Sorry Guys, can i quiz those who have loaned their horses out please?

EllieBeast

EllieBeast

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Y'ello, i'm afraid that i am currently having a complete attack of the jitters with regards to loaning the fatster out
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. i know that it HAS to be done, and i know that i WILL find someone that 'Madam' approves of (if it bloomin' kills me
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, those that she approves of, are not in a position to take her on picky baggage). But now i am panicking about fitting in as much as i can do with her in the time i have left. The feeling of absolute fear and dread has set in. As 3 years is a long time, and she is going to change within those 3 years. what happens if we no longer 'click' after that time? A lot can happen in 3 years, what happens if when i leave is the last time i get to jump/xc/hack/ride her? What if i never get to see her again? what if she isnt treated as she should (as things can happen, even with the most vigorously vetted home) and isnt the same Beasty pony i know and love when i return?
Dear god, i am so sorry to unload on here, but i just dont know how else to do it. That bl**dy horse infuriates me sometimes, yet i dont want a single hair on her head or synapse in her body to change. Can i not just freeze her in time for when i get back?
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Here is the other side of the coin. My daughter loaned a 16 hh mare for two years. She was put on loan as the owner didnt have enough time to spend on her. When we took her she seemed to be totally unschooled, dreadful with the farrier and unable to be tied up for grooming etc. After two years she had totally changed, loving her routine on the yard, a quiet darling who was a pleasure in the school and competed locally. She is now back with her owner and we still visit her regularly. Her owner has told us how delighted she is with her temperament and that she has been beautifully schooled by my daughter. I realise that loaning a horse can be daunting and there are lots of horror stories out there but there are also a lot of very dedicated people able to loan. It is a question of matching the right horse to the right loanee. Good Luck
 
I know everything you are feeling. Its normal. I went through the same thing with our old pony about 4 years ago. We decided that as she wasnt getting exercised as much we would put her out on loan but to stay on livery with me. All the loaners would have to do is ride her and fetch her in/turn her out, I would do all the work.
We thought we'd found the perfect loanees for her, even so when they asked if we would sell her to them we did consider it (Thank god we didnt). Unfortunately after 5 weeks, me and my mum terminated the loan agreement and it wasnt amicable - they crippled my pony so much so she has never been ridden properly since and is now totally unrideable and retired awaiting the dreaded day of being PTS.

I know my loan story isnt a good one, but I dont think everyone has a good story to tell. Its best you know what can go wrong even when you think that they are the right people.

I really hope you find the perfect partner for your horse. There are some lovely, dedicated people out there, who want a horse but for some reason cant have their own, its a shame we didnt find them. When you find the right people, you and your horse will know that they are the right ones. Everything will seem perfect and slot into place. Good luck with finding the right person for yo both.
 
Completely understand your concerns but if you do your preparation and choose well (hard I know) you may well be ok, although obviously things can (and do) go wrong.

I loaned my mare out about 3 years ago now as we were struggling to get on together and I had bought another horse and couldn't afford to keep 2. So she went to a girl about 20 miles away who I found through word of mouth. I drew up the BHS loan agreement which we both signed and kept in touch with her throughout. Foxy was only with her for about 3 months as she turned out to be not as experienced as she and I had thought (thankfully her friend was more switched on) so Foxy came back. Her hooves weren't as good as they had been - I am a bit obsessed with looking after them, but apart from that she was fine, pleased to be home and certainly remembered me! Since she's been back she's a lot more chilled, almost as if she's realised if she doesn't behave she may go on holidays again!

I know everyone says it, but you will know when you find the right person and as long as you keep in touch and visit if you can then you can pull out of the arrangement whenever you feel it's not working...

Hope this helps, good luck!
 
Thankyou P, i know that the change is likely to be for the better, yet change is still change
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. I think i just need to pull my socks up and get on with it, she has to go , so i need to focus on finding her the right home.

ECW - i am so sorry to hear of your experience, that is terrible. You see, i keep hearing bad stories, thats why i am trying to find someone through reccomendation and word of mouth, rather than advertising. I hope your pony is doing ok.

Thanks Guys
LW
 
L_W, I hope I havent put you off loaning yours out. I certainly wouldnt go through it again but thats because of how we got stung. Little poppo is happily living a very relaxed life at the mo but live permanently on strong pain killers to help her get through life. She wont be with us much longer as we plan to have her PTS before the winter (weve got September as a date in our minds).

The worst thing is we took these people on via word of mouth. When we terminated the loan agreement they went onto loan another 3 horses who again they crippled. The owners of the horses thought I was exaggerating so agreed they could loan their horses - they soon realised I wasnt and again terminated their agreements.

I have since found out that the she has 2 of her own horses plus 2 on livery 1 of which she rides. All 3 of the ones she rides are crippled, but she still continues to ride them! It says a lot for her knowledge and expeirence. People have said things to her but she doesnt listen and doesnt care!

I hope you find someone who will love your horse like their own and will treat her with great care.
 
OMG how does she break all these poor ponies?! thats awful! no, you haven't put me off, it is a nessecary evil, its either loan or sell, and i couldn't bear to let go of her completely, so loan it is!
 
I havent got a clue how she does it. I think she uses them as working animals and doesnt look after their well being so eventually they cant work properly.
I know what you mean about selling. It is a necessary evil but if you find the right person then the loan will work perfectly and youll have no problems.

Let us know how you get on with finding someone.
 
Positive loan story.
I've posted this somewhere else, yesterday I think. I put my mare on loan when I went down south to college for 1 year. Maybe it was slightly different as I put her on full livery at her yard...I just wanted someone to ride and love her.
Found an older loanee...I went to watch her ride at a local riding school, she came to watch me ride my mare...all worked beautifully.
My Dad used to visit my horse some evenings, to check she was ok...and would often find the loaner there, just grooming my horse, chatting to her....cleaning her tack, fluffing up her bed.
So there are good loaners around...you just need to hunt one down!
Good luck
S
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I've just had to put my darling mare on loan due to money circumstances
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but luckily i have found her a fabby home, somone of here
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and i just know she is going to be completely loved and spoilt and i get to keep up to date with what she is up to...

I think you are perfectly normal in having those thoughts - i am the same. I always think that Star is going to hate me for not keeping her but i just keep telling myself that she is just on a long training holiday
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Im sure you will be fine x
 
I'm sorry but i am going to have to say i have loaned my horses out around five times now and only one was a success story! I have recently gone through a very touogh time with one loan that ended badly and i will NEVER EVER do it again!
it was simply the worst experience ever. If i dont have time for a horse i will now always sell it, much better.
Good luck if you do loan and please be incredibly picky with the home and people and make sure you visit very regularly, unannounced too. I only visited twice in a year as i didnt want to appear to be hassling her, that was the biggest mistake and i was stupid for trusting someone with my beloved horse!
Good luck, i am sure there are nice loaners out there somewhere, i have just yet to come across them!
 
Thanks Guys for your honest stories and oppinions. unfortuanately for prospective loaners, i am going to be picky about where she goes and who she goes to. she will not be going anywhere without it being fully vetted and she will be checked on a regular baisis by me (when i can) and people i trust. I am starting to get incredibly worried about the whole situation (not because of any of your replies, it was the reasoning for this post). Why do we get so attatched to the giant hairy beasts?
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I forgot to add earlier that I think it would help ease our mind if you kept in regular contact with your loanee either by email, phone or face to face perhaps weekly to start with. We found this invaluable as the owner had lots of tips, info to share and we enjoyed feeding back the mares progress. I think this put the owners mind at rest and she was still a big part of the horses life. Also we made and have kept a good friend here and are able to visit the horse still now she has returned home. If you remain in close contact, hopefully you will see very quickly if the partnership is going to work.
 
Well, I have 4 horses on loan, which I keep at my yard, they are my life!! I dont think of them as 'on loan' I think of them as my own, and treat them that way. I keep in very regular contact with all of the owners, send lots of pics, and they are welcome to call in at any time without notice. I insist that we have a contract, coz at the end of the day, I also have to protect my self, and not every horse is going to be a perfect match (luckily up till now, they have been) I take out insurance for every horse, and I pay for all vet bills, shoes, feed, everything and anything they may need. without a second thought. I always give a farriers/vets reference to my possible loanee, and let them vet the yard.
I am looking for another horse at the moment, as 1 of mine is due to go back to her owner, as I only had her while the owner was unwell, I always ask for my present owners to give me a reference too, as the future loanees, like to see these. so if anyone out there got a horse to loan please IM me.
 
When I went to university I gave my boy the best part of 3 years off! He was 10 at the time. I put him on full livery at home and to afford this worked on the yard during the holidays. I would get on him for a quiet hack every now and again but no schooling etc.

For me my boy grew up a lot in those 3 years and when brought back into work was greatly improved than he was before his "break".

Not answering your question but an alternative.
 
Thanks, unfortuanately i cannot afford to do hat with mine, and i would really like her to continue having one to one attention, she's a soppy monkey! Aw, why on earth did i choose to have ambition!? Stoopind uni
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On a more "practical" level...
I heard of a horse for sale but couldn't afford to buy him, although I could afford to keep him at DIY livery, so I asked the woman if she'd be interested in loaning him to me - he was her teenage daughter's horse and the daughter had lost interest - the woman [who apparently knew me from somewhere, although I'd never seen her before!] was quite happy, but her husband objected, because they'd loaned a horse to someone years ago, who'd kept that horse at livery somewhere, then skipped town 6 months later without paying any bills [vet, farrier, livery], leaving the owners of the horse to pay up several grand...
 
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