Setting up Full Livery Yard

tobiano1984

tobiano1984

Well-Known Member
Joined
9 February 2012
Messages
1,017
Visit site
I'm setting up a full livery yard, and just wanted to hear some thoughts on what people expect to pay, and what they expect to get in return.
It's a small yard, only 8 boxes - it's not super-smart (it's on a farm) but the facilities are fine. stables are all internal in a barn, there's a huge floodlit outdoor school which is fine all year round, locked tack room, plenty of grazing, great hacking in the area.

I'm intending to offer two basic options, with scope for extras. They would be:

basic full livery 7 days - stable, turnout year round, hay straw, mucking out, feeding & basic feed, rugging, turn out/in, paddock maintenance (poo picking etc), thorough daily checks of horse, feet picked/mud washed off legs.

full livery 7 days - as above plus daily groom, exercise twice during the week to keep fit for weekend rides, weekly tack clean.

I'm thinking of charging £100pw for the first option, £130pw for the second option.

These formats can be added to with grooming, lunging, hacking, professional schooling, groundwork/handling etc.

The feed that will be included will be a natural lucerne based feeding system, suitable for all horses from laminitics to competition horses.

The goal is to have happy, relaxed, healthy horses, no stress, for happy hackers or hunters/competition horses.

Thoughts please? The yard is in the SE, rural but about 7-8 miles from a nice city/big town.

Thanks!
 
Sounds about right.
The only thing you might want to be flexible on is the feeding if targetting comp horses - some will want haylage and some might want different to lucerne
 
I think the pricing is right but you might want to be more flexible with your feeding options as not everyone might want to feed the same thing. That is something that has put me off full livery in that I want to be able to chose what I feed my pony. Also will you be offering options of hay or hayledge?
 
With regards to the feeding regime, as others have said, perhaps a bit more flexibility?

I do not have DIY. Feed is not included in Boarding fees. Owners have options, either I provide the feed/buy in what they prefer/need to feed (and charge them for my trouble) or they supply their own feed, supplements are provided by the owner (some of my lovely owners provide feeds individually bagged - so easy, grab a zip lock bag and empty it into a feed bowl) some don't feed at all.

Hay/forage: They get what they are given, no-one yet has asked for anything else, if they did then it would up to them to get it, or I would buy it in for them. 'Special needs' (haylage as opposed to hay) horses would then require individual paddocks too, I can imagine me putting piles out and telling the others "No...this is for them, not you" ;)

Bedding: I prefer shavings and always have that in, but if someone wanted straw then I would get some in.

How would your grazing/turn out be operated?
If you don't already have them, the option of individual turnout paddocks may be worth considering as they may be required/preferred especially by owners with competition horses that they want to keep uninjured.
 
Last edited:
sounds good! I would market first option as part livery though rather than basic full.

When most people see the word full they naturally assume riding their horse will be part of it and might not look at your ad further.
 
I think it sounds good and really reasonably priced :)

As the owner of a horse who has just been diagnosed with COPD I would want the option of a different bedding to straw, and also haylage instead of hay.

Think you may need to be more flexible with your feeds, as people can be quite picky about what they like their horse to have.

Good luck :)
 
Price sounds good.
Just flexiblity on hay, haylage, straw, shavings and feed.

You could offer a basic with straw and hay, the another with shaving and haylage.
Or basic stable, grazing and care but then price for a month the hay, haylage, straw and shavings, so owners can mix and match what they want to use.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top