Part loan arrangement - what would you do?

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Sandylou

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Hi all,

I've recently posted something similar to this so sorry for being slightly repetitive......

I recently advertised my horse for part loan / share as I'm currently pregnant and so I'm not riding and will need help with yard duties in the winter.

I've had a lovely lady come to meet my boy and ride several times and all has gone extremely well however this lady owns her own yard and would like to move him there which is something I've considered. Her yard is a lot smaller than I'm used to but there's grass and stables and bridle paths so its not lacking anything. I just worry that I may lose control of his management/upkeep with him being at their yard.

We were both so happy with how things are going that we briefly discussed financial contributions for the loan and agreed to go away and have a think about it. A few days later and I have proposed that she cover livery (as its her own yard) and half shoes (as I won't be riding). Her counter offer is to just cover livery (which turns out to be more expensive than where we're currently at which has 10 times the grazing and the stables are twice the size) and do all winter yard duties until I'm back on my feet after having baby.

Would I be silly to turn down her offer down based on the fact that her yard is smaller than I'm used to (and more expensive) and she wont pay half for shoes?
Is this a reasonable offer from her?

Or should I continue the search for someone thats willing to do all riding and yard duties where we're stabled already and not worry about financial contributions?
I'm so confused:confused:

Thanks in advance for any help you can give me :)
 
Would you have a lot of interest in your horse, for part share where you currently are, or even full loan? Basically, what are your other options, and what would give you the most peace of mind?
 
My thoughts would be yes you will lose control of his management and if she owns the yard then it's not going to be costing her a livery as such as it's her own yard. So she'll be paying for feed and bedding not livery? But, I can see why she wouldn't want to pay livery on another yard, I wouldn't want to if I had my own land etc.

Not sure! You are classing it as a part loan rather than full loan so that does suggest you share costs so half the shoes sounds reasonable. I guess the fact that her livery is more expensive is kind of irrelevant to you - it sounds like you are happy where you are? Would you then want to move him back to your yard once you were wanting to get back on board etc?

I suppose it depends whether you are happy to let him move to the new yard and happy to relinquish control of his field/stable management (I'll take a punt and say if she is the yard owner then she will probably be used to calling the shots!).

I'd be wanting a contribution towards shoes if she was wanting me to muck out though.

Dunno, I'd be wary of losing control but then that could just be me! :D
 
Biscuit said:
Would you have a lot of interest in your horse, for part share where you currently are, or even full loan? Basically, what are your other options, and what would give you the most peace of mind?
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I've had about 8 responses to my ad from various types of people - some an utter no no and some more capable.
Other options would be to keep him where he is, pay his upkeep and have someone do the work.
Find somewhere to chuck him in a field until next year (he's a hardy type and would cope being out all winter)
Struggle on with the search to find the perfect loaner which are few and far between.
Keep him where he is and pay for everything plus yard help in the winter.
Full loan is not an option - I just couldn't be without him for that long.
 
I would say that if you feel happy with the woman then go ahead. Make sure you have an agreement that allows you to remove the horse at any time if you are not satisfied with his management or care. Will you have to keep your livery space at your yard though? that might be an issue if you have to pay to keep hold of it just in case the horse comes back.
 
I think it depends- is there anything objectively wrong with her yard, or that would be wrong for your horse? You seem to suggest her yard may lack adequate grazing. If, in the winter, she is essentially in sole charge, would you be worried that he would not be looked after properly.

It does seem like she is essentially wanting a full loan, but not to pay all the costs associated with that. If it is her own yard, she is essentially getting the horse for free, although potentially missing out on a client's money.

Presumably you would lose your space at your current yard? What would you do if it all fell through? If things went wrong, and he is on her yard, things could become very difficult for you.

I would be wary, and get everything in writing, preferably in quite a detailed way. It may not be enforcable, but it would at least show willing on her side.
 
sidsmum said:
My thoughts would be yes you will lose control of his management and if she owns the yard then it's not going to be costing her a livery as such as it's her own yard. So she'll be paying for feed and bedding not livery? But, I can see why she wouldn't want to pay livery on another yard, I wouldn't want to if I had my own land etc.

Not sure! You are classing it as a part loan rather than full loan so that does suggest you share costs so half the shoes sounds reasonable. I guess the fact that her livery is more expensive is kind of irrelevant to you - it sounds like you are happy where you are? Would you then want to move him back to your yard once you were wanting to get back on board etc?

I suppose it depends whether you are happy to let him move to the new yard and happy to relinquish control of his field/stable management (I'll take a punt and say if she is the yard owner then she will probably be used to calling the shots!).

I'd be wanting a contribution towards shoes if she was wanting me to muck out though.

Dunno, I'd be wary of losing control but then that could just be me! :D
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I am happy where I am but the help wouldn't be there when I need it in winter. Her yard being more expensive is irrelevant now but what when I'm back in the saddle - I wouldn't pay that rate (or half towards it) when I can have more for less.

Agree re your understanding of part loan costs.
Agree re your losing control of his management comment.
Your thoughts are very similar to mine!

Thanks for your input :)
 
tobiano said:
I would say that if you feel happy with the woman then go ahead. Make sure you have an agreement that allows you to remove the horse at any time if you are not satisfied with his management or care. Will you have to keep your livery space at your yard though? that might be an issue if you have to pay to keep hold of it just in case the horse comes back.
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Thanks tobiano. I wouldn't need to pay to keep a space at present yard.
 
Penumbra said:
I think it depends- is there anything objectively wrong with her yard, or that would be wrong for your horse? You seem to suggest her yard may lack adequate grazing. If, in the winter, she is essentially in sole charge, would you be worried that he would not be looked after properly.

It does seem like she is essentially wanting a full loan, but not to pay all the costs associated with that. If it is her own yard, she is essentially getting the horse for free, although potentially missing out on a client's money.

Presumably you would lose your space at your current yard? What would you do if it all fell through? If things went wrong, and he is on her yard, things could become very difficult for you.

I would be wary, and get everything in writing, preferably in quite a detailed way. It may not be enforcable, but it would at least show willing on her side.
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Hi,
There's nothing 'wrong' with the yard, it's just small. She only has one livery there at the moment but has four of her unridden horses there so in total there'd be 6 on about 5 acres which is split and rotated so grazing shouldn't be an issue. I also think that she'd look after him well.

I would lose my space at current yard but current YO has plenty of land and would find a way to home us :)

Thanks for your input.
 
Sounds to me like shes after more of a full loan, but this way she doesnt really have to pay.

If its her yard, technically livery will be free. I would say, as your yard is cheaper with more grazing and you are settled, keep him there and say she needs to pay x amount (if you want half livery/shoes then say!)
If shes not willing, someone else will be. I just think if shes moving him to her yard, you may find you loose control and may not be happy later on when you get back to riding ect. I dont think its a good idea, sorry:(
 
I don't think it's a good idea, sounds like potentially a lot of hassle could happen at a very awkward time - if it all goes slightly pear shaped, you will find yourself pregnant, stressed out and frantically arranging the return of your horse.
If I were you, I would keep him where he is, keep looking for the perfect sharer and have contingency plan/funds to just pay somebody for doing work with your horse, should you not find the sharer.
 
Her offer isn't unreasonable so maybe try it with the proviso that you review it every x number of months?
 
But one horse and pregnancy is no big deal. And really all you need is someone tobride the horse for you when you want to stop. Everything else you should be able to do yourself.
 
It's a personal thing.
Personally I'd feel like the horse was hers and I was the sharer in that situation ... I'd prefer to keep horse the way I know works for him.
 
Have you thought about a sharer that makes a financial contribution - then separately getting someone freelance to come in and do the work for the few months over the winter when you need help? Keep chores and exercises separate and you might widern your appeal as many sharers can't do full time chores (otherwise they'd have their own)

When I was pregnant over winter I had a really nice lady to do my boys for £8 an hour and as I was paying her I felt happy to tell her exactly how I wanted things done - we all have our own ways of doing things!

Sharer contributions over the summer put into a savings account could cover quite a few £8's !!
 
Looking at it from the other side, you don't yet know how you'll cope with pregnancy / a small child; it might actually be a positive to know he's somewhere where you don't have to worry about care, and if you'd be spending more than about a tenner a week on services, you're better off paying for shoes.

How much are you hoping to be involved with him / ride? What other costs would you be covering? Feed? Hay? Bedding? Equipment? Teeth / vaccs? Worming? Insurance? etc ...
 
Polos Mum said:
Have you thought about a sharer that makes a financial contribution - then separately getting someone freelance to come in and do the work for the few months over the winter when you need help? Keep chores and exercises separate and you might widern your appeal as many sharers can't do full time chores (otherwise they'd have their own)

When I was pregnant over winter I had a really nice lady to do my boys for £8 an hour and as I was paying her I felt happy to tell her exactly how I wanted things done - we all have our own ways of doing things!

Sharer contributions over the summer put into a savings account could cover quite a few £8's !!
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This definitely worth thinking about! Thanks :)
 
Theocat said:
Looking at it from the other side, you don't yet know how you'll cope with pregnancy / a small child; it might actually be a positive to know he's somewhere where you don't have to worry about care, and if you'd be spending more than about a tenner a week on services, you're better off paying for shoes.

How much are you hoping to be involved with him / ride? What other costs would you be covering? Feed? Hay? Bedding? Equipment? Teeth / vaccs? Worming? Insurance? etc ...
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You're quite right - I don't know how i'll cope a small child. The pregnancy part is pretty easy to predict up to winter as baby is due in November :eek: At the moment I can't really see past this winter and things will definitely get easier come spring.
I hope to be as involved as possible and will pay for everything else that he needs. In fact if there was someone that would ride & muck out I'd happily pay everything and do everything else that I can. The difference with this offer is that he'll be at another yard.

Thanks for the reply :)
 
If this were a horse that you weren't really going to want back, or was a full loan I would bite her hand off, however as this is a horse that you want to SHARE and be able to ride in the future, I think it is a bit too much. It sounds like she is taking over rather than sharing.

I've had a couple of people get in touch about sharing my horse this week, and they put me off from the start because I thought that they seemed a bit over powering and wanting me to change a lot of things to suit them, without being very flexible back, and a few alarm bells went off.
 
I agree. it sounds like a full loan to me, I can imagine you may feel like an imposter when you go to see to him!

Are finances an issue? could you afford to pay for full or assisted livery at your current yard and just have someone riding him a few times a week to keep him ticking over?

xx
 
amymay said:
Do you livery or help options on you yard??
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Not really. YO bought the yard for her daughters. Mum isn't horsey and daughters have their own horses. Everyone is happy to chip in with riding when they have an hour spare tho of course :rolleyes:
Thanks Amymay :)

Christmas Camel said:
I agree. it sounds like a full loan to me, I can imagine you may feel like an imposter when you go to see to him!

Are finances an issue? could you afford to pay for full or assisted livery at your current yard and just have someone riding him a few times a week to keep him ticking over?

xx
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Thanks Christmas Camel :),

Finances are no issue. The only reason I have asked for contributions on this occasion is because he'd be moved to her own yard.

Assisted livery isn't available at our current yard so I'd have to have a freelance worker in.
I'd love to find a committed rider but they seem to be few and far between around here. Having said that, the more I think about it, riding isn't a massive thing. Although he's a low mileage 7 year old, a few months off won't hurt - I'm not selling him so I don't need him to hold his value but it'll just mean more work for me when it comes to bringing him back into work.
 
I don't know if this will help any but I thought I might coming at it as a part loaner myself and having a 7 month old daughter to add to the mix (she was born last November).

I agree that the offer she has come up with sound more like a full loan with none of the responsibility and cost. When I was looking for a part loan I accepted that fact that the horse would have to stay at it's current yard and the owner has final say. I agree with MissTyc in that if it was me I would feel like the sharer.

Looking at is a new mum myself the last thing you will want especially in the first couple of months is the worry of if he is being looked after to the standard you would expect and gettitng to see him.

I personally would look at your other options. There is still time to find someone who will fit the bill.
 
DizzyMare said:
I don't know if this will help any but I thought I might coming at it as a part loaner myself and having a 7 month old daughter to add to the mix (she was born last November).

I agree that the offer she has come up with sound more like a full loan with none of the responsibility and cost. When I was looking for a part loan I accepted that fact that the horse would have to stay at it's current yard and the owner has final say. I agree with MissTyc in that if it was me I would feel like the sharer.

Looking at is a new mum myself the last thing you will want especially in the first couple of months is the worry of if he is being looked after to the standard you would expect and gettitng to see him.

I personally would look at your other options. There is still time to find someone who will fit the bill.
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Thank you Dizzymare. This is massively helpful!
Congratulations on your the birth of your baby :)
 
If you don't mind him having a few months off then can you put him on grass livery for the last few weeks of your pregnancy and the winter? I haven't got kids but I would have thought that you won't get straight back in the saddle and be where you are now so you can both "come back into work" together?
I give my 12 year old the winter off every year and he always comes back better for having a break :)
 
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