Horses/other animals in vet school?

[riderrapidash]

Had a quick question about keeping animals (specifically horses) with you during vet school. I do rodeo at my undergrad school and really want to take my mare with me if I can. Obviously I will be far too busy to do rodeo, but my horse really helps me relieve stress and has gotten me through a lot during my two years so far. Anyone have experience taking their horses or animals in general? And, if so, do vet schools that have boarding facilities allow you to board there? Any input would be amazing!

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[Crayola227]

Following I'm quite curious

 

[EB73674]

This will be very school-dependent, but for the most part I don't think there are many on-campus boarding opportunities - most only really keep horses for research & teaching. But there are almost definitely barns within easy driving distance of campus for most if not all the schools! Urban places (cough cough Penn cough cough) may take a little research, but should still be doable. I would make sure you have a car, though!

As for the time commitment, it soooo much depends on your ability to manage your time & how close you live to the barn and/or campus. I have 3 acquaintances who keep their horses about a half hour away from campus, but they live quite close to their farm, so that makes it a bit easier to get there more often. I would make your boarding situation as low-maintenance as possible (i.e. do full care board, don't let your horse's blanketing or meals depend on you getting there at any certain time or frequency), and be prepared to only really be out there on weekends. But if you find time during the week, or you find a barn close enough to your house that you can ride for exercise, that's awesome! I would just make things as easy on yourself as possible, especially your first semester & all during your clinical year.

 

[JaynaAli]

If you search the forum this gets discussed every so often. But in short, if you make it your priority, it’s doable. and that goes for anything…a significant other, a hobby, a sport, pets, etc. You may have to make sacrifices like giving up study time and taking a lower grade or skipping that cool weekend wet lab to make it work, but you can if you want that to be your priority.

I have never heard of a vet school that had boarding facilities for students, but I’m willing to bet that there are facilities nearby or housing with land in most locations. They may not be ideal but again, if you want it to be your priority, there is probably a way.

 

[supershorty]

You might be able to board at Cornell? But @Aprilthearab would know better than I would. She’d also be able to speak to having a horse with you at school.

I had many classmates who brought horses with them to vet school and boarded them locally. It’s very doable as long as you don’t have the expectation that you’re going to get out to ride 6 days a week.

 

[EngrSC]

I’m a 3rd year and have a horse, 2 dogs, a cat, and a tortoise. My horse is boarded ~15 minutes from my school and most weeks I ride 3-4 days. On particularly rough weeks I may only get out to the barn twice, and I just have to be ok with that. It was a little more tricky when I was in clinics last summer, but I still made time as it’s a huge stress reliever for me! It can be done.

I also tend to be a more introverted person and prefer barn time to class parties and other social events. So that’s where I get the time I think, but my mental health thanks me for it

 

[Aprilthearab]

You might be able to board at Cornell? But @Aprilthearab would know better than I would. She’d also be able to speak to having a horse with you at school.

I had many classmates who brought horses with them to vet school and boarded them locally. It’s very doable as long as you don’t have the expectation that you’re going to get out to ride 6 days a week.

I'm not aware of boarding opportunities directly at Cornell's campus stables, but the possibility might exist depending on the school. My undergrad allowed it but it wasn't real boarding, it was essentially a contractual full lease for use in undergrad riding programs... the actual horse owners never got to ride their own horses unless they were randomly matched with them for a lesson. I'm not sure if I know of any school that allows boarding without some kind of contract that binds the horse to classes/lessons with random students because they often have many more equestrian students than they do available stalls so all horses have to be involved and useful in the program somehow.

I board my mare about 20 minutes from my apartment/25 minutes from the vet school. It's full care pasture board with run in access and winter overnight stalling for $250 a month. Hay and ration balancer are provided by the stable. Honestly, full care board is really the way to go in vet school. I can provide more detailed input on that since I've done partial care board in undergrad and vet school before, but it's honestly just so much more concise and truthful to say that you really, seriously should just stick to full care for the sake of your sanity.

Almost any school you go to will have nearby boarding barns as long as it's not in the middle of a big city. If you're like me and it's important for you to find affordable board, start looking on Craigslist many months in advance. It sounds sketchy, but the best way to save money is by finding old retired horse people with a quiet backyard barn that offers cheap board, not a lesson barn or a high-end boarding facility. It will save you a lot of money and a lot of barn drama. When you go to tour the school or an apartment or something, visit the boarding facility too. Be prepared to pay big bucks for shipping a horse if you're making a long trip.

I probably get out to ride, on average, 2-3 days a week. It would probably be doable for me to go 4 days if I didn't also have a job and club commitments. I will honestly say there are quite a few weeks of the year where I only get out once or occasionally not at all because of exams or just a really crappy or chaotic week. If you want your horse exercised more frequently, I'd recommend finding other horse-experienced people in your class who don't have their own horse (there will be plenty!) and want free ride time. It's how I met my closest friends in vet school and we often borrow the barn owner's horses to go on group trail rides.

Let me know if you have questions - I could chat about ponies and vet school for days!

From today's group trail ride that we used to decompress during immunology and parasitology

 

[puppydogtor]

I don't have a horse but I'm a current first year who brought my dogs with me and I wouldn't have it any other way. I also started fostering kittens right before the quarter started. You are fully aware of the amount of time your horse requires. It's up to you to decide whether you want to designate that amount of time to your horse during school. I personally need my pets with me because caring for animals is very calming and rewarding for me. I am very introverted as well, so I love having the excuse "my pets need me" to miss certain social events and hang with them instead. I have never felt like caring for them is a chore. I do however feel like it has taken away from my studies when it comes to medical emergencies. My one kitten was diagnosed with FIP, rapidly declined and we thought he'd need to be euthanized, and then miraculously started improving with treatment. It was a rollercoaster and I did not get much quality studying done those days. My professors always say, "life doesn't stop when you're in vet school" and it's true. If an emergency arises with your animal while you're in school (which hopefully it won't ) you will have to do your best to handle both the emergency & keep up with schoolwork. Professors are usually very understanding as long as you keep them in the loop, though.

Moving to a new place & starting over at a new school can also be stressful. Having your familiar animal/pet might make things easier. If you are willing and happy to make the time for your horse and believe that she will benefit you, I think you should bring her.

 

[riderrapidash]

Thank you all so much for your

I’m a 3rd year and have a horse, 2 dogs, a cat, and a tortoise. My horse is boarded ~15 minutes from my school and most weeks I ride 3-4 days. On particularly rough weeks I may only get out to the barn twice, and I just have to be ok with that. It was a little more tricky when I was in clinics last summer, but I still made time as it’s a huge stress reliever for me! It can be done.

I also tend to be a more introverted person and prefer barn time to class parties and other social events. So that’s where I get the time I think, but my mental health thanks me for it

Wow that's honestly super reassuring!! I bet it's very helpful for stress, too. Are you able to keep your grades up and stay involved in labs? I'd most likely be doing full care after seeing the other replies, but if I could get out to ride even 1-2 times a week I'd be more than happy. I'm a lot happier just spending time with my animals and I don't party at all. I also tend to get worn out with social events, so it sounds like a good option.

 

[EngrSC]

Wow that's honestly super reassuring!! I bet it's very helpful for stress, too. Are you able to keep your grades up and stay involved in labs? I'd most likely be doing full care after seeing the other replies, but if I could get out to ride even 1-2 times a week I'd be more than happy. I'm a lot happier just spending time with my animals and I don't party at all. I also tend to get worn out with social events, so it sounds like a good option.

I was a club officer for a year, which was a TON of work so I didn't continue for a second year. I attend all labs that are part of our curriculum and occasionally participate in extracurricular wet labs. I also work in the teaching hospital as a clin path after hours tech, which means I'm on call ~6 nights/month which pays for my horse's board! I don't consider myself to be exceptionally smart by any means (I study a good bit) and generally I do pretty well (haven't failed any exams) and I'm sitting in the top 30% of my class. Definitely not top 10%, but thankfully I don't need that to do what I want to do

But yes, definitely recommend full board! My girl is on pasture board to keep cost down, but she's fed twice/day, blanketed when the weather is bad, they'll pull her for the farrier if I can't be there, etc. I also trust the people putting eyes on her every day to let me know if something is even a little off, which is invaluable since I can't be there every day.

 

[SkiOtter]

My undergrad allowed it but it wasn't real boarding, it was essentially a contractual full lease for use in undergrad riding programs... the actual horse owners never got to ride their own horses unless they were randomly matched with them for a lesson.

Not gonna lie but that’s kinda bull**** they do it like that. Everywhere I’ve been that someone’s boarded horse was in the lesson program, they were ALWAYS paired with their own horse for lessons. What’s the point of having a horse if you don't even get to lesson on them and learn to ride your horse better since that’s likely the one you’re going to show if you show your horse? I understand that there’s a benefit of riding other horses, but when you have one that is your own why is it random whether they get to occasionally ride their own

 

[SkiOtter]

My one kitten was diagnosed with FIP, rapidly declined and we thought he'd need to be euthanized, and then miraculously started improving with treatment.

HES IMPROVING?!?!?!?!

 

[puppydogtor]

HES IMPROVING?!?!?!?!

Yes!!!!! Day 2 of his treatment his stool was starting to return to normal and he was no longer lethargic. Now we're on day 8 and he runs around and plays with his littermate like any other kitten Big win for the little guy, we have high hopes he'll be fully cured in a few months

 

[EB73674]

Not gonna lie but that’s kinda bull**** they do it like that. Everywhere I’ve been that someone’s boarded horse was in the lesson program, they were ALWAYS paired with their own horse for lessons. What’s the point of having a horse if you don't even get to lesson on them and learn to ride your horse better since that’s likely the one you’re going to show if you show your horse? I understand that there’s a benefit of riding other horses, but when you have one that is your own why is it random whether they get to occasionally ride their own

Agreed, that's insane - my undergrad had a very intense on-campus equestrian program (it's usually one of the main draws for students), and you were GUARANTEED to lesson on your own horse at LEAST once a week! I think you were required to be enrolled in lessons, but those were always twice a week, so at minimum half of your rides would be on your own horse. WTF is the point of bringing a horse otherwise?! Just for funzies and to have other people ride them while you watch?!

 

[EB73674]

I'm not aware of boarding opportunities directly at Cornell's campus stables, but the possibility might exist depending on the school. My undergrad allowed it but it wasn't real boarding, it was essentially a contractual full lease for use in undergrad riding programs... the actual horse owners never got to ride their own horses unless they were randomly matched with them for a lesson. I'm not sure if I know of any school that allows boarding without some kind of contract that binds the horse to classes/lessons with random students because they often have many more equestrian students than they do available stalls so all horses have to be involved and useful in the program somehow.

I board my mare about 20 minutes from my apartment/25 minutes from the vet school. It's full care pasture board with run in access and winter overnight stalling for $250 a month. Hay and ration balancer are provided by the stable. Honestly, full care board is really the way to go in vet school. I can provide more detailed input on that since I've done partial care board in undergrad and vet school before, but it's honestly just so much more concise and truthful to say that you really, seriously should just stick to full care for the sake of your sanity.

Almost any school you go to will have nearby boarding barns as long as it's not in the middle of a big city. If you're like me and it's important for you to find affordable board, start looking on Craigslist many months in advance. It sounds sketchy, but the best way to save money is by finding old retired horse people with a quiet backyard barn that offers cheap board, not a lesson barn or a high-end boarding facility. It will save you a lot of money and a lot of barn drama. When you go to tour the school or an apartment or something, visit the boarding facility too. Be prepared to pay big bucks for shipping a horse if you're making a long trip.

I probably get out to ride, on average, 2-3 days a week. It would probably be doable for me to go 4 days if I didn't also have a job and club commitments. I will honestly say there are quite a few weeks of the year where I only get out once or occasionally not at all because of exams or just a really crappy or chaotic week. If you want your horse exercised more frequently, I'd recommend finding other horse-experienced people in your class who don't have their own horse (there will be plenty!) and want free ride time. It's how I met my closest friends in vet school and we often borrow the barn owner's horses to go on group trail rides.

Let me know if you have questions - I could chat about ponies and vet school for days!

From today's group trail ride that we used to decompress during immunology and parasitology
View attachment 360534

Can confirm that I would 10000% love to find this arrangement with someone, just haven't found a horse close enough that's at my comfort level to ride yet! (My one really good friend has a chestnut TB mare who I am going to get on someday, but post-surgery with rupturable implanted materials is not the time to do that...)

 

[Aprilthearab]

Not gonna lie but that’s kinda bull**** they do it like that. Everywhere I’ve been that someone’s boarded horse was in the lesson program, they were ALWAYS paired with their own horse for lessons. What’s the point of having a horse if you don't even get to lesson on them and learn to ride your horse better since that’s likely the one you’re going to show if you show your horse? I understand that there’s a benefit of riding other horses, but when you have one that is your own why is it random whether they get to occasionally ride their own

Yes, absolutely it's BS. I had a friend who went to hand graze her own horse after lessons were over and she was yelled at and told she couldn't even do that.

There is a reason, though. College lesson programs are very, very different from average boarding/lessoning facilities. The horses are used for actual college classes and competitive teams, not just people coming to pay for lessons. The IHSA (college horse show program) runs by random draw. For shows, you go to another team's barn and the horse you ride is determined by lottery. You don't get more than a couple minutes to sit on the horse before you show, if any at all. So to be competitive, you do actually have to be completely comfortable with riding a wide variety of strange horses and be able to bring the best out in them. Different horses have different buttons so if you ride just your own horse for training, you might struggle to find new buttons on a new horse.

People who lesson on their own horse at a private facility are almost certainly competing on their own horses, and they're paying big bucks for all of these services, whereas at my undergrad you didn't have to pay for board and you didn't have to pay for lessons because it just came out of your tuition. It was part of school, not part of a private facility.

So it doesn't bother me that horse owners often get paired with unfamiliar horses instead of their own. But yeah, being completely barred from access to your own horse outside of lesson time is total BS.

 

[Aprilthearab]

Can confirm that I would 10000% love to find this arrangement with someone, just haven't found a horse close enough that's at my comfort level to ride yet! (My one really good friend has a chestnut TB mare who I am going to get on someday, but post-surgery with rupturable implanted materials is not the time to do that...)

I hope you find a suitable horse! My mare is a handful so I understand she's too much for most people. I had about seven or eight other students come out to ride her initially and only two of them came back to ride more after that She's... an acquired taste even for the people who are experienced and crazy enough to want to ride her in the first place.

 

[SkiOtter]

Yes, absolutely it's BS. I had a friend who went to hand graze her own horse after lessons were over and she was yelled at and told she couldn't even do that.

There is a reason, though. College lesson programs are very, very different from average boarding/lessoning facilities. The horses are used for actual college classes and competitive teams, not just people coming to pay for lessons. The IHSA (college horse show program) runs by random draw. For shows, you go to another team's barn and the horse you ride is determined by lottery. You don't get more than a couple minutes to sit on the horse before you show, if any at all. So to be competitive, you do actually have to be completely comfortable with riding a wide variety of strange horses and be able to bring the best out in them. Different horses have different buttons so if you ride just your own horse for training, you might struggle to find new buttons on a new horse.

People who lesson on their own horse at a private facility are almost certainly competing on their own horses, and they're paying big bucks for all of these services, whereas at my undergrad you didn't have to pay for board and you didn't have to pay for lessons because it just came out of your tuition. It was part of school, not part of a private facility.

So it doesn't bother me that horse owners often get paired with unfamiliar horses instead of their own. But yeah, being completely barred from access to your own horse outside of lesson time is total BS.

I was in IHSA but it was run through an outside barn. Every rider who had their horse boarded at that barn was able to lesson on their own horse. They didn’t always get to ride them in the shows we hosted obviously but they always got to ride them in lessons and usually that horse was one of the ones used in the every other week team lesson as well so they got to ride them part of the time during those too and then switch with others. I do get that it’s beneficial for IHSA to ride other horses, but that can be in the team practices unless your IHSA ONLY did team practices and never small group/semi private lessons. Mine if you were jumping you had to attend the team practices and have at least 1 lesson a week jumping, whether it was at the barn that had the team/coach or at their own barn if they were local.
If they were going to make them not ride their horses pretty much ever, they should at the very least be able to arrange to spend time with their own animal outside of lessons regardless.

 

[Aprilthearab]

I was in IHSA but it was run through an outside barn. Every rider who had their horse boarded at that barn was able to lesson on their own horse. They didn’t always get to ride them in the shows we hosted obviously but they always got to ride them in lessons and usually that horse was one of the ones used in the every other week team lesson as well so they got to ride them part of the time during those too and then switch with others. I do get that it’s beneficial for IHSA to ride other horses, but that can be in the team practices unless your IHSA ONLY did team practices and never small group/semi private lessons. Mine if you were jumping you had to attend the team practices and have at least 1 lesson a week jumping, whether it was at the barn that had the team/coach or at their own barn if they were local.
If they were going to make them not ride their horses pretty much ever, they should at the very least be able to arrange to spend time with their own animal outside of lessons regardless.

Whoops, sorry I had no idea you were in IHSA! Yeah, our IHSA group only did team practices. We had about 60 rideable horses on campus but there were so many students in so many equestrian programs that we were lucky if we got to ride once a week in team practices. I didn't stay in IHSA after my first year for this and many other reasons.

 

[supershorty]

Wait @SkiOtter i didn’t know you did IHSA too!

 

[SkiOtter]

Whoops, sorry I had no idea you were in IHSA! Yeah, our IHSA group only did team practices. We had about 60 rideable horses on campus but there were so many students in so many equestrian programs that we were lucky if we got to ride once a week in team practices. I didn't stay in IHSA after my first year for this and many other reasons.

Yeah that’s a really sucky situation for your guys IHSA if you didn’t even always get to ride weekly

Wait @SkiOtter i didn’t know you did IHSA too!

I WAS And since the show season starts around now, I keep getting tons of fb memories of photos from them 😂

 

[SnowJ]

I'm just popping in to add that even at UMN, which is in a sizable city, several of my classmates had horses boarding nearby. Maybe not quite 15 minutes nearby, but I think several had them only 20-30 minutes away.

 

[that redhead]

Like pretty much any other interest, you can make it happen with appropriate prioritizing and time management skills

 

[EB73674]

Also going to say for the 80th time - if you are at Penn, PLEASE investigate South Jersey! Boarding is SOOO much cheaper than in Western PA, and the commute with a car is very easy. Just over the bridge to get cheap housing, cheap board, cheap good food, and way more green space!