Livery Owner liablity

R

Rainbowbright

Member
Joined
11 March 2011
Messages
17
Location
Cork, Ireland
Visit site
Hey all,

I eventually bought a horse! another tick off my bucket list! So i'm not sure where i stand on an issue...so if you wudnt mind helping me out i'd appreciate it....

I'm on full livery - Monday to Friday w part livery sat and sun. I brought my horse in on the sun evening. The next evening i was informed that my horse hurt the outside of his knee and that a vet needed to be called. I said if they think he needs a vet call them straight away.

Vet said it was like he had gotten a kick (he doesnt go out with other horses)

the YO said he must have kicked himself (highly unlikely)

YO cannot tell me whether he did it overnight in the stable, because they didnt have a quick checkover before they put him out, 'as it was a stable hand that put him out and the YO was talking to someone else and not looking at him, or whether it happened in the field, they only noticed it when the YO took him in that evening,' (the YO words) you cudnt miss it tbh his knee was x3 the normal size and the vet managed to get his whole baby finger into the wound! 3 hrs i was with the vet.

I didnt say much just left things go my priority was sorting out my horse. there was/is a possibility that he hurt his tendon sheath...but its healing SLOWLY now...but i still have no idea how it happened, i wudnt mind if i knew even WHEN it happened. I have been doing all the bandaging etc and they havent bothered to check how its doing and/or offer an explanation.

I noticed last weekend while i mucked out his stable that the rusty old wheelbarrow is EXACTLY bang on same height as his knee, i think maybe he hit off it when they were letting him out, i casually said this but they said no way, but they are hardly going to say ya r they? Its like a pure straight wound no jagged edges or going up and down its a pure slit.

Everyone i know is telling me its pure negligence and cant understand why im not reading them the riot act, the reason is cos i dont know where i stand...., he's on full livery Monday-Friday. Surley full livery means full care of the horse, i.e. feed, turn in and out, and checking for wounds/cuts, etc.

Anyone help me here...as i dont know where i stand.

Thanks a mil.
 
Unless you know how the accident occured then it is impossible to proportion blame on anyone.

I would suggest that you keep your eyes and ears open while you are at the yard and see how they operate on a day to day basis. If you find that things are not done to your requirements then have a quiet word with the owner manager.
 
Glad to hear that your boy is healing, hope he recovers fully soon.

Utlimately it is your word against YO's. She will say they called the vet and notified you as soon as the injury was discovered. They have already said it was not caused by the wheelbarrow - no way to prove of disprove this from your point of view.

The bottom line is, if you do not feel you can trust them and think your horse is in danger due to their neglience then look for another yard.

Full livery should mean that you can entrust the care of your horse 100% to the YO in the secure knowledge he is being looked after in your absence.
 
^^^ what Peter said that unless you can prove exactly what happened/how your horse was hurt then you cant lay blame on any one in particular.

Are you sure that the yard are not checking his wound at all? i cant see how you are the only one doing all of the bandaging etc if your horse is on full livery monday-friday or are you having to go up to do this?

I imagine you will never know what happened sadly. We once had a horse injured on my yard (well, in the field) and to this day we havent a clue how it happened, the vet was clueless, myself and every livery on the yard searched the fields that were open at the time (think of a police search, all in a line covering every blade of grass!), we actually went through the field 3 times and none of use could find anything to cause such an injury, and we were pretty sure it wasnt caused by another horse.

you have to trust the yard you are on if they are providing care for your horse, i'd try and have a word with the YM to say you are really concerned that you still dont know how it happened. If you really are not feeling comfy there and that you can trust them i'd suggest seeing what other yards are available in the area?

sometimes accidents do occur which are never explained but i do feel its pretty poor that they admit they never looked at him before turning him out, i imgine IF it was the borrow then surely they would have called you sooner to ask to get the vet?

it really is a tricky one, but i'm glad that your horse is healing well.
 
Last edited:
They should have checked the horse before turn out and should not have missed such an obvious wound if it did occur overnight. Saying 'the stablehand turned him out' is not an acceptable excuse and it shows this is probably not a yard you want to stay at.

Having said that, a legal claim of negligence would be very tough to prove. You would have to prove that the injury occured overnight, that they did not see it in the morning and that not seeing it in the morning caused extra harm (this is the only harm they would be liable for, not the injury itself, rather the harm caused by the delay in treatment). All of this sounds rather impossible to me!

I would just move my horse to a better yard. And yes, I would expect full livery to include changing bandages for an injured horse, cold hosing, giving medications, etc.
 
I'm in the same position - my boy was injured on a wire fence and no1 knows what happened. I'm angry that he was hurt and I'm angry that he could have been seriously hurt and not found for hours as they don't seem to check them during the day. unfortunately if you can't prove negligence then there's very little you can do
 
Thanx everyone for your input..

i am having to go up especially to bandage my horse every day for the last 2 weeks...i know they havent checked the wound because it only needs one change of dressing a day and i do it, the bandage has torn a couple of times and they just left it...i had to ask the last time to make sure they cover it up again when they see it and not to just leave it like that....ive been trying to contact my vet also to see where we go from here and for sum reason he contacted the YO, ( he told her he didnt have my number...i left it 3 times!) who by the the way, hasnt seen the wound in well over a week! I rang the vets and told them i wanted to hear from them not second hand from the YO god only knows what they would be telling me...still heard nothing... and the YO wont say anything til i go up this evening...i'm realy getting P*off with it, which is awful....

TBH honest it didnt even dawn on me that she should be bandaging as well as feeding him and giving him is anti-bs in his food...i've just been trying to fix him...she wudnt inject the anti-bs the first week either..."i'm not insured to inject" so i had to do it...like i had a clue! ok she showed me how but she's the one w d veterinary exp and exams etc done...

Oh im just so stressed by it!
 
Congrats on finally getting your horse, glad he's healing well....YO is right she shouldn't be injecting your horse, I have done it for sqeamish liveries but tbh I shouldnt as they could sue me if things went wrong. Perhaps this is why she wont touch the wound either, incase she is accused of causing more problems? Talk to her about it, but perhaps you need to find a yard that has the services and facilities you need. The thing with yards is every one is different from the other so you need to find out exactly who does what before handing over care of your horse. Good luck, hope you sort it out.:)
 
You need to ask yourself the following:

1: Do you trust their honesty, vigilance, handling and care of your horse (Sounds like you don't)
2: Do you think you would be able to stay at that yard if you took it further? (No)
3: Will it eat away at you staying and doing/ saying nothing (Probably, Yes)
4: Are you happy and confident in their capacity to take good care of your horse 90 percent of the time? (Probably not)
5: If you took the matter further would you get anywhere with it? (Doubtfull)
6: Do you really want to stay at this yard considering the above? (I wouldn't)

If it was a genuine accident and they really didn't know how it happened and the aftercare and general care of the horse was up to standard I would let it pass, but it sounds like you have lost all confidence in them and that it will fester, you pay a lot of money (full livery) to enjoy your horse a few hours at the weekend, you won't enjoy it anywhere near as much now, it sounds like it is neither good value for money for your enjoyment, peace of mind or your horses care.
 
I'm another one that has had a horse injure itself in the field, with no apparent cause. We walked the field and fence line many times, but found nothing. Once a livery came in with a damaged leg, and the vet initially thought that it was a kick, then later changed his mind - again we never found the reason... Horses are just like that sometimes - some could injure themselves in a padded cell.

I'm very sorry for you, I bet that it was upsetting with your first horse too. It sounds a bit as though the vet and YO aren't as worried as you, which is good really (although it doesn't feel it probably!). They have probably seen lots of similar injuies, and know more what need panicing about? Also, if the YO knows that the dressing only needs changeing once a day, and has seen that you do it, then perhaps she thinks that you want to do it. I wouldn't interfere with a dressing until it needed changeing, or I'd been asked. If the horse on livery needed a dressing changeing mid day when you were at work then I would do it for you without hessitation....

What does seem to be missing at your yard is a bit of care and communication. I would have a quiet chat with your YO and let them know that you are feeling a bit upset, and worried that accidents are getting missed. See what they come back with. When they told you that a yard hand had turned your horse out and not checked it, were they apologetic, or matter of fact? That would be a major factor with me in my decision on whether to stay or not.

Hope all works out well for you - am not meaning to oppose/upset you with my views, just throwing in my thoughts!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top