I wish you had said whether or not you own a horse or are looking for the cheapest way to keep a horse.
LIST care:
feed, hay, supplements as appropriate, first aid equipment, cost of shoeing or trimming, full feed & clean board in a stall, board and you feed & clean, pasture with a open barn or shed.
Price of the above depends upon the area.
Full board = $ 350 to $500 /month in my area with stall cleaned, water filled, turn-out and feed and hay.
The $350 would be if you cleaned your own stall and fed your own horse - paying for the feed & hay.
$500 is the total package.
If there is a problem, you are called and a vet summoned.
so full board = $500 x 12 = $6,000 a year
There is an outdoor and indoor arena to ride and train. An instructor comes once a week for lessons.
My 3 horses are on 5 acres with several large trees, and a large 4-sided shed. The type of fence must be safe. I also ran an electric tape across the top and have a horse fence charger.
Rent is $80.
I pay for feed & hay of course - - so add that in.
so, rent 1 horse $80 x 12 = $960 a year
my horse charger was $80 and should last years !
feed -
plain whole oats (not crimped) $8 for 50 lbs.
or
whole grain or Omelene $10 for 50 lbs.
or
specialty feed like Tiz Whix $ 15 for 50 lbs.
guess at $10 x 5 / month, $ 50 x 12 = $ 600
On pasture, I don't have to clean a stall, and I don't worry about a horse needing to be fed exactly on time because they are on grass. Also, they don't have as much 'pent up' energy when I go out to ride since they are roaming around.
I can have a stall if I want to, but I do everything - feeding twice a day (gas to get there), hay, cleaning the stall, raking the hall. There is a large round pen for training, no arena. There are 350 acres to ride on, hay fields, woods, stream, dirt road, no traffic.
Next, there are vaccinations, regular ones, tetanus and whatever is the new 'flavor' of disease. Worming needs to be done intelligently; personally, mine are wormed every 2 months, but I also do 5 days of Strongid twice a year.
I give my own vaccinations, ordering from Jeffers.com
= $ 25 per horse per year
and my worming averages $ 4 to $13 depending upon the kind. so
wormers 10 x 6 times a year = $ 60
salt block and mineral block x 2 =$ 20
Equipment for care and fun can be brushes, comb, hoof pick, hoof oil, shampoo, fly spray, saddle, bridle/headstall, bits, halter, sheets and blankets.
Estimate : minor supplies items = $ 120
Larger items have price ranges that vary widely.
My sister bought a Billy Cook Western saddle,
*used* for $600.
My new " Circle Y " one was
$1,500 with matching headstall.
A cheap new one could be $500 -
you better make sure it is a good fit for your horse's withers and your 'butt.' Buy quality! It will last years !
My used forward seat English saddle made in Germany was $900 and it is awesome compared to a *new* lesser quality at that price.
Bell boots - I use frequently. A front set can be $30. Worth having the horse overstep and loose and shoe and you can't ride and you have to wait for a shoer - and pay for him.
Blankets vary to type of weather - some never blanket, but get at least a mid weight one in the event of sudden need. I also have sheets and hoods for the horses. $120
Once you have basic equipment, things do get easier.
My horses are on pasture, so I only need hay for 4 - 5 months out of the year. I keep extra in case one needs to be kept in a stall. My 3 can eat 1 bale of hay per day on cold days. This is more important than feed, because they can graze on the hay keeping something in their stomach and keeping them a bit warmer. So 30 days x 4 months = 120 hay days at minimum.
I usually buy 140 bales of fertilized coastal burmuda ..... at $ 3.25 **in the field ***
while another lady spends $4.25 - $ 4.50 to have it picked up and delivered to her. Last year - good hay was also up to $6 a bale and alfalfa was $10 a bale !
I also get extremely high quality alfalfa bales for $6.00 (for protein and nutrients) and timothy/clover mix for $4.50 (in event I need a heavier straw hay for a colic or sudden drop/ change in weather that can cause a colic in some horses). I feed each horse about 1/4 flake of alfalfa/day. I get 12 to 15 bales of each of these for 3 horses.
No hay goes to waste. I put my order in for hay to my supplier in May. He is making his first cut right now, and I will get some of the second cut and some of the 4th cut.
For 1 horse, that's about 45 bales x $ 3.25 and 10 of the other grasses.
45 x $ 3.25 = $ 146.25
5 x $ 6.00 = $ 30.00
5 x $ 4.50 = $ 22.50
..........................................................
1 horse per year $ 1 9 8 . 7 5
In the winter, the horses need regular feeding twice a day. In the summer, they get fed once because they are not performance horses, riding horses.
Shoes are $60 every 8 weeks/2months,
so for one horse, 6 x $60 = $360 a year.
My sister left shoes off of her horse x 6 months with trim only.... $60 x 3 times = $180 plus $25 x 3 times for trim alone = $ 75
shoes and/or trim, = $225 a year.
Add in about $200 in your budget for whatever.
I don't want to add this up.... I'll scream.
HORSE = not cheap !
Go ask your boss for a raise ? Buy 10 acres & a barn ?
Other alternatives - take lessons.
Rent trial horse by the hour. Lease horse per month.
Find a friend with a horse and offer to help in exchange for being able to ride.