Moving horse home - any tips?

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tatty_v

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In a couple of weeks I will be moving my horse from his current livery yard a mile up the road to our new stables at home. We've been at our current livery yard for three years. It took my horse a while to settle in and we've had our fair share of issues to manage (mainly caused by his separation anxiety and his turnout companion only going out for 4hrs a day!) but he is happy and settled now and I am naturally anxious about making this move as stress free as possible for him. To that end:

- a fellow livery is joining us with her two horses, who he is currently stabled next to and who he is very fond of
- we have hacked him up past the house and the new stables lots of times so he is familiar with the area

If anyone has any tips on how to manage the transition for him I'd be more than grateful. For example, my horse is currently stabled overnight but my fellow livery keeps her horses out 24/7 in the summer. I don't know whether to carry on with his stabling routine (he loves a routine, I think as a naturally anxious horse he likes to know what's going to happen when!) or let him stay out 24/7 given that he'll have company all the time, which he hasn't had for the last three years. I don't want him going feral though...

Decisions decisions! I am probably overthinking it all and he may surprise me, but it's nice to have a plan and be prepared for all eventualities!
 
As his companions will be living out I would leave him out as you may find him more unsettled by being stabled alone.
He's moving with friends and I have found with mine that when they move with a friend they are much more settled in their new home than moving by themselves. (I've just moved mine last week).
New yard, new routine. Just because he's out doesn't mean you can't do things with him so no need for him to go feral.

I hope the move goes well for you.
 
We put them out in a small fenced off area (at home). We made that bigger and gradually separated the two until they were on opposite sides. Then I started going for hacks alone instead of riding in the field and leaving in the stable for an hour after a hose. Keep increasing the time until it's at however much you want it to be! Good luck - having your horse at home is the BEST!
 
Congrats on the move - having them at home is lovely. I would be tempted to start turning out next to companions and gradually move to full turnout together. Make the most of having them home and full turnout - very few horses don’t adjust to it very well with company. It will be winter soon enough. My riding mare, who came from a livery and was a bit of a princess is now more than happy to stay out or go in as I want (along with her companions).

I rode on day 2 of arrival - I tried to keep the work consistent and she didn’t bat an eyelid. Best of luck and enjoy.
 
Quick update - we did it! He’s home and has completely surprised me by how settled he has been. It’s like he knows we live here �� I’m sure there will be some hiccups along the way but for now I’m just so pleased. Thank you for all the advice and positive vibes!
 
tatty_v said:
Quick update - we did it! He’s home and has completely surprised me by how settled he has been. It’s like he knows we live here �� I’m sure there will be some hiccups along the way but for now I’m just so pleased. Thank you for all the advice and positive vibes!
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Congratulations!

They really do respond well to being able to see you at odd times of the day.
 
Sallyfinn said:
Congrats. It’s lovely having them at home but try to resist the temptation for “one quick check” every 5 minuted!
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This made me chuckle! So far I have managed to restrict myself to one extra late night check :) It was only his second night in his new stable last night and he'd clearly had a good old sleep in his big straw bed so I'm thrilled. Just seeing him so relaxed and having flexibility on turnout and bring-in timings after 3.5 years of stress on our old yard with separation anxiety etc is such a relief!
 
Congratulations, it's a great feeling isn't it? We moved ours (my boy and my sister's) to our house in Jan 2016 and it's been brilliant. They were the best of pals anyway and we moved them together so they were quite settled straight away. I like being able to decide the routine and make it flexible to suit the weather/other plans etc. You just can't do that on most livery yards.

I still do a late night check ;)
 
Being able to keep doing the quick checks if you are concerned is a real blessing with horses at home. Have had mine at home nearly 20 years and the only down side is that life is so peaceful it takes less to make them excited, And they are definitely a bit more clingy to their pals. But I wouldn't go back to livery if I could ever help it as I love having them with me and having my own 'rules'
 
tatty_v said:
This made me chuckle! So far I have managed to restrict myself to one extra late night check :) It was only his second night in his new stable last night and he'd clearly had a good old sleep in his big straw bed so I'm thrilled. Just seeing him so relaxed and having flexibility on turnout and bring-in timings after 3.5 years of stress on our old yard with separation anxiety etc is such a relief!
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I have had mine at home for years and I would not dream of failing to check (and indeed hay) at 10pm. I have over many years of both my own and liveries, saved the lives of several horses by catching colic and pneumonia early and being able to get vet out. That is the bonus of having them nearby.
 
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