Taking horses abroad ? Pricing in England, Livery yards in Folkestone, Kent ?

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niagaraduval

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I'm looking to move back to England in about 6 months and would like to be on the coast ie: Folkestone, Dover etc. Next to ferry port. To be able to see my familly as they commute every 2 weeks from England/France.
I will be looking for a job, but I will also be bringing my French Trotter over with me, so ideally I'd like to find a job first and then bring mr horse over maybe a month after my move, obviously this depends on how quickly I find a job.

Regards travelling, He is a good boy in the trailer (He was once an angel but after a nasty accident he didn't want to go back in. It took us 6 months to get him in and out of the horsebox again). He gets a bit shaken up (he never used to before the 'accident') but I think this is due to him getting used to travelling again as he is getting better and better each trip. The last time I took him out for an hour and he didn't move or heat up.

I am just feeling rather scared about the tunnel/ferry trip. I would personally prefer him to go by tunnel as I HATE the ferry myself and I would be panicking. Although would this be best for the horse?
The trip in total including channel crossing will be about 3 1/2 hours long. (If we go by tunnel).
Would we need to take him out the horsebox at any time ? We will obviously make various quick stops to check on him, give him hay/water etc.

I have all his papers, passport, all his vaccins are up to date. Would he have to be vetted before entering the country ?

I have heard some really scary things about livery yards (food theives, things going missing bitchiness), not sure how I will adjust but I'll have to.. and I will LOVE the company.

Does anyone know of a livery yard in folkestone, kent ? And what the prices are like ? What is the cost in general of keeping a horse in England ? (Shoeing, back person,livery..)


I haven't lived in England for so long I can't remember what the prices were like and I am sure they have changed a lot. Please don't suggest any top notch competition yards as I won't be able to afford it. I would like somewhere to turn him out, a warm stable for the winter and nice hacking (this is really important to me because I am a happy hacker) or an arena to ride about in.

Thank you for any replies, this is quite a full post with lots of questions :D
 
I used to keep my ponies in Martin Mill which is a small village about 4 miles from Dover. The hacking around there and over the main road in St Margarets is the best hacking I've ever had in nearly 30 years of riding. It also links up with Kingsdown where there are lots of stables as well. Just thought you might like a pointer to where there is nice countryside, Dover and Folkestone themselves are a bit busy for horses but the outlying villages can be lovely.

If you are keener on Folkestone than Dover or want to be in the middle of the two then there is also nice hacking around the Capel le Ferne area which links up with Hougham, Alkham Valley etc. which are mid way between Folkestone and Dover. I always used to see loads of stables so there must be livery yards round there.
 
If you are using your own lorry then you will not be ablew to use the tunnel. At present there are only 3 legal transporters who are able to use the tunnel and that is because they have lorries which have sealed air conditioning units for the horse area.

As you are coming from France there is no need for a vetting you just need to produce his passport at the fery terminal. Also do not unload and walk him around in the ferry terminal. This is very dangerous and as some people have found out who did at Poole terminal the ferry companies will fine you.
 
I agree with lynette
, I looked into bring my 2 friesians over from holland
I asked about channel tunnel
And they said if using own transport they won't allow it because of safety of horses
But there are a
Couple of transport companys via the channel tunnel
The only thing that lynette got wrong
Is that you do need a vet certificate to declare horse is fit to travel
Horse boxes or trailers needs to in regualations to defra so ie size , space , how many stops for water and food etc
I found it stressful about all the info on transporting horses
In the end I went with a company
Eta who is based in Dover
They arranged every little detail from so making sure horses
traveled well,
They get lower prices for ferry tickets
Etc
All in all transporting
Both friesian cost me 600.00
It would of cost me hell of alot more


But there are
 
Also allowing horses to stay at there yard over night before
Making that last bit home
All staff are lovely too and absolute stunning horseboxes
 
Wishing you well and see you have made some local contacts already!
However, if it were me, I would be popping him on board a Pro box for the crossing.
Good luck!
 
Being a Professional Horse Transporter I am very aware of the rules and regulations of bringing horses into the UK and under the Tri-partate Agreement between France, Ireland and England there is no requirement for a vet Certificate to bring a horse into the UK. However where I think you are getting confused is if you are taking a pony out of the UK then there is a requirement for a vet inspection within 48 hours of export.

www.horsetransport.org.uk
 
to be honest if transporting just one way then i would go with one of the big companies they have all the contacts and are fantastic xx
 
Well for some reason my 2 where inspected by a vet in holland to declare there fit to travel
And I was given both paperworks aswell as passports
 
I travelled my horse over from Holland last month and would recommend using a professional transporter every time.

The only thing I had to do was fill out a form for the ministry vet to come and do a health check (easy money for them...she turned up checked his chip number said "well he looks healthy enough" filled out the paperwork drank 2 cups of coffee and left 20 minutes later having charged me 96 euro for the privilege:-))

Luckily as you are in France you will not need to do this.

I can whole heartedly recommend ETA , fantastic service from start to finish including a lovely team of driver and groom who both spent time with my horse prior to loading to get to know him when it was time to load he went up the ramp with them with nay a backward glance at me. They even texted me when they got back to Dover to let me know he was in the stable eating hay calm and happy. All in all they made the whole thing a very good experience for both of us.

My horse is stabled in Newnham just outside Faversham in kent (about 25 mins from Dover), wonderful hacking country. He is on Exercise livery (as I am still living in Holland at the moment) which includes;

100% care
Stabling and turnout
Feed, hay,Straw
Monthly foot trim by Farrier
Worming
Exercise 5 days a week
This costs £70.00 per week

As a comparison my livery in Holland is 300 euro a month for;
All feed, hay & Straw
Turning in and Out
I have to muck out and make all the haynets.

As far as I am concerned the UK is much much cheaper.
 
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Thankyou for the replies :) I would if possible like to transport him myself as it's not a long time (3hrs in total), but as I cannot use the tunnel I will look into getting a pro to transport him over.

I don't think there is anything to worry about regarding health as he is in good health and up to date with everything.

I also think England will be cheaper to keep him, although I will have to look into this as much as possible.
 
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