Those with your own land/ on DIY livery

Having horses at home has been unbelievably cheaper for me compared to livery. Its been a case of working out what bedding works and finding a good hay supplier as well as having enough grazing that they can live out full time except the middle of winter. Looking out your bedroom window and seeing your horses is amazing :D
 
Agree that keeping them at home is a huge improvement from being at livery. You do need to be organised and there is more work. You also need reliable suppliers etc, which can take a while to get inp
place, and then they retire and you have to start again! I share the house and land with sister, so have an inbuilt hacking partner and someone to rely on if working late or going away.
 
AnnaJLloyd said:
Obviously I’m aware prices have gone up but how on earth do all you who own/rent acreage make it work financially? Is buying in bulk still the done thing? Most places I’ve contacted seem to offer a barely-worth-doing discount for buying this way.
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....I just don't buy anything! I have a couple of headcollars and leadropes, hoofpick, 3 brushes, a feed scoop, 2 buckets and tack. They live out, eat grass and get a barefoot trim when necessary...that's it!
 
I agree, there is nothing better than looking out of your house and seeing your horses grazing, or being able to nip in for a cuppa when its freezing, and the freedom of doing everything exactly as suits your horses.

That said, I don't think its much cheaper than livery if you factor in maintenance, and you need good freelance people available for when you go on holiday etc. Re making haylage youself, that can really bring costs down - speak to the local farmers..

We did have a couple of liveries at first, thinking it would help costs, it really didn't, and wasn't worth the loss of freedom of your yard either.
 
I used to have mine at home which was lovely but when we moved house and had to find livery for them, quite honestly, it was absolutely great.
Suddenly, all my time was spent purely on the horses instead of maintaining the property, paddocks, shifting muck heaps, repairing fences and hedges.
It was bliss to turn up, get tack on and ride. The lunging pen, the jumping ménage, indoor school, wash box with solarium, XC jumps, horsewalker, hacking on the estate, these were all luxuries I couldn't match at home. I could share v call out fees for vet and saddler, there was always a farrier about and someone around when jumping or riding the baby. We were able to share transport to events and going away for a few days wasn't a problem.
I would probably consider having them at home again in the future but only if it enhanced life for them and me.
 
if you don't mind the slight hassle of a livery, that would be the best way to get company for your mare. an extra horse just means pretty much double the cost for you on feed ect, or if they are very hardy you will have to separate them any way as your mare will need much more food. also a livery can cover for you if you ever do go away on holiday. i rent land 2 miles from home, with 2 other people, so we can help each other out. would much rather that then hire a freelance stranger who doesn't know my horses. also you wont make much money, but better having a small amount of money from a livery. you might also have a hacking buddy then.
 
having gone from a 16.3 shod ish on full livery in south east to a barefoot 13.2 native at home I am definately saving alot of money ! have had to invest in electric fencing and rubber matting etc but so far has been 6 weeks livery cost including long term investment that will only need occasional replacement in 4 months - however we have got the winter to come but to be fair he will only need hay !
 
Do buy the extra land whatever you decide. Now is the time to buy it at a good price as part of the negotiation of the house, once you have the house you will have very limited options for more land and the owner can charge you a fortune if you do decide you need more land. Even if you never use it, it will add value to the property as it will make it more attractive to other horse owners, smallholders, etc.

If you design your yard well you could have direct access from the stable to the fields and that way your mare could live out and decide when to come in herself. That is by far the best option and she may surprise you by chosing to live out.
 
The saving in hard cash probably isn't massive - although you will save fuel having to drive to a yard every day but the saving in time is. Although I've had mine at home most of my life I did spend about 5 years on livery. Having them at home is far, far more enjoyable. I can have my own routine, they can live out 24/7, and being able to see them when you open the curtains in the morning is priceless. No way would I ever go back to livery even if it were cheaper!
 
Thank you again to everyone for replying :-). It's been really helpful.

I'm going to start a new thread regarding hay growing/making (mostly to avoid confusing this one!) as it would seem lots of people here find that a good use of spare acreage and it'd be very interesting to at least look into it.

Thank you everyone again!
 
Well I currently rent a farmers field 3 mins away and have a mobile field stable in it. Costs are minimal as I have too much grazing for a good doer, so the field is never churned up or short of grass. The rent is £600 per year and then it is just the usual hay and bedding.
However, some time ago we bought the paddock opposite our house and have just managed to get a stable and barn on it, so I can move him there this winter. I will save on the £600 rent per year, but the costs we have incurred in buying 'the most expensive 2 acres in the universe' and building barn etc...we will never get back other than if we sold up and moved. So it is swings and roundabouts really. I feel that the saving in costs of being on a yard is irrelevant to me and it is more the convenience and flexibility that having your horses at home gives you that is the biggest benefit.
 
Wellll........ we bought a wreck of a farmhouse with 13 acres of land attached, 20 years ago at auction.

Basically, we've just about got it sorted! For the horses anyway:)

The 13 acres is split into two "fields" basically. Field 1 (nearly 4 acres) is sub-divided again, into two "bits", with two water troughs. Field 2 (10 acres) is divvied up into three separate sections, with two water troughs.

A livery yard-shares with us and pays £100 p.c.m. for her three ponies, so its worked well for us in that we've got a bit of income coming in, plus sheep are on the land, which the farmer pays us for, and this helps to keep the pasture nice without a great deal of outlay.

Having had to kiss the @rse of some thoroughly unpleasant YO's in the past, or else you knew you'd find yourself and horse out on the grass verge with a thermos flask and a duvet (seriously!), it is SOOOOO nice to have your own place and not have to do that. I've got two horses at the moment and know I couldn't ever afford that if I didn't have my own place.

The negative side is that you get all the hassle of fences, gates, water supply, pasture management, insurance, Defra etc etc. But there's only one other person on the place doing her ponies (plus kids) and we get on brilliantly, its worked out well. There's always someone there 24/7 (from the livery's point of view, she's got peace of mind).

Think the key is to not overspend beyond where you're able to comfortably, especially early on. Spend £££ on the essentials like installing a good drinking water system, fencing, and putting hardcore in gateways, good electrics in case of an emergency, and some decent grass seed. The rest will come later on when you can afford it.

The longest I've ever had to travel to livery yard is 10 miles, but that's long enough if you've got other things to do, and detracts from your actual horse-contact/riding time. So its so refreshing not to have to do that and be able to look over the fields of an evening and see the nags are OK:)
 
buy the extra land, find out what your nearest farmer likes, plus make friends with his wife: Do a deal where he grazes his drying cows/springing cows on your fields with your horse, in return he looks after land for you, and...........also get him to give you some large bales of straw as a bit of a rent, no money ever ever changes hands! Result happy horse/ponies, happy fields/happy cows and good friends made: It does help that my farmers wife is a brilliant baker and always turns up just before christmas with the most yummy cake and homemade wine: , but seriously though, the most cows he puts on is five at a time, we move them round the fields, my pony/donkey loves them, no bullying or chasing, and it has made such a difference: PS I have just under 6 acres divided into 4 fields>
 
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