Going back to horses after a break....and having horses near London

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Twiglet

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Am currently on month five on no horse, and thinking that might need to change soon :)

However, I have quite enjoyed the break...having time to myself, lie ins, lots of extra money :D But on the same token I don't want to never have a horse again, and think the longer I'm out of it, the harder it'll be to go back. I miss the smell :(
Has anyone else had reservations about going back after a break? I feel like I should be desperate to buy again, whereas at the moment I'm just mildly missing having my own horse....and have no idea where I'll find the time to fit one in again.

Also, I'm in London, so buying a horse now is going to be much more of an undertaking....the nearest yard is probably going to be half hour away, so will definitely be a case of full livery. I know a couple of people on here are in a similar boat....any others that make it work? I'm in SW London so would be looking at the A3 corridor, or Epsom sort of way.

This is the most waffley post ever, sorry, am mainly thinking aloud! I think I want someone to make the decision for me :p
 
Hmm. My issue with sharing is that I don't really want to be beholden to someone else, and have to only ride on set days. My time will be restricted enough as it is, and it won't be easy to fit in with an owner and their timetable. I'd almost rather get a horse then get a sharer for it....
 
I used to share horses around Cobham etc when I lived in Twickenham and Richmond and I have to say there are so many people who have horses (read accessories :p) around london available to share and literally NEVER ride them that I found both horses I shared I pretty much had to myself apart from the odd day once a month, if that!! In fact one so much so he came back to Yorkshire with me when I moved and is (one of) my horse(s) of a lifetime!! :D They were also all on full livery so I just had to contribute a bit and do all the riding/competing and didn't have to worry about the mucking out and early mornings etc - bonus!!

Take a look through horsetoloan, gumtree and google "horse share" etc for some sites and see if there is anything you like the sound of. I would recommend it thoroughly!
 
That's interesting, thanks.

I suppose the thing is, I may not be particularly reliable sharer, and I don't think there will be many owners happy for that! It sounds awful, but some weeks I could be there every day, and others not be able to make it down for five days (depending on work and things). Hence why I would almost rather get my own and have a super reliable livery yard meaning the horse's routine wouldn't be up the spout if things went wrong and I couldn't get down.
 
I took up riding after a looong break when I lived in London and rode at the Civil Service Riding Club. In those days they had their own horses but the Club is still going strong - I understand - on 'borrowed' horses. It's an option, although not the same freedom as having your own.

I also did the commute down to Surrey (from Westminster) once I brought my boy over from Ireland. The aim was to get down a couple of times during the week and ride weekends. Some weeks worked better than others. It also helped that my OH works wth horses and used to finish at 4.30pm through the week, so if I couldn't get away, he would go up and do the boys. Always on part livery though. And a nightmare to find a yard as mine was entire at the time.

It is such a huge commitment when you're living and working in town I probably wouldn't do it unless and until I was 110% convinced I had to do it.
 
Thanks for the reply. I suppose that's another thing to add to the mix - my partner is a) totally unhorsey and b) an Army officer....so our time together is quite precious as he doesn't have lots of leave and I know he wouldn't be the biggest fan of weekends spent at the yard.

I think I'm talking myself out of it to be honest :(
 
I did it - and ended up moving out of London to be nearer the horse so I could ride before/after work most days during the week! That was just over a year ago and I haven't regretted it yet.....

ETA - I changed jobs too so I could have more me/horse time, it turned out my career wasn't the most important thing in the world
 
Bet you're loving the extra horse time now :)

I've only just moved this centrally so don't want to move out anytime soon! I think long term (perhaps two years away) the plan will be to move nearer the base in Wiltshire, and commute from there. So maybe would be better to wait till then for horse shopping :(
 
I have just done this!!

7 years of no horse (Uni and then it seemed like I didn't have time with my job). A year ago I got a new job and started sharing a horse, which actually worked really well. The owners were lovely (I was lucky) and very supportive of me continually changing days around, not coming for a week then having extra days to make up for missed ones. It gave me the chance to test out having a horse in London without the commitment of buying. I started to realise that actually it was very doable and that there are plenty of yards around where most people work in the city so it’s not a problem if you are riding late in the evening.

Unfortunately they sold the horse so I decided the time had come to get my own. Picked her up three weeks ago and its been fab :D

We chose where we lived fairly carefully (Greenwich) so we would be close to work yet an easy drive to countryside. I have a 25min commute to work and a 25/30min commute to the yard so can do door to door (including changing) in just over an hour.

Unfortunately I don't have much knowledge of your area, but I’m sure there must be plenty of lovely yards in the area (I seemed to always find nice looking yards that were over that way when I was looking).

I wouldn’t give up on the horse idea – I keep on wondering why on earth it has taken me quite so long to get back into it! Also whilst sharing might seem a bit restrictive in comparison with owning (I owned, then shared, then owned) if you can find nice understanding people then it is worth a shot! The joy of it is that you can always just stop and you’re no worse off!
 
Thanks for that Joeyjojo, very interesting! I love Greenwich...when I was moving I was choosing between Greenwich/Blackheath and Clapham!

Are you stabled in Kent then?
 
Hi Twiglet,

I live / work in SW London and commute to the horse down the A3. It is possible, just try to pick a car that doesn't guzzle fuel (alas mine does, should have researched that one better) and a yard with lights for the school, so that you do not have to get up stupidly early to ride when there's light in winter...

I shared first - and got very lucky with my sharer, so I had a lot of independence. That allowed me time to get familiar with the area, make friends and acquaintances etc.

Good luck with whatever comes next!
 
Greenwich is fab :) and the horse lives in Kent - she's stabled near Chelsfield.

My share horse was in Bexleyheath which was really convenient - about 20mins drive, but unfortunately overpopulated with horses. So when I bought my own I went slightly further out so she could have all year round turnout.
 
arizonahoney said:
I shared first - and got very lucky with my sharer, so I had a lot of independence. That allowed me time to get familiar with the area, make friends and acquaintances etc.
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I second this as it was another reason why I shared to start with - it allowed me to check out the area, figure out which yards are good etc.
 
Twiglet - I think it's looking very do able! Lots of positive feedback from lots of people who are doing it. How exciting. I can pass over a very pretty splodge looking beast - who's great with the farrier :P on the off chance I end up in HK of course!
 
I used to keep horses in Tooting and then Brixton... used to sneak in some early morning rides on Clapham Common! The area used to have loads of yards, a local riding club and pony club too! I have a friend who still lives in Clapham and keeps two horses in Warlingham on DIY, with a bit of a rota with the other owners for turn out etc. I also have friends in Wandsworth who keep a horse in Tadworth. So it's possible!
 
I moved to central London, from Aus, having previously lived on acreage with my comp horse, and having ridden pretty much my whole life I understand the withdrawals. I am really enjoying the spare time and money, and its actually one of the reasons I moved here, so as much as I fantasise about buying another horse, the practicality of it is that it is just not going to happen.

What I'm actually doing is taking the opportunity to earn other disciplines. I trained with one of the top dressage riders in Aus, and competed at shows to a level that I’m satisfied with, so I’ve taken this as an opportunity to learn something different to what I’ve done before - I am learning to play polo, which I’ve always wanted to do, and having cross country lessons, which I haven’t done since I was a kid. To be honest, it can be really expensive, but it’s a fraction of the cost of what owning a horse can be! And whilst I was planning on having a fortnightly lesson, given how little spare time I have it actually works out being probably once a month. Again, nowhere near as much as I used to ride, but as I’m learning something new, I still get a feeling of progressing with my riding.

Its been almost 18 months now since I sold my thoroughbred, and I'm sur eI'll go back to it one day, but I'm actually greatful for the opportunity to do something a bit different!
 
Ive recently sold my horse due to a bit of a loss of interest but I still miss it if you see what I mean. We werent suited though. Im unsure what to do at the moment but thinking about looking to share a horse. However, there only seem to be nutty horses around here to share and I value my life. I cant really afford to own another due to the job situation being a bit unstable.
 
Definitely possible - there are loads of yards around Chessington/Claygate when you hit the 'countryside' on the A3. I travel from Wimbledon (by bike) to Chessington Equestrian Centre every day.

Lots of DIY yards, but I chose CEC as they have many livery options (mine are both on working livery, but there are 40-odd on full/part livery). Plus there are 3 outdoor schools at one end, and an indoor school and outside jumping arena at the other. As I can only go after work, I didn't want to be stuck waiting for a school to be free, or share with loads of others, so this was a big plus.

It's a busy yard (actually two yards - the riding school end and the 'proper' livery end), so lots of opportunity to find a yourself a sharer if you wished.
 
mainpower said:
I used to keep horses in Tooting and then Brixton... used to sneak in some early morning rides on Clapham Common! The area used to have loads of yards, a local riding club and pony club too! I have a friend who still lives in Clapham and keeps two horses in Warlingham on DIY, with a bit of a rota with the other owners for turn out etc. I also have friends in Wandsworth who keep a horse in Tadworth. So it's possible!
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That's crazy, I would love to ride on the common! I'm guessing the turn out wasn't great in Tooting?! I keep seeing felled trees on the common and thinking what great jumps they'd make :p

Tadworth and Warlingham would definitely be places I'd look into.
 
Hackie said:
I moved to central London, from Aus, having previously lived on acreage with my comp horse, and having ridden pretty much my whole life I understand the withdrawals. I am really enjoying the spare time and money, and its actually one of the reasons I moved here, so as much as I fantasise about buying another horse, the practicality of it is that it is just not going to happen.

What I'm actually doing is taking the opportunity to earn other disciplines. I trained with one of the top dressage riders in Aus, and competed at shows to a level that I’m satisfied with, so I’ve taken this as an opportunity to learn something different to what I’ve done before - I am learning to play polo, which I’ve always wanted to do, and having cross country lessons, which I haven’t done since I was a kid. To be honest, it can be really expensive, but it’s a fraction of the cost of what owning a horse can be! And whilst I was planning on having a fortnightly lesson, given how little spare time I have it actually works out being probably once a month. Again, nowhere near as much as I used to ride, but as I’m learning something new, I still get a feeling of progressing with my riding.

Its been almost 18 months now since I sold my thoroughbred, and I'm sur eI'll go back to it one day, but I'm actually greatful for the opportunity to do something a bit different!
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That's really interesting, it's kind of where I am at the moment. My friend has an amazing advanced schoolmaster who she's letting me have lessons on, so I've been able to really concentrate on my riding for the first time. It's been fantastic, but if I'm honest, I miss the more relaxing side of it....the hacking, the grooming etc.

Whereabouts in London are you?
 
Twiglet said:
Hmm. My issue with sharing is that I don't really want to be beholden to someone else, and have to only ride on set days. My time will be restricted enough as it is, and it won't be easy to fit in with an owner and their timetable.QUOTE]

That is my situation too (I'm also London based) but I put the word out and kept looking. I currently ride on an adhoc basis (hacking only) for someone who works on an airline so flies weekends. So when shes flying I ride, if I'm away or she's not working I don't ride. I just contribute monthly on a pay as you go basis. So far so good.
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