# Cost of keeping a horse on a monthly basis - advice pls



## sophie (16 August 2008)

I currently have my horse on an assisted DIY yard a few minutes from my house but I was approached last night by my neighbour who has offered me a stable which was built last Tuesday in a field next door to me and I am just weighing up the pros and cons with regards to cost on how much it would cost me to keep him at 'home'.  He is on shavings (6 bags a month), has Equilibrium and Hi-Fi Lite and of course hay.  Now obviously I know the cost of these bags of food and shavings and forgetting farrier and wormer in the monthly cost, what exactly does anyone pay out a month please?  My current yard (which I can still hack too to use their school) charges £57 a week for assisted DIY (they feed and turnout only) and includes 4 bags of shavings a month, food and hay.  Not very expensive for Sussex but I am just weighing up the amounts that I could possibly save having him 'at home'.  If anyone can please advise me on how much they basically fork out a month in keeping your horse 'at home' rather than a yard.

Thanks


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## Eaglestone (16 August 2008)

I have worked out that if I kept my horse 'at home' it would cost me £100 a month ..... that is doing it all myself though ..... I double that by keeping them at a local Farm  
	
	
		
		
	


	





Hope this helps a bit .... and I am in Sussex


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## Nailed (16 August 2008)

At a livery yard it gots me in winter 120 a month.. plus worming.

AT home it would cos me 80. It costs me teh same to keep one on straw as it does on shavings as i find i use a lot less shavings..

It will definatley be a lot cheeper.. and by sounds of it.. the DIY assisted.. is basicallly DIY anyway so you'd be no worese off.

Lou x


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## shadowboy (16 August 2008)

At home- essex way It costs me on average as we have to maintain our own fencing etc and fertilise etc etc £100 per month, but this is the average of 12 months. In livery for DIY here at least double that £200-£250


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## Smash (16 August 2008)

How much would the yard you're currently at charge you to use the school if you decided to keep him at home? Also, does the yard buy shavings/feed/hay in bulk thus making it cheaper overall? Would you still be able to buy this from them or would you need to source another supplier and thus pay a higher cost?


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## DollyDolls (16 August 2008)

Could be cheaper, but have you thought about who will do them if you're ill or go on holiday?


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## Natch (16 August 2008)

Sorry I can't help with costs but some things you might want to think about are:
Do you have to maintain the field(s) etc? 
Have you got more than one fiend to rotate them &amp; rest? Enough grazing and hard standing for winter?
Company for your horse?
Somewhere to park trailer or horsebox if applicable?
Water supply &amp; hosepipes, or are you carting water around yourself?
Is there anywhere to store bedding and hay?
Practicalities of poo picking
Care if you can't make it, extra petrol to get there to turn out/bring in if you weren't already going twice a day?
Costs of;
Topping
Fertilising
Hedge trimming
Buying and running elec fencing if applicable
Weed spraying if needed

whew!


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## popsicle (16 August 2008)

I keep my 2 horses at DIY livery and share costs and duties with my daughter and a friend.  We put away £450 per month and that covers most things including farrier, feed, bedding etc.  Occasionally we have to add to it for unexpected expenses!


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## xnaughtybutnicex (16 August 2008)

i think this one has been done lots of times and was between about £200-300 including renting stable(DIY), feed, wormer, insurance, shaving/straw, farrier ect.


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## sophie (16 August 2008)

Hi, thanks to you all for replying.  I sort of worked out that it would cost me approx. £75 a month.  In answer to some of your questions, our yard bulk buy but then their shavings are £6.50 a bag and our local supplier charges £5.75 a bale with no limit on how many bales you buy!  Feed is exactly the same price as our local supplier as I'm the only one on Equilibrium (fantastic food by the way!).  With this new stable block I am very lucky - the field/block is approx. 90 feet from my fence line and I have two paddocks already of my own but no stable block hence why my horse is not at home.  My horse will also go out on my own paddocks for rotation purposes but to be honest in the summer he is on restricted turnout of only 3 hours a day plus exercise and in the winter he's out longer depending on weather (he likes his food and gets terribly fat if I don't watch his intake!).  

Hope this answers any questions/concerns - and thank you for your knowledge, I will be back in touch with more questions as and when they arise (which will be often!!).  x


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## SO1 (16 August 2008)

Will your horse not be lonely on his own if he is used to being a livery so you might need a companion for him?


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## sophie (31 August 2008)

Hi, no my horse won't be lonely.  The other new stable is going to be occupied by another horse and our neighbours have 3 of their own horses which the horses can see when their out in the paddocks.  If either my horse or the other horse get distressed when the other is out hacking I have a contact with a local charity who occasionally send me ponies to recoup before we send them out to loan homes so I can easily 'borrow' one of their ponies to go out with ours.


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