DIY yard storage issues!!!!

[chocolategirl]

Hi all, be warned, I am about to rant! I have a 17 horse DIY yard and charge £26/27 per week depending on what bedding you use ( bedding not inc btw) so why is it that for what equates to approximately £3.80 per day, people expect so much more than I already give which is: fabulous internal stables, 200 acres of off road hacking, flood lit arena with mirrors, free lorry/trailer parking, all year turnout in safe well maintained paddocks and 24 hour security behind big security gates! The more I give the more they want. I am seriously thinking of setting up a drip and just giving them my blood on tap! This probably still wouldn't be enough though no doubt, they would want my organs as well! As usual, one or two are never any bother, but OMG, I swear I'm going to have a stroke before the week is done!!! Ahhhhh that feels a bit better. Now, what I want to know is, what do you have at your yard, storage wise that is? Everyone here has exactly the same size bay to keep stuff in and a secure tack room to keep saddle and bridle in, but this is being taken over lately by sooooo much stuff. How does it work at your yard and what would you expect for such a small price? Oh well I've just ticked yet another box on my 'reasons not to carry on running a livery yard ' list! It's almost at maximum length!

 

[brucethegypsycob]

Your yard sounds wonderful. I'd move in any day simply for the hacking. As for storage space people should only keep there what they are using on a day to day basis. Everything else should go home. You sound like u need to toughen up a bit and tell them if it's not good enough then find somewhere else. I think they would shut up.

 

[saddlesore]

I disagree, storage is a major issue IMO. Many people don't have storage at home! At my yard we use the 2 door garden storage sheds for feed/rugs/spare tack etc etc and there's a tack room too.

 

[MyDogIsAnIdiot]

My current yard (leaving end of month) we each have a 'locker' with a shelf halfway down - It's probably 6.5-7ft tall, 4ft wide, 4ft deep. This is for general stuff - feed, buckets, grooming kit, full haynets etc. There are 'strings' in the stable that most people use to store rugs (I don't as pony likes to pull them down and pee/poo on them). Everyone has a saddle rack and a bridle hook in the tack room too. Leaving things in the tack room is generally a bad idea though - I've had several pairs of stirrup leathers, flexi stirrups, and girths go poof as well as a pair of reins (hilarious when you're the only one who uses continental reins).

I pay £20/week for 11acres of mud shared between 12-15 horses with poor fencing that can't be used in the winter, a small school, all weather gallops, and a stable. No hay or bedding included.

If people on the yard are annoying you that much then just give them notice! I don't know where you are but would expect that you'd not have any trouble filling the boxes if the turnout is good. Don't suppose you're anywhere near Swansea?

 

[chocolategirl]

Thank you and yes you're right it is lovely! This is what I have been telling them for ages but it's like I'm banging my head against the proverbial brick wall! Why can't people appreciate what they already have instead of always wanting more? It's a constant puzzle to me. I am tough with them already I think which does not make me popular but hey, I don't do this to win any popularity contests, I do it as a hobby but lately it's not always as much fun as it should be! Off out on the town now to drown my sorrows. Hope I don't have to do battle tomorrow with a sore head!haha!

 

[alainax]

If they already have a decent individual sized storage area each, and a tack room, then possibly offer up extra bays for an additional charge for those who have a tonne of stuff? Like £3 extra per week to have 2 bays instead of one.

 

[tinap]

We have a saddle/bridle rack each in the tack room & a spot underneath big enough to fit one of those plastic garden boxes. I've found its more than ample, I've got all my rugs/boots etc in mine.

We also have space in the feed barn for couple of bins each. For what its worth, I pay £50 per week diy (in winter, £30 in summer) but my hay & straw is included x

 

[chocolategirl]

I disagree, storage is a major issue IMO. Many people don't have storage at home! At my yard we use the 2 door garden storage sheds for feed/rugs/spare tack etc etc and there's a tack room too.

Yes you are right, storage is a major issue, but only because people have sooooooo much stuff they never use! If everyone just kept the stuff they really need, storage wouldn't be an issue. Everyone has a rug rack outside their stable, their bays are about 7 foot wide by about 2foot so why isn't this enough. I allow them to keep grooming boxes or little sets of drawers outside stables which fit a lot of stuff in but still it isn't enough! Maybe I should start charging to store extra items and use the money to buy a load of outdoor sheds? Is this an option people would be prepared to pay for do you think? Think I already know the answer to that!

 

[chocolategirl]

My current yard (leaving end of month) we each have a 'locker' with a shelf halfway down - It's probably 6.5-7ft tall, 4ft wide, 4ft deep. This is for general stuff - feed, buckets, grooming kit, full haynets etc. There are 'strings' in the stable that most people use to store rugs (I don't as pony likes to pull them down and pee/poo on them). Everyone has a saddle rack and a bridle hook in the tack room too. Leaving things in the tack room is generally a bad idea though - I've had several pairs of stirrup leathers, flexi stirrups, and girths go poof as well as a pair of reins (hilarious when you're the only one who uses continental reins).

I pay £20/week for 11acres of mud shared between 12-15 horses with poor fencing that can't be used in the winter, a small school, all weather gallops, and a stable. No hay or bedding included.

If people on the yard are annoying you that much then just give them notice! I don't know where you are but would expect that you'd not have any trouble filling the boxes if the turnout is good. Don't suppose you're anywhere near Swansea?

Sorry nowhere near Swansea I'm afraid.

 

[saddlesore]

Actually I would think yes! If there's an empty shed at my yard you can take it, but if not or if you want a newer one then you buy it. The yard has never provided them, just let's is keep them there.

My shed it about 3ft deep deep by 6ft long and 5 ft high. I've shelved parts of it for first aid etc and hung hooks for lunging gear. It works well

 

[Morag4]

Sorry nowhere near Swansea I'm afraid.

Shropshire by chance?

 

[cobgoblin]

Your yard sounds wonderful! I think they are already getting very good value.
When I was in DIY, you didn't get any personal storage space, it was all shared.
Why don't you call a yard meeting and explain that you are fed up with most of them and thinking of giving up ( I know you're not really but they won't know that!). I'm sure they will soon realise which side their bread is buttered. You can discuss paying extra for more storage, or them buying their own sheds etc.
If you think it will get out of hand get a friend to act as meeting chairman, preferably someone who has nothing to do with the yard.

 

[friesian76]

People are just never satisfied are they. I have a corner box and have a plastic garden storage box in there (quite safe) and a cupboard in a spare stable . All my rugs are at home when not in use or hung in my stable when needed. I have 1 saddle rack and 1 brudle rack with two bridles on. I think ive got enough space. One person on the yard takes up so much more space than they actually need simply because they hoard. I'm not exaggerating when I say she must have 25 rugs there!!

 

[deb_l222]

Crikey I'd move to your place just for the hacking alone!! Wouldn't care about storage with all that off road riding.

My yard is DIY, £25 per week, bedding and hay/hayleage not included in price. We each get an allocated bay in the feed/tack rooms that used to be the old milking parlours. Not a massive space by any means but people manage.

I keep rugs, that aren't being used on a daily basis, at home in my garage. Very few people keep tack at yard as we got burgled a couple of years ago and they took the lot, despite it being locked up.

People always want more space but they get what they're given and that's it.

 

[Leo Walker]

My yard is £20 a week, really good all year, generally 24/7 turnout, good hacking, very strict YO which is a good thing in my opinion.! I have a saddle rack in the tack room and a small box underneath with hat, boots etc in it. I have a bay that fits 2 bales in side by side and about 5 high, but if you put a note on the board they deliver the next day, so no one ever has more than 2 of each in there. I also get a third of a big metal storage container. Storage is an issue for me, I live in a tiny one bed house and there is no room for horse stuff! In a 7ft x 2ft storage bay I reckon I'd struggle. But I would also pay a bit extra for extra storage space if that was an option

 

[willhegofirst]

The yard I'm on is £140 a month stable and all year turnout, direct access to a country park, flood lit school. Storage is what you can get outside you stable, they are in a barn system, you have to provide your own boxes etc. to store your stuff in. No one complains as far as I know.

 

[Bertolie]

I pay £100 pcm per horse DIY livery, no hay or bedding included. There are four barns on the yard - one has 10 stables, another has 6, the third has 5. Each of these barns have a bay for each of the owners for storing hay, bedding and mucking out equipment. They also have a small area in the tack rooms associated to these barns. The fourth barn is 'mine' and only has my two stables. The barn also houses a 12' x 10' wooden shed and a 12' x 10' area for storing hay and bedding etc. This storage is just for my use

 

[Summer pudding]

Sounds like horse heaven to me at a very acceptable price....charging for additional storage might concentrate minds. But horsey stuff is bulky and hard to store neatly, and having it at home isn't always practical....I would def pay extra to keep it all on site.

 

[ebonyallen]

I am in a small yard, and we have a massive old barn that is split up into sections depending on how many horses you have, but all in all we have the same amount of space. In the barn we also have a separate section where we can put our saddle and bridles. We have a rug room which also doubles as extra storage, plus a massive hay barn where we can store bulk hay. The straw is from the farmer and he keeps this separate and brings it round when you need it. I do think that we are very lucky and have to say I have plenty of room for all my stuff in fact to much room really but still manage to fill it lol. Your yard does sound lovely, the trouble is some people are just never happy with what they have got. We have one person here that demands more she has the biggest stable the smallest pony on the yard and her stuff is all over the place and she even spreads in the tractor barn and still moans so as you see you just can not please every one. Good luck with it.

 

[NativePonyLover]

To be honest, I'm not sure it's really fair to say 'they can only have what they need' and 'everyone has far too much unnecessary stuff' as if it's DIY, presumably you don't have much if anything to to do with the management of their horse, so don't actually know what they need?

Pete has 3 grazing muzzles, which although don't take up much room, I'm sure other people think is unnecessary - but they don't know that P has sensitive skin for a native and if he wears the same muzzle too many days in a row, they rub. Same with rugs, he's an awkward shape so they do end up rubbing - alternative turn out rugs in the winter (he's rugless as much as he can be) when he's wearing them days in a row, stops that.

I'm sure other liveries & YM might just assume I really like buying no fill light/weight rugs.

I'm sure your yard is lovely & you are a great yard manager - but to constantly tell them how wonderful they have it, might not be helping either if they have underlying issues you might not be addressing. I've no idea if you are or not - but it's worth considering.

I've been on a yard where I was constantly reminded how 'lucky' I was. Yes, the yard had a nice sand school. & the facilities were pretty decent - but, the YO was rude, constantly told us he resented having liveries in the first place & I ended up doing their horse on short notice (we had a 'rota' between the YO for things like turning out or bringing in - but some people didn't stick to it or he'd ring to see if I happened to be there and I might as well bring his in or change rugs or whatever) & didn't take our concerns seriously.

I'm not suggesting you are like that, but if some liveries are unhappy or maybe feel like it's constantly rammed down their throat, they can start to feel resentful & for most owners, horses are their relaxation time. At the end of the day, assuming they pay their livery - they are bringing you income.

On paper, the above yard I was on was lovely - but, I was glad to leave in the end.

It comes across like both you & your liveries need to sit down in a mature, grown up way & have a polite yard meeting - one where you can air your concerns on both sides and move forwards.

Ranting on a forum where your liveries are likely to not see it, might make you feel better tonight, but it's unlikely to help going forwards!

If people really do have an obscene amount of stuff, why not suggest the yard rallies around to donate to a job lot to a horse charity or something and make it a good natured yard event. Or a table at an equine boot sale or something.

 

[chocolategirl]

Some interesting replies so far. We have limited storage which was explained when we had our new building put up last year so I warned people to take anything they wouldn't need on a daily basis, home. Alas, I doubt one person has done this. We also have several hoarders on the yard, and the poster who said I may not know the needs of every horse on the yard, I honestly do! I have had horses for over 40 years, currently have 5 of my own so I know exactly how much stuff we all really need. I have run my yard for 20 years and many of my clients have been with me for at least half of that time. The problem arose, as I said when we knocked all the old buildings down and built the new one, it's bigger overall, but as we are a working farm, we also store a lot of the machinery which supplies my clients the very reasonably priced hay and straw they get delivered daily to their bays! To be quite honest, it is what it is and if people don't think I provide enough space for their c**p then quite frankly! I would wish them well in their search for a yard that does!

 

[ILuvCowparsely]

Hi all, be warned, I am about to rant! I have a 17 horse DIY yard and charge £26/27 per week depending on what bedding you use ( bedding not inc btw) so why is it that for what equates to approximately £3.80 per day, people expect so much more than I already give which is: fabulous internal stables, 200 acres of off road hacking, flood lit arena with mirrors, free lorry/trailer parking, all year turnout in safe well maintained paddocks and 24 hour security behind big security gates! The more I give the more they want. I am seriously thinking of setting up a drip and just giving them my blood on tap! This probably still wouldn't be enough though no doubt, they would want my organs as well! As usual, one or two are never any bother, but OMG, I swear I'm going to have a stroke before the week is done!!! Ahhhhh that feels a bit better. Now, what I want to know is, what do you have at your yard, storage wise that is? Everyone here has exactly the same size bay to keep stuff in and a secure tack room to keep saddle and bridle in, but this is being taken over lately by sooooo much stuff. How does it work at your yard and what would you expect for such a small price? Oh well I've just ticked yet another box on my 'reasons not to carry on running a livery yard ' list! It's almost at maximum length!

Wow!! Don't kow how you can financially run with that small income.

My DIY's have enough area to store about 4 bales ground space and build up on that feed bins(2) and store a couple bale shavings which they have delivered weekly. They also get the use of a large chest freezer for rugs and anything else and use of the tack room and facilities schools/ common room jumps etc.. They pay 45 per week or £ 41 if they help with dee pooing they buy all their bedding and shavings weekly

I think you need to make it clear what is included and have it written in the contract they they accept and agree to the facilities, then once signed they cannot moan about it. If they do create get rid.............................

 

[chocolategirl]

I don't! Sale of hay and straw and a very successful unrelated business subsidise it! I make it cheap to keep it affordable for everyone. Maybe this consideration is misplaced?

 

[ribbons]

Gave up putting up with liveries a long time ago. That's why my lovely barn of large indoor stables is empty other than my own horses.

 

[chocolategirl]

Gave up putting up with liveries a long time ago. That's why my lovely barn of large indoor stables is empty other than my own horses.

Ahhhhhhhhh must be bliss!

 

[criso]

Difficult to say if it's enough or if people do have ridiculous amounts without seeing it.

Where I am currently (mixed yard) I have

- a rack of shelves for bits and pieces, this is about 4' wide and probably about 7' high);
- a saddle and bridle rack, I also have a freestanding saddle rack underneath as I have 2 saddles;
- an area in the feed room for my bins (4 dustbins).
- There is a barn where everyone has an area for their hay. Yard supplies hay and straw so only need a weeks worth of hay

I try to have a clear out on a regular basis but the issue space wise is rugs. My horse wrecks rugs in the field and gets them totally disgusting in the stable which means I need spares.

and straw is communal.

It's all very well saying take things home but if you like me you live in a flat and go to the yard by public transport, it's not an option for smelly or big stuff. Not everyone is lucky enough to have a garage or shed.

 

[cobgoblin]

I don't! Sale of hay and straw and a very successful unrelated business subsidise it! I make it cheap to keep it affordable for everyone. Maybe this consideration is misplaced?

In that case, maybe it's time to put the prices up and have a good clear out!

 

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

OP as a YO myself I sympathise entirely with your heartache!!!

I have a different situation in that we live on site, and fortunately have only room for the one livery: which means that we are only ever dealing with one person. We did have two sisters at one time, and they were fantastic in that everything was kept lovely and tidy.

Our current livery is a paragon of virtue, bless her, she keeps the place meticulously tidy - tidier that we do and is a pleasure to have around the place. As we live here, that is so important.

Agree with what someone else has suggested, in that you get your liveries together and have a yard meeting over a coffee and a few buns and talk about what firstly YOUR expectations as YO are. You need to express your concerns, one of which might just be that (this would be my thought) if there is a lot of clutter around the place then this could make for an unsafe environment, which is why you are bringing it to their attention. It might well be that other liveries are getting sick of certain people's clutter around the place!!! So it would be good for you all to discuss how you might deal with this.

Re. providing more storage area, don't see how this would help TBH; the problem is that if you provide more space, then its more likely to be filled with clutter........... which in turn leads to more clutter being left!!! And so it goes on.

Think the issue is to deal with the clutter you've actually GOT, rather than provide space for more!! If that makes sense

Just an observation, but you do seem to have a lot of DIY liveries: without wishing to give anyone notice and thus upset the remaining ones: perhaps when people leave you could then not replace them so as to give yourself (and the other liveries) a little more space???? Possibly, and this is not a criticism, more of an observation.......... you maybe have too many people in a small space, with not enough storage for everyone??? Less liveries might be the answer??

 

[saddlesore]

Tbh I think the fact that you 'know' what every livery needs sounds very controlling. The owners can buy and keep what they want. If you have limited storage then fair enough. Say that to the liveries so they can find somewhere better suited. Like I said I wouldn't expect a yard to provide a storage container, but I would expect to be able to bring up one of my own. If not it's not the yard for me. No point moaning about it!

 

[PollyP99]

I'm on a 36 horse livery and we all have one pallet size storage area in general plus tack room, there is also a separate locked area which I use for my out of season rugs.