at 110# being $28 each that would be $509 per ton
How does that compare to current pricing in your area and where are you? Iām now in SoCal since 2007 and have never bought by the ton here only per bale, but 15 years ago in SE PA I recall $200ish per ton?
just bought 2.2 tons of TEFF, three string bales $413/ton delivered and stacked That was an increase from $390/ton purchased 60 days before.
We switched to TEFF a few years ago, horses like it and are doing well, no wasted hay at all as scraps (if any) the goats get.
Excellent points, Stormy, and all true in my experience. Again, suburban boarders at commercial stables realize that their cost for a bag of feed, or bale of extra hay is rising, so accept that a little increase in board may be reasonable, but they have no idea about the dozens of other costs they donāt see that are part of their BOās budget.
Yes, leasing horses is a partial answer. The expectation of the last 30 or 40 years that everyone who was a respectable equestrian had to own their own horse outright needs to go out the window- we are by financial necessity returning to the riding academy model of the 50ās and 60ās where it was acceptable, even expected, that most riders would use lesson or partially-owned horses far into their riding journey before purchasing their own. Leasing makes sense- most of us donāt have the time to ride every day, and our horses (especially kept in smaller and smaller enclosures as land prices rise) benefit from daily exerciseā¦ so two or three riders per horse makes sense in many situations.
Another option is additional uses for farms, and the smartest one Iāve seen is dog boarding. People cheerfully spend $40 a day (and sometimes quite a bit more!) to board a dog, but balk at paying me $24 a day to board, feed, and bed their horseā¦ and the dog brings itās own food and pillow!
In addition to BOās aging out and being ready to retire and sell our farms to fund our golden years, the hostility we sometimes face (as mentioned in other posts) from folks who accuse us of being greedy sellouts, or somehow thinking that itās our obligation to maintain affordable horsekeeping for them, hasten our plans to step away from this business.
Itās a bad combination of factors hitting commercial horsekeeping right now. Hopefully itāll soften, and for folks lucky enough to really live in the country, or to have enough income to comfortably handle their horse habits, these issues arenāt so urgent. I think inflation overall will cool, but land values, drought-induced hay shortages, and an ever-tougher labor market will continue to greatly impact equestrian sports The ordinary people at the heart of the horse biz, the middle class riders with middle class dreams, are going to be squeezed very hard in the next few years, Iām afraid.
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Ideally, yes. But as someone who has made her way throughout her equestrian career as an adult doing just this, rising costs for stables have made this almost impossible. The old-skool lesson barn model just isnāt profitable, and where it does exist, itās increasingly very poor instruction with horses that are barely sound or schooled enough to canter reliably. A good lesson barn is costly to maintain, and even then, chaotic group lessons with people of varying ability can be frustrating (especially for an adult).
Usually, more serious people about the sport (or people who care about the welfare of the horses they ride) have to move on to something different beyond the very beginner stages. But even leasing can have its challenges, especially if the person is leasing just to save on costs and doesnāt really want to lease out the horse, if there is resentment of the leaser, if the leaser is less experienced than the owner, if the horse is sensitive/green, and there are obviously lots of horror stories on this board from both perspectives.
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Translation from metric / AUD to imperial / USD: 220-260 lbs (avg) @ 28$USD ea. They are small rounds. Large rounds are 4x4 or 4x5, and our squares weighā¦ 40-45 lb @ 12$ USD.
One small round lasts a horse about a week. I go through one round a day with four horses. Ka-ching!!
Our grass hay is $289 USD a tonne. Lucerne (alfalfa) isā¦ not sure the price on bulk, but a 25kg square is $40 AUD, soā¦ $1159 USD if buying in squares.
Mind you, we live a bit from lucerne growing country, but this region is a primary supplier of grass hay. So that does factor in.
I have a small property and 3 horses. The previous owners boarded a few horses and offered riding lessons, plus several groups would routinely book the arena for events such as 4-H play days or ropings.
I will not board outside horses, and my arena is no longer available for rent. Too much of a hassle, and I did the mathā¦not worth it to board a handful of horses and the additional work for my not-getting-any-younger body. I have had a couple of unpleasant conversations since moving in here where Iāve been challenged on āwhy???ā. Oh well. Itās not a barn ownerās job to provide facilities if they donāt want to.
Insurance, wear and tear, and just plain old WORK.
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I honestly think BO contribute to uneducated boarders at times . How is someone supposed to know about things like taxes, area up keep and other costs if BO donāt share that information with them? I am not talking about giving out specifics numbers but a general reminder about the things that boarders donāt often think about might be a good idea?
To me it seems a bit unfair to say that borders donāt truly understand the cost of boarding when so many people on this thread have also said that the Barn owners donāt owe boarders an explanation of why they are raising rates/ what the true costs of running a boarding barn are.
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Bear, you raise some good points!
When Iāve announced board increases, Iāve included a simplistic comparison of different farm budget items and how their prices have changed since the last board adjustment. I distill it to big-change items, show the percentage change, then include both the dollar and percent increase.
I also have given 60 daysā notice so folks can make other plans if need be, and do it in a short email that goes to our barn newsletter list.
This has helped folks understand my business position and Iāve never been confronted about increasesā¦ although no one likes them.
Being friends with math is helpful in these circumstances, but it often feels tricky to communicate the right balance between giving appropriate business info, oversharing details that might seem petty to boarders, or resenting having to defend ourselves in the midst of a globally-acknowledged unprecedented upheaval in business and labor costs and supplies.
Your reminder, though, that BOās could communicate our concerns better with clients is notedā¦ and important!
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Important points here- maybe Iām being too simplistic/optimistic to think that horse-sharing can cure what ails the horse biz.
But what weāre doing isnāt working very wellā¦ maybe thereās an optimum combination of private and shared horse access that will evolve and help get more hands on horses in these challenging times.
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I totally get that BOs should share info, and I really try to be up front with my boarders. On the other hand, itās kind of a balance because I donāt want to go around complaining about my bills all the time. Like the $70 hose I bought yesterday because a new one is scared of the auto waterer and I have to put a trough out for it, and the $500 I spent Friday paying two handymen today repair broken stuff in the barn, and the $12 bucket one sat on and destroyed last weekā¦you get the idea. Itās a constant trickle and sometimes river of costs and Iād be pretty unpleasant to be around if I kept everyone informed!
Plus, honestly I donāt like to think about it that much and I was always taught it is rude to talk about money. No great solutions, I guess.
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I can totally respect and understand not wanting to lay out every little expensive to boarders and I honestly donāt thinks BO needs to do that. But laying out the general costs and reminding people that itās more then feed, bedding and labor might lead to better understanding and less grumbling when prices need to increase .
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I honestly do think that most people want to pay a fair price for boarding, but if the only costs people think about is food and labor it can be hard for people to understand a price increase that was put in place for increase in taxes or area up keep. I wonder if you get less push back because people understand what they are paying .
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Yesterday I went to what used to be a nice local hunter barn which is now converted to a dog sports complex. Dog people spend money without complaint, theyāre less demanding, theyāre only there when you tell them to be, and the upkeep costs are much cheaper. What can blame them?
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Possibly bear is selective about who she accepts as boarders? People who understand? I think many boarders are younger non property owners and really donāt understand understand such things as property tax reassessments and valuation increases.
Heck in my area, some newer subdivision home owners are in trouble because the county reassessed the land value for the first time in 6 years and also raised the tax rate . Thats automatically added to any mortgage payment by the lien holder. Some are loudly complaining to the press and County they cant afford to stay and demanding relief. They donāt understand any more then some boarders
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Is it that people donāt want to understand or is it they have never had it explained to them? Yes, I agree that there will be people who, even after it is explained to them, will not get it and those people can be very hard to have had as borders . But I also know that there are people if given all the information will be more understanding about price increases .
If you want to be selective and only offer board to people who have horse experience or who donāt need a ton of information thatās fine. But if you are going to offer it to people who areāyounger non property owners and really donāt understand understand such things as property tax reassessments and valuation increases,ā then a little education might help them understand what they are paying for.
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Best written reply yet!! As one of the aging barn owners, Iām finding it harder and harder to do the work and keep my own horses ridden. Something has to give. I raised my board 50 $ commencing this coming month, and promptly lost 2 horses owned by the same family. They are going to fence their property and take the horses home, even though they realize and proclaim they know nothing. In the next breath, telling me they will need me to come and help them plan for the move and offer free advice when they need it. What is wrong with people???
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Me too!!!
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āYou have now gone from telling barn owners to ābudget betterā and ālive within their meansā (so board can be $800/mth) to āwell dummy if you just knew how to businessā. What exactly are you trying to achieve here? Because around every corner thereās another Youāre Just Doing It Wrong from candyappy and it is extremely frustrating. Several barn owners have graciously broke down costs for you, maybe just sit back & learn something? From people that are actually neck deep in this mess?ā
. You said this with way more diplomacy than I was going to. 
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