Horses and Good Schools

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP have you ever had horses? Horses are very expensive to maintain. Vet costs are very high, hay, barn maintenance etc. it’s a lot of work so either you are into mucking stalls everyday, turning them out etc or you are hiring an employee. When they get old you can’t ride them but it’s heartbreaking to get rid of them sending them to a slaughterhouse.

Chickens are more reasonable or maybe a few goats but horses are a huge commitment.

WTH - that’s not what you do! You let them live out their life. Euthanize them humanely when it is time.

[Anonymous]

Buy yourself a scenic 4 acres and board the horse at the nice farm down the road.
- actual horse owner for 20+ yrs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP have you ever had horses? Horses are very expensive to maintain. Vet costs are very high, hay, barn maintenance etc. it’s a lot of work so either you are into mucking stalls everyday, turning them out etc or you are hiring an employee. When they get old you can’t ride them but it’s heartbreaking to get rid of them sending them to a slaughterhouse.

Chickens are more reasonable or maybe a few goats but horses are a huge commitment.

WTH - that’s not what you do! You let them live out their life. Euthanize them humanely when it is time.

Horse owner and for the record, our horse would never go to the slaughterhouse.
However, euthanizing a horse is extremely expensive. It isn't like putting down a dog. While it isn't necessarily the vet cost, per se, it is removal of the body. Most farms do not allow you to bury the horse on the farm (and if they do, it requires a back hoe) so you would have to pay to have the horse cremated. It can be several thousand dollars to transport the body and perform the cremation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP have you ever had horses? Horses are very expensive to maintain. Vet costs are very high, hay, barn maintenance etc. it’s a lot of work so either you are into mucking stalls everyday, turning them out etc or you are hiring an employee. When they get old you can’t ride them but it’s heartbreaking to get rid of them sending them to a slaughterhouse.

Chickens are more reasonable or maybe a few goats but horses are a huge commitment.

WTH - that’s not what you do! You let them live out their life. Euthanize them humanely when it is time.

Horse owner and for the record, our horse would never go to the slaughterhouse.
However, euthanizing a horse is extremely expensive. It isn't like putting down a dog. While it isn't necessarily the vet cost, per se, it is removal of the body. Most farms do not allow you to bury the horse on the farm (and if they do, it requires a back hoe) so you would have to pay to have the horse cremated. It can be several thousand dollars to transport the body and perform the cremation.

If you can afford to keep a horse alive, then you can afford to deal with its body

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP have you ever had horses? Horses are very expensive to maintain. Vet costs are very high, hay, barn maintenance etc. it’s a lot of work so either you are into mucking stalls everyday, turning them out etc or you are hiring an employee. When they get old you can’t ride them but it’s heartbreaking to get rid of them sending them to a slaughterhouse.

Chickens are more reasonable or maybe a few goats but horses are a huge commitment.

WTH - that’s not what you do! You let them live out their life. Euthanize them humanely when it is time.

Horse owner and for the record, our horse would never go to the slaughterhouse.
However, euthanizing a horse is extremely expensive. It isn't like putting down a dog. While it isn't necessarily the vet cost, per se, it is removal of the body. Most farms do not allow you to bury the horse on the farm (and if they do, it requires a back hoe) so you would have to pay to have the horse cremated. It can be several thousand dollars to transport the body and perform the cremation.

Then you can shoot it and let the hounds eat it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP have you ever had horses? Horses are very expensive to maintain. Vet costs are very high, hay, barn maintenance etc. it’s a lot of work so either you are into mucking stalls everyday, turning them out etc or you are hiring an employee. When they get old you can’t ride them but it’s heartbreaking to get rid of them sending them to a slaughterhouse.

Chickens are more reasonable or maybe a few goats but horses are a huge commitment.

WTH - that’s not what you do! You let them live out their life. Euthanize them humanely when it is time.

Horse owner and for the record, our horse would never go to the slaughterhouse.
However, euthanizing a horse is extremely expensive. It isn't like putting down a dog. While it isn't necessarily the vet cost, per se, it is removal of the body. Most farms do not allow you to bury the horse on the farm (and if they do, it requires a back hoe) so you would have to pay to have the horse cremated. It can be several thousand dollars to transport the body and perform the cremation.

No, they usually go to the renderer.

[Anonymous]

Has OP disappeared? Did they think they could put some horses outside and just feed them, i.e. not really different than the family dog? I've volunteered at horse rescues, too many malnourished and uncared for horses end up there from people who like the idea of having a horse but not the daily care required. I second get a house you like near a boarding barn if you really want horses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Board. The. Horses.

This. And I’m speaking as a horseperson who once tried to run my own little horse farm in MD.

Board, all day long.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Has OP disappeared? Did they think they could put some horses outside and just feed them, i.e. not really different than the family dog? I've volunteered at horse rescues, too many malnourished and uncared for horses end up there from people who like the idea of having a horse but not the daily care required. I second get a house you like near a boarding barn if you really want horses.

Probably. I don't blame her. I have no idea how a thread seeking place to live turned into eating and killing horses. But, hey, anything is possible here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you can afford horsies, you should be affording private schools.

Completely disagree. I grew up with horses. My chores included feeding them and cleaning out their pastures before school. We went to okay public schools. All 3 of us kids ended up in top 20 undergrads then various postgrad programs. If you love the lifestyle, it'll all work out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP have you ever had horses? Horses are very expensive to maintain. Vet costs are very high, hay, barn maintenance etc. it’s a lot of work so either you are into mucking stalls everyday, turning them out etc or you are hiring an employee. When they get old you can’t ride them but it’s heartbreaking to get rid of them sending them to a slaughterhouse.

Chickens are more reasonable or maybe a few goats but horses are a huge commitment.

WTH - that’s not what you do! You let them live out their life. Euthanize them humanely when it is time.

Horse owner and for the record, our horse would never go to the slaughterhouse.
However, euthanizing a horse is extremely expensive. It isn't like putting down a dog. While it isn't necessarily the vet cost, per se, it is removal of the body. Most farms do not allow you to bury the horse on the farm (and if they do, it requires a back hoe) so you would have to pay to have the horse cremated. It can be several thousand dollars to transport the body and perform the cremation.

All this.

I'm from out in Western Loudoun. Even if you own the farm everyone I knew with a horse paid thousands to have the horse moved and cremated.

We buried our dogs on our farm, and even that required work and carefully picking a spot (with proper equipment) because of how hard it is to dig a deep hole with the type of land we have here...you'd hit rock before digging a hole deep enough for a horse with the land out here, even with a backhoe. Maybe it's different in MD but in NOVA the ground turns to rock pretty fast, that's why we have quarries out here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP have you ever had horses? Horses are very expensive to maintain. Vet costs are very high, hay, barn maintenance etc. it’s a lot of work so either you are into mucking stalls everyday, turning them out etc or you are hiring an employee. When they get old you can’t ride them but it’s heartbreaking to get rid of them sending them to a slaughterhouse.

Chickens are more reasonable or maybe a few goats but horses are a huge commitment.

WTH - that’s not what you do! You let them live out their life. Euthanize them humanely when it is time.

Horse owner and for the record, our horse would never go to the slaughterhouse.
However, euthanizing a horse is extremely expensive. It isn't like putting down a dog. While it isn't necessarily the vet cost, per se, it is removal of the body. Most farms do not allow you to bury the horse on the farm (and if they do, it requires a back hoe) so you would have to pay to have the horse cremated. It can be several thousand dollars to transport the body and perform the cremation.

So you send it off to the glue factory?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are there any “equestrian communities” in the region? I have a friend in SC who lives in a neighborhood with a common barn and riding trails throughout the neighborhood. Each house has enough land for a paddock and a small barn. But the contract with the vet and farriers to come regularly. It seems really convenient for people who love horses but have jobs that require travel. It is expensive.

There's one in Reston/Herndon. I forget the name of it.

We have a friend in Fauquier Co. They bought a beautiful house for $700k. they have a barn and board 2 other horses. Kids go to Wakefield School. i'd look out there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know very little about Upper Marlboro or the school situation, but we drive by this area regularly and they have new homes in your price range with really nice riding facilities too:
https://timberlakehomes.com/communities/marlboro-ridge/

Although the houses aren't to my taste, this looks like a really nice solution to the OP's dilemma. Otherwise, board the horses. The ground in MD/VA will not support the pen/shed configuration that's common in the West.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Horse property/farm owner here (Frederick County MD, private barn, arena, grow our own hay). Get ready for sticker shock because 900K will not get you as much as you think it will, nothing in Montgomery county, and probably not Frederick, Howard or Carroll either. Pay attention to zoning, don't even bother to look at anything not zoned agriculture. Our property value has doubled since the pandemic because everyone is looking for exactly what you want.

Join the Maryland Horse Network on FB, the Farm Exchange FB groups, the Farm property FB groups, get a agriculture/horse property realtor, because you will need all the contacts you can get. These properties are hot and rare.

Your property value doubled in 18 months? Yeah, gonna call BS on that one.