<p>Hi all,
I was just wondering if anyone knew what the options were for somebody who wanted to pursue a career involving horses. I'm currently premed, sophomore year, and breezing through with a 4.0 GPA. I'm pretty set on going to med school, but I've always had a deep passion for horses and wanted to know my options before I committed 110% to medicine. I've ridden some over the years (hunter-jumper), but not extensively due to time constraints (we lived too far from any barn), so while I'd love to become a professional rider, the odds of that happening are slim to none. That said, what are some good career options (racing, breeding, barn management, etc.) and what would be a good major to take in preparation for said career? I have time for a third major or second minor. Making millions is not my goal, just so long as I make enough to own and show a nice, quality horse of my own.</p>
<p>Just wanted to add that I live within thirty minutes of an extremely horsey town with very nice barns (dressage, showjumping, eventing, etc.), A-rated shows, several olympic gold medalists, and world-level trainers. Horses are definitely a big business here, I just never thought it was an option for me due to my lack of riding experience. I can afford to gain said riding experience once I get my own car, but I only want to shell out the money if it’ll be relevant to a future career.</p>
<p>I don’t think of most equestrian related careers as requiring a college degree… it is a business that just takes years of paying your dues to work your way up, OR having enough money to buy your way into it (sounds like you don’t have this). I guess being a vet is one possibility. There was a long time poster out here (parent) who made a living writing about thoroughbred racing (this person even won at least one Media Eclipse writing award). But I never got the sense that it was very lucrative.</p>
<p>@intparent I didn’t really think so either, but I suppose some business-related degree would be useful if I were to look at barn management jobs. I certainly do not have the millions it would take to buy my way into the horse world. I can afford once a week lessons at a very good dressage barn, but not a 100K horse, or riding on a show circuit, or basically anything beyond 20K annually. Is there anyway to “pay my dues” and work my way up without a huge wallet? I don’t mind slaving away at one of the barns, and I do think I have potential as a rider, but at this point it seems like I’m too late. I considered being an equestrian vet, but with the long hours and 30K per year salary, I’m not sure I would have either the time or money for my own horse. </p>
<p>Just saw your edit about the writer. Never even thought about that, but I’m not sure I have much interest in writing for a living anyways. I heard about one girl who majored in some kind of business-related major who got a job straight out of college handling the financial side of the Kentucky Derby, but I forget what she majored in. I’ve also heard of people investing in, and breeding Polish Arabians of which quite a few did very well, but you need several grand just for the initial investment (besides, that can be a nutty breed).</p>
<p>I hope someone can give you some help here, but I’m thinking this is probably a better question for an equine discussion board somewhere else. Perhaps you could call someone at a school like Sweet Briar and maybe they’d be kind enough to spend some time discussing career possibilities with you. I’m guessing however that word-of-mouth in the riding community may be your better option. See this SBC link which at least points directionally to some equestrian career fields. </p>
<p><a href=“http://sbc.edu/riding/courses-instruction”>http://sbc.edu/riding/courses-instruction</a></p>
<p>“An Equine Studies Certificate approved by the faculty will offer Sweet Briar scholar riders the best of both worlds: a strong liberal arts foundation combined with preparation for possible careers in equine-related enterprises such as farm and stable management and the teaching of riding.”</p>
<p>@MWCDSS Thank you for the suggestions. I guess I should take this to some equestrian forum. I might just call Sweet Briar, and should probably also talk to some of the local trainers about possibilities. I’m just a little shy to go up to them as they’re kind of big names in the equestrian world and I can’t even sit a trot.</p>
<p>Showing is extremely expensive and without a fancy horse you can only go so far. My sister used to show hunters. The people who I know in the horse business who have their own show barns are independently wealthy and don’t have to make a living. The people “slaving away” in the barns when my sister was actively showing were mostly undocumented. </p>
<p>@saintfan I know 
I have a friend who rides on the A-circuit, and her horse cost over 200K and is constantly racking up ridiculously high vet bills. My parents are well off, but they don’t have a couple million to drop on my hobby. They won’t financially support my horse ventures anyways. I guess I was hoping someone knew of someway to own a show barn or get up there without needing a trust fund, but I guess things haven’t changed from when I last researched. I see that “start with 2 million to make 1 million” still holds. I suppose my last hope is to marry extremely wealthy.</p>
<p>Oh, goodness! You are a pre-med with a 4.0! You don’t have to marry money, you can earn it yourself and then spend it on any hobbies you want, including horses.</p>
<p>Haha well thank you @siliconvalleymom but last I checked, doctor salaries were not exactly on an upward trend, and most doctors were to busy/exhausted to have much of a life outside of medicine and family. Hopefully I’d be able to afford the time and money needed to show horses, but I’m not counting on it. If I go to med school, it certainly won’t be for the money, I just feel like it’s my calling…it’s hard to explain. Horses are my passion, medicine is my calling; it’s a dilemma. Maybe I’ll just have a mid life crisis and switch to horses when I’m 50 or so. Maybe not. I guess we’ll see, but having a decent paying career in horses doesn’t sound so likely.</p>
<p>Horses, and the horse business. may not be what you perceive from the outside. Many horse professionals do have college degrees, although they also have extensive riding experience. Does your college have an IHSA team? You do not need to have a horse, or any skills to participate. There are divisions for beginners and the cost is minimal compared to the private costs. If your school does not have a team see if you can ride with the team at a nearby school. Before you con side a career around horses you need to spend some significant time with them. The reality is pretty gritty, and sometimes frustrating hard work, not the romanticized fantasy that outsiders perceive. </p>
<p>If you are interested in medicine you might be interested in vet school. Large animal vets are always in demand. But again, go ride with one for a week before you decide that is an option. Another option is therapeutic riding facilities. If you live in horse country there is probably one nearby that could use some volunteers. Finally, there is always what most horse people do. Have a day job and ride horses for fun.</p>
<p>Thank you @1012mom I do think I need to just go out and talk with various professionals who are in the businesses I’m interested in. I’m sure they could give me a realistic idea of a typical day, the qualifications and experience needed, and all the pros and cons involved. My college does not have any kind of equestrian program (despite having 17,000 students) but I think a nearby LAC has some kind of equestrian team although I’m not sure if it’s IHSA. I’ll look into it. Thanks for mentioning. I do need more experience with horses. My summer is filled this year, but hopefully next year I’ll have a car and some time to go and volunteer at one of the stables nearby.</p>
<p>As far as medicine goes, I found my time shadowing an ER doctor fascinating (minus some really, really grotesque moments), but absolutely hated my small animal vet experience. I didn’t even want to consider vet school after my experience at the clinic, but I suppose I should give a large animal vet a try. Should I do large animal medicine, I would want to find some way to work with sport horses. I showed dogs professionally at the national level and really enjoy all aspects of preparing high quality animals for competition. I’m just hesitant to become a vet because of the low salaries, I’m not one to do something “just for fun,” and I’m not sure I’d be happy just having a horse in the backyard. I’d want a decent quality one that I could compete at a relatively high level with, and I doubt I could accomplish that on a vet’s salary. We’ll see. Ugh. This has been my dilemma since I was ten years old, I really need to decide for sure either way.</p>
<p>I am a barn manager. I have a BS in equine, but that was many years ago and was not as comprehensive as many programs are now. My most valuable education came from being in barns - many different barns with many different philosophies and ways of doing things. That being said, it can be rewarding, it can be frustrating, it can be exhausting. There is the potential for injury. I make a pretty decent salary right now as I have been in my current position for almost 14 years and had many years of experience before this job. But boy, was this a miserable winter to be in a barn!</p>
<p>There are many areas involving horses that can be considered for a career. I have a friend with a PhD in animal science who is an equine nutritionist. I know people who are equine dentists, vet techs, chiropractors, saddle fitters, tack store owners, feed dealers, farriers, photographers, horse show managers, therapeutic riding instructors, as well as equine insurance agents and lawyers specializing in equine topics.</p>
<p>Just a word about becoming an equine vet - I know three kids from our 4H horse club that went on to vet school to become equine vets. Every one of them changed to small animal after doing all their clinicals (or whatever they are called). The one who I was sure would go equine became disenchanted because all she was seeing was lameness and colic cases. And she had tons of experience working in an equine clinic before going off to vet school. Also with equine you are out in all kinds of weather, in all kinds of barn conditions (not all horses live in clean, beautiful, well kept, easily accessible barns), at all hours of the day and night (unless you have another vet covering) and weekends and holidays (unless you have another vet covering). If it is your calling, more power to you. I admire the vets I work with. They are truly dedicated and passionate. </p>
<p>BTW, as a barn manager, you can run into the same “schedule” issues. Those darn horses don’t seem to look at the calendar and know that they shouldn’t colic on Christmas Eve, or come up three-legged lame on a weekend, or run a 104 degree fever on Friday afternoon when you are supposedly done for the week. And I could go on… But I usually love what I do :).</p>
<p>Thank you so much @kitty56 I appreciate hearing from someone with firsthand experience. Your comment was very helpful. I guess I just really need to start shadowing people in various equine professions, and getting a lot more hands on experience with horses in general. I was considering equine nutrition at one time, and a friend of mine has a neighbor who does very well as an equine nutritionist (200K per year) so I might see if I can meet with her. I’m sure she would also know other equine professionals who I could meet up with or shadow. </p>
<p>Oh and another career path could be college professor. The nutritionist I know is also a college prof.</p>
<p>why not switch to pre-vet and specialize in horses?</p>
<p>My niece is graduating in 2 weeks with a BA in Equine Management and already has a job as a stable manager lined up. Relatives thought she was crazy when she started the degree, but she has had a paying summer internship every summer and now has a job waiting for her. Not bad. Check out Lake Erie College and Otterbein U in Ohio. </p>
<p>Medical school seems like the only sensible option.</p>
<p>@kiddie Large animal vets make an average of 30K a year. That would be fine, except I want to own and show a horse of my own eventually, and that itself would cost a minimum of 30K a year. Plus they work very long hours and most have little time for family, let alone a hobby. Not that I have much more chance of extra time with medicine, but at least I could possibly afford showing in Dressage or something similar once I retire. Even then maybe not…showing horses is a money pit. </p>
<p>@megpmom Wow, good for her! I’ll check into that a little more. Thanks for sharing.</p>