Alternatives to Horse Ownership

If you`ve been taking lessons for a while, you may be thinking about how cool it would be to have a horse of your very own. But sometimes becoming a horse owner isn`t as easy or inexpensive as you hope it will be. You might not have the money and a horse can cost a lot, you know! Or your parents might not be sure that you are going to stick with riding. What if they buy you a horse and you suddenly decide that you`d rather play basketball? There are lots of reasons why owning a horse might not be right for you at the moment, so maybe you and your parents should consider some of the alternatives.

Leasing is like renting a horse. He belongs to someone else, but you look after him and ride him. Sometimes an owner doesn`t have enough time to ride his or her horse. They might have outgrown their horse or bought another horse or maybe even has a medical condition that doesn`t allow them to ride. Perhaps the owner doesn`t want to sell his or her furry friend, but she does want to make sure he is well cared for. That`s where you come in!

You agree to look after the horse for a set period of time, but the horse still belongs to the owner. You may or may not be responsible for costs such as boarding, shoeing, vet, and tack. Your trainer may want to lease a lesson horse to you because he`s too frisky for his or her other students, but you can ride him quite nicely. Or your trainer may have too many horses to ride and would like you to take care of one for them. The money you pay for the lease may include lessons with your trainer.

Sometimes sharing a horse with another person is a good idea. Ask your instructor, trainer, or maybe a horsey-friend of yours if they know of someone who would like to share a horse. The cost of the horse, boarding, feed, etc. will be split between the two owners of the horse.

Before you think about sharing a horse, you must sit down with your partner and discuss a riding schedule. A horse shouldn`t be ridden too much, and you should ride him on different days. It`s best if each partner gets three days a week. The extra day can be a rest day for your horse. You have to be willing to compromise, don`t argue over things such as whether or not to blanket, clip, etc., and realize that you might not get to ride as often as you would like.