Thursday, October 29, 2009

Sellin' Hosses! - Video Blog

(note: Sorry for the horrible lighting, it was the only way to prevent a bad lag....the fact that it also took about ten pounds off of my cheeks was purely accidental! lol Seriously!)



I think I must be sick. Or deranged. Or at the very least totally out of tune with reality. There is simply no other explanation for why, after seven years of repeating the same cycle over and over again I cant get it through my thick skull not that there is....

No money to be made in horses....


except...

....there I go.

I cant let go of this idea that I want to buy and sell horses for profit. The problem with this idea is that every time I have sit down and equate the costs involved in such a venture I end up with...well... no profit... especially if I take in to account such things as vet, farrier, taxes, gas, hauling, board, advertising, and such. Never to be deterred by logic, I've devised all sorts of strategies to avoid the reality that there is much, much easier and more reliable ways to make money in the world than to buy the ever fragile, undependable and unpredictable horse and sell it to the ever undependable, unpredictable and fickle horseman.

I've come up with all sorts of schemes and strategies, the most feasible of which has been to focus on the baby boomer reriders... these honest, unassuming and funlovin' folks are some of the only in the equine industry that dont seem to mind spending a good dollar to get what they want...which is generally very pretty, midsized, colored, mildly aged and dead broke quarter horse geldings. I know of a few brokers who specialize in such horses and they seem too, as best as I can tell, make some money at it.... however... there, with the work broker, I stumble in to a stereotype that most wish to avoid....

Of course my intention would be to gain a reputation of integrity, honest dealing and of standing behind the horses I sell..which would of course be nothing but good minded, sound, and reliable horses. Did I mention that I am totally out of tune with reality right? Good. Because we all know that no one, and I mean no one can escape the wrath of The Crazy Folk.... Yes, these godforsaken people exist in every industry but it seems that the horse world is particularly good at turning out the craziest of the crazies- especially when it comes to buying and selling horses...And of course, Murphy's Law, the Crazies are a gossiping breed, easily aggravated, highly sensitive to any slight- imagined or not- and bent on sparing the world from ever doing business with anyone who falls in their disfavor. In other words... I think it is improbable, if not impossible to maintain a flawless reputation in the horse industry not matter how determinedly one may try.... but I digress.


I just wish that there were some way to make a living out of horses.




Surely some must do it? You know, actually make money... out of... breeding, training, and reselling horses! ... is it possible when you are not independently wealthy to begin with? Are these people making a living or merely supplementing their income? Paying their habit? or are they too dropping dollars in to the vast and seemingly bottomless abyss which is the cost of keeping horses.




So why, if I have such a pessimistic view of the industry, do I have a half dozen horses in my favorites right now that I'd buy simply because I think they are worth more than their asking price, if marketed correctly? Because, I have not let logic, reason or reality temper my dream that one day, some how, some way, it will be possible to make a living with horses.

12 comments:

  1. Thanks for stoppin' by and sayin' howdy. You should try the Week in the Life...there is always something to photograph!

    Love your header photo! Your video's are a kick...the semen collection one brought back memories from way back working on a QH breeding farm...except I don't remember each stallion having their own "special" one...but it was years ago and I have lots of grey hair now...I always use that as an excuse ;~)

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  2. LMAO-My comment exceeded the character limit...BIG surprise right??

    It's all good! I'm going to make a post out of it, cause there is going to be a big market for doing exactly what you want to do with horses. I used to do it and made $$ at it. Then I didn't have the time anymore and I got tired of dealing with goofy buyers.

    But I was just thinking the other day, that this might be the time for me to get back into the "upgrader" business...that is if we can get the neighbor's property bought so that I have a place to keep horses without paying board. Megan is interested in doing some upgrades, so it would be fun for both of us to work together.

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  3. This is a question that I ask every day. Let me know if you figure out an answer!

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  4. I think anything horse related is a tough business to make alot of money at... but like BECG said, it can be done.

    I think having your own property is the key, really. Learning to do your trims would be important too. I don't know if regular people can buy vaccines here - I think you have to be a vet to order them - not sure about that rule.

    There is a local trainer here that does well - he buys 2/3 yr olds (mostly QH/APHA) from auctions/sales and trains them and makes out ok. He also takes in horses to re-train/refresh/resell. He is involved in local shows and pennings - which I think helps him market his services and his sales horses alot... He also guarantees his horses...

    Keep the dream alive - it could work for you - you have such a good eye for confirmation and breeding that would really help you along!

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  5. Just thought of something else while commenting at BECG's blog...

    Ther are a couple of people locally that I've heard of that take horses in for re-sale. They have a deal with a barn owner to rent say 6 stalls. They get a bit of a deal on board for having that many stalls. They then take in horses that people don't want/don't have time to train and market properly. They then charge the owner a fee, which would cover board and training rides, plus a little profit. They then get a percentage of the sale price on top of everything... Might not be a bad gig if you had enough clients and some good results to build a bit of a reputation.

    You could also advertise helping people find the right horse - charge a % of the sale price or something. My previous barn owner did that - she was pretty good at matching horse/people personalities... She didn't make a fortune at it by any stretch, but she got to know local breeders and trainers pretty well.

    (sorry for the super long comments!!!)

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  6. You are gorgeous and what a nice video! I don't think it is at all easy to make money with horses - it seems like most of the money-makers were rich to begin with - but BrownEyesCowGirls wrote such a great post response that I am going to say no more since I don't know diddly. Most especially I love her suggestion that you never buy a horse you won't want to own for yourself. That seems crucial.

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  7. I LOVE it!!!! And to answer your question, yes, you definitely have what we Washingtonians would call a "Canadian" accent. Quite charming, really.....

    I just left a response over at BEC's blog about my thoughts on this subject, so you'll have to go over there to read it. :)

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  8. Hey Chelsi

    Just wanted to say "good for you". I know how much you struggled with video taping your blog and what a huge step it was for you. As always I am very proud of you......MOM

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  9. Fun video blog. I don't know how anyone makes money in the horse business.

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  10. I think it is possible. If you have your own land maybe even profitable. Of course I have not run any numbers. Could you just do a trial with buying and reselling one horse to see how it goes? I find myself wishing for more time with my animals - horse and dog- and less time at the office. Ive considered boarding senior horses but, dont have the land. Great subject for debate! I will keep following the conversation!

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  11. Okay, well, let me see, I have many friends that I went to college with that do make money, buying, training, and selling horses. They are professional horse trainers. One of my friends is ranked number 5 in the NRHA. Jared Laclair, http://www.leclairreininghorses.com/

    Then I have another set of friends that make a profit riding and training and selling horses. Brian and Darla Lee. http://www.brianleequarterhorses.com/

    And I can tell you that both of those couples started out with NOTHING. I went to college with all four of them. They took their knowledge and worked for some big name trainers and then got a good rep. and went out on their own. They don't have any side jobs, horses is what they do!

    So, it can be done!

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