Confused about livery costs

[Gorgeous George]

Hi
I am a non-owner at present but hopefully I soon won't be! I think I may have found myself a good livery yard and I am going back for a 2nd visit next week but I didn't ask all the questions I needed to

so I hope someone can help

The yard charges £200 a month for part livery and you pay for the hay and straw you use on top (they buy it all in for you), it is then stacked for you in your own area of the barn. They gave me the charges per bale for hay and straw but having never actually owned my own horse I haven't got the foggiest idea how much I would need per week

the horses are kept in at night all year round and go out all day (except in really yuk weather when they stay in all day)so:
any rough ideas on how many standard bales of straw I would need a week?
the horse I am looking for would ideally be a smallish (14.3-15.3) native cross and would have ad lib hay whenever it was in, how many standard bales of hay would I need a week?

Sorry to appear so dense but when you don't actually own your own these things are something of a mystery!

 

[AmyMay]

Your yard owner will be able to tell you how many bales of each on average people use. You may have the idea of adlib now, but remember that a native is born to live on fresh air, and in the summer you will probably only need around 2 bales of hay a week (depending on how good the grazing is).

You will need to put down a bed, so depending on how big your stable is that could be around 5 bales of straw, then however much you find you need weekly thereafter. If you have a very clean horse you will need less top up weekly than a messier one.

When you go back for a second visit run your questions by the YO and see what he suggests.

 

[CJ1]

depending how dirty your pony would be you could use 1-2 bales of straw a week (once you've a bed established) and hay wise anything from 1- 3. think of it as 2-4 wedges per day/night. Of course over summer you'd find he will prob eat less if the grass is good.

 

[xoxxjadexxox]

i use between 2 to 4 bales a week.. i keep my horses bed very topped up . i do this to prevent cast.. and also to make it comfy for them.. when your horse is lying down he/she does not want to be laying on concrete

on the other hand if u have rubber matting you may not need as much bedding.. it also depends how dirty your horse is

hope this helps xx

regards -

 

[Gorgeous George]

Thanks guys that helps, I just wanted to be a bit clearer about what the cost per month was likely to work out at, so now the £200 per month plus hay and straw is looking pretty tempting to me, I know I will need some hard feed but hopefully a native cross will need a minimal amount with chaff and carrots.

 

[AmyMay]

What does part livery mean????

 

[xxcharlottexx]

[ QUOTE ]
What does part livery mean????

[/ QUOTE ]

think its a cross between full livery and DIY isnt it?
so you can do as much/little as you want

id say around 1-2 bales of staw per week depending on size of stable and how messy your horse is and about 2 maybe 3 bales of hay. as if your looking for a native you may want to limit hay overnight if the grass is good?

 

[AmyMay]

[ QUOTE ]
think its a cross between full livery and DIY isnt it?
so you can do as much/little as you want

[/ QUOTE ]
Yes realise that LOL. Perhaps I should have phrased my questions differently.

IE. What exactly are you getting on your yard for Part Livery???

 

[Gorgeous George]

For the part livery at the yard I'm looking at I would get:
feed and hay given in the morning and evening
rugs changed if necessary at any time during the day
horse turned out in the morning
feet picked out once a day
stable skipped out in morning
horse bought back in
YO will make sure horse is ready for any vet/farrier visits etc.
pasture poo picked / looked after etc.

Seemed like a pretty good deal to me as the horses get at least 6hrs (often more) turnout 365 days a year, there is fab hacking and an all weather floodlit rubber menage that doesn't flood!

Basically I would need to muck out, groom & ride each day.

 

[junior_7178]

[ QUOTE ]
For the part livery at the yard I'm looking at I would get:
feed and hay given in the morning and evening
rugs changed if necessary at any time during the day
horse turned out in the morning
feet picked out once a day
stable skipped out in morning
horse bought back in
YO will make sure horse is ready for any vet/farrier visits etc.
pasture poo picked / looked after etc.

Seemed like a pretty good deal to me as the horses get at least 6hrs (often more) turnout 365 days a year, there is fab hacking and an all weather floodlit rubber menage that doesn't flood!

Basically I would need to muck out, groom & ride each day.

[/ QUOTE ]


That sounds like a very good deal to me.I pay £75 per week for exactly the same,exept haylage is included and the mucking out is done for me too.