 |
Re: [RC] Horse Buying/Selling - Chris PausAmen! I spend about $10,000 a year for mare and stallion care/services, foal care, feed, farrier (yes, I'm one of those who actually gets broodmare's feet trimmed!). Some of that money goes to the care and feeding of my riding horses, but most of it goes into breeding and all the peripheral stuff needed... fences, trips to the vet, meds, good quality groceries... etc. I make about $2,000 to $3,000 selling one or two foals each year. Clearly, the profit is not there! I will NOT give my babies away for $500 like many breeders do. I raise quality babies. If people want bargains, they can get the babies with crooked legs, bad manners, jug heads, etc. OTOH, I simply can't price the foals high enough to break even, let alone make a profit. I can get more money for them if I keep them to 3 or 4, get them started under saddle, but then I've invested a lot more in their feed and care, so I still don't break even. Case in point, I have a perfectly handsome and athletic colt here, born in April. Between breeding fees and emergency vet care (he crashed a week after foaling, but is fine now), I've got $1,500 into him. That doesn't even count a penny for mare care during gestation or lactation, or the money I'll spend on him for vet care, groceries and feed after weaning. How many endurance riders will pay $2,000 for a weanling colt? Anyone??? His pasture mate, thankfully, cost a lot less to get on the ground, so I MIGHT even things out with his sale. Not to mention all the HOURS of my time that go into foal watch, breeding, driving, training, feeding, pasture care....you can't even figure that into the equasion or you'll have a heart attack when you look at the bottom line. I'm starting to realize now that while I get a million dollars worth of satisfaction out of watching the birthing process, seeing new foals nurse and run, and watching them grow up and then finally seeing them settle into new homes with someone who loves them, I can't live on satisfaction or pay the bills with it. It also has really worn into my personal riding time. I ride and compete a whole lot less than when I just had a couple of riding horses around! It's a shame, too, that it works out this way, because my babies are starting to get out in the world where people are noticing them and wanting them. But my pocketbook and energy bank are not limitless. Not to mention I have to keep justifying to the IRS every year why I keep doing this if I make no money, LOL... It truly is a labor of love. I was hoping when I started this, to be able to raise a couple of really nice ones for myself and help subsidize my riding with the others. I've got my young mare who I hope will be my last forever horse, but it turns out I'm scrambling giving riding lessons, training and consulting to keep the breeding business going, LOL. Yes, Heidi, you can say "I told you so," tee hee... it's been worth it to see these babies and feel like I've contributed something to the sport, but my participation in this end can't last forever... My .02 worth. chris --- goearth <goearth@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: Hello, A trainer asked me the other day... " why i'm not breeding anymore cause i bred some good ones", as i was showing a horse for sale that i had raised. The answer was..."I lost money and no longer care to loose money subsidizing the sport." Thank you all, for again pointing out the real facts of what it takes to get a horse to the 5-6 yo trained, ready to go to a ride level. Maybe if people realize what it costs (and the time and risk) they will pay for the most important aspect of Endurance Riding...The Horse. 30-50k for a truck, 10-50k for a trailer, 1-3k for a saddle (yea i know there are cheap ones,i rode my 300$ 20yo Wintec last night) , etc...and people think they can go get the most important aspect of the equation for 3-5k. The reality is the Arab breeders have been subsidizing the sport since the start, mainly with the show culls (from my personal perspective). I have marketed probably 50 (and bred 10 or so when i had the stallion and the mares) or so horses and now in the process of being the agent for a seller of 2, one that i had sold in the past and her baby. Even tho i'm marketing them to friends and have agreed to drop my sales commission, to make the horses more affordable and go to a home where i know they'd be well taken care of and not just another flash in the pan as has happened in the past, the owner will 'Loose Money". Personally, i think that you should go look at the horse you are buying and see them up close and see if there is a bond, feel the ears inside and out and see what all the issues are and then, go sleep on it and make a rational decision on something that could be a part of your family for 20 plus years. The only people who make money on horses are those that don't own them. So, if one looses money breeding, the only thing left is to make sure they go to a good home. Be happy and may everyone find that perfect horse and friend. tom sites ===== "A good horse makes short miles," George Eliot Chris and Star BayRab Acres http://pages.prodigy.net/paus =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
|