Would you give your passport to the livery yard?

I can only imagine they're doing it incase they had some kind of inspection as they don't want a fine.. but they don't OWN the horses, the liveries do.. :confused:

I wouldn't hand it over though, I'd be worried about what could happen if I did
 
I believe there is a law that says the passport has to be with the horse so yard owners are supposed to keep them. However in my case nobody lives on site so if anyone did steal the horses they'd be able to take the passports too which definitely isn't ideal. I've had one past yard owner follow this rule and I did hand over the passport but she lived on site and it was a lovely full livery yard with only ten horses on it. Can see why people don't like the idea though.
 
No I wouldnt. It would be available at short notice if they have an inspection or anything. But no, they wouldnt be keeping hold of it, from experience of the yards Ive been on it would be a nightmare to get my hands on it to go anywhere, especially a last minute travelling decision, no hope.
 
I can only imagine they're doing it incase they had some kind of inspection as they don't want a fine.. but they don't OWN the horses, the liveries do.. :confused:

I wouldn't hand it over though, I'd be worried about what could happen if I did

They aren't BHS registered... And I have been at a BHS registered yard and they didn't want to have the passport - just to see it and have a copy of the vacs page for their records - which I totally understand.

Apparently - they want the horse passports so no-one can leave the yard without paying. As liveries have to pay a month in advance I can't see how this can be a major problem...

I for one would not hand over my passport. She's MY horse and if I travel her I need my passport so I'd have to chase them up for it - and what if they lost it? You need your passport for when the vet comes to innoculate etc too.

I think they are wrong in asking for them - fullstop.
 
No. Only once when viewing a yard, did the YM mention that they kept all passports as a requirement. I said nothing and thought, 'like hell you will'.

There is no reason for a yard to hold them. Even if there was an unexpected inspection, the inspectors would give reasonable time for passports to be produced. I think it is something like 3 hours, but in practice, I've never heard of this happening.
 
No because I might want to transport him somewhere and then I would need the passport. However I keep it locked away and hidden at the yard so if they needed it then I could tell them where to find it.
 
No. Only once when viewing a yard, did the YM mention that they kept all passports as a requirement. I said nothing and thought, 'like hell you will'.

There is no reason for a yard to hold them. Even if there was an unexpected inspection, the inspectors would give reasonable time for passports to be produced. I think it is something like 3 hours, but in practice, I've never heard of this happening.

Thank you. I have friends still at this yard. The rules are constantly changing. They've now restricted hay - without any official letter - just by "chinese whispers" and just restricted straw for bedding too. And this is the latest thing raised. So very glad I am away from there....
 
Nope, they could have a photocopy of it but I would want to keep the original. For convenience I wouldn't want to ask for it everytime I decide at the last minute to travel the horse somewhere.
 
Thanks all for taking time to reply. I've read the DEFRA website - and it seems that if Trading Standards do turn up - you've got 3 hours to produce. And the onus does see to be on the HORSE owner not the yard owner...

All seems so very vague -but then I always thought that passports - whilst a good idea are actually not that enforceable..
 
It is part of my contract that my liveries need to keep their passports at the yard. I need them for vaccinations, transporting them to competitions or hunting, and because I can't remember how everything is bred when vets ask me.

Each horse has a file in a filing cabinet in the tack room, and liveries know that they can take their passports out whenever they want to. If they are transporting them then of course the passport goes with the horse, but as a rule, they live in the tack room as they're legally supposed to stay with the horse.
 
It is part of my contract that my liveries need to keep their passports at the yard. I need them for vaccinations, transporting them to competitions or hunting, and because I can't remember how everything is bred when vets ask me.

Each horse has a file in a filing cabinet in the tack room, and liveries know that they can take their passports out whenever they want to. If they are transporting them then of course the passport goes with the horse, but as a rule, they live in the tack room as they're legally supposed to stay with the horse.

Staarzan - I would agree to having my passport at the yard if it were readily available - but he wants them to lock away in the farmhouse... so not easy to get to - and they aren't always there... so there's no way I'd hand it over.

The DEFRA website says you have 3 hours in which to produce if they turn up at where the horse lives. So I can comply with that.
 
Ps, neither trading standards nor DEFRA give 4 hours (despite what they may say). They always contact well in advance to make an appt.
 
I don't care what the law states, its *my* horses passport, which *I* paid for and I'd never leave it with a stranger (YO) who is not the one having the hassle of getting a new one if they lose it. I've never had a livery yard ask to keep it though. I think the whole passport situation is a joke TBH. People still buy horses without one then get a passport, with nobody (new owner/passport issuer/vet) questioning why the horse didn't have one in the first place.
 
As a livery yard owner, I ask for passports as part of the livery contract. I have never had anyone reluctant to hand them over. By law, passports should stay with the horse, and as the horses are all on part or full livery, I arrange vet visits for boosters etc and so need the passports for that. Also, if there is an emergency such as colic and I have to rush a horse to Rossdales, and the owner is not available, then I need the passport to legally travel the horse.
 
If the horse was with a pro to be competed... The passport would go with him.

If at a normal livery yard passport would be at home, unless I was going on holiday for an extended period of time, then possibly left with YO In case of emergency
 
No chance..and just to add that I knew of a large 'professional' yard who had the vet up for vacs for a full livery horse-agreement was that they would bring in and meet with vet for anything, so obviously owner gave YO the passport. YO then left it outside of the stable for owner to find after vet had left. Another livery found it being blown around the yard a few hours later!
 
Personally, no I wouldn't hand my passport over unless it was readily available but safe (ie a locked filing cabinet on the yard). However I know that the yard I learnt to ride at kept all passports in a locked drawer in the office - YO was always about so not a problem to get your passport and it was a full livery yard so she organised all jabs etc.
 
Staarzan - I would agree to having my passport at the yard if it were readily available - but he wants them to lock away in the farmhouse... so not easy to get to - and they aren't always there... so there's no way I'd hand it over.

The DEFRA website says you have 3 hours in which to produce if they turn up at where the horse lives. So I can comply with that.

Oooh, I definitely wouldn't hand it over then! That's a bit iffy. He sounds like a delight!
 
I might consider it if it was in a locked filing cabinet or similar that I could access at any time but unfortunately the reality would be stuffed in a corner in the owners house or lying around the office/tea room getting covered in tea stains or being used as a colouring book by a bored child.

I guess I've never been lucky enough to be on the sort of smart yard that does these things properly.

Although I am on full livery I am always there for vets etc and actually the vets know my horse so well they don't bother to ask for the passport even when he goes to hospital.
I have my own transport so I am the one most likely to take him anywhere.

However as I said, the passport is somewhere safe where the yard manager could get it if they needed it in an emergency.
 
My last yard kept hold of the passport, it was kept in a filing cabinet in the office and you could help yourself to it.

None of the other yards I've been on, including the current one, keep the passport.

To be honest I'm not bothered either way. If I didn't trust a yard to look after a bit of paper then I sure as hell wouldn't want them looking after my horse.
 
NO WAY !!

I did when I was naive and hadn't been back into the horse world very long. Had always had my horses at home previously and thought that giving passports was the norm.

Then when I tried to leave after all the grief I was given, swearing and shouting at me because I had dared to decided I could do it alone. I was handed a bill of things that had been "Forgotten" about on my previous months bill. £60 later and exchange for my passport I got the hell out of there and never looked back.

Passports were used as bartering tools.
 
My last yard kept hold of the passport, it was kept in a filing cabinet in the office and you could help yourself to it.

None of the other yards I've been on, including the current one, keep the passport.

To be honest I'm not bothered either way. If I didn't trust a yard to look after a bit of paper then I sure as hell wouldn't want them looking after my horse.

That's a very good point! Why trust the yard with your horse if you wouldn't trust them with the passport?
 
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