Full livery expectations

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Cava81

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Hi I am new to full livery, have always done DIY before but circumstances have changed.
Today I asked the yard owner to make sure my horses neck was put on in the stable as it is now chilled off and he has a clip, the response I got was that I should be lucky he not staying in his turnout rug and not to put any more rugs on him as they won't get done!
am I being over sensitive or is this wrong? I thought as a full livery the horse should be cared for as I ask and not as the yard owner dictates.
opinions wanted.
 
Cava81 said:
Hi I am new to full livery, have always done DIY before but circumstances have changed.
Today I asked the yard owner to make sure my horses neck was put on in the stable as it is now chilled off and he has a clip, the response I got was that I should be lucky he not staying in his turnout rug and not to put any more rugs on him as they won't get done!
am I being over sensitive or is this wrong? I thought as a full livery the horse should be cared for as I ask and not as the yard owner dictates.
opinions wanted.
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I'd be telling them to stick their livery where the sun doesn't shine!
 
Before moving to a yard you you should ask what is included in the livery you are paying for. Full Livery on some yards includes grooming daily, cleaning of tack, tacking up your horse ready for you to ride when you arrive at a prearranged time & numerous other things as well. To other people Full LIvery means much out, rug change, turnout, bring in, feed & haying etc.

QUOTE "I thought as a full livery the horse should be cared for as I ask and not as the yard owner dictates".

Moral of the story always check what you get for your money, have a contract so both you & the YO know what their responsibilities are......NEVER ASSUME ANYTHING!!!
 
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As above - with that attitude I'd be saying goodbye sharpish!!

If I'm paying £100+ a week (not including exercise) if I want him to have pink sparkly hoof oil applied ever day - then that's just what I'd expect to be done - me paying customer so my requests!!!
 
I think that the YO should be more reasonable with a) your request b) her attitude c) what she considers full livery.

The idea that the horse may not have any more rugs put on as it gets colder is worrying, that she offers a service yet when asked to do something that should be within the description of full livery has that response would suggest she is not really wanting to do her job.
My liveries can have whatever rugs they provide put on, I will change up or down if the horse is too warm or cold usually without consulting the owners but always with the horses interests in mind, I have been known to put one of mine on if the weather gets extremely cold, often change at late night check and as the horse comes first never resent doing so.
 
The livery includes muck out, rug changes, bring in and turn out, 1 full groom a week (which I don't think he gets) and hay.
This is why I am asking the question as rug changes is part of it. For what I pay a week I think I need to be moving as I do worry about him as it gets colder and he is not a 'good doer'.
:-(
 
I have never been on full livery - but I would presume that rugs changes were included - you are a paying client & even if YO was having a bad day there was no need for their attitude -if you like the yard ask if you can have a chat to try & sort things if there are similar yards in area leave x
 
What is or isn't included is slightly interesting - bigger issue for me is the attitude - you're giving her £thouands a year - the least she could do is be polite!

Even if it's not included or she disagrees - no harm in saying "oh sorry, only 2 rugs are included in livery price but if you'd like a third we can do that for £x a week extra" or "I would but he was sweaty yesteday so perhaps we could chat about what he needs" or equivalent to deal with the situation in a sensible way.
Was this a one off or is she always so ??
 
I also had this problem at my previous yard, not full livery but rug change was included - pony kitted out with stable rugs but they just left him in his T/O sheet which they put a medium weight on top when turned out. I purchased stable rugs to be used not just for stable decoration!

I have since moved and back on DIY, at least i know he is being fed/hayed/watered and rugs changed as i do it! Never again will i go assisted/part or full.
 
My YO does part and full livery. Part is mon to fri when she does all for the horse, rugs, muck out , hays, water, feed, bring in and our,
Full is all this 7 days a week &
. She will change stable rug to turnout daily, and exc said horse , groom if asked, lunge, pick out feet. Wash legs if very muddy.
But then we are very lucky, out YO is exceptional!!!
 
Not been on the yard long but she always seems a little off with me. Always was jealous of the people on full livery, but it has caused me more grief and upset than being on DIY
Only moved as my last yard was sold.
 
I have also most evenings had to muck him out as his stable is a mess and last night he had no water!! Actually the more I see myself writing this I realise. I need to get him off the yard ASAP. :-(
 
Cava81 said:
I have also most evenings had to muck him out as his stable is a mess and last night he had no water!! Actually the more I see myself writing this I realise. I need to get him off the yard ASAP. :-(
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Being off with you about rug changes is one thing, having no water is totally unacceptable, stable needing more than a skip out if he has been turned out all day makes me wonder if he actually is, I would be concerned that she may take other short cuts such as limiting hay for your poor doer and you struggling to keep weight on once winter sets in.
 
That's ridiculous. Our part livery pay a little bit more than that but they get **** tons of better treatment! And supplying your own hard feed!! We include a basic feed but still !! I am shocked... For the amount of money you are willing to spend on your horse a week you can definitely find somewhere that you will get far more for your money and better treatment! I would start looking elsewhere now!
 
Cava81 said:
I pay £115 and have to supply my own hard feed on top of this.
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You are paying a proper livery price (as opposed to cheap pay peanut get monkeys price that some complain about).

At £115 per week excl. hard feed I would expect a proper service.
 
the YO attitude is terrible and completely agree that correct rugging should be done considering the contract and price. at a previous yard occasionally they would even add a rug a few hours after the horse came in, if the temperature started to drop more. they should be treated like your own, and you would always want to rug appropriately.
no water is shocking, sounds like they charge full but don't do it
 
Reading your other posts wouldn't bother having a chat - would just give notice & leave ASAP - no water is unforgivable - skipping out yourself is surely not to be expected on full livery - you are paying for services that aren't being provided
 
Wow I'm shocked. I'm in the expensive SE and for £75 a week my horse is turned out, mucked out, brought in, rugs changed, fed, hayed (soaked) etc 5 days a week and I do weekends. He has as much hay and straw as I want. They provide the feed. They even change his rugs outside of normal hours too, ie if I finish riding at 4.30 and he's too hot for his over night stable rug they'll wait till 6 to feed and change his rugs, even though they technically finish at 5.

I'd be getting out of their ASAP.
 
pansy said:
skipping out yourself is surely not to be expected on full livery - you are paying for services that aren't being provided
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I’m on full and skip out every night without fail or my horse would stand in her own mess from 2:30 to 8:30 the next day (staff finish at 4:30). Sadly most yards I’ve been on have no idea of customer service or indeed horse welfare. As for rug changes my last yard, also full livery, used to turn out in stable rugs whatever the weather as it took too much time to change them.

OP I’d be looking elsewhere, you are paying a fair price to expect a rug change at each end of the day.
 
This is not right at all - you need to find somewhere else. The trust is broken now (no wonder), and you need to get somewhere you feel safe, and that you trust the YO.

Find somewhere, give notice, and get out. But do try and leave "on good terms" as this woman sounds deranged. If it was me, i'd find another yard, pay my way out of the notice and just be gone.
 
Good Grief - Where on earth in Norfolk are you?!?!

For that amount, certainly in Norfolk I would expect someone to be wiping my horses bottom everytime he poo'd, especially if they are not exercising him in that price!
 
I agree. you're paying a sensible price for full livery so you should expect a sensible service.

I was on a lovely looking yard - very tidy and smart, but run by an ex hairdresser who thought horses would be fun!! I was on full livery becasue I couldn't go every day, after not going for a couple of days I was told by one of the staff that my boy hadn't been hungry the last few days - very odd I thought so I had a look in his hay bar to find liquid black mouldy haylage - that suprise suprise he hadn't eaten so they'd just left it in there and were not intending to give him anymore until he'd eaten it/ was hungry!!

I moved to a less flashy looking yard run by someone who actually knew what they were doing and was a nice person to be around.

OP - it's saturday tomorrow so get on the phone and go and see some yards.
 
What you describe OP as full livery I provide as part livery, apart from the grooming (although I will scrape mud off if needed) and I include the hard feed for less money than you are paying. I have to say, time and time again I wonder how those YOs manage to get away with it?
Me and my staff look after livery horses as they were our own, they are rugged appropriately, have ad lib forage, good quality feed and I do last checks and skip out at 11pm.
 
When I had liveries, full livery was everything including riding. Horse was looked after as though it was one of my own competition horses.

Part livery was everything excluding riding and tack cleaning

I think your YO is taking the proverbial and if it was my horse, I'd rather stable him in my garage than leave him there a moment longer. But then I am impulsive and a control freak where my horses are concerned!

She has a bad attitude, seems untrustworthy and doesn't deserve your business. IMHO. :-(
 
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