Livery yards being closed, banned from seeing our horses

Moving my horses tomorrow, current livery yard is now back tracking on banning FL's on the yard, especially as I have just pointed out that the measures are pretty daft as all the DIY mares are in the same field as the FL mares and same for the geldings so all an sundry are using the same gates and chains. Everyone shares the yard wheelbarrows and muck heap fork. I also asked what was happening over the bank holdiay, and she has suddenly realised that she cannot provide care over the bank holiday weekend so suggested we would be allowed to do them on the Friday, Sat, Sun and Monday but then we would be banned again.
 
fredflop said:
I was thinking the point is that full livery not allowed at yard (fair enough as that’s the governments rules), and can’t ride, whereas the DIY’ers have been allowed to ride
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That's what I thought GW meant too, which tbf is not really on.

Also the fact that the DIY deliveries are up there for hours bathing the horses is not on imo, its not really essential horse care unless they need to be bathed for medical reasons.
 
sport horse said:
Life is not fair. Some people are not getting Coronavirus while others are and many are even dying. All you can do is publicy moan that you cannot see your horse. Get over yourself.
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You’re right I am moaning because my horse is a large part of my life and she helps keep my metal health on the right side of throwing myself off a bridge/overdose. I’ve never had to use my prescribed diazepam until this happened, I’m using it now and worried about how I’m going to get more to keep me on the level.

So maybe I should just ‘get over myself’ but that’s significantly easier said than done when your mental health is already on a shoogly wicket.

What ever happened to #bekind btw??
 
sarahann1 said:
You’re right I am moaning because my horse is a large part of my life and she helps keep my metal health on the right side of throwing myself off a bridge/overdose. I’ve never had to use my prescribed diazepam until this happened, I’m using it now and worried about how I’m going to get more to keep me on the level.

So maybe I should just ‘get over myself’ but that’s significantly easier said than done when your mental health is already on a shoogly wicket.

What ever happened to #bekind btw??
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I am sorry that you think my comments were not kind. I am sorry also that you suffer with mental health issues - believe you me I do understand. However I understand that those in the NHS are currently struggling more than most, working under extremely difficult conditions, staring death in the face on every shift and I do find it hard to sympathise overly with the OP who is jealous of DIY liveries having more access to their horses than she does. Somehow it seems to me to be so minor at this time as to be insulting to keep going on about it.

GW is now moving her horse - I hope the next yard will fulfill her dreams and that she will not need to publicly post her complaints. We shall see.
 
It's a hard one. On some interpretations, and certainly on an earlier version of the government guidance, the impression was that even on livery you can go and see to your horse. Of course, it was then for the individual yard to determine their own rules.

It's a shame some aren't fortunate enough to trust the people who work at or run their yards. I know with absolute certainty that should anything happen to me my boys are in the best of hands.
 
I have a fairly unpopular opinion on this. I don't see why yards are closed? We all know how to physically distance ourselves from others, with the plethora of government advice available. Many large organisations are still working - I popped into the office the other day and whilst it was quiet, there was a team of people sat at their usual bank of desks, working (I would guess, slightly closer than 2m apart). We are still going to the supermarket, petrol station etc and are all taking the advised precautions. So why can't we just do the same at the yard? Stay apart, and wash wash wash those hands? Luckily there are absolutely no restrictions at my yard. We are distancing ourselves as per government advice. We all have our own mucking out equipment and I expect using hand wipes when we get in the car (I do) it's only a small yard which obv makes it easier - I expect larger yards may be trickier, but I just feel banning people from their horses is a step too far. Maybe limiting visits from owners who are already on full livery as I guess this could be deemed as unnecessary travel, but enforcing full livery on DIY yards is a step too far. If that happened to me it would bankrupt me! And my horse is high maintence on three medications and simply couldn't be turned out 24/7 without having her meds administered.
 
A friend of mine has been banned from her yard. All liveries at said yard are on now full livery whether they like it or not, and if horses need extra care like medication that owners would normally provide, YO is charging them £20 per week for the privilege. :(

I agree with Muddywellies. So long as a barn can maintain biosecurity and social distancing, I don't think people should be banned from their horses. It's a lot safer than the supermarket. And we don't know how long this will go on for. Are yards going to ban owners from seeing their horses for three months? Six months? There will be a lot of abandoned horses and welfare issues.
 
Muddywellies said:
We are still going to the supermarket, petrol station etc and are all taking the advised precautions. So why can't we just do the same at the yard? Stay apart, and wash wash wash those hands?
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Unfortunately while many of us are indeed taking the advised precautions, far too many individuals are just not bothering to do so.

So that is why many yard owners are understandably being ultra cautious and reducing visits to a minimum. It’s easier than standing over every livery ensuring that they are complying with good practice at all times.
 
I think the idea is for people to stay at home as much as possible to restrict the transmission of the virus.

We need to think carefully about those who are putting their lives at risk who are working with 1000's of infected patients.

People are not perfect, mistakes will be made with handwashing, people will touch their faces without washing their hands, asymptomatic people breathe may put virus on surfaces others may touch. The less people are out the less likely people are to come in contact with the virus & spread it or catch it.

If it was adults only dying & being affected then maybe it is up to us what risks we as individuals feel comfortable taking & that includes YO who may scared of getting virus. Different people have different attitudes to the same level of risk. Can you blame a YO for not wanting lots of people on their yard touching things which they may also touch.

A child has now died in intensive care without family being able to be with him. People will start thinking differently if more children die. I don't blame YO's especially those with children or living with vulnerable or elderly people for wanting to restrict the amount of people on yards & the amount of time they are there to reduce the risk.

Put yourself in the position of the YO if someone said to you the less people that come on to this yard the less likely you & those you live with are to die of a highly contagious virus wouldn't you be tempted to want to restrict access to protect yourself?

Muddywellies said:
I have a fairly unpopular opinion on this. I don't see why yards are closed? We all know how to physically distance ourselves from others, with the plethora of government advice available. Many large organisations are still working - I popped into the office the other day and whilst it was quiet, there was a team of people sat at their usual bank of desks, working (I would guess, slightly closer than 2m apart). We are still going to the supermarket, petrol station etc and are all taking the advised precautions. So why can't we just do the same at the yard? Stay apart, and wash wash wash those hands? Luckily there are absolutely no restrictions at my yard. We are distancing ourselves as per government advice. We all have our own mucking out equipment and I expect using hand wipes when we get in the car (I do) it's only a small yard which obv makes it easier - I expect larger yards may be trickier, but I just feel banning people from their horses is a step too far. Maybe limiting visits from owners who are already on full livery as I guess this could be deemed as unnecessary travel, but enforcing full livery on DIY yards is a step too far. If that happened to me it would bankrupt me! And my horse is high maintence on three medications and simply couldn't be turned out 24/7 without having her meds administered.
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SO1 said:
I think the idea is for people to stay at home as much as possible to restrict the transmission of the virus.

We need to think carefully about those who are putting their lives at risk who are working with 1000's of infected patients.

People are not perfect, mistakes will be made with handwashing, people will touch their faces without washing their hands, asymptomatic people breathe may put virus on surfaces others may touch. The less people are out the less likely people are to come in contact with the virus & spread it or catch it.

If it was adults only dying & being affected then maybe it is up to us what risks we as individuals feel comfortable taking & that includes YO who may scared of getting virus. Different people have different attitudes to the same level of risk. Can you blame a YO for not wanting lots of people on their yard touching things which they may also touch.

A child has now died in intensive care without family being able to be with him. People will start thinking differently if more children die. I don't blame YO's especially those with children or living with vulnerable or elderly people for wanting to restrict the amount of people on yards & the amount of time they are there to reduce the risk.

Put yourself in the position of the YO if someone said to you the less people that come on to this yard the less likely you & those you live with are to die of a highly contagious virus wouldn't you be tempted to want to restrict access to protect yourself?
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But that isn't the wording from the government or the reasoning behind the lockdown. SLOW the spread of the virus to protect the NHS. Slow, not stop. Control it. We will never stop it going through the population, the minute movement is allowed again it'll come back.
 
Caol Ila said:
A friend of mine has been banned from her yard. All liveries at said yard are on now full livery whether they like it or not, and if horses need extra care like medication that owners would normally provide, YO is charging them £20 per week for the privilege. :(

I agree with Muddywellies. So long as a barn can maintain biosecurity and social distancing, I don't think people should be banned from their horses. It's a lot safer than the supermarket. And we don't know how long this will go on for. Are yards going to ban owners from seeing their horses for three months? Six months? There will be a lot of abandoned horses and welfare issues.
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I appreciate that it is difficult, but there is a big difference between a necessary trip to the shop and an unnecessary trip to visit your horse who could otherwise be taken care of by onsite staff. Of course if the yard is unable to provide care then the owner has to do it, but the risk is minimised if less people go.

Ultimately there is no point people in any country doing things like standing outside their houses giving applause for medical professionals if they are not first willing to follow the necessary steps to allow them to do their jobs. We all know by now that the less we are outside our homes the better. We do not know how long it will go on for, but we do know that the more the spread is suppressed the shorter the lockdown is likely to be. This is not going away, but right now the NHS needs time to prepare, and it needs the rate of growth to slow dramatically. We slow this by carrying on with necessary tasks, such as shopping or giving care to your horse where no onsite care is available, and stopping unnecessary tasks such as meeting friends or visiting your horse who can be given the basic necessary care by people already at the yard.

Having horses does not make us exceptions. Sure we need to find a way that they can be given appropriate care, but that is it. Some people will get to see their horses, some (like me) will not. But if not seeing our horses for a while is the worst thing we suffer through this we must count ourselves extremely fortunate.
 
QUOTE="Tiddlypom, post: 14236210, member: 106813"]Gw, you did well to find another yard to take them during the current lockdown. The last thing most yards want now is extra comings and goings.[/QUOTE]

Hi Tiddlypom, went back to a previous yard, which I only moved from to stop a 50 mile round trip, but needs must.

Amazing, bed was horrific and considering I was at the yard at 8 this morning, and they were supposed to have been done yesterday, it was impossible for that much muck to have accumulated overnight unless the horses had a poo party in my stable. The water buckets were disgusting and smelt and from the rub on the horse the rug had obviously not been taken off for days. YO was quite upset that I was leaving as I was one of her good payers and asked me how she was supposed to pay her staff, as I have always been an extra month in advance which i would normally have paid yesterday, and she owes me my deposit back. Oh well and before some of you have a pop, I do not think I have ever seen as many folk on that yard, I counted more people than horses whilst i was loading up, including some having a cup of tea in a group, so so much for keeping the numbers down on the yard.
 
I dont really think people should blame the YOs, the government has made the guidelines and they are trying to implement them the best they can.
Maybe our horses wont be done exactly as we would like, but this is a difficult situation and one where if we ALL do our utmost to keep this disease at bay the sooner it will be under control and the sooner the measures will be relaxed.
 
stormox said:
I dont really think people should blame the YOs, the government has made the guidelines and they are trying to implement them the best they can.
Maybe our horses wont be done exactly as we would like, but this is a difficult situation and one where if we ALL do our utmost to keep this disease at bay the sooner it will be under control and the sooner the measures will be relaxed.
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I agree, to a degree. However I think some will see this as an excellent money making exercise
 
Michen said:
But that isn't the wording from the government or the reasoning behind the lockdown. SLOW the spread of the virus to protect the NHS. Slow, not stop. Control it. We will never stop it going through the population, the minute movement is allowed again it'll come back.
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And we need some people to catch it and recover, to then build immunity as a nation. It'll be very intetesting when we get the antibodies test.
 
Amymay said:
I agree, to a degree. However I think some will see this as an excellent money making exercise
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Whilst each and every one of us has a part to play in this, the biggest problem is the highly populated areas (all those people cramming onto the tube last week!). Stopping country folk seeing their ponies really isn't going to massively add to the spread of CV if everyone complies with distancing advice.
 
stormox said:
I dont really think people should blame the YOs, the government has made the guidelines and they are trying to implement them the best they can.
Maybe our horses wont be done exactly as we would like, but this is a difficult situation and one where if we ALL do our utmost to keep this disease at bay the sooner it will be under control and the sooner the measures will be relaxed.
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This. Totally agree.

Our YO has gone out of her way to help us, I know it's proper stressed me out with the hour limit. But they have to abide by rules set by BEF, BHS, FEI which is fed to them from government.

As for those that are saying that its lucrative for YO's at the moment. I think the present situation will help a lot of yards who may be struggling with making a living and coming out of the year with a profit but its only fair I guess. They offer a service and that's what's important and there are ways of horse owners cutting down on expenses, I'm looking at cutting down on my supplements, bedding and the amount of hay I give my horse now they are out at grass more.

It's very difficult times ahead, some people can't see further than the end of their noses. This country will take decades to recover and things won't be the same again for a long, long time, if ever. I suppose the more we accept this now, the easier it will be in the long run.

I think large companies will take advantage, there's already a suggestion that I won't be taken back on my original rate of pay by the firm I'm temping for when this thing is over. I can see this happening all over. Businesses have had to furlough people so need to make money on the back of this.
 
Amymay said:
I agree, to a degree. However I think some will see this as an excellent money making exercise
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My YO told me yesterday that he's eligible for the funding for the self employed. I was half expecting him to chuck us all out so he could have an easy few months :p (ARGHHH joke in case anyone starts correcting the whys and wherefores o_O)
 
Amymay said:
I agree, to a degree. However I think some will see this as an excellent money making exercise
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Which might backfire on them if someone on DIY is suddenly expected to find extra for full livery. Especially if their employment situation has changed unexpectedly.
There are no easy answers to all this and I think different livery setups will have different pressures.
 
Amymay said:
I agree, to a degree. However I think s
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It is really sad, but its amazing how your sixth sense kicks in when the facts are not appearing to stack up.

New yard, very much wanting to keep everything under control, have to use disposable gloves, tack room is off limits currently, and you are assigned a time you are allowed on the yard. All liveries regardless of being full or part or DIY are only allowed to visit once per day, and only the person doing the horse is allowed on site, no partners, friends etc.
If the rule is not obeyed then the horse either has to be removed or be put on full livery with no visiting rights unless supervised by the YO
 
Berpisc said:
Which might backfire on them if someone on DIY is suddenly expected to find extra for full livery. Especially if their employment situation has changed unexpectedly.
There are no easy answers to all this and I think different livery setups will have different pressures.
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Hi Berpisc, but they also have to consider how they are treating the Full Liveries as well as its easier to drop down in a livery package which opens up many more yards after we get through this.
 
teapot said:
Perhaps yard owners are limiting access to reduce risk to their staff or themselves? Spare a thought for the equestrian centres that have had to completetly shut down. This could completely change the industry as we know it :(
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Teapot - everything is going to change as we know it, and whilst i understand some of your thoughts to have one set of folk spending hours at the yard and another group being banned at the same yard, in the same barns, using the same fields and muck fork and being allowed to ride out, it does not make sense, unless they are hiding something. It was obvious after my arriving on the yard to day that basic care in the terms of the horse is still alive were just about being met, a dirty bed is one thing, water buckets that had rings round and dirty yellow water in them and a rubbed wither and clots of hair does not mean they were getting basic care, which i was still paying full whack for. No wonder they do not want the FL's on the yard. I have posted pictures to my friends on the full livery yard and a few rather difficult questions are being asked by many of them.

The yard still has full staff, so what was the excuse ?
 
If I was a yard owner, I would ask people to wash their hands on arrival and departure, and I would have an old fashioned bar of carbolic soap tied with string to the tap! I would ask people NOT to congregate, but do their jobs, ride, and then go home. Tbh I would be marching around a bit like the gestapo at peak times to break up any gatherings, keeping myself 2m apart. But I wouldnt stop people seeing their beloved ponies who in many cases, are keeping people sane at the moment.
 
Muddywellies said:
If I was a yard owner, I would ask people to wash their hands on arrival and departure, and I would have an old fashioned bar of carbolic soap tied with string to the tap! I would ask people NOT to congregate, but do their jobs, ride, and then go home. Tbh I would be marching around a bit like the gestapo at peak times to break up any gatherings, keeping myself 2m apart. But I wouldnt stop people seeing their beloved ponies who in many cases, are keeping people sane at the moment.
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Well Muddywellies I wish you were a yard owner, you have a very practical sense and would be appreciated by your liveries, well some of them ! lol
 
Gingerwitch said:
It is really sad, but its amazing how your sixth sense kicks in when the facts are not appearing to stack up.

New yard, very much wanting to keep everything under control, have to use disposable gloves, tack room is off limits currently, and you are assigned a time you are allowed on the yard. All liveries regardless of being full or part or DIY are only allowed to visit once per day, and only the person doing the horse is allowed on site, no partners, friends etc.
If the rule is not obeyed then the horse either has to be removed or be put on full livery with no visiting rights unless supervised by the YO
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I’m torn as I know we’re supposed to limit travel and if on full livery we don’t have to go for essential care. But if this goes on for longer, I’d love it if more yards would so this. But on the flip side, I know this is for the greater good.
 
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