yard dilemma...

[TarantuLove]

Well basically my financial situation has changed and I need to move my horse from my current yard where he is on part livery and about 12 miles away. It has 2 schools and great hacking but is sadly too expensive. I seem to have a choice of two:

Yard 1 -
Has a sand school with an ok surface. Good hacking, a lot of grazing. Group turnout but no one bothers to poo pick and it is quick to get muddy. Fairly large stables in a barn but it can be a bit dusty - I am asthmatic and my horse is prone to coughs. Yard is about 7 miles away. Owner lives on site but no gate locked at night or anything.

Yard 2 -
3 miles from house (i can cycle if necessary). Less grazing and only 6 horses at the yard so small. Paddocks are better maintained. No school as of yet but owner currently getting quotes - there is a 20 x 40 grass arena atm though. Outside stables so better for cough. No owner on site (but nearby), gate locked and CCTV up to the gate. Hacking involves about 10 mins roadwork until miles and miles of bridleways. Not many other horses for company and my horse would probs be in a field by himself but next to others. Next to a road that can be fairly busy sometimes.

What would you do - any opinions? They are both fairly similar pricewise...

 

[Enfys]

Yard 2.

Yard 1 is no good if both you and your horse are prone to wheeziness regardless of any other advantages it may have over another place.

 

[Ziggy_]

I'd be tempted to go for yard 2, providing that the school is actually going to happen.

That said, you describe yard 1 as having a sand school with an ''OK surface'' - I take that to mean not great? Have you seen it when its wet? I've seen so many sand schools flooded completely for the entire winter that if its not a really good surface, you'd almost be better off without. A school is only worth having if it drains well and is well maintained IMO, so I'd pick yard two.

 

[merlinsquest]

Yard 2 for me too..... group paddocks without poo picking doesnt sound too healthy... nor does a dusty barn

 

[savannahmelody]

Purely because of the dust issue regardless of anything else I would go with yard 2.
You really dont want to cause yourself or your horse any long term damage with coughing.

 

[muddy boots]

Yard 2 as long as it isn't going to get a lot more expensive when school is built. Also - depends on the 10 minutes road work, if roads are OK ie not a main road.

Dusty stables would put me off yard 1 if they are bad.

 

[Peacelily]

Yard 2 - sounds good - being close can be such a benefit to outweight lots of things

and cycling is good for being nice and fit for running round after ponio!

 

[NR99]

Neither sound ideal which is probably why you are struggling to decide - have you thought about a sharer?

If not an option then I would say yard two.

 

[Fantasy_World]

QR I too would have recommended trying a sharer as it can work, and you can both benefit from it, you and the horse.
If this is not an option then I would go for yard 2. Yard 1 would be a complete no no for me. Field maintenance is very poor if they don't poo pick the fields and then you also have to consider do they have a decent worming programme in place at the yard as well if they are too lazy to clear up droppings?
Drainage sounds like it might be a problem also if the fields get muddy. Again, another potential mismanagement of grazing land.
You mention group turnout as well. Yes horses do like to live in groups but that also depends on the groups in question and not all horses get on with each other. If all ok they will get on like a house on fire. Or there could be a few scraps until a pecking order is established and one or two horses could potentially get injured as a result. Worse case scenario, your horse doesn't fit in at all. Nothing to do with your horse but maybe someone else's. I have known of a few horses that have had very few manners towards my own horses and have nearly got kicked myself due to their total disregard of people in a situation like that. Does yard 1 have provisions in place should horses not get on with each other?
If stables are barn style and indoors then you can bet it will make both you and your horse cough or wheeze unless there is additional ventilation. I have been on two yards with barns and one had better ventilation than the other. Both were dusty though. Didn't matter what bedding was used inside either as both shavings and straw produce dust from what I have seen.
Hacking sounds good though, if close to yard. Nice that owner lives on site but as I mentioned in another thread before about this, even though it can be reassuring to have an owner living on site, it does not necessarily mean everything is all secure.
If no gates are locked at night then that would worry me tbh. It all would depend on how the yard was constructed though in relation to the house. If no-one could access the yard/fields without going past the house etc then that would make me feel a little more at ease. Depending of course on any other security measures like lighting and alarms etc. Also it is worth thinking about security of the field gates as well seeing as the yard doesn't have a locked gate. Are there locks on the gates of the horses' fields? Could the horses escape onto any roads should a gate not be fastened correctly etc, or if someone broke into the field. For me personally they are questions I would be asking especially as there are no locked gates on site at the yard.
Yard 2 sounds much better. There may be less grazing but there are as you say only 6 horses on the yard. So long as the amount of grazing can fully support the number of horses and there are not plans to expand unless further grazing was sought then I would be happy with that. Yard is 3 miles away. So although it is a similar price as the other yard you would save on petrol if you used a car and even more dosh if you cycled or walked. Having no school is not a huge problem though as it does have a grass arena to work in. Ok so grass is not ideal as it will vary according to weather conditions. But even though yard 1 has a sand school, they are not always perfect either. I have been on a yard with an indoor sand school that had to be watered regularly as it would get dusty and also an outdoor one that froze in winter. So sometimes having a school does not necessarily mean it is usable at all times. Yard numbers at the second yard are small so getting access to the grass paddock should be easier I would have thought especially if yard 1 is busier? as it means there could be more people wanting to use the school at the times when you want to.
You also said the stables are outdoor. These are better for horses that can cough and will be better for you when mucking out too. Horsey can see more of what is going on, on the yard. Only plus side to indoor stables I reckon is being in when it is cold or wet and having the room to clip, groom, shoe etc outside of the stable. But if outdoor stable is well lit and if you have a covered area any where on the yard that you can use then that is just as good in my book.
My current yard has outdoor stables but has covered areas. My very first yard had outdoor stables but no covered area and lighting was quite poor in some of the stables so doing work on winter afternoons/evenings was harder due to the poor light.
You said the owner wasn't on site but was nearby so in effect if there was a problem they could be there pretty quick. Gate is locked, big plus in my book! and CCTV excellent too.
10mins hacking on the road to reach bridleways is nothing. I have had to do much more than that wherever I have been ( yard wise) and do not have miles and miles of bridleways as it is mainly country parks for every other fecker to use. So hardly a bridletrack and hardly a nice hack out.
Your horse would be fine in a field next to others as he would still have horse company. They may even allow you to mix him in with another anyway if you want to, such as to allow him to be groomed by another horse which I know they love.
Good luck in deciding. Sorry for long post. If it were me. I would stay put and get a sharer if happy with existing yard. There are plenty of places to advertise for a sharer for free, such as New Rider, Stable talk, ( there is another one that has loans etc, name escapes me?) as well as local newsagents/stores, tack shops etc. Failing that, then yard 2 sounds best to me

Caz

 

[Equus Leather]

From the way you've written about each yard, you've already made your mind up for Yard 2 I would say.