Anything horse related

[chicken on a mission]

Questions for the stables. If you can think of anymore I would be very grateful if you could let me know please

How much per month for my specific agreement?
If I am only hacking for 2 hours a day max, would they still use her in the evening peak time?
Maximum per day by the school?
Access and use of facilities?
Joy is out on grass, where do I groom, wash and cool down etc?
Yard rules – Eg my mum riding my horse?
Daily care routine for Joy by the stables?

 

[boofaloo]

All sounds very exciting chicken!!
Havent got any questions to add to your list but wanted to say good luck and i hope everything turns out just how you want.

I would love to own again but having a baby kind of puts the stoppers on that. Ona positive note though i have booked the kids their first riding lessons for Saturday morning. It's at 8.30am so we'll be up and out early!! I hope they enjoy it.

 

[HorseyCarrie]

Like you, Chicken, I would definitely not allow my horse to be used this much only for me to be restricted to one day a week. It is very unlikely that they will remove her from the peak time schedules as a good horse is bound to be used at these times. I also think that £1950 may be a bit steep, though I don't know the horse so couldn't possibly say; however, my horse which had been professionally backed and schooled before I had him, had done lots of SJ and been placed lots, came with rugs and tack and I paid 1600 for him as an 8 year old. I do think, though, that a good horse that you get on cannot be priced and 1950 isn't big money really.

If you went DIY somewhere else, which I know isn't an option for you, you would pay £20 a week livery and then pay for all extras on top. As I said two horses and a pony cost around £500 a month for me. £65 is very good but do bear in mind, as you already are, that she will be worked hard at the stables and you won't have overall say in when you ride her. You can get part livery at about £40 a week which means you only need to go there once a day and a lot is chucked in, but you would have some other costs on top. Or there is full livery.

 

[c2b]

I couldn't have my mare on working livery I would be in prison for murder if I saw anyone ride her in a way I wasn't happy with....
The option that jumped out to me is to get a sharer and go diy/part livery.
I pay £15 pw for DIY. It does depend what facilities are available and where in the country you are though. Where I am it's common for people to join up in the winter and share the work....I get yours in if you turn mine out.... which cuts down on the work. Perhaps post this question on a horsey site and see what creative suggestions you get.... newrider springs to mind for that sort of thing. New Rider Home

 

[chicken on a mission]

All sounds very exciting chicken!!
Havent got any questions to add to your list but wanted to say good luck and i hope everything turns out just how you want.

I would love to own again but having a baby kind of puts the stoppers on that. Ona positive note though i have booked the kids their first riding lessons for Saturday morning. It's at 8.30am so we'll be up and out early!! I hope they enjoy it.

I'm so excited for them and you

Can't wait for your update, roll on Saturday

 

[chicken on a mission]

This takes me back to my original thought of offering to work in exchange for rides on my friends neighbours horse but not going for full loan. Much as I would love to, I really can't afford time consistently to look after a horse the way it should be done hense the working livery thought, I might surprise myself after that and then be able to shift to DIY. All is done for you but you can do as much as you want to be as hands on as possible.

Thinking about this, I wonder if it would be a possibility to go for a loan of Joy where I pick up the bills for a while if I can renegotiate the terms of the working livery contract so that I can ride upto 4 mornings a week.

If this works out, I could ask about buying at a later date or look around for other options when I have a better idea what commitment is required in terms of time and money.

I hate those programmes where well intentioned people have animals they just can't cope with but 'love' them so much that they can't see the damage they are doing through their neglect.

The old brain cells are starting to kick into action again. I must stop those nocturnal posts

 

[boofaloo]

Ok some more exciting news for you - I have got a horse to share!!

Came very out of the blue after talking to my Hubby about how i feel. I told him really wanted to start riding again and that it was the only exercise i enjoyed etc etc. He told me to go for it and to have a look around for something to loan or share as time is limited with my baby.
I asked a friend at school if she knew of anyone and low and behold she wants a sharer for her horse!!!!

Am going up to the stables this afternoon to sort things out and arrange turning out etc and when i can ride.

I cant quite believe it to be honest!! Am hoping and praying it works out as I would really love to own again and this will be the 'tester' to se eif i can manage time wise!!!

 

[c2b]

How wonderfully exciting. Just make sure you post lots of lovely piccies so I can drool.....
I am so pleased for you.

 

[boofaloo]

Thanks Laura

Went today and the yard is just superb. The yard owner is lovely and really friendly.
I am going to turn out in a morning and ride 3 times a week. There are 3 of us who are all going to muck in and help together. I'll have the choice of 3 horses to ride. One is a coloured cob, one an anglo arab and the other a cob x.
I am very happy and havent felt this excited for ages.

 

[chicken on a mission]

OMG I am so excited for you. There you go, things are on the up

You just know that I'm hoping for pics when you get a chance and a blow by blow account of everything

 

[chicken on a mission]

Yet again I can't sleep and find myself posting at 5.15am

My friend is going to approach her neighbour on my behalf to ask about Honey, a 14.2 palamino she wants to loan out but is having trouble getting somebody for because the horse is a youngster that was only broken in last year and hasn’t been ridden regularly since and so if difficult!

Honey is kept about 5 miles from my home so this is more practical than where I go now but the riding country isn't so good.

My confidence is growing all the time as I am getting used to my new body and as somebody said before, I am being taught to BHS standards but the leisure rider doen't necessarilly ride that way, I'd just like to be able to do all these fancy schooling moves that I have never even tried because I had always hacked out!

If all goes well and I like Honey and she likes me then I will be able to give her experience under a saddle (incidentially this is something I have had experience of as teenager - hense my 2 broken little fingers!) but obviously I don’t have the knowledge or experience to develop the horse by myself. Still the most important thing to me is to get a closeness with horses even if I don’t ride so if don't get on with Honey I can volunteer to do 3 mornings a week with her to build up and start using my existing horse care knowledge and get used to doing the simple things that horse owners take for granted like tacking up, mucking out and tack cleaning which are all things I loved doing. She can get used to being ridden by someone that is patient and isn't going to traumatise her or ruin her mouth. I can get lessons on her to help us both develop even if I can't professionally back her but then that is down to owner to sort out.

There are options available to me and like boffaloo, I just have to go out there and make things happen for myself rather than waiting for it all to drop neatly into my lap!

 

[Barb]

COAM, i have just posted a new thread on the Wemitts page. please take a look, I could do with some of your comfort right now. Love

 

[c2b]

.....I'd just like to be able to do all these fancy schooling moves that I have never even tried because I had always hacked out!

You can do all sorts of moves when hacking out. I practice all sorts of strange things it's amazing how inventive you can be. lol. My vets wife tells me that years ago no one other than really top riders had maneges so you had to learn when and where you could.

.........Still the most important thing to me is to get a closeness with horses even if I don’t ride

That is exactly how I feel. If something happened tomorrow to stop me riding as long as I had my girl I wouldn't be too bothered. I love my riding can't get enough but it's only a tiny bit of time out of a week.

......doing the simple things that horse owners take for granted like tacking up, mucking out and tack cleaning which are all things I loved doing. !

I really love all the other bits too like mucking out....how sad is that . At the yard I used to be at people used to laugh at me because I had to have Zoe's bed level with perfect banks. . I get such satisfaction from seeing a clean deep springy straw bed all ready for her. As for the smell of a clean bed....mmmmmm.

 

[chicken on a mission]

I have my riding lesson again tomorrow and have a hack booked for next week. Hopefully both will be on Joy. I want to make sure that I am not overly enthusitic based on the fact that I had one good lesson. It might have been me improving rather than the fact that I was on a better or more suitable horse

I think it will be interesting after a while to go back on Malcolm (the 17h2 big lazy beast) that I first rode at the school to see the difference.

 

[chicken on a mission]

I had another excellent lesson today but it was what happend before and after that really got my juices going.

I didn't even recognise Joy and she had been tidied up beyond belief. I spoke to one of the grooms about the routine for working livery horses. The livery fee includes all food and haylage. The only extras are worming, shoeing, vets and insurance and any change of horse apparel etc.

The general concensus was that given the quality of the horse and the amount of kit that she has with her, £1950 is about right. I have my hack booked in for next week so that will be fun. I haven't hacked out for agaes and I just hope the weather improves.

I am going to start going down to the stables even when I am not riding and just helping out. Donna has said that she will train me up the BHS way even though they don't do everything by the book (who does?) so that at least I know the rules I choose to break and then it's up to me if I decide to go for the exams. To be honest I don't see the point, I just want to learn so I can then adapt, I don't need to prove I have learnt.

As far as the working livery agreement goes, The exclusive right of use to Joy on the Sunday does not preclude you from riding on other days and you can go in or call up to see if she is due to work at any time. She doesn't tend to get used during the day and weekdays so I should be able to ride whenever I want anyway.

I let the office know about the conversation I had with the owners and said that given the circumstances with the grandad buying the horse and then passing on the idea situation would be for me to take on the bills and have Joy as a loan because I can only ride when my daughter is at school which would leave Joy available for riding during the school holidays for the daughter. This would mean that the daughter still owns her and would get to ride when she needs to and I get to ride when I need to without having to buy or be responsable for vets bills, the perfect solution!

I explained that I wouldn't phone the owners again though because I wouldn't want to be seen as pestering but if they came in - which the father is always in - then if they could mention it then I would be grateful. That would be the perfect solution as far as I'm concerned.

Either way, I get to spend as much time as I want down the stables getting that closeness with horses that I crave and it doesn't cost a bean. The spending will come in if I want to ride more often (which I obviously do!) but it could be £30 during term time (only £8 a week more than my private lesson) or £30-40 all year round plus the initial investment.

I am going to make things happen for myself thanks to boofaloo's lead

 

[HorseyCarrie]

Just wanted to add to the already fantastic advice that what I actually meant when I said you won't be able to ride all horses to BHS standards, is that most horses that haven't had 5 hours of schooling every day, and even those that have, have the ability to be very difficult. I had been riding for 12 years when I had my first horse 9 years ago and even when I bought my next horse 4 years ago, to accompany the one I had already, I still had to adapt. You have to adapt your riding to suit the horse and say boo to the BHS standards sometimes. For instance, one of mine gets very worked up if he feels too trapped at the front end and by lowering my hands so they are either side of his withers, he can bring his head down and is more free. I have learned over time what makes my horses and the others I ride, tick; what I can do to keep them going forward from the leg and what will make them look poncy in a dressage comp. I have learned what will keep my boy going over 5 foot fences and what will make him complete a cross-country course. But it has taken time and although the BHS teaching helped me to learn to be a rider and gave me confidence in my own ability, it didn't necessarily teach me how to ride because each horse is very different and this comes with experience on that particular horse. It might be the case that you purchase a horse and for the first few weeks or months (as is very common) you feel like you made the wrong choice and you come to the end of your tether, but one day when your horse is knee-deep in mud and the rain is pelting at you both as you ride out, trying to convince your horse that it would be a good idea to keep going and not cement to the spot and throw a hissy fit as a tractor appears from nowhere, it will all click into place. You will find a new determindness and a new understanding of how your horse works. There is always a way round a problem with a horse and every horse does have a problem, even if you don't see it yourself. My horse went through a stage of trying to tank off with me when I loaded him. No problem, I just bought a chifney and started loading and leading him with that and now I am back in control. He doesn't try to tank off everywhere with me when I lead him and he isn't bargy.

Whatever you decide, I will always be around to offer you advice and support and there are plenty of horsey forums on the net as well.

 

[HorseyCarrie]

I would love to do my BHS exams so I could be an instructor but it's just one of those things that takes hours and hours to complete, and I just don't have hours and hours.

Worming varies in cost as it depends which programme you follow, but we do ours several times a year at £15 a go.
Shoeing is anywhere from 40 to 70 every 6 weeks.
Insurance depends what you are doing with her, but basic is around £3-400 a year.
Vets can vary depending on injury but she will need flu jabs and stuff each year, which can be around £200.
She may need clipping once or twice a year at a cost of about £30.
You have the livery, food and haylage, and I presume bedding?
Then there's just added extras like rugs which can be as cheap as £40 for a turnout of poorish quality to around £200 for a good quality one like my Mark Todd which I parade around the yard like some kind of trophy!!!

Good luck anyway, it's an exciting time for you!

 

[HorseyCarrie]

If they have republished it as well, I would recommend a read of 'the less than perfect rider' by lesley bayley, and looking at horse behaviour books is always very useful for horse owners.

 

[chicken on a mission]

Carrie you're a darling, thank you

 

[boofaloo]

Sounds great chicken - it's funny how horses get under your skin and you just cant get enough of them!!
Keep it up.
my kids go for their first riding lesson tomorrow. I'm a bit nervous for them. My daughter (4) will be fine but my son (7) is a bit nervous in new situations - i just hope they take this into consideration!!