Advantages of livery yards

[Red-1]

I'm not sure I'd take a horse that is this anxious to a holiday venue though, as a first resort, even if I had the spare time. At those venues, people are excited, other horses are excited and there is often alcohol thrown into the mix. It is an unsettled feeling.

I normally do the little trips in the lorry, then many arena hires where little is asked, so they feel secure. There is a little indoor near to you that is fab for 1st visits, as opposed to the large indoor also nearby. I used to go take music there and just hang, doing small tasks that are not at all exciting or new. Of a 1 hour hire, with a baby I would do maybe 20 minutes ground work, then 15 minutes under saddle, but doing very little. Repeat until they feel confident in the while procedure. I have gone there and not even mounted if the travel and new venue is over-awing. I stay with the one 'new' arena until this feels safe to them, rather than chopping and changing. With some horses, this is first visit, with others it takes a few trips.

If yours was so tense at a saddle fitting that he was drenched in sweat, when the weather is cold, then this is an issue. Bouncing around instead of walking means he was over tolerance. I would take it back some steps and repair the experience.

A good, small, stable training yard for a month or so would be better than a holiday venue, IMO, as he would have time to settle. Have days where little is asked. See comings and goings of other horses who feel settled. Start to have questions asked when he is ready to process.

I believe your trainer may have access to such a yard? Much as I love the yard where my horses go, I would imagine that it would be advantageous for yours to work with a trainer who already knows him? But maybe in summer when things are just more relaxed in the horse world generally, as in turnout. Maybe ask your trainer for his opinion and availability?

 

[honetpot]

For about ten years I was on the same DIY livery yard, its was cheap and basic but it had lots of all year turnout. I also had a couple of stables at home and a small turnout area, and then I rented odd paddocks, but still kept spaces at DIY. The stables at home I used when I needed to do something with them ie for backing or if we were out early showing or hunting. They came home in pairs, and the house was on the edge of a communter village, so part of their training was a daily plod around the village housing estates, so they saw traffic, people mowing the lawn, when school was coming out, all things things you can build on.

There are positives in livery yards, I moved to one belonging to a friend that had every facility, but kept my paddocks, the thing I noticed it fostered a dependance culture and with horses and people. Yes you do have someone to talk and perhaps hack out with, but its can be somewhere that can erode your confidence, just because you are not doing the same as other people, so you have to be confident if you are not following the trend.I was on the big yard for about five years, and hardly anyone hacked, so it could be a bit of gilded cage. I had mates rates, but I actually prefered the basic yard
I suppose the big advantage of livery is your not spending on maintenance and insurance, I spend about £1500 a year on basic stuff, and you need time to do it.

 

[colourville 17]

- People to ride with
- People to help with physical tasks that take two
- Shared challenges- if something goes wrong eg electrics / water / hay delivery / seized paddlock etc it’s a shared problem
- I borrow other liveries’ husbands tools & DIY skills (my husband not skilled at DIY)
- support in a horsey medical crisis
- moral support in bad weather / bad rides
- back up cover to feed & check horses
- people to borrow stuff off

I agree with all these points
Would it be lovely to have horses out your back door? Yes of course it would. But then there are no days off,no one to have a rant to if your having a bad day.

 

[Fieldlife]

I agree with all these points
Would it be lovely to have horses out your back door? Yes of course it would. But then there are no days off,no one to have a rant to if your having a bad day.

Yes when I realized my husband was not up for any maintenance tasks or support managing land / fencing / stabling / emergency pony care (and is generally useless in this area, though wonderful in many many other areas), and that I would always need to work full time to support horses financially, I decided horses at home, would in reality mean less time to ride for me, and less support and social interactions around riding activities. I am currently leaning of several local friends to support me in a hacking issue (local to where I hack).

It is also wonderful that there are other liveries and freelancers on site that I can ask to feed and check my horse, opposite end of the day, if I cannot be there. It is a LOT more expensive to pay freelancers to come onto the yard that are not already there.

Being on livery yard with other liveries, allows me to have my horse not that close to where I live, as I keep him somewhere with well draining turnout, where he can live out all year, and where there is good safe hacking, access to good arenas. This combination is not available closer where I live.

 

[Hackback]

I'm not sure I'd take a horse that is this anxious to a holiday venue though, as a first resort, even if I had the spare time. At those venues, people are excited, other horses are excited and there is often alcohol thrown into the mix. It is an unsettled feeling.

I normally do the little trips in the lorry, then many arena hires where little is asked, so they feel secure. There is a little indoor near to you that is fab for 1st visits, as opposed to the large indoor also nearby. I used to go take music there and just hang, doing small tasks that are not at all exciting or new. Of a 1 hour hire, with a baby I would do maybe 20 minutes ground work, then 15 minutes under saddle, but doing very little. Repeat until they feel confident in the while procedure. I have gone there and not even mounted if the travel and new venue is over-awing. I stay with the one 'new' arena until this feels safe to them, rather than chopping and changing. With some horses, this is first visit, with others it takes a few trips.

If yours was so tense at a saddle fitting that he was drenched in sweat, when the weather is cold, then this is an issue. Bouncing around instead of walking means he was over tolerance. I would take it back some steps and repair the experience.

A good, small, stable training yard for a month or so would be better than a holiday venue, IMO, as he would have time to settle. Have days where little is asked. See comings and goings of other horses who feel settled. Start to have questions asked when he is ready to process.

I believe your trainer may have access to such a yard? Much as I love the yard where my horses go, I would imagine that it would be advantageous for yours to work with a trainer who already knows him? But maybe in summer when things are just more relaxed in the horse world generally, as in turnout. Maybe ask your trainer for his opinion and availability?

Yes I do think he was over tolerance. I'm not entirely sure why though. I have hired both those arenas you mention, I have my lessons at the big one if I can get it. I've also done a clinic and a little dressage comp at the outdoor one just down the road. They were all pretty exciting to start.with but nothing unusual for a baby I don't think, but yesterday was another level. That's why I wondered if it was the road noise, although he didn't have any extra reaction when something particularly large or fast or noisy went by. There was a black cat trying to join in (just like at home) and sheep observing from the adjacent paddock (again just like his field neighbours at home) and I don't think they upset him. I don't think it was the saddle fitting as he seemed fairly oblivious to that, his focus was all elsewhere, somewhere in the clouds I think.

I've also taken him to a nearby gallops (not to gallop, just for a walk), Fair Oaks a couple of times, Escrick, Wellow, Temple Newsam and somewhere else that I can't remember. All on our own though. He's actually really good at hacking on his own. It was the Escrick ride that I think triggered the anxiety with other horses as he'd been ok up until then but that day we were walking back to the box when two riders galloped up behind, whooping and enjoying themselves. It was perfectly allowed and they weren't even that close but AJ was upset, although he didn't do anything other than a spin and a dragon snort, he was clearly horrified. Which doesn't bode well for hunting (Not that I have any plans to take him hunting, it was just a hope for the future).

I think you're right though. I need to find more arenas to hire and get him out to those kind of places over winter and then reassess in the spring. Sounds like a plan.

I will talk to trainer about it too next time I see him. I haven't seen him for about a month due to his other commitments. He really shouldn't leave me alone for so long because I do start panicking

 

[Red-1]

It was the Escrick ride that I think triggered the anxiety with other horses as he'd been ok up until then but that day we were walking back to the box when two riders galloped up behind, whooping and enjoying themselves. It was perfectly allowed and they weren't even that close but AJ was upset, although he didn't do anything other than a spin and a dragon snort, he was clearly horrified. Which doesn't bode well for hunting (Not that I have any plans to take him hunting, it was just a hope for the future).

I think you're right though. I need to find more arenas to hire and get him out to those kind of places over winter and then reassess in the spring. Sounds like a plan.

I will talk to trainer about it too next time I see him. I haven't seen him for about a month due to his other commitments. He really shouldn't leave me alone for so long because I do start panicking

So annoying when something like that happens!

 

[Surbie]

@Fieldlife, you've put into words exactly how I feel about livery yards. I do appreciate I have been lucky in where I have ended up. There are compromises, but they are all, so far, liveable with and the positives far outweigh the few negatives. I think I would be very lonely if I had my own place.

I also only want to have one horse, despite all the temptations of two, or three and being able to see them from the window. I only have time for one, and proper focus for one.

I look after other people's often enough to know that two probably is too much in terms of time demands, let alone the additional money.

 

[Tarragon]

I used to keep my two ponies on a farm, so I was a livery, but I was the only livery. I had complete freedom of managing my ponies and loved it. I had a 10 acre field, cross grazed by sheep, that I could graze as I liked, and the use of two stables. It was a good setup .... until I got an unbacked and largely unhandled pony. Initially, it was great, I could do a lot just on the farm in terms of leading out and in-hand work, but reached a block when I wanted to start riding. The immediate roads were too risky, and I had nobody to ride with, and we stopped making progress.
I asked someone I knew if I could put the ponies in a field next to a minor road and close to my village for a few weeks, so I could extend his knowledge and start to expose the pony to a bit more life. I paid livery at both places for this time.
Anyway, I ended moving! I now livery where I share with just one other person, we have ponies that have the same management and live out together, we ride together, and we are each other's back up and support when needed.
So, I can still manage my ponies the way I want to, I have someone to ride out with and gained a friend, and we look after each other's horses. I don't think I could be happier

 

[Fieldlife]

Yes I do think he was over tolerance. I'm not entirely sure why though. I have hired both those arenas you mention, I have my lessons at the big one if I can get it. I've also done a clinic and a little dressage comp at the outdoor one just down the road. They were all pretty exciting to start.with but nothing unusual for a baby I don't think, but yesterday was another level. That's why I wondered if it was the road noise, although he didn't have any extra reaction when something particularly large or fast or noisy went by. There was a black cat trying to join in (just like at home) and sheep observing from the adjacent paddock (again just like his field neighbours at home) and I don't think they upset him. I don't think it was the saddle fitting as he seemed fairly oblivious to that, his focus was all elsewhere, somewhere in the clouds I think.

I've also taken him to a nearby gallops (not to gallop, just for a walk), Fair Oaks a couple of times, Escrick, Wellow, Temple Newsam and somewhere else that I can't remember. All on our own though. He's actually really good at hacking on his own. It was the Escrick ride that I think triggered the anxiety with other horses as he'd been ok up until then but that day we were walking back to the box when two riders galloped up behind, whooping and enjoying themselves. It was perfectly allowed and they weren't even that close but AJ was upset, although he didn't do anything other than a spin and a dragon snort, he was clearly horrified. Which doesn't bode well for hunting (Not that I have any plans to take him hunting, it was just a hope for the future).

I think you're right though. I need to find more arenas to hire and get him out to those kind of places over winter and then reassess in the spring. Sounds like a plan.

I will talk to trainer about it too next time I see him. I haven't seen him for about a month due to his other commitments. He really shouldn't leave me alone for so long because I do start panicking

I have a not un-similar issue with my 14 year old. He's becoming difficult to hack in his home environment, in certain areas. I have had a number of seemingly minor things happen in certain places in my local hacking, like the "two riders galloped up behind, whooping and enjoying themselves" and my horse seems to be trigger stacking them.

I put months into relaxing him in these locations, and something else happens that he massively overeacts to.

Very strange as this has been his local hacking environment for nearly 4 years, and until about 12 months ago he was perfect. Gallop in front / behind. Perfect schoolmaster, the one others asked to accompany tricky horses. Now I have 3-4 large grass areas where he gets very stressed. We have never solo or in company razzed him on these areas. It is not a desire to go fast that is the problem. He doesnt go anywhere, and gets very upset about being left behind, but is too knotted up to keep up with companions, event in walk. He's not predictable either fine one day, terrible next.

Same horse is okay boxing out to group rides, being overtaken, boxing out solo and is a pleasure away from home.

 

[Hackback]

I have a not un-similar issue with my 14 year old. He's becoming difficult to hack in his home environment, in certain areas. I have had a number of seemingly minor things happen in certain places in my local hacking, like the "two riders galloped up behind, whooping and enjoying themselves" and my horse seems to be trigger stacking them.

I put months into relaxing him in these locations, and something else happens that he massively overeacts to.

Very strange as this has been his local hacking environment for nearly 4 years, and until about 12 months ago he was perfect. Gallop in front / behind. Perfect schoolmaster, the one others asked to accompany tricky horses. Now I have 3-4 large grass areas where he gets very stressed. We have never solo or in company razzed him on these areas. It is not a desire to go fast that is the problem. He doesnt go anywhere, and gets very upset about being left behind, but is too knotted up to keep up with companions, event in walk. He's not predictable either fine one day, terrible next.

Same horse is okay boxing out to group rides, being overtaken, boxing out solo and is a pleasure away from home.

That does sound really odd - firstly that he's getting so upset in places he used to be ok with and also that he's fine if you box out somewhere. I wonder why? I bet you do too.

 

[Hackback]

Update on mine - had lesson with trainer a couple of days ago. Diagnosis is that horse 'needs more work'. And I have to ride him ALL the time, no break for me!

 

[Fieldlife]

That does sound really odd - firstly that he's getting so upset in places he used to be ok with and also that he's fine if you box out somewhere. I wonder why? I bet you do too.

I absolutely do. I’ve been trying to fix issues (with supportive hacking partners) last 10 months. It’s up & down but not made consistent progress.

 

[Exasperated]

If you want a horse that has had exposure to life, you could always get an ex harness racer, that was then a broodmare, before being a leisure horse that was liveried at a stables that ran kids holiday camps and had a petting farm. My Old Lady is completely unflappable. If anything unusual appears, she takes a brief look then marches on.

Ha ha, excellent, I can just imagine!