Why do people think they shouldn't have to pay to share?

Sugar_and_Spice said:
I think your situation is not so common amongst sharers. I imagine you have a queue of people wanting you to share their horse! :)
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Perhaps a short queue :)
My point was that it depends what owner wants and what sharer can bring to the party. Whilst I agree I may not be the average sharer my point still stands that a blanket statement of sharers should pay is wrong. However, they should always contribute something of value to the arrangement.
 
can see both sides and i think it depends who is getting what out of it tbh.

Bruce's sharer pays for his feet to be trimmed every 5 weeks and thats it as to us its FAR more important that they have fun together, Bruce stays trim and gets more attention etc.
 
I've had three long term shares and never paid a penny for any of them. It's a two way thing, like a bartering system. The owner gets a day off doing their chores and I get to ride.

If the owner wanted a day off and they didn't have a sharer, they would have to pay someone to look after their horse for them and exercise it if necessary. So I'm another that can't understand why a sharer would be expected to do the chores and also pay. Can you imagine calling a pet sitting company and requesting that they do the chores/exercising whilst you go on holiday, oh but they also have to pay the owner for the privilege?

I do however, agree that if there are no jobs to do & the horse is on full livery etc, then a contribution may be reasonable.
 
About 15 years ago I was between horses so I stuck an ad in the local tack shop asking if anyone wanted their horse exercised during the week and a lady replied. I rode her horse while she was at work so we were both happy and no money was mentioned. These days it has all changed it seems, everywhere you look it is 'share' a horse. Perhaps it is a sign of the times that we are all hard up but some of the costs quoted are unbelievable! If I did want someone to exercise the horse I own now, I wouldn't expect payment as then I would be able to dictate terms and if I wanted him schooled I would pay a professional.
 
I know this doesn't apply to everyone and certainly not to lovely people who have posted about their experiences but there is a contingent of people who are not that reliable and if you get something for nothing don't take it seriously.

So because the owner needed help exercising rather than money they have taken on experienced riders and not ask them to pay. Often they didn't turn up as soon as something else comes up. This could be difficult for the owner especially in winter on a yard with limited turnout or if jobs were expected get a text at 2pm saying not riding and horse needing to be mucked out. Yards don't take kindly to horses being put on livery at the last minute.

I used to ask a token monthly fee as for me it was about extra exercise not money It was only £50 a month and for the sharer who had weekly lessons in a riding school they got to hack out in beautiful countryside on a well behaved horse.

A friend didn't ask for money but jobs were required so made an arrangement that if the sharer couldn't make it they contacted the yard and paid the charge for a day's cover.

If someone is paying psychologically they have already paid for the ride so more likely to do it. If they don't pay (or pay only if they ride as in the £10 per ride option) I think for the less responsible they are more likely not to bother. That's why riding schools have cancellation fees.
 
Tapir you're assuming the horse owner wants a day or a few days off. Many owners, whilst they enjoy their days away from the yard, its a situation of enjoying the positives rather than actually wanting the days off. For many, its a case of *giving up* their horse for a few days per week so the sharer can enjoy the experience. The owners motivation for doing this is often financial help with the costs of keeping the horse.

I think at the moment there are less sharers around because when horse owners get skint they look for a sharer, when sharers get skint they give up their share horses or look for free riding. At the moment it seems everybody's skint.
 
I have a friend who comes and riders he's young fit and strong he's really the test pilot now , in return he gets a horse to hunt as often as he wants .
It's not a share more of a barter it works fine for us .
 
Goldenstar said:
I have a friend who comes and riders he's young fit and strong he's really the test pilot now , in return he gets a horse to hunt as often as he wants .
It's not a share more of a barter it works fine for us .
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I engineered a similar situation with Spikes previous sharer. She didn't pay, and was a bit reluctant to do any chores, so I got her to hack Alf out as well. He can be a real idiot, so needs a very competent rider, and it was great to get help with the dull fittening work!
 
I have always paid for my shares. On my current one I only pay a small amount each month and half shoes but do all jobs on my days. I try to look for shares where the owner is short on time and needs help with the jobs. My first share's owner was simply wanting a sharer due to being short of money which resulted in her constantly asking for more money or trying to increase the monthly amount to the point where I was fully paying for the DIY livery, hay and shoes along with going up twice a day on my days and doing all the jobs. It got to the point where she was leaving most of the jobs i.e. mucking out on her days just for me to do on mine. Horse then got an injury which meant 6 months box rest and I still wanted to continue the share but tried to negotiate a lower price since all i was paying for was mucking her horse out 4 days a week which she refused and so I ended the share. I'd spent months sorting out the horses horrible napping when hacking alone even though it had been advertised as a being suitable for a novice to hack alone so I was gutted I had to end it. Would have been cheaper for me to have my own horse with that share so now I only look at ones where the owner is in need of my time more than my money
 
A lot of sharers tend to be novices who need mentoring both with riding and horse care, so paying a contribution seems reasonable. I've had lovely paying sharers who needed quite a lot of help, so rather than freeing up my time, actually meant my hours at the yard were increased.
The downside for me is that, once the sharer is trained enough to be useful, they go off and buy their own, but at least their first horse will have an owner with a little experience.

I've also had non paying sharers but they were people who were working away or at uni and had their own horses back at home.
 
I've never had a share horse but back in the day it was all about 'work for rides'. But when I say work, I mean proper work i.e a days yard chores for an hours hack.

If I was looking for a share horse I don't think I'd mind either paying or doing chores. As long as the owner is up front about what they expect. :)
 
splashgirl45 said:
I remember those times and find it difficult to get my head round owners wanting horse ridden plus mucking out, tack cleaned and pay for the privilege.
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I agree with this. Sorry OP but I cannot imagine asking a competent person to do half the work associated with owning a horse, and then charging them for it.

I pay someone to exercise a couple of times a week in the winter when I am pushed for time - she is everything you would want in a share - competent, trustworthy and able. I cannot imagine her reaction if I suggested that actually she should be paying me for the privilege of riding the horses.
 
Just seen an ad asking for £200 a month for a share with 3 riding days a week. I suppose someone might reply.
 
I have not read all the replies but can see the 2 sides clearly.

My view is this:
If you want a professional to come and school your horse for you, you pay them.
If you want someone to come and help you out with some jobs and ride your horse for the horses sake, you get a sharer. Sharers pay for the privileged of getting a part time horse without the expense of ownership or responsibility of full time care. I have 2 ponies. One is mine and no one but I rides him. The other is his companion who is too good to be wasted in a field but I don't have time to ride them both. So my sharer pays me £80 a month for as much riding as she likes. She treats my pony like her own, helps with jobs, has lessons and enjoys her. She doesn't have to worry about vet, farrier, dentist, saddle fitter or back lady bills, she doesn't have to buy hay or feed, replace or buy things she needs or fix fencing. She purely gets to enjoy a nice pony when it is convenient for her for a snip of the cost it would be if she owned her. For me, I get some financial help which I use to buy hay and feed, I get a hacking buddy, have help with poo picking and a lovely lady I trust if I couldn't get up to the ponies in an emergency. It is a win win all round.

I don't agree with people who advertise for sharers for problem horses or with the intention of trying to get someone to pay them to school their horse, but anyone just wanting some help or even company, whats the harm and why shouldn't they pay?
 
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When I was younger, I loaned ponies from the local riding school. Because they were mine three days a week, we paid to cover the profit they would have made if on the riding school those extra days.
I currently exercise a horse for someone, and get paid £10 per ride for doing it - but he's a stubborn git and riding him can give me a massive headache! Plus I have other horses to ride, so only do it because I need the extra money.
For me, it depends on the type of horse, and the arrangement with the owners. Riding a green, recently backed nutcase is very different from riding a chilled out hacker. If I was approached about exercising a horse, I'd expect some sort of payment (money or otherwise), but if I was looking for a share I'd offer to at least split costs.
 
RunToEarth said:
I agree with this. Sorry OP but I cannot imagine asking a competent person to do half the work associated with owning a horse, and then charging them for it.
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But these people aren't asking for half the costs involved in owning a horse, or the risks, just the benefits. If it is a horse that is easy and has no issues then why shouldn't someone pay to have the privilege of calling the horse 'theirs' for a couple of days a week? The other option is to find someone who needs their horse schooling and having been there, what is financially cheap, is actually hard work and more than most (not all) loaners are competent at. Or they could pay less than £1000 for a project and bring it on to the point that it is at the standard of the 'loan horse', or pay ££££a for a ready made horse. The point here being - loaners don't want the risks or the full costs. They are getting something out of the deal - a horse that they wouldn't be able to own themselves for whatever reason. In return the owner takes the risk that the loaner isn't going to break their horse or ruin their tack and gets a bit of pocket money and some jobs done.

And it is pocket money - in the grand scheme of of owning horses £20 a week is a drop in the ocean. Most of the costs may come from vets bills but the benefit of a loan is that if the horse is broken you can walk away and find a new one.
 
RunToEarth said:
I cannot imagine asking a competent person to do half the work associated with owning a horse, and then charging them for it.

.
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Most leisure riders I know only ride 2-3 times per week. You don't think its fair that the sharer, who gets the benefits of almost-horse-ownership but without the overall responsibility for welfare or major costs of purchasing horse+tack/vet bills/euthanasia, should pay something towards costs as well as doing chores on their days? I agree with you a good sharer is wonderful for the owner, but it works both ways surely? I see a good horse and owner as wonderful for the sharer too.
 
southerncomfort said:
I've never had a share horse but back in the day it was all about 'work for rides'. But
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That's a good point. The riding stables (not school as they only did hacking) where I kept my horse a kid operated on this basis. There were a couple of paid people but a lot of girls who came every weekend and every day in the summer to help. Everything lived out all year and they got to ride horses from the field and back bareback turning out and bringing in and if they were really lucky they got to hack as an escort.

Each had a favourite horse which it was accepted they would ride in and turnout (while leading one each side) and take care of while being expected to do other tasks.

As for the £200 per month for the right horse at the right yard they will get round here. Just checked the prices at one of the big riding schools and they range from £40 for a group hack to £70 for an individual jump lesson. To get access to a nice horse for 2 or 3 rides a week for the same money is better value in many ways.
 
Fides said:
But these people aren't asking for half the costs involved in owning a horse, or the risks, just the benefits. If it is a horse that is easy and has no issues then why shouldn't someone pay to have the privilege of calling the horse 'theirs' for a couple of days a week? The other option is to find someone who needs their horse schooling and having been there, what is financially cheap, is actually hard work and more than most (not all) loaners are competent at. Or they could pay less than £1000 for a project and bring it on to the point that it is at the standard of the 'loan horse', or pay ££££a for a ready made horse. The point here being - loaners don't want the risks or the full costs. They are getting something out of the deal - a horse that they wouldn't be able to own themselves for whatever reason. In return the owner takes the risk that the loaner isn't going to break their horse or ruin their tack and gets a bit of pocket money and some jobs done.

And it is pocket money - in the grand scheme of of owning horses £20 a week is a drop in the ocean. Most of the costs may come from vets bills but the benefit of a loan is that if the horse is broken you can walk away and find a new one.
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I suppose it is just a difference in perception. In the winter time I struggle to ride every day as I usually do a couple of days a week in an office a good 50miles away, on those days I turn them out and pay someone else to do them. I imagine people who share often do it for very similar reasons, but instead of paying someone to ease the burden, they aren't, and they are actually expecting to be paid for it?
 
RunToEarth said:
I agree with this. Sorry OP but I cannot imagine asking a competent person to do half the work associated with owning a horse, and then charging them for it.
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As I've already said, no chores are being asked for. It's a case of turn up, tack up, hack or ride in the school on a very willing and well behaved horse then either leave him in his box (which I've mucked out and left haynets in) or turn back out.

Call me crazy, but I do want someone competent, not like the last one who couldn't tack up then couldn't stop him trotting then he took off in a canter and I had to make him stop or the one before who 'rode with her mind' and was terrified that there was someone else in the arena and didn't want to even trot. My advert clearly stated no novices. I'd be quite willing to teach someone, but I don't think my horse is suitable for total novices because of his responsiveness.
 
OP you are advertising for a sharer and someone to pay some of the costs, so the only people who should be replying to that ad, is a sharer who is prepared to share those costs. If you are not receiving these sorts of replies then perhaps your advert isn't clear enough? Or perhaps the people replying are not the sharpest tools in the box.

I was a paid rider for many years so sharing is not something I would have done, and I wouldn't have replied to advert asking for a sharer.
 
cinnamontoast said:
As I've already said, no chores are being asked for. It's a case of turn up, tack up, hack or ride in the school on a very willing and well behaved horse then either leave him in his box (which I've mucked out and left haynets in) or turn back out.

Call me crazy, but I do want someone competent, not like the last one who couldn't tack up then couldn't stop him trotting then he took off in a canter and I had to make him stop or the one before who 'rode with her mind' and was terrified that there was someone else in the arena and didn't want to even trot. My advert clearly stated no novices. I'd be quite willing to teach someone, but I don't think my horse is suitable for total novices because of his responsiveness.
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I think that is probably the reason why I would never entertain the idea of having a sharer - the groom we have is not only competent, but has her own insurance!
 
RunToEarth said:
I think that is probably the reason why I would never entertain the idea of having a sharer - the groom we have is not only competent, but has her own insurance!
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That's it isn't it really, a groom does as you wish when you wish how you wish you get peace of mind and control .
The friend who rides mine is different he could have been a pro if he chose a different route in life it's a pleasure to work with him and the horses .
 
I am very wary, I must say. Some of the people I've had turn up have been terrified of horses, unable to put on a headcollar, unable to make him trot, unable to make him stop. My advert is very clear, states that a financial contribution is necessary. I think I'll just give up and have fun getting fit again! It's a shame that of my last two sharers, one moved to a different city and the last one got pregnant! Lovely for them, shame for me!
 
It totally depends on the type of horse, type of riding and arrangements! A good share should be positive for both parties. I had a sharer for my horse for about 18 months (stopped because she moved away unfortunately). She paid £20 per week to hack him out 2x a week and do jobs at one end of the day. She was a A&E nurse and so mostly worked weekends/nights and had free days in the week. She got a well schooled, fit, fun horse to ride for long relaxing hacks, she got flexible days every week and she had a set monetary commitment each week. Her other options would be a naughty horse with vices/very green which wouldn't be very relaxing or enjoyable, riding school hacks which would likely be on dull horses and more expensive or her own horse which she couldn't afford and didn't have time for.

I got someone to hack my horse out during the week which he enjoys so I concentrated on schooling and I also got some money which is always a bonus!

I didn't find another sharer because my financial situation changed for the better and I can't be bothered to weed out all the idiots to try and find a good one again!
 
RunToEarth said:
I suppose it is just a difference in perception. In the winter time I struggle to ride every day as I usually do a couple of days a week in an office a good 50miles away, on those days I turn them out and pay someone else to do them. I imagine people who share often do it for very similar reasons, but instead of paying someone to ease the burden, they aren't, and they are actually expecting to be paid for it?
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That can work from both viewpoints a friend has a share (3/4 days a week) that she pays £200 odd pound a month for and gets to compete (only person competing him) she puts it that she couldn't put one on full livery and get it exercised on the days she can't do for that price!
 
Our old boy has a sharer, he was retired until we met her and she wanted a well behaved horse to hack out on and love & fuss so it made sense and he absolutely loves his new little job. She pays for his shoes every 6 weeks because it is an expense we didn't have when he wasn't working, I cover everything else, tack, livery, insurance, feed, the lot. She has free rein to do what she wants (within reason), when she wants with no chores.

On the other hand, our other 2 that are in work are currently up for unlimited days riding (work & family commitments; we make time, it would just be nice for the horses to have something to do), no chores with a tiny set fee monthly that doesn't even cover 30% of their costs but can we find sharers for them who pay on time and actually turn up... nope :-(
 
PaddyMonty said:
Perhaps a short queue :)
My point was that it depends what owner wants and what sharer can bring to the party. Whilst I agree I may not be the average sharer my point still stands that a blanket statement of sharers should pay is wrong. However, they should always contribute something of value to the arrangement.
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They had best stay in the queue, Spring doesn't do sharing ;)
 
RunToEarth said:
I think that is probably the reason why I would never entertain the idea of having a sharer - the groom we have is not only competent, but has her own insurance!
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That's the only thing I ask my sharers to pay, their own personal riding insurance. It's about £7 a month, I believe.

Edited to say, before going down the sharer route I tried to find a freelance groom to ride her (had had a good one for three years while eventing but she got a full time job somewhere). The two I tried were useless, both didn't turn up to meet the horses and have a chat when arranged, and I had no confidence that they would turn up while I was abroad! There is nobody in our area freelance that is any good.
 
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My owner doesn't expect me to pay, and I don't have a lot of spare cash to lash out on a horse so I looked round for one with the right circumstances - on DIY livery, owner doesn't work but has care responsiblities so all she requires of me is to ride the horse to keep him fit whilst she rides her pony, and I untack. I've only known her for four weeks so I'll do more as we go on, but she's the old fashioned type and thinks me paying her is ridiculous.
 
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