Should I be worried or not ?

The_snoopster

The_snoopster

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Ok this may get long so stick with me, I have a 4 year old newforest who up untill a few weeks ago I was at a loss with what to do with him I did not want to sell him as I have had him since he was 5 months old but at the same time do not feel capable to bring him on once he is broken in. The original plan when I bought him was to use him as a companion then sell on as a 3 year old, but he as grown on us and stayed.

A few weeks ago a friend who is on a large livery yard told me of a mature 15 year old whose mum is a riding instructor there, was interested in loaning a youngster to bring on so mentioned my pony to her. So I have been and watched her ride and had long chats and decided yes she was very capable of bringing my pony on, so I have booked him in to a breaking and schooling yard and he goes in a few weeks.

Once broken he will be going to the livery yard on loan to them, they understand he as totally been unspoilt and although he is great to catch and groom and lead he as done and seen really nothing. The training yard know all this and will also work on this and will have done some hacking before he goes to them.

My concern is the lengh of time he will regually be stabled, I originally thought he would be on grass livery and bought up to the yard to be tacked up, groomed but it now seems they have booked a stable for him and want him in at night. So will now be turned out at 9/10am and bought in at around 4pm which means being in a stable for 17 hours at day and out for around 7 hours.

Is this usuall at a livery yard I keep my horses at home and this pony lives out 24/7 and although he has access to a stable I have never had a reason to shut the door so its hooked open for them. Will he settle in a totally new routine ? this may sound really silly but being on a livery yard is totally alien to me.

I will be going down to the livery yard lots in the first few weeks just to make sure he is happy and being bought on well in his ridden career, its just this stabling issue that worries me.

Jaffa cakes for all if you got this far.
 
Are you talking about the yard he's going to for training or the yard he's going to live at afterwards? If it's the training yard I wouldn't worry but I assume the reduced turnout is at the yard he's going to live at. I think this is a very personal decision and one of those things that each person loaning out their horse would have a different view on. Personally, with the horse I have been considering loaning out, I would need him to have more turnout than that, at least in the summer. One of my others however would be happy with that arrangement. I think that if it's the perfect solution in every other way, you should try it and see how he goes.
 
I think that you will have to see how he is with the change, but my instinct is that he will adapt to the change in routine.

We bought 3 year old off the side of a hill (he had been well handled) and took him straight into a stable enviroment. He was completely unfussed by the situation and settled straight into a haynet. I do think that having other calm horses around helped settle him and ours is a quiet and settled yard.

It is important that our horses learn how to accept new routines and change. I am trying to expose my youngster to everything and anything that I can think of, so that there is nothing that will faze him when out and about. I do intend him to be with me forever, but I know that there are no guarantees in life, so I am educating him for all eventualities.

You obviously want the very best for your pony, but I think that if you are happy with the people who will be caring for him, then be confident that he will be fine in the new enviroment. He will take his lead from you, so don't worry and neither will he.

I hope he gets on really well.
 
He will be fine and wil soon get used to his new routeen. Most livery yards turn out around 9am and catch in around 4pm as they turn out after morning feed and catch in just before evening feed.
 
Thanks for that I just did not want to sound all fluffy bunnyish, he is a in your face bold type and does take most things in his stride. But after all the trying to catch me if you can antics when he was delivered as a hardlytouched forest bred colt, I am trying to do the best for him.

I shall not be buying another youngster as a companion with plans to sell on as a 3 year old, I end up keeping them lol
 
My 5 year old arab i sent off to be broken until this she lived out 24/7 with a field shelter.
Once she was broken i had to move her to my other yard for the facilities, she then went out at 8am and came in at 5-6pm and was stabled for the night.
I was worried with her being a typical arab but she settled in great and actually loved coming in to a nice warm bed of a night :D

Give him a bit of time and im sure he will be fine and love the attention of a night in the stable x
 
TS - at our yard in the winter (Nov-Apr) they're stabled at night and turned out 9.30am and brought in anywhere from 3pm onwards depending on weather but usually no later than 5pm. In the summer we can turn out 24/7 - so only a couple of oldies are in and mine to keep him off the grass and horses going off early to shows the next day, etc. Mine adapted really well to the routine when I bought him and moved him to the yard.

The girl that had my pony before I bought him only had him for 6 months and she discovered before that that he'd obviously never been stabled but must have lived out 24/7 - and she only found that out as he had a major panic when she first put him in one but once he realised it was safe, he got hay etc, he was fine. And I have to say he is a pleasure to muck out as he's a really tidy chap!

I think your NF will adapt as they are sensible these native types but like you I'd be anxious and going up there in the first few weeks to the loan yard just to check that he does settle and is happy as having spent time and money on good breaking you don't want him to end up with issues about being stabled but I don't think he will. It's not fluffy bunny at all, you know this horse better than anyone and want the best for him so he's happy :)
 
I'm sure he will settle into any new routine but personally, as long as you're happy where he is going then I wouldn't be going to see him for at least a fortnight when he moves. He will obviously be on edge at the upheaval, only to be expected but he doesn't need the distraction of sometimes you're there others, you're not as he's with strangers to confuse him even more. Let him settle in there with only them handling him, it will help him in the long run.
 
Well, not all just settle in straight away do they? So I'd want to be able to go along and see him introduced to the stable and hang around a bit to see if it works. If he's fine then that's great, but if he isn't then they would need to be prepared to put a bit of work in and do it gradually. Or, you could end up getting a pony back with a stable stress of some description.
 
I think he will be absolutely fine. My girlie was living out with her mum until I bought her at 3 1/2 and she went straight to an in at night, out 9-4/5 ish scenario. Didnt bother he one bit. Often natives very greedy so as soon as they twig hay is on tap indoors they just snug themselves in!

Ideally they would have a week or so where they could go out longer but I really wouldnt be put off by it. Horses like routine and as long as they have a good portion of the day where they can be horses and have company all the time of other horses and of people some of the time, they are generally very content.
 
Thanks for all your replies it,s just i,m unfamiliar with livery yards an all that goes with them lol, but I think I shall be visiting the yard regually to begin with. I am not going there to interfere but to just put my mind at rest that he is ok, my friend is on the yard so will be on hand if things are not going well.

Like another poster said this is costing me all my savings, and feel I would be letting him down if I did not keep an eye on him untill I feel he has settled in down there. But this is no reflection on the family loaning him they have not missed a day coming to my field and playing with him, so he is not going off to strangers.
 
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