As a teenager, I had as many lessons as I could, helped out at my stables, even had a horse on part-loan for three years, but I've never been in a position to own my own through a combination of school, university and now a full-time job with varying hours. I come from a non-horsey family, and my dad in particular thinks I should be saving for a deposit to buy a house and stick to my weekly riding lessons.
The problem is that whilst my head agrees with him, my heart is screaming at me 'BUY A HORSE! That's what'll make you happy!', and whilst it has made some dodgy judgements over the years, this time I have the funniest feeling that it's right. I have just come through to the other side of a very rough patch in my life, and the one thing that kept me going some weeks is the beloved pony that I ride at my stables. I occasionally get laughed at at work when I say this, because I sound more like a horse-mad teenager than a grown woman, but it's the truth.
So now I'm in a position where I could make a choice, and everything feels so up in the air. I should be saving up for a house deposit, but is it really a viable option right now? If I bought a horse, could I forego all of the ridiculous things I currently waste my money on (for instance, I spent £15 on some shampoo today. Shampoo! If I don't wake up in the morning with hair to rival Jennifer Aniston then I'm off for a refund) and the occasional shopping trip to look after a horse? And could I really afford all of the unforeseen costs that horses inevitably bring with them?
I had a thought, a reasonably sensible one as well. I considered asking the owner of my riding school if I would be able to take Magic, the pony I ride, on loan for six months to see if I could manage the costs without tying myself down. The downside is that even working livery at my stables costs £80 a week (although that includes the horse being fully looked after, feed and bedding), but on the upside, if I struggle financially, I could hand her back at any time without worrying that I am harming her welfare in any way. At twenty two years old and considering her complete refusal to get in a horsebox, even while alarmingly highly sedated, it's unrealistic to believe that Magic is the horse I should buy to get many years of enjoyment out of, but is loaning her not the next best option? I trust her implicitly, I know her quirks, and after five years of riding her I know I am both capable of doing it and still enjoying it.
My other worry is that I wouldn't have the time to do her justice if I did take her on loan, but I suppose the joy of keeping her on working livery is that she would still be getting worked if I did have to work late for any reason. Oh, I don't know. This seems the most sensible option to me, but life is never that simple, is it? I knew a lot of stable management when I was younger, but I've forgotten much past the basics nowadays. I suppose that livery option would give me the chance to relearn it all, and let's face it, as long as the piggy fat mare has a rug on her back and some food in her stable, she's pretty content.
My dad would absolutely kill me, though...
ReplyDeleteBig decision to make. Loan sounds like a good compromise. If you owned would you be able to cope with seeing your horse being ridden by someone who did things you did't like? I know I wouldn't.