Working with horses is a passion that many Irish people have, and are innately very good at.

The real challenge is to make a long-term living from your passion. This week Irish Country Living speaks to three women who have combined their passion with their career and have some sage advice for anyone who wants to follow in their footsteps.

The name Faith Ponsonby is well known in many circles, from pony club right up to international competition.

From her first equestrian memory of hunting on a donkey at Kildare’s Castletown Estate to her current position as a Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI) international judge, Faith has amassed huge experience and qualifications.

But her first piece of advice for anyone who wants to work with horses is to get the Leaving Certificate under your belt.

“Even if you don’t like school, stick with it!” she tells Irish Country Living. “Boring as it may be for some people, it is a wonderful platform for further education. You might want to go back as a mature student and the Leaving Cert is a stepping stone for all those courses.”

She also recommends the British Horse Society (BHS) exams as a world recognised qualification. Work experience is the next step.

“Go and work in a well-recognised yard, which has a good name. It will take dedication and hard work but you will meet wonderful people. If you are from a non-horsey background, spend a summer at a yard, even if you have to do it for nothing. If you pull your weight, you will get something,” she says.

For anyone who wants to produce their own horses, Faith advises riding as many horses as possible.

“There are lots of jobs out there – warming up for professional riders, there are a million jobs in the US prepping horses for clients.”

For those with a grooming career in mind, Faith recommends applying for jobs in good yards in Ireland, the US and Europe.

“It will be hard work but if you are dedicated you will get to travel and be looked after,” she says.

If coaching is your preferred career, then making contact with top coaches is what Faith advises.

“We have some top class coaches here in Ireland, like Tom Holden in show jumping, seek them out and offer your services.”

When it comes to building your career, the judge has two solid warnings: don’t buy your own horse and don’t ever agree to non-contract jobs.

“When you are building your career, your own horse could become a chore after work or else be left in the field,” she warns.

“When it comes to your full time employment, never go without a contract,” she insists.

“Get a contract that sets out your hours, days off, holidays and sick pay. Never settle for, ‘We’ll sort it out later’ or you could end up overworked and underpaid.”

Freelance coach Gemma Ferrer is a great example of someone who has built her career in horses despite not coming from an equestrian family. A regular at the riding school in her native Spain, Gemma first came to Ireland on an equestrian holiday to Crossogue in Co Tipperary in her early 20s.

She returned to Ireland again as a working pupil at Broadmeadows Equestrian Centre, a traditional route that saw her work in the yard and receive board, training and pocket money in return.

Her next move was to Grennan College (now Grennan Equestrian Centre) in Co Kilkenny to study for her BHSAI qualification to enable her to teach, before later returning to teach and run the yard at the Kilkenny college herself.

In a varied career, the Barcelona native worked in equine transport, thoroughbred stud management and in equine recruitment. Ultimately though, she wanted to ride and coach herself and she is now back competing in dressage while working as a freelance coach for adult riders, pony clubs and competitive teens. Her advice for those riding horses for a living is to get your BHS exams so that you can fall back on coaching even if you are injured.

She also urges people to make the most of online training during the COVID-19-enforced lockdown.

She has been taking her advice, taking online sessions with equine physio Andy Thomas and sports psychologist Charlie Unwin.

Meabh Bolger and her fiancé Brian Flynn are graduates of Grennan College (now Grennan Equestrian Centre), who set up their own sport horse yard, MBF Sport Horses in Kill, Co Waterford.

From their yard, the pair produce three to five-year-old horses for elite eventing sales and are well known for having produced and sold top horses like MBF Harley Rebel, now eventing with Izzy Taylor, Harry Horgan’s MBF Connection, as well as Cooley Cruise Control, MBF Touch Your Toes and Poynstown Braeve.

They have built their 16-stable yard on being true to their word, marketing by social media and running a solid business that has as little debt as possible.

Their model has been to grow and reinvest in the business whenever they can afford to – but not before.

“We keep to what we can manage,” explains Meabh. “Horses are not a set income, you can have an influx or you can have nothing. We’ll have certain horses that we earmark that if they sell well, we will spend that money on something we need in the yard.”

The pair’s best investment to date had been in upgrading their arena, she says.

“It was bad sand, it held water and it would flood. It was affecting the sale of the horses, they wouldn’t move as well if they were splashing through puddles.

“If you’re selling to a professional, you need a professional set up.”

Social media marketing is Brian’s forte, and there is rarely a day that the pair don’t video at least one horse to promote on their Facebook page.

“Brian’s a genius on the phone – he can find horses and sell horses on it. He replies to every single person who gets in touch. It’s a simple tool, he uses Viva video, but it’s great to organise and promote our horses.”