Livery Yard opening times

Wagtail said:
When I had my horses on DIY we did this and it does work really well. The problem with a part and full livery yard though is that the owners don't feed and so all you get is a disturbance of the horses.

I guess I just lke the fact that all the horses have been fed and their breakfast nicely settled in their stomachs before they are ridden. I wouldn't like any of them to be pulled out of their stables and worked before breakfast, though I expect they would get used to it. However, everyone says how suddely calm their horses become when they move to our yard. Some have changed from complete stress heads to nice calm horses.
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Sorry just noticed this... Completely agree. My horse turned from a complete stress head, to a mild mannered and stress free lad in his stable when we moved to the yard I'm on now. Purely because of the routine :)
 
I was often up at previous yards in the middle of the night (routinely arriving after 10) partly because I work late, partly because I could guarentee avoiding the other liveries at those times. Now I have my own little yard, I go up at more normal times because I don't have to avoid anyone :) I wouldn't move anywhere with restricted times because i have been known to wake up at 3am in a panic having decided that one of my horses has injured itself / spontaneously combusted / any irrational disaster has befallen them and for my own sanity it is easier just to go up and check on them! If your liveries aren't neurotic, then that probably isn't a problem for them! :o
 
There are no restrictions at our yard, but I think we're quite lucky in that everyone here who's likely to come up especially early or late is of the experienced and responsible type.

First person up must feed all (which does take a while, and it's usually me!). If I am to ride before work, I need to be at the yard between 6 to 6.30am and it's a lovely time of day to ride :)

And now we're in June and the days are longer, many people are going for late evening rides, to avoid the heat and flies. The last person to leave, has to do a yard check to ensure everything is locked up and horses are all OK.
 
When I had my pony on DIY livery I competed in Endurance as I do now.

We would often leave the yard at 6 or even 5.30 in the morning ,if doing the longer distances.

If the yard I was at had opening times then I would have to have moved. I was always very quiet so did not disturb the other horses.

I now have my own yard so no problem.
 
Im on DIY and have none but we all respect the fact that someone lives on the yard literally right next to my stable and a load of others. Having said that we are near London and a lot of people commute to/from work and so will ride before (at 5am) or after (at 8pm onwards) work, but are quiet. We try to be quiet before 8am and after 9pm. At uni we didnt have one apart from in winter as it was dark. They didnt unlock the gate until about 6.30 on the DIY yard though in summer and in winter it got shut at 6.30 but not till much later in summer! The part/full livery yard didnt have times :)
 
Im sure my yard doesnt have opening or closing times, someone from the yard does her horses at 4.30am before she goes to work so she only has to bring them in from the field n the evenings and im up at the yard untill about 11pm every friday as i jump him later to get the school to my self lol. so yea i dont think we have any restrictions
 
Ours is full livery and DIY. We don't have any opening hours - gates are locked when staff leave for the day, but liveries know the code to get in.
I am another who wouldn't like a yard with restricted opening times as I work in London and need to be able to ride late evenings.
 
My last yard there was no opening times - in winter if you were last on the yard you'd just beep so the YO would know go turn the lights off.

My new yard is open until 7pm weekdays and 6pm on the weekends. Don't know when it opens though! If medical treatment is required, shows etc we just let the YO know and he's fine if its out of those times. In the winter evenings he will clock watch and tell you to hurry - all in a banter way so not offensive. There's no opening times in summer - just need to be respectful as YO lives onsite.

Horses are in during winter months so I find the opening times helpful as you know when others will be brought in/put out. It's not ideal but its the cheapest yard in the area and is well managed.
 
No rules, any time, any day, but I do full board not DIY, no one would dream of feeding their horses themselves, that's what they pay me to do, people come, play with their horses, chat, laze around and go. They do tell me if they will be rocking up late, or early,
I've had new horses arrive at midnight before - no bother, I'm a night owl anyway.

The barn is on my doorstep but it really doesn't bother me when people turn up.

If I want privacy then I use the back lawn or the patio which is screened, actually, if I wanted privacy then I'd never have set up a boarding facility come to think of it, we just get on with what we are doing, with a 2 acre garden there is room to stay out of the way, mostly people will sit around the back of the barn where the hitching posts and the riding paddocks are, it's a mutual respect thing.

If people want me and I'm not around, then they come in the basement, or yell, or phone/text from the back door!
 
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We can access the yard 24/7 of needs be. Some owners arrive to turnout at 5am (!!!???) and i know some people are there late into the evening. Yard is self contained DIY yard though and you have to pass a private house to get there and a worker who lives on site at the entrance who keeps an eye out to see who is coming in and out overnight. Dotn think i woudl do 24/7 access if i had a yard- even if it was DIY. think i would do 6am -9pm unless emergency :)
 
Im on a DIY yard and we have no opening times. In winter the only rule is all horses to be in before dark, however YO brings in if people cant get up before dark as its only small yard. I would only be up early if it was for a show. My share horse is also on DIY with no openings, at moment out 24/7 in winter his owner will turnout unless she is away then ill do it before i go to work so will be 7.30-8ish
 
8.30 am - 9 pm wouldn't allow me ride before and only *just* after work. I work full time in a city and travel a bit over an hour from there to the stables. Then obviously have to change, catch, tack up and so forth. So, might be OK in a rural area with local liveries or for 'ladies who lunch' but for those of us further away I do look for at least 9:30pm opening. On the current yard there is a substantial hedge between the public and private parts :-)
 
I would have thought for owners who work full-time and commute that they would need opening times of 6am until 10pm regardless of the type of livery.

The DIY yard I'm on has no set opening times despite us having to walk past someones front door on the way to the field.

The livery yard I'm on opens at 8am and closes at 8pm in the summer and 7pm in the winter as the YM doesn't live on site. Long standing liveries have their own keys and can turn up whenever they wish providing they feed if they are first up in the morning and can manage to lock up when they leave.
 
I guess I am lucky then that the yard opening times suit my clients. They all seem happy. In the summer, a couple of them come early on show days and if they need to stay late due to being late at work then they can, so long as I know about it. It is a small yard though and I suppose that if I wanted to increase my client numbers I may have to stretch the opening times a bit. :)
 
LaurenM said:
My last yard there was no opening times - in winter if you were last on the yard you'd just beep so the YO would know go turn the lights off.

My new yard is open until 7pm weekdays and 6pm on the weekends. Don't know when it opens though! If medical treatment is required, shows etc we just let the YO know and he's fine if its out of those times. In the winter evenings he will clock watch and tell you to hurry - all in a banter way so not offensive. There's no opening times in summer - just need to be respectful as YO lives onsite.

Horses are in during winter months so I find the opening times helpful as you know when others will be brought in/put out. It's not ideal but its the cheapest yard in the area and is well managed.
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I'm actually :o at times it is open until! I could never cope with being kicked off the yard at those times - what if you work until 5 and want to ride? 6pm on weekends? I'd be very peeved to be paying good money and have to rush. I understand that YOs have a right to privacy, but I think those times are particularly harsh.
 
Really, it doesn't matter what the opening times are because if people don't like them they won't come to the yard. Running a yard that is full or part livery is 7 days a week, 365 days a year, for next to no profit (if the yard is small). Yes, I choose to do it because I love it, but I need some time when people are not around and it is nice that my liveries are resepectful of this. They are a lovely bunch :)
 
Not read all the replies but our yard is purely for DIY livery at opens at 6.15am, closes at 9.15pm, all year round. If its going to be out of those times, YO just needs to be told and she's absolutely fine about it. We had a nice little rota routine for feeding over winter - different person each day, and that person would feed all the horses so they were all fed before 8.30.
I can completely understand it - that's their home after all, and it stops their little boy being disturbed too early too :)
K x
 
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The first yard I was at was a competition yard and their opening times were between 6am and 9pm. This was because they had an automatic gate that the wanted to lock at night (for obvious reasons!), the gate would automaticly open at 6am. If for whatever reason you needed to be their earlier or later for a show or because horse was ill then the YO was quiet accomodating if you let him know.

Current yard has no rules but people are tend to be on the yard after 6 am and before 9pm anyway!
 
I was recently looking to move yards and found a beautiful private yard but they were getting sniffy about times too. Put me right off - if I want to ride early or late due to work, kids or weather (too hot or too wet) then I want to ride.

Also, I need to get to shows so 6am starts are common.

Each to their own but I couldn't work around those hours because of work and kids.
 
Can't believe there are such things as yard opening times!! We can go to do out horses at any time, in the winter, I go down to turn out my horse at 6 am, I do give him his feed in the field so that he is away from the other horses. Would really struggle personally with restrictions as I work shifts. I'm consciou
 
Damn I phone pre-empted me!! Am courteous towards the other horses on the yard and try not to disturb the owners, it's great to have a relaxed yard!!
 
I do think opening and closing times are actually a good idea. Then if somebody is snooping around the yard at closed times the YO will know they are not supposed to be there
 
My current yard doesnt have opening times I dont think. The staff are there about 8.30ish and feed the horses then finish about 5pm but its a grass/diy/part/full livery yard so people come at all times to ride etc. I've been past the yard after I finish work after 10pm and have seen the big indoor lights on. The arenas can be hired and a lot of trainers use the facilities so can be there till late.
 
We are on DIY and have no restrictions. But as owners live on site right next to the stables we are respectful of that and don't go up ridiculously early or late. Occasionally if we are at a show or late up in the evening we advise the YO.
 
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