Owning a horse is a fun and rewarding experience for animal lovers. Of course, as a horse owner, it’s important to ensure your horse receives consistent, quality care to keep it happy and healthy. It can be a rather expensive endeavor after factoring in food, satisfactory housing, boarding, and cleaning supplies, veterinary bills, and the other regular costs required for horse ownership, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth it! If you do your research and budget wisely, you can fulfill your dream of owning a horse without breaking the bank.
Here are four helpful budgeting tips for the average horse owner.
1) Determine Your Horse’s Unique Dietary Needs
It can be tempting to want to spoil your horse with high-end nutrition formulas, concentrates, and fancy supplements, but in all likelihood, they don’t truly need them. Unless your vet specifies that your horse needs to be on a special diet, they’ll do just as well on simple, generic food as they would on more expensive brands.
2) Purchase Hay in the Summer
Under no circumstances should you sacrifice quality in search of a better deal when it comes to your horse’s diet. That doesn’t mean you can’t be smart about it, though! Hay is the least expensive in the summer when supply is up. Stock up then, so you’re not paying top dollar come winter.
3) Invest in a Boarding Structure
You may be intimidated by the initial cost of a portable horse barn or stable for your property, but you’ll spend considerably less money in the long run. Caring for your horse at your own home will also allow you to better monitor the use of their food and supplies, not to mention the money you’ll save on the fuel it would take to travel back and forth constantly!
4) Get Your Supplies Used
One of the most effective ways to save money is to purchase consignment items when possible. Look for used tack and other accessories in good condition, but avoid buying a used helmet for safety reasons. Wait for end-of-season sales and take the time to compare prices when making larger purchases that are high on your priority list.
Bridge the gap between affordability and optimum comfort for your horse’s boarding needs with a prefab or custom horse structure from Deer Creek Structures! We offer a top-quality collection of horse barns, aisle barns, and run-in sheds to meet your horse’s needs and your budget.
Contact us at (254)546-2276 to learn how we can help find the perfect shelter for your horse and bank account!