keeping horse at livery or at home?

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buzzles

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I was just wondering if people had the choice i.e money/time not a factor, would they prefer to be able to keep their horses at home or would they still stay at a livery yard?
 
Having had a private yard and now having a livery i can see the pros and cons of both.
I think the good thing, if you have a happy yard,is the nice people that you meet and the company to go out hacking with etc. Obviously if you are at livery you are not 100% in control of the daily management even on diy some of the decisions are made by someone else. Having a horse at home is a big responsibility and you can feel very alone especially if something goes wrong.
 
I've never kept a horse on livery so i can't say i have experience in that respect. I've always kept my horses at home, since i was 10 (now 20) as i live on a farm.

It does get lonely sometimes now that my sister has given up, although i do like hacking on my own anyway, and get to hack with friends occassionally. But i have no one to look after them when i want to have a morning off, although my mum will do them when asked nicely.

But im turning the farm into a livery yard so the 10 years of peace and quiet is soon to come to an end, lol.
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I think i will prefer it though having worked on a livery yard for 2 years, i did see the pros a lot of being on a yard. It really does depend on the individual though.
 
Home any day. Saying that though I have always had my horses on DIY so have always had to do them myself, just had to travel a bit further.
I'm very happy with my own company and don't miss yard politics or company at all and I get things done an awful lot faster nowadays, no 30 minute gossip stops every day. There are certain people I miss, but on the whole, given the choice, the horses would still be at home outside my kitchen window.
 
Always at home...would not contemplate a livery unless the absolute worst happened...just would not suit my horse at all. Down side is having no one to do them when ill or on hols...I am lucky in having some good friends I can call on now and then...but you can't do that too often.
 
If it was possible, at home of course, you can do late night checks etc and look out your window and there they are!! However I am on DIY livery so do all the work, and we do share the work so you can be more flexible
 
I used to have my horses at livery but now keep them at home. I wouldn't want to go back to a livery situation now! I can feed them what I want, turn them out and bring them in as I wish, and looking out from the house window to see them grazing in the field is lovely.

They are quite a few people who keep horses locally so I have lots of horsey friends and I have someone who will do the horses if we are away. Main downsides are that I don't have a school (although there are two nearby I can borrow) and I seem to have lost my competitive urge as I am not in a yard where other people are out and about doing things.
 
mmmm I'd actually have to really think about that! At home is great BUT I love the social side of having a horse too - hacking out with other people, going to shows and when I was growing up I missed that (poor poor vicki who had her own horse at 11! ;-P before you say it!)

swings and roundabouts - if I had 5 loose boxes and could have my best riding mates there then yes, home ALL THE WAY

x
 
Well we have the idea situation. We are at livery but its only us and the people that own it!

We were on a large livery yard (25 horses) and if you don't get on with one person it turns sour very quickly!

With us moving to cambridge, my parents are trying to accomidate for a horse to stay at home. Even if its just stables and no land (we can always rent land) As they would prefer for a horse to be at home where we can keep an eye on it than to be on a yard where things go missing, Horses get kicked and people arn't always nice
 
Well I already keep mine at home. But if I had loads of money, Id have amazing facilities! As right now, Id almost prefer a livery simply to have access to an outdoor school!

I love my own land and own stables though. Would hate to share and travel to see them. Right now, all I have to do is look through my window to see them grazing. There are pro's and con's to both obviously. I would like to have people around to hack out with. I cant hack alone anymore and do miss it.
 
If I had my own horse I would keep it at the yard where I ride now - I love my friends there and the social aspect, the regular shows and good facilities would also come into it.
 
well if I had my own gallops, stables, schools, land /fields and good facilities etc then yes home aaannnnyy day!! At the moment I keep one at livery and I keep the others at home but I share stables and land.
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There is one thing though and that is its nice to have lessons on your own horse...
 
well I'm hoping home is best as I have recently moved to the country & bought an extra bit of land, found small amount of additional grazing & am about to build stables so I can take him out of livery and have him at home (god bless my OH who has no interest in horses & has put up with all of said moves!)

I love my current yard, great group of owners, YO is great always room in the box if they are competing or hunting, great with advice & he's really well looked after....when he comes home it'll just be me & no school to ride in....and I will really miss the support , particularly as I work long hours & there will be a lot of brownie points to be erned with OH to persuade him to bring in & feed on those nights that I have to work late etc.

If I was more experienced re feeding/health issues I would be more confident about the move but current YO has volunteered to be at the end of teh phoen if I need her & we'll still go back once a week for lessons

I guess to cut a long story short I think it'll be better to have him home but I am conscious it's a big responsibility
 
Am facing this decision as the house we are hoping to buy has 3 stables and an acre and a half of land. When I said last week that I wouldn't keep my horse at home my OH went apoplectic! But I need a school and I would absolutely HATE being stuck alone with my horses.
 
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