A 'which yard' thread

[FFAQ]

Hi all,

I have to move my horses in the near future and I am lucky to have the choice of 2 places.

Location A
Section of big field that I would have to fence off, I need to provide my own shelter and shed (I have a shelter anyway)
Outdoor school
Mains water
I can buy hay, straw, bedding at field prices
Mostly lane hacking
Can be a bit horse fly-y in the summer (but so is everywhere)
Good access
6 mins drive from our house (when we move)
No electric
£87.50 per week for my 3 horses
Free holiday/sick cover

Location B
Self contained field that's a bit overgrown, but the horses will soon sort that out
Amazing hacking straight out on to a common. I would never need to go on the road again if I didn't want to
Already has a shelter but needs some TLC
Has an old trailer for storage
Access is tricky. Fine for me, but might be awkward for hay deliveries and actually getting the horses there in the first place
No services at all - horses would need to use the stream to drink from, but there is a big water container I could use to collect rain water from shelter roof.
It's VERY midge-y! It could have been extra bad because it had just rained when I visited.
£45 a week for the 3 horses.
I would have to organise holiday/sick cover
About 10 mins drive from the new house.

I had already agreed to go to yard A but the someone told me about B so I thought I would check it out. I really don't want to mess around yard owner A - she kindly agreed to find space for us when she wasn't planning on taking any more liveries on, and she's a friend. I know she would say it's fine, but I also know a lot of people say it's fine when it's not!

Thank you if you read this far!

 

[Widgeon]

I would be *very* tempted by the hacking from Field B, but the lack of services, midginess, poor access, and lack of easily available holiday / sick cover would swing it the other way I think. The first place sounds great. I'd stick with that, particularly if you know the owner's a nice person.

 

[cauda equina]

I prefer the sound of A, assuming the hacking isn't on horrid rat run type lanes

The lack of access to B might become a drag, especially if you had some sort of unforeseen emergency
Also how well do your horses cope with midges?

 

[Highmileagecob]

The access and the midges and the lack of holiday cover would tip the balance for me. Unless that is something you could address?
How will you fate in the depths of winter in either yard? Thinking about it being dark at 4pm, raining or snowing sideways, mud everywhere.....Good luck with your chosen yard!

 

[Wishfilly]

Have you seen field B in winter? I'd be worried about it getting very poached around the water in winter.

I also wouldn't want to be without a water source in the event of an injury etc.

How would field B be for the vet, farrier etc?

 

[eggs]

Definitely A

It sounds like the only thing really going for B is the hacking but it also has some significant negatives.

 

[nagblagger]

Def A from me.
If it's problematic to get horses safely to B when they are ok, how would you get a trailer down there in an emergency.

 

[Leandy]

A

 

[MuddyMonster]

The hacking would sway it to B for me.

 

[Asha]

Definitely yard A. Lack of services/facilities would put me right off yard B. Not so bad now, but come winter , no thanks.

 

[webble]

Another vote for A

 

[milliepops]

Have you seen field B in winter? I'd be worried about it getting very poached around the water in winter.

I also wouldn't want to be without a water source in the event of an injury etc.

How would field B be for the vet, farrier etc?

same
My facilities at home are rustic in the extreme but i do at least have a hosepipe which has been useful a few times

Having somewhere with rubbish access gets old very quickly. As do midges. so i vote A.

 

[Parksmum3]

I’d choose field A. 2 years ago I had water ‘put on’ at my yard even though it cost a lot I now wouldn’t be able to manage without running water. All that running back and forward with water drums or filling up IBC’s makes a lot of difference, haven’t got to think about how much water I need to take to bath them or worse run out half way through and have to run home to re fill!! Plus I think I’d rather deal with horseflys then midges if I had to choose between the two

 

[FFAQ]

Thanks everyone! Yes, I think on balance I'll probably go to yard A. My mare hates flies but she has good fly rugs and masks, and while I'm very happy with my own company it's sensible to have people around who will at least check that you're alive if you fall off or something!
In terms of hardstanding and electric both places don't have much but I do have loads of mud control mats. I'm fairly used to being self-sufficient!

 

[Greylegs]

Definite vote for A from me. You need to think about things like vets/farrier access and working conditions. The provision of cover for holidays etc is a bonus. You can get one of those inverter thingies if you need power in the winter.

 

[tiahatti]

A. What if something happens (heaven forbid), B could be more tricky if you ever needed box rest, if you were unwell etc

 

[Ali27]

No water is a real pain! I bought a field last September with no water and mains quote was 32k! I just about survived the Winter with two ibcs connected to guttering on stables but I had to watch every single ml of water. Have just paid out for a borehole and it’s life changing! I don’t have electric but have solar lights, head torch which is fine! If access is tricky, that’s a real negative too! How would you get muck heap removed? Field harrowed etc?
I would definitely go for yard A!

 

[FFAQ]

Thanks everyone! I'm going for A ?