help! please someone tell me ive done the right thing!

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Guinness

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looking after a horse and pony for someone this weekend which has been a nightmare from start to finish (see previous post-pony chained up all day) well pony apparently escaped last night into neighbours garden, made a bit of a mess they were not happy and had a go at me (i must of left gate open!?) well if the bloody gate had a catch then pony wouldnt of escaped! dont they understand horses are stronger than us and even if we find it hard to push open would be a doddle for a horse. the gate was closed when i got there this morning and pony in the field and they said they didnt put him back so really confused as to what happened?? anyway im not leaving pony chained up until tomorrow (wont go in stable as runs at the door) so i have put some electric tape up and fenced off a small area of the paddock for him and he can stay out. horse will have to stay in as apprently doesnt like going out with no pony chained up and im not risking him jumping fence.
please someone tell me ive done the right thing as im really upset about this and have been in tears all afternoon
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If the gate didn't have a latch, I'm assuming you tied it closed? Was the tie still on the gate this morning? If so, can't see how the pony escaped.

The rest of your story I don't understand I'm afraid; but what I would say is when you are looking after someone else's horses you should do specifically what they ask and not change anything as then you could have some troubles.
 
no i didnt tie it close as theres nothing to tie it to (its in a stone wall) and they just wedge it shut?
normally the pony is chained up during the day on the yard while the horse is out as the horse gets stressed if it cant see the pony, but i dont feel happy about leaving the pony chained up because it could slip and break its neck also the chain isnt long enough for the pony to reach any water if i put a bucket there. i will tell the owner this when she gets back, but until then i thought it was safer to leave the pony out?
 
How many hours is the pony tied up for? And where does it go overnight? And where does the horse go during the day and overnight?
 
the pony is out at night in his paddock and tied up for about 6/7 hours during the day, the horse is out in another paddock during the day and stabled at night
 
So can the horse see the pony in the field from his stable? If so, presumably he will be okay with the pony out there during the day?
 
So the horse is going to have to stay in all the time, when it is used to going out during the day?
Is it possible that the pony can't go on grass for long periods ie. it is prone to laminitis?
Can the horse not go in its paddock and the pony in its? or the pony on the yard with it secured?
 
no the field the pony is in is down the lane and surrounded by very high hedges and not visible from the yard, the lady im looking after them for is back tomorrow afternoon so i thought it would be ok to leave horse in and she can put him out when she gets back for a few hours if she wants to? hes only out for a few hours in the morning normally anyway
 
I see. So the yard isn't secure for him to be loose in? Can he go in the stable with a chain across rather than the door shut so the horse can still see him?
 
i asked the owner if i could do this but she said no as she didnt trust him not to break the chain, im really struggling as to what to do with them
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also the yard isnt secure as its just at their house and opens out into their garden
 
a month or so i think, the pony has always lived there but the horse was on livery until about a month ago. i look after horses for people all the time and i have honestly never had such problems before, but i dont think i will be doing it again!
 
Yes I understand why you wouldn't want to do it again....it does sound like a very odd situation. Oh well only 1 more day left.
 
To be honest, if that is what the pony is used to and what you were instructed to do, you should do it. Work on the owners to change the situation when they get back.
 
I would do what they are expecting to be done, if you are worried about them hving access to water can you not put several buckets in the centre of where it is chained. It is obviously chained for a reason and is not really your place to change things without owner knowing

you could make things worse !! i know it's hard but if someone looked after my horse i would want them to do things how I do them not the way they want to do it

sorry
 
the horse was turned out all day today with the pony chained on the yard, the horse was fine-the pony not (he was very worked up) when i say chained i mean chained with a chain (no bailing twine) to a post and the chain is so short even if i put buckets of water down he cannot reach them.
he is turned out at night and i have made sure he has plenty of water, and i have put electric fence up so he cannot escape again. i have decided the best thing to do is for him to stay out tomorrow rather than going on the chain (its obvious hes not happy as he poos constantly and wont settle on the chain)
i am going to leave the horse in as apparently he wont settle without the pony on the chain in the yard-the owners are back in the afternoon so they can put him out then if they want to, and i will be telling them what happened and why and hopefully will try and explain to them what they are doing wrong
 
I'm not sure why you keep making a big deal of the chain? A chain is a safer way of tying a horse up than using rope which burns and gets tangled. Loads of horses over here are chained every time they are tied up - it's quite normal in other parts of the world. I had chains to tie my horses up in England also as they are generally much safer than rope. Cross-ties are almost always made of chains with panic snaps.

I'm getting confused again here though - I thought the pony only went out in the field when the horse went out in the field? And when the horse was in the stable, the pony was to be chained up in the yard next to the horse?

It's up to you what you do, but if I am looking after someone horses whilst they are away I do everything they ask.....to the letter! If I have any issues with what they are asking me to do then I say no to looking after the horses BEFORE they go away, not change everything when they are away.

Let's hope neither the horse nor the pony injure themselves with this change in routine. I think you will be happy to have the owner come home and take over the responsibility of them again.

Not saying that this situation is right or wrong, but the only time I have ever left any of mine with someone who did NOT follow my specific instructions, I had to fly back to England prepared to have my pony put to sleep - the idiot almost killed her! So I would never ever use someone that I was not confident in following my instructions to the letter!
 
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