Cutting Horse Keeping Costs
This is Open Range for Wednesday, I’m Susan Allen. A new survey revealed that eighty-nine percent of recreational horse enthusiasts are women and sixty-three percent of those are over 45 years old. Couple that with the fact that half of all horse owners have a pre-tax income of seventy-five thousand or less and it’s obvious that folks are looking at ways to cut their horse keeping expenses. After the break I’ll tell you about a couple facilities that have done just that. A recent conversation I had with barn facilitator of Lilly Bay in Western Washington, Chyma Smith shed light on the novel idea of co-op horse keeping. Lilly Bay Barn does not consider themselves a “boarding facility” rather a group of women committed to taking care of each other’s horses for what amounts to a nominal fee per month. Lilly Bay Barn works because of the stringent selection process and a thirty day trial period. I would also attribute Chyma’s organizational skills and thorough instructions. Co-op members have work parties, compost manure, and reseed pastures and horses in the co-op must be able to be handled by all members, At another successful co-op, Cedar Crest Farms in Olympia, owners provide their own feed and serve ten to twelve shifts a month feeding and cleaning. Co-ops are one solution to suburbia's high boarding fees that can top $600.00 a month or more, the average co-op is hundred and fifty. According to the Cedar Crest web site http://www.cedarcrestfarmolympia.com/default.html The perfect co-op member is easy going, reasonable, independent and comfortable with different types of horses, so if you fit that description and need ways to trim horse keeping costs you might want to consider the concept of co-ops.
