I just updated our horse expense list through October 2006 and pulled together this quick, if un-sexy line chart showing the trend. That big blip in the middle is due to annual vaccinations (I told the horses it hurt me more than it hurt them). With only two more months to go to wrap up 2006 expenses, it’s becoming clear to me that my earlier assertion about horses not costing that much may have been premature. Well, relative to say, a child, they’re not expensive. But relative to a dog, cat or lawn ornament, they are indeed expensive. So if you’re tight on cash and want a nice pet, a dog or cat is much cheaper. If you want a nice lawn or pasture ornament, consider pink flamingos, though I heard that the company that makes them just stopped production so you better snap them up at a yard sale before they move to “collector” status. If you really really like horses and have no qualms about putting off a car payment to buy feed, a horse is right for you and you should run out this weekend and buy the prettiest one you can find. Just kidding about that last part but we all know you’ve thought about it.
Try adding board, and weekly riding lessons, to that graph
Very good point. This chart assumes NO boarding and lessons. We’re fortunate we’ve got a barn and fenced pasture but we could definitely use those riding lessons
. But hey, with boarding comes the freedom to go vacation whenever you want!
pretty good. i’m just looking into a horse and expenses are the only issue so i need to the basic budget of a horse minus the lessons and board.
i want a horse and i was wondering how much it costs per month for: boarding, feed, shots (if needed), and anything else that is ABSOLUTELY nessairy.e-mail
me at skans@alltel.net