Q. For people who went from DIY to moving to a home for you AND your horses

mymissmegan

mymissmegan

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Myself and my partner are looking at getting a place together hopefully next year, and depending on if the place is right maybe getting a house with stables, land and menage.

Now my questions are:

Did going from DIY to having your horse at home help or hinder?
What do you find are the negatives and positives?
Did it save you money or did it end up being just as expensive if not more?

Thank you for reading 
 
I did exactly that.

I had to get a companion pony so it cost a lot, two lots of vaccinations, foot care, wormers, dentistery and so on. My boy came in in winter and so companion did to. Extra mucking out, turning out, bedding etc etc.

I loved having them at home and would do first and last feeds/checks in my dressing gown. I was able to put in/out midnight if I felt the weather had caught me out.

The main downside was having no one to share when something went wrong or right. I am reasonably knowledgable but a second opinion is comforting. Also I did feel very cut off having been used to a livery yard and no one to hack out with occasionally, or to swap ideas can be very isolating.

Would I do it again?, yes if money no object so fencing, stabling and grazing up to scratch and not having to compromise as so many of us have to do.
 
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We wouldn't go back to livery!
The positives are that all the decisions about which field to use etc, are your own. You can keep your horses in exactly the way YOU want to and do not have to watch other people making a mess of it. The horses are in a stable herd, no coming and going of companions, nobody doing things at different times, nobody 'borrowing' your things and 'forgetting' to put them back. No travelling to get to the horses, once you are home, you are home. No worrying in bad weather about having to get to the yard.
The negatives are the expense - yes it does cost more to keep them at home because of the initial cost of the property and if it's on a mortgage that is an ongoing expense. All the maintenance is your responsibility and that is/can be another expense. It also takes a lot of time. Your property is likely to be fairly remote, so you might have to worry about getting in/out in bad weather, or getting supplies in/out.
We are fortunate that there is a quite large horsey community in our area, so there are other people to ride with but that could also be something to consider.
Depending on how experienced you are, you would also need to consider who you would ask for support if necessary and what you would do if you wanted to go on holiday - who would look after the horses?
Good luck in your search!
 
We did this about two months ago and so far, so good. It also coincided with having to have my much loved horse PTS, I was greatly relieved to be able to do that home and not on a busy livery yard, so I could spend as much time as I wanted with my lad before I had to say goodbye.

Both my OH and I have horses so I don't feel lonely at all and being able to check on them before I go to bed is lovely. Also if the vet or farrier etc is running late, I don't have to be hanging around at the yard, so that's definitely a plus, especially as I have small children.

Cost-wise, well if you factor in the cost of buying a decent house with land, plus the cost of putting up new stables, it's probably alot more expensive!!! However, it is so worth it, plus we never have to move the horses again!
 
Have lived in places with horses at home (always rented) for the last 6-7 years before that was on DIY livery for 8-9 years.

Only negatives to having horses at home is no one to look after them if u go away (in 9 yrs together me & OH have never been on holiday!) & lack of people to ride with.

Still, wouldn't go back to livery by choice, holiday or no holiday! :D
 
Thanks guys!!! Luckily I have quite a few wonderful friends and family that will be happy to help out when holidays come about!!!
At the mo I'm at a very small yard where I rarely see any one an they only ride weekends if at all. So I'm quite used to being on my own. Oooh
 
Cluny.... Sorry about your boy 
Makes me feel sick even thinking about the day that happens to my girl!! Can't imagine how awful that was for you x x x
 
We didn't move house but we moved our horses from DIY livery with asistance if needed....to a private rented yard 200m from home....we rent the thing as a whole so just us on it.

It works out cheaper than livery- the horses are happier and settled - only downside is no-one to do them for me if needed but then again they are on the doorstep so its generally less hassle all round.

I'm lucky that there are plenty of people I know to ride out with- we just meet up half-way.

I wouldn't go back to livery :D
 
I used to have my horse on part livery before bringing her home. The pros of the yard were that there were lots of others around - so sharing rug wash/injections/worming etc and I got to hear about a lot more that was going on in the community.

However, having your horses at home is unbeatable. There is a lot more to organise - all hay/feed/bedding deliveries etc. You also have to organise and pay for all the land maintenance - typical annual expences for us include paying for muck heap removal, harrowing, rolling, sometimes topping/flailing overly long grass, or haylage making. The other downside is that you are always responsible for every moment of their routine - in sickness and in health. We have a local girl who does the horses for us one day a week, which gives us a day off, and who will cover for holidays too. Quite often, with a bit of research, you will find people who do freelance grooming/holiday cover.

The pros have really been mentioned - you set the routines, decide which field they go in, what time of year they go in and out. No worries at all when you're snowed in. All your equipment there, stored and organised how you want. Nothing goes missing unless you lose it. Free trailer parking etc. Your house nearby if you want to change/get warm. I don't find it lonely - friends with horses are nearby, so we just meet up to hack.

We love the peace of our own yard, and I also like seeing the horses at the end of the garden.
 
Having horses at home is fabulous.

The downsides ...
The main one is that when you want to go away/have a problem you have to be really really organised. This does sometimes cause some stress as we can't take spontaneous weekends away.

Also, the horses become much more 'friends' and sometimes I find it harder to discipline them as well, when you really understand their individual characters!!

The cost is interesting. If its your property and you are quite house/horse proud it is actually quite expensive to fence/maintain fencing and look after your grass really well. I suppose that if you added up the cost of the stables we had built, the fencing, the tractor and the topper, harrow, etc it might be difficult to justify on cost basis alone! But it does look heavenly and makes life fun.
 
Did going from DIY to having your horse at home help or hinder?
HINDERANCE FOR ME. UNLESS OF COURSE YOU BUY WITH A DECENT YARD/SCHOOL/FACILITIES ON GOOD HACKING ROUTES CLOSE TO VENUES.

What do you find are the negatives and positives?
NEG
LONELY
NO-ONE TO HELP OR TO BOUNCE IDEAS OFF
LESS MOTIVATION

POS
CONTROL
EASE
TIME SAVING
CAN LOOK OUT THE WINDOW AND "CHECK" AT NIGHT
Did it save you money or did it end up being just as expensive if not more?
LESS EXPENSIVE FOR ME, BUT NOT BY A HUGE AMOUNT

I am just moving BACK to livery from home. I found it hugely difficult to cope with a 6year old at home. I don't have a school or proper yard, coupled with no hacking and no other horses in the immediate vacinity - it made for a really lonely, difficult time.

I suppose, should everything fall into place (good grazing, nice small yard, school, good outriding and being close to horsey-things) it could be counted as a real blessing, but otherwise, I'd rather be at livery!! :D
 
it's fabulous having them at home. you can check them any time (and if you're ever icing a leg or something it is ace to be able to pop out every 1/2 hour etc), turn them out when YOU want, nobody judging what you do or how you do it. i don't think i could bear going back to livery and being told i couldn't turn my horses out etc. you get to know them a lot better imho.
lack of facilities is the big drawback, but then the yards i was on were never that good anyway!
i'm self-motivated and happy to hack out alone, but i know some people really struggle without other people to encourage them etc...
 
I moved my horse to my new home just over 3 years ago. At that point there were two very overgrown unfenced fields that hadn't been used to 20 years, they were heavily covered in Docks and nettles and some brambles.

I set about sorting out fencing the fields off how I wanted them, where I wanted the gates to be, where I wanted to self filling troughs to be (they are a godsend!). All in all to fence the two paddocks, buy a companion pony and sort out the water main came to a little over £2k.

I've just sat down and worked out that at my usual rate of livery that I was paying I am now in profit by 6 months.

It isn't as perfect yet as I would like it to be and I am looking at buying some more land in the coming years and then building some stables (The horses live out all year as there is substantial natural shelter) and a menage (as I do miss that). But it is mine, my horses are happy and I save 40mins a day in addition not having to commute to the yard (Which works out as 30 days, 7 hours in total saved so far and then there is fuel on top of that!!)

The improvements to the land around the house make it look better and have added value. Buying more land and building stables and menages in the coming years will add more value over and above the construction/purchase cost.

As far as holidays go I have a good group of friends and family who have been educated in looking after the horses. I have 2 weeks worth of Haynets and a weeks worth of feed bowls to make it easier for those coming to see to them.

The hardest part is planning for winter and making sure you have all you need in along with buying in bulk (hay) as it is just you and making it worth while for the farmer to deliver.

It is also easy to see to them at a convenient time or to nip out for a chat, you can pass the field in what ever clothes you want and they don't mind. You dont have to get dressed in farm stuff to go to the yard and there is no one to question you as to why you are down so late!

Robert
 
Cons, being responsible for all the maintainance, and cost of it! Compulsion to get more horses than you need cos you've got room!

Pros, Flexibility, and being in control

Moved to home with land/stables nearly 15 years ago, and love it.
Getting a livery/friend helps cope with holidays/illness/someone to hack with/talk to etc. Expense outweighed by increase in property over that time (or so I tell hubby!)
 
we bought our own place 8 years ago we have land,stables and an out door school. its hard work keeping on top of all the jobs but it was the best move we ever made for us and our horses.
its been fabulous watching the horses from the back garden. you make the decisions and you dont have to put up with the bad side of livery yards.
i would not go back to a livery yard.:D
 
Well not exactly your situation. When I was younger my parents owned a small holding, we kept our horses at home and I loved that. I had kept my mare at livery in latter years as my parents sold up but i have always hankered after my own land again. My dream is to one day buy a place with land with the OH

My current yard is very lovely, the YO's are lovely so I would miss them, and there are a few very lovely people there, one of which is a very good friend. But ultimately a place of my own with my future horse in the field next to my house is what I would love.
I tend to love to go down my yard at quieter times as it is so peaceful. I used to love going down just after lunch, getting my lovely old girl in, spending some nice one on one time with her, groom and then hack out, just bliss with no one else around. I think I would take to it like a duck to water, but I don't think it is for everyone. You would need to have the confidence to hack alone for a start, as that would be the likeliest scenario, depends on what you feel comfortable with.

Oh and if I had my own land I would have at least two horses :)

ETS: IT was alot cheaper keeping them at home for us
 
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