Would you switch? (Farm A or B question)

[Onyx_pwf]

About 6 months ago, I bought a project pony. I've boarded him for his whole time with me at farm A, and we are making a lot of progress. But recently I came across farm B, which may be a better match for us. The dilemma is that I am incredibly close to the trainers at farm A, and would feel like I'm betraying them by switching. Anyways, I will put the details of each farm down below and you can tell me whether you'd switch or stay.

FARM A:
$550/month - Out 24/7, small, uneven dry lots with run in sheds (Unlimited hay) - No back up stalls in case of bad weather, which is a minus
Outdoor and indoor arena
15 minutes away
Trails (Not very well set up though, very narrow and full of roots and such)
Small cross country course
Offers many off farm events
Lessons on the flat and low level eventing
Two trainers who I love with all my heart and can discuss anything with
So many lovely friends that I've made over the past 2 1/2 years

FARM B:
$500/month - Out 24/7 in one of two 15-20 acre grass pastures - Come into small straight stalls for feeding 2x daily and in case of horrid weather
Less than a mile away (Takes like 2 minutes to drive there)
Round pen for free lunging
Man who lives on sight that can help me train my pony to drive (Been interested in doing that, but have had no resources to help me)
2 outdoor arenas (One for jumping and one for running barrels and pole work) + small indoor arena
60 miles of privately owned trails (Well groomed)
Cross country jumps out on trails
Offers the occasional on farm 4H show but can arrange off farm shows as well
Used to take lessons here, the trainer was pretty nice
Trainer is more dressage based, but will teach other disciplines if needed

What would you do?? I feel like the obvious choice is B, but my heart says stay at A. Would it be unreasonable to switch my pony to farm B and continue to take lessons twice a week at A? I could always switch back to A if things didn't work out at B, of course, but I feel like there may be hard feelings... I feel a bit stupid for asking if I'm being honest..

 

[twobearsarthur]

I would switch to yard b and still work with the trainers from yard a. In fact about ten years ago I did the same thing. I moved to a yard that was better suited for me and the horses but still worked with the trainer who managed the yard I moved from. I was honest and explained why I had moved and they understood. Even just saying it’s cheaper and closer to home is enough you don’t have to go into details of how their facilities are better etc. Your friends at yard a will still be your friends.

 

[Onyx_pwf]

I would switch to yard b and still work with the trainers from yard a. In fact about ten years ago I did the same thing. I moved to a yard that was better suited for me and the horses but still worked with the trainer who managed the yard I moved from. I was honest and explained why I had moved and they understood. Even just saying it’s cheaper and closer to home is enough you don’t have to go into details of how their facilities are better etc. Your friends at yard a will still be your friends.

I guess you're right.. I suppose I could make arrangements to take maybe a few intro lessons at the new place and then continue lessons at the old place.. I don't think they'd have hard feelings. I've also wanted to switch my horse to a bitless bride for quite some time (He absolutely hates the bit, no clue why, as everything has been checked and new bits have been tried) and my current yard's trainers are against that as apparently it's a "safety issue". I just want to do hacking for most of my riding days and school over small jumps once or twice a week.

 

[splashgirl45]

sounds like B is better for your horse and its a bonus that it is closer so i vote B

 

[Kitty B]

Personally, I would go with B.

 

[SusieT]

I'd consider B but if you like A's people that is important.
How often are they in stalls in B?
Can you have maybe a coupld of lessons e.g. maybe go for driving experience there?

 

[Onyx_pwf]

Thanks for replying everyone!

I'd consider B but if you like A's people that is important.
How often are they in stalls in B?
Can you have maybe a coupld of lessons e.g. maybe go for driving experience there?

They are in stalls twice a day for about 20 minutes to have their grain, but will come in in absolutely horrid weather. One of my concerns is that it is a straight stall so that wouldn't give the horse much room to move if they needed to stay in for an extended amount of time due to weather conditions.

Yes, I would be able to go to a couple lessons if I'd like, so that's definitely an option. And I'm sure the man who drives would gladly take me out for a driving experience if I asked, as he seems to really like flaunting his horses and his level of experience to other people

 

[FourLeafClover]

How long do these ‘bad weather’ periods usually last? I ask as in the UK that tends to mean lots of rain/poached fields, which can be months at a time. I wouldn’t be happy with my horse being stood in a stall (as opposed to a stable) for long periods.

I appear to be the minority, but I would stick with A!

 

[ycbm]

I'd choose B just because you can't ride your own horse bitless like you want to at yard A, but the trails would be a huge bonus. Downside is catching a horse from the far side of a 20 acre field if it doesn't come to call its a right pain! The stalls would be a deal breaker if they're ever in for more than one day, though.

I'm puzzled why they're fed grain (we call that hard food or bucket food) twice a day if they're out on grass?
.

 

[The Jokers Girl]

Yard b definitely sounds better and I'd say go for it if you were unhappy at yard A, but the phrase the grass isn't always greener is so appropriate here.
Whilst yards can seem great to an outsider that isn't always the case when you move there.
If you did decide to move and didn't like it for whatever reason could you have the option to return to yard A. That way you could comfortably give the new yard a go and if it doesn't work out just go back to yard A where you are mostly happy ?

 

[Annagain]

Yard B sounds like it would be more my cup of tea - and yours from what you say but I think we need to get a better understanding of what 'bad weather' means to you. As others have said, to us it means very wet muddy fields and horses potentially in for very long periods. To you, it might mean a few hours during a storm - or even hurricanes / tornados in which case I'm not sure I'd want them out at yard A!

I know in America you tend to be tied to the trainer at the barn you're at, which isn't really a thing here so us saying go to B but continue working with the trainers at A isn't as simple as it would be for us. If you make the decision to go, make sure you leave yard A on the best of terms so you can go back there if yard B turns out to be not as good as you thought.

 

[Onyx_pwf]

How long do these ‘bad weather’ periods usually last? I ask as in the UK that tends to mean lots of rain/poached fields, which can be months at a time. I wouldn’t be happy with my horse being stood in a stall (as opposed to a stable) for long periods.

I appear to be the minority, but I would stick with A!

Usually bad weather here lasts only a few hours (Ex. Lightning + very heavy rain, very high wind, storms, etc), so unless there's like a major storm they wouldn't be in there for longer then a few hours if I had to guess. They're kept out if it's just raining, and you can obviously come and put their blankets on if you'd like. They have a lot of areas that stay decently dry as there are a ton of trees around. So I don't think it would be a huge problem. I've probably been overthinking!

I'd choose B just because you can't ride your own horse bitless like you want to at yard A, but the trails would be a huge bonus. Downside is catching a horse from the far side of a 20 acre field if it doesn't come to call its a right pain! The stalls would be a deal breaker if they're ever in for more than one day, though.

I'm puzzled why they're fed grain (we call that hard food or bucket food) twice a day if they're out on grass?
.

Agree, my main reason for considering switching is because I can't really try new things (within reason) at my current farm. They have a way of doing things and it feels like if you do something different you're an outsider. Yard B would be much more open to that kind of stuff (Not sure if I mentioned it, but I used to take dressage lessons here for a good two months). And yes the trails seem lovely and they have creeks and natural obstacles you can pop over for a true hacking experience. My pony is pretty good about coming when called, although sometimes he can be a bit stubborn which may be an issue if he decides to graze at the very far end of the field.

I'm pretty sure each horse has a straight stall in case of bad weather and those who need supplements or require grain for certain reasons come in either once a twice a day to get them. Mine would come in twice daily for his supplements all of the time, but most of the time their horses come in twice a day for grain in the winter and early spring and late fall when the grass is not very good. Otherwise the horses that do not need supplements stay out.

Yard B sounds like it would be more my cup of tea - and yours from what you say but I think we need to get a better understanding of what 'bad weather' means to you. As others have said, to us it means very wet muddy fields and horses potentially in for very long periods. To you, it might mean a few hours during a storm - or even hurricanes / tornados in which case I'm not sure I'd want them out at yard A!

I know in America you tend to be tied to the trainer at the barn you're at, which isn't really a thing here so us saying go to B but continue working with the trainers at A isn't as simple as it would be for us. If you make the decision to go, make sure you leave yard A on the best of terms so you can go back there if yard B turns out to be not as good as you thought.

Bad weather to us is usually just a few hours during a passing storm. They'd stay out in rain with their rain sheets on unless it was really bad.

I'd have to inform yard A 30 days in advance before I leave, so I'd have to tell them that I'd be leaving in the next 5 days if I move into yard B July 1st like I've been thinking. I'm not sure if that would be too sudden or not, but it would be helpful to have two summer months with my horse two minutes away for training purposes. I think we'd progress a lot quicker than we have been over the past few months.