How clean is your yard?

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NeilM

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My OH and I went to visit the lady who's been helping with Folly's loading issues, we arranged to meet at the yard where she keeps her horses.

Now I've seen some pretty squared away yards but Holy Moly this place was clean. All the wheelbarrows leant against the wall side by side. Brooms, shovels, forks all neat and the concrete on the yard looked spotless.

I had to clear a couple of poo's out of my trailer, and I was petrified I'd drop the merest speck on the yard, as it would have stood out like a chocolate stain on a clean white shirt.

So I thought I'd ask about your yards, spick and span, tidy enough or a bit of a shambles?
 
It's clean. We hang all impliments on the wall and park barrows as described above. The yard is brushed every day and the muck heap levelled at least once a week... stables are skipped out 3 times a day when horses are in...

Blitz
 
Spotless! When I was looking for livery and went to view it I said "you didn't need to tidy up", but it's ALWAYS like it, not a speck of dirt anywhere and swept to within an inch of it's life! Wheelbarrows have covers, horses feet must be picked out, tools must be put away tidily and be clean, beds have huge banks all the same size and squared off. Fields have mats in the gateways. Menage is levelled daily. It's gorgeous. Makes it a really nice place to be.
 
The yard i board my horse and work is tidy, gets swept atleast twice a day, muck heap tidied every day. Stables mucked out twice a day. :)
 
Ours is relativly clean and tidy :)

Barrows and tools are kept in the barn all against the wall
Yard is swept 2/3 times a day by YO and liveries sweep outside their sections
Hay is in the barn and is swept daily
Horses feet are picked out before leaving the stables
Menage is rolled daily
Muck heap is removed every 2/3 weeks

Rarely ever see dirt/ bedding/ haylage on the yard (only when mucking out etc)
 
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My little bit (the concrete between my girls as they are opposite each other) - swept daily and nice and clean. The rest really depends. Today somebody moved a straw bed and happily left straw EVERYWHERE, including over my yard. Drove me MAD. I pointed out that I'd just swept and they said they'd clean up - but their idea of sweeping up and my idea of sweeping up are two COMPLETELY different things.
 
hmmmm not very clean! Its a big yard so everyone is suppose to brush outside there stable etc and theres loads which dont and it drives me mad! I personally think my parts the cleanest :p ... Theres even someone who mucks out and leaves the wheel barrow full of poo sitting in the middle of the isle or outside someone elses stable untill the next day! If i had my own yard shed be gone :p lmao
 
Ours is safe but messy - often bits of hay and bedding wafting over the concrete, we rarely sweep the barn but at least we don't have to worry about levelling the manege because we haven't got one!

But, hey, we keep the horses at home, so don't have to worry about offending other liveries with OCD tendencies, and the horses are happy, healthy and contented!
 
Mine is immaculate... and thanks to the joys of OCD I can't leave it any other way!

Tools hung up and wheelbarrows propped up in the tool bay
Yard is swept completely twice a day, and then small bits swept up as needed throughout the day
Horses never ever walk into a box that hasn't been re - made. So, if a horse needs to go on the walker for five minutes, or get trotted up for the physio, their box is skipped out, tidied and hay and water topped up while they're out.
Headcollars done up and leadropes rolled up, all hanging outside each box with a hoof pick.
Bridles put up properly

I could go on for hours!

But then my yard is an advertisment for my business, so I like it to be spotless! No it doesn't make my horses any happier, but it makes me happy, keeps me relaxed, and gets me more business!
 
I don't have a 'yard' as such. To me now, a yard is a garden, so terminology can be a bit confusing. No frills here, but the barn is swept, tools put away, halters on racks by the doors so it is tidy but not fanatically so, not an inch of concrete on the place, earth floors are not the easiest to maintain but right now I can't afford to concrete over 3000 sq feet of barn floor, it is way at the bottom of the list. My Boarders don't care, if they want indoor arenas and lots of concrete then I direct them up the road ;)

This is what it usually looks like in summer, in winter it is like spaghetti junction with tracks ploughed to the house, various barns and paddocks.

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the yard itself is very very clean swept every day twice a day! but things like post and rail need tlc but everything is safe.
where i work how ever is spotless!! i only started working there last week and i put a haynet on the floor and my boss starting jumping around like a looney and immedietly starting picking the strands of hay up!! wont be doing that again! ;)
 
The concrete apron outside the stables is usually fairly clear and clean. Most people very good about sweeping up outside their bit. Tools usually sensibly stood up or hung up too. Yard as a whole can be a bit muddy and wet in winter, muck heap is kept tidy otherwise we get our wrists slapped and area where haylage bales are unwrapped is OK but usually the same old people who tidy up between bales. Yard is terribly weedy at the moment which makes it look bit more run-down than it is, just needs a good strim! Our only problem is people not doing the collective effort bit which is sometimes required.
 
Well, I have to say I'm impressed with how hard you all work.

As ours are out 24/7 365, it's just a bit of hedge trimming, fence mending and daily poo picking for us.

Mind you, poo picking in November at 4.00 pm, when it's been raining for the whole week, there are certainly times when the thought of a nice dry stable and a concrete yard is very appealing.
 
When we were working from the yard, and had a lot of people in and out all day, i was very particular about it, my OH said that i had clean yard syndrom :D, i was forever brushing and washing down the concrete. Now i have two ponies that are in most of the time in summer, they have the run of the yard, with hay nets outside, i clean up poo three times a day, and probably only sweep up every other day. I am a terrible person :D :D
 
I think someone should do a show "How clean is your Stable?" I could be your first "victim" if you like! The horsey parts of the yard are kept functionally clean, the tack room area not so much but everyone seems healthy and happy enough
 
Ours isn't too bad. Always looks a bit neglected when visitors come as you see it through their eyes! Generally swept in front of each stable and we have a lovely Mother of a Livery who gets bored and sweeps everywhere!
 
Spotless, all yards swept twice daily, all boxes mucked out before 10.30, tools and barrows lined up behind the office out of site, much heap thrown back everyday sometimes twice, all headcollars and lead ropes hung up on the washing line, no boxes buckets ec allowed to be left on the yard, all buckets stacked neatly,hosepipes hung up on racks, hay and straw in barns. gravel raked daily, muck heap taken away weekly.
 
I keep Tiger at home so have my own yard with just me!!!

and I keep it SPOTLESS!!! I'm SO obsessive over it!!!

My mum always says ''If only you would keep your room this tidy'' HAHA

but I really am, every tiny bit of hay or shavings HAS to be swept up!!! everything has a place, a neat place too!!! HAHA!!! Even down to the position the feed scopes are in when not in use HA HA

xxxx
 
FlorenceBassey said:
all yards swept twice daily, all boxes mucked out before 10.30, tools and barrows lined up behind the office out of site, much heap thrown back everyday sometimes twice, all headcollars and lead ropes hung up on the washing line, no boxes buckets ec allowed to be left on the yard, all buckets stacked neatly,hosepipes hung up on racks, hay and straw in barns. gravel raked daily, muck heap taken away weekly.
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Ma'am, yes Ma'am!






That's very impressive, if I had to do all that, I'd be too tired to ride.
 
Ours is kept reasonably clean and tidy but in a very relaxed way. We all sweep outside our own stables and tools and always put away. Its comfortable rather than immaculate and no-one worries if you leave your horse's poo while you ride or your stable area is a bit untidy while you hack as long as you tidy up before you leave.
My mother was OCD about tidying the house and 30 years after leaving home I still get twitchy about excessive (in my eyes) tidyness. I'd hate to be on a yard that had to be immaculate at all times. This is my hobby and I want to be able to relax around the yard rather than worry all the time in case I make a mess.
 
NeilM said:
Ma'am, yes Ma'am!






That's very impressive, if I had to do all that, I'd be too tired to ride.
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Ah but you see, the beauty of doing this every day means that it's a quick job! My yard is mucked out, hayed, watered and swept by 9am at the very latest every day, and as horses are all turned out first thing with their breakfast, that's it for the day with regular yard chores. After that you have the whole day to ride and do any other jobs like squaring off the muck heap, pressure washing, tack cleaning etc.

Tack is wiped over and oiled every time it's used, and then once a week it's given a complete clean. Doing things like this every day make life so much faster..well...it does for me... :)
 
My yard is a shambles!

It never gets swept and the muck heap is a sprawling mess, however the parts that matter - the fencing, the stables, the arena surfaces - are well maintained and safe.

The scruffiness of the yard was what attracted me to it in the first place - I came from a yard full of OCD liveries and it drove me mad. They'd finish mucking out by 8am and sweep the yard, and then god help you if you dropped so much as one shaving on it - you'd have to sweep the whole damn thing again. If anyone dumped muck in the wrong place there would practically be an FBI-style investigation and of course the bitchy ones took great delight in trying to get others blamed for the mess. Aagh.
 
Ziggy_ said:
My yard is a shambles!

It never gets swept and the muck heap is a sprawling mess, however the parts that matter - the fencing, the stables, the arena surfaces - are well maintained and safe.

The scruffiness of the yard was what attracted me to it in the first place - I came from a yard full of OCD liveries and it drove me mad. They'd finish mucking out by 8am and sweep the yard, and then god help you if you dropped so much as one shaving on it - you'd have to sweep the whole damn thing again. If anyone dumped muck in the wrong place there would practically be an FBI-style investigation and of course the bitchy ones took great delight in trying to get others blamed for the mess. Aagh.
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I'd just like to ditto this for extra effect! IME over-tidy, OCD yards have seriously misguided priorities. Our yard is "lived in". ;)
 
Mines not great- But its mostly bedding and hay blowing round etc- The yard is cracked and has grass and weeds growing everywhere. Normally these would be sprayed and pulled up but my horse eats them so we have left them for now as he's on box rest so its his small luxury!

Tools are mainly put away but its generally a bit shabby looking!
 
as clean as i can get it! my dad has kinda taken over my tackroom with his trash i have a tractor a go kart a mower hedgtrimmers and a pile of wood that is such a pain and it colledcts this horrid dust but i can get rid of it :( but my little corner is super clean and tidy and everything has its own little place.
at the moment the yard it a mud hollow because it was gravel and we are now having it concreted so i can sweep it and hose it down etc
 
Just got back, and gave it a special sweep in honour of this thread. Only trouble was that I then let the mini shettie into my stable for his straw roll, and worzel gummage came out dragging it behind him...but it's windy so it's blow away ;)
 
Flame_ said:
I'd just like to ditto this for extra effect! IME over-tidy, OCD yards have seriously misguided priorities. Our yard is "lived in". ;)
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Our 65 horses are groomed to perfection everyday all are a perfect weight, regularly exercised and very very happy, don't diss what you don't know, i have a team of 6 amazing girls working with me, we start at 7.30 am and finish at 5.45pm we are the busiest most popular riding school in our area and have very very happy clients and liveries.
 
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