I really need some help

[justaboutgeese]

Littleun has the right idea. You might have noticed that virtually everything to do with horses requires physical activity and hands on. All it would take is one well placed kick, or one misplaced step and there you are staring at the world wondering what is going to happen with no income, no job and faced with the necessity of getting rid of your own animals because you can`t afford to feed and care for them or yourself. Get a career in something not related to horses so that you can fall back on when and if the time comes. We have seen several cases where young people totally throw their future out the window because at the age of 16, 17, or 18 have acquired a couple of horses, had a couple of foals, and now own five or six animals and just cannot bear the thought of having to part with the most important things in their life just so they can get an education and have a life. If we are being realistic for most of us horses are a hobby and being realistic that is the way it should stay. Very few of us can or could make a living dealing with horses. You have got some good advice in response to your question. Talk with your guidance councilors and parents. You have your whole life to play or work with horses, Getting an education should not be put on the back burner for horses or anything else.

 

[coopermini]

Coco,

As you have read go to college...I have worked with 4-H kids for 20 years. Most of them go to college and most change their mind about what they want to do after.

Recently one of the girls went to UNH for Pre-vet then switched to equine studies.

She graduated and 2-3 years later she is assitant manager of a top Dutch Warmblood farm. They have mega bucks to spend and incredible facilities. She does most of the management work there as she has the college degree. She is smart, personable, and very down to earth and one of the youngest employees there. She started mucking stalls.

Good luck

mark

 

[Littleum]

Sounds to me like it's time for you to start doing some real-world research about many of your options. Start reading and start asking questions. I've found many very experienced, well-known people to be quite happy to offer advice or insight. Make sure you LISTEN very, very, very carefully, even if it's not what you want to hear.

Don't be dissuaded by people who say you're being silly or dumb. You're only dumb if you don't carefully consider the good and bad, and relize at least 95% what you're getting into.

If you do choose a "horse only" career path, make SURE you have a contigency plan if you're injured. Even if it's just a 2 year associates in business science.

One last thing.....your last option about interior design may be more beneficial then you think!

Think about how many well-to-do people are in the horse world. Think about how you could use contacts in the horse world (while you enjoy the simple life of an ammie with one or two horses) and potentially build a valuable roladex... you might never do celeb homes, but you could VERY well make a very tidy living working for yourself and making your own hours.

 

[Mercysmom]

GO TO SCHOOL while you are young and have the time! It goes by so quickly but when you are young, even 2 years seems an eternity!

My brother went back to school and graduated at the late age of 38 this past August. Sometimes, life's course takes time but that is up to the person involved to decide.

I have an associate's degree in Mass Communications and I was a "trainer" of students that wanted to learn English huntseat riding. I am now a school secretary and love what I do - finally!

Teaching riding was a fun job (training kids to ride) for a number of years and while there were lots of students I loved like my own kids, there were some that tried my patience and there were parents of other students who I disliked immensely. The lesson horses made it interesting but many students would have been better off putting their 50 cents in the carousel ride at the mall as they expected their mounts to be as predictable. Real life horses sometimes have their own feelings in the matter.

Working for an owner of show horses was tougher. I learned a lot - but especially that I did not want to live my life on the road handling horses on the show circuit.

Wish it was easier than that - to do the best for kids and horses involved but it wasn't so.

The fun thing about horses is that you never stop learning... started riding when I was five - now am almost 41 and am still happily learning with my personal herd of five mares.

Just my two cents worth....

Denise

Silversong Farm

 

[MiniHGal]

Yep, gonna say the same thing....go to college, get a degree, have a job/plan to fall back on...and I would make it non-horse-related.

I am going to college to become a vet--being a daughter of one, I know the difficulties and the hard work it takes. I still don't know if I am doing the right thing, but I do know I can do it--and I will love at least parts of the job(cleaning abscesses is not included...). My interests would be surgery, general equine, or research(genetics)...but I will probably end up doing something I never imagined.

But, the degree that includes most of the pre-vet stuff is pretty much worthless except as a stepping stone. I know people who are applying for min. wage jobs(that they could have gotten right out of HS) with this degree. 4 years down the drain.

Good luck! And if you do go straight to training, make sure you develop excellent people and diplomat skills--you will need them! Also, I would be training(and training well and completely) as many horses as you can within the near future. Because every horse is different, you are going to want a LOT of experience with the different types.

 

[Ferrah]

Getting a job at a track or big riding stable is a good idea for something you can do while going to school at the same time. Unless you know you the right people though, getting in at the track is really hard. 90% of grooms are usually immigrants or similar because they will work very hard for very little money. So its hard to get in at the track unless you have the right connections. I know at a couple of the tracks nearby us they are always looking for light weight exercise riders but you'd have to be willing to ride some pretty horses and from your post it doesn't seem like you want to. Also, be prepared for a lot of heartache at the track. Horses get injured or break down and put to sleep especially in the lowest claiming ranks in racing.

Anyways, I will be off to college too in 2 or three years as soon as I save up enough money. I will be taking a farrier course. I will also be apprenticing as a sheep shearer and will later learn how to groom dogs. All three of those things are in huge demand in our area so I will always have something to fall back on.

My advice is to sit down and really seriously think about what you want in life and then break it down into goals. Figure out what you really need to do to reach your goals and be honest with yourself. I have found the more people I talk to about my goals the more advice I get the clearer things become.

 

[Jill]

My take on it is that it really takes a special type of person to care for, train and show (or anything else) horses that belong to other people. I do not have the right personality. I'd never do wrong by another person's horse if I was responsible for taking care of it, but my heart wouldn't be there nearly like it is with my own. I know this about myself because of how I feel when I help out a friend who boards a few of my horses and sometimes asks us to feed. At home, I just take my time and watch the horses eat, pet them as we're going along, etc., but when it's someone else's horses, I just want to feed, water and go. There's no real joy in it for me at all.

If you have a good career, then you can afford to own really nice show horses and show them, have people help you with them, etc. It can be the best of both worlds. It takes A LOT to train, condition, groom and show ONE show horse, but in order to make a living at it, it would take A LOT of horses and just a tremendous amount of physical effort. Plus, all the owner personalities to deal with. A lot of horse owners are not very laid back and just have unusual ideas on how their horses are to be cared for and it could be like walking on egg shells.

 

[Leeana]

New_Image:

Thats exactly what i want to do!!! Exept i do want to get a business degree and make a business out of it now that i think about it. I mean i plan on keeping 'my horses'. If i went into that i would not allow myself to have more then 5 of my OWN horses (mini's i might have a bit extra of, but no more then 3 big horses). And no more then 7 or 8 horses that im fixing up at a time. For me thats not a chore at all. I know people would be like .."but thats almost 20 stalls to clean, 100 hooves to clean, 20 mouthes for feed ext".

I would want a nice job on the side though. Somethign that payed pretty well without taking up all my time beecause hores are my #1 love.

So the business/Equine degree would go nicely w/ that kind of business.

That would leave time for showing ext to. Im really going to look into this one.

 

[MooreAcres]

Nic--

You couldn't have said it better. I want that life too! What do you say we work together training, breeding, trimming hooves, doing minor dental work...wouldn't that be great, lol!

Erin

 

[js1arab]

OK, I'll probably get a lot of flames especially from the younger ones, but hey, I've been there as many of us older ones have and I just wanted to add some things to consider. OK -here goes.

First the good news

assuming you have 5 horses you work with for others and you charge $250/month. that is a total of $1250 for the month and over one year would be $15,000.

Now the less than good news

Your horses (say you have three)need the following:

Vaccines approx $17.00/horse = $51 (assuming you give them yourself)

Coggins $20/horse = $60

Hay at $3.00/bale we'll assume you can get 1 week out of a bale and only have to feed during the winter which here would last close to 5 months from start of needing to feed until grass comes on. That would be approx 22 weeks at $3.00=$66.00

Wormer approx 3 tubes if you use almost exact weight doses (I like to use slightly more)=around $30

Unexpected vet bill (have to figure that in just in case) =minimum $200

Since you will be doing this on your own, you will either be paying rent for a barn or should be paying your parents at least a small amount for using theirs as a business. let's say the landlords or parents are generous and you get off with only paying $150/mo. which would be all but impossible to find around here or I'd be renting a bigger barn LOL = $1800

AMHR/AMHA fees $45+$75=$120

Total horse related fees (not to mention things like trailer sticker fees, insurance, new tires for the trailer, fencing, bedding, etc. etc.)=$2327

Now your cost of living.

Groceries/ household supplies per month without family just you. Let's say your a light eater/drinker and that means maybe you won't go through as much toilet paper either so we'll only figure $100/mo.=$1200

Rent, again we'll figure cheaply at $250 per month= $ $3000

Insurance on your car (don't even know if you can get insurance this cheap for a young driver but let's say $100/mo=$1200

Gas for your vehicle $30/week if prices don't get any higher and you have an economy car =$1560

Utilities for your home-we'll go very cheap again and average out the high cost of heating/cooling and say$100/mo. =$1200

You just developed an abcessed tooth. Need removal and antibiotic. Approx. $150

Now you have strep throat. Dr bill, strep tes,t antibiotics. $200

Neighbors kids are selling junk er I mean stuff for a fundraiser, your neighbor has been good to you so you feel obligated to buy. there goes $25

OK, this is getting long so let's just figure up what the year cost you and what you made for income.

Income was $15000

Expenses were $10662 (and that was figured very cheaply with a lot of things left out that would occur in a year)

Total you made for that year was $4338 divide that by 12 months and you made $361/mo or $90/week or $12/day or $1.61/hour (8 hour day). That's a lot of hard work for so little. I am not trying to say don't do this, but it is impossible to know what expenses will arise in a year and with being self employed you will have to buy your own insurance (not figured in your expenses) and it is not cheap nor does it cover everything. Most any surgery will run over $10000 with most being over $20,000 and insurance will only pay part of that most times. I would just rather see you have an outside job and do horses on the side or go to school to get a degree and work for a large farm where they might offer you housing and benefits. If making a good living with horses was so easy many more people would be doing it. And the people who look like they are making it big....most of them started with a large amount of money in the first place. I hope you don't feel I am trying to put you down or crush your dreams, but better to think about it and work towards it slowly than to jump in ,get way over your head and be afraid to ever try again.

Sorry all that this was sooooo long, but just wanted to show how life outside of the nest was.

 

[js1arab]

Nicole, I wasn't intending that for any certain individual. But since I know we have a large number of youth on here, I just wanted to help them see all the expenses that come with life in general. I myself have had big plans from time to time only to find out they were just too risky to try because of the limited income (I have two boys to feed and one is a teenager who eats like a horse!!!!!) Luckily, my husband has kept me grounded (although sometimes I think he worries a bit too much) and after I think it through a bit more or start checking on prices of things I find it was harder than I thought. I am glad that I didn't go head over heels and fall on my face. I enourage young people to be enterprising and come up with new ways to earn money (LEGALLY that is

) But some people (not just youth) do not take the time to think things through. I see where you said you'd get a job to pay for a car. That's good thinking. But some youth may not think about a trailer or vet care or some of the expenses that aren't everyday, but will be necessary at some point. A lot of people not just youth (and I would include myself in this group) don't always think about what will happen if a horse gets very ill. It is hard to stop and think that the average colic surgery will cost close to $5000 for uncomplicated surgery. That's a lot of money to come up with at one time (or even on payments). Then you have to make the painful decission of whether to pay the bill (which may mean not being able to keep some of your other animals or your car or whatever) or putting your beloved animal down. I can afford to keep mine, but even I am not sure what I would do in that situation. I would love to say of couse I'd do surgery, but as cruel as it sounds, it is a choice I'd have to struggle with.

So please do not feel I am attacking any person. Some youth have better judgement than others, heck some have more sense than us adults, but it is easy for young people to fall into finacial trouble because they are new to being away from a protected and mostly paid for environment. Believe me, my son could probably tell you how many million times he's heard the -you need to go to college, you need to pick a minor as well as majoring in agriculture, you need to watch your money in case a need arises- speech. He could probably give it as well as me by now and he's just 14

Keep thinking, keep dreaming, keep trying and don't take anything I say as an attack, it's just the mothering instinct in me

 

[js1arab]

Nicole, I didn't find you rude at all. I just didn't want you to feel like I thought adults have all the answers. Like I said, I've seen youth a lot smarter and more patient than some of us adults

Welcome to the poor club

My husband farms, we have two kids and I have health issues. I was a stay at home mom for about 13 yrs then tried to go back to work, but with health issues it was difficult so I'm back in the poor house

I guess I'll have to wait a few more years to be a rich and famous horse owner with a fancy barn

Oh well, I'll try to enjoy the journey LOL or one of you out there that is rich and famous could adopt me. I won't be much trouble, honest, I'll clean my room and stalls too

Hey Coco, sorry Nic and I kinda took over your post here

 

[justaboutgeese]

Time for another Adage from Geese. A twenty two year old who had been out on his own for a few months was having Sunday supper at home with mom and dad. After supper mom and son were sitting at the table over coffee. The subject turned to money or rather the lack of it. Son commented that its really tough making ends meet. By the time he paid, rent, car payment, car insurance, cable bill, electric bill, water and sewage bill, groceries, a few bucks for some new socks to hold his toes in his shoes. One movie was all he could afford to rent and the limit of his entertainment budget. He just decides its really hard making it to the end of every month. Mom comments "Tell me all about it" The son says well what could you know about it, you still live at home.

 

[Relic]

on geese.

 

[js1arab]

Geese, are you sure that kid wasn't really 14 and related to me???? Sounds a lot like something my kid would think and say

 

[MiniHGal]

geese is just full of it(jokes that is)!