How long does it take to do your morning jobs

My most time consuming bit in the morning is the walk to and from the fields - especially as they are now a swamp. In order to get 24 hour turnout for my 2 that didn't have ad lib haylage (they are fat and it makes one of them sick) they are in a lovely large field about 1/4 mile walk across the main winter field with the riding school ponies in it.

So about 7:30am (which will get earlier when we finally see daylight again) I paddle past hoards of wet, soggy riding school ponies. If the haylage has been re-stocked then they all ignore me but if it has been demolished overnight then I get mugged.

7:40 ish - arrive at my field gate to be yelled at by my mare. Gelding stands in the distance looking a bit bewildered (his normal look). Struggle to open gate without sinking into the bog, tussle with mare to put headcollar on, tussle with mare to lead back through bog, tussle with mare to wait patiently whilst gelding realises its breakfast and comes through at his own very, very steady pace (by which time me + mare are thinking HURRY UP!)

Lead mare down to yard avoiding hoards of hungry ponies who file in behind us like something out of the pied piper. Gelding wanders down in his own good time stopping for a poo and a pee.

Get to gate to main yard and tussle mare through swamp #2 and gate without letting riding school ponies out. Gelding suddenly realises he's left behind and splatters through covering everything within 100m in mud. He wanders off to find something to eat whilst mare gets thrown in stable with net. Go find gelding & persuade him to go in a stable without stealing everyone else's food. Usually fail and have to apologise to other liveries. Depending on how cooperative everyone is being its usually around 8:00 now.

Throw diet breakfast into both of them and grab tack from car.

About 8:15 - 8:30 drag mare out of her stable, pick out feet and either lunge or ride her depending on what time I have to be at work. Annoyingly they won't lead nicely back to their field together and having the argument when its as muddy as it is in the gateways just means I end up looking like I've been swimming in it. I leave the mare with a handful of hay after riding and cart the gelding plus a haynet all the way back to the field again. Leave him there eating, check water (trough unreliable) and then trudge back to get the mare, put a rug on her and haul her back up.

Finally get into work around 10 with hair that looks a mess, jeans that probably have mud on them somewhere and a slight pong of pony (& who knows what else!)

Evenings for me are a waste of time because the mare has CSNB and doesn't lead well in the dark. If its a short walk and she knows the route then its manageable but where she is now and crossing a field full of horses its a no-go zone. So if they've been in at night then I'll pop back in the evening to muck out, but otherwise everything has to be done in the morning.
 
Wake up 7.15am
Leave house at 7.45am (most days it's closer to 8)
Get to yard about 8ish
Feed/hay the 3 field ponies
Feed/hay the field Mare
Change water, change haynet and chuck feed into the stabled boy
Feed/hay my 2
Feed/hay friends horse
Let the ducks/chickens out and feed them
Lock everything up
Go to work

I can do that all in about 30/45 mins and I've not been ontime to work in ooooo the last 2 years 😂😂😂😂

Also at this point in Jan I hanging on my a thread but the thought of spring is keeping me going 😂
 
I'm slow but can't seem to go any faster. Minimum 45 minutes to do everything so only bringing in and putting to bed is required evening. Can be an hour if anything interrupts me. It's the mucking out that takes the most time to sift the nuggets from saveable bedding. At the moment I only do weekends or when my friend is ill or away.

Park up.
Walk from car park to stable (car park is across and down the lane 20metres)
First give treat and kiss my boy otherwise he gets upset and starts trampling his muck in further or digging the bank out. Treat my friends two horses including 34 year old Shetland who expect me to say hello to them as I'm their Auntie.
Cross yard to storage grab ready made haynet.
Walk round back of stables to put in ready filled trug to soak.
Walk back round go to rug room grab turnout.
Cross yard back to stable.
Put on headcollar, change rugs and pick out feet.
Walk across the lane to the field gate.
Go through gate and then put in fenced paddock, give another treat and kiss.
Walk back to storage. Pick up barrow and tools.
Go to stable take out last nights net and feed bowls.
Take bowls to tap to wash out.
Bung in storage by feed bins.
Muck out - very messy.
Sweep up.
Take barrow to muck heap.
Return tools and barrow.
Take out hay to drain unless leaving For long soak.
Mix evening and next morning feeds.
Do haynet for next day.
Fetch and hang up haynet outside stable.
Walk back to car.
If I need to change to go to work straight from yard I bring the car round and park by loo to change and freshen up.
 
With my share horse I usually rock up to the yard at about 8.10am (I do both weekend days) and have mucked out, filled and soaked hay nets, scrubbed buckets, refilled waters, prepared feeds, groomed and tacked up by 9am. I could definitely do it quicker as I used to groom for a living and can do a decent mucking out job in ten minutes, but it's nice to be able to take my time a bit more tbh. And compared to the other liveries I'm practically flying - the old chap with the stables next to mine takes about half an hour to turn his two out! And nope, our fields are not miles away!
 
2 horses
Feed (prepared the night before)
Rug, boot up and turn out - unfortunately they have to be turned out separately as the large fool can't be trusted not to throw shapes
Fill hay bars
Fully muck out both beds and tip two wheelies (muck heap a bit of a walk from the stables)
Fill water buckets and wash out feed buckets.

If I keep my foot on the gas I get all this done in 30 mins, which is what I do before work. More comfortably, it's 45 mins.
 
My morning takes about 2 hours, i have 4 so this involves riding 1 & mucking out.
Luckily they are at home though so no travel time to add on.
 
In the morning i start at 6.30am
feed stable horses, put hay nets to soak and go out to the field where retired 2 are waiting! Poo pick their paddock by head torch, skip out field shelter and put hay in it for the evening. Bring them in and feed them
By this time the stable 3 are finished so get turned out
Put oldies in the woodchip turnout with haynets for the day.
Muck out stables, wash all buckets out, fill and do water buckets, Sweep the yard
Take the hay soaked first thing out to the field. Make feeds if i have time but i like to be back in the house for 7.30 when my O/H is up and making coffee!
So it all takes me about an hour although some mornings i dont get it all done. It will be things like a stable left if I'm running late.
On a Saturday morning the above takes me aaagggggeeeessss for some annoying reason!
 
About an hour to do 4. That includes muck out, nets, rugs on/off as required, and general tidying. I can get a bit OCD with my sweeping. I try and do nets in advance to save time but I can't always find enough nets to have a whole set out and a whole set ready. I can do it in about 30/40mins if I have nets done already.
 
Oh my gosh - this can be anytime between 6 am and 7.30am - I look out of the window to see if they still have hay (obviously if it's early I can't see a damn thing anyway) makes no difference actually, they can wait - they won't die, then make and drink a coffee while the beet pulp soaks (20 minutes)

Make up feed (20 seconds)

Don outdoor clothing (2 minutes - lots of layers)

Walk to paddock ( 10 seconds from back door to gate if I am walking slowly/ avoiding ice, longer if I have to shovel the snow away from the back door)

Open gate let # 1 mare out for breakfast (10 seconds - she's always waiting)

Go round to the front of the house and feed cats before I fall over them ( 5 minutes because they are a damn sight more friendly than the horses and all need cuddles)

back to paddock, #1 mare STILL eating, collect up empty nets ( 2 minutes or so, depending on how frozen the strings are) Chuck them in hay shed and decide whether I need to put fresh ones out

Check water ( 2 seconds) decide it can wait to be topped up until later, or 2-3 minutes if it needs filling there and then.

Check other 2 mares 2-3 minutes - depending if they are feeling sociable or not, usually not.

Bimble to the other side of the house to feed dogs (5 minutes)

Meanwhile # 1 mare has eaten up and is waiting at the gate to go back in paddock, check her blanket, take one off if it is warming up - 2/3 minutes

Toddle back in for another coffee and light fires, do housey stuff.

So, about 40 minutes after getting up I can be back in the house, all depends on what the weather is like, whether anything has fallen down, broken etc, actually filling nets, riding etc gets done when it gets done.

My routine is pretty flexible. Dogs and cats may get fed first if the horses haven't come up from the field, sometimes they won't turn up in the top paddocks for ages they come when they come.
 
When I'm working, I get to yard at 6am (10 min drive). I turn pony out with breakfast (made up night before so just need to add water), she stays in turn out rug 24/7 but I pop 50g stable rug on top at night so whip that off! Paddock is 1 min walk and closest to yard, break ice on water if necessary! Quickly muck out and leave bed up although once a week, a girl on yard rides her so I make sure bed is put down, hay in etc. I'm leave yard at 6.35/6.40 and home by 6.50. Ride and finish stable in evening! I love my early mornings 😍
 
About half an hour tops when they are both in

I only get rid of poo in the stable in the morning if they are staying in

I work my way backwards towards the door skipping out, undoing haynets, gathering empty feed bucket, these all get thrown out over the door as I go and then I say hello to the pony and check/change rugs

then once out I work my way back in by filling water, tying up haynet and putting in the feed before making a run for it, I'm not a morning person but have to be at work 15 miles away for 7:30 some mornings so time is always tight

Later on the ponies will be turned out and I will do a full muck out in the evening. All major jobs such as checking water in the fields, haying the field, filling haynets and making feeds get done in the evening which takes me around 90 mins

If the ponies are being turned out by me in the morning then the morning routine is easier and takes about 15 mins - change rugs, gather feed and let ponies out, use buckets to get them in to right paddock, shut gate, leave
 
Sussexbythesea said:
I'm slow but can't seem to go any faster. Minimum 45 minutes to do everything so only bringing in and putting to bed is required evening. Can be an hour if anything interrupts me. It's the mucking out that takes the most time to sift the nuggets from saveable bedding.
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Me too, I am the world's slowest, it drives me mad. It takes me 20 mins purely to SKIP my horse out, he's so messy and poos for England. I'm usually there for 1hr15 mins. I usually don't even start mucking out until I've been there 1/2 hr, I take feed bowls out and wash them, put the hay steamer on. get some hay for the field, take bandages off, pick feet out and turn out. By the time I get back to the stable and picked up my barrow, that's 1/2 hr gone, it's crazy isn't it.
Then I muck out, which takes about 25 mins if I take the wet out but it then takes me a few minutes to re-lay the bed. Then I have to sweep the stable, and get the hay out of the steamer, reload it foe the next day, and sweep round the steamer and outside my stable. Then it's the muck heap and getting feeds ready for the evening. I do have a huge stable which is only half-bedded so sweeping takes me a couple of minutes.

When I had 2 horses it took me about 15 mins longer.
 
I reakon there's three hours of yard work in the morning at my yard.
If We then exercise in one lot takes just over an hour it depends of course on what I am doing .
There then might be horses to prepare for the next day if they are hunting .we are usually off the yard by two .
Then in the evening again it depends what I am up to but I do forty minutes to an hour longer if I am catching up .
 
mine are out at night and come in at 8am..... they go back out about 6pm.


morning jobs are wetting preprepared feeds, bringing them in, washing hooves clean and taking off their rugs. takes me about 25minutes. there are 4 horses.

pm jobs are mucking out my 3 and do their waters, nets, turning out, making am feed, brushing horses and re-rugging and brushing up yard and emptying wheelbarrow. takes me about 40minutes.
 
1 hour roughly.
8 horses. No breakfast. All get a titbit then turned out. All keep their outdoor rugs on. Any being ridden moved to upper stables.
All mucked out fully . Muck heap about 300m away uphill (boo). Water buckets refilled using hosepipe. By the time I've finished they are all done - very slow tap, no water pressure. Whole stable block swept.
Haynets removed and refilled later.
If riding that happens after mucking out. If I'm working at 9am then just all turned out.
 
I'm very lucky with that me and my mum share yard duties but on my days it's...

Change rugs and turn out, field on yard so about a 1 minute walk to field, break ice in trough if needed

Muck out (muck out mine thoroughly and skip out mum's and she does opposite on her days) put in haylage, clean and refill water buckets and wash out feed buckets

Tidy muck heap

Sweep yard

The above takes me about 1 hour 15 mins but depends how quick I am!

On the other days I go to yard on way to work for 7.30 and change rugs and turn out and my mum brings them in.

In evening it's a case of picking out feet if too wet to do when they came in, changing rugs if necessary, feeding if not done when came in, skipping out, topping up water and giving more haylage If necessary. This takes about half an hour.
 
I keep mine at home and it takes around 1.15 hours. Arrive, greet the boys, lights on and then give them both hay (to prevent my stables being kicked!), change rugs, boots on one and headcollar on the other. Feed them, whilst they are eating out hay in their paddocks and check water, turn on electric fence for fence wreaker. Turnout, then back to muck out, add more hay for evening, do water buckets for evening, wash feed buckets from night before and this morning and do feeds for the night and morning. Do treat balls for evening and field for one, fill kettle incase it's freezing in evening. Give treat ball to the nightmare one on way back to house. Wash off wellies :)
 
Winter:
Arrive anywhere between 8 and 10, throw hay in paddock at horse, check water, change rug (she wears a under rug as she's usually clipped in winter, but depends on weather ect, not uncommon to leave her in a 300gm turnout and 200gm under rug for the day if it's wet) plonk feed in bucket (if she's getting fed twice a day) and leave. Take about ten minutes. If sunny she wears a face mask for her eyes. Pretty much the same at night but with added fence moving and poo collecting.

Summer:
Arrive at about 9:30/10, bribe her to allow me to put her face and nose mask on with treats and a headcollar, change into summer sheet from night (waterproof canvas with light wool lining) rug, or remove all together or leave it on depending on weather. Leave five minutes later. At night I poo pick, move fence and do whatever else. Oh and check water twice a day.
 
I'm not old enough to drive and no one can get me to the yard before school so she turned out for me in the morning (pony has no hard feed, just hay and grass) In the afternoon/evening it usually takes me about 45 mins to bring in (2 min walk), muck out (small shavings bed with rubber matting) haynets, water, quick groom as she gets caked in mud, change rugs. I nearly always ride though so it ends up taking about 2 hours😅
 
I'm also another slow one!

Up at 5.30, breakfast, let dog out, get dressed.
At yard for 6.15. Gather feed bowls and hay nets.
Prepare 3 feeds (feed shed is a minute or so walk away) and feed the cat.
Give horses breakfast, and fill hay nets while they are eating.
Turn out (stabled in turnouts so no rug changes).
Muck out 3 stables, 1 straw and 2 one shaving. The one on straw and one on shavings are very messy, the one on shavings spreads his poo everywhere. It is a case of hunting it out. Tend to take 2 barrows full out of 2 and 1 and a half out of the cleaner one.
Fill water buckets, put in hay nets, replenish straw and shavings.
Sweep yard.

This takes about 1 and a quarter hours, wish I could do it quicker but don't seem to be able to!

Walk to next yard (couple of mins)
Make up feed for 4, and feed.
Do haynets whilst they are eating.
Skip out stables and sweep yard.

This takes abut half hour.

Back home, quick shower, let dog out again and drive to work for 8.30. Am always late!
 
5 mins max. Put long Musto coat and wellies over work clothes. Open stable doors and horses walk to field gate (adjacent). Open gate. Give big horse breakfast in field if he stands in 'breakfast spot' (otherwise no point, he won't eat it).

I muck out, do haynets, water, brush (occasionally!) in the evening. Horses wear turnout rugs in stables, so only remove if they need changed due to weather changing significantly. Hay in field is ad lib round bale put out weekly.

All very easy - I rarely actually have to touch a horse in the morning.
 
About 20 minutes. My pony Dusty only receives a small amount of hay in the morning (about half a slice - 1kg) because she needs 3kg during the day and 3kg at night with 1kg of hard feed (pony nuts) on top and her supplements. This is because she is a good-doeing 13.3hh Connemara so I have my work cut out (in more ways than one ;D) So, therefore I like to get out as late as possible.

7:30am - Add water to morning feed (just Dusty and made night before). Consists off 1/2kg scoop of pony and horse nuts, 1 scoop of balancer and 1/4 scoop of DustX (only when inside during winter). Give to the pon who is at this point acting as if she has been starved all her life.

7:35am - Give Shannon (dad's horse) morning haynet and check her warmth (she isn't clipped but can get chilly as she is now 16 and slowing down). If necessary rug her up. Pick out Shannon's feet.

7:40 - Pick out Dusty's feet, change heavy-weight to heavy-weight turnout (Dad very kindly turns out into our small paddock with some hay when her comes home for his lunch - #blessed XD.

7:45 - Top up waters and take away Dusty's feed buckets before giving the pon her morning hay (double netted)

7:50 - Done - I leave for school at 8:00am
 
An hour and 45 mins for me.

On yard at 5.45.
2 x mucked out, hay done and 1 x rug and boot change by 6.10.
Tacked and booted up and on board by 6.25.
Get off at 7.05.
Untack and 2 x more rug and boot changes done and 3x turn out with hay in field too.
Sweep up yard and do feeds for later.
Back in the house by 7.30 latest.
 
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