Overview: Stakeholders across the U.S. equine industry report rising costs as the top barrier to sustainable horse ownership and operation. Recent needs assessments from Pennsylvania, Kentucky, New Jersey, Maine, Delaware, and other states consistently identify rising expenses, such as feed, veterinary care, and facility maintenance as the top challenges facing owners and equine businesses. These concerns align with national trends: the annual cost of horse ownership has tripled or more since 2003 (American Horse Council, 2023), and general operating expenses now exceed inflation-adjusted 2012 values by 86–128% in some regions (Kentucky Equine Survey, 2022). Without intervention, these challenges will continue to reduce participation in the equine industry, strain welfare organizations, and negatively impact rural economies that depend on equine activity.

The consequences of inaction include declining horse welfare, reduced economic output, and the continued accumulation of preventable expenses associated with poor nutrition and inefficient management. Another factor reducing equine systems profitability is poor pasture management. Improper pasture management (e.g., overgrazing, inadequate nutrient and stocking-rate management, and lack of resting) reduces forage quantity and quality, increases reliance on purchased supplemental feed, such as hay and concentrates, and thereby raises feeding and overall horse-production costs (Macleay and Buckley, 2019; Ringmark et al., 2019).

A multistate approach is essential because economic pressures and management decisions are influenced by climate, forage systems, regional feed costs, facility designs, and state policies. A coordinated effort enables comparative analysis, broader applicability of findings, and collectively developed educational tools that can be disseminated regionally. Successful completion will result in improved cost efficiency, enhanced welfare outcomes, more resilient equine businesses, and better-informed decision-making across diverse equine communities.

1. Rising expenses in horse operations

Justification: Despite the overall industry growth, costs associated with horsekeeping have surged, placing increasing financial pressure on individual owners and operations. According to a report comparing 2003–2016 data from the American Horse Council, the annual cost of owning a horse in the U.S. rose during that period: for show horses, from US$3,186 (2003) to US$24,239 (2016); for recreational horses, from US$2,319 to US$6,710 (datapaddock.com) Even under modest care regimes, the combination of feed, facility maintenance, veterinary care, and other routine expenses places horse ownership far beyond a casual hobby for many.

These rising costs have been confirmed by stakeholder feedback. An unpublished 2024 equine needs assessment conducted at Penn State University identified the top three most important and challenging issues in the equine industry. The most frequently chosen issues were all related to costs of horse-keeping. These responses reflect on-the-ground realities: owners, small operations, and welfare organizations increasingly struggle with escalating feed prices, maintenance, veterinary bills, and facility overhead.

2. Assess horse nutrition practices and develop cost-saving feeding strategies

Justification: Forage access and feeding efficiency are primary cost drivers for nearly all equine operations. Systematic monitoring of hay markets, coupled with research on feeding efficiency and waste reduction, is critical to improving producer financial resilience. These efforts provide producers with reliable benchmarks, predictive insights, and actionable recommendations. In years of drought or supply shortages, timely data help prevent urgent welfare compromises by informing early purchasing, storage, and pasture strategies. Without this objective, financial strain and preventable welfare issues related to forage scarcity will continue to escalate.

3. Grazing land management:

Justification: Pastures represent the most cost-effective and nutritionally valuable feed resources to horse owners, making grazing land a central economic pillar of equine operations. Yet many farms struggle to implement effective grazing practices, leading to wasted forage, higher feeding expenditures, and declining pasture productivity and persistence. Rising feeding prices, high veterinary and care costs, and the limitations of small or suburban acreage make efficient forage use even more critical for horse owners. Challenges such as uneven grazing pressure, poor soil fertility, and lack of management knowledge often translate into preventable financial losses and reduced overall farm resilience.

Feed remains one of the largest recurring expenses in any livestock operation, and poorly managed pastures increase dependence on costly hay and concentrates, particularly during winter or drought periods. Improving grazing-land management through strategies like rotational grazing, integrating warm- and cool-season forages, and optimizing soil fertility can extend the grazing season, improve forage quality, and reduce the need for supplemental feed. Research across forage systems shows that practices enhancing pasture productivity, nitrogen-use efficiency, and plant persistence yield strong economic returns, and these benefits directly apply to equine farms where even modest reductions in supplemental feeding can significantly lower annual operating costs. Together, these points highlight the need for strong, coordinated research, outreach, and education in grazing-land management to help horse farms stay economically viable, reduce their dependence on purchased feeds, and build more resilient equine businesses.

4. Multistate Extension resources

Justification: While academic publications provide essential information and rigor, they are not the primary information source for most horse owners or managers. Rather, this group depends on Extension bulletins, webinars, workshops, podcasts, and short-form digital resources that can be readily applied in daily operations. A multistate dissemination effort will close the gap between research and producer-level application. Additionally, this approach ensures that educational resources reflect diverse management systems and economic realities.  The development and dissemination of Extension resources are an essential part of this multistate effort. These materials serve as the primary mechanism through which research findings reach stakeholders, influence management practices, and generate measurable improvements in economic resilience and equine welfare.