Bad experiences loaning out horses?

[The_Tranterer]

Over the years, we have loaned horses from others AND been loaners to other people....most experiences have been wonderful; our little elderly New Forest is on permanent loan now until she passes on; the lady who has her has got three elderly/unsound ponies who basically live happily in retirement together; there was no need to have her back when she's perfectly happy where she is!

i have, however, had two bad experiences. we used to loan a little show pony from friends - she was a little minx, but did a lot for us, and went back to her owners only because i had outgrown her. within three months of her going back, she was dead from laminitis - just 12 years old, having NEVER, not in the four years she was with us, had one instance of the condition. we were devastated at such ignorance - she should still be alive now, and would be had we been able to keep her.
the other experience is linked in a way - we loaned our 'perfect pony' to a friend from pony club, whose daughter desperately needed to regain confidence. they were an experienced family, and we had no reservations about sending the pony there - the only thing they knew they had to be careful of was that she was prone to laminitis if given too much lush grass. well, we went there after one month to check....and the poor girl was skin and bone. they had taken the laminitis risk to the extreme - she was in a yard all day, being fed only one wedge of hay and a handful of nuts every day. needless to say, she was back with us by that evening, but the poor lass never truly recovered. God, it makes you wary!!!!

 

[Cahill]

thats a terrible shame,the pony must have looked like a rspca case.

 

[The_Tranterer]

she did

it was horrid to see her so poor; she was such a lovely pony, and didnt deserve that. again, they werent intentionally cruel to her; it was a case of pure ignorance, and we truly thought they knew better.

 

[chestnut cob]

I have my current horse on loan and she's fab. She's everything the owner said she was, owner's loan contract is only one page long so she's really happy for me to get on and do what I like within reason. The owner has been up twice in nearly 2 months to see her, is happy with her condition etc and we keep in touch on the phone and by text every now and then. I guess it helps she has a friend on my yard though.

On the other side, my pony is out on loan for the second time. First time around was a disaster as the loaners lied about their experience, didn't follow any of my advice, thought they knew best despite being told the pony was sharp and needed firm handling. Thankfully they couldn't do too much damage as they returned my apparently "dangerous" pony within a couple of weeks - having let him put on two girth holes in weight (they were told to keep him on restricted grazing and in during the day in summer) and told me he was a "monster who bucked like a looney". Pony didn't put a foot wrong while he was back with me and is now with the loveliest family in Northants who are *fingers crossed* going to buy him in Spring (or have him on permenant loan if not). I couldn't have asked for a better family to have him and he's happy as larry.

ETA- oh, and the first lot stole some of my stuff and I can't get it back. If you happen to be reading this, you thieving gits, if you can't afford your own rugs then you can't afford a pony and certainly didn't deserve mine!

 

[aimeerose]

I have had good and bad experiances - currently my mare is out on loan and i could not be happier. she is well cared for, loved and doing what she likes best.

her previous loan home was less great, talked the talk but treated the mare like machine. really messed up her legs and could have caused numerous behavoural problems, managed to stop her jumping after 5 months of perfect performance.

However, i believe there are more brilliant loaner out here than bad

 

[Nudibranch]

Blimey I had a very similar experience, loaned out my two little ponies while I was at uni, didnt see them for a couple of weeks and called in unannounced one day. Couldn't see one anywhere in the field, just the other on her own. A neighbour came along and told me the loaners had moved her to a "stable"... turned out she'd got lami (never had it before) and they'd put her on a starvation diet in the literal sense of the word. She was standing fetlock deep in her own mess in a tiny metal pig pen in a dark shed, nothing to eat and not even a bucket of water.

Needless to say that was the first and last time I ever loaned them out, don't know why I didn't call the police actually. Thank god I called over that day, they wouldn't admit how long she'd been in that hut but a few days longer and she probably wouldn't have survived. The laminitis has caused problems ever since and she's now cushings, though to be fair I doubt it's as a result.

These people seemed knowledgeable and genuine too... its such a risk.

 

[chestnut cob]

I'm so pleased you found a good home for her this time Baggage!

 

[Enfys]

Bad experience you could say. Some bugger nicked my horse, poof! vanished! Never to be seen again.
We later found out that the same person had 'loaned' at least five other SJ'ers too.
Loaned a childs pony out and had to retrieve him because they wouldn't return him, found him shaggy coated, belly deep in s**t in a cow shed, we had to clip the muck off him.

I would never, EVER, loan out a horse again, or loan one for myself.

 

[honeymum]

We have 2 wonderful ponies on loan for my sisters to do Pony Club on, a lovely little Caspian mare and a very cheeky New Forest gelding. They are both brilliant ponies and we couldn't have wished for better. However about 10 years ago we loaned a pony for me and my mum, what a nutter! Mum had ridden him several times and described him as 'quirky'. We were hacking him from his stables to ours which was about 6 miles. After 2 rodeo displays he managed to throw me off onto the road and bu**er off back to his yard. One very badly damaged saddle later (it appears he fell in a ploughed field on his way home) we left him at his original yard and looked for another pony.

We have only loaned out 1 of our ponies and that went badly too. We checked the field etc where she would be kept, all seemed fine. About 2 months later mum decided just to drive past and say hello. No sign of pony, so she asked the farmer who said the woman who loaned her had taken her and her other ponies and left about 6 weeks ago owing him 2 months rent. So my mum went to her house and was told pony had been moved. We were not told where to. About 6 weeks after this we had a call from someone else on the yard saying that the pony had had a heart attack and was being taken by the knacker man. We weren't sure whether to believe her and so asked them to contact him and get him to bring the pony to us for disposal. He could not find my mums house so called at a local farm owned by a friend of ours. Turned out the new field had no fences and she had fallen into a deep ditch filled with water and drowned! We were so upset as we had never checked the new field, and now would never loan a pony to anyone unless it is to be kept at our yard.