Anyone else get abused by the "last horse out" rule?

Gingerwitch

Gingerwitch

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I unfortunatly have horses 2 horses in one field - mine are always left out- rain, snow, sleet etc until i get to the yard, because they are not on their own. Yet i end up catching the same horse in almost every night as the owner does not arrive until 6pm - no issue their then BUT said owner goes home for tea, to get changed etc because of the "last horse out rule". All the other horses in the boys field are in by the time i get to the yard, so i either leave mine out until she arrives or end up catching in.

What would you do? i will be honest i feel like telling her i wont be bringing her horse in after this week and she is too make alternative arrangements or else the horse will be left on its own -but the i would feel guilty if it got hurt.

suggestions please
 
Ask for payment o being brought in - it's what m yard does. If your horse has to be brought in, you have to pay the "bring in" extras fee.
 
Ok, she finishes work later than everyone else, that can't be helped but she goes home for tea first?! That is a bit of a cheek really and you're kind of over a barrel because it wouldn't be fair to the horse to leave him out alone and she knows it, I don't know what I would do, but I would be annoyed.
 
You are obviously on a very nice livery yard! Or you are being too nice yourself. I bet you;d only have to leave the horse out a couple of times before the owner got the message. That's not too cruel is it?

My horse always got left out on his own when I had a late meeting and couldn't get to the yard til 6. Nobody would bother themselves to bring him in, but the YO was quick to complain about him churning up the fields!
 
Does your yard have services? Can she not pay someone to bring her horse in? She is taking advantage and if it bothers you then say so.
 
If she definitley goes home first and has her tea then have a word and either start charging to bring hers in or if it is safe to do so leave him out, give her the choice, but charge her a fiver to bring the horse in each night :rolleyes:
 
To be honest, I wouldn't mind doing it a few times but every day it out of order, I would have a word with her, just say I don't mind doing it a couple of times but I don't have the time to do it every single day, so could you be there sooner.
 
Here is the real rub - she actually finishes work earlier than ME ! - and has on several occasions done said horse in a morning and NEVER turned up again as she knows it has to be brought in due to the "last horse out" rule. aGGGGGHHHHHHHH

TBH - if she finished work later than me - as one of my friends does, i wouldn't mind so much fetching in during the week! As a friend we do favours for each other - and we secondly she lifts one of my beds for me on a weekend.

I think i am more annoyed by this girl as i feel i am being taken for granted!
 
I would have a fictitious late meeting at work and ask her if she can please bring yours in on Thursday with hers as you have already brought hers in today and yesterday and all of last week so you sure whe'd be happy to return the favour eventiually so would she mind...
 
Can't you have a word with your YO? At the yard i was at, we also had a don't leave a horse out on its own rule. Occassionally you had to bring someone's horse in but that's ok. Everyday though is taking the p***. My old YO would have sorted them out for sure!!
 
I had one livery who would do this and get her horses brought in every day- she had a mare in one field and a (gelding in another we seperate mares and geldings). i knew she finished work early but liked to have her tea and relax before coming up todo her horse. i asked her several times to at least offer to swap favours with the poor people bringing her horses in every day . she didn't so I simply charged her for bring in every day for 2 horses and gave the money to whoever brought her horses in. She was hit in her wallet and the poor put upon liveries at least got money for it. She couldn't accuse me of making money out of her as I simply gave it to whoever had the hassle. After a month of and additional £1.50 per horse per day £3 a day so and additional £90 a month she soon changed her way. no one minds occasionaly but every day is taking the piss big style.
 
I don't really "get" yard rules, the only livery yard I've ever been on was last year at uni and as far as I'm concerned- my horse, my problem, your horse, your problem. I don't mind doing favours for people, but her expecting you to bring hers in just because it is the last on out is a complete p*ss take. If you didn't do it, she wouldn't be so complacent.
 
Hi,

This seams to happen on our yard too. Luckily for me I am usually down early enough not to get put on all the time. We have no rule as such but one lady insists her horse can NOT be left on on its own. Invariably she is the last one down...

Once I left mine out later than usuall meaning hers had not been brought in. She turned up all dressed up in skirt & boots obviously expecting the horse to be in. Stormed down to the field put horse in stable and drove off in a huff!:D

Could you leave yours out longer so that she is not last? Or if you ride in the evening leave one of yours out with hers while you ride the other?

You could try bringing one of yours in then leave a note asking if she minded bringing the other in. Explain that you left them out with hers to keep it company so that hers would not end up left alone... you didn't have time to bring in three horses... make out you did it as a favour :)
 
I had the similar problem with someone on a yard every weekend. Everyone used to get their horses in early so it was mine and this other persons horses that were left out.

I used to have to wait in the cold wanting to bring my horse in until she finally got there, sometimes I would ask another livery to bring her horse in so I could get mine which I hated doing. One day I got fed up with waiting and I wanted to ride before it got too late so I went and got my fella in and left hers out.

To say she went into a major strop is an understatement, she even put a poster up with a picture of her horse (in case you didn't know what he looked like) with a 'do not leave my horse in the field alone'. However the problem was solved as she either got herself to the yard early enough or made arrangements for someone else to bring her horse in from then on.

If I were you I would do the same, leave her horse. If she gets there too late because of work then it is up to her to make suitable arrangements with the YO, its only your responsibility if you make it.
 
Could you not suggest that she does it some days and you do it the others? then none of the horses have to be left alone but you dont have the hassle of doing it every night. You have a right to go home for tea first too if you wanted too!
 
Yes this happens on our yard too.

People very quickly work out who has a conscience and take advantage of it.

I know that if on the the 1% occasion that I am late I would be really grateful if somebody brought my horse in rather than leaving her alone. I know it wouldn't happen though.
 
I was in a yard a few years ago where one person abused the rules. One evening a farrier turned up to shoe her horse. We knew she would turn up when she thought she had been shod. (YO would have brought in for farrier and charged.) Farrier said it was his last call and he didn't mind waiting if we made him coffee. He didn't see why either he or we should go to catch her horse. So sometime and a lot of gossip later, she arrived saying to farrier: "I'm so sorry, she's usually in by now."
But summer arrived, so her horse was never on its own and she had to make the long walk herself. She then left the yard.
 
Our Yard also has this rule.. and it does occasionally get abused! On the whole i think in principal its a great rule... we do have some horses who are the stressy type and for the sake of grabbing them in its a give and take situation... i do it for people sometimes.. and others often do it for me!

But GingerWitch that lady is taking the P... especially if i have understood correctly that thanks to the "last one out" rule she doesnt even come down at night!!!?? am i right in thinking that!

I would be having a word with my YO/YM and if that doesnt solve it, have a constructive conversation with her stating that you will be charging for the privalidge from now on.

Failing that leave the horse out... then tell the yard manager thats what you have done... and text the owner... if you know she is at home eating she might get off her ar** and come do her horse for once!
 
Well my horse is the last horse out and so she gets brought in every night in the week without a problem or anyone feeling like they are being put out. Im lucky to be on a small friendly yard where everyone helps eachother out without expecting payment for doing so. I finish work and go straight to the yard but horse is always in as yo doesn't like them left out for long in winter. But i do feed all the horses on the yard in the morning as i am the first one up and if i am up to bring in at weekends i shall get the other horses in too, not a problem!:)
 
RunToEarth said:
I don't really "get" yard rules, the only livery yard I've ever been on was last year at uni and as far as I'm concerned- my horse, my problem, your horse, your problem. I don't mind doing favours for people, but her expecting you to bring hers in just because it is the last on out is a complete p*ss take. If you didn't do it, she wouldn't be so complacent.
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Good god woman! I hope that was just badly worded - if your horse was badly injured would you expect other people to bring it in & call the vet/you, or would you say its not their problem?

I do agree this arrangement is taking the mickey. OP are you happy to bring the horse in if you get favours back? In which case you could ask them to feed & t/o for you so you can have a lie in a couple of nights a week, or ask them to have stuffed haynets for your next day, or, well anything within reason. You could word it "I'm pushed for time today, if you would like me to bring in your horsie would you mind doing X Y Z for me later on?"
 
My horses (3 all share a field) are first out and last in all through the week but they have each other to stand with. When the weather was really bad either myself or my partner would make a plan to go early to bring them in. I often bring in other horses that are left out if the weather is bad or if they are stressing. I am lucky though that the owners always feel bad and are really grateful and I have been paid in carrots and wine in the past :)
 
Like the original poster, I also have 2 horses and I know exactly how she feels as I am usually last to arrive - I work some distance away.

One long standing livery knows her horse is stressy and pays the YM to bring her in each evening. When a new livery arrived, the YM put a note on the board telling people not to leave horses out alone - I immediately felt that this was going to mean that this would fall to me.:mad:

I was angry and felt that, if she knew her horse would stress, the owner should have come to an arrangement with the YM.

Comically, said new livery brought a friend on to the yard and friend seems to do most of the work, including bringing horse in now!
 
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