Poorly loan pony

[nikicb]

Hi sorry it's taken a while to reply! It's a part loan/ share 3 days a week. Definitely not a contract situation where we agreed to anything other than riding/ doing jobs on a weekly basis. My daughter wants to carry on doing jobs/ grooming until the mare either becomes sound again or the owner tells us 'enough' but I guess what I'm asking is, should the owner give us the option of looking for another?

You totally have the option of looking for another pony. That's the whole point of a share/loan. Both my children's outgrown ponies had various sharers, but I would never have expected them to carry on once the pony became unrideable. I think you just need to have a chat with the owner and explain that your daughter wants to ride. I do agree with others though that 23 is not that old for a pony, so would advise a vet check at the very least. As it's a share, I would expect the owner to organise that.

 

[Wishfilly]

Hi sorry it's taken a while to reply! It's a part loan/ share 3 days a week. Definitely not a contract situation where we agreed to anything other than riding/ doing jobs on a weekly basis. My daughter wants to carry on doing jobs/ grooming until the mare either becomes sound again or the owner tells us 'enough' but I guess what I'm asking is, should the owner give us the option of looking for another?

Has a vet seen the pony? If so, the owner needs to be honest with you about prognosis. If your daughter wants to carry on doing jobs, then I would suggest significantly reducing your contribution.

I think in this scenario, it's probably for you to give notice, rather than the owner to "give the option" of looking for another- I think most owners of shared horses would feel like that's pushing someone out when your daughter clearly still wants to be involved.

Perhaps have a chat with the owner and see if you can reduce down to e.g. 1 day a week so your daughter can still be involved with the pony, but she has 2 days a week to find something else to ride?

 

[JenJ]

Hi sorry it's taken a while to reply! It's a part loan/ share 3 days a week. Definitely not a contract situation where we agreed to anything other than riding/ doing jobs on a weekly basis. My daughter wants to carry on doing jobs/ grooming until the mare either becomes sound again or the owner tells us 'enough' but I guess what I'm asking is, should the owner give us the option of looking for another?

It's probably not occurred to her to say it as she may have assumed you'd already be looking. It's not really for her to give you the option - you are free to do as you wish.

Best thing to do would be to speak to her about it.

 

[maya2008]

Ask her what the vet said and what the prognosis is. You need to know what is wrong and have some kind of timescale to be able to make a decision.

 

[ihatework]

I think it’s a really valuable lesson for a child in this situation to understand that sometimes horses are lame and need time off.

That said, it cannot be indefinite. You do need to know what is wrong with the pony and how long it is likely to be off games for so that you can make an informed decision.

You need to discuss this with the owner - have you yet?

Has the pony seen a vet (at the expense of owner btw, you shouldn’t be responsible in a share situation ) and if so what was the outcome?

 

[Pearlsasinger]

Hi sorry it's taken a while to reply! It's a part loan/ share 3 days a week. Definitely not a contract situation where we agreed to anything other than riding/ doing jobs on a weekly basis. My daughter wants to carry on doing jobs/ grooming until the mare either becomes sound again or the owner tells us 'enough' but I guess what I'm asking is, should the owner give us the option of looking for another?

The owner should at least let you know what the vet has said about diagnosis and potential recovery. You always have the option of looking for another share.