BO wants my horse !!

I am a struggling horse owner. I love my boy very much, and right now I'm stuck on something and it's really making me stressed out/upset.

I got a call last week from the BO to "catch up" and she told me that when March comes around, if his bill is not paid (late by 2 months), she's going to take him as payment as she recalls I was thinking about selling him.

What right does she have in this? Yes, my bill is needing to be paid, but I'm not abandoning my horse. I see Murray as often as I can and make as much payments ($50-100 +) as I can on him at Sunny Brook.

Thanks for reading.

As long as you signed a contract, she has EVERY legal right to take your horse as collateral until your bill is paid, or to pay your bills.

If you explain your circumstances, she MAY be willing to give you an extension or take half payment, but that's a maybe.

In all honesty you should have presented her with your situation earlier, and having your horse be reposessed could have been avoided.

She is well within her rights, and actually quite nice for letting you know her intent ahead of time. I would strongly advise you to sit down with her, explain the situation, and come up with a workable plan. Are you able to make weekly payments for a set amount that you can both agree on? Caring for a boarder's horse is quite costly to the barn owner, in hay, feed, worker's wages, cost of the barn, etc. You can't expect her to just cover your horse's expenses while you're in a bind.

I have no boarding contract or recipts from her.

Thank you for your info. I will rediscuss this with her.

The BO is not running a charity. She has bills to pay as well. Your horse is taking up space that someone that can pay the bill could be filling. You should feel lucky that she has given you two months.

I'm with justsambam. I know that it is stated in my boarding contract with my barn that if I am lacking payment exceeding X amount of days, then she has every legal right to take my horse as payment.

I don't think my BO would ever do that cause we are on a really good working relationship. I am sure that if I explained my situation, she would understand. But let's face it, it is a business and she needs money to care for the other horses. What happens if you are late on electrical bills, they turn off your electricity. Owning horses is not a necessity, it is a luxury and it takes time and money to give them proper care.

Sorry about your situation, but you need to think about this and talk with your BO. Good Luck!

It's written up in our contracts that way. I've been at my barn for 10 years and have seen a few horses taken for non-payment and sold. It's your responsibility when you board to pay your bill or the BO can't pay theirs. It doesn't matter if you see your horse every day or not, if you're not paying they have to get the money somehow and you're just taking up space from someone who would be paying.

Now our BO will often work with folks when they are going through a rough patch. She'll have them clean stalls or come up with other arrangements. You might try that. Or see if you can borrow the money from family. But she has ever legal right to take your horse if you aren't paying.

I agree with the others, horses don't survive on love and sympathy. The BO can't be expected to take care of your horse without compensation. Right now, taking care of the horse is your responsibility, if you can't afford the responsibility, then it may be in the horse's best interest for the BO to get ownership if she can meet the horse's needs. See if you can work out payments, I've offered to boarders to pay weekly instead of monthly if that is easier for them, as well as trade services if you have something to offer. If you don't have the money or time to offer, then she is well within her rights to take the horse.

Thanks everyone foryour input. =]

Would you expect any other business to continue extending their product or service to you without you paying?