To move or not to move?

[MrsElle]

I have been offered the chance to rent some more land and am torn - I don't know whether to stay put or move. Here are my options:

Option 1 - current.

Pro's.

Only a couple of hundred yards from home, if that.
Costs £25 a month to rent.
Lovely landlord, nice neighbours (apart from one).
Water supply.

Con's.

Only one acre for the two horses.
No stable or field shelter (but could put up my own shelter).
One nasty neighbour.


Option 2.

Pro's.

2.5 acres, plus stable, plus feed/tack room.
Nice hacking
Use of jumps and area that can be utilised as a school.
No neighbours

Con's.

It is 4 miles away, takes between 5 and 10 minutes to drive to.
It is £100 a month
No water supply in fields, would have to bucket it down from tack room.

So, which would you choose? I am torn. The potential new place is nice, enough land for the horses plus a stable for old girl Ellie to use in the winter. However, I love having the horses so close to me, although the grazing is crap and there is no stable/shelter up.

I hate decisions!

 

[MrsMozart]

Dunno. Head hurts. But one acre for two horse, including winter...

.

 

[Grey_Eventer]

if you can afford the second place and can set up a water system which doesnt envolve you carrying buckets down- we have a huge conatiner of water with a tube into the water trough which you turn on and fills up the water trough, when it gets low the farmer takes it away, fills it up and brings it back.. could you organise something like that? if you can afford the second place then i would choose there!

 

[MrsElle]

[ QUOTE ]
Dunno. Head hurts. But one acre for two horse, including winter...

.

[/ QUOTE ]

Thats what I thought, we haven't done a winter there and can imagine it being a sea of mud by December. But I do like it there. *sigh*

 

[Ezme]

Second one, 4miles is nothing and water systems can be put in so i'd go for it. Too many pro's

 

[MrsMozart]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Dunno. Head hurts. But one acre for two horse, including winter...

.

[/ QUOTE ]

Thats what I thought, we haven't done a winter there and can imagine it being a sea of mud by December. But I do like it there. *sigh*

[/ QUOTE ]

In that case, any chance of some extra land there?

 

[Slinkyunicorn]

Its a difficult one - but having been through a winter in a similar set up not having water would put me off - having to lug water around in the middle of winter when its all frozen etc is a little bit soul destroying.

 

[3Beasties]

I have 2.5 acre for one horse and a pony and it is hell in winter (they are in at night too), 1 acre for two horses would be even worse.

I can see your dilema (sp?) though, it is so hard moving them when you are used to having them so close to home. Is it possible to move to option 2 nearer winter? or would you have to move sooner?

I think if you don't move you will be regretting it as soon as the weather turns.

 

[MistletoeMegan]

Option 2 - well worth the extra money.

Keep big containers near the fields and fill them up at the weekends or whenever you have time, and then just top the field up from there

 

[tasel]

Second one...

 

[scotsmare]

Move - second one is going to work out better in the long run. It might be more expensive now but by the time you factor in immense amounts of hay / haylage and a shelter where you are it will probably work out cheaper.

 

[horseywelsh]

i would say move, we used to have our horses literally 2 mins walk from home (rented) but then some land came up for sale (5/10mins away in car), best thing we ever did, would love to hav them on door step again, but now we have our own place, we don't have any water, we bucket it and manage fine. I know you would be renting, but facilities and land sound better.

at end of day, only you can decide.

 

[DW Team]

Option 2 and get one of the barrow water sacks that some one on here was writing about the other week. Sack fits into barrow and take that down to the field from the yard. When you get the water bag empty you could bring the barrow back with droppings from pooh picking!!

 

[DW Team]

H2Go Barrow Bag is the water barrow it is on sale with amazon and I am sure many others too £9.99

 

[MrsElle]

Looks like I am moving then

I know it will be better for the horses having more grazing and having a proper stable for Ellie in the winter but I guess I was worried about not having them so close. I will keep the other paddock on though, I have paid for a year up front so still have it until next February. At least I can bring them up here occasionally to give their new paddocks a rest

Thanks guys!

 

[MrsMozart]

Best of both worlds then

 

[Coffee_Bean]

Option 2- but that was a tough one!

 

[eahotson]

The bucketing could get to be a bit of a nuisance though.

 

[TheBlackMoth]

Both - I know it 's a stretch but you can move the horses between them - keep one for winter and one for summer.

 

[mik]

[ QUOTE ]
Second one, 4miles is nothing and water systems can be put in so i'd go for it. Too many pro's

[/ QUOTE ]


ditto

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I vote for both. I can quite see that you need extra land/grass but would be reluctant myself to move them further away from home, so if you can have both that's what I would do and then at least sometimes they'll be close.

 

[shellonabeach]

I third what Nuala and Pearlasinger suggest. You could keep them close to home during the summer (closer for evening rides and a water supply when they are drinking more in the heat) and then where the stable is during the winter (stabling / storage and more land to cope with winter TO).

£125 in total a month for 2 horses isn't bad at all IMO

 

[hairycob]

Could you run a hose down from the tack room?

 

[emilyw]

I would have both!