People who work full time on true DIY livery...

[sjdress]

How do you manage yard rules? For example round my way in winter yards want horses in early afternoon, this I find impossible working full time, I can’t leave work midway through the day to bring my horse in, however the yard owner doesn’t see this is a problem and expects me to bring in by 2pm. Is this common? Do you use freelancers for bringing in, or buddying up with another livery ?

 

[Tash88]

There is a lady who helps at the DIY yard I'm at, so she will bring in for £2 I think. I haven't had to ask her this winter but I will next year when turnout is being reduced and I think they'll be coming in at 2pm. Another livery works about 15 mins from the yard and her horses come in at lunchtime, she comes back in her lunch hour quickly to do this.

I work full time from home and if I have to go up during the afternoon or at lunchtime for whatever reason I take my laptop and work from the yard as that makes more sense than going home to go back in a couple of hours. I have a Wifi dongle and there is a sofa in the tack room, and my YO doesn't mind me doing this. It can get a bit chilly though!

At the moment I'm going up early, riding and doing all jobs then going back to bring in at 4pm, then working for a couple of hours when I get home.

 

[ihatework]

It’s neigh on impossible. Yards I’ve been on like that I either had to buddy up or pay for service when I was working proper full time with little flexibility. Ultimately I found out it was easier to go onto part livery, and not much more expensive once everything was factored in.

 

[HufflyPuffly]

I found a yard without daft rules that are un-workable for people who work full time...

However, when an old yard did introduce ridiculous rules without offering any help themselves, we buddied up between ourselves or paid someone to bring in and turn out. When we were looking for yards, we looked for yards offering services (so not just totally DIY yards) or more freedom on timings/ turnout.

 

[sjdress]

It’s neigh on impossible. Yards I’ve been on like that I either had to buddy up or pay for service when I was working proper full time with little flexibility. Ultimately I found out it was easier to go onto part livery, and not much more expensive once everything was factored in.

This is what I am finding. I work 9-5 with a half hour lunch break (which I very rarely get to take) and my yard is 15 mins away so it’s pushing it to get there and bring in in half an hour. I used a freelancer before but was changed £10 to bring in, as otherwise it wasn’t really worth her while coMing, so that was an extra £50 a week, therefore wondering if part livery might be the way forward. However I have my own field nearby (but it’s small and needs a good few months rest after the winter) so I am put off moving to part livery for that reason.

 

[sjdress]

I found a yard without daft rules that are un-workable for people who work full time...

However, when an old yard did introduce ridiculous rules without offering any help themselves, we buddied up between ourselves or paid someone to bring in and turn out. When we were looking for yards, we looked for yards offering services (so not just totally DIY yards) or more freedom on timings/ turnout.

This would be the ideal but we are very limited in this area for yards

 

[sportsmansB]

I have tried, but failed, to do this a number of times
I ended up owing favours to others left right and centre all week, especially for turnout / bring in, and spending my weekend paying them all back
Also spent days panicking when the person who had offered that days favour couldn't do it and horse was stood in / out with no method of getting back in / out
My nerves couldn't take it.
I went part livery and never looked back

 

[Birker2020]

How do you manage yard rules? For example round my way in winter yards want horses in early afternoon, this I find impossible working full time, I can’t leave work midway through the day to bring my horse in, however the yard owner doesn’t see this is a problem and expects me to bring in by 2pm. Is this common? Do you use freelancers for bringing in, or buddying up with another livery ?

I would have to move and find a yard that did assisted DIY. Failing that ask if someone could help me out in exchange for me doing their horse some time.

We pay £51 a week which includes a lot of things like feeding, hay tubs, late night nets, etc, but on top its £2.50 bring in/turn out, but one is free per weekday. I work 7.30am to 3.30pm and can't come up before work so the yard are leaving out a couple of livery horses that they normally bring in for the owner sometime between 4pm - 4.30pm, so I can leave mine out (she is in same section of paddocks) and bring her in myself saving myself £2.50 a day. Same at weekends luckily which is £3 each way, I can do three out of four myself, luckily our Covid-19 hours have been increased by an hour to 2 hours a day per horse I am able to go up on Sunday morning and turn her out with a friends horse, thus saving me (and her) even more money. Even if it means I forgo a lie in as I'm there by 6am to avoid anyone else.

It's really hard sometimes but there are ways to save money, luckily we don't have rules like they have to come in at a particular time and the main rule on most yards is that nothing is left on it's own.

 

[Roasted Chestnuts]

Our horses come in when we get there. If the YO has an issue with this then tough.

The only thing our YO does is supply us with gorgeous homegrown hay and Straw and maintain the property. No services are offered so is true DIY.

My friend and I switch off mornings and nights between us so I don’t have to travel as much as I live 30mins away from the yard but other than this we do it all ourselves. Only reason I lived to this yard was because of that offer. All my other yards have been me doing everything so have been either close to my house or close to my work.

I work 45hrs a week up to 10pm when required so I cannot have a YO who has strict set times as if I’m working to 10pm I put them out before 6am so I can get mucked out and have time to have a shower at work before I start at 7.30am.

 

[AFB]

I'm a full time DIYer - but we have very flexible yard rules unless the fields are horrific (like last years wet winter).

This year no time limits and the last horse is bought in by the unlucky second to last owner to avoid anyone being left.

 

[Birker2020]

This is what I am finding. I work 9-5 with a half hour lunch break (which I very rarely get to take) and my yard is 15 mins away so it’s pushing it to get there and bring in in half an hour. I used a freelancer before but was changed £10 to bring in, as otherwise it wasn’t really worth her while coMing, so that was an extra £50 a week, therefore wondering if part livery might be the way forward. However I have my own field nearby (but it’s small and needs a good few months rest after the winter) so I am put off moving to part livery for that reason.

That is shocking and such a shame having to pay that.

 

[asmp]

On my DIY yard we bring in and put out when we want. The only rule is that we don’t leave a horse out on its own. (They all have to be stabled at night in the winter). In the past at various yards I have shared chores with another livery but now daughter has a horse we work things out together. I would see if another livery wants to earn a few quid doing your horse or, not ideal, find another yard.

 

[SEL]

Freelancers or ad hoc payments to friends normally.

The friends one only works if your horses are well behaved as a couple of owners at our yard found out over winter / covid when no one wanted to help them out All those hours spent persuading my mare to lead nicely were definitely worth it.

 

[Annagain]

You find the right yard that has rules that will fit your life. We have to have them in overnight in Winter on our yard but there's no set time (although I doubt YO would be happy if they were still out at 10pm, there's an element of common sense about it!). My friend does mornings and puts them out at about 6.30. I do evenings and get them in at about 6pm. I could do mornings a bit later if we really had to but neither of us can get there any earlier in the evening and friend prefers mornings as her kids usually need ferrying about in the evenings.

My friend and I have been friends since Brownies when we were 7, have always had our horses together (from the days when we both had little 12hh grey ponies!) and always done the care between us but if you can buddy up with someone it's a huge help. Could you offer to turn out in the morning in return for them bringing in or do a skip out / hay top up in the evenings?

 

[sjdress]

I would absolutely offer to turnout or do evening skip out and hay/water top ups, however its a small yard and everyone is already buddied up so don’t necessarily need anymore favours, so I feel a bit of a burden on them! I think I’ll offer to pay them to bring in so I won’t feel so guilty about not being able to return the favour. I feed all the horses in the morning as I am the first one there but this isn’t seen as a returnable favour! Yard owner can be a bit tricky and changes things to suit her, last year they could stay out until 5:30 by now so it wasn’t an issue. but it’s one of the nicest, quietest yards around so that’s why I suck it up, but I have to say it does get quite stressful!

 

[MuddyMonster]

It was fine on a yard where there wasn't an early afternoon bring in time as I'd ride and do my jobs in the morning then just go back on my way home to bring in.

But otherwise, this is why if I'm DIY I prefer a yard with services provided as an extra to make it workable. It worked well for years as I knew my horse was either in and sorted for the evening or in and it made evening exercise so much easier after work.

I left a yard where the YO kept changing the rules for T/O or B/I times on a whim (among many, many other things) but didn't want to offer assistance herself as it was just too stressful when working full time.

 

[little_critter]

I find it stressful too. I've buddied up with a friend, but without her I'd be scuppered.
I've looked into going part livery but I'm struggling to find any in the area that do part. It's either DIY or full.

 

[Littlebear]

I find this stressful, i go early, then pay another livery for bring ins and go back later again.

The person i did have decided they didn't want to do it anymore and left me scrambling for someone else, if I were to be let down again I would have to go further afield on full or part livery.

 

[Annagain]

I would absolutely offer to turnout or do evening skip out and hay/water top ups, however its a small yard and everyone is already buddied up so don’t necessarily need anymore favours, so I feel a bit of a burden on them! I think I’ll offer to pay them to bring in so I won’t feel so guilty about not being able to return the favour. I feed all the horses in the morning as I am the first one there but this isn’t seen as a returnable favour! Yard owner can be a bit tricky and changes things to suit her, last year they could stay out until 5:30 by now so it wasn’t an issue. but it’s one of the nicest, quietest yards around so that’s why I suck it up, but I have to say it does get quite stressful!

I'm assuming with them coming in at 2, any responsible owner will make sure they're seen to 3 times a day so even if people have buddied up in pairs, they may well be grateful for a third person to cover the extra 'shift' that wasn't needed last year. Even without that, I'm sure any reasonable person would help if you asked. If it were me and all I had to do was bring him in (and field wasn't miles from yard or I could bring him in with mine) I'd do it without expecting anything in return but wouldn't be averse to asking for an ad hoc favour when I needed it.

Do you have a yard What's App group? I'd pop something on there like ...

"Hi all,
With working the hours I do, I'm really struggling to get X in by 2pm. Would any of you be able to help me out please? I'll happily turn your horses out in the morning to save you a trip then or do the evening skip outs & haynets in return. Failing that, we could come to a financial arrangement."

 

[milliepops]

Do you have a yard What's App group? I'd pop something on there like ...

"Hi all,
With working the hours I do, I'm really struggling to get X in by 2pm. Would any of you be able to help me out please? I'll happily turn your horses out in the morning to save you a trip then or do the evening skip outs & haynets in return. Failing that, we could come to a financial arrangement."

this is a good idea.
I'd happily trade getting someone else's horse in in daylight for a skip out and haynet to be put in later, so hopefully you might get some takers.

I'm the only livery where I am, due to wetness of fields and access they have turnout shifts so I currently work at the yard in the morning while horses are in the field, and then I bring in and come home and carry on. Fortunately 4g is mostly OK and I can tether on my phone, have worked remote for 9 years so it's all set up to function from anywhere.

 

[Wishfilly]

I'm a teacher so full time but not in a traditional 9-5 way. I pay someone on the yard to turn my horse out in the mornings as most people turn out quite a bit later than I could be there for and I don't want him going out on his own. Most people have been bringing in at about 4 in the winter, which I can usually make, but luckily people will help out if he is going to be left on his own. I try to build up favours in the holidays as well, just in case I get stuck at work.

Realistically, I don't think I could manage full DIY with no-one to pay for help, and I certainly couldn't manage a 2pm bring in at all.

I hope you can sort out a solution!

 

[maisie06]

How do you manage yard rules? For example round my way in winter yards want horses in early afternoon, this I find impossible working full time, I can’t leave work midway through the day to bring my horse in, however the yard owner doesn’t see this is a problem and expects me to bring in by 2pm. Is this common? Do you use freelancers for bringing in, or buddying up with another livery ?

When I had horses I was on a very relaxed yard, working farm so it was come and go as you please, I couldn't have dealt with yards that have lots of rules or limited turnout, mine were out 24/7 365 with a shelter so they could slot in to my day... I still help a friend now and again and she said she will sell hers if she couldn't keep them on the farm that is so relaxed and accomodating.

 

[sarahann1]

I’m at a fantastic little 100% DIY yard where there is a queue of folk willing to help each other out. Every single person with a horse on the yard will step in when they can if someone else stuck or even just had a bad day and could do with a wee hand, no exceptions.

 

[zandp]

I buddied up with a friend, she brought my 2 in after she'd got hers and his field mate in as they had to be in at 4pm every day during winter. I would do hers and the field mate at the weekend. Everything was left ready in their stables and I went up after I'd finished work - ride mine and then do a final hay/stable check on her horse.

 

[Flame_]

I'm a postie so I finish by about 2.30pm. When the weather's bad the horses just get fed first thing, stay in and then go out for a couple of hours after I finish work.

 

[wiglet]

When I was DIY, I used to buddy up with my friend. She worked shifts and could either do mornings or evenings and I just fitted in with her shifts and did whatever she couldn't do. It worked really well for years! Then, unfortunately she moved from the area and we couldn't continue with our arrangement. I tried to buddy up with others but, it never really worked and I would often get really stressed not knowing who or how my horse was going to be seen to. In the end, I had go move to full livery, for my own sanity!

 

[humblepie]

I have just gone back to DIY so paying someone to do some sessions as not really anyone to buddy on a regular basis. In past like others have had the buddy arrangement and then fortunately last time was on DIY (different yard), the horse in the field next to mine lived out pretty much all the time so whatever time of morning or evening I got there my horse wasn't out on his own but then two of my friends moved to the yard so it worked really well as there were three of us to share the arrangement. Used to be at one yard and quite often would get up there after work and the lady whose horse I used to turn out, would have done my stables and got my horses in - she used to finish her job at a supermarket at about 2pm and enjoyed then spending the afternoon at the yard. Sort of friend to have!

 

[mariew]

Basically you can't, unless there is assisted DIY, or you can share tasks with someone else. You would be better off moving somewhere where you can get guaranteed help or horses stay out until you get there. It's not worth the stress.

 

[Melody Grey]

We have a local freelance groom who calls at the yard on her way to others in the area that we can ask if required. Might be worth asking if you’re on someone similar’s route between other yards?

 

[Debsflo1]

My daughter is a nurse and works long shifts and full time.
I help her as otherwise I think pony would have to live out or be on part livery.
The my yard is flexible re hours but 2 horses on diy has been tough this winter