Tell me all I need to know about sharers please!!

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black_n_white

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Hi,

I've had my boy up for sale but haven't had any luck. He is for sale for financial reasons so I can save for a house. So a proper head over heart decision! As the sale thing is not looking likely I'm now thinking of other options to try and save some costs (and I guess some time) over the winter. My prefered option is looking like sharing but it's not something I know much about. No details as I do not want to have my wrists slapped for advertising! It would be mainly a happy hacking share due to lack of facilities at my yard though. So........

Do you/ would you do stable jobs as well or just ride?
How much would you/ do you pay for a share?
How many times a week do you/ would you expect to be able to ride?
Where did you/ would you look to find a share?

I would of course have a contract drawn up if I do go down this route but is there anything else I need to know?
 
There are many differant sharers with many differant needs, wants or capabilities so I would work out what would be best for you then try and find someone to fit that.
I share a horse - we do one week on one week off as works best for us. We are responsible for care and exercise for that week. I pay for full livery for my weeks as I cant stick to a routine due to my job. The other sharer can do full or part livery as she wants. What works for me might be a nightmare for someone else so best to work out what you want but be flexible if someone you really click with comes along.
Good luck
I hope it all works out well- the other post on sharers has some negative posts on it but Ive only found this to be a brilliant experience so far.
 
^^ this.

My sharer does 2/3 days (or more if she wants) and pays $50 towards him a month. She rides and does his stable if its the winter.

My sharer is a god send, she loves my horse just as much as me and I wouldn't be without her!
 
You can do whatever suits you in terms of sharers, each arrangement is different depending upon the needs of the parties. The crucial thing is that you are clear about the arrangement, the boundaries any costs and the expectations. Communication is key once the share is underway.

My shares have always been situations where the owner has lacked time and my help has been practical and it has been a mutual benefit rather than any money changing hands.

People will pay to share but if they are expected to do stable duties and can only hack it won't be much, especially not going into winter. If you can offer a share with only minimal stable duties then you might be able to get a higher financial contribution though.

Get some adverts out there and put the word out at riding schools, competition venues, and with instructors friends etc. Word of mouth is the best way to find a reliable sharer.
 
Basing this on when I was sharing horses:

Do you/ would you do stable jobs as well or just ride? - both
How much would you/ do you pay for a share? - paid £60 a month plus half shoes.
How many times a week do you/ would you expect to be able to ride? - I did 3 days a week, sometimes more if given the opp :p
Where did you/ would you look to find a share? I think I found mine on one of the horsey advert websites? Although my second share was through word of mouth.
 
you need to work out how much you spend on your horse per year ie feed, livery, shoes ext divide it by 2 and divide that by 52 (weeks) eg say you spend £4000 on your horse per year divide by 2 = £2000 divide that by 52 weeks and you get £38.46 obviously that is not how much you spend just an example. you also need to decide if you want a sharer to ride or just help in yard and field if the latter is the case you may not have as much interest in a share as most want to ride the horse. you need to figure out who feeds when or if you feed they poo pick. you ride certain days and they ride the rest. you also need to think about what you will let them do on your horse ie rules such as no jumping or cross country or lunging ext ext.arranging who does what is the key thing and when you do find someone make sure you have a written contract to cover you and them also sometimes accidents happen and if you horse hurts himself when the sharer is riding him you need to know weather it is you or her/him that pays the vets bills? which is also where the contract comes in. if the share doesnt have to pay for the farrier or vet bill ext take them off her part of the payment so instead of £38.46 it would be something like £25 and so on. i hope i have not confused you lol. if you have any questions i would be more than happy to answer them. i have had a sharer for a few of mine and some are worth doing but others are hit and miss it is just finding the right person for you and your horse x
 
I've shared horses all my life and all the situations have been different,

I've looked after a pony like it was my own, overseen by the owner and didn't have to pay a penny,

I've had to pay for everything except shoes and could do what I liked, when I liked,

And most recently I've had to pay for shoes and worming only and in return get basically as much riding as I like within reason with no stable chores or anything like that.

It's entirely up to you!
 
I've had one of my boys out on Part loan for the past 4 years really (different sharers in that time).

All of the sharers have done stable duties as well as riding, all have paid towards his keep (on the current yard, my sharer pays his liver of £105 a month and I cover everything else) and all have had him at least 3 days a week.

Now that I also have Max, my Sharer tends to come up almost every day and is welcome to do as she pleases with Lewi (within reason obviously) as if he is her own.

I have to say though, not all sharers are ideal and quite often you won't find out until you are already sharing with them. Having said that, I've had more experience of brilliant sharers than I have bad ones so it's definitely worked out well for me.
 
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