Horse comes back from loan, Rug is trashed. What should I do?

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WishfulThinker

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OK, his HW is trashed. Its just on the left side and it looks almost like its been shredded/gnawed away at the shoulder and neck. Nt sure if it would have been the barbed wire fence or the foali in the field eating it.

It is unusable i its current state as there is like a hand sized piece of material missing outside and its ripped right through the interior to.

Now. I agreed to pay half of the transport costs. This was before knowing what condition his stuff was in. The rest is ok and they have cleaned tack etc.

Its going to cost me more than half the transport costs to get this rug fixed.

So what do I do? I REALLY cant afford to have it repaired and pay half the costs. I never expected a ripped rug as he has never destroyed a rug before himself - last one was when 2 horse ripped a rug off him.

My friend says I shouldn't pay the transport costs, or only pay a small part as the agreement did state everything should be returned in a usable condition, and the rug isnt. Sis says its wear and tear - but he has had the rugs 2 years already and never ripped one to shreds, maybe the odd 1-4cm tear that I can repair.
 
I think it is something that just happens with horses! my horses are always damaging their rugs, but there is nothing in the fields to get caught on etc.

It is wear and tear, and nothing you can do anything about really.

If your horse has come home all in one piece ..think of it as a good excuse to go rug shopping!!
 
As H above - trashing rugs is what horses do. My rescued mare came in one morning looking like she'd spent the night wrestling with a velocoraptor. Rug literally in shreds! If it was me I'd just sigh and move on UNLESS it said in your loan agreement that all tack/rugs/etc were to be returned in the condition they were at the start of the agreement.
 
It would be a good excuse if I actually had any money to go rug shopping with
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.

He is also VERY fat - like almost as fat as when I first got him
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, so he can be in a LW rug for a lot longer tis winter. And he will prob survive in a MW I guess as its meant to be a warm winter. I only have used a HW on him when its been about 2degrees or less.
 
Rugs get trashed, however you did say everything needs to be returned in a usable condition. So I'd contact the loaner and point this out to them, and say that if she's happy to pay the transport costs you'll call it quits. Normally I'd agree that rugs get trashed and it's oen of those things, but what was the point of having that clause in the agreement if you don't invoke it. I assume you haven't paid her anything for the transport yet?

You can get Weatherbeeta HW rugs on EquestrianClearance for under £60 usually...
 
When we put our pony out on loan the contract stated that rugs/tack had to be returned in the same condition they went out in. Both loaners either repaired or replaced damaged rugs without any prompting.
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Some friends have had a pony on loan. He is in a field next to mine. He spent all winter leaning over the fence to get at mine (he has company in with him) and rubbing on fence posts. I watched his rug get more and more trashed as he kept catching it on the posts (it was quite tatty when he came but a good rug). He is going back shortly and they were worried sick about the rug, I have suggested they buy a cheaper rug and send him back with that as I honestly believe the rug would have been trashed wherever he was. So whereas I don't think anyone can expect a rug back in perfect condition I do think some recompense should be made.
 
Personally I would look at it as wear and tear - your horse and everything else is back in one piece and as someone else has been paying the bills and looking after him for you. A new rug is a small price to pay when you hear the stories of other peoples loan horses and the state they come home in - if they come home at all.

There is another user on here who has just got back a horse from a loan home and the vets bill is close to 3k and the horse may have to PTS - she would be grateful to just be paying for a new rug.
 
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Personally I would look at it as wear and tear - your horse and everything else is back in one piece and as someone else has been paying the bills and looking after him for you. A new rug is a small price to pay when you hear the stories of other peoples loan horses and the state they come home in - if they come home at all.


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Echo this. However good your horse normally is, two years is a fair time for a rug to stay pristine. Personally, I feel (and do for my own horse out on loan!) that if you send rugs with a horse, you must expect them to deteriorate to some degree and be thankful as SU said..
 
Since everything else is OK and clean, I think you just have to accept this. You have saved a lot of money on his keep for time he has been away and as you say, if he is fat, then he can do without a rug for some time yet.
Even more so if he could do with loosing some weight.

In fact if you don't clip him and he doesn't do a lot of fast work like hunting and show jumping throughout the winter he might be able to do without a rug at all. Or just use a lightweight rug to keep him clean.
 
He has to be clipped as he will be being used in the riding school.

I know there would have been come damage - the all barb wire fencing they had and the fact the paddock was bare for a few months (I was told and shown a pic by a 3rd party) may have contributed. This 3rd party also said that my rugs were being used on the loanees other horses - I have seen photo proof of this to.
Also, they pay like £50 a month for a field, and they OH of loanee was trimming my boys feet as he is unshod, he also never had vet/vacs or teeth done.

So they really didnt spend much on him.

Anyways...........they were out of pocket because of the transport costs so I had to give them the cash, tis done.
 
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