The first step you should consider before buying your very first horse is to take riding lessons to make sure you really enjoy riding and to improve your riding and horse handling skills.  By taking this first step you will be far ahead of a lot of first-time horse owners.  For more information on what to look for when deciding on a facility or instructor for riding lessons, please read Before Buying Your First Horse…Part 1.

Leasing a horse is a great second step on your journey to deciding if horse ownership is something that truly interests you.  Horses are a huge financial and time commitment, and too many people jump into horse ownership before they are ready.  Unfortunately, they soon realize that they had no idea about the true costs and responsibilities involved with horse ownership.  Owning your own horse can certainly be an enjoyable and rewarding decision, but when you make that decision hastily, you can find yourself in a very stressful situation owning an animal that is expensive and has a long lifespan.  Leasing a horse is a way of “testing the waters” of ownership without the long-term financial, physical and emotional commitment of purchasing a horse.

There are many private horse owners, trainers, and instructors who may offer horse leasing options at their facilities.  These opportunities can provide you with a way to get a true feel for horse ownership and see if you really want to own your own horse.  You can also check the classified section of the local newspaper or ask around at barns or tack stores.  There are even online sources that can help you find horses for lease. If you are currently taking riding lessons, which should be your first step, having your instructor help you find a suitable horse to lease is very important.  Just like buying the right horse is important, leasing the right horse is important also.  Your instructor will take your riding ability and personality into account to match you up with a good horse for you to lease.  They will also help you find a horse that is suitable for the particular riding discipline in which you are interested in participating.

Horse leases are usually defined as a full lease or a partial lease. A full lease will often have far fewer restrictions than a partial lease, but a partial lease will cost less.

A full lease is very much like owning your own horse.  You will be the only one riding and working with the horse, and you will typically have access to the horse seven days a week. In a full lease situation, you are usually responsible for all of the horse’s boarding costs along with routine farrier and veterinary care.  While the high cost may seem like a downside to leasing, it will give you a chance to see what these types of services will cost you if you decide on buying your own horse in the future.

A partial lease is a situation in which you are sharing the horse with the owner or another person.  A partial lease is less expensive than a full lease because all the expenses are split between the two parties.  Because you are sharing the horse, you will only have access to the horse part time.  If you decide to do a partial lease, be sure that everything from riding days, expenses, routine care, and other responsibilities are clearly understood and written into a contract.

Whether you decide on a full lease or a partial lease, a contract is very important.  In the contract, it should clearly spell out every detail.  How long is the lease?  Can the lease be terminated by any party? What are your financial responsibilities?  Who is responsible for routine care such as farrier visits, supplements, teeth floating, and vaccinations?  How often does the farrier need to come out?  What vaccinations are required?  Who is responsible for a major injury or illness?  What happens if the horse becomes unsound during the lease?  Are there any restrictions on the intensity or type of riding you can do with the horse? Can the horse leave the facility and be kept somewhere else?  Do you need insurance for the horse? What days can you ride the horse?  Do you need your own tack? What if the horse gets injured while in your care?  If you have any questions about the lease, they should be thoroughly discussed with the owner, and any agreements made should be included in the written contract.  Having everything in writing will ensure that there are no issues later.

When you find a horse you are interested in leasing, it is a good idea to get a vet check, especially if you will be responsible for hoof care and veterinarian bills.  The veterinarian will make sure the horse is sound and has no health issues that can cause problems or add to your expenses during the term of your lease.  Ask the veterinarian write up a summary of the examination, and keep it with the lease agreement.  If any issues are found that may increase the expense of properly caring for the horse, you may be able to get the owner to agree to cover those costs.  Also, if the veterinarian notes any previous injuries or pre-existing conditions, it will help you avoid problems with the owner in the future or when the lease ends.

Leasing a horse before making the decision to buy one of your own is a great idea that can save you from problems and stress in the future.  By leasing, you will be able to get a true feel for the care that horses require and let you experience firsthand the expenses involved with ownership.  If you find leasing a horse is too expensive and/or time-consuming, then horse ownership is probably not a good idea for you at this time in your life, but if after leasing a horse for at least 6 months to a year, you are still excited about horse ownership, you may be ready!

I’ve seen the same sad situation happen over and over in the years that I have owned and been around horses.  A brand new horse owner comes to the boarding stable with absolutely no experience or very little experience with horses.  They don’t have any idea of the expenses involved with owning a horse, how to ride, how to safely handle their new horse, how to saddle and bridle their horse, how to choose a saddle that fits and doesn’t hurt the horse, what kind of bit they should be using, how to keep their horse healthy, proper hoof care and the list goes on and on and on.  Often these stories end up the same way with the owner getting frustrated and getting rid of the horse, the owner getting hurt, and/or the horse being hurt or neglected.

If you have very little experience with horses, but you think you would really like to own your own horse one day, there are several things you should do before you even consider buying a horse.

The first couple things I would recommend are learning as much as possible about horses and taking riding lessons.   There are thousands of books, DVDs, online videos, websites, and horse forums that contain a wealth of information on anything you want to learn about horses.  While you are reading and learning everything you can about horses, I would recommend you take some riding lessons which will let you experience horses without the commitment of ownership and will make you a better rider when and if you decide to buy your own horse.

Taking riding lessons is a great first step before making the huge commitment of horse ownership, but there are things you need to determine in order to find the right place or instructor to take your riding lessons from.

The first thing you need to consider is how much money you are willing to spend on riding lessons.  The costs will vary depending on where you live, how often you plan on taking lessons, the facility, the education and certification of the instructor, and whether you take private or group lessons.  Many instructors will sell lesson packages which are often a better deal than paying for each lesson individually.  You will have to check around your local area to find out what is available.  The best sources to find riding instructors is the yellow pages, doing a google search, checking the bulletin boards at local tack stores,  asking the people who work at those stores, and attending local horse shows and events and asking around.

The next thing you need to consider is the type of riding you are interested in doing.  Do you want to ride English or Western?  Do you eventually have goals of jumping, dressage, eventing, reining, barrel racing, trail riding, etc.?  There are instructors who specialize in all of these disciplines so you will have to take that into consideration.  You will also need to find an instructor who is willing to take you from a complete beginner to an advanced rider unless you don’t mind the possibility of having to switch instructors as your riding ability becomes more advanced.

What you need to do now is to be 100% honest about your true level of experience with horses.  Do you know about horse safety? Do you know how to groom a horse before saddling?  Do you know how to clean out their hooves correctly and safely? Do you know how to put on a saddle and bridle?  Do you know about safety gear such as riding helmets and boots with heels?  If you don’t know any of this information, you will need to find an instructor willing to take the time to teach you all these basics.

When you arrive at a facility you are considering, you want to make sure the facility is clean and well kept.  You want to make sure there isn’t junk laying around everywhere which can be a safety hazard.  Look carefully at the horses and make sure you don’t see ribs and backbones protruding, and that they look healthy.  If the horses are already saddled, they should have been properly groomed.   Look into the stalls to see if they are clean or if horses are standing in piles of manure and puddles of urine.  The horses should look relaxed and happy, not restless and agitated.  I would also watch the way the instructor and barn staff handle the horses.  You should see them handling the horses kindly but firmly, and the horses shouldn’t look fearful when they are approached.

There are important things you need to know before you choose a riding instructor.  You will want to know their level of experience with horses, how long they have been teaching riding lessons, do they have any special certifications, and if they are willing to let you speak to references.  If a trainer will not give you references for people at the same riding ability as you, that should be a big red flag.  You will want to know if they have insurance and if they have first aid training in case you get hurt.  If they don’t have these two things that should be another big red flag.  Ask the instructor if they would allow you to watch some of their lessons.  If they say no that’s another red flag.  If they will let you watch some lessons you want to notice how the instructor interacts with the students.  Are they supportive but firm, or are they belittling and yelling at them?  Do the students appear to be enjoying the lesson, and are they actually learning new skills?  Do the horses seem calm and happy, or do they look unhappy, pinning their ears, swishing their tails, etc?  Is the student getting their monies worth, or are they trotting around in circles while the instructor is on the phone or talking to other people the whole time?  

If after taking lessons, you decide that you really enjoy riding, and you want your own horse to ride on a regular basis, the next step I would suggest is leasing a horse for at least 6 months to a year or more.  By leasing a horse, you have all or most of the same benefits as if you are the owner, but in the future, if the horse isn’t working out or you decide you really don’t have the time or finances to keep a horse, all you need to do is terminate the lease.  For part 2 of this series please read Before Buying Your First Horse…Part 2.

Do you have any other good advice for people considering getting their first horse?

Since I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, owning a horse as a child was not a possibility for me.  When my family moved to Nevada at the age of 14, I knew my chance of getting my own horse was greatly improved.  My dad was wonderful, and he purchased a house in an equestrian neighborhood so that I could eventually get my own horse.  I was the only horse crazy person in my family so that meant a lot to me.  I finally got my first horse when I was almost 16 years old, and I was in heaven.  She was a beautiful black 12-year-old Appendix Quarter Horse named Tess, and we spent hours together riding in the desert.  Other than what I had learned from reading books as a child, I didn’t know much about caring for a horse, and my riding experience was with rental horses only.

I look back now at my ownership of Tess, and all I can say is that I was extremely lucky she didn’t get seriously sick or injured, and I didn’t get seriously hurt or killed.  I thought I was very experienced, but I knew very little.  Tess was the first and only horse I looked at, and  I bought her right away.  I didn’t  do a pre-purchase exam on her to make sure she was healthy and sound.  When I bought Tess, she came with her saddle, and luckily I had enough common sense to know that the front of the saddle sitting down directly on her withers probably hurt so I stopped using it.  Because I was a teenager and couldn’t afford a new saddle, I had to ride her with a bareback pad.  I went to a tack store and bought a bit, and didn’t know a thing about them or the type that would be best for her.  I fed her alfalfa hay and gave her clean water every day, but I knew nothing about supplements.  At least I knew not to feed her moldy hay.  She was a hard keeper, and no matter how much I fed her she always was a little thin.  I had a farrier trim her feet when they looked long, but without any knowledge of what a proper trim or shoeing job should look like, I had no idea if I was contributing to soundness problems in the future.  She did get her immunizations from the vet, and the vet did come out once when she had a mild bout of colic.

My only riding experience I had was riding rental horses a few times a year, but in my teen-aged mind, I was an expert.  Tess was fast, and I loved to gallop across the desert at full speed. Luckily I was smart enough to only do that where I knew the trail.  Back then I thought you kicked a horse to go, pulled both reins to stop, pulled the right rein to go right and the left rein to go left.  Didn’t I sound like an expert rider!  Luckily Tess was an older horse who was very forgiving, and she took really good care of me.

I learned a lot from all the mistakes I made with Tess, and as I already said, I am really lucky to still be here.  Now that I know a lot more about horses, and have more experience, I would not recommend getting your first horse the way I did.

One thing I had going for me was my love of horses, and I had no doubt in my mind that I wanted one.  Whether you already know that you love horses and want one of your own, or you think it might be something you are interested in trying, there are things you should do before you even consider buying your first horse.

If you are considering buying your first horse, I highly suggest you read Before Buying Your First Horse…Part One.