If you could keep your horse at home, would you?

[Hullabaloo]

No way. I enjoy the social side of being on a yard.
Its also good to have help when you need it. A couple of weeks ago my OH was very ill in hospital and everyone rallied round to help with my horse and offer lots of support. If I'd been on my own, I'd don't know how I've found time to do a horse on top of everything else.
My yard is fab!

 

[burtie]

No, I really like my yard and the social side as well.

 

[NeverSayNever]

i hated being at a yard and happily forgo all the facilities to keep mine at home. I have a small paddock that adjoins the back of my house with a stable and some hard standing, so my horse is literally under my kitchen window. I also have a bigger field I have 2 mins walk along the road to T/O in (very quiet road). My grazing is fairly rubbish tbh but I have good doers and made sure when horse hunting recently that I stuck with that. I have to accept I go through a lot of hay in winter and when the taps freeze outside its a pain carrying water out from the house.

Im very lucky, and couldnt manage without my neighbour who lives a few hundred yards along the road and also has horses. She keeps an eye on mine any time Im away or working long hours.

I school in my feild although its rough i manage and i can hack to a school to use in about 25mins if needs be , or pop over in the trailer. Being in the local RC helps as esepc through winter when its dark so early i can trailer out to a weekly lesson in an indoor and see other people.

I was very lucky with my previous horses. Tbh my first horse was one who was much happier on his own. He was older and with company I couldnt do a thing with him. On a yard he wouldnt come in , wasnt happy hacking out by himself and would turn and race home, would try to go over his stable door, even if he wasnt the only one in. I brought him home on a trial really as I had a few things on and thought to save myself time id turn him out in my paddock for a couple of days and have him on hand. He settled instantly and all the ridden issues and stressing stopped. I discussed it with my vet who came out to do his teeth at home that week and my vet agreed he was 100%fine and totally relaxed and settled. He was flat out asleep when the vet arrived.

My last horse however required company and I have companion pony. I had to start the way I meant to go on tbh and it wasnt always easy working with one and not the other. I wanted to lead out my pony for some exercise and found i couldnt leave my horse at all. I think the way forward would have been to get a 3rd pony but then where do you stop?

Thankfully I have one now who is again 100% settled and pony is also fine. I wouldnt change being able to nip out in my pj's at 10pm to change a rug, give hay or a carrot for anything. Ive also found that with a busy hectic life, i find i can manage to ride on busy days ,whereas if i was at a yard, the drive out there would prob be enough to mean i didnt have time.

 

[honetpot]

I have a small paddock and two stables at home, I also rent othere fields. My mare recently had a foal at home and I can see them from my kitchen window. It helps when you need a vet and saves time when you go to a show, I just load up and I'm out.
Sometimes it would be nice to have company but having been on a couple of yards there to much talking/bitching and not enough doing. Yes you do have to do maintainance work and I pay some one when I need help. I would try if for a month before giving up your livery space.

 

[Sunny08]

I keep my horse at home and she's on her own, albeit with sheep, cows, a pig and goats for company, and other horses just down the road. i've always done this and have had very relaxed, happy horses.

 

[lexiedhb]

If I could therefore afford 2 companions (you need two for if you ride out, so one is nver left). I personally would not keep a horse alone.

All that aside though then HELL YES!!

 

[Pinkatc]

At home, definitely. There's nothing like wandering down to say hello in the morning wearing your jimjams with your early morning cuppa!

 

[MotherOfChickens]

I am about to move to where the horses are-so they will be at home I have rented premises on my own/share with one other for nearly 3 years.

wrt companions, it's perfectly possible to find one that is fine being left. I took on a professional companion pony and he's fine being left for one or two days if I've been at a clinic etc. I also collected a youngster and he too, is fine with being left for a day/overnight. it's usually the more dominant ones in the field who don't like to be left IME and it helps to separate them for short periods of time from the get-go, even if it's just taking one away to groom and tie-up. My big horse is the only one who gets a bit stressed about being left and you can shut him up with a haynet. I wouldnt keep a horse on their own but it's important for them to be happy for short periods of time by themselves.

 

[skewby]

I have a myriad of friends/acquaintances who keep their horses not at home, but on small private yards with no facilities. They love to go on about how great it is not to be on a livery yard BUT all their horses without exception are field ornaments. Which is not what they were bought for but I can only imagine that it's damn hard to get motivated when all you can do is hack. And some of these people have really nice hacking but still do nothing.

What about the days you want to try a new bit/saddle/whatever and there's no arena to have a safe play in? I'm lucky in that my livery yard is the absolute business and a wonderful place to spend time but I've been on many that are not this way! But I'd still always choose livery.

If you have transport I think it may be different. Which I think you must do otherwise where would the lessons take place?

What happened to Ed?!