Livery

Friskyfilly

Hi. I am looking for as many suggestions, ideas good bad ugly! thought's, experiences on having your horse in livery the things that worked for you and if you were to design your own livery yard then what would it be like?.

Where I am going with this is I am thinking about renting stables off a person, dont want to go into detail too much for the moment until I see feed back. This yard to me has everything that you could want in a livery yard. There is turn out sand areas, not just one or two but seven or eight plenty to let them out for a roll in the day and seperate them if need too, big outdoor sand to ride in, a horse walker, indoor school, lunge ring and fields to turn out or to ride in the summer. It would be full livery no mucking out, would just send a text if you wanted your horse to go on the walker if you can't make it out to ride him. All for 80euro a week.

This place is not a riding school so there would be no big issue with indoor school and lessons going on. There is a five horse lorry available if people wanted to go off for the day and did not have a horse box. Which can be driven by myself. Would need to be arranged and diesel money would be seperate. But for the eighty euro one would get the normal full livery.
Of course half livery would be also available.

Just a idea at the moment. Could really use feed back before I take this further. The yard is about fifteen min outside Galway city in a very quite area.

Thanks.

Ave Sodalis

Sounds good from your description. Get feedback of any other users of the stables. Inspect the stables for anywhere a horse may hurt himself and look at the condition of the other horses there. Check the tack-room and food that they are being feed and make sure that everything concerning your horse is safe and reliable.

Find out how flexible the owner is concerning livery (e.g. if you can take your horse out at any stage without bother- I have known stables that if you were to take your horse out, even for a day, you have to go through a whole list of things first.). Find out what the other people who work there are like, last thing you want is an arguement with staff, if your going to be around the stables a lot.

Finally, go with your own instinct and head. If you thing it is unsuitable, don't go near it. If you do think it is suitable, but your unsure, ask someone who would know to go with you.

Hope that helps. May sound like a lot but it's better to keep your horse safe without any hassle then not.

Friskyfilly

Thanks for your suggestions, what I meant is that I am thinking about renting boxes to start up a livery yard. I dont have a horse myself I just work with them. So I am looking for ideas on what people want in their yard, what would make them choose this yard over others!?. It's just a idea at the moment but would be good to know for the future. So hit me again with suggestions please but think of me as your livery owner!? for example. lol Cheers

Ave Sodalis

Well, same again, only twisted. This is what most horse owners look out for when finding livery yards, so use it as a basis to work from.

Jen Pigs Fly

And another suggestion, don't let liveries steal the other livery's tack! You would be amazing at how much was robbed off me and friends by other liveries, I had to hunt down a €200 rug once! And my stirrups were once used to hold a gate closed while I was away, not to mention having a bridle dismantled and never finding my noseband, flash, browband or martingale :rolleyes: So perhaps have the 'You take it, you return it as you found it' rule going on! (like my current yard, I actually have gone a year without having to buy any pieces of tack!)

Eshaness

Been through a few yards over the years- things that drove me out were- unwarned off price hikes, sudden changes to rules, closing early on sundays (crazy since most of us work during the week and the weekend is the only chance to get out and have a good ride out), closing fields for riding in during summer to save grass but offering no alternatives- due to overstocking of yard, leaving no options for exercising or relaxing, no lockers for tack (got saddle damaged in communal tack room), feeding my horse energy giving food when specifically asked not to; no regular turnout and horse kept in for 23 hours a day with only a quick spin in a sand arena to let off steam.....
I could go on. But happy endings, am in great livery yard with full all weather cross country to ride out all year, lots of well managed paddocks and a relaxed attitude to hours- no locking of the gate because you didn't get back from a show on time!

troyton

I'm not sure of the best way to put this so
Problems I or my friend have had in yards:
Fields poorly fenced - horses constantly breaking out.
Horse at grass being fed when he shouldn't be.
No-one knowlegable around to ask for advice/help if necessary.
Promises of lessons but then the instructors would always be too busy.
Tack being stolen - I would never again leave my tack in a livery yard unless they had lockable lockers.

Main things I would look for in a yard:
Someone who knows what they are doing running the place.
Safe paddocks and plenty of turnout.
Good size arena with a good surface.
On-site instructor or one who visits on a weekly/fortnightly basis.
A clean toilet.
Quiets roads or lanes/forest to hack out.

Things I would consider a bonus:
An indoor.
Lockable tack lockers (and cameras maybe?).
A shower.
Tea/coffee facilites.
Transport to shows.
Rubber matting.


Hope this is some help to you, and best of luck if you decide to go ahead with it. It sounds like a great place! Even the fact that it has an indoor should be a great advantage - well around here it would be anyway