Loan horse...what is the right thing to do

[misst]

This is absolute b****cks! Don't pay anymore. Tell the vets and check who's name is on the bill. Horses can't be returned in the condition they were loaned in! The horse is 2 years older and has worked! It all sounds very suspicious. Please get out and find another yard for new horse asap.

 

[Dave's Mam]

So much so wrong here. I smell several rats.
If you are responsible for the pony's treatment, you should have been consukted. Who owns the pony?
Get somewhere new & better for your new pony.

 

[Chrissy333]

For two years we have loaned a pony for our daughter. It was organised by the owner of the stables where we pay for the livery. At the end of June we decided to buy a horse for our daughter as she was getting too tall and gave 2 months notice that we no longer needed to loan the pony. At the end of June I got a bill from the vet for a sacroiliac injection and when I questioned it the owner of the stable told me the pony was sore after a cross country event my daughter did. Since then I have been told the pony is lame and I have continued to pay for the pony to have injections. The notice period for the loan pony is about to finish and the owner of the stable has now written to me to say that I either pay £1,500 to have an MRI to find out what the real problem is or we put the pony on grass livery for 12 months at £305 per month and farrier cost of £70 per month to see if they pony gets better. If it doesnt get better then apparently the owner might decide to put the pony to sleep and I have to pay £300 for that.
The owner of the stable is saying it is my responsiblity to continue to pay all the bills as I need to return the pony in the same condition. I have asked if I could see a copy of the loan agreement but I dont believe there is one.
I would be grateful if you could let me know if what I am being told is what normally happens in this situation.
Thank you

Unless there is a psychical loan agreement with specifications about the health of the pony, I would not pay another penny. I'd force the owners hand and make him prove that the pony even had injections and for what reason. Then he'd have to prove this was due to the cross country ride. Did the pony pull up lame before, during or directly after that ride? When did he notify the vet and were you present during that vet visit or any other vet visit. It sounds l8ke your his cash cow and he's milking you for everything he can get so he doesn't have to pay for anything. You should have just bought the pony, it would have been cheaper in the long run. This is what I suggest. You get your own vet to come and do an exam independent of his vet. I'd have an equine chiropractor to do an evaluation. After that break all ties with the owner. Don't answer any calls from him. I wish you well.

 

[splashgirl45]

Definitely not on.. I was responsible for any vet bills while I had the horse but my owner told me that if horse went lame and I couldn’t ride her she would take her back and retire her. I had a proper contract even though I vaguely knew the owner , we both wanted it all in black and white… this YO is taking the pee

 

[Bellaboo18]

What absolute nonsense, do not pay anything and hand the pony back as soon as possible. You don't need to 'return the pony in the same condition', that would be almost impossible with horses/ponies.

 

[KatieDM]

Wow. Absolutely not. My understanding is that the owner of the pony should have insurance/funds for vets bills and, unless it was otherwise expressly stated, you’re not responsible. Have you covered any vets bills in the previous 2 years of loaning?

 

[SFW]

Thank you everyone for all the feedback and advice. It is very much appreciated.

 

[Honey08]

If there was a loan agreement surely you’d know - you’d have signed it and have a copy..

 

[Patterdale]

You should never have paid that first bill without getting all the facts and being present when the vet was there.

Walk away. Be prepared to be slandered far and wide but you can’t stop that.

A few years ago I LEASED not loaned, a lovely horse for 3 months. He spent most of that lame, starting in week 3. Fobbed off with ‘oh he’s stiff he’s been out of work’ etc. Then after rest he’d be sound for a week or two. Then lame again. The owner tried to make me pay to have it investigated, and refused to take the horse back stating I needed to return him in the condition he arrived in.

Whilst investigating the horses history, I found he’d had previous problems with the lame leg and had had it operated on, which she strenuously denied.

In the end I had to literally just drive the horse back to hers, turn it out in a secure looking field and drive away.

She still badmouths me to this day for laming her horse. These people are *****.

 

[Glitter's fun]

At the end of June I got a bill from the vet for a sacroiliac injection and when I questioned it the owner of the stable told me the pony was sore after a cross country event my daughter did. Since then I have been told the pony is lame and I have continued to pay for the pony to have injections.

How often do you see this pony? How often does your daughter ride it? Does she go to the yard without you? Were you told the vet was coming? Did it have a clipped piece of hair at the injection site? Were you told to rest it after the injection?
I don't see how this injection could have happened without you knowing about it. The usual thing after a sacroiliac injection is 24 hours box rest followed by 48 hours off work in a small paddock.
You have been told it's lame but when did they notice this? Is the pony ridden by other people too? Did you notice the lameness yourself?
This whole thing sound made up to me!

The notice period for the loan pony is about to finish and the owner of the stable has now written to me to say that I either pay £1,500 to have an MRI to find out what the real problem is or we put the pony on grass livery for 12 months at £305 per month and farrier cost of £70 per month to see if they pony gets better. If it doesnt get better then apparently the owner might decide to put the pony to sleep and I have to pay £300 for that.

Ludicrous! A con trick for sure. They think they have found a cash cow to milk & that you will react to emotional pressure if they threaten to PTS.

The owner of the stable is saying it is my responsiblity to continue to pay all the bills as I need to return the pony in the same condition. I have asked if I could see a copy of the loan agreement but I dont believe there is one.

There can't be a loan agreement that you don't know about. If you didn't sign one then there isn't one.

I would be grateful if you could let me know if what I am being told is what normally happens in this situation.
Thank you

What normally happens is you tell them to try it on someone else, you are not as green as you are cabbage-looking and then you walk away and avoid them hereafter.

 

[Melody Grey]

What absolute nonsense, do not pay anything and hand the pony back as soon as possible. You don't need to 'return the pony in the same condition', that would be almost impossible with horses/ponies.

Agreed. Would be the same as returning a hire car with the same number of miles on the clock.

 

[Lucky Snowball]

Agree with all the above. Not your problem.

 

[Palindrome]

Not only I would not pay, but I would deduct the amount from the final loan payment (unless you have paid the vet directly and are sure the pony received the treatment, then I would probably pay the treatment but only for the 2 months until the end of the loan period).

 

[Glitter's fun]

@SFW
Just wondering if you are getting on OK? The notice period is up now I think.

 

[Fransurrey]

Have you seen a copy of the invoice? Are you certain that the injection was even for this pony? As pointed out above, seems an odd course of action for a pony 'a bit sore after cross country'. SI injections aren't trivial. If the injection happened before the end of June i.e. during your loan period, it would have been expected that the loanee was notified and I would be taking that as failure of duty of care to the pony on the owner's part in any case! Imagine if you turned up the same afternoon and rode the poor creature!

Regarding further bills. These are a contract between the attending vet and the owner. Ignore and do not keep new horse there.

 

[PeterNatt]

If there was a loan agreement then you and the owners would have had to sign it before the loan period commenced.
In addition, it is normally the horse owner that continues to pay the insurance costs so as to ensure the horse is insured.
I would ask to see a copy of the loan agreement and if one does not exist then you have no obligations what so ever.