Does anyone else take a child with them

Polos Mum said:
This is my 18 month old helping with hedgelaying recently !

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I had to laugh at that pic. First thing that came to mind was 'Oh dear, that's what can happen if you leave a toddler with a chainsaw - they chop their own hands off' :)

Sorry no practical advise to offer re: children on yards!
 
Sealine said:
I had to laugh at that pic. First thing that came to mind was 'Oh dear, that's what can happen if you leave a toddler with a chainsaw - they chop their own hands off' :)
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ha ha - yes maybe not the best pic - I can assure everyone she's still perfectly able to open all cupboards, launch toys at high speed and pull her brothers hair to get her own way !!
 
I'll second a mini wheelbarrow and broom! Also, overalls, wellies and a change of clothes. I'm currently on the lookout for a pair of waist-high waders that will fit a 3 year old as he loves jumping in puddles!

He likes sweeping the yard, cleaning buckets, emptying his barrow, filling water buckets (and getting soaked!), helping make up haynets and feeds.

I'm very lucky that its my yard, and my in-laws help with the horses, so they tend to turn out the big ones first, and then we just keep all the gates shut and he is nicely contained while we slowly get on with the jobs.

Yes, it takes a lot longer to get anything done, but it is great for them to run around in the fresh air. Also, I'm hoping that one day he will eventual become a help rather than a hindrance ;)
 
I was lucky in that I have always had my horses at home - like others I just let mine play in the water/muckheap/lamb pen/tack room etc etc :)
 
Could you not build a little pen for him, you get those kiddie gates that you can make play pens for them in the house, just set up a circle of those somewhere very safe and visible in the yard with some toys? At least he can't get up to so much mischief! My 2yo is awful, he's always dunking his arms in the water trough or running off down the field after the dog...
 
Me too! 4 kids, two boys at home all day age 20 months and 3, they come with me, all-in-one suits (waterproof in winter, boiler suits in summer!), or waders from waterproof world.co.uk, they 'muck out' with me, using Mini Mucka Stable Forks and their mini wheelbarrows, they bring their 'tools' down and spend hours drilling into the stable walls and 'fixking' things. Yes they do cost me a bit more in shavings cos they aren't as careful as I am and yes, there is usually a mess, but I love it that they are outside and mucky rather than inside all winter. Occasionally I stick the (wailing) baby into his buggy if I have to, and I sit the 3 year old on the hay bales with Octonauts on my iPhone. And yes, there are sometimes days when it is so frustrating I want to cry and I long to be able to zoom around on my own, especially when they have gone face down in the mud and are sobbing and I still have the electric fence to move in the pouring rain... Argh.
Loving the idea of a bark 'arena' for them.... May have to look into that! Did you have to do drainage etc?
 
Definitely get him 'helping' as early as you can. Mine is just 4 now and has been coming to the yard all his life. He is now a genuinely useful helper and loves it. I brought my tack home to clean tonight and he told me 'when I am 11 you can show me how to clean tack and I will do it for you', I think I may take him up on his offer sooner than that!
I would also say be very strict about the rules, particularly where safety is an issue. It really helps later on as they become self-policing. My boy told me off the other day for walking too close behind my (super safe) horse!
 
Carry on! My 18mo comes along and I let him run around and no one at the yard minds much. He soon gets cold and is then happy to sit in a push chair and warm up. The key is to get that initial energy out.

At 18 months they seem to have loads of energy but tire quite quickly. I do have to endure some crying but I just ignore and he soon just quietens and watches until I finish. Some say "oh poor ***" but so what, I still have to "ignore" him if I'm cooking in a dangerous kitchen, so, get on with it. They adapt... it takes time and personally I don't think babies are the problem, adults are!

What is the alternative?

Generations ago, our grannies would have been carried on their mothers backs collecting wood, or hunting etc.

Stop being soft.
 
We were lucky when ours were young as we had a yard and grazing to ourselves. In summer the two girls were always in an old bath of water and in winter we used to give them books and games in the caravan we had up there. There were also cats to play with, and as they got a bit older they had a shetland pony who was quite happy to stand for hours being "brushed".
We got them child size wheelebarrows and things so they could help, and they loved it! They knew they were not allowed out of the yard without a grown up, but they would spend hours playing ball in the fields we were not using for the horses.
 
showaddy1 said:
I have four children and they have all 'helped' around the yard. Their playground was the muckheap!, seriously, what more could a child ask for... hes outside, burning energy, exploring, learning, and gaining immunity from the dirt he plays in...
I think its a lovely way of life :)
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So true, especially about the immunity, too many children nowadays are brought up in disinfected, scrubbed worlds and always seem to be the ones with the minor illnesses.
 
Rachelashleigh said:
I'm just wondering if anyone else takes there young children with them daily to the stables? I take my 18 month old little boy daily. It was so much easier when he was younger as he would sit quite happily in the pushchair.

Now he is older he wants out! I manage to bribe him with fruit while I turn out but once his fruit has gone there is no stopping him, singing happy and you know it or playing hidey boo does not cut it anymore. My usual hour to muck both out hay water etc is taking nearly two and half hours!!! I have to hide the water as he is obsessed with blowing bubbles in it, the muck heap is his favourite place to roll. As I put muck in the barrow ge pulls it out lol.

I get some pretty strange looks on the way home as Jack is absolutely ditched.
I am just having a wood barked area made for him that will be fenced and he can have his tractor etc and he will be safe.

What does everyone else do with their little ones while at the stables?

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Love this, a good day at the stables, my grandson, now four has been parked up in the stable, while I mucked out, left with gradndad when a little older, come 18 months old was handed a poop scooper and set to poo picking, loved making feeds ands beds, 2.5 yrs old would hold the end of lead rope bringing in, (horses are saints) knew to sit on the hay bale or look for eggs if horses were loose in the barn, basically, horses has been his norm and he does what he is asked, when he is asked
 
Rachelashleigh said:
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I have thought about tying him to the tree with a lunge line and his harness but OH says I may get in to trouble lol
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My youngest daughter always had a death wish, on holiday when she was very young, I ended up tying her to the jockey wheel of the caravan using the tow rope to stop her wandering off, wish I'd had a lunge line in them days
 
Rachelashleigh said:
No I was only joking about the tree honestly lol.

I see someone mentioned crate,

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He crawled him by himself and shut the door I just had to take a picture, he was only in for about 30 seconds ��

I am honestly a very caring mum that only jokes about tying children to trees and locking them in crates ��
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Had to laugh at this pic, could be my grandson, who used an old dog crate as his den, all his cars and trains lived in it, be aware and keep him close, but let him enjoy being around horses, even at his age he will accept being told to stay behind a gate/stable door, my grandson is very confident around horses, my largest being 17 2hh TB, he was the first grandchild to sit on all four horses
 
LOL! My eldest loved it when very young. His first word was Benji :). Unfortunately Benji stood on a nail which meant box rest. William loved coming down and mucking out the stable, playing in the shavings, water etc. All in one waterproof was nearly permanently attached to him.

I am lucky that we rent land with a friend and able to rotate the fields so there is normally an empty one so they can amuse themselves in with a ball, rake, wheelbarrow. They love making piles of leaves, collecting logs, sticks, sweeping up, poo picking. I make sure I put them to good use. Once when I popped into the barn to get something I came out to find them throwing cow pats in the water trough though, wasn't too impressed with that.

Mine will listen to instructions and know that the ponies can be dangerous if frightened. I learnt very early on that a spare set of clothes, a towel and plastic bag were essential part of caring for small boys.
 
Can you time your visit to the stables with a nap time? Then he can sleep while you get your horsey chores done. My friends toddler used to be left with toys in an empty stable. He was a really easy child - most likely an exception. He'd play all morning while she worked all the horses.
 
I have just moved yards for a major advantage - all the others have kids under six AND it's a barn - so the door can be shut and there's limited opportunities to hurt themselves.

My boys love it and end up filthy - I have to sometimes turn a blind eye - eg a couple of weeks ago the kids were scooping water from a puddle and as we watched a sheepdog strolled over and peed in their puddle.

My husnand's family would have fits. They're city people and believe in dettol, bleach and staying indoors.
 
OP at least your lad is dressed! When my youngest was his age she used to strip off any chance she got. I regularly used to find her burying her clothes in muck heap! I used to get some funny looks from the neighbours when they saw her stomping about wearing nothing but her wellies and looking like baths didn't exist!
 
My horses are at home with me but when my son was a baby I would take him out with me in his pram and he was happy. As he got older and wanted to toddle around he was allowed to until it was time to bring horses in or out then he would stand in a penned area I have for shoeing etc and he would wait there until the horses were safely behind fence in the field or behind doors in their stables. Unfortunately he had very little interest in horses then and his interest has never increased, I sat him on my pony when he was about 6 months old and everyday thereafter until he learned to say he didn't want to get on the pony. I think his disinterest in them helped as he had no desire to get near them and was more than happy staying out of their way.
 
Friend who takes her toddler to the yard with her has a little wheelbarrow and bucket so he can 'help' and for things she wants him out the way for has a play mat and a box of special toys he doesn't get at other times, he can only have the toys if he stays on the mat and that mostly seems to work - I suspect it required a bit of training though.
 
Good bit of healthy fun (as long as he is safe)
Apart from the time thing is always a good thing.
I bet he has a nice nap after!

It is difficult.
Even now, my daughter is 6 and has her own pony, things still take longer and I always have to have one eye on her whatever I'm doing!

But better they are outside than stuck inside!
Just get used to the dirty clothes and extra shower/bath time!
 
I think there are some pretty good suggestions on here already, so I would just like to say what a lucky little boy. It angers me the number (majority) of children these days that spend their life in front of a screen, be it a games console, ipad or the telly, and not getting out there and really living. He's a fabulous little boy who will grow up to be well mannered, respectful, broad minded with a real sense of adventure and amazing memories of a fun packed childhood. Lucky little boy - brilliant Mum ! xx
 
My little one has been at the yard with me since day one and it drives u insane trying to keep an eye on them and keep them out if harms way, but luckily we had a spare stable where we had a sand table, a small plastic rocking horses, cars ect, it had rubber matting and wall matting so was basically a padded sell lol, so was able to keep her entertained in there while I did the horsey jobs, she's 4 now and has her own pony in there now, that she looks after better then an adult lol
 
Guys just a word of friendly warning. Be very careful what you put on an open forum. Im going through a nighmare time due to a spiteful, nasty exhusband as hes accused me of neglecting our daughter because I took her to give my sick pony his feed and hay and water when we had a stormand she had a cold and left her sat in the car parked right outside his stable door where she could see me for the 30 seconds it took me to put his preprepared feed and hay in his stable so my daughter didnt have to get out. He reported me to social services and theyve said that its unacceptable for kids to be left in pushchairs, playpens, empty stables etc while things are done. The woman lives in cloud cuckoo land and not reality but its landed me in a whole heap of trouble. Shes even said its not acceptable to leave child in car in fuel station while car has fuel put in it and you go to pay!

I have to be incredibly careful when shes playing that she doesnt get any bruises because he accuses me for abusing her too. All it takes is someone who doesnt like you and you can end up in the same situation im in and I wouldnt wish it on my worst enemy!
 
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flaxen said:
Guys just a word of friendly warning. Be very careful what you put on an open forum. Im going through a nighmare time due to a spiteful, nasty exhusband as hes accused me of neglecting our daughter because I took her to give my sick pony his feed and hay and water when we had a stormand she had a cold and left her sat in the car parked right outside his stable door where she could see me for the 30 seconds it took me to put his preprepared feed and hay in his stable so my daughter didnt have to get out. He reported me to social services and theyve said that its unacceptable for kids to be left in pushchairs, playpens, empty stables etc while things are done. The woman lives in cloud cuckoo land and not reality but its landed me in a whole heap of trouble. Shes even said its not acceptable to leave child in car in fuel station while car has fuel put in it and you go to pay!

I have to be incredibly careful when shes playing that she doesnt get any bruises because he accuses me for abusing her too. All it takes is someone who doesnt like you and you can end up in the same situation im in and I wouldnt wish it on my worst enemy!
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It's a wonder how any children in the 50's survived. Mum used play pens with all of us. It is far safer and if a child has grown up from a baby having used a playpen, most of the time they are happy to play with their toys. They are safe and the parent can get on with chores knowing the child is safe. There were no kiddy proof door catches, or stair gates. Maybe we learned by falling but we certainly survived. I do agree with her about not leaving a child in a car seat alone when the car is filling.
 
Constant supervision for us so if I have to do stuff where he can't be in my arms or in the pushchair with me (or in the sling but he's now too big), I try to get dad to come with us (as I see you do on your 2nd photo :) ). Exceptionally I have left him strapped in the car seat for a minute or 2 while turning out/bringing in as I think it was safer for him to be in the car seat than in the pushchair in case the horse spooks. So I gave him a safe toy but no food as there is always the possibility they will choke. Mostly I try to keep it short and sweet, he is now 17 month. His favorite thing is to play with the pony nuts and put them in the feed bucket using the supplement scoop. steer the food, add some straw or hay, etc...
My friend had a near miss when her toddler tried to feed some pony nuts to a horse over the stable door and he bit her. Very scary but fortunately just a bruised hand.
 
Where would you leave a toddler then when having to put fuel in the car? Surely a toddler is far safer strappes in their car seat in the car than out on a petrol forecourt while the parent tries to hold said child and put fuel in the car.
 
flaxen said:
Where would you leave a toddler then when having to put fuel in the car? Surely a toddler is far safer strappes in their car seat in the car than out on a petrol forecourt while the parent tries to hold said child and put fuel in the car.
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Wouldn't leave the child in there with car filling while I go to pay. Fill car, check child, lock car, go pay
 
Tnavas said:
Wouldn't leave the child in there with car filling while I go to pay. Fill car, check child, lock car, go pay
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That is what I do and what I meant but even that isnt acceptable to social services. I dont know of any where that puts fuel in your car for you.
 
I have an 18 month old and an almost-3 year old. They come up to the yard with me a few times a week. They both have wellies and full body snow-suits from Joules. The suits weren't cheap but worth every penny to keep them clean, warm and dry. They have their own mini muck tools and they do the stable with me and throw straw about and sweep the yard! I tie up my horse outside the stable and my little boys stand out of the way while I move horse about - I tell them where to safely stand and they are well behaved enough to do as they're told. They love to swish about in the straw on the floor of the barn while I do haynets. They come to the muck heap but they know not to get too close.
Sometimes the littlest one will sleep in the car in which case I park it right near the stable so I can keep an eye on him. it's a small yard with just 6 of us and if I am taking the boys up we tend to go when nobody else is around just to avoid accidents. It's other people's horses that I worry about - mine is older and sensible and used to my children now, though I won't let the boys anywhere near his feet!
Both my boys are well-behaved as long as I give them a 'job' to do such as mix horse's feed or help me sweep up. They enjoy helping at the farm and when we are done we go and see the tractors and chickens. I think it's a lovely way to bring them up.
 
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