Opinions please!! Long rant post!!

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toomanyhorses26

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I have been on the same yard for about 12 years now and have two horses on loan from the yard owner and her daughter and also one that I own. Ever since I have been there if you needed things doing eg bringing in, mucking out we have sorted it out between the liveries example I muck out someones horses on my half day and in return she brings my crew in on the nights that I work till 9pm. Always worked absolutely fine and we always made sure that the yard owner or instructor knew but today I have gone to the yard and we now have to pay £5 for mucking out,£2 for bringing horses in and £1 for changing of rugs. I know it doesn't sound like alot but it will soon mount up with my three being stabled at night. I 99% of the time turn my horses out in the morning but can't always be there until after 6 in the evening so I asked if could swap my turnout(which is included in the livery price) for some bringing in which was flately turned down. Sorry for the rant but so much has gone on in the yard in the last year - I ended up running it with a couple of others for about 3 months last year as well as trying to do my full time job and it all seems to be a bit money grabbing. Just wondered if other yards have similar policies and I have just had a bit of a sheltered life!!!
 
Confused. Surely there are other liveries you can still make reciprocal arrangements with and bypass the charging system? Thse prices are what my yard charges for assisted services by the way so they sound fair, but people still do favours for each other in return for getting helped out themselves.
 
We have been told that there are no favours to be done for anyone and any assistance needed has to go through yard owner or instructor and then a member of staff will deal with it. It's gone down the line of it being an insurance problem(also a riding school on site as well) but there has never been any accidents from people doing other peoples horses so I can really see the problem - can see the next yard meeting being fun!!
 
On the one hand I can understand that they want to make more money. This would be fine if money was exchanging hands amongst the liveries... but its not!

Under most 3rd party insurance you ARE caoverd for handling other peoples horses so long as no money is involved, so if you all have 3rd party their argument about insurance is simply an excuse. You could re-assure the YO on the insurance front by showing them the details of your policies showing that you are all coverd.

There is another way round it... but it is very petty... Sell eachother a 1p share in each others horses. Therefore you are all 'part owners' of the horses so you can all handle them because you are an 'owner'.
 
I can understand the YO stating 'no favours' - she is in business to make money and it is a livery yard after all. In reality she should have made this clear when she started the business and by introducing it now, it has obviously ruffled a few feathers.

Its a shame that YO wont be more flexible and allow the turnout to be bring-in instead. Unfortunately, her clients will start voting with their feet unless she compromises.

I charge £1, which includes putting breakfast in, changing jarmies and turning out. In the evenings I bring them all in free of charge, but the liveries have to suck up to me big time in return
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Im not adverse to taking bribes - wine, chocs etc.
 
It's called running a business.....if you had a restaurant would you allow people to bring in their own food to eat?

Some yards allow liveries to assist each other but if these services are also provided by the YO then I can understand why they insist that the service is provided by them, it's a business & they rely on income.... Sorry
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[ QUOTE ]
It's called running a business.....if you had a restaurant would you allow people to bring in their own food to eat?


[/ QUOTE ]

Um, but if you let someone a self-catering cottage, would you be entitled to demand that they only eat at your restaurant?

No, don't agree- I think this is unfair, and you should get together and nip this one in the bud. How long before you find yourself pressured into accepting & paying for FULL livery?because I think that's what the YO really wants to sell you. I can see why a YO would wish to do that, but the way this is being introduced is out of line.

If you were on full livery the insurance thing might be an issue as the YO would have overall responsibility for the horse, but then you wouldn't be needing help anyway. If its DIY I think its up to you how you get the work done, as long as you aren't inviting someone in to help who is inappropriate in some way, and that clearly isn't the case here as your helpers are the other liveries, whom the YO accepts on the yard already.

The charges themselves are not unfair; its useful to have this back-up & I'd expect to have to pay for it if it was needed; but its the way you are being forced to accept a service which you don't presently need.

Best thing would be to vote with your feet, although its easier said than done.

 
This happened on my old yard a few years ago - and like you we were all a bit peed off about it.

But as an employer of staff they do have to make money any where they can - every penny counts and all that.

The charges you are being asked to pay sound very reasonsable to me.
 
i was at a DIY only yard where the YO would not let liveries help each other, she stated insurance purposes. only problem was that she would not do any bank holidays at all so you were stuffed if you went away for an easter show and left one horse behind, who was not entered to compete. i know have my own DIY yard and i work full time so we all help each other out although i do mornings and charge as no one else can do it. we have made a rota for xmas and new year where we all do 2 shifts either am or pm. it means that if they have young kids or going to see relatives we all get a bit of time off. saying all this though as me and OH work this is not where we earn our living all we want is to cover yard rent for each stable.
 
I think as you have been there a while and no mention has ever been made before, it is very unfair especially with you having 3 horses! I should get the other liveries together and have a meeting with the YO and get it sorted, its not fair to just change the rules as it suits. DIY is DIY at the end of the day.
 
At one yard, I could not pay anyone to help mme other than the people who the YO used for livery. However, we were all able to help each other if no money was involved - one person used to feed mine in the morning and t/o and I did the evening b/i and feed. Another person did mine on my "day off" and I did hers on her day off.

If a yard is DIY based I cannot see any reason why people should not help each other out. Different if it were a full livery only yard.

Where I am now I do pay the YO for assistance but on occasion I will do something for one of the other liveries and they help me in return.
 
i would be annoyed as its a sudden change which will have a real effect
yes i understand its a business but to go from 0-10 in one go is a bit much, with no leniency whatsoever, so many people help one another out on DIY and its not fair that this would not be allowed at all, for me i would not be able to afford such a situation and would have to move
if i want DIY i would want it and all thats associated and pay for the odd thing if i could not swap favours with a fellow livery, as i have now, and if i wanted assisted livery i would happily pay and so on but to have to pay for everything, well i personally would have to consider moving because until i have a job which pays enough i cannot afford part livery which is exactly what it would be for me if i did not swap favours
 
If you are assisted DIY then fair enough, but there should be a discussion about it, not just a sudden change. But if you are on plain old fashioned DIY then I think its up to you what you do and who you help out.....
 
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