Those on full livery.

[McFluff]

May I pick your brains a little? This is aimed at those keeping horses on full or part livery (full being all care and riding, part being all care)

If anyone would like to know why I am asking the below, please feel free to pm me. ?

Would you mind answering the following? I shall send you morag wafts as a thank you

I’m on part livery, been there for years with different horses.

1- what is your favourite thing about your yard? This could be a facility, a groom, care, anything!
Location, staff, facilities, herd turnout all year and fellow liveries.

2- what would you change about it?
I’d love to be able to hack from the yard

3- what is the hardest thing about being on full livery?
You have to trust others, and can maybe get more challenge to your choices than if you had sole care. I’ve learnt to just make the changes anyway!

4- do you believe your yard owner and their staff can do a better job of looking after your horse than you can?
I think it’s about the same.

 

[EllenJay]

I have been on many DIY yards - and would prefer to do that, but current circumstances define that I currently need full/part livery. Over the last 3 years I have been one one yard and recently moved due to services received. So will answer questions based on both yards. Yard 1 was a riding school/livery yard. Yard 2 is a competition yard/livery yard

1- what is your favourite thing about your yard?
Yard 1 - Instructors on-site to help out with any issues - but due to being a riding school access to schools was limited
Yard 2 - dedicated school for liveries, with access to all other schools when comps not on - this includes access to jump courses after the comp is over. All schools (6 of them) daily maintained
2- what would you change about it
Yard 1 - YO listening to requests about how your horse is looked after - including daily picking out hooves and other basic care items
Yard 2 - haven't been there long enough to find fault
3- what is the hardest thing about being on full livery?
Yard 1 - having instructions/requests being ignored as YO "knew" better
Yard 2 - Nothing yet
Generally however is lack of control
4- do you believe your yard owner and their staff can do a better job of looking after your horse than you can?
Yard 1 - No definitely
Yard 2 - Difficult to answer. They have many horses under their care so not as 1-2-1 as I would do, but they are there when I can't be so much more consistent in their care than I currently can be. They are currently listening to my requests and suggestions and doing what I ask

I must add, that with any sort of livery you give up control. Things like worming program you give over control to the YO, the same with access to T/O, and whether or not you can feed hay in fields. So even under DIY you are not in complete control of your horses care

 

[racebuddy]

Been on part livery once never again , horse not done properly, didnt feel like he was mine , brought in when should habe been out or just not turned out at all left without hay ,

wentback to diy 10 min from home amazing yard not flash competition yard by any means but I love it horse is happy amazing grazing/ miles of off road hacking indoor and outdoor and ten min from my house xx

 

[AUB]

May I pick your brains a little? This is aimed at those keeping horses on full or part livery (full being all care and riding, part being all care)

If anyone would like to know why I am asking the below, please feel free to pm me. ?

Would you mind answering the following? I shall send you morag wafts as a thank you

1- what is your favourite thing about your yard? This could be a facility, a groom, care, anything!

2- what would you change about it?

3- what is the hardest thing about being on full livery?

4- do you believe your yard owner and their staff can do a better job of looking after your horse than you can?

I guess I am on what some would consider part livery? Horse is fed, turned in and out and stable mucked, but I groom and ride myself. That’s considered full livery here, so I’ll answer anyway.

1) I dont even know what my favourite thing is! We have turnout from 6-16 everyday on big fields with grass, nice facilities (indoor 20x40, outdoor 20x40, outdoor 20x60 and forrests on both sides of the yard), horses are being fed (more than!) enough both hard feed and hay and YO is very kind and helpful.

2) I would like a solarium and to be allowed to have our horses loose in the indoor and small outdoor arena. Also Id like the possibility to have therapeutic leg wraps removed in the morning or have rugs changed before turnout, but I can see why that’s a hard no, it would take up a lot of extra time.

3) I don’t think there’s anything hard about it. I get to spend time with my horse, grooming and riding, and someone else does all the boring stuff like mucking. Win!

4) Not in all aspects. They definitely know stuff I don’t like how much my horse normally poops and wees, her feeding habits etc., but I know her behaviour when groomed, ridden etc

 

[muddy_grey]

1) Almost everything
2) Better hacking and an indoor would be nice ?
3) Nothing really, can have as much or as little input as I want
4) Not better but equal. Allows me to travel for work. Once baby arrives then probably better than me

Edited to add this is part livery

 

[sportsmansB]

Mine is on part livery, though I can have him exercised if I arange it
I like -
Its a small family yard and they see him as an individual - he doesn't like being out over meal times or in bad weather, and if he starts to look fed up in the field they bring him in. He would injure himself careering about if he really wanted in. He lives in a barn about the size of three stables and can move around a bit which I love.
He has a lovely deep bed and plenty of food
I don't like- to get this I had to move away from bigger yards with better facilities. there is a tiny arena with poor lights for winter, and a field for the summer which is often either too hard or too soft (!).
The hardest thing is not being as in tune to him and how he is feeling
Currently they can look after him better than me as I don't have time. Eventually I'd like to buy a place to have him at home and I know exactly how I'd like it to be!

 

[Ben2684]

My current yard is a very small FL affair, owner has six of her own and four livery spaces. She manages all aspects of horse care herself (with occasional day off and holiday help)

1- what is your favourite thing about your yard? This could be a facility, a groom, care, anything!

I love that my horse is happy, well cared for and has as much turnout as possible. All the horses are welll cared for, and seem to be very relaxed and content-I moved from a huge yard and when my boy arrived at this one on the first day he almost physically breathed a sigh of relief-and has been the same since

2- what would you change about it?

lights in the arena, but it’s manageable

3- what is the hardest thing about being on full livery?

To be fair where i am there is nothing ‘hard’ my horse is a hot bod so the only thing I worry about is over rugging but this isnt an issue as YO has listened and understood. The only downside about a smaller yard is it can be days before I see another livery and sometimes miss the camaraderie and company of a busier yard

4- do you believe your yard owner and their staff can do a better job of looking after your horse than you can?

probably-she is very knowledgable and practical though when on a yard where the owner events/competes to a high standard I sometimes feel like the dunce in the corner but I am continuously learning and YO doesn’t make me feel at all inept. To give an idea she went out last week for the first time competing in two years and ‘popped’ her horse round a BE 90 as a training exercise-this would be the pinnacle of my equestrian career!!! ?
Stables are always immaculate, my horse is very happy and I trust her implicitly to look after my horse. To me that is worth it’s weight in gold

 

[Starzaan]

Thank you all so much for your replies and messages. They’re all hugely appreciated (although a couple of the messages were pretty rude but I shall accept that and move on ? no morags for the rude ones!)

 

[NLPM]

Thank you all so much for your replies and messages. They’re all hugely appreciated (although a couple of the messages were pretty rude but I shall accept that and move on ? no morags for the rude ones!)

Oh no, I hope mine didn't come across as rude. I realise reading it back that it does sound extremely grumpy! I was in a terrible mood . Nothing wrong with pony mad girls on yards - just frustrating for everyone and a bit sad when they want to do a good job but don't have anyone to help them learn. I'm sure we've all got someone we can think of who taught us a lot when we were younger... I owe a lot to my first livery yard owner

 

[SWE]

1- what is your favourite thing about your yard? This could be a facility, a groom, care, anything!

2- what would you change about it?

3- what is the hardest thing about being on full livery?

4- do you believe your yard owner and their staff can do a better job of looking after your horse than you can?

1. Facilities, owner, how happy and relaxed my horse is there.

2. Closer to home, slightly bigger stables, better mucking out.

3. I've always had horses at home or on DIY until Jan so found letting go and trusting others the hardest thing. I also HATE having to ask them to do anything as feel like a pain in the ass!

4. Absolutely not ? but..... she is super happy there so things like how well the mucking out is done is something I let go and then just do myself when I'm there. I don't mind doing it....

 

[Starzaan]

Oh no, I hope mine didn't come across as rude. I realise reading it back that it does sound extremely grumpy! I was in a terrible mood . Nothing wrong with pony mad girls on yards - just frustrating for everyone and a bit sad when they want to do a good job but don't have anyone to help them learn. I'm sure we've all got someone we can think of who taught us a lot when we were younger... I owe a lot to my first livery yard owner

Yours wasn’t grumpy at all! I got some really rude PMs which were totally unnecessary, but your reply was fab. Don’t worry at all! ?

 

[little_critter]

I’m on diy livery so I can’t answer but it’s good to see a YO looking at what liveries want. The biggest issue I find is communication, so many issues could be prevented if YOs viewed their liveries as paying customers and communicated with them as such.

 

[lannerch]

My horse is currently on full livery
1: the horses welfare is always put first and standard of care is so high .
2: simple If I could I would move it to my doorstep .
3. nothing hard at all , but I love it when I beat them to getting her in from the field .
4 My horse could not be looked after better and due to the fact I would never be there all the time even as hard as I could try she could not be looked after by me as well let alone better.

 

[leflynn]

1- what is your favourite thing about your yard? This could be a facility, a groom, care, anything! That I don't have to worry about his care when I can't be around (work etc), being able to have lessons on site and not having to hack on the roads if I don't want to and above all they are flexible even in these strange Covid times

2- what would you change about it? I wish someone would stop nicking the pens off the whiteboard lol

3- what is the hardest thing about being on full livery? nothing, I have been lucky and have always found people I trust to look after my horse

4- do you believe your yard owner and their staff can do a better job of looking after your horse than you can? same as me, I trust them and they accomodate my horses needs (in earlier in winter)

On 5 day part livery atm

 

[Red-1]

May I pick your brains a little? This is aimed at those keeping horses on full or part livery (full being all care and riding, part being all care)

If anyone would like to know why I am asking the below, please feel free to pm me. ?

Would you mind answering the following? I shall send you morag wafts as a thank you

1- what is your favourite thing about your yard? This could be a facility, a groom, care, anything!

2- what would you change about it?

3- what is the hardest thing about being on full livery?

4- do you believe your yard owner and their staff can do a better job of looking after your horse than you can?

I recently used livery when selling my horse, she went there for a while every year I had her.

1. Absolute trust. I trust that I know what I am going to find when I arrive. That will be a happy horse, clean bed, fresh water, food to eat, appropriate rugging. My horse is safe. I am welcomed (you let them know when you will be coming, and the horse will be in and waiting, with the rider ready to ride - it was a training livery). If I was riding, there was someone around to make sure all was well. They would even come down to the arena or arrange to ride out with you. It felt like a conspiracy to give me an easy and good time, whilst the horse was expertly dealt with and schooled.

2. I would like better hacking and for it to be closer.

3. Not having my horse outside the stable door. Not feeling like I have space for my stuff.

4. Yes, that is why she regularly went on training livery for the times I was stressed over mum being ill, or when she needed selling.