Horse left alone in field

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Narnia

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Hi everyone. I'm really worrying about this situation so hoping you can give me some advice please...

I have a new horse, rising 5, very laid back for his age. I bought and took him to a new yard 4 weeks ago and he has settled very well. It came to my attention that the weekend before last - whilst I was away - he was left on his own in the field whilst the other 3 went for a hack and he "galloped round a lot".

Trying to be chilled - but obviously looking concerned - I was told he needed to get used to being alone as he will be left out on his own at night in the winter (he is going to be out 24/7) and also possibly during the day in the summer. Rather naively, I didn't think about asking whether anything else was going to be out 24/7 before I decided to take my horse there (as grass livery was advertised, assumed others were already doing it). I also didn't ask if he would ever be left alone as I just assumed not!

My initial thought was to agree that he will have to get used to it (admittedly we're taking advantage of his good nature - my previous horse would have run through fences). However, I just heard that he got in a head-to-toe lather yesterday. The YO is unconcerned and joked that he was getting some exercise.

I'm really not sure about it. Today I actually saw him being left and, whilst he was distressed and cantering about, he was not crazy. He had enough sense to bump at the fences to see if they were firm! I don't want to be a pain but I'm really uneasy as:
1. He is a great horse and I really don't want him to get injured
2. If I'm honest, I don't think it's a fair expectation of him

I don't see it happening within the other mini herds at the yard. The YO might bring him in (although it's a long walk!) but I don't have a stable and he's not used to being in so would probably be worse (can't see any horses from yard).

Would I be unreasonable asking for the herds to be changed to try to avoid my horse being left alone or should I just wait and see if he gets used to it? There was a suggestion he might get put with just one other - not because of this - but that would be the same scenario.

What do you think please? Advice appreciated!
 
Could you manage to get him a companion? If not, I don't think it would be unreasonable for you to ask for him to be moved, he is after all your horse and you do pay for him to be there. Be prepared if he can't be though, perhaps some toys? x
 
i would speak to the yo to try and get him with different company or even consider moving yards as i would not be happy about this ,mine jumped out onto a road over a 5 bar metal gate when the idiots on my yard left him alone :( even though they had been told not to.

people who say they should be left to learn to get on with it are idiots in my opinion ,they are heard animals and should have company
there are some horses who don't seem to mind being left of course but even if my horse wouldn't jump out i would not be happy if he was running up and down the fence getting distressed
 
Thanks for your reply.
I'd love to get a companion but I'm on a shoe-string with one!

I could try toys later on. At the moment, he's too stressed to eat so wouldn't be interested in playing. I was told that the first time he was left, he was picking at the grass when the other horses got back but then cantered about again. I don't think he settled last night as got into a lather but maybe they went on a shorter ride.
 
I would ask for him to be moved as he is clearly upset. If they say no and this continues i would move tbh!! My last horse was fine by himself if there was no others in sight, but if he was in company and they were removed then he galloped around and around in a tizzy. He ended up with a punctured back leg and a splint on two seperate occasions. Other liveries went nuts if there horses were left alone but it was ok to leave mine alone!! Bunch of prunes!! I had to reduce his turnout because of it but i had a stable.
 
Hi angelish & nicole,

I'm with you on this. I don't like to see him distressed and I do feel it's an unnatural thing to ask him to do. Just trying to guage if that's the general feeling or if I'm being too protective as he probably will be OK as he's got such a great temperament.

I can't tell you how sick I will be if he gets injured through a preventable accident though.
 
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i would move yards or resolve the situation by moving herds. he's clearly not happy on his own and i don't think its fair to expect him to get used to it... my horse genuinely doesn't care if he's on his own- but he has never once whinnied or run around when turned out/left on his own- but i wouldn't expect him to stay out on his own all night.... :confused:
 
When we were on a livery yard there was a yard rule that no horse was ever left on his or her own in the field. If there were two horses left out and one was coming in then the other one had to come in as well.

Getting a horse to be used to being on their own for a period of time can be done. But it has to be built up very slowly and incrementally, not just left for who knows how long and the horse getting more and more stressed.

I'd be asking for this not to happen again. And if they cannot accommodate this then as a companion isn't an option I'd be having a look round at other places as well. Hopefully your YO will see sense over this and see that you are keen to avoid any possible injuries to your horse.
 
I don't think you're being over protective, I had my youngster at a yard where this happened and he did injure himself (luckily not badly)-similar situation where my concerns were played down by YO and I thought I was being fussy. I soon moved him. They are herd animals, I was always brought up to leave at least two in a field, or bring them in.
I too would love to have a companion pony so mine could go out 24/7 with no worries that he'd be by himself.
 
Echo everyone else I am afraid. For me, a young horse left alone to run himself into a sweat is never funny and the YO should not be joking about this.

I am not sure he should need to "get used to being left". Most yards have a rule not to leave a horse on its own. I would be concerned about night time in the winter too - if they are brought in at dusk and not turned out until 8 or 9am he will be alone for a long time.

I think I would be looking for another yard, or for the yard to offer a solution.
 
i would talk to your yard manager and try to resolve this with a companion of some sort. but at the end of the day if you are only paying for grass then they possibly wont bend over to find a solution. maybe you need to rethink your livery requirements, and your horses needs. and find somewhere which will fit the bill for both you and the horse, or be prepared to have extra costs if the yard has to deal with your horses issues. like bringing him in as req.
 
I have two horses who I keep here at home and so of course, when one is being ridden then the other has to be alone in the open yard. Initially, they each stressed about this BUT to begin with they were left with my OH and the dogs as company, then my OH hiding to see how they were behaving and ready to step in should there be a problem and now they cope ok (although I would never claim that they like it). Of course, this is only ever for 1.5 - 2 hours, in a very secure and familiar barn and lots of other company wandering around. In your circumstances, I would certainly be concerned and as another poster has said, I think being alone all through a winter night just wouldn't be fair or safe. Good luck though - I can imagine it's a worry.
 
Move move move move move move move move! the fact that your yard are stupid enough to leave him out alone and stressing proves that it is not suitable for any horse full stop!
 
I wouldn't even consider leaving a horse on their own. They're herd animals so I don't deem it as fair or natural to be left for long periods of time alone.

Speak to the YO and if they can't provide a solution then move yards.
 
Narnia said:
Hi everyone. I'm really worrying about this situation so hoping you can give me some advice please...

I have a new horse, rising 5, very laid back for his age. I bought and took him to a new yard 4 weeks ago and he has settled very well. It came to my attention that the weekend before last - whilst I was away - he was left on his own in the field whilst the other 3 went for a hack and he "galloped round a lot".

Trying to be chilled - but obviously looking concerned - I was told he needed to get used to being alone as he will be left out on his own at night in the winter (he is going to be out 24/7) and also possibly during the day in the summer. Rather naively, I didn't think about asking whether anything else was going to be out 24/7 before I decided to take my horse there (as grass livery was advertised, assumed others were already doing it). I also didn't ask if he would ever be left alone as I just assumed not!

My initial thought was to agree that he will have to get used to it (admittedly we're taking advantage of his good nature - my previous horse would have run through fences). However, I just heard that he got in a head-to-toe lather yesterday. The YO is unconcerned and joked that he was getting some exercise.

I'm really not sure about it. Today I actually saw him being left and, whilst he was distressed and cantering about, he was not crazy. He had enough sense to bump at the fences to see if they were firm! I don't want to be a pain but I'm really uneasy as:
1. He is a great horse and I really don't want him to get injured
2. If I'm honest, I don't think it's a fair expectation of him

I don't see it happening within the other mini herds at the yard. The YO might bring him in (although it's a long walk!) but I don't have a stable and he's not used to being in so would probably be worse (can't see any horses from yard).

Would I be unreasonable asking for the herds to be changed to try to avoid my horse being left alone or should I just wait and see if he gets used to it? There was a suggestion he might get put with just one other - not because of this - but that would be the same scenario.

What do you think please? Advice appreciated!
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You have two options if you don't want your horse to be alone (as you obviously and quite rightly don't). Either change your agreement and have him brought in at night in the winter, or move yards to somewhere where he will have company at night in the winter.

I wouldn't dream of leaving a horse on it's own for any significant time, especially at night in the winter. What a miserable existence that would be.
 
Wow. Thanks everyone for your answers. You have really given me courage to tackle this!

As Ofcourseyoucan said -I'm only paying for grass, so I doubt if they will bend over backwards to accomodate me - but at least I will now feel I'm doing the right thing if they refuse me and I have to move. There isn't a spare stable or I'd definitely be looking at paying extra to bring him in at night.

Some of you have said it can be OK with the right horse or when done slowly. That's what I thought too so that's good to hear. He's only just found his feet at the place.

I will let you know what happens....:)
 
I would not be happy either, come winter how will he manage when he could be on his own for 16 hrs a day, that is a long time when his friends go missing at 4pm is and dont re-appear till 8ish the next morning.
Speak to YO forget the fact she made a joke of the incident the other day and explain your concern, if she cannot accomodate you look for somewhere you and your horse will be happy and he will have company
 
Can he not see any other horses when the ones in his field go out? Ordinarily this would be enough for a horse to feel he wasn't 'alone'. However, we had one old horse who would go frantic when his friends were taken out for a ride and he was left even though he was left with his bext bud donkey and another pony! He just didn't like anyone leaving him, although he only went mad when in the far field (ie away from the main gate). If in the near field he was ok as could see the road and track so that seemed ok (weird horse!)

Some horses are ok when left alone, we have an old TB who usedto be left quite often when we'd take the other 3 out. He did not fret though at all, I think when they know a routine and feel comfortable and safe in their surroundings they are ok so you could find that yours does improve but I wouldn't want to see my young horse getting stressed out either so I would be tempted to try put him with another herd there or try find another yard with a larger herd out together so it is highly unlikelyany would ever be left alone.
 
Narnia said:
Hi angelish & nicole,

I'm with you on this. I don't like to see him distressed and I do feel it's an unnatural thing to ask him to do. Just trying to guage if that's the general feeling or if I'm being too protective as he probably will be OK as he's got such a great temperament.

I can't tell you how sick I will be if he gets injured through a preventable accident though.
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I think you've answered you're own question there. Only piece of advice I can give is trust your gut instinct. If it doesn't feel right, then it's not. You know him best... Too overprotective? Only if you put him in a bubble :D
 
Unfortunately I think you are right to be worried. Although he may in time get used to being alone he is very likely to get injured before he does and some horses just get more and more wound up. I do like horses to be able to tolerate being left alone as sometimes for practical reasons they will be, but for a horse that is worried I would introduce it in a managed situation, i.e. I prefer to try them in the stable where there is less chance of injury, the other horse goes away for really small periods of time, there is someone around to keep an eye on the situation, etc. What you describe is a recipie for an accident unfortunately. Hope you find a solution.
 
If he doesn't like it, then it's unfair. He is stressed and you can't explain it to him nor expect him to understand. You 'get' that and I'm a bit concerned the YO doesn't and has no sympathy. Not ideal.
 
You're going to need to re-think the whole situation.

A head to toe lather is no laughing matter - and if that's what the YO thinks, I'd afraid I'm be moving yards.

Many, many horses do not like being out alone, and your horse is clearly one of them.
 
I'm afraid your on the wrong yard...Your on grass livery but nobody else is, therefore your horse is going to be on his own.
Understand that the other liveries aren't responsible for your horse and if they decide to go for a hack and leave your horse out then there is nothing you can do and your horse will fret unless you arrange for someone to bring your horse in while they go out...I'd expect a "No" from the other liveries!!
Ask the YO to bring him in (expect a charge) but to be honest if your expecting to turn your horse out 24/7 and for most of that time he'll be on his own and he's a known worrier then your being naive if you think he'll be ok and get used to it.
You need to either move to another yard that has horses on roughly the same routine as you, ask liveries or YO to keep an eye on your horse and bring in if fretting or come off grass livery and pay for a stable so your horse has somewhere to come in to so he's not on his own.

Sorry to sound blunt...
 
^^^Agree with this. As your yard has no spare stables then you should move. They shoud always have at least one spare if they have horses out on grass livery as what happens if a horse becomes injured and needs box rest? The YOs are being totally irresponsible, and I'm afraid, so are you if you allow this situation to continue. I hope you sort it out.

Edited to add: Keeping a horse alone is cruel IMO. It gets even crueler when the horse has friends part of the time and then they are taken away for most of the day and night leaving him alone and frightened as will happen to your horse in the winter. Don't think for a minute he will get used to it. He may eventually tolerate it but will feel wretched. :(
 
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I agree with the others. I would pay a little more and have him brought in if he is stressing. The thing with keeping horses is that your budget has to be slightly adaptable to cope with extra unexpected things such as this.

My yearling came to me at a bargain price but has cost me as much again replacing fencing as the old fencing wasn't adequate and he is an escape artist. I spent the extra cash to ensure he was safe and I'm afraid that is what you need to do.

I disagree with some comments that you cannot expect other liveries to bring your horse in. I thought all horse owners were horse/animal lovers and I for one would not have an issue with spending an extra 10 minutes bringing in someone else's horse if it meant it prevented it from being injured or getting stressed.

Is there anyone who rides in that group that you get on well with that would do this for you? I also think that if the yard owner is finding this funny then what else does she let 'slip through' the net or pass off as funny concerning the welfare of the horses that she charges money to look after???

Good luck.
 
Hi guys. Thanks again for all your comments. I've been to yard this morning, brushed all the dried sweat off and also found two slightly filled legs. Not happy as his legs were perfect but hopefully they will go down.

There are other horses out but one lot is too far away to be of comfort and the other lot can go out of sight. There are other horses there that live out 24/7 - and don't have stables - but my horse is not with them! They belong to someone else so I don't know whether he can go with them.

I'm going to try to sort today. The last person who said "What else is let to slip?" is right. I made myself unpopular right at the start when I took a wheelie of barbed wire out of the field that I'd found lying about - and even untangled from one of their horses legs before I put my horse in with them!

Actually, I would never leave someone's horse out fretting if I knew they wanted it brought in but I'd always put myself out for a horse, whether it was mine or not.
 
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There are other horses out but one lot is too far away to be of comfort and the other lot can go out of sight. There are other horses there that live out 24/7 - and don't have stables - but my horse is not with them!
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There's your solution.

Let us know how you get on.
 
Unfortunately the YO is not willing to change the herds around because of the various dynamics. She confirmed that my horse would be out at night alone in winter and possibly during the day in the summer and they could not be expected to "babysit" my horse.

I do find it amazing that grass livery was offered but they expect it to be OK for a horse to be able to live like this. My last horse would have gone bananas and jumped out.

The YO is of the opinion that my horse will settle and, if it was the odd hour here or there (or a regular hour!) I would wait and see. As hours of loneliness and lots of running about are the reality for him, I have no choice but to try to find somewhere else. Very disappointed as I hate to move horses about if I can avoid it and it's a nice yard:confused:.

Thanks so much to everyone as, thanks to your input, I was able to be calm and unapologetic about what I want for my horse. I also feel I'm definitely doing the right thing!
 
Although it wasn't the result you wanted Narnia at least you know now. Good luck in finding a nice new home for you and your horse.
 
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