Damaged fencing

[Deltofe2493]

Thoughts please

My horse has chewed some wood whilst being tied up having a bath. YO said she would send me a bill.

Is this my responsibility or does my monthly livery cover damages? Nothing in contract to say who fixes what.

Irritated me even more as she spoke to me about it first thing in the morning when I'm running around doing jobs and have an office to get to! (Not her problem I guess but gets my back up lol)

Annoying as my friends horse broke her field fence and YO didn't charge her?!?

 

[Polos Mum]

damage which you stood and watched him do and didn't stop him doing - I think it is fair to charge for. You could have moved him or tied him up shorter or (mine would have had a slap!!)

It's different than a one off field damage - although TBH Id charge for that too.

 

[Deltofe2493]

damage which you stood and watched him do and didn't stop him doing - I think it is fair to charge for. You could have moved him or tied him up shorter or (mine would have had a slap!!)

It's different than a one off field damage - although TBH Id charge for that too.

Thank you - inexperienced with these kinds of things here so want to make sure all is fair. I crashed my car into a fence at my old yard last year and absolutely paid up as that was completely my fault so happy to pay if it's something I should pay for.

I did tell her off when I saw her do it but I left her tied up drying whilst I did jobs etc so didn't have my eye on her all the time. Good to know for next time

 

[Birker2020]

Thank you - inexperienced with these kinds of things here so want to make sure all is fair. I crashed my car into a fence at my old yard last year and absolutely paid up as that was completely my fault so happy to pay if it's something I should pay for.

I did tell her off when I saw her do it but I left her tied up drying whilst I did jobs etc so didn't have my eye on her all the time. Good to know for next time

Maybe consider cross tying for next time so she can't chew anything! Is your partner/hubby/OH a handy man (not an handy man per se, rather a man that it handy?) Maybe he can repair the damage?

 

[holeymoley]

Of course. If it was clearly your horse that has damaged it then yes I would expect to be billed.

 

[Nasicus]

Your horse being allowed/able to chew wood whilst tied up (aka supervised) enough that it needs replacing is your responsibility, as you could have moved the horse elsewhere whilst drying off, especially as you saw her do it once and then left her somewhat unsupervised whilst your did your jobs.
I had one that would itch her bum on things, so I never left her tied to anything that couldn't withstand 500kg of bumitching unless I was stood there to prevent it from happening.

 

[Deltofe2493]

Maybe consider cross tying for next time so she can't chew anything! Is your partner/hubby/OH a handy man (not an handy man per se, rather a man that it handy?) Maybe he can repair the damage?

Thankfully he is - so it depends on how much YO will charge to repair. How much do these things generallly cost? I'll get a pic later.

Or even if I had put hay to keep her occupied but I was worried I was going to get told off for putting hay there and making a mess!

Only other place to tie up would be outside my stable but walkway is narrow and my horse takes up a lot of space and YO has passively aggressively said to me whilst I'm mucking out / she's having breakfast 'I don't know why you tie up outside no one else does'.

 

[Widgeon]

Or even if I had put hay to keep her occupied but I was worried I was going to get told off for putting hay there and making a mess!

Only other place to tie up would be outside my stable but walkway is narrow and my horse takes up a lot of space and YO has passively aggressively said to me whilst I'm mucking out / she's having breakfast 'I don't know why you tie up outside no one else does'.

FWIW regarding this specific incident I would probably pay up and be polite about it (assuming the bill is reasonable), but honestly your yard doesn't sound very nice. You're scared to put a haynet out in case it makes a mess, and your YO levels digs at you like that (about tying up outside your stable)? That seems unreasonable to me - there should be clear rules about what you can and can't do, and that should be communicated to you in a straightforward way. I don't much like the sound of your yard.

 

[nagblagger]

IF YO passive aggressive maybe time to change yards..


edited Posted similar time to Widgeon who i agree with.

 

[Birker2020]

Thankfully he is - so it depends on how much YO will charge to repair. How much do these things generallly cost? I'll get a pic later.

Or even if I had put hay to keep her occupied but I was worried I was going to get told off for putting hay there and making a mess!

Only other place to tie up would be outside my stable but walkway is narrow and my horse takes up a lot of space and YO has passively aggressively said to me whilst I'm mucking out / she's having breakfast 'I don't know why you tie up outside no one else does'.

Oh dear. I'd be lost if I couldn't tie up outside my stable. I frequently have horses going past my horses bum and I know he would never kick but I guess I am lucky our aisle is wider than most. I have never mucked out whilst my horse is in the stable, I wouldn't know where to start.

I don't like the sound of your YO, the one thing I love about my yard is that we don't have hundreds of rules and our YO is easy going and mostly understanding and accomodating. She's always said its a task being a YO and its not easy so I can sympathise. Trying to keep everyone happy and not to referee yard arguments must be hard.

Try not to worry, its hard sometimes I know. See if the YO will let your OH fix the damage as it might cost more if she finds a trades person to do it.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

This is one reason why I really don't like seeing horses tied up and left for ages, it's something I have seen on livery yards over the years and I just don't get it, why don't you just put the horse on the stable?

I've seen so many incidents on yards and most of them are because horses are left tied up and the owner is no where to be seen.

I was on a pro's yard years ago and you were not allowed to leave your horse tied up un attended ever.

 

[twiggy2]

Oh dear. I'd be lost if I couldn't tie up outside my stable. I frequently have horses going past my horses bum and I know he would never kick but I guess I am lucky our aisle is wider than most. I have never mucked out whilst my horse is in the stable, I wouldn't know where to start.

I don't like the sound of your YO, the one thing I love about my yard is that we don't have hundreds of rules and our YO is easy going and mostly understanding and accomodating. She's always said its a task being a YO and its not easy so I can sympathise. Trying to keep everyone happy and not to referee yard arguments must be hard.

Try not to worry, its hard sometimes I know. See if the YO will let your OH fix the damage as it might cost more if she finds a trades person to do it.

I would never walk a horse past another horse in a confined space its far too much of a risk, I also would not have allowed other to walk past mine.
Horses can be unpredictable at any time.

 

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

As a YO I totally get it that your YO is billing you for the "damage" your horse caused; you were by your admission there at the time and you could have prevented the damage.

As for tying up and leaving unattended; I have been on a professional/BHS training yard and this would not be a permitted practice there. It would also be the expectation (because the place is always kept spotless) that any hay/straw etc left would be the responsibility of the owner to tidy up immediately/at the time. (Ditto rugs/anything else left lying around). Safety is what rules the day and there is a reason for the rule of no horses being left unattended & also everything to be tidy and clean and put away.

Sorry if this isn't what you want to hear.

 

[Deltofe2493]

This is one reason why I really don't like seeing horses tied up and left for ages, it's something I have seen on livery yards over the years and I just don't get it, why don't you just put the horse on the stable?

I've seen so many incidents on yards and most of them are because horses are left tied up and the owner is no where to be seen.

I was on a pro's yard years ago and you were not allowed to leave your horse tied up un attended ever.

It was because she had had a bath and I didn't want to put her back soaking wet so left her out to dry.

@MiJodsR2BlinkinTite obviously i would always clear up, as I do when she's tied up outside my stable, but it was the comment / request to tidy up I couldn't be arsed with.

The other day I was tipping my wheelbarrow in the muck heap and YO said make sure you pick up anything that falls out?!?! I've been there 6 months now, and also of course common courtesy on any yard is to pick up after yourself.

I was preparing for a show last weekend and YO came over and started pointing out my tack was wrong but I didn't ask for her help... I get she's trying to help and she is very experienced but I'm not 10!

 

[Flowerofthefen]

I never leave my horse tied anywhere, too much can happen in a split second. If I'm bathing him I loop my rope through thin string. Bath then put away in stable. If your horse has damaged property i would expect to pay. Your YO doesn't sound very nice

 

[maya2008]

Pop a grazing muzzle on in future if you tie up?

 

[Deltofe2493]

I never leave my horse tied anywhere, too much can happen in a split second. If I'm bathing him I loop my rope through thin string. Bath then put away in stable. If your horse has damaged property i would expect to pay. Your YO doesn't sound very nice

See I would have put back but I googled and the advice was never to put back wet horse -https://equimed.com/health-centers/general-care/articles/bathing-your-horse#:~:text=Never%20put%20a%20wet%20horse,that%20it%20will%20be%20chilled

FFS!!

 

[twiggy2]

I agree it doesn't sound like a yard you are happy on, I have and will leave horses tied up out out of sight but not out of hearing although I have probably done that too, I haven't had any that will chew what is around them though. Always in a leather headcollar though.
I wouldn't put a grazing muzzle on though as it's likely the horse will rub to get it off and is more likely to get caught up.

 

[Deltofe2493]

The yard/ facilities are good and horse is happy which is most important thing - just YO very fussy and brash.

She told another, relatively new livery that she needs to 'get a grip' and 'this yard may not be for her' as livery has a new foal and doesn't want others going up and touching foal when head not out the door / while she's settling / whilst trying to build bond.

Think will sort fence, and try to keep out her way for foreseeable and see how things go!

 

[Alibear]

With your link, is the wash bay warmer than the stable etc.? It makes no sense to me unless it's a solarium.
I'd wash then tie them up in their stable with a haynet whilst they dry off with or without fleece/drying rug on as necessary.
We have one wash bay and one dry bay for 20+ horses, so we can't be in there for hours at a time.

 

[Deltofe2493]

With your link, is the wash bay warmer than the stable etc.? It makes no sense to me unless it's a solarium.
I'd wash then tie them up in their stable with a haynet whilst they dry off with or without fleece/drying rug on as necessary.
We have one wash bay and one dry bay for 20+ horses, so we can't be in there for hours at a time.

It was a nice mild day so thought better of drying outside - This is my first time bathing without a solarium so wasn't sure on best course of action.

The other yard my friend is at does have a hot wash and solarium which is very very tempting to avoid this chaos lol.

 

[SussexbytheXmasTree]

It was a nice mild day so thought better of drying outside - This is my first time bathing without a solarium so wasn't sure on best course of action.

The other yard my friend is at does have a hot wash and solarium which is very very tempting to avoid this chaos lol.

I would usually dry my horse off outside especially if the sun were out. Also stops them immediately rolling as they often like to do when in the stable. I don’t th8nk this is anything unusual.

I’m not sure how much damage your horse did but I’ve never been on a yard that has charged for anything like that it would be regarded as one of those things that happens when you have horses. Now if it was gradually destroying its fencing or was a serial fence trasher breaking rails etc. then I’d expect to contribute to repair above what would be normal wear and tear. It doesn’t sound very relaxing to be on your yard.

 

[Abacus]

I would pay up, but I would ask for an invoice detailing the cost of the rail that has to be replaced. It shouldn't be too much (a tenner plus labour?). I was on a yard years ago when (after I had given notice) the YO gave me an extra bill - for damaged rails in the field (which might have been my horse or the others out there), extra cost for a wormer that she claimed to have undercharged me for... and a few other things I can't remember now. I wrote to her asking for the original invoices for these items and she never replied. Some try it on...

 

[AmyMay]

I’ve never been on a yard that has charged for anything like that it would be regarded as one of those things that happens when you have horses.

There’s ‘one of those things’ and there’s watching your horse destroy something whilst you’re within arms reach. So of course the op should pay for the repair, if nothing else as a gesture of goodwill ?

 

[SussexbytheXmasTree]

There’s ‘one of those things’ and there’s watching your horse destroy something whilst you’re within arms reach. So of course the op should pay for the repair, if nothing else as a gesture of goodwill ?

No need for the emoji.

I don’t think I saw the bit where she “watched it” chew the wood which implies the owner stood passively whilst it chewed constantly for considerable time or how chewed it was ie “destroyed” where does it say that? Re-read and still can’t see that? Both of the above may be true but I haven’t assumed that.

I’m also not saying that she shouldn’t pay I’ve just never been or known anyone to be charged for a horse chewing wood on the yards I’ve been at which is my actual experience.

 

[The Xmas Furry]

There’s ‘one of those things’ and there’s watching your horse destroy something whilst you’re within arms reach. So of course the op should pay for the repair, if nothing else as a gesture of goodwill ?

I completely agree, when I had liveries they were requested to never leave their animal unattended.
Also, they were asked not to tie out for mucking out, but to turn out or muck out round them.
Both rules were set as I had stallions and youngstock, rules were given for safety.
Never had a problem with any liveries agreeing on it.

Having done some camps in recent years, I'm puzzled at those who tie horse out for ages, usually with a haynet, whilst owner takes ages to muck out. Horse blocks access for others, stands across adjacent stable, sometimes horse irritates horse in next stable (usually when owner has stopped for a 10 min chat round the corner by muck heap etc), makes a mess as owner didnt pick out feet or horse drops hay everywhere.... I think its the only part of camps that irritates the heck out of me.

OP, can you not just replace the bar?

 

[AmyMay]

No need for the emoji.

I don’t think I saw the bit where she “watched it” chew the wood which implies the owner stood passively whilst it chewed constantly for considerable time or how chewed it was ie “destroyed” where does it say that? Re-read and still can’t see that? Both of the above may be true but I haven’t assumed that.

I’m also not saying that she shouldn’t pay I’ve just never been or known anyone to be charged for a horse chewing wood on the yards I’ve been at which is my actual experience.

By the very nature of the horse being on the yard tied up, it was within arms reach, or should have been (the op makes mention of seeing the horse chewing the wood).

So there’s a world of difference in a horse tied on the yard (supervised) damaging a fence and a horse in its field unsupervised. I would argue that one is negligence and the other is ‘one of those things’.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

It was because she had had a bath and I didn't want to put her back soaking wet so left her out to dry.

@MiJodsR2BlinkinTite obviously i would always clear up, as I do when she's tied up outside my stable, but it was the comment / request to tidy up I couldn't be arsed with.

The other day I was tipping my wheelbarrow in the muck heap and YO said make sure you pick up anything that falls out?!?! I've been there 6 months now, and also of course common courtesy on any yard is to pick up after yourself.

I was preparing for a show last weekend and YO came over and started pointing out my tack was wrong but I didn't ask for her help... I get she's trying to help and she is very experienced but I'm not 10!

I have my horses at home they are rarely tied up but if they are they have a hay net and I don't leave them so I can't see them.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

No need for the emoji.

I don’t think I saw the bit where she “watched it” chew the wood which implies the owner stood passively whilst it chewed constantly for considerable time or how chewed it was ie “destroyed” where does it say that? Re-read and still can’t see that? Both of the above may be true but I haven’t assumed that.

I’m also not saying that she shouldn’t pay I’ve just never been or known anyone to be charged for a horse chewing wood on the yards I’ve been at which is my actual experience.

If she didn't see the horse chewing the wood it was obviously left unattended and it's not acceptable to just walk away and leave a horse tied up anywhere, mine are kept at home with little distraction but I still give them a hay net when tied up on the rare occasions they are.

It's common sense!

 

[Rokele55]

Having seen a horse gallop down the road with half a stable dangling around its front legs when I was about 5 I get a nasty twitch if I ever see a horse tied up outside, even just to muck out. If it is a knowledgeable yard manager it might be worth listening to some of her advice, particularly about tack. They may be trying to help you.