Why Horses are so special To Us

Let me start by saying, we owned two horses for ten years ... and we loved having them!  "Scud" and "Socks" gave us so much enjoyment.  Scud was a muscled up, quarter horse gelding, about 15 hands high and Socks was a gentle, Arabian gelding about 13 hands high. 

We rarely rode them, but when we had the chance, we enjoyed it tremendously.  The smell of a horse and  leather, the creaking noise as you sit in the saddle, and the feeling of immense power on being on top and controlling such a huge animal is impossible to explain.  You either "get it" or you don't, but those that do, are hooked forever. 

Even though we were not able to ride our horses very often, just watching them grazing or playing was worth having them.  There is something very peaceful and pastoral about horses in a pasture.  They were basically big pets for us.  We even enjoyed going to the barn every morning and every evening to feed and water them.

We were forced to give "Socks" and "Scud" away to a great home.  We sold our home to move into a neighborhood with lots of kids for our son, but the neighborhood we were looking at was not really set up for horses.  We went from a home on 5 acres, which I think is perfect for two horses, to a home on two acres, which is really not large enough for two horses.

Horses need room to run and burn off energy.  If you get your horses out on a regular basis for exercise, this is less of an issue, but most horse owners find themselves like us with not enough time to give them the exercise they need.  We know we did the right thing by giving them away, but Rhonda and I still miss them to this day.  And we've even gone to see them in East Texas a couple of times.

Many people in Fairview, Lucas, Parker, and Wylie enjoy the "horsey" lifestyle of the area.  It's a very close-knit group.  Everyone seems to know everyone with horses.  Some trailer their horses all over north Texas and Oklahoma for weekend trail rides.  We are fortunate to have a popular horse trail here in Lucas (called the Trinity Trail), a 25 mile equestrian and walking trail around Lake Lavon.  There is always something going on with our horsey neighbors. 

Caring for horses teaches kids responsibilities early on and being able to ride a horse brings a sense of confidence to any young person.  Those are some of the many upsides to horse ownership.  But there are also some things you should consider before you buy a hores.

Some of the downsides To owning a horse

Unfortunately, this section will be a lot longer than the previous section.  We had to learn all of the following lessons ourselves, mostly the hard way.  I wish we had known some of these things going in. 

Hopefully, I can give you an accurate picture of what is entailed by horse ownership, and it will help you make a decision if you really want (or are ready) for a horse(s). 

Horses are Expensive

A full sized horse will go through a square bale of hay in about 3 days.  In drought conditions, where hay has to be shipped in, it can really get expensive.  As much as $7 a bale.  We used to buy 500 to 600 bales of hay per year to make sure our two horses had enough to get them through the winter and supplement the summer grazing.

We, like many horse owners, also fed our horses grain, which comes in $10 bags and lasts maybe 2 weeks for two horses.  We also fed our horses a daily dose of 'Strongid", an expensive medicine in pellet form, to keep them healthy.  And horses drink a lot of water, maybe a bathtub full every 2-3 days or so depending on the weather.

Now, you have to factor in your vet bills.  They need immunizations from diseases carried by mosquito's and other horses.  That is usually done twice a year.   If you shoe your horses, it cost about $150 per horse.  Even if you are not shoeing your horses, their hoofs still need to be trimmed every third month or so, and that costs about $50 per visit.  Their teeth need to be filed down periodically (called "floated" and sounds worse than it is) or the horse will lose its ability to even eat.  That might cost another $100 for two horses.

Because they spend their lives kicking and biting (or being kicked and getting bitten), they are naturally tough animals.  But that doesn't mean they don't get hurt.  I couldn't begin to tell you all the ways horse can hurt themselves, but take my word for it, they will from time to time.  For example, one of our neighbors had a horse which, for some unknown reason, took off straight for a 5' iron fence, tried to jump it, missed, and broke its neck. 

Normally, these injuries are nothing time can't heal, but if there is a real medical emergency,  a vet bill can easily run into the many thousands of dollars.  You might find yourself making a tough call ... am I going to have to put this horse down that I really care for or can we afford the operation?

One horse is really not enough (to be fair to the horse)

Horses are herd animals.  Any horse owner will tell you they are not happy without other horses around them. You might think the care and attention you will give to a horse will offset this herd instinct, but it won't. 

Of course, it's none of my business, but it really saddens me to see a single horse on a one acre lot stuck out there all by himself.  They are always looking over the fence trying to get a look at another horse in the area.  Unfortunately, I see that a lot.  I assume single horse owners don't know better.  I tell myself its not my problem, but if you really want your horse to be happy, place it with another horse, or even a donkey. 

Proper Horse Facilities are expensive

I'm sure most people think a barbed wire fence is plenty to keep a horse in, and they don't cost much.  They are right on both counts, but if a horse gets caught up in a barbed wire fence, I've been told it is a gruesome sight.  I would never fence a horse in with barbed wire.

The right fencing for a horse (depending on whom you talk to) is either pipe and cable, pipe and pipe, pipe and wire, or pvc.  Each has it pros and cons (which I will discuss in a later article), but plan on $14 per linear foot for a 5' tall pipe and cable fence if you find someone with low overhead and really needs the work.  That adds up quickly when you are doing perimeter fencing.  Pipe fencing also requires painting every three years or so, so that cost needs to be factored in.

Your horse is going to require shelter from the elements, but it doesn't have to be a $60,000 Morton Barn.  It does need a roof and sturdy walls for wind breaks.  As I said, horses are tough and evolved to survive the elements so the structure doesn't have to be extravagant.  But keep in mind, unless you want to make constant trips to bring back hay to your place throughout the year (or have someone who will deliver it for you) you will need a barn large enough to provide dry place to store the hay.

equipment

You can find a used saddle or a new, entry level saddle for $500.   But remember, you'll also need a bridle, halter, brushes, saddle blanket, saddle stand, bit, topical ointments for small dings, etc. 

How Are you going to haul the horses?

You do not want to be riding through Fairview, Lucas, or Parker on a horse.  I see it every once in a while, but it is extremely dangerous.  The traffic out here is nothing when compared with Allen, Plano, or Dallas, but because the streets are mostly narrow, two lane roads with steep bar ditches on both sides, there isn't much room for horses.  If a horse takes off on its own with a rider, chances are they are going to run onto the road.  Cars and trucks can be loud, scary objects to horses who weren't raised around them.  And even if they were, you always have to be prepared on a horse for an unexpected horn, backfire, tire squeal, etc.

If you use the Trinity Trail, or want to ride anywhere except around your home, you are going to need a trailer to haul the horses.  And if you get the trailer, you are probably going to want a truck.  A full size SUV will do the trick, but most people still end up with a truck.  After all, this is Texas :-)  You now have more tires, more licenses, more inspection fees, etc.  You can see how it all adds up.

Horses are Dangerous

My horse, Scud, was pretty reliable and sure footed.  He didn't spook easily, but he was very aware of his surroundings.  And he'd give anything new a long hard look.  He never bolted, but I still went down on him twice.  One time he slipped walking in mud on the steep side of a hill and the other time we were in a full gallop.  I went over his head as he fell to his knees.  I bruised my ribs on the first incident and aggravated an old shoulder separation injury from many years back on the second fall.  I consider myself very lucky that time because it could have been a very, very serious fall to my horse, or me.

Anyone who tells you they have never been thrown or fallen off a horse, just hasn't done much riding.  It is inevitable it will happen.  Horses can spook at something as simple as a piece of paper blowing across the road.  A gate might slam shut in the wind.  Your horse might stiffen, ready to take off.  If you don't have complete control of him, or he doesn't have complete trust in you, you might be in for a scary ride.  Broken arms, wrists, ribs, and legs are not uncommon, but it can get worse.  If your feet get hung up in the stirrups as you are going down, your horse might drag you until he tires out.  If they "spit the bit", you have lost all control of the horse and a panicked horse is not going to stop by voice commands. 

Horse are big, powerful animals.  The great majority of horses don't mean to hurt you, but it's easy for them to do so.  They can knock you down with a flick of their huge head.  They can step on your foot and break toes.  You might be walking around the horses backside when a horsefly lands on its rump and gives it a bite.  That horse will probably give you a bone shattering kick.  They can easily break a 2x4 with a rear kick, so imagine what that can do to your body.  If you happen to be leaning down and they catch you in the head with a kick, you can be killed. 

Sometimes Scud, our spirited quarter horse, would be walking with us and for no apparent reason, he would get excited.  It might be the cooler weather, the wind, him thinking he was about to be fed, who knows what, but would lower and shake his head, buck up, do a couple of kicks and take off running.  If we were walking in the wrong place, we would have taken a kick.

Our horses always seemed to be more nervous at night.  One night, one of our dogs ran up on Scud as they were both running towards the barn.  It startled our horse, so he kicked out not knowing what was behind him.  Luckily he wasn't wearing horse shoes or it would have killed our dog, but even so, we thought we were going to lose her to a severe concussion.

You have to be especially vigilant with kids and horses.  We liked the idea of Jason taking riding lessons so we started him at ten.  By his fourth lesson, he had already fallen off.  A normally gentle horse just got a little excited due to a change in the weather and started into a full gallop.  It was in a round pen, so they weren't going anywhere, but Jason couldn't handle it.  That was his last time on any horse. 

Horses Live A Long time

A horse really starts to mature when it is about 10 years old.  They can live up to 35 years.  That is a long time to commit to caring for an animal, and if it doesn't work out, you have to find someone else to take the horses.  We gave ours away because we knew they were going to an even better home with 30 acres, but we still feel bad about having to do it.

It's a very emotional day when you watch your horses being loaded into a trailer and hauled away.  If you are the type to develop a strong bond with an animal, keep this in mind before you buy a horse.

Horses Require a Lot of Your time

I couldn't count the times Rhonda and I asked each other at the end of the day "Did you feed the horses?"  If not, we would figure out who had worked harder that day.  Then the other person had to go feed them.  We traded off mornings feeding them, but the nights were always more difficult for us.  Once we got up there, we always enjoyed seeing them and the smells and noises of the barn, but it still take a commitment.

We spent about 10-15 minutes, twice a day, every day up in our barn feeding the horses.  Seven days a week, 365 days a year.  When the winds were howling with the temperature in the 20's, we still had to bundle up and walk up to the barn.  When the water was frozen in their troughs, we had to break it so they could drink.  We don't miss that at all.

When we took vacations, we had to make sure the horses were well cared for.  Luckily, we found someone who we trusted to take care of them, but that costs money too.  So you have to factor that into your vacation costs per day.

Then, of course, we had to clean the stalls.  I never could understand why horses don't have the common sense to walk out of the barn to do their business.  They sometimes even missed and it landed in their own food or water bowls, so those have to be cleaned.   The flies are a constant irritant to the horses, so you might want to get an expensive mister system to keep them down.   But there's another cost.

Where are you going to put the manure you've picked up?  If you take it to the same spot in your pasture, the pile will just continue to get larger.  You can get a manure spreader, but they are expensive, plus, you need something to pull it around the pasture.  Where our horses entered and exited the barn, that area ended up always became chewed up and muddy, so we had to buy 5 or 6 heavy (and expensive) mats to place in that area at about $50 apiece and then improve the drainage.

You May end up with a problem horse

A "good" horse is gentle, calm, and levelheaded.  It is not going to try to kick or bite you.  It is sure footed.  It doesn't spook easily.  That's called a "bomb proof" horse.  To get all of those traits in one horse is a great find. 

But there are plenty of "horse traders" who will try to sell you their problems.  They will drug up the horses when you go look at them so you don't see their real personality.  They'll lie to you about their age.  One of the first horses we looked at was said to be about 13 by the seller.  We had the vet check its teeth and found out it was more like 23.  You have to be very, very careful where and from whom buy your horse.

Socks, our Arabian, was a show horse and was kept in a stall for long periods of time.  He only came out when he was going to be worked or shown.  It's very common for those kind of horses to develop a neurotic problem called "cribbing".  They chew on anything in front of them, including, but not limited to fences, barns, and trees.  We were told he was a cribber before we bought him, so we knew what we were getting.  But he was the main reason we were re-painting our pipe fence so often.  He would chew the paint right off ... even with his favorite food sitting in front of him.

Are you going to carry insurance on the horses?

The number one rule in country living is "Open a gate, close the gate".  We knew it and lived it, but you can't trust everyone who enters your property to know that.  In fact, sometimes even we found ourselves forgetting we had left a gate open when we became distracted.  We would lock up the horses to walk out to the pasture to get some work done.  When we were through, we might come back through another gate and forget one of the gates we had opened.  It was a constant worry for us that all the gates had been shut, because horses will get out and explore if given the chance.  If your horse gets out and causes an accident that harms someone, you've got problems.

Texas has made horse ownership less litigious if you place a sign with the right wording in a noticeable location, but I never really felt at ease when someone was around our horses.  Even if I was right there with them, horses can move quickly and things happen so fast it's just impossible to react.

This is not the right soil for horses

With few exceptions, most of the soil in this area of eastern Collin County is referred to as "black gumbo".  It expands greatly and holds the moisture for days after a rain.  The mud sticks to hoofs of the horses making them huge.  The horses will churn a pasture up into a muddy mess after a good rain.  Then, when you walk into the pasture to see your horses, your boots will also pick up pounds of the mud.  

The best soil for horses is called "sandy loam".  With that type of soil, the rain quickly percolates through the sandy soil quickly.  You can walk into a pasture not long after a storm and not get your feed muddy.   That soil is found mainly in Aubrey and Pilot Point of far west Collin County.

Other Big Considerations of Horse ownership

If you are looking for a home where horses are welcome, you might be limiting your chances of finding the home you really love.  So many times I see exceptional homes on mediocre lots.  Other times I see just the opposite.  If you want both, and then add a third parameter of being able to bring in a horse, you have probably made your home search much more difficult.

Many, but not all, of the newer subdivisions have restrictions against horses even though the homes are on 1 to 1.5 acre lots.  That may sound like a lot of land when compared to high density city lot sizes, but remember, about a third of that lot will go to the home and front yard.  That shrinks the pasture size significantly. 

Even one acre, nicely proportioned, rectangular lots still mean homes are relatively close to each other.  Chances are your neighbors are not going to be crazy about a small pasture with a lot of manure.  That brings flies, not to mention smells. 

If you do find the home you want on a larger tract of land, you will probably end up like we did ... without many kids in the neighborhood.  Someone is going to be spending a lot of car time taking your kids to other people's homes. 

So, are horses worth the time, effort, and money?

Only you can answer that question.  But I would advise you not to go out and buy a horse on a whim without taking all of these things into consideration. 

Tom Grisak Estate Homes Realtors, Inc - Texas License # 0329533