Apologies in advance - Yard rant!

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Mellymoo1

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So sorry to post this hissy fit but need to get it all off my chest!!

I am getting increasingly annoyed with the yard that I keep my horse on. My OH had a sticky moment this morning when he went to turn Brads out, due to a tree being across the footpath to the field and a dog walker making Brads spook. Baring in mind my horse is "can't jump, won't jump", he tried to jump the tree and the surrounding barbed wire! OH was obviously not impressed as he pretty much had his arm wrenched from the socket and was dragged through the mud.

This tree has been left for nearly a week, the barbed wire is sticking out and the YO has no interest in sorting it. The fields are so badly managed and completely overgrazed, that there is barely a blade of grass. The electric fencing is never on all the time so theres the added worry of the horses getting out. Not only that, the YO has two unused horses, one of which is completely evil. These are often just left in the walkway to my field as she can't be bothered to put them in their field.

I pay a lot of money for this yard (£140.00 pm DIY), its pretty much run down, and its a riding school too. The only days I'm able to use the school is a monday as theres always lessons on.

I know the simple answer would be to move, but theres really not many yards near me.

Sorry about that rant - Well done if you got to the end!
 
Id move asap no thought about it do you want your horse in a nice yard or one which is closer i know for def which my answer would be. It sounds very dangerous and not looked after very well people like this make me angry think of other horses that could be injured. They need a visit me thinks.

ARRh i had a mini rant too lol.x
 
Ive recently moved from a yard that sounded just as bad as that in surrey - it wasnt a riding school though so thankfully its not the same one!

where abouts in Surrey are you? are you looking for DIY?
 
Move.....take your time and investigate all options - private houses/commerical yards etc etc.

I have sold my yard and our purchase fell through at last minute so we are having to rent and have horses in DIY livery - it is a nightmare and I absolutely understand your frustration at management issues/grass management etc etc. My YOs are terribly nice and have been very kind to me, but things aren't as I would have them (no hosepipe, no drain in the yard, etc etc and all electric fencing (my old boy only has one eye so this is a problem for him)

Over Christmas, when you have some time, talk to local forage merchants/your farrier/tack shop etc - they are all great sources of "inside info" on yards and might know if there is a private house with stables/paddock with space for you. I spent 20 years at a private house (I just rented the stables and field beofre you think I'm a millionaire!) and it was fantastic and I hired the local school when I needed it. Sadly I now have 4 equines and 5 pet sheep, so finding places for them until we find a permenant place to buy is a complete nightmare.....

Ask around and you may be surprised what turns up!

Good luck,

Catherine
Homeless and Miserable of West Berks!
 
its hard but i would try my utmost to move!even somewhere a few miles further away would be better, you will probably pay less in the long run with vets bills!!!
i feel sorry for you, some yards shouldnt be open at all!
 
If you have no where else to go, I would gather up willing folkes and get the tree moved yourselves and have a good tidy up around the yard. I am sure you will have enough people who are sick to the back teeth of things not getting done.

I think, no matter how much you moan, things still wont get done, so if you all did it together perhaps over christmas, life would be much better for everyone.
 
Thanks for all the great advice guys, I do feel better after venting!

CatherineP - I will certainly be having a scout about my area to see whats available, trouble is, good livery yards don't need to advertise! I will have to go on long walks to find empty fields!

The YO is aged and a tad senile, and is very difficult to deal with to be honest. You can ask her to do something but the next minute its gone completely out of her head! Surprisingly never forgets when shes owed livery money though!

Thanks again all
x
 
you need to move-whereabouts in surrey are you?? I have a space but im Surrey/Kent borders-my liveries have all year turnout, nice facilities, floodlit school with rubber surface, hay on site, good hacking, lorry parking and no kids!!!..what more could you need!!
Seriously best is to have a scout round and see whats about..most yards dont advertise as word of mouth fills spaces..
 
£140 pm DIY in Surrey is cheap - so is it possible that you are getting what you pay for.................???? £140 per MONTH in Surrey is NOT NOT NOT a 'lot of money'

barbed wire there is no excuse for

particularly lying across access but you could possibly move it out of the way a bit even if you can't move the tree
 
Not that cheap!!! for DIY I charge £115 a month plus they share the cost of the hay for the winter (about £125 each )..I used to pay £90 at my previous yard but facilites were awful..for £140 -crickey hope my liveries are reading this!!
 
Hi Mellymo1, i know exactly what your yard is like,had friends with horses there about 8/9yrs ago and it was over grazed, dangerously fenced and rather run down then!!!
There are plenty of yards in our area which are priced about the same but with alot more going for them.

Wil PM you the number of the yard my ned is at
smile.gif
 
£45 per week for a stable, a secure tackroom one assumes, turnout, school that can be used under floodlights, etc. considering business rates, staff costs, insurance costs, etc I think that is about right for this area.
 
Hi Airedale

It's really not that cheap for my area!! I am on a waiting list of another yard which is £130 a month, but they feed, rug and turnout for you in the mornings, they have 30 acres of good grazing, huge new stables and a floodlit school. This in my opionion is far better value than my current yard!! I don't currently have a secure tackroom, we just have rundown sheds to keep our stuff in. Theres no point having the benefit of a floodlit school if you can never use it due to lessons going on in there every night and weekend.

One of the main problems at my current yard is that the YO has a thing for buying ponies which she has no use for, they then end up left out in fields which could be rested for paying liveries!
 
Time to move.

Try not to restrict your search too locally - you will give yourself much more choice if you look at yards within a half hour drive radius (if poss).
 
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