Hey all, I have an owner that reached out to me asking if I can take on a horse for 3 months to put in training. He will be kept at my personal barn and eats minimal hay and a ration balancer. Farrier costs should be included in final monthly price. He is barefoot. What price would you ask per month?
I think there are TONS of variables!!! Location? Training for what? Credentials? Expectations?
3 Likes
Just a kids pony with some bad behaviors(bucking/kicking) needing a tune up. She will be hauling him to my barn, about an hour away. Expectations are that he will be ready to be returned to his kid and be safe.
What would you charge to board a horse? What is a normal charge in your area?
How good a trainer are you? How many rides per week? How much do.you charge for a training ride?
Figure out what you would charge for board (costs plus a little profit). Figure out what you charge per ride and multiply that.
It’s impossible to give a hard and fast number without knowing your local costs. $30 a ride 5 days a week is $600 a month. Board likely isn’t less than $500. I am assuming you are newish as a trainer otherwise you’d have your rates figured out 
3 Likes
Do not do them any “favors” in pricing. Word ALWAYS gets around that you will do favor pricing, go cheaper if someone whines about cost. You are providing a professional service, not doing things on the cheap!
As mentioned, get your rates and services prices for providing stall, hay, etc set out clearly in your contract. Big horse, little horse, they take up a stall, bedding daily, no cut rates for ponies. You may want to add a clause covering damage repayment/labor done to stall, fence, by their horse. Friend boarded a Fresian who kicked holes in the walls, broke fence posts, which all needed labor and materials to fix. She finally kicked them out, even being paid back for repairs. Took up too much time fixing DAILY. You state you will ride 5 days a week or provide X-time working the animal on those 5 days. Is grain provided or supplied by customer? We shod the horse ourselves, kept up feet while at the Trainer’s… We always provide our own horse grain, supplemental things, don’t want them fed any sweet feeds.
Animal coming in needs to be vaccinated, current Coggins shown to you BEFORE unloading. This protects the other equines in your care! Set good standards from the beginning, it will keep things clear in expectations between you and client.
Do NOT take in an animal without a customer signed contract!! None of this “I wIll get back with you. I am in a hurry right now” stuff. You are not covered legally without the contract. Take photos at arrival if horse has wounds, is thin, badly-trimmed upon arrival time to CYA. Friend or not, horse people can be so weird and lie about things later on!!
11 Likes
There are a lot of factors…I charge $30/ride (I don’t have a place to keep so I travel). This is about half of what the “average” trainer would charge in my area and 1/3-1/4 what the bigger names (including Olympic trainers) would charge in my area. I am NOT going to take your horse anywhere near the Olympics! My specialty is young horses and fixing specific behavioral issues, along with helping you “find the right buttons”.
While my skills are probably on par with the average trainer, I do this part time and very selectively. I tried doing this as a job when I was younger but was very soon disenfranchised with the individuals that cared more about the ribbons/end result than the journey, as well as understanding that the journey is part of what keeps the skills there for both rider and horse.
People have offered to “let” me ride their horses and I always decline saying it is not far to charge one person then ride someone else’s for free. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE riding and will ride just about anything but it really is not fair to charge one person and not another. Charging $30/ride helps with this - it’s enough to say “remember my time has value”, not so much to price the really grateful individuals out of my skills and enough to to keep those that would take advantage at bay. It also makes me less regretful of burned out from the help.
As far as boarding goes - either look around to average cost or price out how much it would cost. Say farrier 3 times at say $40/trim. If it is a pony, maybe 1/2 bale/day at $5/bale. etc - round UP…always ROUND UP! Add to the board price, per ride price times how many times you plan to ride/work with the horse per week.
I boarded my horse elsewhere at one point and every time I started to get disgruntled, I would do the math in my head for the work I did to “pay” for board. That usually helped and when it didn’t help, I found it was time to move on.
Has the pony been seen by a vet since the bucking/kicking became an issue? What are they doing with the pony? Are they jumping, trail riding, western or english riding? How old is the child? Are they an absolute beginner or are they capable of re-enforcing your training?
You do sound relatively inexperienced. Veterinary issues need to be ruled out before you start riding the pony or you may find that you have bitten off more than you can chew.
Keep in mind that not all ponies are suitable for beginners.
As @goodhors advised, always as with any new arrival, require proof of vaccinations, a Coggins, and have a signed contract.
Good luck!
3 Likes
Pony has been checked by a vet and saddle fitter, I will be drafting a contract and requiring vaccines/coggins. Thank you all!
3 Likes
Do you have training insurance and is your property set up for client horses?
2 Likes
You have gotten good suggestions regarding making sure you have all the “legalities” of taking a horse in for training… boarding/training contract, liability release, insurance, etc. As far as pricing, you are now officially a “pro”…so price yourself accordingly…then adjust as you see fit. I am a firm believer that pricing can be “adjustable” based on the client. Pricing is not hard to find out. Do some googling, make some calls, then decide how you compare and where you want to slot yourself.
Obviously, full training with an Olympic medal winner, is one thing. I know a “colt starter” who was charging $50/day about 6 years ago…Do the math and that works out to $1500/month. I guarantee that price has gone up and would not be surprised it would up to $2000/month.
Make sure you have insurance that will cover you taking on a paying customer. Do NOT assume what you have will cover you. Especially since it has no manners. That kid gets launched on your property? Might be trouble.
