Working full time and coping with horses,

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ThePocketRocket

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I've just started a new full time non equestrian job, my horses have gone from my house to my friends yard as my parents cant manage them when i'm not there, the yard if 30 minutes from my house. it takes me roughly an hour to get to work. and now i'm having a hard time doing them myself, i cant move them home as i dont have the facilites to do them in the dark. how do you all cope?? also in SB
 
How many horses? I cope with a full time job, long commute and a horse on DIY but thats because I only have one. I couldn't cope with more than that.
 
Rubber mating and shavings doesnt help with exercise though, especially for one that will not stay out in cold weather no matter what you try. dwi i've got 3, ideally i could do with sharers but dont know where to start looking to be honest.
 
I work full time with 30min drive to work. I have 5 ponies to look after who all live out! Dont have lights to the field so use a head tourch to feed and check rugs, (am there at 6.45am and antime after 4pm in afternoon) and poo pick at weekends. They're all happy to live out, but if any do have to stay in I do a quick skip out in the morning and full muck out in the afternoon. this is very rare though.
 
I work full time, and as im the only driver in the family it means i HAVE to do the horses as no one else can get there. They live out so its just a case of hay and food/check rugs in the week and fit everything else into the (very full!) weekends. The yard owner keeps an eye on them when she does her own. We have 4 soon to be 5 when my Welsh cob youngster arrives in the next week or two.
 
I had 3 horses at one point and in full time work - for about a year I think. Two were in full work, one was on box rest for 9 months. I managed but it was hard work and there wasn't much time for anything else to be honest. I was up at about 4.45am, at the yard for 6am. Fed, turned out and mucked out. Home for 7.20am, breakfast, shower etc in work for 8.30am ish.

They were brought in for me at around 3pm. I'd get back to the yard after work at around 6pm. Skip out all three, work two of them, then feed hay and rug up for the night.

I'd try and make as many nets up in advance as possible but was also soaking hay at the time.

Being completely honest, it was damn hard work - especially in the winter when it was dark and wet but I chose to do it.

There wasn't much time spare for a social life and even if there was I was pretty tired and had little money anyway..!
 
I have 2 they live out but im down there at 7am feeding and poo picking then back again abt 5pm to feed. have no electric so in the winter i use a head torch and ridding is only of a weekend until evenings get lighter. i cope fine and im sure you will to just need to settle into it.
 
Ride and lead will become your best friend
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When I had four (still can't understand why I thought that was a good idea ) I used to do two sets of ride and lead out hack - the two gingers (17.3 and 16.3hh) together and the two grey girlies(15hh and 11hh ) together - I am lucky that the woods near me have loads of wide paths so can make up a good hours route inc some canter. Also lunge as much as you can - 20 mins = 1 hr work so is a really good time saver . Try and keep them turned out as much a poss to reduce the mess in stables - I chose to keep 3 out of my 4 on semi deep litter as they were all relatively clean and my 17.3hh got a muck out everyday as he ws disgusting . Also buy yourself tons of haynets and dinner buckets and make up as much as you can in advance so you can literally grab and run rather than fiddling about in the dark . It was ruddy hard work and hae to say I don't miss it but if you are detirmined to keep 3 you will find ways of making it work
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i have 3 on diy and work full time, yard is a 20 min commute. 1 of mine lives out so just a case of putting hay down, 1 is retired and lives in, 1 is in full work and lives in. i share the morning turning out duties with another couple of liveries which is a life saver, for example this week, i'll only hav to turn out 3 times, only slight downside is when its my turn in the morning i may have 5 to put out etc. the two that live in, i try to muck them out in tandom, so hay/water etc at same time so dont finish one stable fully, then think right have to do all over again, if that makes sense. i manag to ride about 4 /5 times a wk inc wkends.x
 
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I have two horses and work fulltime. Thankfully they're kept at home which makes life easier. I don't have a school or electric in the stable but got a couple of the Draper rechargeable strip lights which are brilliant as it gets dark well before I get home (here in winter and is not light until after 8am in mid winter) so makes it as good as full lighting for feeding/ rugging/ grooming and checking over mornings and nights.

Exercise is out the window through the winter during the week but the horses pretty much live out (open stables) so they come in and out as they please and get hacked out at weekends. As soon as the evenings get lighter and the ground dries up they get worked lightly after I get home at half five-ish.

Last winter I only had the one and he was on DIY livery but I did him enroute to work and home. The yard didn't have a school or proper turnout so he's actually much better off this winter as he has 7acres and company so pretty much exercises himself hoolying and playing with his mate
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I have the option to box them over to the riding club's indoor school but to be honest haven't bothered through the week this winter.

Social life-wise, if I'm going out it tends to be later 9.30-10pm-ish and friends are pretty understanding that early evenings are out for me. If it's a special occasion, I'm lucky in that my job entails alot of overtime and is fairly flexible so I can take time in lieu if I need to leave early and see to the horses earlier than normal.
 
I have done the working full time and two on DIY. I used to turn a third horse out mornings and his owner would get my two in so that they were not left out getting wet or cold. Didn't have much (any) social life but enjoyed it a lot even if at times quite hard going. One of the horses was more or less retired and they probably didn't get groomed as much as they could have done.
 
I have five and have to agree it's hard but we cope. I turn out and muck out at 6am by generator light, am at work by 8.15 (30 minute) drive and home again by 5, bringing horses in around 6pm. Riding is out during the week but I only have 2 rideable anyway (2 are retired and 1 I haven't got round to breaking yet). At this time of year I always wonder why I do it, I've had horses all my life so am pretty programmed. It makes it all worthwhile tho on a dark morning to hear those whinnies as I walk to the stables and once the spring comes and the mornings are light there's nowhere else I'd rather be
 
My lad is a five minute walk from mu house...which helps. I am up at 5am in order to have everything done and be ready to leave for an hours drive to work at 7.30am. I have no electricity or water in my field that I rent but I use a head torch all winter and can do everything but ride with it.
Riding is limited to weekends in winter as we are straight out onto roads here.
My lad lives out all year with suitable rugging and a field shelter...so this makes life easier as it is just a case of water and hay, checking him and at the weekends taking any wet shavings out of his field stable.
I would get them home, even if you have no electricity, it is perfectly manageable with a decent Led headtorch.
 
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