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I took the time today to add up exactly how much money I have spent to date on my horse, who as of writing this I have owned for approximately seven years. Let's just say, it's staggering...

Board

I don't own my own property or barn, so like many horse owners I board my horse, Paisley. I've been lucky to board at quality barns that are still affordable. For example, Paisley is currently boarded at Windemere Equestrian Center.

The price of my board has fluctuated between $350-$420 a month over the years. So taking an average of $385 x 12 months x 7 years, in board alone I have spent $32,340.00

That number is pretty staggering, but it could be worse, many barns charge $500 a month to keep your horse.

Farrier

I have lucked out. My horses doesn't need shoes. I have her feet trimmed every 6 or 8 weeks for $40.00. I did keep her in front shoes for the first year I owned her which was $65 every 6 or 8 weeks. So to date I have spent approximately $2500 on farrier bills.

The Vet

Again, I've been very lucky - knock on wood - that I've not had any unexpected emergency Vet bills since I've owned Paisley. I spend about $600 a year on the vet. This includes routine shots, teeth floating, de-worming, one attempted breeding, coggins and other miscellany. So I estimate I have spent, to date, $4200.00 on vet bills.

Equipment

I can't remember every little piece of tack that I've bought over the years let's just say it add ups to... $3000.00 total over the last 7 years. To be completely honest though, that's a complete guesstimation. Seeing as a saddle along can cost $2000.00 my guess is probably a little low.

Lessons and Showing

I've decided to not include lesson costs or showing in this outline because I probably would have spent that regardless of owning a horse. In case you are curious though, private lessons, in my experience, average $60/hr while group lessons average $45/hr.

Shipping

When I moved from Virginia to Florida I had to hire a horse moving company to haul Paisley down south. It cost $500.

The Actual Horse

You can get a horses for free. You can get a horse for millions of dollars. You can get a horse for anywhere in between those two extremes. Paisley cost me $3800.00 as a four year old with 60 days training. Paisley is a mixed breed and had little training, which kept her price relatively low. Purebred horses from impressive lines and/or with extensive training cost much more. I just fell in love with Paisley's spots and personality. Though her spots eventually faded, I'm still happy with my pick. I didn't buy the first horse I saw, I bought the second.

The Grand Total - $46k

All of this ads up to a whopping total of $46,340. Now, I didn't pay this in one chunk, it was doled out over seven years in mostly monthly installments. All in all, while it is a lot of money, I would say it was money well spent. I don't regret owning a horse. Sure, I could have by now paid off a really fancy car instead, but given an opportunity to choose between my dream car and Paisley, I pick Paisley.

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