (non-show related) are just going out of business. We have lost 4 large ones in the last year.
Requiring full care board and being in a program is not discipline specific. Depends on what the barn needs to generate income wise and that depends on many factors. Everything from cost of the property like rent/ lease/mortgage and property tax, insurance to actual operating costs like utilities, feed, bedding, repairs plus staff. Some people actually add on something resembling a living wage. Or try to.
No two barns are exactly alike and there’s no etched in stone standard. Comparisons are difficult.
It’s not just the money although it’s a major factor. I changed to the model when a horse that was not in training and I couldn’t help nearly killed me. I won’t risk my bodily health for people who are following their own “training methods” that result in a rude horse that rushes over people.
I have. But I flat out won’t take them in anymore. It only takes one time to get seriously injured or killed.
That is correct.
That particular boarder is gone, but I will never put myself in danger like that again. It’s not worth it. The stress of trying to get her to do the right thing (the horse actually came in pretty well trained, and degenerated over the year of her being here with her “training” methods) was enough to make me say I won’t do it. Especially not for -$5 an hour.
She wasn’t the only issue beyond the financials, but she was the final straw.
Regular boarding barns are closing in my area. As I mentioned above we’ve lost like 4 in the last year. Some of it is developers coming in and offering big money, and quite frankly, boarding is hard to justify financially (even if you spend close to $1200-1500 a month) compared to a really nice lump sum of millions to purchase the land. Most of the remaining ones are full training only shy of 2, which are more than an hour from the city.
I don’t do this for money (clearly not, because I’m not making any). I inherited boarders when I bought the property for my own horses and didn’t evict them because they had nowhere else to go and I’m not a jerk (at least not last I checked). I used to manage a 30 stall facility when I was young and knew from that experience that I had absolutely zero desire to deal with horse owners, who can be the most difficult people on the planet. They’ll nickel and dime you, pay late, all while sharing pictures on social media of their vacations. They’ll argue with you over pookie’s care when they haven’t the foggiest about what pookie actually needs, test the barn rules like kindergarteners, and are generally rude to staff and hard hard hard on the facilities.
Things HAVE changed in the last 30 years. Customers have. Their views on training have. Some of that is good. Some of that is not so good.
I think we’re about to lose an industry. The vets, farriers, trainers, and other barn owners I’ve spoken to are all seeing the writing on the wall. I’m not sure what to do about it other than to sound the alarm. I’m in a barn owner’s group on Facebook and I’d say about every 3rd day there’s another announcement of someone that has quit boarding other people’s horses because it’s not worth the hassle anymore.
I entered the h/j world as a complete beginner AA five years ago
The original post posits that you have to have money to get far in this sport.
I would say in the American Hunter/Jumper scene, this is true. But it’s been true for quite a long time (despite what books may have romanticized). There are the rare beasts that can work their way up - the same way as the rare actress that gets “discovered” - but those things are indeed rare, and often not as “random” as they look.
Is it getting more expensive? Yes. We know from inflation calculators that wages have not kept up with inflation over the last 30 years. We also know that standards of care of horses, veterinary medicine, and the quality of horses has increased over the last 30 years. We know we’re losing land. We know we’re losing lesson programs. These are all variables and factors that make it harder.
In many other countries, riding is a subsidized (government subsidized) sport. It isn’t here.
I suspect that’s by intent.
In fact, our country continues to make it harder and harder to be involved with horses. Despite it being very much an agricultural “thing” - taxation is not under agricultural exemptions (typically, there are some uses that can be). Zoning laws continue to make more and more draconian rules about how much land you need to support horses, and what kinds of facilities are appropriate. Building codes are becoming more and more difficult. The last quote I got for an indoor building (not the actual building of it…just the building materials) was over $500,000.
So the long and the short answer is yes - making it in that way is going to be very difficult.
There is still an avenue for the talented and the hard working in the way of becoming a working student - if you’re lucky. You might have to leave the state you’re in. You might have to ride naughty auction horses for a few years and do some ethically dubious things. You might have to change disciplines. You might have to muck stalls and get no opportunities for years. These are all things that you might have to do if you want to “make it” with little money.
Or, you might decide that it’s more important to become a student of the horse - enjoy the learning process - and help others along the way. Oh - or marry a rich billionaire who is about to kick off 
Do you know if they make an app specifically for the aging billionaire demographic? Asking for a friend…
The general culture in many countries in, say, Europe is much more equine savvy and focused. The population in general is more knowledgeable and attentive to equestrian sport and the average ammy has more knowledge and experience. It is embedded in their history and culture in a way that does not exist in our country (the US) and we have made horse sports almost exclusively about social status and $$$.
@Alterration your posts really ring true to me. It has become clear that counting my investment in capital, I am subsidizing my boarders to a level that’s really quite ridiculous. There is simply no money in plain boarding, so a new client is more work for me at no financial benefit. People don’t get that.
I do it because I love the convenience of having my trainer on site, and because I love horses. I don’t take anyone who isn’t in full training, though, and we won’t take “difficult” horses or people. She and I carefully discuss every new client before making a decision—but I also want to support her business, so right now I’m a bit over my preferred capacity. My own riding time is suffering.
We are always joking when I have to cancel a lesson for a work problem, how lucky it is I have a “real job.” A job that pays for all the perks (mirrors, fancy footing additives so we don’t have any dust, mud management, etc.) and ensures that a late board check isn’t a cash flow issue. (Our clients are awesome but mostly busy professionals, so sometimes don’t make it to the barn on the first. No problem, they are out saving actual people’s lives!) Either way, the feed bill is still getting paid on time. That’s a luxury in the boarding business.
It’s a sad reality but I can’t do this any cheaper and still provide quality care.
I got a horse in last month. I am feeding the horse exactly the same thing that it was supposedly getting at its old barn. It has put on significant weight, while now in work when it wasn’t in work at the old barn. Yeah, that barn is cheaper, but something is off….
Oy. Talk about a misread. No one is handing out horses. I never claimed that.
Spent a good deal of my riding career in the UK and Germany - you’re not the only one with international experience.
However, there are programs in many countries in which lessons are indeed subsidized through school programs, as are the top horses in the sport. We do not have either of those things in the US. Healthcare, retirement, etc. are all subsidized as well. This makes it possible for barns to exist. Land use allows for shared trails in the UK - not available here.
Despite that, livery isn’t cheap in the UK. Though there are more DIY types of barns than I see in the US (due to the other factors) competition livery is still going to run you at least £1200/mo for something that is worthwhile.
On this point, I agree.
Which school programs are you familiar with in the US that subsidize equestrian programs? No public school system that I know of does. I’m not speaking of University.
I did not claim that most people in the UK were paying £1200/mo. I said that competition livery can cost that. Again - you have twisted my words. I DID say that most of them that I knew of were on DIY livery which is much more prevalent in the UK than here.
This is very similar. In my area, full board is $600-800/mo, and adding the mandatory training on top of it you’ll get to $1200.
Reread for comprehension.
I agree with you on these points, which is why I purchased my own facility.
I couldn’t find that around the major metro where I live. I also couldn’t find care that was up to par with my expectations. I’m dang picky about how my horses are cared for, and no - 2-3 measly flakes of poor quality grass hay twice a day and a scoop of grain won’t do it. Barns routinely promised one thing and then did quite another. I would have happily paid more, but no one offered it.
So I earned the money and invested in my own half-million dollar facility to have things done my way. It needs a TON of work, but now I can sleep at night knowing my horses won’t have ulcers from a lack of feed, won’t be not fed randomly or not worked randomly, or whatever. It was giving me hives.
You too, have this option. Sucks, but that’s what I had to do to get exactly what you describe. I’ve outlined the reason why it is that way in most areas here. I’ve also outlined why I’ve adopted the same model - but it’s not because I’m greedy. It’s because I happen to like my spleen being in one piece.
If I am laid up for a long period of time (or dead) this land will go to developers. The healthcare costs alone in the US - even with the two forms of insurance I have through my employer and my husbands employer - if I were to be hurt in a major accident with someone else’s ill-mannered puke might endanger the farm. Oh and the liability of it scares the crap out of me! That’s another uniquely American thing (note that I am not saying there’s never litigation anywhere else, but we are a sue-happy culture, especially where injury is concerned).
Would you be happy if you paid a set fee and just didn’t use your lessons?
I pay my (VERY good) trainer full training, and I own the barn. Sometimes I don’t really use the lessons…if I am having an off day and just want to futz around, that’s fine with both of us. Sometimes I don’t feel like a structured lesson. We just ride together and we kind of alternate who is cantering and she’ll toss out a comment or five. That works for me.
If I am struggling with something she is also happy to have a focused lesson with a lot of commentary and instruction.
Sometimes I just want to practice something, and the formal lesson structure feels too confining. I know what I am doing wrong and want to be able to figure it out. It’s fine with her either way. She’s also fine if I can’t ride, and rides my horse for me, which she does much better than I do.
I guess the core issue is that I think full training is well worth it and I am happy to pay her for the program, even if I choose to do less some rides. If you are OK with that, maybe it is a communication issue.
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