Potential sharer coming to visit tomorrow

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myhorsefred

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I have someone coming to view my 2 horses tomorrow. Have decided to share my 2 horses as i am a bit stuck on time really.

What questions would you ask to asses their riding before we go for a hack? And would you ask for a weekly/monthly payment from a sharer?

thanks
 
Let me know how you get on. I'm currently looking for a sharer too.

I'd probably ask for their experience. What type of horses they've ridden before. Have they competed at all and at what level. Have they hacked out much before, ridden in traffic etc

Then I'd ask what they want out of the share. How much time have they got. What type of arrangement are they looking for, fixed days or flexible. I'd then watch them around the horse and assess how confident/competent they are. Then it's a case of seeing how they get on with the horse. It's a two way thing so see how it goes for both of you, maybe suggest a trial period initially?

Good Luck
 
I think that yes, you should ask for a contribution - after all if your horses are doing more work then they will require more upkeep (ie. feed, shoeing), it would be usual to ask in the region of £20 - £30 per week to cover this - particularly if you're still incurring livery charges for them.
 
Thanks, those are really good questions. I know that when it comes to it tomorrow I'll be really nervous and all my good questions will go out of my head!

I'll let you know how I get on.
 
Thanks scotsmare. I think I am too soft really, I prob won't be brave enough to ask for payment. (got my horses at home so no livery). Will be only too grateful for help really. see how brave I feel tomorrow! lol
 
dont feel pressured to say yes!

When iw as thinking about loaning Ted out to someone.. i was desparate for him to get a good home and i found myself feeling like a wanted the first person to have him. take your time..

as them about first aid, this is quite important as you can imagine.

Lou x
 
Long durg... sorry!
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....dont feel pressured to say yes!

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Yes!! I definitely second this. If you've ANY reservations whatsoever be cautious. Have a trial period to make sure you all get along.

Personally, I'm way too soft and shy with people so know exactly how difficult some situations can be; But it's a lot easier to make a polite request (or turn down) before things get started than it ever is once they're helping out for a while and then you've got to broach the subject that, "Er, well, actually things aren't quite working out as I hope and......" That's far more embarrassing!

I shared one of my horses some years ago. They would look after Kehlian certain days of the week and I eventually learned to trust them enough not feel the need to creep up to the yard after they'd gone just to check that they had scrubbed out his water bucket properly and filled it with fresh, or hung his haynet at the specified height....
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So it worked well for a while. We kept a notebook in the tack room and kept a detailed diary for each other - so we always knew what Kehlian had done the day before and could leave messages for one another. (This was before the era of the mobile phone.)

The young girl who was doing the riding was always accompanied by mother, father and brother. She rode and the rest of her family chipped in with the stable chores. This worked well for about a year until the mother started to become rather 'bossy'. Like I say, I am quite shy so found it rather intimidating and awkward to deal with. Guess I should have nipped it in the bud right at the start, but after several months of building frustration on my part from the irritating little comments which left me wondering who infact owned the bloody horse, things came to a head. I arrived at the yard on one of my days to find a note written in our notebook telling me to no longer ride on that day because [daughter] now had lessons booked for those evenings and they did not want Kehlian ridden beforehand. "Bloody cheek!", I thought. I must have had a bit of PMT that day because I phoned up immediately and told the mother that things were not working out and that I wished to terminate the arrangement with 1 months notice. Looking back I was a wimp. They got on really well with the horse and it was a good arrangement. I was just too intimidated to tackle the mother about her increasingly bossy attitude. I'm older now and would have dealt with it better today, but the moral of the story is that it's better to speak up than be too awkwards to say how you feel and let growing resentment build.

Think hard about what YOU want from your share and whether or not you REALLY want a contribution towards costs. If you've two horses to shoe that's expensive and most sharers are more than happy to share that expense at the very least. If you're happy not to have a contribution that's great - just don't change you're mind down the line
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Good luck tomorrow. If you find the right people it works great.
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Ask him/her to groom and tack up which will give you a first idea of his/her abilities, but tactfully try to check over the basics - I had a lady who had described herself as experienced fall off while trying to mount from the mounting block because she had not done up the girth at all! Try to chat to him/her about horses in general, a good one to try is to see if he/she knows what the half-halt is, it might give you an indication of his/her level of ability! If you have a school or enclosed riding area offer to show him/her the horse first, then ask if he/she wants to pop on (this means he/she will have a go in a safe area first without being insulted), if all goes well then offer to take him/her on a hack. A nice way of saying 'no you are not suitable' is saying right from the start that you have had a lot of interest, have other people lined up to view the horses and won't be making your mind up on the day. Then you can make a decision and give them a call in a few days and say really sorry, so many nice people got in touch but could only say yes to one and chose someone who was closer/had more time, etc.
 
Depends how well behaved your horses are and what level of rider you are satisfied with. As someone who has been in their position before i wouldn't say much hangs on how much competing they have done, unless you want them to compete your horses. How long theyve been riding for, what kind of horses theyve ridden before is probably most important, as well as how they would handle emergency situations. Best way to tell is to watch them around the horses and watch them on the hack. Also if you don't want to charge them for riding, maybe ask for a contribution towards shoes, i think that's fair to ask.
Its important you get on well because you need the communication to be good for the horses sakes.
 
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