To sell or not?

I’m 25 years old and torn between the realities of growing up and having babies or keeping the lifestyle I have now where my kids eat hay and are four legged.   Don’t get me wrong, I know loads of people out there having young kids, who keep their competition horses going but how do you know if you’re going to manage or if it’s the right thing for you?   Or do you just play it by ear and see how things go?

I absolutely love getting out there every weekend; I have done since the age of three when I sat on my first pony.   But lately I’ve come to the realisation that I’m at that scary stage where sooner rather than later I’m going to have to sacrifice my love for horses for the more ‘important’ things in life and make the decision to sell, or not.

I’ve seen many friends give up riding and sell everything when they are ready to settle down, buy a house, start a family and you know…have a grown up life!  It’s kind of become the ‘thing to do’.  

This is what I have to consider -

1. The cost- Let’s be real, owning horses costs a lot of money.  There’s feed, grazing, entry fees, farriers, vets, lessons…the list is endless.  I can honestly say, I’m spending basically half of my income to fund my hobby!  Obviously, I would be better off financially if I didn’t have these costs.

2. Time- Owning horses is a 24 hour gig.  My days, Monday through to Sunday, revolve around work and horses.  There isn’t much time left for anything else. 

3. Change – When I compare my life with those non-horsey folk, I can’t help but think, what do these people do with all their time?  Accepting the lifestyle change of not having horses, would be a tough one, I mean I’ve owned horses since I was little, I can’t really imagine not having them.

4. Starting a family – This is the big one.  Like most people, I want to one day have my own children.  But it’s hard to picture life in the saddle with little ones running around.  I know lots of people make it work, and I take my hat off to them.  But considering it all and from what I’ve been told, I think motherhood is going to be hard enough without the added stress of, “the horses haven’t been fed”, “oh when’s the farrier due” etc. etc.  But then again, is riding something that will keep me sane through it all?

So many pros and cons to think about!  At the end of the day, I think I know deep down when the time comes for marriage and babies, I will probably make the decision to sell the horses.  I’m sure I will find them the best homes.  Anyway, who’s to say I won’t be out there, children in tow, buying horses and ponies, and doing it all over again!