Work and horses!

[alqpzm]

How do people fit work and horses together?

I think it's a struggle in the week getting to the yard at 6 to turn out and feed be at work for 7, get to the yard at 4 and muck out do their stables and bring them in its already 5 before even riding!

 

[Charlie007]

I leave for work at 7 and find it difficult to get up in this weather and muck out and turnout 2 before work! I work full time. I'm back at the yard at 4.15 to bring in. I then poo pick fields with a head torch. Once I've groomed and tacked up ut us usually about 5 or 5.30. I then go out much later to skip out etc. It's something I have done every day for the last 30 years and im not sure what I would do if I didn't have them??

 

[Sukistokes2]

I'm lucky my retired Dad turns out my horses ( the horses live at their house, I don't ) I then arrive at about 5 in the evening to put to bed. I have a freelance groom on standby to deal with any issues when I Am at work. I am a teacher and work at some distance from the yard so it really helps knowing there is a knowledgable person around who can hoof it over quickly. This was put in place after my Mum did an emergency call out for my mare who was having an afternoon nap!
At the weekend my Dad has a break and I do it all.

 

[alqpzm]

Sounds like you have all got it pretty worked out, I'm gonna have to do some serious thinking on how long things are taking me and see if it's possible to even ride in the week. Thanks all.

 

[catroo]

I'm up and out by 5.30 to do mine before getting to work for 7.30. I'm then not back up till the yard till about 6/6.30, long dark by then at this time of year.

I exercise in the morning and muck out in the evenings although I give myself and horses a 6 week break each winter from mid December to end of January. They are either turned away or out all day and in at night

 

[The Fuzzy Furry]

I dont leave for work till 7.30, am to the yard before 6am & ALL chores are done (feed, turnout, muck out, haynets in & feeds made up etc). Takes no more than 30 mins if I go slow, more like 20 to do the 2. Home in 15 mins & in shower by 6.45am, then cuppa etc
Would never leave the yard in the morning on work or non-work days without leaving all set fair, in case I get held up anywhere...

Finish work at 5, arrive yard at 5.30, pull them in & feed/rug change.
I wont be riding on a work day till its light till 6pm again tho as I have no facilities & DH gets the ar5e abut me hacking in the dark in early mornings.

 

[elliejhb]

I leave for work before 7.30am and can't get to the horse before hand. So YO gives him his breakfast, morning net and turns him out for me.
I get up the yard between 4.45-6pm in the evening, depending on work. I muck out, make dinner and next days breakfast, night net and morning net, then bring Flynn in. I'll give him a groom, exercise, give him his medication, night feed and night net. I also put on his rug for the next day, he sleeps in his turn out but may have a fleece over the top if it's cold during the night. I usually leave the yard between 6.30-7.30pm, depending on what time I got up there and what I've done with the big man. Sometimes he's in already if the weather turned bad he'll either stay in for the day or be brought in early by the YO.
The trick I think is have a routine in how you do all your yard jobs,never walk across the yard empty handed and if you can get as much done at weekends when you can- I do my big muck out on a Saturday where I bring down the banks and put in a new bale of straw ( I also top up during the week). I have also made up Flynn's dinners before now and bagged them up for the week. I do all my yard jobs in the morning at the weekend then go back up at 5pm to bring in and do the night duties.
The one thing I do struggle with is the vet- Flynn has cushings so needs blood tests, the YO will hold for me but she does so much for me already. So I try to book them for around 3.30pm and get out of work an hour early.

 

[maxapple]

I used to get up at 5am to get to the yard for 5.30. Turn out and muck out then leave to get to work for 7.30. I'd leave work at 4 / 4.30 to get back to yard at 5/5.30 to bring in / ride etc and do hay and Feeds. This is 10 years ago - there is no way I could do that now. I don't have horses at the moment but in the latter years of owning I gradually moved to full livery so I could actually enjoy them.

 

[Sugar_and_Spice]

When I worked those sort of hours OP I'd have the yard staff turn out for me, then I'd muck out and ride after work, not getting home until about 8pm earliest. I always chose yards with an arena or direct access to off road hacking and rode in the dark a lot throuout winter, with long hacks involving roadwork and jumping sessions saved for the weekends.

 

[saddlesore]

I don't know how anyone who works does their horses twice a day unless they're right next door- I'd be exhausted! Mine is still living out as its so mild but yard do morning turnout and I do everything else after work. I lose my mojo in the winter so ride about twice a week.

 

[twiggy2]

lots of people who do it at my yard but a lot of them don't ride, one of the ones that does also has a toddler and another is at the yard at 6am 7days a week and after 6pm every weekday to ride, she also does clinics most weekends.

 

[Nudibranch]

Luckily I have them at home, though it means no riding during the week in winter. I don't know what I'd do if I lost that...I hate livery yards and swore I'd never go back to one.

 

[9tails]

I work and do mine both ends of the day. Up at the yard at 6 am to feed, turn out and muck out. Off to work at 7.30 with at least 1 hour commute each way then back at 6.45pm to bring in, ride and feed. I never leave the stable until the evening.

 

[EmmaC78]

I get the yard to turn out for me in the morning and then go up on my way home from work at about 6.30 to feed and muck out. Last winter I went up twice a day but it was too tiring as I have a fairly long commute to work.

 

[Walrus]

I live about 15 minutes from the yard and then work is 45mins - 1 hour from the yard. I get to the yard at 6.45-7, feed, skip out, change rugs etc. Get changed at the yard and leave yard at 7.30ish to get to work for 8.30. Leave work between 5-5.30, get to the yard 6-6.15ish, ride then skip out, make haynets for following day and make feeds. I usually get home 8-8.30.

The only days this differs are if horse has a day off, i usually go to a gym class after work, i also try and go to the gym one morning before work which involves being on the yard for 5.30 to get to the gym for 6.30 (gym is inbetween yard and work). Once a fortnight i have a lesson at my instructors after work which usually involves getting home about 10pm!

I am on a yard with good facilities and i want to compete so we dont stop unless the weather (or injury) forces it! I am lucky that my OH cooks!!

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

I am up at 6.30am to get to t he beasts for 6.45am, feed, hay, top up water then off to work for 7.30am which is only 10mins away luckily. In summer I go back and turn them out about 9am. In winter they go out at 4.30pm in the wet, 1.30pm when frozen as they are kept at home and I dont want to the fields trashed in the winter. They are back in just before 6pm. I muck out after work from 4.30pm onwards. I then work from either 6pm or 7pm onwards at home so I try to get the major thngs done before then so I can just pop in and out whilst working to do the rest. I don't ride my own between October 1st and the middle of March due to time, light and ground conditions. In summer I will ride over my lunch break on days when I am working at 6pm in the evening otherwise I ride after work.

Its hard work but it's worth it.

 

[Ben2684]

I have just moved yards to make things easier, yard is 4 miles away now. Up at 5:20am.. Quick cup of coffee and load up the dog. At yard by 5:45. Horse is out within minutes (he sleeps in his TO rug) and as he is the first in the filed he gets his breakfast in there so I don't have to wait for him. Muck out, hay in to soak, dinner made up and hay left in field. It's still dark when I leave-thank God for head torches. I then stop off to all the dog for half an hour on the way home, get is shower etc and then off to work for 8am but it's only 1.5 miles away from home.

Finish work around 4:30/5 I don't have to poo pick weekdays when I work as I share my field with someone that has two so she does mon-fri and I do weekends. YO pulls hay out so I don't have to wait for it to drain, Put his bed down, food water etc all ready and then bring in, I try to ride twice with the outdoor school lights on but it is a faff so finding this quite hard. I try to get an afternoon during the weekend instead of I can.

I just make sure I do as many chores as my time allows, I would much rather rush to get everything done in the morning than the other way round, means I can have a gossip and a cups in the evenings with everyone

Wouldn't be able to do it with large commutes either side, physically or mentally! So hats off to those that do!