Horses Are Expensive II: April 2016

The end of April was a bit crazy. I had a nasty flu and then spent the better part of a week catching up on everything. With this and that, I completely forgot to post my expenses for the month of April.

Each month, I think to myself, this month is going to be cheaper. But alas, that hasn't been the case. I've had extra bill after extra bill. With Speedy recovering from tendonitis, and Izzy not being ready for rated shows, my show budget has simply been applied to my vet budget. So that's good, right?!

Owning a horse is cheap. Doing stuff with your horse is not. Doing stuff TO your horse is definitely not cheap. My board and feed bill are the cheapest part of this whole operation.

My vet bills have been pretty high for the first quarter of 2016 and so have my truck and trailer costs. Between my vet bills, truck, and trailer, I've spent more than $3,000 in the first four months of the year, and my husband gave me $600 for tires for my truck, and then he paid another $200 for Speedy's most recent ultrasound. I didn't count those things in my costs. 

I jokingly told my husband that I could save a lot of money if I got rid of my truck and trailer. Think about it: no new tires, gas, batteries, or roof vents. Think how much I'd also save by not going to lessons or shows. I could whittle my expenses down to almost nothing. My husband's response was that I could save even more money if I also got rid of Speedy and Izzy. He said I'd have so much extra money that I could retire. He was teasing of course, but the reality is that owning and showing two horses costs a small fortune.

Here's to a calmer and cheaper second financial quarter.