A lot of people want to become horse owners, and you might remember begging your parents to get you one when you were a little kid. They sure are amazing animals, and they certainly are unique pets to care for as well. However, while there are a lot of great benefits to owning a horse, they do require a lot of care, and there are reasons why not everyone chooses to own one as a pet.
If you have been thinking about getting a horse recently, below are some of the key things you need to think about before you commit to this.
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Can You Afford It?
One of the biggest reasons why horse lovers don’t always become horse owners is because of the high costs attached to this. Horses can be expensive to purchase, and even if you did get a rescue horse, it would still come with a hefty price tag in the long term.
Not only will you need to pay for its food and accessories, but you will likely need to pay for livery pasture and board if you don’t have stables on your property, training costs if this is required, and high veterinarian bills, too.
Although everyone knows horses are expensive, you do need to take the time to do some thorough research into these costs to make sure that you’re financially able to care for an animal of this size.
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How Much Time Do You Have to Look After It?
You also need to be honest with yourself about how much time you have to dedicate to the care and nurturing of your horse. Although you don’t need to ride them every day, you do need to make sure that you can clean out their stables regularly, give them fresh food, and let them out of the stables to pasture so that they aren’t always confined to these small spaces.
If you are placing your horse in a boarding stable (sometimes referred to as a livery stable), the staff there should be providing this care for your horse as part of the service, but always check what they are offering to make sure.
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Transportation for Your Horse
While you might enjoy going for rides on your horse, they can’t travel anywhere and everywhere. When you need to move your horse to a new stable, or take them to a competition, or move them for another reason, you will need to arrange suitable transportation for them.
Some horse owners might buy a horse box trailer to use, but you might find that using a horse transport service like https://www.shiply.com/us/pet-transport/horse-transportation is more suitable to keep them safe and comfortable.
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What Is the Horse Like?
When you do go to see horses that you’re interested in buying or rescuing, make sure that you are paying close attention to their body language. If the horse appears to be unsettled or aggressive in any way, you might want to think twice about making an offer.
Horses can be dangerous as much as they are beautiful, and you want to know that you are as safe as possible when you ride one or are near them. A horse that is comfortable around people and other animals is important, as ones that are more anxious or aggressive could put you in troubling situations – especially if you are a beginner equestrian or inexperienced horse owner.
Final Thoughts
If you are thinking about becoming a horse owner, there are many others things you will need to think about, but the points above are all good places to start.