Blog : Equus Education

Come and Spell Awhile…

August 12, 2008 by Christine Meunier Leave a Comment

I was having a chat with some students at TAFE today about the recent studs they’d been to visit as part of their course. It was pointed out (and amazed students) that one of the studs made all that they needed to cover the costs of employment of staff, maintenance of the property and care of horses in their stallion fees alone. The rest was profit.

On the Thoroughbred studs I’ve worked on, the main funds do indeed come from stallions and / or the cost of agistment / livery.

As the owner of a gelding that I ride on a weekly basis, I am thankful but surprised to find that it can cost me as little as $50 / month to pay to keep him on someone else’s property and this can include having access to jumps, large paddocks to ride in and an arena.

What you want in a paddock - plenty of grazing, strong, visible fencing and established trees.
What you want in a paddock – plenty of grazing, strong, visible fencing and established trees.

He is currently in an area where it costs around $50 / week for the same facilities – thankfully I am able to work a few hours a week at this place rather than have to pay to keep him there. However, both of these fees are at a lower rate that one would expect to pay to enable their racehorse to have a spell between racing preps or a broodmare or yearling that is being housed on a stud.

My aim is to have around 150 acres where I can agist and rotate 50 horses over this amount of land. Of course, the 50 horses will be owned by other people paying to keep their equine/s on the property.

I am considering based on good grazing and fencing and some appealing facilities for horse riders (arena, jumps, round yard) to be able to feasibly charge $60 / month. For a year with 50 horses, this would total to an agistment income of $36,000.

Another paddock offering the shade of an established tree and a strong water source.

It isn’t unusual for a trainer to be paying around $20 / day for the agistment of a racehorse spelling between racing preps. Now arguably because this is for a couple of months, allowing the horse to recuperate before continuing to race, you would need a bigger client base to keep your paddocks with paying customers all year round.

However, it would be possible to have a smaller property, say 40 acres with 15 yards and to keep these yards full at $20 / day. Keeping 15 spellers on the property all year round (perhaps based on having a client base of between 60-100 horses) at a rate of $20 / day would bring in an annual income of $109,500.

Obviously it depends on where your interest lies, but for either form of agistment, there would need to be maintenance of fencing, pastures, a decent feed regime set up as well as the provision of roughage and perhaps the putting on and off of rugs.

Arguably with 15 spellers to look after, it would be possible for one staff member to deal with the daily feeding, checking and rugging – currently I work on a property and am in charge of 30 horses during the day and have previously been on a stud with one or two other staff and been in charge of 200 horses between us. 15 to look after in a day isn’t asking too much of one worker but with an income of over $100,000 it would be possible as the owner/manager to consider the part time or full time employment of two staff.

Whatever discipline you prefer, it’s worth considering what other places are charging for agistment and what services they offer as part of the package. As a riding property, as soon as you provide facilities like an arena and an area for trails or jumping, you can look at increasing your fee and allowing access to these facilities.

As a spelling property, perhaps a round yard and a walker are needed to be able to lightly exercise the young racehorses. Private paddocks will also cost more in fencing whereas with a riding agistment property, communal paddocks may be the way to go to spend less on fencing but still earn a decent amount due to more horses being paddocked together on a larger size of land.

If your passion is with caring for horses – whether they be yours or someone else’s – and you have the land to establish such a set up, perhaps spelling or agisting is the way to go.

“Closeness, friendship, affection: keeping your own horse means all these things – Bertrand Leclair”

tag: spelling, agistment, maintenance, fencing, horseriding, property management, trail riding, life with horses, pasture management

Blogging + Horses = Potential.

August 10, 2008 by Christine Meunier Leave a Comment

It’s all mum’s fault that I got into blogging but arguably if it hadn’t been her, someone else would have surely introduced it to me and recruited a new addicted blogger.

There are so many blogs out on the internet that have such interesting information and can take up so much of our time to read through that the question arises – how much time does the owner/writer put into the blog? And, is it worth it?

For many, the answer is of course a resounding yes. It’s worth it as they’re able to look back on previous entries and see how far they’ve come with a particular horse they’re working with. It’s worth it due to the friends that have been established online and positive comments and feedback received. It’s worth it because now thousands of people a month view the entries and purchase your product or make use of your services. It’s worth it because the skills acquired while blogging have led to employment opportunities.

There are those who make a living from full time blogging which still blows my mind and I’d love to hear from anyone who is making a livable income from their blog that is related to horses!

Although I’m not currently aware of someone who is doing so, it’s probable that there are people out there who perhaps:
– make a living based on writing for a blog that revolves around horses
– have a general interest blog about horses that receives so many hits, they’re able to make money from something like AdSense or other advertising on their blog
– have self published horse books and are selling them online
– make horse art at home that they’re able to sell online
– run an equine employment business, advertising workers and current jobs via their blog
– providing blogging/website design services for the horse industry

For those who do provide a service or product relating to horses, there’s no argument that having a site or blog that helps to promote your horse related business can be beneficial… perhaps it is even the sole way the income is made.

If you market the site well enough and keep it updated with current and relevant information, there’s no doubt your blog – one that is related to horses – can bring in some form of an income for you. Perhaps it’s worth considering…

“The love of horses knows not it’s own depth till the hour of separation.”

tag: writing, passive income, networking, equine art, website design, horse business, horse magazines, horse blogs, online horse business

Profile On: Christine Nguyen, uShip.com

August 8, 2008 by Christine Meunier Leave a Comment

uShip is an online marketplace that connects horse transportation providers with customers who need their horses transported. uShip makes it easy for service providers to find profitable loads and gives customers access to affordable and reliable shipping options. The uShip marketplace is built on user feedback which helps both service providers and customers. Here’s how it works:

– A customer needs a horse moved across the country, so they list it on uShip.
– A service provider who services the necessary route and has some extra cargo space finds this shipment and places a bid.
– The customer reviews the bid and feedback left by the service provider’s past customers.
– The customer accepts the bid, contact information is exchanged, and the service provider services the shipment.
– Upon completion of the transaction, both parties leave feedback to help future users.
– Now the horse is at its destination, the customer has saved a little money, and the service provider was able to fill empty cargo space and make some extra money on a trip they were already making anyway.

uShip is always seeking to improve its services with new technology and features to make horse transportation as easy as possible. Christine Nguyen of uShip.com took the time to answer some questions regarding this online service.

When did uship.com start?
uShip.com launched in January of 2003 and since then, has been leading the online shipping revolution. Our mission is to create the most efficient marketplace for shipping that has ever existed by reducing shipping costs for customers and giving Transportation Service Providers the marketing scale, technology, and credibility they need to grow their business.

How much of your day/week is related to horses?
Most of my day is related to horses. We are trying to reach out to horse owners and lovers who cannot transport their horse cross-country to find an affordable and reliable transportation service provider who can do it for them. In addition, we try to help horse carriers and transporters earn money (especially with the rising cost of gas) by making it easy to find these readily available jobs through our online marketplace.

In this field of providing a place online where people can search for transport for their horses, how is an income made by the provider? Is it the sort of income that could be considered livable?
Service providers generate income by placing winning bids and completing transportation jobs. Some service providers get a large portion of their business through uShip, while others may simply supplement their already substantial business with occasional loads from our marketplace. The great part is, this works for both of these functions.

What are the general steps taken to be able to provide this service to others for their livestock?
First of all, the service providers need to have a USDOT and MC number which ensures that they are a legitimate transporter. They also need to have a license to transport live animals. Finally, they would need to have good knowledge of interstate and intrastate transportation laws, as these laws differ from state to state.

Any advice for those interested in providing a similar service by means of the internet?
If you are looking to get into horse transportation – or any type of transportation service – the internet now offers a wealth of resources and tools, and uShip is a great place to get started. Make sure you know exactly what this job entails and that you can handle the often demanding schedule. The best way to do this is by talking to others who have been doing this for a while. They can give you a better idea of what life as a horse transporter will be like. uShip’s Community forums actually provide a great place for you to connect with other horse transporters.

Future goals?
We would like to expand awareness of the affordable, reliable horse transportation services available on uShip. As riding is becoming more popular, horses have become an important part of many peoples’ lives and are bought, sold, and transported more than ever. We want to be a resource to help service providers pursue a career in horse transportation and make a living being around horses.

Best thing about your sport/profession?
The best thing is helping to rescue horses. Many times unwanted horses are sent to slaughter houses and taken down by their owners. There are many horse lovers and enthusiasts who want to help, but cannot afford the expensive costs of getting these horses shipped from across the country. With the uShip marketplace, we are able to help people avoid the high costs and get horses hauled home at a reasonable and affordable price.

“We gaze upon their quiet beauty, their natural elegance, and we are captivated. They see us softly, in gentle light… rewarding human companionship with strength, grace and intelligence. As they run through arenas and open fields, past mountains and seas, moving like the wind toward heaven, we travel with them, if only in our hearts.”

tag: horse transport, shipping horses, transport services, auction, online horse business, driving license

Come and Spell Awhile…

Profile On: Christine Nguyen, uShip.com

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