lets hear it for the wonderful YO's

I

Ibblebibble

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We always hear plenty about the mad, bad and awful YO's but we all know that some out there are worth their weight in gold and really put themselves out to help out their liveries;)
I have had the pleasure (and luck) of having experienced 2 of the best, previous YO where i kept my TB and daughters pony was brilliant, small private yard with her horse and 2 other liveries. She was such a lovely person that when we left i cried! we only left because we discovered the farm livery right on our doorstep which meant a big saving in petrol and livery fees. she even let us borrow her lorry 6 months later to go pick up my big girl from N Wales and even now, 5 years later, if we bump into eachother we end up chatting for ages:D
And my other lucky find is the farmer who runs the farm where we livery, him and his wife have become friends rather than just the people we pay livery too. Most saturday mornings are spent drinking coffee in the farmhouse putting the world to rights:cool: Although we're responsible for our own fencing if i have a lot of posts to put in he'll come up and push them in with the tractor, he put a new gateway in so that i could cut through into a different field to avoid the cows when i hack out, when hubby was out of work and times were hard he would send up a round bale and refuse payment for it. We've had calves up in the stable for him that needed extra feeding and have helped him with calving and other stuff around the farm that most of the other liveries probably wouldn't even know goes on!!
So lets hear about the lovely YO's (or farmers) that we just couldn't do without;)
 
The yard I am on is owned by a big estate but run by the 2 best yard managers you could ever ask for in the year I have been there they have become 2 of my best friends! They have supported me both practically and emotionally at a very challenging time in my riding life and put up with some very bad and destructive behaviour from my mare last year.

Having been on yards with some frankly awful yard owners/ managers I often show my appreciation for their hardwork by helping with yard chores, baby sitting for one and the other one we recently set up on a blind date with my hubby's friend and so far she has been getting on very well!
 
I don't own a horse, but the YO where I ride is fantastic :) She's really kind to me and doesn't pussy-foot around, which is what I really need :P
She lets me look after Ned like he's mine, when I go up and it's helped me get patience for mucking out and filling hay-nets :)

I've been to plenty of 'proper' riding schools and they were awful and I ended up resenting horse riding and I nearly quit.
Without her, I wouldn't be riding anymore.
 
I have the most wonderful YO. She feeds all of mine for me every morning and afternoon at no extra charge. She often spends hours with them just fussing and grooming them. I have as much turnout as I could want - mine are turned out 24/7 but I have stables available for me to use if I so wish.I agree completely with all her methods of caring for and handling horses.

She always repairs any fencing the minute it needs doing.

This is the best yard I have ever been on, and the most economical by far.

Wouldn't change it for anything - if you are interested the place is called.....home and the owner is non other than myself!:D
 
I've been on the same yard for 9 years. Absolutely fantastic Yard Manager and Farmer (its a working farm). Great facilities which are well maintained. Amazing grazing, and home produced hay and straw.
There is no way I would go anywhere else. The YM cultivates a great culture and has lovely staff. Its a pleasure to go up there and you always know that the horses come first.
 
grumpyoldmare said:
I have the most wonderful YO. She feeds all of mine for me every morning and afternoon at no extra charge. She often spends hours with them just fussing and grooming them. I have as much turnout as I could want - mine are turned out 24/7 but I have stables available for me to use if I so wish.I agree completely with all her methods of caring for and handling horses.

She always repairs any fencing the minute it needs doing.

This is the best yard I have ever been on, and the most economical by far.

Wouldn't change it for anything - if you are interested the place is called.....home and the owner is non other than myself!:D
Click to expand...

haha you monkey:D:D

can't believe so few of us think our YO's are great!!!
 
grumpyoldmare said:
I have the most wonderful YO. She feeds all of mine for me every morning and afternoon at no extra charge. She often spends hours with them just fussing and grooming them. I have as much turnout as I could want - mine are turned out 24/7 but I have stables available for me to use if I so wish.I agree completely with all her methods of caring for and handling horses.

She always repairs any fencing the minute it needs doing.

This is the best yard I have ever been on, and the most economical by far.

Wouldn't change it for anything - if you are interested the place is called.....home and the owner is non other than myself!:D
Click to expand...

^^^^^ like
 
Well i've been at my current yard now for over 4yrs and love it very much.
The YO and his wife are lovely, nothing is too much trouble.
I wouldn't consider moving even if someone offered to pay my livery bill!
 
Current YO is excellent :)
YO stays onsite, lets me know if theres an issue, they didn't like the sheep fencing and had it overhauled last summer, plenty of space to store hay etc.
They also gave me extra grazing when they saw paddock starting to go to mud last year.
Small yard but if I need help with my ponies, they're happy to support me - and have offered to help if I need a 2nd pair of hands with youngster.
They come out hacking with me.

I can talk to them about issues etc and know theres someone looking out for my horses interests.
 
My YO is lovely.
My TB can be an idiot, and has taken out a few of her fences, and also managed to pull a tap off the wall, so we had to shut the water off at the mains until it was fixed, she refused money to do the repairs.
She's a veterinary nurse and cares for any sick or injured and never accepts extra money for doing this.
When I had my old appaloosa pts I couldn'[t face being there when it happened, I knew I would upset my boy, YO very kindly took over and looked after him for me. I also didn't realise that I would have to pay cash to have him taken away afterwards, and I didn't have enough money on me, so she paid to save me having to go to a cash atm and come back and see him laying there.
The facilities aren't very good, but my boy is really happy there and I know hes being well cared for when I'm not there.
Kx
 
I freaking love mine , I took my riding mare away to somewhere with a better school, horrible liveries etc .. Long story short it reminded me of the big boys world to the point it nearly killed me then he offered me what was left it the teapot at 7am in the morning both mine are back together now on the same yard ..easy happy lovely life
 
I freaking love mine , I took my riding mare away to somewhere with a better school, horrible liveries etc .. Long story short it reminded me of the big boys world to the point it nearly killed me then he offered me what was left it the teapot at 7am in the morning both mine are back together now on the same yard ..easy happy lovely life
 
Adore both my current YO and the YM from my old yard... both are wonderful, incredibly generous people and amazing horsewomen. Always ready to give up their time to help and go above and beyond their job descriptions.

Am very close friends with previous YM despite only having been at that yard for less than 6 months before moving, I go back and visit the yard whenever I'm back in that part of the country and it's like I never left.

Am only at current yard since September but have had a fair amount of drama since arriving there owing to my vandalous knobber horse. Luckily YO has fallen for his charms and has given in to the "laugh don't cry" approach... she's been very patient! :)
 
YO is fantastic. Always up for a chat etc.
She's been through a terrible year (lost farmer hubby to cancer, we all miss him greatly) but everything at the yard that needs doing, she's made sure it's been done. She understands my home situation (hubby ill) and has helped me on a personal level many, many times. I've also had the opportunity to go to some fancy shows when acting as groom for her ponies.
The yard is always full, there's a waiting list, but, on the few times there has been a space, she'll only take on people that 'fit'. On the whole, ours is a friendly, helpful yard.
 
We've got three of ours at a livery yard - one on retirement livery and two on youngstock livery. The YO (jelibean on here if she still posts) is just brilliant. We wanted somewhere quiet, safe and relaxed for our oldies to grow old, and we wanted to give our babies a nice childhood with a stable herd of other babies. She's provided both.

My main pony home is my own bit of land, so I never wanted to set foot on a livery yard again. But I've been very pleasantly surprised :)
 
I am at a great yard with a lovely YO and YM. I have been there for 10 years, which I think speaks for itself.
When we had our accident, the first person to call was YO. She came down to the scene and sorted things, and was very very supportive. She kept a stable free for me for 9 months in between benson and Donovan, and I would absolutely hate to move on.
 
My YO is one of my best friends!

We met about 6 years ago, at a big livery yard. She had 2 Horses there and I was sharing another Horse at the yard. We quickly became friends and she would often let me ride her mare. My share ended and then I had a terrible riding accident and stopped ridding Horses. Friend begged me to come up and see her, so I did. And then she asked me to be her sharer for her mare. I shared for a year and a half. Friend then bought her own yard opposite her house, Of course I went with her and carried on sharing for another 6 months.

I then decided to get my own Horse, friend saved a stable for me and wouldn't accept any money from me as a deposit (she turned away 2 potiential liverys, as she was saving the stable for me). She also let me continue riding her mare, but told me to keep my money as I would need it for my own. She came to every viewing with me, spent hours looking through ads for me. When my mare came home, YO bought me a fleece and a headcollar as a welcoming gift. She also let me borrow a few bits and bobs, until I had them myself.

When my mare became lame, YO offered me her mare to ride again. Would not accept any money!

I love being at that yard! we have a fantastic time together! We also do a lot outside work, shopping trips etc.
 
Moved yard in july and new YO is amazing, soooooo helpful with my girl esp when we first arrived and we had a bit of a break down in communication she rescued me a few times when S planted in her field and I could do nothing with her and again when she REALLY went into season for the first time since I got her.

Hopefully never have to leave :-)
 
My YO is brilliant, he does all repairs pretty much straight away, he will deliver hay and straw as soon as you ask, he has made a little paddock for my OH's poorly baby so he doesn't get bullied by the bigger babies, he will turn out for me when I'm feeling like **** (eight and half months pregnant and like a beached whale atm) and doesn't charge, and he and his wife and 3 kids are some of the best ppl I know
 
Love our yard owners! Makes the yard such a nice place to be,they don't tolerate any bitchy-ness and everyone on the yard gets on well,can't do enough for the horses,always their to help and give advice just generally lovely people,makes it like a big family. Also big yard rule is whenever its someones birthday they must bring a big chocolate cake so we never go hungry!:D
 
What a nice thread. I agree that often we focus on the negative things about our yards/yard owners and I too am guilty of complaining about the bad things and ignoring the good things.

My Y/O has been a godsend this year. She came to most of my XC competitions, walked the course with me, tacking up for me, groomed for me and generally helped me out.

When my pony injured himself she would bandage/poltice him for me each morning before turning him out (not an easy task especially as she was rushing to get to work herself) and didn't charge me a penny extra for doing this.

I'm hoping to return the favours next year by taking her & her horse out and about with me to some competitions.
 
I would be lost without my YO, she has been so helpful with Ali. The yard is tidy, clean and quiet, everything is well maintained. Very contented horses and happy owners all round!
 
Known my YO 22 years. She initially taught my daughter to ride and we have had horses there for eight years. It's very basic farm livery, but she is always friendly and chatty and, most importantly, every horse that has been there (not just ours) has really chilled out and been happy. I wouldn't want to move!
 
grumpyoldmare said:
I have the most wonderful YO. She feeds all of mine for me every morning and afternoon at no extra charge. She often spends hours with them just fussing and grooming them. I have as much turnout as I could want - mine are turned out 24/7 but I have stables available for me to use if I so wish.I agree completely with all her methods of caring for and handling horses.

She always repairs any fencing the minute it needs doing.

This is the best yard I have ever been on, and the most economical by far.

Wouldn't change it for anything - if you are interested the place is called.....home and the owner is non other than myself!:D
Click to expand...


Totally agree :) definitely the best suited yard Ive been on :p :D.
 
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