Week or two of hell....

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ABC

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The last two weeks at my yard have been utter hell. :(

Now I only have 1 horse the YO seems to be out of order with me and bossing me around.
Then some idiot fed my horse unsoaked sugarbeet which led to my horse nearly dying.:mad: :( In the end we saved him, but the experience was horrible.
My horse is now in a corner paddock on his own because I dont want him out in the larger fields where it is covered in ragwort and the fencing is falling down. (I've offered to get my boyfriend to do the fencing for free and it just resulted in my YO shouting at me saying Im a know-it-all) :(

Anyway to cut a long story short, I hate it up there. I've been thinking about moving to a field for a long time but this is the final straw. My horses welfare comes first and quite frankly I don't want him staying at the yard a second longer than he has too.

The field is 2/3 acres of completely over grown grass. It is completely unfenced.

I am going to fence it of using fence stakes and stock proof fencing.

Where is the cheapest place to find stock proof fencing? I've had a look on ebay and the cheapest I can find is £40 for 50 metres. Is this good?

I've made a checklist and I just want to check its okay

Fencing - as above. fence stakes and stock proof fencing. as well as electric fencing to partition it off.

Water - IBC 1000 litre container.

Feed - Im going to put a shed on the field and keep my feed in there.

Company - Im hoping to go to an auction in november and pick up two section a's or something to keep him company. Cant afford to spend a fortune though. Will he be okay from september to november with no company?

Haylage - Hoping 1 or 2 big bales a month will be enough for them? 1 tb, and 2 small ponies? If not I can order more

Shelter - Boyfriend is going to help me errect a shelter, just a basic one for now so hopefully that'll be okay.

I really need to get of my yard so as soon as I can get some fencing sorted I can keep him in there.

So, Questions really...

1) How much should I expect to pay for stockproof fencing?

2) How much would you expect to pay for rent?

3) Does everything sound okay? Any major things I've missed?

I've been planning this for ages, but I wasnt planning on moving till next spring but I hate it at my yard and im not prepared to compromise my horses safety.

Thanks guys, I know this is a majorly long post, and tbh I doubt it even makes a lot of sense! :D
 
With regards to company, have you thought about loaning a rescue pony or two? There are loads of centres looking for people to take on non riddens. Some of them do health care packages as well.
 
ABC said:
I've made a checklist and I just want to check its okay

Fencing - as above. fence stakes and stock proof fencing. as well as electric fencing to partition it off.
Make sure you get a wire tensioner. Slack wire is as big a hazard as badly done post and rail.

Water - IBC 1000 litre container.
If you have a car thats capable of towing, might be easier to get a bowser.

Feed - Im going to put a shed on the field and keep my feed in there.
Secure it as well as you can, a metal storage container may be better.

Company - Im hoping to go to an auction in november and pick up two section a's or something to keep him company. Cant afford to spend a fortune though. Will he be okay from september to november with no company?
If you want the acreage to feed them, you can only really get one other pony. Whether he is ok until then you will only know once you have moved him, so make a contingency plan for if he is not (ie borrow a pony for company)

Haylage - Hoping 1 or 2 big bales a month will be enough for them? 1 tb, and 2 small ponies? If not I can order more
Ample!

Shelter - Boyfriend is going to help me errect a shelter, just a basic one for now so hopefully that'll be okay.
Always a bonus but check planning laws

I really need to get of my yard so as soon as I can get some fencing sorted I can keep him in there.

So, Questions really...

1) How much should I expect to pay for stockproof fencing? Depends on how you buy it....buying more may lessen the overall price.

2) How much would you expect to pay for rent?
Depends where in the country you are. Surrey you would pay a min of £100 per acre per month.


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:D enjoy....I hated being on a livery yard. Your own place is by far the best!
 
Thanks joeanne :D Despite the panic I am looking forward to it :p

ShadyJumper - I contacted the two local horse charities to me, and one said I dont have enough land for three, and the other said I needed a stable block, which I wont have. In case of emergency I do have a garage which will be converted but I want them to live out 24/7. I think I will give them another call, and explain the situation more clearly but its not looking hopeful

ETA: Have added a wire tensioner onto my ebay "watch list" :p

I would only get one other pony, but I'd prefer two because I dont want to leave one in a field whilst Im out riding, though that is an option. I dont know, either one or two small ponies :p
 
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I would put a notice in local tack shops and paper asking if anybody as a companion pony for loan. Even of you could 'borrow' someones old or lame pony untill you can go to the sale?
 
firewell said:
I would put a notice in local tack shops and paper asking if anybody as a companion pony for loan. Even of you could 'borrow' someones old or lame pony untill you can go to the sale?
Click to expand...

Yeah thats a good idea, only problem is I'd have to put the ad up once I've already moved, 'cos if the YO or anyone else at the yard see's it I'll be thrown off the yard :rolleyes:
 
Thats a real shame. I know some of them are super strict, I got my boy from a centre and had to spend 3 months going backwards and forwards to visit, plus there home visits etc. Over 4 years later and they still come out to check on him every year. Totally worth tho, he is my dream horse!

I dont know where abouts you are, but nfed.co.uk is great for finding ponies and putting wanted ads on.

Good luck with it :)
 
have a look on the competition riders section under the thread 'thinking of giving up' - would that be helpful?

have a look on preloved as well.

I also have my own field/stables/tackroom (belongs to Yard) but i dont have any interference from liveries or YO!

you will never want to go back on a yard. good luck to you xx
 
Hi surprised no one else has spotted an issue with the haylage. If you are feeding haylage ti wont last more than 2 weeks maybe 3 at most before it starts to go off. Plus i recon in middle of winter you will get through atleast 2 bales a month especially if we have snow like last year when that will be only source of forage.
To make it last longer buy hay not haylage, plus thats generally better for little ponies who will gorge on haylage and could get lami.
 
All sounds good apart from the 2/3 acres for 3 ponies, that will be quite a challenge to keep it good however if you can do what you like within the field then I would suggest putting a kind of post and rail around the field shelter section to provide an area where they can come off the grass for various reasons throughout the year etc that way particularly during wet weather you can better manage the land and potentially fat ponios, It sounds exciting good luck and let us know how you get on. Sorry I cant help with cost thoughts
 
I'd double check costing for the fencing.
Stock fencing at £40 per roll is not the stuff strong enough for cattle or horses (unless you are planning to put an additional electric fence on the inside?)
Horse stock fence is pretty pricey - and you'd still want a line of electric tape/ or a fence bar/ or barbed wire running along the top.
Posts are not cheap - need to work out the overall distance & divide up (am sure you have thought in this tho?)
Then strainer, heavy duty staples, post thumper/corer/digger/spade (one of those will do) and then a fair bit of time too.

You would probably be looking starting at about £6 a metre (with wire or electric tape on the top) for wire, posts, staples & erecting. And do you need to clear any of the boundary 1st?

Just don't under estimate costings or time to get it done

Good luck in getting your own patch tho :)
 
I've got quite a lot of 40mm green fencing tape that we replaced earlier this year. Some of it in very good order, but you will need the connectors to create long runs. I also have trillions of the insulators etc. The tape is free but would want a donation for the insulators, if that is of any help. I'm in Derbyshire.
 
Irish only - how much would you want? PM me if you prefer :)

I'm planning on having electric fencing about 3 feet away from the actual stock fencing.

Thought of another question, will 6ft posts be high enough? How deep should I put the posts in to keep them stable?

I'm not sure about the number of companions now, I think I'll just get one comanpion and see how we get on, worst comes to worst I'll get another :)

I'm sure I'll think of more questions :p so thanks for all your help!

I'm meeting the landlord sometime this week and getting the contract signed and then its all systems go :p :D :D
 
Oh one more question, how long do you think it'll take to get it all sorted?

I'm planning on doing a bit, bringing him to the field and then adding onto it once he's here but I still want to have a rough indictation on time :p
 
i would be careful with small ponies and 24/7 turnout if you dont have anywhere away from the grass. there is a free companion pony advertised in last weeks h & h. 15.1 ex polo pony, 15 years old so may be happy to stay alone in the field while you ride. its in buckinghamshire....
 
I don't know where u r but last melton sales a section a colt went for about a tenner. U'd pick up a filly or 2 for not much more even at this time of year.
 
How far away is your water source?

I agree with everyone else who suggests making a small area where you can get the horse and ponies off grass for whatever reason.

All the best in getting everything ready;)
 
Landlord already has planning permission for a shelter but my boyfriend would have to build it to the exact size etc that is on the plans :)

Spotsrock - thanks :) tbh that's why I thought two little ponies 'cos last time I went to an auction (May time) two sec a fillies sold for £25 each
 
Cluck - my water source is limited tbh so I was hoping to take water from my house and store it in the IBC containers, I think if I filled the tank up every so often it would be less hassle than taking smaller containers every day!

Thanks! :D
 
That's a good idea actually! Do you collect a lot of water? :)

Also, when should I tell my YO I'm moving off? That's the bit I'm dreading, I think she'll throw me off as soon as she knows :rollseyes:
 
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