advice needed! when to sell ?

ok I dont post often but I need your help!
my questions is, how do you know when its time to sell your horses or down size or make life changes involving your horses,

I have 3 horses, at 25 and working full time its way to much, there kept at my parents house in elmsdale and I do all the work, pay all there bills, I am limited as to where i can live as i have be at the barn twice a day, my apartment that i was renting allowed dogs but i had to move as it was the lower level of a house and the house got sold, so now Im stuck trying to find a place close by and nothing will take a small dog! I work in town, so it would make sense to move closer to town, but i cant be far away from the horses,
I have already down sized from 5 horses and a goat, to 3 horses, but i just cant part with these 3, I have tried on property leases, they never seem long term and seem more hassle there they are worth, I have also offered an off property lease for my 20 yr old Qh who is very well trained and is just an awesome guy who looks and acts half his age, but every time some thing seems like its gonna work out the deal falls through not due to my horses fault, its so fustrating, I will not sell him as hes my first horse Ive had him for 13 years and if some thing happened to him I would feel horrible, but he has alot to offer some one and he is healthy and sounds so thats why i figured an off property would work with him,
my other 2 horses are my babies I brought them up from weanlings, they will both be 6 this year, there just my perfect horses, there both trained but need more miles, I cant just lease them to any one as they are still what i consider green,

I just find my self handing out cash to keep these horses and Im not even able to enjoy them, I dont ever have the time and energy to actually ride and show like i want to, and every other accpet of my life suffers, like driving crappy cars! I make good money but you would never know it! I dont have much to show for it besides my horses and tack lol, I just know that eventually Ill have to change some thing, most people i know my age sold theres first horses years ago while going to school and starting there lifes,

theres just some days I just want one horse, but i just cant stand the thought of losing any of them, I need help or options!!

Please help :shock:

This is one those those hard lessons in life...you are only young and want to have all your animals yet still enjoy what life has to offer...unfortunately you can't do it all. There is so much out there ...sometimes you have to let something go in order to obtain the other side of life....and believe me there is more to this world than horses. You can always go back to horses ....like a lot of us on here have. My advice is to keep your old partner and maybe lease him if thats an optiion {on property} and sell the other two...you can find great homes, with people that will love them as much as you do. Believe this happens...most of us have bought horses from other people and swear they have only belonged to each and every one of us.

oh dear, what a dilemma it's hard to choose which horse you will keep and which ones to sell.. It happened to me once I had three and I wasn't enjoying them very much .. not enough money and every cent went into the barn and the three horses.. so I decided I'd sell two and keep one.. but which one.. oh dear.. so I said which one was the most saleable.. ummm I had an 2 yr old gelding I raised from birth.. his mother, 7 yr old reg. morgan part bred and an old fellow of the age 18 who was the most trust worth of them all..
So I sold the mare .. she was broke well enough and was of a great age for someone to put more time on her.. I sold my 18 yr.. that was my first mistake.. one year later I bought him back.. he's was unreplaceable.. then I sold my 2yr old later when he was 8 yrs.. So you see I kind of screwed stuff up.. I should have sold mare and gelding and kept the old faithful who instilled so much confidence in me... could ride and take him anywhere..
But it is easier for you to have one horse, board him out for what you are paying now and start to enjoy your life.. maybe save to buy a small farm and later start again.. your young and anything is possible..
good luck on your choice I know it will be a difficult one whatever you decide.

Thanks for the advice guys,
the hardest part is, all my horses are fairly different in breed and dicpline, making it even hard to figure out
my 6 year old Fjord stallion is the most funest, kind, willing guy, he ll go any where and through any thing, hes great at shows and could care less wheres hes at,
hes the lowest to maintain and is healthy, so he makes the most sense to keep in my mind, and althou when i first bought him I had plans on buying a Fjord mare to breed, things and life changed and Im just not going to be able to do that any time in the future, so I do beleave i will Geld him, as there just isnt enought call for a Fjord stallion to keep him intact in my mind,
but my 6 year old Trakhner cross Mare is my dream hunter horse in the making, I know she will be a stunning show horse with a few more miles, but she also needs alot more work, and isnt as laid back as the Fjord but she is a real sweet heart and smart as a whip and I just adore her, and Id never being able to go out and afford to buy another horse like her at her age etc, I bought her as a weanling and she turned out to be an amazing horse,

I will always own my old guy one way or another, even if i lease him out, or find him a good semi retirement, but he dosent like to show any more so Id like to keep one of the younsters to do this with, but i want my boy in a good home and Id prefer for him to get used as he has a ton of life left in him and hes such a good boy,

I really am racking my brain here,
i

Wow - very hard decisions to make. I don't envy you. It seems that you've reached a point where you aren't able to enjoy ANY of your horses anymore because of the time commitments. Personally I think your best bet is to sell the younger horses. If you want to show you can always lease or part lease another horse that would fill that part of your life. I know it sounds very cold, but it's a reality.

About 20 years ago I had to sell my mare - she was the first horse I'd ever owned. But I was getting a divorce and just couldn't afford to keep her. Hard, hard, hard decision to make but I didn't have much of a choice. It's only two years ago that I was able to get back into horses. I still think of my old mare almost every day, but there are times in our lives that our options are very limited. I realize now that I can look back on the memories I made with my mare - and they were all good. They don't involve struggling with trying to find the time or money to keep her and I don't have any regrets about not being able to spend time with her like I would have liked.

In your heart you will find the decision that's right for you AND your horses.

P.. maybe you can geld Patriot and lease him out as a lesson horse at a good fjord farm in Antigonish.. if they were inclined to take him, but he'd have to be gelded first.. they have one stallion on site and that's enough lol.. just a thought.. sell one other horse and keep one.. then you'd still own two and maybe sometime you can have the other back off lease.. oh the decissions.. keep us posted and if you need help just let me know..
I know your pain on having to part with your guys.. but sometimes in life you have to do what's best.. for you and them...

Thanks wissy, that maybe a route to take, if only for awhile till i get settled, and figure things out! I think either way I will geld him this year, to open up some more options, and if I dont have any intent on breeding him in the next few years its not fair to him to be kept a stallion,
its all alot to take in, and Im just so worried if i sold any of them that they will end up in bad homes, it happend to my freinds horse, she sold him to what she thought was the perfect home, only to get him back like a year later as a rack of bones and a complete mess, she was lucky enough to be able to get him back, but still he would have been in a bad spot if she didnt, I just worry to much!