Horses & Uni - Need Advice

sasquatch

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To cut a long story short, I am 20, will be 21 in August. I am currently restting A Levels.
I only finished school last year, I've had several health problems that have meant I've had to redo GCSE year at school, and now A Level year.
I am meant to be going to uni in September. I have an unconditional offer for Stirling, but am aiming to go to UCD in Dublin, or possibly Cork or Limerick for uni (I won't know until August)

B was originally diagnosed with arthritis in his coffin joint, he went lame the day after I had found a potential loan home for him sadly. Whilst the arthritis is mild, he seemed to respond to treatment for about 2 weeks, and then went lame again however didn't look as bad as before. Vet has been out to him and suspects soft tissue damage in his foot/relating to his foot and has said an MRI would confirm it if insurance will cover it, but treatment will be out to the field for months. Vet is coming back to see another horse Friday, so I am going to try and book in too as he needs jabs done and I need vet report for the claim. I am also going to ask him how long would he say I may be looking at for B to be out to the field, even if it is a worst case and best case sort of thing, and what sort of rehab he would need as well.

The biggest problem I have is that when I am at uni, I will have to find a way to pay for B. I don't want to give up my stable, so will be paying a retainer fee as well as the cost of him being in the field. I'll also have to be working to fund myself at uni, as well as studying. I have chronic fatigue, and whilst I've been managing okay with work and studying, since exams have started and I've been doing more intensive studying, the fatigue is worse which does concern me if I'm having to work and study next year. I can't rely on parents to pay for B, if it was just for him to be in the field, then it may be easier for them to cover, but as I am also paying the retainer for the stable it does all add up. I don't want to lose my stable incase he injures himself and needs stabled, and so I have somewhere to put him when he is ready to start rehab/coming back into work without playing musical horses.
I'm not sure how I'll be able to a) afford him if he needs to be out for over 6 months, and b) rehab him if I'm 2-5 hours away.

My mum isn't really thinking about it atm, but it is a big concern of mine. She doesn't want me to take another year out, as she thinks if I wait another year I'll either never go or I'll be 'too old' to really enjoy it (she was a mature student). I'm well aware that at 22 I'll be 4 years older than most others going to uni, but 22 isn't old and there are plenty of people who don't go to uni straight out of school. That said, I do want to get away and have always wanted to go to uni in Dublin. Another option is to see if I can go through clearing and get a place at one of the local unis, but ideally I wanted to be away :(
I'm also not sure if I'll still have my job - my boss took me on knowing my plan was uni. I'm also going to see what she says and what she would do. If B only needs say 3-4 months out, it might be an idea to see if she would take him on to bring him back into work after 3-4 months and if she would be able to sell him or find someone to loan him (although this would be more expensive short term, it may be a better option long term and costs would most likely balance themselves out)

I am just feeling very stressed and not sure what to do. I have 2 exams Thursday and 1 Friday I haven't really worked for, and 2 more next week. Mum has said not to worry about B, but it is very, very hard not too when I'll need to know soon what I'm going to do about uni.
 

SusieT

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Turn him out and forget retaining a stable - you can find one in an emergnecy.
Or move him to grass livery/retirement livery near you. Don't put your life/uni life on hold for an elderly pony who may or may not ever work again.
 

Pearlsasinger

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Your mum is right! Don't worry about B now, concentrate on your exams, or you will end up missing another year's uni. Decide that you will turn him away for 12 months, which wouldn't be unusual, let the stable go, if you need one, I'm sure you will be able to find one.
Remember that you need to put your own health first. I'm not sure how someone with CFS is going to be able to work and do justice to a uni course
 

catroo

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As above, let the stable go and plan for him to be out for the next 12 months. I think it would be better to delay his return to work than delay you starting uni.
Find grass suitable grass livery and then you'll be able to work out what the cost would be for the year and then if/how you'll be funding it.
 

ihatework

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Turn him out and forget retaining a stable - you can find one in an emergnecy.
Or move him to grass livery/retirement livery near you. Don't put your life/uni life on hold for an elderly pony who may or may not ever work again.

This completely. Horse goes on field and you live your life.
 

sasquatch

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My only concern with letting the stable go is that organising to find one when I'm 2-5 hours away from home, in an emergency, is much easier said than done. I have no box, so would be easier to keep my stable on current yard as he will be going up the hill with the retired horses and if he does need to come in when I'm away in case of an emergency, there's a place he can go too and the staff know him (and I know the other liveries who I can ask for help if I need too as well).

He should come back into work sound once he's recovered. He's 16 so whilst not young, he's not old either and he's mentally young too. The arthritis itself is mild and manageable, it hadn't seemed to be effecting him in his work at all until he went lame, and even then, the arthritis responded to treatment, it was just that there was another problem causing the lameness anyway.

I don't have a choice when it comes to uni and working, sadly. Mum isn't able to fund me, dad is refusing and if I get to uni down south I get minimal student loan (if I even get any) because their fees are only 2 grand per year, and I would need to be working to afford living in Dublin. I have other concerns about if I'll physically be able to manage the uni course on its own, but that's a whole different issue and story really.
 

KittenInTheTree

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Stop looking for ways to make your life more difficult than it needs to be, OP. Chuck pony out to grass, and put whatever you'd be paying to retain his stable into savings for general emergencies, not just pony related ones. That way you can afford to hire transport for him if need be, as well as support your own costs in the inevitable delays between when your student loan is due to arrive and when it really does arrive. This will happen, it always does, budget accordingly. In a genuine emergency, space will be found for the pony until you/your mum can arrange stabling/other care as required, that's part and parcel of livery yard life. No decent human being is going to leave an injured or sick animal that needs stabling out in the field to suffer just because the owner has gone to university - they'd bring him in and let you/your mum know what had happened!
 

SEL

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I went to Uni at 18 and two of my best friends there were 21 and 22 - age didn't really come into our friendship so don't worry about that.

I would echo getting rid of the retainer and keeping the funds to one side for a horse related emergency.

Get your uni place sorted first and then see if there is a local grass livery / retirement / field you could pop your horse in. If he's nearby then you can keep an eye on him
 

AFB

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Turn him out and forget retaining a stable - you can find one in an emergnecy.
Or move him to grass livery/retirement livery near you. Don't put your life/uni life on hold for an elderly pony who may or may not ever work again.

This, horse is hardly going to feel miffed at being a horse!
 

Arzada

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My only concern with letting the stable go is that organising to find one when I'm 2-5 hours away from home, in an emergency, is much easier said than done. I have no box, so would be easier to keep my stable on current yard as he will be going up the hill with the retired horses and if he does need to come in when I'm away in case of an emergency, there's a place he can go too and the staff know him (and I know the other liveries who I can ask for help if I need too as well).
Do the owners of the retired horses pay to keep a stable? Probably not in which case the yard must have something in case there is an emergency with one or more of the retired horses. If this is the case could your horse use those facilities in case of emergency?
 

Leo Walker

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He should come back into work sound once he's recovered. He's 16 so whilst not young, he's not old either and he's mentally young too. The arthritis itself is mild and manageable, it hadn't seemed to be effecting him in his work at all until he went lame, and even then, the arthritis responded to treatment, it was just that there was another problem causing the lameness anyway.

I think you need to be realistic about this. Hes 16 and arthritic. Arthritis is a degenerative disease that gets worse as time goes on. Hes also currently lame with I assume some sort of ligament damage in his foot, what used to be termed navicular or similar? There are no guarantees that he will come sound, esp as the yard doesnt have the road work hacking that he will need to rehab the foot issue. He will be 20 when you finish Uni and will have been out of work for 3 years. Theres no guarantees you will want to come home after uni anyway. Graduate jobs can mean moving to another area.

Would it be easier if you decided that he was retired now and just looked on any future riding as a bonus if it happens? It might make it easier for you to give up the stable etc?
 

sasquatch

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I think you need to be realistic about this. Hes 16 and arthritic. Arthritis is a degenerative disease that gets worse as time goes on. Hes also currently lame with I assume some sort of ligament damage in his foot, what used to be termed navicular or similar? There are no guarantees that he will come sound, esp as the yard doesnt have the road work hacking that he will need to rehab the foot issue. He will be 20 when you finish Uni and will have been out of work for 3 years. Theres no guarantees you will want to come home after uni anyway. Graduate jobs can mean moving to another area.

Would it be easier if you decided that he was retired now and just looked on any future riding as a bonus if it happens? It might make it easier for you to give up the stable etc?

I don't want to retire him as he's not ready for retirement at all. He hasn't showed any signs of slowing down. We don't know what has caused the soft tissue damage in his foot, but when x-rayed navicular and pedal bones are fine so cause is unknown. He didn't react to his foot being poked and proded by vet the way you'd expect with navicular.
Whilst I know arthritis is degenerative, he has a mild case and only seems unsound in one foot that now has been discovered has another problem. He has never showed any signs of soreness and stiffness until lameness came on, and it came on overnight. until he starts slowing down or showing he is slowing down, I don't see why I should retire him instead of trying to get a horse who seems to mentally be happy, full of life and if anything, bored due to lack of work, back into work.

He won't be out to the field for 3 years, he will be coming in, going back into work and then I'll decide if I bring him down with me or not as DIY is cheaper than grass livery around Dublin/Kildare and would be affordable one I'm settled, working and have established myself a bit more. I'll be moving to Cork/Dublin/Limerick hopefully, and the plan had always been after uni he'd come down to me to be semi-retired after going on loan for 3-4 years.

Mum wouldn't have time/resources to sort out moving him, transporting him and finding a stable somewhere else. I know I most likely wouldn't either, and wouldn't want to send him to a yard where no one knew him and I didn't have trust with the owners/hadn't been able to view it and speak to them in person. Mum wouldn't have time to do it. I don't know what happens with the retired horses, however they're slightly different. Mum is in agreement and wants to pay the retainer to keep his stable.

I do have savings, however understandably don't want to spend them unless I absolutely have too. I can afford B now with my job, but don't know how long it'll take me to find a job once I move for uni. If I could keep my job money wouldn't be an issue, but that's not possible.
 

Leo Walker

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How are you going to afford to put yourself through uni with no financial support from your parents and pay for the upkeep of a horse? I know when I was at uni they stipulated we could work a maximum of 10 hours a week which isnt a huge income. And how will you fit in rehabbing a horse on DIY timewise?

I think you need to have a long hard think about what you want the most. If its the horse then stay at home and go to a nearby uni, if its a proper uni experience then something has to give. You cant have it all with a very small budget and a medical condition that makes life in general much harder for you.

I would go for uni in your shoes. Horses couldnt care less about being worked and he will have a lovely time out in a big field with a settled herd. But if you feel differently then something else will need to be sacrificed.
 

0310Star

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My mare had leg issues (arthritis among other things) and she was never the sort that I ever thought I could retire - always seemed to 'need' work and was happier in work and so I pushed on for a few years after diagnosis and wondered what I would do with a horse that needed work but had a degenerative disease... how wrong was I!!
I retired her last year when her legs worsened and she was a totally reformed character once retired... she LOVED it! And she made me realise that most horses take like a duck to water at being able to be a horse again and just being left alone with their mates in a field. She was only 19 when she was pts last week so she wasn't old either.

If it was me, I would find a suitable retirement livery (with loads of land that they can really go back to being a horse again) that your horse could go out and just be a horse for a few years. As you don't know what some of the issues are with your horse, rest may do him the world of good anyway!

I am an Open Uni student and work full time and my work load is much smaller than someone at a brick uni and that was difficult to fit everything in. Also, you want to be able to enjoy uni and not work all the hours around your schooling so you miss out on the social life.

Go and look at some retirement places and see what you think, they take over all care and tend to be cheaper than yards it takes a lot of stress off of you. I know you want to do the right thing, but you honestly cant do everything on your own and the worry of it will impact on your uni life.
 
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only_me

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Is he sound at walk? You could potentially loan him to the RDA, they don't need to be overly fit for that.

Your main issue is that soundness is an unknown for coffin joint arthritis, some do come sound but will probably have bouts of lameness. Rehab will be long and slow most likely which you won't have time for. Plus often they get sounder with work (in my experience).

For example, I'm 26 and doing another degree at uni. And I'm not old :p Course is pretty full on and tbh I don't have much time other than hack at weekends during the year and I travel to placements from home if I can, otherwise I stay at the hospitals. Luckily he lives out and dad is pretty good now at spotting issues and can be trusted to do a daily check/water during the week. Plus good back up if needed.
Come Easter it's exam prep so he isn't ridden till mid June after exams. Then I get approx 9 weeks riding time as start back in mid August, so by the time horse is fit to do compete I'm back at uni lol. What I have done a couple of years ago is send horse to a yard from Easter to get fit so come June I can get out and do things. This was until Billy decided Easter time was a wonderful time to get new and exciting injuries to help fund the vet's summer holiday.

You could do this, if you put horse on grass livery from sept - April, give up the stable and then send horse to a yard for rehab around Easter. You can still ride and do everything with a horse living out!
That way you can spend the year living life at uni, much cheaper to fund grass livery, working to earn money to pay for the rehab weeks Easter on (usually starts around £100 a week) and then enjoy him after exams. Your looking at around 8-10 weeks rehab most likely. Steroid injections may also be a possible treatment to help with rehab.
Just don't spend the year working non stop as uni workload is higher than you think lol.
 

abbijay

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Everyone has given you the same advice: you don't need the stable! That will save you a good chunk of your money. Chuck him out for a year and don't worry about it, reassess a year into uni and decide what is best for you and then what is best for him.
If you really want to move away for uni and you're going to be self funding you'll need to have all your spare time to get through it and hope you can find time to enjoy the social side too without needing to also earn more money and find time to go and visit your horse twice a day (which would probably mean you either travelling to the yard or living away from the student hubbub). I don't know much about Chronic Fatigue but I suspect you will be facing an uphill battle anyway so don't make your life harder than it needs to be!
Uni life is a time to make friends like no others but if you are the one who travels home every weekend to be with your boyfriend (or horse in this case) you will miss out on lots.
 
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