Yard politics

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chaps89

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How do you lot on livery yards cope?
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I am currently being 'piggy in the middle' in an increasingly annoying situation.
Situation being I have started riding a new horse. Horse is kept on a private yard where it is just him and the YO's horses.
Both the horse & owner get free rent etc as owner maintains the property/has put alot of money into putting menage in etc. However YO pays *all* bills for the horse- even tho it is not hers as well as mucking out/turning out etc.

I won't go into detail, but there's being various ructions, and now I keep getting both sides of it. I get on with both parties but am very close to sitting them both down and telling them to stop being kids and sort it out as I don't want to be involved (it's exactly why I moved off livery yards!)
I like the horse and it's a good opportunity for me which is why I'm putting up with it as I'm only up there 3 times a week, so it's not a major issue, but it is getting frustrating- I don't like taking sides or feeling like I'm getting involved in b*tchyness.

Help!!! (Please!)
 
You have 2 choices

1 Sit them down and sort it out

2 Tell them both it is nothing to do with you and to keep you out of it.

I would go for the 2nd option; it is not nice of either of them to put you in the middle.
 
I would tell them to sort out the issue between them selves and not to get you involved!!
The yard I am at, there is a horse that girl A was going to buy from girl B (girl A had been using him on a "trial" bias, taking him to shows/training days,camp etc) well, he was vetted and the vetting was stopped before it even started as he was hopping lame on first flexion. Owners rushed him to THEIR vets, where he was given the ok.
To cut a long story, I now get Girl A going on at me one minute and then Girl B going on at me the next!! Nightmare!!

I just stand and nod my head, make my excuses and run!!
 
Lippyx, please could you make your signature smaller. With the pictures and text it's rather huge. Admin have requested sigs are no large than the size of the banner at the top of the page (the size I've made mine)
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Thank you.
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Agree with above.
We had a funny situation on our yard when two people fell out (they'd had a fling and it had gone sour). They started booking the school for, like, 4 hours at a time so the other couldn't get in to ride. These are grown-ups!
Naturally the rest of us were annoyed and eventually YM had to sit the pair of them down like a couple of kids and tell them to play nice or leave.
Worse than kids. Even the kids on the yard thought they were 'like, so pathetic'...
 
I'd like to defend livery yards having always avoided them for fear of it all being as above. The one I've just moved to is great. Everyone is very friendly and helpful. I think the secret is having a Yard Owner who is a good people person and who sets out the boundaries clearly to start with.

I'm really enjoying the company and the help and learning from peoples different opinions on how to do things with different types of horses. Very interesting. Go livery yards!!!!
 
Thanks guys.
I'm going up tonight so will see what the state of play is. If it carries on I will tell them I don't want to be involved (currently I go with the 'nod and smile' act!) and if it carries on I will stop going up. They're both twice as old as me but acting like they're half my age! *Feels sensible for once*
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aggghh I hate livery yards! Luckily for me my best friend has her own private yard where it's just us and her Sister so it's all hunky dory. The yard i was at before was just awful though. I can't understand why women together doing something they love has to get so bitchy and horrible. It got to the point where i would avoid busy times so i didn't see anyone. Its mad as you pay huge sums for having your horse there. People need to keep their noses out of each others business and focus on their own issues!

Main reason I say this is at my last yard when i first got Milly i had to indure all the chestunt mare tut tut she'll be mental business, then she had a few spooky episodes in the first week or 2 she was home and rumour was that she was so sharp she was unrideable. I bumped into someone in the feed shop the other day who asked if i had managed to catch mylly as they had heard that since i had moved yards she had been a nightmare to catch. such a load of rubbish! I want to invite them all down to watch me walk round the field with milly stalking me so she can corner me and lick me and make me scratch her bum. the joke is that in that yard of about 25 horses only about 3 ever get ridden most of the owners are terrified of their own horses!

ok breathe rant over
 

I am also on a livery yard, no bitchiness no problems and we all pitch in. I know I am lucky to have found a YO who treats my 2 horses the same as her own, with loving care. It is a small yard with only 6 liveries spread over 3 sets of people, so maybe it is because there are only a few of us.
 
I agree that the YO sets the tone. If they care about having a happy, harmonious yard where they don't have a huge turnover of customers, it will be a nice place. I was on my first yard for seven years (only left becuase we moved country) and the yard was run to very high standards. In return liveries were expected to be civil and to obey yard rules at all times (nothing onerous, just keep the place tidy, play nice over the arena). If you didn't play nice you were told to leave, as it was such a good yard it had a waiting list, so YO could afford to get rid of anyone who was behaving unpleasantly. She rarely had vacancies! An arrangement you are describing sounds too cosy and casual and its too easy for egos to get in the way. I've seen people on here criticising yards for having too many rules but in my experience it is a happier yard when YO communicates well and every one is clear about what is acceptable behaviour.
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