What's the longest time you have stayed on a yard

What is the longest length of time you have stayed at a livery yard?

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Wagtail

Wagtail

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Just interested in what length of time livery clients tend to stay at yards. What was the longest stay you have had? What is the shortest, and why did you leave?

I opened my livery yard five years ago. I only have five clients when I am full and all are on full or part livery.

My shortest stay client arrived just over a year ago. The longest stay client has been here four years. I have one new one arriving very soon, and am currently full.

As a livery client I have stayed at 3 yards. One I stayed only a year but moved because we relocated. The second, I was extremely happy at and stayed 2 years. I only moved because my friend opened a yard and wanted me to move there. I felt really bad though as the yard owner was so upset when I left and I felt guilty as she'd been brilliant. :( I stayed at my friend's yard 3 years before relocating again and opening up my own yard.
 
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I've been at current one about 4 - 5 years, the one before that about a year but before that we moved around a lot for various reasons. I'm leaving my current one this year though :)
 
I kept my mare on the same yard for 11 years. Only moved her when she was put in to foal - and moved to a more appropriate please for babies.

Moved back to 'old' yard with new horse and was there for just over a year - before he was pts - otherwise I'd still be there.
 
Previous DIY about five years I think, maybe more, I only left because I was moving out of the area.

Current, four and a half, but that's because I happen to own it;)
 
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On first yard for 6 years with one of my horses, relocated due to getting second horse and new place being cheaper.
Stayed at second yard for about 6 months due to not being enough grazing for 2 horses and we were renting more grazing off farmer across the road, so moved to her permanently on grass livery...so even cheaper but really suits my horses, now have 4 and helped farmer open up his own livery yard. We are still down the road from yard, so get the benifits of school and people to see, but without being right in the middle of it.

Love it and no plans to move. (been there a year now).
 
The first yard I was on, I was there for 5 years but ended up moving because it was one rule for one, one for another. Been on the yard I'm on now for the past 7 nearly 8 years and love it :)
 
ive been at my yard for 10 years now, its just a really nice yard, good facilities, not too big, only about 16 stables, its the only one in the area thats part livery with good facilities. I will probably move if my new job is out of the area, but if not ill be here for the foreseeable future
 
I think I just get bored. Shortest stay 4 months as was a new area and facilities didnt suit (lovely lovely yard and people though and well organised etc!). Then 6 months as yard didnt suit (part livery and I had too much time on my hands/too controlling). Then 9 months as again moved areas! Current yard 3 years and should be moving this month for a yard with some assistance, better hacking and better access to shows as start a new job which is 7am starts (and 30 min drive away) so would ideally like someone to turn out my boys for me. Also works out much cheaper!

Basically I think I just get bored of routine, good thing my horse settles quickly, hoping the new one will too even though hes been in the same home and yard for approx 6 years and never gone in a horsebox/trailer since coming over from france!!
 
Longest - current yard, about six or seven years.

Shortest - two weeks (not counting holiday livery), I knew I'd made a mistake going there within less than a week.
 
I have been at mine for 17 years with a 2 year break a while ago. I will be there for the forseeable future aswell.
 
I was at my first yard for 10 years - I learned to ride there before I got my first horse.
The shortest I've stayed is at my current yard - been there for 10 months but I'm planning on staying (unless i can convince my dad to buy land with stables :p)
 
Yard 1 - about 16 months, fell out with YO and got chucked out. Was full(part) livery, and used to often find him at 8pm with no hay or water.

Yard 2 - about 14 months, the hacking was v bad; but decided I had to move when the YO decided that my horse's mud fever was cellulitis, and wouldn't treat it how I asked her to, so had to get an expensive vets bill to prove that it WAS mud fever and get her to treat it as such.

Yard 3 - Current yard - 6 years and counting; can't see myself leaving unless I got my own yard.
 
Had my horses at a farm / livery from 1978 until sold after owners passed away in 2006. Would definitely still be there now if they were. Lovely people who owned it & miss them very much as more like family.
 
JennBags said:
Yard 1 - about 16 months, fell out with YO and got chucked out. Was full(part) livery, and used to often find him at 8pm with no hay or water.
Click to expand...

I don't blame you leaving! Mind you, at 8 pm most of our horses will have finished their tea time haylage. But they get more at 9 pm. :)
 
Thanks to everyone who's answered so far. Very interesting and varied answers. It seems that most people like to stay a long time so long as the yard suits them and their horse.
 
Ist horse - same farmer's field and stable for 8 yrs (field companion was farmer's daughter's pony).

2nd horse - 6 weeks until she walked through very tatty fencing onto a road. Then she stayed at the next yard (round the corner from Ist horse's field) for over 10 yrs, we acquired several other horses and had only them in our field. They stayed there until 3 months before we moved to our own place when they went to stay on a friend's farm.
Apart from the safety aspect another reason for moving the 2nd horse was location. That yard was equi-distant from mine and sister's houses. We moved to a yard in sister's village, which meant that someone could always get there, whatever the weather, car health etc. The biggest drawback of staying at friend's was the distance from where we lived at the time. I certainly wouldn't have wanted to be there in winter.
 
i was at the same yard i bought my horse on from 5 years and ive just resently moved few miles up the road becuase the yard owner became very un interested in the yard and we had lost all of our facilites just had stables and field now on our new yard we have BIG american barn stables, two outdoors, one indoor, horse walker, much better grazing and grooms always on hand to do anything you need! as its basically the same price!

much much better!
 
I've been at my yard 9 years, as that's when I moved into the area after leaving home. Horses lived on my parents farm before then. I like my yard, and the people on it. It's not perfect by any means, and I could easily move to a yard with better facilities, but my horses are happy and healthy where they are, and if I moved I would fear the people might not be as nice, as I've made some good friends at my current yard.
 
I have moved a few times for various reasons, once to be within walking distance of home, once because various promises made by a YO fell through (you can have X stable, oh no you can't, my new best friend wants it, etc), once because the YO was seriously barking mad and once because I relocated.
 
I've been at my present yard since the summer holidays in 1984 (nearly 27 years), great yard, good facilities and were brill when I had a lovely mare for 15 years, that would not tolerate anything else in the field with her. Have had a few ponies/horses in this time and all have been found by the yard owner or came in to be sold.
 
I'm round the corner from work so no plans to move. I've been here since October 2009. Previously, I loaned and was at her yard for a little while then moved her and my co-owned horse to be together. I was only at that yard from April-October 2009. My co-owned boy was PTS because of a kick/broken leg there and i hated the place-far too competition for me and the owner and I didn't see eye to eye, although I'll always be grateful because he found me my forever horse.

For me, the owner needs to be a professional, involved in the running type or have a very good manager. My current YO is frankly an idiot but I love the other liveries and the convenience. I worry what will happen to the place when the YO drops dead of a stress induced heart attack (he gets v worked up over v minor things)
 
I have been on my current yard for 20 years!!! We've had our ups and downs but its lovely, I get on well with the owners who are friends now, the horses have always been happy and relaxed there, its close to home (walking distance if necessary) and has reasonable facilities. I must admit I don't know many people that have stayed in one place for as long as we have unless its their own land!!!
 
Current yard 2 and a half years :)
But ive only been a livery for just over that, spent 3 months on a yard before that but only ended up there (not by choice - hated the place!) as i was let down by a friend so had to find livery quickly before my first pony was delivered!!
 
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