Anyone else finding weather so hard they want to give up?

I can't say that I want to give up, but feel like I'm on the point of despair some days and am getting fed up with obsessively checking the met forecast every morning to see what the wind speeds are going to be. My mare hates the wind, if I put her out she just charges around getting more and more distressed. She is then difficult to bring in.
This morning, the weather didn't seem too bad, bright sunshine and not too much wind, so, knowing that it was going to be unlikely she would settle in the field, I tacked up and rode out. Only got as far as the top of the hill and realised I had made a big mistake. The wind at the top sounded like a jet engine so I had to turn round. The next 10 minutes felt like I was sitting on a time bomb, down a busy wet road with the wind under her tail. Bless her, she was so good and held it all together!!
My feet were frozen and I was on board for all of 20 minutes.

Oh, and my sister has been skiing in the sunshine in France all week, just to rub it in!!

I used to love winter with my old horse though, she was never a summer horse. Didn't care about the wind, and we used to ride miles in all kinds of weather. Present mare just wants summer.

Still, we could get a lovely March, which means there is potentially only 4 weeks of winter left, or we could not see spring till May, argggg....
 
This is the worse time of year to own horses .
The costs are at their highest Christmas is expensive.
The winter is hard work .
But the days are getting longer by mid march things look better the end is in sight.
 
Yes, depressing!
My retired horse is a nightmare- he can't stay out as I don't have the grazing so comes in and weaves so I put him out where he fence walks and weaves!
I hate riding in wind also and only have busy roads as the bridle way in literally impassable (is that a word?! It looks wrong!)
Even my daughter said yesterday she was tempted to send her pony back to the gypsies!
 
Yes.....I have owned horses for nearly 30 yrs and think this may be the last winter I can endure

I just see the horses as an unwanted chore now and getting so depressed at the state of the yard and fields. I hunt in the winter as this usually keeps me motivated but can't face getting the horses and tack clean, to only be plastered in mud within 5mins from the meet, one more time.

My haylage supplier has sold me several dud bales so am now running out of anything decent to feed the horses...

The heater has broken in the horse box....

Rats have got into my straw store and eaten through the twine, so am having to barrow loose straw to the stables, which just blows everywhere and makes even more mess....

The horses are being nightmares as don't want to be out in muddy fields, but are bored off standing in, so am taking my life in their hands when I ride....

I am fed up of sacrifising family time as the horses have to come first.....

I am fed up being poor as spend all my spare money on the horses....

And to top it all a good friend who is going on holiday next has been let down by the person who was looking after them, so now have her horses and dogs to do too......not her fault but need this like a 'hole in the head'.

I am going to see how I feel come spring, then make a decision then. The problem I also have is only one of mine is sellable - the other may well have to pts and I am going to have to live with that.

Feeling well and truly trapped in nightmare of mud and ungratful horses atm....
 
Nope not fed up I am as chuffed as monkeys that we have got this far without any really bad weather. Rain, wind and storms are all well preferable to snow and ice. I wouldnt be so happy if it had been snowing for weeks with its resulting mess and dangerous driving. The nearer the Spring we get the less likely it is to last if it does snow
 
windand rain said:
Nope not fed up I am as chuffed as monkeys that we have got this far without any really bad weather. Rain, wind and storms are all well preferable to snow and ice. I wouldnt be so happy if it had been snowing for weeks with its resulting mess and dangerous driving. The nearer the Spring we get the less likely it is to last if it does snow
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Me too! I keep thinking how lucky we've been so far. No snow, arena hasn't been frozen once, neither has the tap and I've only had to scrape the ice off my car four times this whole winter.......so far anyway. fields are wet but ok to turn out in, we've got same amount of mud as we normally have any winter so think we have been lucky. Horses have all been kept in work and going to shows which is more than i could say for last winter with odd weeks off here and there due to the arena being frozen, snow or too cold to ride!
 
Fed up with mud too. Also, whenever there's a couple of hours NOT raining, I feel obliged to do something horsey, when in fact I'd like to read a book, try a new recipe, do a bit of gardening.....
 
i am counting the weeks till march. Spring starts on March 1st in my calender. whether it does in reality is very unlikely but it keeps me with something to count down to when Winter misery and costs starts to get the better of me.

If i thought i had another 2 months of winter at the moment i might lay down and cry! By the end of jan i think everyone has well and truly had enough.
 
I'm fed up of the poor horses being plastered in mud but I'm just waiting patiently for spring to come.
We are lucky that we don't flood. Got a big barn and stables for the horses to come and go and I only have to go outside to wheel the barrow out.
Roll on spring and my first horsey hol of 2014. Gives you something to look forward to in these miserable wet days.
 
Not ready to give up, but jeeeeeez.... it's depressing.

I can deal with the rain and wind, but the fields have been closed for over a week now, and I have a 2 year old who just wants to race about for an hour or two, and a frustrated 5 year old, who has been in for over 2 weeks now aside from the walk to his current place. They're getting an hour or two out on Tuesday, but not sure how I'll manage to get the 5 year old down to the field.

Baaah. Bring on the spring!
 
Another thing too is the 'decision making' process....

Every day is different weatherwise atm so very hard to keep to a routine. Am fed up of thinking shall I turn out or not/is it too windy to ride/what would the horses prefer/what will keep them more sane!? More often than not what you decide is wrong any way!!

And forecasts - why is everyone different? The bbc news last night indicated today was a write off, but their own website said it was going to be sunny? If they can't get it right how are we?

Its all just so tiring.....
 
Ihotse I could have written your post! I'm wind speed obsessed too! My mare nearly flattened me bringing her in yesterday so despite the lovely sunshine today I've kept her in after hacking her as I'm just to scared to lead her in from the field with wind speeds over 20, its sad :-(
 
I seem to be going round in endless vicsious circle, pouring down so don't ride (big horse is querky in less than ideal conditions), so he gets bored and trashed fences/ won't stay out (large shelter and hay in field), so I keep him in, so he's more hyper, so I don't ride.......... can you see where this is going.

Last time the whole ride he felt like unexploded firework the whole time an it just wasn't fun, today it's dry - but so windy!! and after last time I wan't a good day tp get back on - but weatherforecast looks like this won't be for a week - when he'll have had 10 days off - not good!!
 
The weather has been horrible here.
I decided to brave it and ride outdoors (show on in the indoor). Typically, J went really well but I had to give up after about 20 minutes when it started sleeting and my jacket decided it no longer wanted to be waterproof.

Usually I stick to riding in the indoor so the weather isn't an issue except when there's a show on and I'm not up early enough to ride before it starts.
 
Don't even start.........it's beyond vile over here (and you get all our "used" weather, so look out for this evening and tomorrow). Can't get any consistent riding done, can't even TO in the arena at the moment. Even the dogs don't want to go out for a pee!
 
The weather has been so rough I can't even hear the tv! But today I thought sod it I'm staying out in the yard all morning and afternoon, getting all my jobs done and spending some quality time with my fuzzy boys and managed to squeeze a rather fun ride in with some galloping after a herd of deer which was so thrilling. So I feel ok today. I'm taking this winter a day at a time as much as I can.
 
It certainly isn't fun at the moment. My field is holding up well and the horses are fine out 24/7 but it's me who's grumpy. I really can't get motivated to ride.

I just take comfort that the boys are having a lovely "holiday" and are seemingly oblivious to the wind and rain that bothers their mum so much!
 
Horses look at me as if to say " what you expect me to stand in all that mud when I could stay in warm dry stable"
But they need go out in day to stretch legs,
Dog won't go out in rain and wind either, it's only us soft ones who do daft things like go out in wind and rain! Lol
Roll on spring...
 
Not thinking of giving up - but definitely fed up with this weather.

Vicious circle - weather is crap, so they're hardly going out, weather is crap so really don't fancy trying to ride to make up for it as just getting over laryngitis. And when it's pouring with rain and/or blowing a hooly, he won't concentrate, so schooling is pointless - any ride is just a leg stretch.

Just keep reminding myself that this rain can't last forever!
 
Sidney said:
Yes.....I have owned horses for nearly 30 yrs and think this may be the last winter I can endure

I just see the horses as an unwanted chore now and getting so depressed at the state of the yard and fields. I hunt in the winter as this usually keeps me motivated but can't face getting the horses and tack clean, to only be plastered in mud within 5mins from the meet, one more time.

My haylage supplier has sold me several dud bales so am now running out of anything decent to feed the horses...

The heater has broken in the horse box....

Rats have got into my straw store and eaten through the twine, so am having to barrow loose straw to the stables, which just blows everywhere and makes even more mess....

The horses are being nightmares as don't want to be out in muddy fields, but are bored off standing in, so am taking my life in their hands when I ride....

I am fed up of sacrifising family time as the horses have to come first.....

I am fed up being poor as spend all my spare money on the horses....

And to top it all a good friend who is going on holiday next has been let down by the person who was looking after them, so now have her horses and dogs to do too......not her fault but need this like a 'hole in the head'.

I am going to see how I feel come spring, then make a decision then. The problem I also have is only one of mine is sellable - the other may well have to pts and I am going to have to live with that.

Feeling well and truly trapped in nightmare of mud and ungratful horses atm....
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Oh how I sympathise! Having mud plugged and frozen my arse off for the last 23 winters people say "oh, you should be used to it by now.." NO! I think it gets harder as you get older. why oh why did I buy a three year old?
I've just signed myself up for another twenty odd winters - well I guess Its because we love these nags! Just visualise yourself in the spring and summer having a wonderful time - hold that thought!

(when its my turn to win the lottery, I'm gonna buy an Indoor school )
 
I am in a close enough general area to Cortez and agree with her sentiment.

I'm only getting a couple of days riding in each week as I sort of give up. I will hand it to my horses they have been super. None of them bar the just really starting 4yo gives a toss about wind. And I just go for a walk around the barn area for 20mins on the 4yo. Learns we have to maintain composure while ridden in crap wind but yet I'm not asking her big questions. So I'm sure she'll be a pro in the wind as she gets older too.

All my fields have a water feature. I have only limited turnout the last 2 days. Nobody is silly going out or in but Abba really hates being in. She fly bucks in the morning until I put the headcollar on and take her out. Then she's a lamb. The chores are too much and I am so sick of looking like a muddy scruffy person. And the laundry. Oh the laundry.

Anyway here's to a dry spring/summer/fall.

Terri
 
The shetlands dont care about the weather so long as they have food. The tb's dont care about the weather so long as they get an hour or so out a day to play with said shetlands. Im sick and fed up of the endless mud.

I don't ride any of mine in winter anyway - they are show horses, there are no shows in winter - thats my excuse and I'm sticking to it! Plus theres no where to ride as you have to go for at least half a mile on a very busy bendy main road to get anywhere relatively quiet. Either that or I ride in the field that they live in and trash it - eh naw!

I know this is Scotland and yes it's supposed to be wet but this amount of constant rain is taking the piss now. BUT we are not as bad as the south as we dont have the flooding so we have that to be thankful for!
 
I am rather pampered as I work in an office all week and my horses are on full livery, so I just worry about the mud & fields closed without having to do too much about it. It means I can only ride at weekends so pretty much steel myself whatever the weather. And I have a new horse who I am really enjoying so life could be much worse! :) But I have just had to go out & buy some waterproof boots as wet feet from 9 am to 2 pm got old very quickly!
 
i'm rethinking how i structure my whole riding year. Usually i give them Nov & December off and bring one in in january to get fit for hunter trials in spring. But its so hard to ride now i'm half thinking of giving them jan and feb off and just missing the early hunter trials and events, but keeping them going later into year. so sick of the mud in the fields, and pulling them out to ride is just miserable.

Our yo says he has just accepted that decent weather starts in may now and runs on later (november is dublin was gorgeous last year!).
 
I'm in the same county and the same frame of mind as Sydney - my only saving grace is I have a livery who actually wants to get stuck in and help with all the rest. For the first time in my life I am not enjoying horses - I would far rather have snow and ice than this incessant MUD which makes everything such a struggle. And the horses hate it - they are all in at night which is a lot of work but in some ways easier, but they have to go out during the day to stretch legs and stay on an even keel. But after the first hour I can see them getting really fed up with it - what falls out of the sky bothers them less than the constant struggle through mud.
 
Not as bad this year as it was 2 years ago when there was 2' of snow and I couldnt get to the yard :( Horses are out 5 days a week and in at night, I keep them in a few days to give their legs a break from the mud - I have 3 horses this year as opposed to 2 this time last year so more work but I would honestly much rather be at the yard mucking out than at work stuck at my desk. I am riding about 3/4 times a week now that I am at a yard with a school - if its raining I just stick my waterproofs on. I have totally manned up this year :D I still wont go in the field though cause the mud is so....well....muddy for the first 12' past the gate and I am not getting stuck in there :D Also enjoying having a small indoor where my daughter can ride her loan pony. It could be worse, it could be s.n.o.w.i.n.g.
 
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