What is a Horse Property?
When you think of horse property what image usually comes to mind? To most people, a horse property is huge acreage, with white fencing around large pastures and a barn, with horses grazing in the fields. There may also be a riding arena. Yes, that is a horse property, but there are a variety of others, too.
Another common type of horse property is your backyard operation. Some horse owners would prefer having their horses in their own backyard. They want to take care of them themselves, have the advantage of having the horses right outside their door for convenience, and just enjoy watching them, not to mention cost effective. Yes, it involves more work having the horses on your property, but to some, they do not consider it work.
The backyard horse properties can vary in size. They range from around 3 acres on up. Of course, zoning has to be taken into consideration. Each township has different zoning rules. Some may require a minimum of 5 acres to have a horse, some 1 1/2 acres per horse, or it may even be at least 10 acres to have horses on the property. So, make sure to check with zoning to see what their ordinances are for horse keeping.
The ideal amount of property for a horse is a minimum of 1 1/2 acres per horse. This gives each horse enough area to run and play, and to graze. (Pastures should be rotated. Mmore on this in another psot.) Now this does not mean buying 1 1/2 acres and you can have a horse on it. Figure on 1 acre for your home, driveway and yard. Then you also need a portion of the property for the barn. There should be a minimum of 3 acres for a horse property (to hold one horse, a house, and barn) so that everyone has an area to use. If 2 horses will be on the property, it is suggested to buy a minimum of 4 1/2 acres. For the ideal, add 1 1/2 acres per horse. The more property you have, the better.
To sum it up, a horse property is your local boarding, lesson stable, with numerous pastures and fences, but it can also be a small backyard operation with a plain fence and barn for a couple of horses.