moving yards after only a month?

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1 June 2013
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So, I have decided to leave this yard after being on for only a month. I'm on a full livery package. Looks great on the face of it, good facilities, turnout to die for. The problem is I have found it difficult to accept the yard's blanket approach to care - they are all fed the same compound hard feed (no matter what work they are doing) one small haynet per day while they are in (despite my requesting 2 large ones). My boy is a chunky maxi cob- a good doer- but still needs to munch during the day. He doesn't like the new hard feed so I have had to buy the old stuff myself and get the staff to feed this. I have had snide comments made from the staff that he is too fat and greedy which I feel is totally out of order, and innacurate. I was at my other yard for 4 years, and was able to agree a feeding plan with the YM acceptable to myself and my horse's weight plan. (I left my first yard after it was sold and new owners changed the livery package to a more expensive inflexible option). It's like the staff feel as if they know my horse better than me and decide what's good for him despite my requests!
The new yard I am on are also very slap-dash to general care; basics like feet not being picked out, mud not being brushed off and cuts not being noticed. I feel as if I am complaining every time I come down, but this should be basic stuff, and should be done at the very least as full livery. After speaking to the YO and YM explaining how I feel, they both got very defensive and said I had 'different' standards and that everyone else on their yard was happy. Don't think that is quite the case as I think there is apathy - most people grumble but don't want to move as they are settled. I don't think I or my horse are any better than anyone else, but I am used to individual requests being taken seriously. Now I feel my horse is just a number. I think the writing is on the wall - I may as well move now :mad:
 
So move then, you sound like you've decided. You don't like them, they don't sound like they like you. Easy decision. You've got to be happy.

For what its worth, I wouldn't be feeding a good doer cob much hay or hard feed in the middle of summer when the grazing is good.
 
So move then, you sound like you've decided. You don't like them, they don't sound like they like you. Easy decision. You've got to be happy.

For what its worth, I wouldn't be feeding a good doer cob much hay or hard feed in the middle of summer when the grazing is good.

....he's out at night for summer on poor grazing. (He's on soaked hay when he is in) Gets brought in at 9am, is exercised for 1 -2 hours per day, and is in until 4.30 when he goes out again. I really don't want him to be stood in with nothing to munch on all day. Hard feed just consists of handful of Hi Fi lite and handful lo cal nuts. His weight is good, and I am keeping a close eye on it. Has worked for the 8 years I have owned him so far.....
 
I certainly wouldn't want a good doer to be fed on any compound feed and wouldn't expect a knowledgeable YO/YM to want to do so.
I would move in your position.
 
The blanket approach to feeding is wrong. Different horses need different feeds & different amounts depending on their workload. The whole yard should not be on the same feed. I would imagine that they will get a discount buying a large amount of the same feed in bulk. They are not feeding for the horses health they are feeding as they are for financial gain.

If grooms are doing their jobs correctly feet should be picked out before going out & when brought in as a matter of course & the horses should be quickly be checked for injury. If they are not doing this then there is something wrong with the care offered or the ability of the staff to carry out basic care.

When YO & YM go on the defensive when they are challenged on something then it isn't good. They know that they aren't providing the correct care. It doesn't matter how little time you've been there, the care will not get any better with those managers & staff. I'd be moving on.
 
Glad you all think the same as me! Just dont like to feel as if I have lost control. Place feels like its run like a riding school an not a 5* livery like they advertise (no offence to any riding schools out there!) Toby Z has got it so right!
 
I had a similar problem on a full livery yard and left within a month. Even before I moved to it I explained that my boy had a history of ulcers, and that vet's instructions was that he must have ad lib hay, and if he was in his stable he must not be stood without any. I was happy to pay for more hay on top of the allowance. The result? Every morning I went up he had run out of hay, and other liveries were having to keep an eye for me and putting more in, despite the fact I was paying over £600 a month! When challenged the YM said he would colic if given too much hay?!?! Bizarre given the vet's express instructiosn were ad lib hay. Also, he only had a token feed, so wasn't like he was being stuffed full!

Oh, and they also thought it was a good idea to change his field partner without telling me, or to tell me that he'd then promptly been kicked and slipped over - that came from another livery too, but they said I didn't need to know?!

Get out of there and find somehwere that treats you like a paying customer.
 
Agree if not happy move however I can't imagine how fat a good doer on 2 big haynet and some hard feed would be even on poor paddock, I suspect they are trying fro help your horse
 
I'm surprised you didn't ask about that kind of thing before you moved in, but that aside probably best you move as you aren't going to be happy if constantly niggled by the care!
 
I'm surprised you didn't ask about that kind of thing before you moved in, but that aside probably best you move as you aren't going to be happy if constantly niggled by the care!

first on the written list of requirements I handed the yard was 2 x large haynets per day. no objection to that to my face, but goalposts obviously moved once I was there!
 
I had a similar problem on a full livery yard and left within a month. Even before I moved to it I explained that my boy had a history of ulcers, and that vet's instructions was that he must have ad lib hay, and if he was in his stable he must not be stood without any. I was happy to pay for more hay on top of the allowance. The result? Every morning I went up he had run out of hay, and other liveries were having to keep an eye for me and putting more in, despite the fact I was paying over £600 a month! When challenged the YM said he would colic if given too much hay?!?! Bizarre given the vet's express instructiosn were ad lib hay. Also, he only had a token feed, so wasn't like he was being stuffed full!

Oh, and they also thought it was a good idea to change his field partner without telling me, or to tell me that he'd then promptly been kicked and slipped over - that came from another livery too, but they said I didn't need to know?!

Get out of there and find somehwere that treats you like a paying customer.

strange that there are 3 horses on this yard with diagnosed ulcers, and one being scoped today for suspected ulcers? also a couple with reacurring colic. I rest my case.....
 
Agree if not happy move however I can't imagine how fat a good doer on 2 big haynet and some hard feed would be even on poor paddock, I suspect they are trying fro help your horse

OP didn't say her horse was fat, just that he's a good doer. I'm trying to keep Mollie's weight down too, but if she's in, she gets plenty of hay (double netted) as I won't have her standing with nothing to nibble.

OP this sounds very frustrating and like you, I'd move asap.
 
Your money, your horse, your choice - you have done everything right by talking to the YO/YM about your concerns, and if they aren't prepared to listen and talk to you sensibly about it then they shouldn't be offering a full livery service. :(
 
Agree if not happy move however I can't imagine how fat a good doer on 2 big haynet and some hard feed would be even on poor paddock, I suspect they are trying fro help your horse

hi-fi lite and soaked hay?! Hardly excessive feeding when they were trying to feed the horse mix like the other horses in the first place?! Somewhat doubtful that they are thinking about the horse.

I would say move, yes. You pay for a service and within reason (basic care) i'd expect my needs to be met. I dont think wanting different feed is out of order and they should surely be catering for each horse individually. Obviously not to the extent of stocking every feed ever made, but to a certain degree.

If the horse is only stabled for about 7 hours a day and then 1-2 out of that it is being ridden, i do think 2 large haynets is perhaps over doing it. I'd give that overnight (i dont like mine standing in without food) but 1 large net should be ok for 5 hours?
 
I agree that two large haynets seems a lot for a maxi cob at this time of year. However, I agree with the OP that they should not be stood in with nothing to eat for long hours. I have had a cob prone to weight gain on box rest here for eight weeks now. He gets five lots of haylage a day but they are very small nets and amount to only 1.75% of his ideal weight a day. He is still a little porky due to the lack of exercise.

As a yard owner, I will feed any standard hard feed the owner requires to their horses. Balancers and supplements are charged as extras. However, all my liveries leave feeding up to me. The horses are currently being fed Pure Feed Easy or Pure Feed Working, depending on their work load. This feed contains a balancer.

I did have one person come to see the yard who insisted that Top Spec Balancer was a feed and not a balancer and should be included in the basic livery package. :rolleyes: She got really shirty with me over it. Not the kind of livery I want here. If they are awkward even when being shown around the place, what on earth would they be like if they became a livery? Luckily, I had been tipped off about her by one of my current liveries though so was able to put her right off coming here. ;)

OP it does sound as though you need to find a different livery yard.
 
strange that there are 3 horses on this yard with diagnosed ulcers, and one being scoped today for suspected ulcers? also a couple with reacurring colic. I rest my case.....

It is thought that up to 80% of horses in hard work have ulcers, and around 50% of leisure horses. If it's a large yard, then 3 cases would not seem out of the ordinary. I have a horse here that has recurring ulcers. That is despite being out 24/7 and fed ad lib hay throughout the winter. We think in her case, the damage was done when she was starved at her previous yard. Owner had an operation and did not realise until she removed her rugs and found what looked like an RSPCA case. The mare was on full livery! :eek:
 
I once moved yards after only one month. Nothing wrong with it. Full livery is expensive so pay for the service you deserve. I'd def go elsewhere if you aren't happy. Moving really isn't that much hassle. After a month of incidents such as my horse getting cast and not being told, having to walk through other fields of loose horses to get to mine and being aggressively cornered twice by a liverys dog I was off!!
 
....update went down late this morning to find my boy munching happily on a decent sized net and a largish one soaking for pm. Feet immaculately picked out and turnout rug changed for fleece whilst in stable (as requested a month ago and only happening now). Smiles from the staff :)

Went to look for his fly mask in field (they always come off!) and discovered a nice crop of ragwort, growing merrily by the side of the water tank! Came back, told the YM who told me 'there's a rag-fork over there, go and dig it out'. :(
Back to square one......
 
....update went down late this morning to find my boy munching happily on a decent sized net and a largish one soaking for pm. Feet immaculately picked out and turnout rug changed for fleece whilst in stable (as requested a month ago and only happening now). Smiles from the staff :)

Went to look for his fly mask in field (they always come off!) and discovered a nice crop of ragwort, growing merrily by the side of the water tank! Came back, told the YM who told me 'there's a rag-fork over there, go and dig it out'. :(
Back to square one......

Well that is a strange attitude regarding the ragwort :confused:. However, Ragwort can sprout up extremely quickly. If a livery told me about some, I would ask for details of where and thank them. However, if all your other things are now being satisfactorily dealt with, then that is progress, surely? I wonder if the way in which you raise issues comes across rather accusatory? For example, if one of my liveries found some ragwort, they would be very polite and non confrontational about raising it. Something along the lines of:

"I'm know you are ultra careful about weeds in the fields, but I noticed a new bit of ragwort has sprouted and thought you would want to be told about it."

Sounds like you marched to the YM and 'told' her.
 
Well that is a strange attitude regarding the ragwort :confused:. However, Ragwort can sprout up extremely quickly. If a livery told me about some, I would ask for details of where and thank them. However, if all your other things are now being satisfactorily dealt with, then that is progress, surely? I wonder if the way in which you raise issues comes across rather accusatory? For example, if one of my liveries found some ragwort, they would be very polite and non confrontational about raising it. Something along the lines of:

"I'm know you are ultra careful about weeds in the fields, but I noticed a new bit of ragwort has sprouted and thought you would want to be told about it."

Sounds like you marched to the YM and 'told' her.

well, after all that's gone on, I'm certainly not in the mood for being 'nicey nicey' but I didn't 'march' up to the YM and start a confrontation! As you pointed out, you said you would ask for details of where the ragwort was and then deal with it. I didn't expect to be told to deal with it myself as a Full Livery!
As for my attitude with approaching the staff over 'issues', I have been very professional and tolerant in the 4 weeks I have been on this yard. As a paying customer, I think I should expect a better attitude in return.
 
well, after all that's gone on, I'm certainly not in the mood for being 'nicey nicey' but I didn't 'march' up to the YM and start a confrontation! As you pointed out, you said you would ask for details of where the ragwort was and then deal with it. I didn't expect to be told to deal with it myself as a Full Livery!
As for my attitude with approaching the staff over 'issues', I have been very professional and tolerant in the 4 weeks I have been on this yard. As a paying customer, I think I should expect a better attitude in return.

How much are you paying a month for the livery? Bear with me, it's a valid question.
 
Me too. If they have started making a special effort to accommodate your requests then it would probably help for you to stop complaining for a while and see how things go then.

I'm just talking about basic care, as I said earlier, not anything out of the ordinary. They shouldn't have to make a 'special effort' just to do the basics :(
Think I'm within my rights to let them know what I expect, especially if they sell themselves as '5* livery who treats every horse as an individual'.
 
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