How far do you live from your horses? I know it gets asked alot

Ambers mum

Ambers mum

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I basically have moved in with my partner 8.4 miles byroad from my mares.

I can't move them at the moment as there is no way I can find somewhere as cheap as where we are in the local area and that is DIY. I looked at moving them to a livery yard, a cheap one that I worked for but apart from the fact that the horses aren't out more than a few hours a day my one mare is a heavy box walker and its better to let her live out and also she hates being seperated from her two little friends so putting her out of sight of her two little friends will cause major issues (she is great out hacking alone but for some reason they have to be really near her if we stable). The other issue at the cheap livery is although they have good onsite facilities the hacking is far from perfect and once they have eaten their hay thats it upto 16 hours without hay.

I pay £110 for two ponies a month on our current place, have no additional costs apart from buying feed etc. my own small plot of hay and stables, barn and private tackrooms (I have two as the other is my daughters mare). At the livery yard I would be paying about £60 for the little mare pw and £70 pw for the 14.2hh, that alone is more than I pay in winter including my hayand feeds etc at the DIY.

The petrol cost is a pain in the butt though as our little car drinks petrol and is about to die, I can't really afford to replace it until the OH gets another job (a long story) and the Jag is off the road until the same. So do you think cycling is reasonable? I used to cycle 12 miles a day down country lanes to work at the livery yard which was only 4.6 miles from my DIY yard and then an additional 2 miles home each day but I am 43, unfit and scared of road riding on a bike (don't ask why, its irrational as I ride on the roads with a nervous ninny lol).

Does anyone else cycle this kind of distance to do the horses and how do you cope in winter?

I have been told to sell my horses but they are veterans and don't actually cost to keep compared to the cars, also they have issues and quirks and vices that most people would find annoying or unsavory (one cribs and the other is narcolepticand a nervous breakdown on legs). I can keep them as they are as long as I give up on my car.
 
In your shoes I'd buy an electric bike & keep the horses at whichever place worked out cheapest.

Mine are 5 miles from my door, I love the bike ride down, it's made me much braver on the horses!
 
May I ask who "told' you to sell the horses? I think if it is the partner, then trying to make it work will be more difficult. How long is it likely to take the OH to get a job and be able to sort out the cars? Could you maybe sell the Jag and buy a smaller cheaper car? Sorry for lots of questions :) It would depend how hilly it was as to whether the bike was viable :)
 
I am very lucky now in that my lot are just through my garden gate, but it hasn't always been that way.

Honestly, I would advise you to do your CBT and get a moped or a cheap Chinese 125cc bike and use that. Perfect for little trips and unbelievably good on fuel. I mean....absolutely incredible mileage, so you'll be saving money in no time.

My 125 cost me £350 and is only a few years old, it's a Chinese one, so not the most amazing thing in the world but it's safe, reliable and they're cheap to maintain and fix.

It's a stage you are at at this moment, it's not going to stay like this forever, so all you need to do is find a way to make it work. If your car is still running, regardless of the age, call a few local scrapyards and get quotes for your car. Dan sold his 1998 Honda Civic for £350 a couple of years ago, they came, paid cash and collected the car. Job done...that could help you do your CBT and buy a little old moped or bike. Seriously. I can put a fiver in mine and ride in and out of Gloucester (12 mile round trip) every day for a week before needing to fill up again. xx
 
I've just moved ours close to our new house but spent a few months with them 10 miles away.
It was okish until the weather changed and caused issues ie- it suddenly went from cold nights (horses rugged) to warm days and evenings and Id have to either rug them too hot whilst I was in the area or drive all the way back in the evening.
Also to take into account is snow or just icy weather.
We swapped cars from a 4x4 which I couldn't afford to run to a little economical car which was great and I work in the old yards locality so mornings and mid afternoons were really easy. Do you work near your horses? Can they be encorporated into your working day and be done before you return home?
If not Id imagine it could all be a bit awkward tbh. I'm certainly glad ours are now closer.
A cheaper livery option may be found by your new house once you get to know people close by- this was what we found! Good luck
 
I was going to suggest a moped too. Cycling I think depends how hilly and I wouldn't fancy doing it all winter- Also depends how much spare time you have I guess too.
 
I guess it depends what else you have to factor into your time. If you have time to cycle there and back and do everything else then that's great. The cheap moped idea sounds good too.
 
I recently moved closer to my horses but it is still 3 miles away and there is one big hill and traffic that is faster than I would ideally like to cycle in. I intend to cycle there sometimes at weekends in the evenings.

I have to take my tack there and I ride mornings and do not fancy trying to cycle that particular road with my saddle on the handlebars. Evenings week days I do them on my way home from work in the car. That just leaves evening weekends to cycle when I have more time. So far I have not actually done it though.

Whether you will be able to do so realistically possibly depends on how much time you have available and how much gear you have to take with you.
 
My horses are 1 mile away from home if I cycle, as I can go the back way, but if I drive it probably works out 2 miles as the lane is really long, and I have the double back on myself.

can you look to see if its possible to go cross country to the yard on your bike? that way it might shorten the journey a bit!

I'm not sure about you circumstances, do you work etc? if you do, I'd be surprised if you'd have the time to cycle there and back each day!

the yard that is closer to you now, sounds very expensive for DIY, is there nothing else around? maybe a private yard?

When I was looking for somewhere new, I used to go on to google maps and look at the areas near by to see if I could see anything that looked like it might have stables or a school on it! then went around to speak to people to see if they had any grazing, or left notes etc!

My horses are now on a farm, which used to be a livery yard years ago but closed down, the farmer didn't really want horses there but we came to an agreement, I don't hassle him too much and do the maintenance myself, where I can, so he's happy to let me be there, as it means there is a 2nd pair of eyes around!

so it might be worth trying to do the same?
 
10 minutes down the road, its about 7.5 miles but one of the roads is national speed limit so get there rather quickly. Easily can do twice a day, but have a sharer so we take it in turns. Could cycle but have a big hill on way there so would be knackered.
 
Ambers mum said:
I basically have moved in with my partner 8.4 miles byroad from my mares.

I can't move them at the moment as there is no way I can find somewhere as cheap as where we are in the local area and that is DIY. I looked at moving them to a livery yard, a cheap one that I worked for but apart from the fact that the horses aren't out more than a few hours a day my one mare is a heavy box walker and its better to let her live out and also she hates being seperated from her two little friends so putting her out of sight of her two little friends will cause major issues (she is great out hacking alone but for some reason they have to be really near her if we stable). The other issue at the cheap livery is although they have good onsite facilities the hacking is far from perfect and once they have eaten their hay thats it upto 16 hours without hay.

I pay £110 for two ponies a month on our current place, have no additional costs apart from buying feed etc. my own small plot of hay and stables, barn and private tackrooms (I have two as the other is my daughters mare). At the livery yard I would be paying about £60 for the little mare pw and £70 pw for the 14.2hh, that alone is more than I pay in winter including my hayand feeds etc at the DIY.

The petrol cost is a pain in the butt though as our little car drinks petrol and is about to die, I can't really afford to replace it until the OH gets another job (a long story) and the Jag is off the road until the same. So do you think cycling is reasonable? I used to cycle 12 miles a day down country lanes to work at the livery yard which was only 4.6 miles from my DIY yard and then an additional 2 miles home each day but I am 43, unfit and scared of road riding on a bike (don't ask why, its irrational as I ride on the roads with a nervous ninny lol).

Does anyone else cycle this kind of distance to do the horses and how do you cope in winter?

I have been told to sell my horses but they are veterans and don't actually cost to keep compared to the cars, also they have issues and quirks and vices that most people would find annoying or unsavory (one cribs and the other is narcolepticand a nervous breakdown on legs). I can keep them as they are as long as I give up on my car.
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The "cheap" yard is more expensive than where you are now though?! Plus it sounds horrible - not much turnout, bad hacking and up to 16 hours a day without hay?! From how you have described your horses personality it would be very unsuitable imo.

I keep my horses 8 miles from home and drive a 1.8 Audi A4 and don't use that much petro, maybe £20 - 30 per week visiting twice a day.

I take it the OH told you to sell them? Did you know that you would potentially have to move them when you moved in with him?

" I can keep them as long as I give up on my car " I don't really get this comment but agree with the other posters - get a cheap scooter, doesn't cost much in fuel, cheap tax and insurance.
 
_Annie_ said:
In your shoes I'd buy an electric bike & keep the horses at whichever place worked out cheapest.

QUOTE]

This ^

I am extremely fortunate in that my paddocks wrap around the house. I couldn't cycle in winter, I have done before but only a couple of miles that I could walk when it was too bad to cycle, 8 miles is a long way on a hot/cold/icy/rainy day. Just once, or twice a day?
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I don't drive and get a bus to work which takes about 20 mins . My horse is a 10 min walk from work. I decided it was easier to have near work so I could get there quickly to do evening. Makes the journey a little awkward at weekends but then I work 5 days so can manage the 2 days happily. I have excellent hacking.

I used to have a 6 mile round trip by bike and for the same reasons moved. Buses went no where near and the winters eventually took their toll. Luckily I only had to do it once a day. Field share done morning's.
 
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Ambers mum said:
I basically have moved in with my partner 8.4 miles byroad from my mares.

I can't move them at the moment as there is no way I can find somewhere as cheap as where we are in the local area and that is DIY. I looked at moving them to a livery yard, a cheap one that I worked for but apart from the fact that the horses aren't out more than a few hours a day my one mare is a heavy box walker and its better to let her live out and also she hates being seperated from her two little friends so putting her out of sight of her two little friends will cause major issues (she is great out hacking alone but for some reason they have to be really near her if we stable). The other issue at the cheap livery is although they have good onsite facilities the hacking is far from perfect and once they have eaten their hay thats it upto 16 hours without hay.

I pay £110 for two ponies a month on our current place, have no additional costs apart from buying feed etc. my own small plot of hay and stables, barn and private tackrooms (I have two as the other is my daughters mare). At the livery yard I would be paying about £60 for the little mare pw and £70 pw for the 14.2hh, that alone is more than I pay in winter including my hayand feeds etc at the DIY.

The petrol cost is a pain in the butt though as our little car drinks petrol and is about to die, I can't really afford to replace it until the OH gets another job (a long story) and the Jag is off the road until the same. So do you think cycling is reasonable? I used to cycle 12 miles a day down country lanes to work at the livery yard which was only 4.6 miles from my DIY yard and then an additional 2 miles home each day but I am 43, unfit and scared of road riding on a bike (don't ask why, its irrational as I ride on the roads with a nervous ninny lol).

Does anyone else cycle this kind of distance to do the horses and how do you cope in winter?

I have been told to sell my horses but they are veterans and don't actually cost to keep compared to the cars, also they have issues and quirks and vices that most people would find annoying or unsavory (one cribs and the other is narcolepticand a nervous breakdown on legs). I can keep them as they are as long as I give up on my car.
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I live 6 miles from my horses by road. In your situation I wouldn't want to move them or sell them as it sounds like you have a nice and convenient set up. Would your OH not consider helping you out a bit by selling his Jag and then scrapping the care about to die and maybe getting a cheap little run around? I just worry for you that a 17 mile round trip by bike every day (assuming 2 trips), especially in winter, might be an issue.
 
6 miles from home, 3 miles from work.

Did your partner tell you to sell? Has a space been kept for your daughter when she comes home? Is your partner prepared to make changes and let you adapt the house to your needs too or is he he still refusing to allow that? I think I would've stayed put, tbh.
 
Mine is 7.5 miles from home, or a 15-20 min drive depending on traffic. It's the opposite direction to work, and I work 45 minutes away from home - but she's on full livery so I only have to ride.
 
10mins from home (3.1miles) and 13min without traffic from work (4.5miles).

I'd look into getting a little moped or 50cc/125cc motorbike. CBT is cheap and lasts 2 years, insurance is cheap, cheap to run, cheap to insure cheap cheap cheap!
 
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