What's the freeze cost you so far?

cptrayes

cptrayes

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I was just adding up what the freeze has cost me so far. Well I've nothing else to do, I have 300 metres of six feet of snow between me and the main road so I'm stuck until we get a snowblower down here!

So here's mine:

21 days @ £2 for half a bale of haylage in the field every day:

£42

Two replacement rugs because tetchy horses are ripping each others apart:

£96

Fly fishing studded boots so that I can walk safely on the ice carrying water and feed:

£27

Buckets cracked by trying to break ice out of them to use them when they were cold and stiff:

2 @ £2 = £4


A major part of my sanity - priceless.

Total £169 so far.


I'm guessing I probably got away with it lightly compared to some - how about you?
 
4 x full livery days when I was marooned in the city @ £6 per day
5 x mucking out services @ £4 a day
3 x extra hay bales @ £4 a bale
4 x extra bags of bedding @ £5 a bag

Hmm so £lots!!!!
 
my sanity...
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More my time than money, as it has taken 10 times longer to do anything ....

For the 2 horses, extra hay in the field for TB but Motor has had the same routine, so no extra cost there .....

Oh and a pair of waterproof thermal ride on trousers, at £26.99 .... not worn them yet though
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OH has been unable to teach all his usual lessons, all clients and our outdoor school have been frozen for over 3 weeks, fortunaltey he does teach at one yard with an indoor school which has kept him ticking over, but we havent dared to add up the cost of this weather yet!

One of the other liveries on the yard is a roofer, he hasnt been able to work for the same amount of time as OH, it makes me wonder how many other people/ businesses have suffered.
 
Bit more on hay - and bought some haylage this week as a treat to feed in handfuls mixed in with hay to keep them interested.

Less on feed

Less on competing, lessons, and school hire

Major savings on grass - think how much the grass has been saved by being nicely frozen the last few weeks, which should hopefully mean, less hay and less feed at the end of winter (and a thaw hopefully
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) and much more grass at the start of spring.
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Think I have saved money!
 
An extra hour or 2 everyday at yard and travel time, double the amount of shavings, the feeling in my fingers and toes and my horses sanity (I think his patience is beginning to get a littte thin! We have had virtually no turnout since before xmas
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)
 
well it has saved me money

havent been able to go to 3 booked lessons so thats about £50.
havent been able to compete, that would have been about £50 as was off over xmas
havent been able to go hunting so that would have been at least £60 prob more over the holidays.
havent driven very far so saved petrol.

Though we probably need to have a catch up on the lessons front now
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Horse wise its saved me money
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Usually I pay someone to muck out/bring in if I am working as I just dont get home until so late, but because I was marooned at home I had to do it myself. So the few bales of extra hay in the field to keep them happy has been massively outweighed by not paying someone.

Work wise though its cost a lot
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Our business has really struggled to get orders out - no couriers would collect until today!). Also I couldnt get fabrics/bindings/sheepskin/wool delivered so we have more or less ground to a halt as we had run stocks down knowing we would close over Christmas and the new year. Its not good paying people to 'make for stock'
 
I guess I forgot that I haven't paid £25 a day to hunt, or £30 each for two lessons I've missed, plus the diesel. On the other hand I wasn't adding that OH is self-employed and has lost £3000 of work so far.

I feel so sorry for those of you who are in livery and losing hours just trying to get there and back :-(
 
Extra hay for the 10 that are out 24/7.......I am too scared to add it up just yet!

Time, thats the one thats been a killer, its taken HOURS to get water to everyone as taps have frozen, and they wont drink freezing cold water anyway, so immersion heater has been on all the time too. Cant just give them cold as vets scared the life out of me saying they have seen 4 fold cases of impaction colic from horses that wont drink the cold water offered.

Petrol....mmm again, loads more as its only my ikkle car that seems to be capable of handling the icey roads and snow
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Rugs I dont see as a cost, they are more of a "feeding an addition" thing so dont count
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Hmmmm.....

1. 4 extra bales of haylege
2. 4 extra bales of shavings
3. 5 hours of lost sleep from getting up early to do others horses for them as
they can't get to the yard
4. 5 hours of lost free time in the evenings due to the same
5. Countless stress over how and when I can get to work
6. 4 days work as I can't get my two wheel drive out and some days I couldn't
find a 4x4 driver mad enough to pick me up
7. At least 4 hacks and several hours of schooling
8. Numerous cancelled case-study treatments needed for my course
9. Haven't seen other half for 2 weeks as he can't get to me and I can't get to him.

I'm sure there's more but that's depressed me quite enough! I hate snow!
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A bruised arm and bum!!! horse wise, not really much more as they have been turned out in the snow. We always hay the fields anyhow with large haylage and he gets adlib hay in the stable anyway. So luckily not to bad for me thank god.
 
I don't really dare to add it up!!!! My main income is teaching, and unfortunatly none of my clients have the luxury of an indoor school, so that is 3 weeks with no pay whatsoever. Add to that the extra haylage, and new rug I had to buy for one of my TB's............. I can safely say i'm pretty much out of pocket. Roll on summer!!!!!
 
Mine haven't really cost me much more - the broodies are getting through two large haylage bales a week, but then there is no good grass in their field anyway, so they'd still need this amount. I have the huge round bales, and get them from a local farmer - he only charges us what it costs him to make them (he is my OH's best mate) so that has saved me loads of money this year - last year I was paying £20/bale!
 
Mainly time for me - in walking to and from our yard from wherever the closest place was that we could get the car to (anything up to 2 miles walk each way) - and in lugging water manually from the nearest house to our yard (100 litres/day for a distance of about 500 yards + across to trough).

Money - I've had to feed extra hay, but don't yet know if I will/won't need to get more in the Spring. It all depends on how bad/good the rest of the winter is and when the grass comes through - so it may or may not cost me more.

I've actually saved £30 on entry fees for a dressage competition I had entered on 3rd Jan which was cancelled.

I have split both my Tyne Muck Boots and my Hunter wellies and consigned them both to the tip, so both of those need replacing, so that will cost me - but will have to wait as I'm currently totally skint (see below!).

BUT, OH who is self-employed has not been able to work for three weeks now - his workshop has been all but inaccessible, there have been several power cuts in that village, and all of his outside (non-workshop) work has been postponed. So our only income this month is my own wages, which is nowhere near enough to live on.

We'll get there in the end though!
 
I'm quids in! Bored, but better off I reckon.

Horse has gone out every day except one, so no extra bedding.

3 comps cancelled = £70 on entry fees and probably £200 on diesel if not a bit more.

2 lessons cancelled = £65 plus another £40 or so on fuel

Had to cycle to the yard 3 days = 36 miles = £10 on fuel or thereabouts.

Haven't got to feed shop and feed cut right back = £10.

So all in all I reckon I'm about £400 better off.
 
No idea feed-wise. Its saved me on entry fees since I havent entered anything as all cancelled anyway (and horse and trailer buried under snow!).

My gutters were all ripped off my stables and shelter yesterday caused by the weight of snow falling off
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So thats annoying, but other people in my area have had buildings collapsing so could have been worse!
 
I don't think my horse has cost me much more at all - perhaps a few bales of hay but that's it.

The only extra cost I had this Christmas was having to get horse reshod after 2 weeks. Because of snow I couldn't get to usual farrier so used someone else's in the meantime. He did a crap job and shoes lasted 2 weeks. So that was £60 out of pocket I guess.

Managed to get to work everyday so didn't lose out there.
Probably lost money not hunting having paid a full sub but there plenty of extra days being put on to make up for that.
 
I am better off at the moment in terms of money.
I'm on 5 day livery and I go up to the yard after work by train at least 3 times a week to ride.
I've not been doing this in the snow in case I got stuck in Herts late at night so I have saved the train/bus fare.
.
Good doer TB has gained too - several inches round his middle from lack of work even though he's been thrown out in the field every morning to dig for grass under the snow.
 
£36 so far in bags of horsehage (but may have to get more at the weekend) as been waiting for 2 weeks for my haylage delivery but our haylage company won't be able to get to us until the snow has gone!, so, not bad I guess!
 
About £2 a day extra on hay - hay is £2.50 a bale and they are both requiring 3/4 bale extra day between them.

£4 a day extra livery - I haven't been able to get them out apart from the school for two weeks - road to the fields is just to slippery to attempt to walk on so they are skipped out for me in the mornings.

Plus five days full livery where weather was too bad to get to the yard from London - £12 for two each day.

Probably about an extra £50 a week for the two on feed and livery.

I also am having to use the bus and tube to get to work instead of my motorbike, so another £6.50 instead of £2 on fuel a day.

Hopefully we can get them out at the weekend. Luckily they are the sort that don't go daft when kept in and at least they can have an hour or so each day in the school to groom and roll.
 
£6 for a couple of water carriers bought in the sales, as I only had 2 containers which were not enough. Having to cart water for my 2 from home (4miles) as the pipe which supplies the water trough is frozen solid. Just as well, as now I dont worry about them drinking freezing cold water and now they are used to tap water from home they are drinking lots which has made their droppings normal again. (They went a bit hard and dry for a few days with eating just dry hay, so think they werent drinking enough.)

Think I have got off lightly compared to some.
 
Megabucks in extra petrol as taking the 4x4 e everywhere and going to farm 3 times a day (when possible) as turning out for a few hours when not so cold. Not paid for any lessons or hire or indoor arena so bit of a saving there. But waiting for the "thrill" of getting back on a 4 yr old after several weeks off .......priceless!!!!! Or should it be "senseless"
 
Sadly it's cost me the ultimate price... my horse
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She came in from the snowy field having done her hind suspensories - never to be ridden again
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Kate x
 
Oh H's Mum I am so sorry. What does the fact that I am tearing my hair out after being snowed in for six days compare with what you are going through? It isn't in the same continent, maybe not on the same planet :-(((
 
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