Bringing my new girl home to a small sized livery yard....

[nightfury]

Hello all

Very exciting day for me today as my lovely mare passed her 5 stage vet check with flying colours, so it is a sealed deal and she is coming home!

I am receiving conflicting evidence about the best ways to settle a new horse on arrival, so I wondering if I could kindly have your input?

As a little bit of background information she is coming from a smallish sized stables and so is used to being turned out with other horses.

Her new livery yard is smallish and boards 17 horses at full capacity. What is the best way to make her settle with her new "herd" ?

Should I keep her stabled for a few days, or turn her out in the field covered in bubblewrap (lol)

How many days would you say to give her before riding? I have read so many conflicting articles. Some say get on them straight away, others say leave it a week or two...

Any help would be much appreciated!

 

[Barnacle]

Is it herd turnout or individual? If individual, I'd let her out straight away. Horses are less stressed when out. Stabling is best left IMO for when she's more settled. If it's a herd set-up, if you know all the horse will play fair and not be too rough on her, I'd let her in with them. But ideally you'd put her in an adjacent field instead so she can make contact and they can all make friends but she doesn't get cornered or anything. It should be obvious after doing that whether it'll be safe to let her in with them. If certain members of the herd are less friendly, one option is to put one horse in with her at a time so she gets to know each individually over a few days before you stick her in with all of them. Mares usually get on ok after a few squeals though so I'm sure she'll be fine.

As for riding, I'd only do it if she seems calm. You should start how you intend to go on with a stress-free horse. If you ride her when she's at the peak of anxiety, that's what she'll remember the next time you hop on too. Some horses understand that tack means business and you can ride the first day... Others need time to settle first.

 

[frannieuk]

With regard to the riding part of your post, I'm a firm believer in riding asap to start the routine. I generally tack up and then pop them on the lunge for a couple of circuits in the school on the day they arrive. If they're settled I hop on and do 20mins of easy transitions. I generally do this for a couple of days, and then hack out with a calm buddy, obviously tailoring it more or less quickly depending on the horse.

 

[PorkChop]

I would personally ride the same day, think about what is going to be her new routine and stick to it as much as possible.

I view it a bit like going to a competition and staying overnight!