The Truth in Boarding Barns

[Libby2563]

[QUOTE=Jarpur;8429655]
Not to compare our small, personal operation with large, commercial establishment, but to give an idea of what we did: I crunched the numbers before we bought our place or put in our major horse-related improvements (fencing, arena, barn). Without allowing for any increase in our property value, the break-even on what we spent was about 7.5 years of dry stall costs (at that time).[/QUOTE]

I did something similar. I also keep a spreadsheet with one tab for monthly costs (hay, feed, bedding, deworming, fly control, pasture maintenance, tractor expenses, labor, etc) and one tab for start-up costs (barn, driveway, fencing, arena, grading, etc). I don’t include costs I would have been paying had I been boarding, like vet and shoeing costs. I can divide the total start-up costs by the difference between local boarding rates and my average monthly per-horse cost, and figure out how many years it will take for the start-up costs to be paid off. Right now the figure is about 10 years. It would be lower but I chose to make some not-strictly-necessary improvements that I think are worthwhile for riding or management reasons (mirrors in arena, stonedust around gates to reduce mud, grazing boxes to slow consumption and reduce waste, etc). I’m 30 so I hopefully have a lot of horse-keeping years ahead of me for the investments to pay off.

And like others have said, there are many joys without a dollar value: seeing my horses frolicking in my own backyard, caring for them as I prefer, not dealing with barn drama, etc.

[ElementFarm]

I love having the horses at home. But for now it costs me more than I’d be paying at a commercial facility. But I can also have more horses than I would if I were boarding out.

Currently we have 4 horses living on our farm (my 3 WBs plus DH’s horse). At 500/month, that’s 2K. If I were commercially boarding, I’d likely restrict myself to two.

If I were to buy a nice little house with a yard and not much else, or rent an equivalent, I’d probably be spending 1600 a month. For my little private farm, my mortgage is 2700, so I’m already spending 1100 on the horses.
I also have a tractor payment of 400/month, a shavings bill of 300/month, and feed bill of approx. 250/month (more once we lose grass for the winter, and then it’s about 350/month. So I’m spending approx. 2050-2150 a month now, not even counting other ‘startup’ or maintenance costs (run in shed at 8K, hay storage building at 8K, fencing, paint, etc.)

My time for barn labor is not counted here. Not only feeding and mucking and turnout, but now I’m the one who has to take off time to hold for vet or farrier appointments.

So while, yes, I can FEED the horses for a lot less than paying full board, the overall costs for me to keep my horses at home do exceed a typical commercial facility. Plus I have to pay extra (truck, trailer payment, and haul-in fees) to ship out for periodic lessons, which would just be lesson-cost at a commercial facility.

Is it worth it? For me? YES!
I love having them at home and getting the care (feed amount and type, the blanket weight, etc) that I want. I can breed a little, (since having to pay full board on a baby for 4 years before they’re ready for work is not feasible, but having them live out 24/7 in my field is) and I know I always have a permanent home for my retirees to live out their golden years.
My facilities aren’t as nice as I’d expect to have at a professional facility (indoor ring, large lighted outdoor, etc) but since it’s just me and my budget, I’m okay with that for now.
I miss riding with friends, but I do meet up with other folks with horses for trail rides/hunter paces, or at shows, or have them over to my place to ride, and that makes up for a lot.
So a lot of rambling here, but I will never complain that typical boarding barns are gouging their clients. Maybe the trainers and BOs running the 1500/month per horse programs are bringing home some actual money, but I think most of the 500/month places are barely covering costs.