DIY v Full Livery

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tasel

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OK, I've done both.

So how come some people "disapprove" of people putting their horses on Full Livery?

Whereas some are the other way around??
 
Amoung alot of my friends there is an opinion that if you buy a horse you should look after it and mucking out, turning out etc is all part of that as much as the riding and they would get up at 4am if needs be to do the horses before work and we would help each other if someone couldn't make it etc... I used to think like this and also liked to have the control of everything and felt more 'bonded' to my horse because of it also probably due to being at the yard more (twice a day) although didn't spend all that time with the horse.

I am now on full livery because the yard only offers this but has brill facilities and good DIY in the area is very hard to come by. I do feel that I am not as involved with the care of my horse as I was although I do spend more time with the horse as opposed to just doing the jobs. For me I enjoy the jobs part of it so I do feel like ive lost something and to begin with like a spare part! But have gained a huge amount with the facilities and hacking I would prefer DIY if there was a yard as good as the one im on.
 
I've always been on part livery (YO called it full when we lived in Ireland). I was the only one who groomed her, rode her and I cleaned her tack but everything else was done for me. I don't drive and it would have been a four hour round trip to get up to her twice a day everyday. I didn't know anyone else as I was new to horse ownership, so I didn't have anyon else who could 'do' for me if I was stuck. I also didn't feel confident enough to fly solo. But I'm still on part livery as I like the back up it gives me. We had a great bond as no one else actually touched her apart from turning her in and out and I still fed her five days a week. If I was stuck at work or home with a sick child or sick myself, I knew she would be fed and clean and sleeping happily in a warm bed. It was a big wieght off my mind and when we get a new horse, it will go on part livery as well.
 
I agree - there does seem to be a reverse snobbery that if you have your horse on part/full instead of DIY you are less of a horse owner. Must be upto the individual and their circumstances/work. I have done both, do not miss DIY - the jobs were fine but try holding down a full on job and needing to be somewhere at the same time x 2 a day!. I have input on what my horse eats, I skip him after riding in the evening and if I ride very early I am the one who puts him out. So each to their own, as long as the horse is happy and cared for, its irrelevant whether the owner chooses grass, DIY, part or Full!
 
I would be a very controlling full livery! I'm not against full livery but don't always see the point myself of those that just come down to ride the horse that is already tacked up and then hand it back again. Why not just hire a horse? for those who jobs or lifestyle mean they can not look after a horse on DIY or ride it enough on part then I think full livery is a good idea. You can be a full livery and care for your horse emotionally as much as those on DIY. We have many full liveries who are very vocal in their horses care and too right too, they spend lots of time with them at weekends but their work demands mean they can not do so during the week. I think both have benefits depending on individuals lifestyle and neither should be sniffed at.
 
I've been on both and currently keep my horse on full livery. I work long and occasionally unpredictable hours, and full livery means that I know she's always kept in a good routine. The yard I'm on gives an excellent standard of care, and I'm usually up to ride or just mooch about with her 6 days a week. Also, as I've just had an op on my shoulder, and am unable to drive for 6 weeks, or ride for 3 months, it means that I haven't got to worry about her care at all, and if I didn't already have someone to exercise her, the yard could arrange that too.

Surely most horse owners pick whatever livery type best suits their lifestyle, horse and finances? In a perfect world I'd have my horse at home, but neither my work hours nor my finances are going to permit that at the moment, so full livery is the best option for me and my horse. I don't think that our bond suffers due to the full livery either, she often nickers to me when I arrive on the yard, and is very interactive with me. Each to their own I say!
 
I have both DIY and full liveries on my yard and no one thin ks any less of the other. For thos that move from full from DIY remember - your horse doesn't love you any less jsut 'cause you don't pick up its poo!!
 
I've only ever had mine on full (or schooling), but only at yards which don't actually do DIY, so never found any problems with other people. I know my horse receives 5* treatment 365 days a year and sticks to a regular routine. On an all DIY yard surely each horse being fed/mucked out/turned out at completely different times is more unsettling for them? I could never guarantee to be at the yard at the same time every day as I always have so many other things to do!

For me I can't see the point of doing DIY unless they're kept at home (have done this also). I don't think having horses on full livery makes you less of a horse owner, but then I'm not sentimental when it comes to them and can't imagine how mucking out or cleaning out feed bowls really develops a bond with them. I would prefer to spend the extra time working on improving my riding in order to benefit them more. It means when I'm at the yard I'm more focused and can spend all my energy on trying to ride well.
 
Can I play?? I'm on part livery includes my bedding and straw and 5 'services' (that sounds rude) a week!!! Only ever been on complete DIY before and have to admitt am loving that in the hols I can have a lie in while someone feeds and chucks out my neddy for me!!! :D
 
Each to their own, its YOUR money thats being spent at the end of the day!


I keep my boys on DIY as I cannot afford Part or full ( I quite enjoy DIY tbh as I get little perks such as my poo picking being done for me!! :D ) but apparently that makes me a "bad owner" ! I have 2 horses and I am FAR from well off but they are happy and healthy and want for nothing, yes sometimes I struggle a bit but I get by, I go without luxuries such as going out clubbing day in day out......but again that doesn't seem to get taken into the equation and I'm often tarred with the brush that is used for "council estate horse owners" which outrages me beyond belief!
 
I'll join you in that category then Boogles...complete with England flags!!! The only reason i have gone for part is because I wanted him on the main yard, and with 2 children (incl 1 that doesn't 'do' horses) it made it possible. Before this though have always done DIY and loved it!! :)
 
I've been on both, and they both have plusses (pluses?). The full livery place where I had a horse on loan was ages away from my house, so I wouldn't have been able to do DIY or even part. It was nice knowing that he was being taken care of, exercised if needed etc, and I could pop down to groom and ride during term time, then go away again (though only during term time- part of my livery/loan arrangement was that I worked on yard a bit and groomed at events over hols for reduced rate).
Have now moved to DIY 3 miles from my house with new horse. Even though it is a bit knackering getting up to go and muck out before school :P I don't mind as I look forward to seeing him..and I do feel that I've got to know him (and vice versa) quicker than if he had been on full livery, as I see him twice a day :)
 
DipseyDeb said:
I'll join you in that category then Boogles...complete with England flags!!! The only reason i have gone for part is because I wanted him on the main yard, and with 2 children (incl 1 that doesn't 'do' horses) it made it possible. Before this though have always done DIY and loved it!! :)
Click to expand...

I will add that although it's part livery, I still go up twice a day and I muck out bed down etc but it's handy that if I need them to do things for me (in case of emergencey) they will!
 
Ella19 said:
those that just come down to ride the horse that is already tacked up and then hand it back again.
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This example always gets quoted when this discussion comes up but are there really that many people who drive up to the yard get handed their horse and hand it back at the end. There may be a few but I honestly think they are in a tiny minority. I think there are many more people because of work commitments get the basics done for them but still do as much with their horse as they can.

You could easily criticise people who just come up and ride but then you could criticise people on DIY, who come up and spend all the time mucking out and doing chores while their horse stands at the field gate wondering why they are still out when everyone else got brought in hours ago. Chores done they throw their horse in the stable and go home. both are extremes that don't really represent the majority of horse owners.

Personally I think the people who make good DIY owners are the same people who would make good part/full livery owners getting involved in their horse's care and doing as much as they can with their horse.
 
I was on full livery at my last yard because my hours at work, my two children, the house I have to clean and various other commitments meant I simply did not have time to muck out a horse on top of everything else. I did far more than just ride my horse though, I groomed him, cleaned his tack, had lessons on it, competed him - in fact the only thing I didnt do was turn him out in the morning and muck out his stable and I dont think he actually cared that much that it wasnt me doing it. When you have full life, and responsibilities, sometimes its just not possible to do it all - its ok to have some help sometimes and if that takes the form of somone who mucks your horse out for you then thats ok.

I'm now on DIY because I found a great wee yard 5 mins from my house, my hours at work have changed and my children are older - so I have the time to do it now and while I do prefer having my horse on DIY and I do feel more bonded with him - if my life dictated that I needed full livery again I wouldnt hesitate to use it.
 
Got 2 horses on separate yards, both DIY.
The 1st yard is an old farm and there is just my pony and my friend's horse. We share care, not in a rigid or set way but just in accordance with our schedules at work/home. The farmer doesn't do a lot of repairs either so my friend and I have our best go at bodging stuff so it isn't just horse care but also land management type stuff too.

The 2nd yard is DIY but is a proper livery yard with a school and other people etc. In winter we have what I guess you could call assisted DIY in that someone else gives our Tb mare breakfast, puts her turn out rug on and turns her out for a small fee. That is a godsend I can tell you.
 
Ive always been either on our own land/yard or the only livery so to speak so when I started looking for livery I was amazed at some yards locally, the full liveries had the better stables where the DIY were stuffed around the back with leaking roofs and water running into the stables for example

Finding that the best yards mostly only offer full livery, I like to do all my jobs with my horses and seem to get looked down on for saying I only want part or DIY
 
I have only ever been on DIY. Personally, looking after my horse is something I really enjoy and I'm very particular about it. I'm an instructor, have been around plenty of Full/ Part yards and would not want my horse on it. Not just because of different people doing them, but the standards of care are just not the same ( ie checking over legs (touching, not just looking, rug changes etc etc). I know a horse doesn't care who mucks it out, but when someone else does your bed they're not as particular and with restrictions on amount of bedding etc, the standards aren't the same. I also know how staff do different things than owners request when their back's turned!!

If it came to it, and I couldn't do DIY, and it was Part or no horse, I'd consider it. But I'd probably be a YM's worst nightmare.
 
Each to their own, would probably be DIY if poss, but non horsey parents wouldn't apprectiate taking me to muck out at 5am :) So I'm on part, best of both worlds :) I do one end of the day, still get control of what my horse eats etc etc I also have a saturday job at the yard, so I actually muck out twice as many stables as 1 horse DIY owners, so neeeerrrrrrr :p :p
 
I've had my horses on full livery, part livery and DIY over the years. I didn't enjoy the full as I felt I missed out on too much of their care. The part livery was great as they mucked out for me 5 days a week, turned them out, brought them in and fed them. But I would dish up their food ready for their next meal etc, so I was still involved. I would tack up and work my horses and muck out on the weekends. My children were young at the time and it suited me. Now I'm on DIY and I love it, although could do with a break now and again to be honest hehe. The way I look at it if I didn't have horses to muck out and poo pick then I would have to join a gym to keep in shape....!
 
I cannot do DIY at the moment due to work/personal circumstances, but ideally I would have my horse at home and look after her myself.

However, since home isn't an option, I am not prepared to travel to a yard far away 2-3 times a day, as I don't consider that fair on my OH and family. I am pleased to have my horse on a full/part livery yard rather than a DIY place, because I see many advantages of a yard being professionally managed and ALL the horses having the same routine. I agree there is a fair bit of reverse snobbery regarding full/pt livery and to be honest I cannot understand it.
 
I have nothing against people who want full livery; I am more than impressed that they can find somewhere they trust with their horses.
I've looked locally for full livery, but the standards were so low (no water in one yard, no bedding in another) that I couldn't have sent any of mine there.
So I guess it's DIY til the end of time for me...
S :D
 
I am on assisted DIY so I pay extra for my YO to chuck my horse out in the morning during the winter or bring in before it gets dark etc as I work 8-4.30 and tbh I would be paying the same in petrol to drive to the stables in the morning before work if not more so its worth paying the YO to do it.

I dont have a problem with people who pay for part or full livery. I cant afford it but am happy to do all the mucking out etc. I dont see the point in the people who want their horse tacked up ready for them when they get there then hand it to the groom to deal with when they are finished though. My friend worked at a yard where she had to tack up for most of the liveries and when some got there to do it themselves they didnt even know how to tack up!!
 
we had our first pony on full livery. I had had a horse in my teens/early twenties before. It drove me mad as I felt i was ont in control of the horse's care and didn't really feel he was mine in a way. the yard did look after him well, but I much preferred assisted DIY.
 
I've also done both. I think it comes down to personal preference and the owner's and horse's individual needs.

DIY
Pros
- You get to look after your horse yourself
- It's cheap
- You can make sure everything is done how you want it to be done
Cons
- Some horses end up being neglected either from owners who aren't knowledgeable enugh or owners who just don't care less
- Yard Owner's have no input into the care of the horse
- It's time consuming

Full
Pros
- Horse gets looked after properly

Cons
- It's expensive

Overall, I prefer Full Livery. I currently keep my horses at a yard on Full Livery and it is nice to see all of the horses so happy and healthy. I love doing looking after them myself and still like to do as much myself as I can but it is nice to see that although some of the other liveries are novices or people who are too busy to keep their horses on DIY, that they care enough about them to make sure their horses are getting the care they require from day to day, even if they cannot give it them themselves.
 
tasel said:
OK, I've done both.

So how come some people "disapprove" of people putting their horses on Full Livery?

Whereas some are the other way around??
Click to expand...

If I only had the one horse I think full or maybe part livery would be an option...
 
tasel said:
OK, I've done both.

So how come some people "disapprove" of people putting their horses on Full Livery?

Whereas some are the other way around??
Click to expand...

Becuase some people can't resist having an opinion about something that is none of their business :-)

I've done part livery and DIY (could never afford full) and prefer DIY, although the first winter I did nearly killed me. Now I enjoy having a bit of time with my horse and a bit of fresh air before and after work. I'm lucky as I work fairly near and am on flexitime which makes it do-able. In my last job where I had a lot more travelling and longer hours it would've been impossible.


It comes down to people's circumstances and personal preference and as long as the horse is looked after I don't see an issue but unfortuantely some people can't resist having an opinion on something that is none of their business :-)
 
I have done both DIY and part livery

I have to say it doesn't bother me who does what because at the end of the day its their choice and everyone leads different lives.

DIY - its cheaper and you can do what you feel comfortable with, what feed, what hay and how much and the amount of bedding, rugs etc - and you know what your horse is getting/not getting

Livery - its great, mucking out, field runs, feed is all done for you, but i feel that if you ever have a problem (horse looses a lot of weight, cuts) when you mention it to the person who owns/runs the yard they get very uptight about it and more often than not you have problems from then on or they end up chucking you off the yard.

So its swings and roundabouts really, each to your own

:D
 
Hi
I am currently toying with the idea of getting my Daughter a Pony (shes almost 10 years) ideally I would like a 14/14"2 so maybe we could share, we are both novices with myself having only had about 10 lessons and my Daughter having had lessons each week since last Feb.

Am I thinking far too soon? Also, there are two nice yards i have found a few miles away both near each other and also near a Pony Club. One is DIY only although seem very nice there and the other is a very very small private full livery yard, which for a first timer and a working full time mum of 2 would be better (except for the expense) but my concern is then we would have no one to ride with.

Any advice gratefully received.
 
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