To Board or Not to Board?

Without a doubt, one of the most rewarding parts of my life has been keeping my own horses on my property and taking care of them.  I grew up next to Bridle Trails State Park in Bellevue/Kirkland with a couple of horses in our back yard and the ability to walk out the driveway, hang a right, and go into Bridle Trails for a ride.  I was fortunate.  As a young adult on my own, I purchased a horse and had to board her at a nearby stable.  There were many pros to boarding my horse, but ultimately my dream was always to own my own equestrian property.

If you are dreaming of owning your own equestrian property vs. boarding your horse here are some pros and cons to both.  Ultimately, each of us must make the right decision for our 4-legged friends and potentially have a life change in order to accommodate them.

Some Pros for owning your own equestrian property and Not Boarding:

• Number one for me most definitely was the relationship and bond that I have with my horse if I am the one caring for their every need. You learn more about your horse, you are more aware of their idiosyncrasies, and you also are right there to notice if there is something off with your horse.
• You are in control of their care and can make the right choices for the horse. Often boarding facilities only offer certain types of feed, or perhaps a certain feeding schedule, maybe they charge you extra for adding supplements or medicine to the feed.  You get to make the rules at home and decide what is the best for your horse
• The third PRO for caring for your own horse is that it will cost you less money monthly than boarding, but with that is the responsibility of getting the hay, grain, bedding etc.
• The other big pro in my opinion, but maybe this isn’t a pro to all, is taking care of the barn. I love my time cleaning stalls, watering, feeding, doing turn out, and turning them in.  My favorite time of the day is feeding time when I can stand in my barn and listen to my horses happily munching on their hay – this is music to my ears.

Some Pros for boarding instead of having your horses at home:

• Over the years I have boarded my horses out and nearly every time it has been for the following reason: It was fall/winter time and I wanted to ride my horse as often as possible in an indoor arena.  It’s hard taking care of your horses during the dreary winter months and the light fades at 4:30 in the afternoon and it’s cold and rainy.
• Horses are herd animals. If you only have one horse it is nicer for him/her to be with other horses at a boarding facility, whether it be small or large.
• If you have a few horses at home, you will find that they become herd bound, and sometimes it isn’t so fun to separate them to ride. A boarding facility often provides a larger herd and a better atmosphere to work your horse.
• Another Pro for Boarding is the camaraderie you have with fellow boarders. It’s just fun to hang out with like-minded people that share the same passion.
• Hands down the hardest part to owning your own equestrian property is that you must have a routine. Your horses depend on you to feed and water them and do best with a regular schedule.   You can do it though, you adjust, you get a network of people that can help you in a pinch.  You get up a little earlier to feed and turnout so that you can make the early morning meeting on time.  It IS a way of life and truly I would say that my life revolves around my horses, but I don’t regret it for a moment.

I am not going to sugarcoat it:  Owning an Equestrian Property is work, but it is truly a labor of LOVE, and I would not change it in a million years, because it is so rewarding and fulfilling.

I could obviously talk about horses all day. My other great love is real estate. If you are thinking of moving to the Pacific Northwest and have any questions about real estate or horses, please give me a call, those kinds of conversations are the best part of my day!