Opinions on keeping your horse at home?

Pros
you can muck out in your pjs.
Late night checks are easy.
Time saved as no travelling.
Costs saved unless increased mortgage out strips cost of livery.
You can do it the way that suits you.

I don't really know many pros as i have always kept mine at home so don't really know how it would be on a yard. I can't easily compare. But the cons I find are...

-cost of maintenance of the stables and field
-separation issues ( you need a friend for one, take that friend away and other one goes bonkers so you need another) so you actually have to have three...
No-one to help with behavioural issues e.g. loading problems
No-one to hack out with.

You cant choose your hacking/facilities.
If you want to go away...you have to find someone to look after them.
You have to be really organised re feed, equipment etc. There is no borrowing a bale of hay for example. Equally no-one else can help themselves. Another downside is the knowledge base that you miss out on. For example, I sent my mare of for schooling livery with her string vest and jute rug. Whilst in the livery yard i discovered that there was a rug called a thermatex...

But i have to say it is lovely to look out of the window in the morning and see my horses.
 
Last edited:
I love having my horses at home I am so so lucky .
Yes there are down sides the costs ,the maintenance ,the expense of the property the all encompassing nature of it .
Like Nudibranch above I think I will have to give up when we leave here and I see now that we won't be able to look after it as we get older and that's sad .
 
Whereas for me, retired horses at home would be bliss, but for ridden horses I love being on a yard and having other people around to motivate me, bounce ideas off and like having the facilities that a yard brings.

So unless I was in the position to have plenty of land/stables/facilities so I could have a few select liveries myself - then my preference is livery
 
Mine are on my own land a mile away. It's the best thing I ever did and you couldn't pay me enough to go back on a yard.

The only downside is the time spent maintaining it and poo picking. I have friends who help, one even has a digger so it's much easier than it might be. I don't have a school, which would be lovely, but it's not essential for me. Holiday cover is something that needs sorting. I have a friend in the same position so we help each other when needed.

I suppose if you were very sociable it might get lonely, but I'm not so it's bliss to be able to just enjoy my ponies and please myself.

I think the main benefit is I can keep them how I want to. Mine live out but have the choice of their stables at all times. They actually use them more in the summer for a snooze in the afternoon. If the weather is really awful I can keep them in the yard area if I want to.
 
My only con is I don't have a school or adult company to ride with but I do have transport so that really makes those moot point.

Oh and perhaps the fact it's easy to collect horses could be considered a con!
 
Echo what others have said really. The pros far out way the cons but its hard work. You spend more time maintaining post and rail and poo picking than you do riding and grooming! If you are flush with money and can afford the equipment to manage the land (quad/ moke, trailer, roller, topper ect) then life is much much easier ... So I've heard! :(

If I had to go back to livery not only would I have to sell one of my horses but I would seriously consider not keeping horses at all!
 
Home is the way to go, but it would be nice to be part of a community of other owners sometimes ... assuming no bitching or cliques of course. I like looking at mine out of my office window.
 
Last edited:
This is something I've been mulling over for a while. I've rented yards before so although they weren't at home, I've kind of experienced the best of both worlds.
In the next couple of years we're looking to buy somewhere a little further out, hopefully with enough land to keep the nags. However, all the while I am competing I would still keep the horses on livery. Maybe I've always been lucky, but I like the support you get from fellow liveries, especially when competing at the same events. The facilities at yards I've been on would always be better than anything I could afford. I like having people to hack with and I like knowing that I can book a last minuet break without worrying about the horses.
When I slow down competing (perhaps when children come along) I would move the horses home to ease the expense and time required every day.
I suppose it depends on your situation and what you want out of it. Keeping them at home is tough, but for some is totally worth it!
 
As with everything, there are pros and cons and it depends on you , your situation, and priorities. I used to have 6 horses at home, and worked full time. Needless today, I spent ALL my spare time doing the horses. Had I been on livery, i would never have had 6 but when you have your own land you tend to 'accumulate' them. Its hard work looking after the yard and land and there are a lot of things that need doing that when on a yard, you dont even realise. I found that I missed having people around me (and im not overly a 'people' person) and theres no-one to ride with, so your motivation can wane sometimes. And getting away for holidays (or even the odd night away) is a logistical nightmare. TBH, if you are on the right livery yard, I do think that works better than being at home. Saying that, if youre on the wrong livery yard, then home wins hands down. No politics, things going missing, barmy yard owners etc etc.
I now dont have 6 horses, I have 1, who is on DIY livery. Would i have them at home again ?? Im not sure. Ideally, i would have a property with a couple of looseboxes and an acre, and a superb livery yard 5 mins away, so i could bring pony home at weekends. But thats never likely to happen is it
 
Last edited:
I love having horses at home. I actually can't think of any cons as I like doing the maintenance of the place - it keeps me busy.

Everyone told me I'd be terribly lonely when I wasn't on a yard, but I'm not, it's absolutely delightful not having anyone else here. Chatting and faffing just used to waste a lot of time when on a yard tbh (not that it wasn't part of the attraction), and I generally used to hack alone anyway as I prefer it. I still have lots of horsey company, but I just get to choose who and when now.

Going away is troublesome, but I've never really been a fan of/had the money for that anyway
 
I love having them at home. I can walk out the back door and rub them. They become more like family pets because they are constantly around us. I have one horse that I share with a family member and two retired horses, three until recently.

They are out 24/7, with stables, if needed so it's much easier because there's not a lot of mucking out. Giving injections and other medical care that you may not do if the horse is in livery is pretty easy.

I take jumping lessons in a riding school and have some very experienced horsey friends so I can get advice when I need it.
However, if I wasn't sharing with a family member I would miss the company and support that comes with being on a yard.

Another benefit is no yard politics. It's great to be completely oblivious to these type of situations.
 
Last edited:
We moved last year and it is great having the horses at home although I have barely ridden since i've had them here! However that is more due to the fact I was recovering from an op and my main riding mare is no longer rideable so it's bringing the old boy back into work and i've rather lost motivation with all the renovations and the move etc. We have had to have the fencing all redone and next year we will build a menage and the land does need some work but I think if you don't have that much land it really isn't that bad. We have just got a kawasaki mule and will do the spraying and reseeding next year ourselves as relying on other people is a bit of a nightmare. After a few less reliable finds we now know someone who is excellent for maintenance around the place. I love the fact I can move the horses to whichever area I like even putting them on parts of the garden which saved mowing lol. I would recommend getting a livery so you have someone to ride with and share jobs with etc. I was lucky the lady who previously rented our land stayed on and thankfully is very nice. Our next door neighbour also does animal sitting so have someone nearby for backup. I'd definitely say it is worth it although I did always love being on a livery yard but it is so much nicer having control.
 
DabDab said:
I love having horses at home. I actually can't think of any cons as I like doing the maintenance of the place - it keeps me busy.

Everyone told me I'd be terribly lonely when I wasn't on a yard, but I'm not, it's absolutely delightful not having anyone else here. Chatting and faffing just used to waste a lot of time when on a yard tbh (not that it wasn't part of the attraction), and I generally used to hack alone anyway as I prefer it. I still have lots of horsey company, but I just get to choose who and when now.

Going away is troublesome, but I've never really been a fan of/had the money for that anyway
Click to expand...

Agreed. I ride much more now I am on my own and not stopping for a five minute chat every ten minutes and I've gone from a happy hacker to being much more competitive and wanting to further my riding and compete more, lol :)
 
What do people do when they go away? Get a freelance groom in to cover?

I'm away from home for work a lot and visit parents every other weekend, I have no friends/family locally who could help, so can't imagine having him at home would work out cheaper even if I had the facilities?
 
shadeofshyness said:
What do people do when they go away? Get a freelance groom in to cover?

I'm away from home for work a lot and visit parents every other weekend, I have no friends/family locally who could help, so can't imagine having him at home would work out cheaper even if I had the facilities?
Click to expand...

That is a Con. I share with a family member so if one of us is going away the other will stay with them.
 
shadeofshyness said:
What do people do when they go away? Get a freelance groom in to cover?

I'm away from home for work a lot and visit parents every other weekend, I have no friends/family locally who could help, so can't imagine having him at home would work out cheaper even if I had the facilities?
Click to expand...

In that kind of situation it is useful to have a trusted friend/livery keep horses there on a deal! I've got mine on a lovely private stud and pay a pittance but do help out ad hoc. A few years ago my friend bought a house with land and stables and moved them from livery. I went with her and we buddied up. Only real way unless you have enough cash to pay a freelancer
 
shadeofshyness said:
What do people do when they go away? Get a freelance groom in to cover?

I'm away from home for work a lot and visit parents every other weekend, I have no friends/family locally who could help, so can't imagine having him at home would work out cheaper even if I had the facilities?
Click to expand...

My mum is house sitting to look after the dog, cats and chickens and will check the horses daily and I have a friend coming once a day to poo pick and check them over and she will be paid for her time and also a horsey neighbour for backup. My horses are out 24/7 anyway.
 
ihatework said:
In that kind of situation it is useful to have a trusted friend/livery keep horses there on a deal! I've got mine on a lovely private stud and pay a pittance but do help out ad hoc. A few years ago my friend bought a house with land and stables and moved them from livery. I went with her and we buddied up. Only real way unless you have enough cash to pay a freelancer
Click to expand...

Ah, I see. I think I need to find a friend like that one day!
 
Antw23uk said:
My mum is house sitting to look after the dog, cats and chickens and will check the horses daily and I have a friend coming once a day to poo pick and check them over and she will be paid for her time and also a horsey neighbour for backup. My horses are out 24/7 anyway.
Click to expand...

That sounds good. If I ever did it, I have no one who could help so would have to go down the freelance route. Something to bring me back to earth when I'm daydreaming on RightMove :D
 
I've been doing this for a year and 9 months. Previous to that I used livery yards. Yes I do appear to exist in a permanent state of exhaustion but the horses are very happy and its lovely being with them all the time. Also lovely not having stuff nicked, having turnout restricted and being restricted to when you can ride! As for company I have neighbours with horses and have a couple of sharers. Lack of holidays is quite difficult to manage but I only worry when I'm away anyway!
 
Love having them at home. It's hard work, incredibly hard work.

Every single job comes down to the individual.

But I love it. Wouldn't change it for the world.
 
I really really miss company. I love more than anything, having my retired horse and pony buddies at home but not really ridden ones as I'm just not really into the riding alone all the time so really don't ride anywhere near as much as I need to. I'd love to be able to put my ridden horse at a yard, however I'd also want to be allowed to turn out daily through out winter which seems a very tough suggestion at livery yards round here!
 
shadeofshyness said:
What do people do when they go away? Get a freelance groom in to cover?

I'm away from home for work a lot and visit parents every other weekend, I have no friends/family locally who could help, so can't imagine having him at home would work out cheaper even if I had the facilities?
Click to expand...

Away, away? What is this "away" you speak of??



(We have horses not holidays lol)
 
shadeofshyness said:
What do people do when they go away? Get a freelance groom in to cover?

I'm away from home for work a lot and visit parents every other weekend, I have no friends/family locally who could help, so can't imagine having him at home would work out cheaper even if I had the facilities?
Click to expand...

I use free lance help I have two freelancers I use ATM at times I have had three .
So between them they pick up what I do when I am away .
They also do the dogs and cat but often my older dogs go to my friends and I take the youngster with me .
For years I was really lucky my mum and dad used to stay in the house do the yard at night andlook after the house pets .
It was lovely and they loved it I really miss their back up but it's too much for them now .
 
One thing you need to consider is a plan for worse case senarios .
I had one break her leg while I was away so asking friends to have a quick look at grazing horses can be problematic when a mayor disaster happens .
It's my observation the horses like to get into bother when I am away , I think it's likely to because they get less work .
 
For away times we are lucky - my friend/neighbour is an instructor and freelance groom so she does it for either £ or grazing. If we didn't have that option I'd use one of the freelancers.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top