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Disappointed - Advice/rant

2K views 14 replies 14 participants last post by  ThoroughbredBug 
#1 ·
I've tried several barns in the three years I've had my horse. The first was 40 minutes away, not too expensive full care, with good pasture and a small outdoor, and was required I stay there by the rescue I got my gelding from so they could check in for the first 60 days. The second was closer, ~30 minutes away. cheap partial care, decent turnout and with a covered arena, medium outdoor, and a round pen, but that ended when the owner lost her marbles in a drunk fit and the cops had to come. :( Then my horse stayed briefly (as i tried to find a barn near me) with some buddies in an 8 acre field about 50 minutes away for free, minimal riding space (nowhere covered, which was a downer in the pacific NW) but lots of grazing and a natural environment. After a series of mysterious "off" behaviors my gelding finally coliced, and was taken to my 4H leaders barn to see her vet, who was out already, which he then stayed at when I was offered a job there. Full care for a good price, but no turnout and a small arena drove my young ottb crazy quickly. :( The standard of care there was incredible. But sadly, it only lasted a few months.

A "friend" (acquaintance) offered me work and self care at her barn, so I went to an expensive self care facility with trail access, mass turnout, three large arenas (one indoors with skylights) and *dun dun duuuunn* no work. I found a job elsewhere but the barn owner had issues with how I did things (berating me for how my horse is trained, for how and what I feed, for the vet I use, etc). She threatened me with leaving, saying I had to take lessons with her trainer and made me work for her and learn her way, but after other boarders saw some things I was doing (free lunging/free jumping, riding bridleless, etc) they relayed this to the barn owner and I was kicked out for dangerous behavior. I also was asked (by almost everyone) how each lesson was. When I would say things like "[trainer] and I didn't really click today" or "Not great. Not awful, but [horse] is not feeling it today" these were taken as badmouthing Trainer, and most of the boarders got angry with me or stopped talking to me. After getting kick out of that barn (which I was considering leaving, but because of the facilities was willing to work with some grouchy barn-mates) I found a family run, low key, no drama, non show barn about 15 minutes from my home. Minimal turnout space but my gelding was offered all day/every day turnout and the largest stall they had. Full care much cheaper than the place I was leaving!! ($350 full care here, $780 for board, feed, bedding, and supplies previously). I had to buy my own grain, but they offered hay, shavings, they cleaned stalls and paddocks, and had a covered arena and an outdoor arena.

UNFORTUNATELY, you get what you pay for. $350 a month (buying own grain and supplements) for full care is a massive bargain in my area. "Normal" is 1400/month for full care and a few training rides. The place has been great, they actually are "no drama." I didn't know such a thing existed! I've been able to jump my horse (which the last barn, nobody was allowed to jump unless they were in a lesson with Trainer, and nobody jumped over 2') around 2'6"-3', ride (and jump) tackless, train him all sorts of tricks like spanish walk, rearing, bow and lay down, smile, etc (also not allowed at previous barn) all while being left alone about what hay or grain I want him on, and how much. Nobody tells me my farrier sucks, nobody forcing me into anything. Its been so incredibly enjoyable..... but the care sucks.

The waters are filthy, unless you dump, scrub, and refill them yourself. (My geldings bucket, single, was black and crusted over the top when I arrived. I actually vomited when I went to dump it. I've since brought my own, and dump one each day on rotation, that I keep clean. The "shavings" are sawdust, emphasis on dust, and are given in such small quantities so they can scrape the stall clean each day instead of picking it clean. For health reasons (allergies and COPD) my gelding no longer gets their shavings. The arenas are very hard, lumpy, and poorly maintained. They were good for ~3 weeks at first, but have since not been drug, sprayed down, or leveled. My horse has some issues and needs hay in a net both so you can spray it down for respiratory reasons, and because he is very choke prone (the vet called him an enthusiastic snacker lolol) and the net helps slow him dramatically. The barn fails to put hay in his nets (i brought about 6) unless I am there, then they set it in front of the stall and I bag and hose it myself. Which, I do worry, because occasionally i'll go to grab his hay and see nothing, literally just the wood floor, in the hay room. After the evening feed time, when they feed at 5am the next day, I don't understand how the horses are getting proper rations. The barn owner swears up and down that she knows his hay needs to be netted and sprayed but it still fails to happen unless I do it myself. I know this because I tie my nets a certain way, and when I've seen how she does it, yet I come and the net in his stall is tied how I did it the night before, I know she wouldn't have recreated my tie... His grain is another issue. I keep a few days worth in a plastic container labeled with his name in front of his stall. They missed portions constantly, so I got two plastic Tupperware out, labeled with his name and AM or PM, then I take the grain out of its baggie, put it in the Tupperware, and that way that days serving is sitting out. They do feed it to him, granted the things get dropped on the floor and the lids blow away, or the goats run off with the container to lick it clean, but my gelding gets his allergy meds and supplements so that's what I deem important.

To lay out the basics, "full care" has become me doing my own waters, using my own buckets, partially cleaning my own stall (they leave piles because they don't feel like sifting bedding), buying and adding my own bedding (not sure why they cant grab a bag that i leave in front of the stall?), buying my own grain, idiot-proofing my grain, netting my own hay, and dealing with cat pee on all my things (added bonus, but not related to barn care...).

Today, I come out to find last nights hay net (that I set wet in a bucket in front of his stall for them to put inside at feeding time) in my horses stall, with a grain container IN IT. IN THE NET. ??? Crushed to bits of course because my guy wanted his ****ing grain, in a Tupperware or not. I worried if he ingested any plastic.... but his poos looked normal and his gut sounded fine. But how did they, a) go into his stall to give him breakfast hay and grain and not notice, b) not see it when they cleaned the stall later in the morning, and c) manage to do that in the first place

My question is this: Is it worth staying at a barn with such terrible quality of care just because I can ride how I want, and they charge what I can afford? I want to say no... I feel like my guy will get hurt by some dumb mistake sooner or later. They leave halters on in turnout too (common, I know, but the horses wear rope or nylon halters that are not breakaway, and I had to ditch my normal rope halter and buy one specifically for turnout once I found him halter-less and the rope halter hooked on the fence with the knots pulled tight enough to give enough slack for him to slip out. I was horrified and was not told he would be going out in his halter). His stall floor is wood, and is rotting away in parts, which only encourages him to dig at it out of curiosity. I'm too broke to buy stall mats, have no way to get them to the barn in my car, and have been told I would not be reimbursed nor would I be able to take them with when I go. As much as i want to leave, I can't find anywhere affordable that is less than 90 minutes away. Affordable being I can manage the monthly payments and not being picky about where I go or what facilities I have.

Sorry for the rant... :/ Any thoughts? Questions? Similar stories? Someone please tell me I'm not micro-managing and that the things that are happening are not normal/not good. I'm not crazy am I?
 
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#3 ·
Horse care above all else. Even if you somehow manage to turn the situation you're in now into a partial care situation where you feed/whatever, the arena still sucks, and IMO an arena that has bad footing is worse than no arena at all. It wears down your horse a little bit at a time every time you ride in it.

If you're the list-making type, I'd make a list of all the things that you want in a barn and then put them in order from most important to least important. Quality of care (turnout, feeding, etc.) should be high on your list, the rest (facilities, riding space, drive time, etc.) is all up to you. Find another place that hits the most important of your check boxes, then move.

The barn culture part you'll probably have to kind of figure out as you go, unfortunately.
 
#4 ·
I can't offer any advice since I've had my horses at home since the mid-80s or not had a horse. I don't think I could survive boarding anymore. When it comes to my critters, I'm too much of a control freak to even consider letting someone else do it. When we leave for a few days and have a friend care for the animals, I lay out each day's a.m. and p.m. feedings and usually call at least once a day to ensure everything has been done MY WAY. I don't have an arena, my round pen isn't level, and I don't have the best access to trails, but what is most important to me is that I know exactly how my horses are being cared for.
 
#5 ·
i am at a self care barn now to avoid all of the above. my horses have never looked better. i am moving them to a full care place that i know well. i will give MY OWN supplements and meds though because i know who feeds... but they will be at a nicer place. honestly see if you can move him to self care, save up your cash and rent horse property or roomate with someone and get horse property. it may not have EVERYTHING you need but at least you can mico manage everything as needed
 
#6 ·
Sounds like you have issues because of your horses health and because of how things you want done, need done to benefit your horse...
You're going to have to look a long way to find a place who will offer all that you require, and you will pay for that care.
Why not just look for a self-care barn, totally you care for your horses needs.
Sounds like you are in attendance everyday, have bought and supply many of your stall needs along with shavings and feed already.
What will fall on you is having to clean the stall daily. You are probably doing already since you don't seem to happy with how it is done anyhow...

Yes, self-care {rough board}, you are going to have to pick and choose what you can and can't live with as amenities...
Most rough care board places don't offer amenities like what you wish for...
Honestly, if you made comments of lessons were sub-par along with everything else a few times at barns I worked or boarded at you would be told to find a new barn too..
Yes, it was a put down to facility and the trainer.
As for riding as you do without bridle or tack...you fall under a added "insurance risk".
Whether your horse or not....you are a risk with your style of riding and somethings you train your horse to do {rearing}.
When you go looking for a barn you need to let them know of how you ride and "train" your horse to see if you are compatible. Then either look further or if boarding their follow their rules.

I would be moving from where you currently are...you are unhappy and the place does not meet the care for the horse as needed...
Somethings can be overlooked, some not...

Good luck finding a barn that meets all of your criteria or seriously, look for a place where you are in sole charge of your horses exacting care requirements so you know it is done right.
:runninghorse2:...
jmo...
 
#7 · (Edited)
The first place that I kept my horses was awesome. They had everything a horse owner could want and everything a horse needs for proper care. The barn manager was great and took special care of everyone. The board was not cheap nor extravagantly high and it was 15 minutes away from me. The B/O fired the B/M and things started to go downhill. The last two months there were the worst. Even though the everyday care still stayed decent, things started happening due to inattention. One day I got a call from the B/O to tell me that my young mare ate a one inch chlorine tablet. One of the teens that she hired threw the tablet in the empty water trough for cleaning but then walked away. After 2 grand in vet bills she recovered but it was scary and she went down twice. I was pretty mad about it but figured it was a teenager mistake and it wouldn't happen again. Well, a month later when the girls were feeding they allowed the B/O's chihuahua to go in the feeding stalls while they were feeding and the little dog got killed from my mare stepping on her or stomping her I don't know which. That's when they got kicked out. The B/O said that she didn't feel like she would be able to care for my horse properly because she was so mad at her and she was dangerous. That was after paying board on time for two years and ignoring all of the drama that went on there and doing my own thing enjoying my horses.

The second place was a 200 acre place with five horses on it including mine. The price was supposed to include food but I didn't like what they fed so I brought my own. The people were very nice but they just didn't get how to feed horses. After my one mare started becoming obese and the other one drastically loosing weight I left. I will spare the details but I have to say that I spoke with the owner and the guy who fed many times about the situation. I could see what the problem was and said so but the owner just kept saying that the mare was skinny because she was old. Nothing had changed for her since I brought them except different feeding managements. When I brought them, they were both in good weight if not slightly overweight. After voicing my concerns for a few months and going every night to make sure my older girl got a third meal, I left.

I went to another place that looked nice on the outside. 200 acres and the people just had their own animals there. I had the responsibility of caring for my own and had my own little section for my horses that included a small barn with three stalls. My mare got hurt with torn ligaments in her hock from slipping in mud and had to be on stall rest. Then one of their mares came up lame (an abscess) so they wanted to use that small barn as well. That was fine with me except that every time I went over there (twice a day), my injured mare was turned loose. They didn't believe in buying hay as they had one hundred acres of pasture so their stalled horse only got one 3 quart scoop of cheap feed a day. Of course they did feel sorry for her every once in a while when I wasn't there and gave her my hay though. Honestly, I gave her hay too when I walked by her. I couldn't stand it. A few other farm animals dropped dead with no vet care so I just ran away from there and called aspca for them to deal with it.

The place where I am at now and have been for three years now is fine. When I first met this lady and we made agreements, I had really wanted a self care arrangement. She said that she preferred to feed everyone at once so no one frets about getting food. She feeds my guys when I'm not there and I feed hers when she is getting home late from work. The price was decent and I buy my own food so they get what I want them to have. There are some imperfections but so far, I have managed to deal with them as they come. This place is only 10 minutes away from my home so it's easy to stay on top of things. If it were quite a drive I would have to find somewhere else where I could be more relaxed about what goes on.

So, there are my experiences. There are great places and there are horrible places. Most places to board fall somewhere in between. You have to pick and choose what you want for your horse, what you can deal with, and what battles you want to fight.
And, what I've learned is, when you are around horses and horse people, there is always something going on and everyone is right.

One day, I will have my own property and run it exactly how I want. Until then, I will meet new people, stick up for my horses when I need to, learn what I like and what I don't like, and for the most part have fun in spite of the little irritations and inconveniences.

I had to laugh about you having to buy buckets. It can get worse. You can buy your own buckets constantly because they always disappear. lol
 
#8 ·
To address your question, yes, I would move given all the issues with care. Even if the list was shorter than it is, the issues are still too serious to put up with.

I've never heard of a barn dictating how you ride or train your horse, though I don't show so maybe it's different if you're going to a barn and expected to be part of their "program" to represent them and their trainer. So that's not something I ever would have thought about asking when deciding on a barn. I'll file that away for the future if I'm ever looking for a new barn...

A lot of people have suggested self-care, but I'll just say that would never be an option for me. I board because of my crazy work schedule (which involves a lot of travel), and it's just not possible to be there every day, let alone multiple times a day, for feeding, turnout, and doing stalls. I have been fortunate that in the five years I've had my horse, I've been at two barns with really good-hearted, knowledgeable horse people who care for my horse like she's their own. Sure, if she was at home, there are things that I would do differently, but on balance, given that I can't assume complete responsibility for her care, the compromises are small enough that I can live with them. Sounds like you're beyond that point though.

Do you have a list of additional barns in your area that you're considering? A pro/con list always seems to be a good place to start when making decisions like this. Good luck!
 
#9 ·
I say move. Even if you have to go to a place further away, move.
If you can find a barn closer to you, that may not have *everything* you desire (in terms of an indoor arena, luxuries, etc.) but has better CARE, that's what matters most.
I'd try to check out as many places as you can. Even if a place is closer to you, but it has great care but not other things like a big arena etc, you may have to sacrifice. But better care is the most important thing. Your horse definitely will be happier elsewhere. I hope you find a better barn.
I wish you the best! Please keep us posted on what you decide to do. :) You definitely don't deserve to put up with that nonsense, it's ridiculous. Seems like you've done just about everything you can to try to make it work, but they're not compromising & it's getting worse.
 
#10 · (Edited)
Funny, there is a thread that I'm thinking about on this forum that I am going to somewhat contradict myself on here. Are horse people jerks?

In my own experience those spotless places tend to have a very rote way of doing things. You do everything their little nit picky way or you are the automatic outcast and the gossip of the day. Most people go along with it because they don't want to make waves and the enforcers are just the basic bully type who don't care much if the "rules" make sense they just like yelling at people about them.

Then there are those "laid back" places. Which is code for they do as little as they can get away with. These places have erratic feed, "things" swimming in the water, rusty or broken gates, turn out with halters on, and a fly problem that could take down a 747.

Just a thought, but if you can't find a boarding place within driving distance consider looking for some people with some kind of decent facilities that don't typically take boarders you could work out a deal with. I don't know if that will work out, but it is worth a look if there is much of anything at all in you area as far as horse trainers, ropers etc.
 
#12 ·
OP, I sympathize with your issues and yes, you should be looking for a place to move to. In fact, no matter how happy a boarder is with their current situation, they should always be looking for a back up place. Things change fast in the boarding business and I have yet to meet a BO that takes care of a horse exactly as promised.


I was looking for a new boarding situation for 2 years before I finally moved from a place where I had been for 13+ years. The facility went downhill as no repairs or maintenance were done after the BO's daughter lost interest in horses. The quality of boarders (and as a result, "barn drama") became even worse. Aggressive hillbillies drinking too much beer and getting hostile and confrontational. A mess of little girls galloping their horses endlessly around the arenas leaving no room for anyone else to ride. The list goes on and on.


I watched Craigslist and checked out listed websites but in reality, that was never helpful. The good places (or at least they sounded that way) were quite a distance away. In the end, it was my horse friend network where I heard about the place I moved to this summer. There are places that absolutely do not advertise and you only hear about them by "word of mouth".


The new place turns out to be a perfect situation for me, full care $225 a month per horse, pasture turnout with round bales all day and brought into their stalls every night for grain and more hay. He even blankets them for us! Very large outdoor arena, round pens, small indoor, tack storage, indoor wash rack and some woods for riding. This is a 200 acre soybean farm with a 10 stall barn & several pastures but you'd never guess that it's a small business. There is no sign out front, to board there you have to hear about it through the grapevine-the BO does not advertise and will not tolerate barn drama of any kind.


Ask all of the horse people you know about boarding situations even if they are just acquaintances. If you are really bold, you could stop in places where you see several horses. Sometimes the best places are hidden in plain sight and simply not well known.
 
#14 ·
The new place turns out to be a perfect situation for me, full care $225 a month per horse, pasture turnout with round bales all day and brought into their stalls every night for grain and more hay. He even blankets them for us! Very large outdoor arena, round pens, small indoor, tack storage, indoor wash rack and some woods for riding. This is a 200 acre soybean farm with a 10 stall barn & several pastures but you'd never guess that it's a small business. There is no sign out front, to board there you have to hear about it through the grapevine-the BO does not advertise and will not tolerate barn drama of any kind.
Can I move to your barn? XD

OP, I feel your pain. I am also looking for a new place and have been playing the boarding stable shuffle for years. The place that I am at now, I ended up going to because I ran out of options and needed somewhere else to go in an emergency. However I distinctly remember saying (before the emergency happened, we were just visiting) that "I would never be happy there, because the BO is so controlling". Yup. About 8 months there now, and both my mother (who also boards there) and I are unhappy. Mom's horse has colicked twice since being there, when she had no history of colic. We are positive it is because around ten pounds of dry alfalfa/bermuda pellets are fed to the horses and it does not agree with her horse. Even the vet told the BO that pellets should be soaked, but she is stubborn and does not listen. Have you ever seen hay pellets expand to twice or thrice their size when they hit liquid? Imagine what happens when they hit the horse's stomach acid. The equivalent would be like us eating dry rice, it would expand in our stomachs and for sure give us a belly ache like no other!

There is NO perfect boarding place, unless it is your own. You have to figure out what you can and can't deal with, but your horse's health is paramount. If you could go completely self care at this place, it might be OK to stay, if the facility is safe enough for your horse. However I would not continue trusting these people with my horse's care after everything you have said.
 
#15 ·
Thank you all for the replies. Some friends joke that I'm going to float from barn to barn and never be happy. This isn't true because both the self care barn where the owner lost her marbles I liked a lot. She was tolerable, and mainly just a complainer who had too much to sip on. But the authorities recommended us boarders leave. I imagine she got shut down as there were rumors of her not having insurance and of having a previous assault charge. I also liked the self care place I was at most recently. Although expensive, what I got was worth the money. Also, to clarify, I wasn't kicked out as in asked to leave, I was kicked out because I no longer fit her requirements. In the same way a boarder may be asked to leave because they are not paying regularly, or they are going against the contract (like not cleaning their stall), I was asked to leave because she was not happy with me not following rules. I was never made aware of these rules however. I read the contract thoroughly, and while it said lots about frequency of feeding your horse and stall cleaning, the riding part only said horses must be kept under control at all times in order to not damage property (which my gelding was). I'm more upset that I was uninformed than anything. :/ Also, the total of two lessons I had with the trainer I said nothing more than what I originally quoted. The first, she and I hadn't really agreed, she wanted me to show (no interest + not enough money to register my guy and pay hauling fees) and I said I didn't want to.The second, my guy was feeling out of it, came up lame the next day, and I said simply that it wasn't great, and that he was feeling off. Not sure how many people that telephoned through until it reached the owner, but whatever she was told was not accurate to my original statement. She did an array of other nasty things like outright refusing to take a check from me, and wanting one from my parents (who have no input to my funding) but I could make a whole other thread about her. :) Just thought I'd clarify.

Also, as much as I would be thrilled to snatch up my own place, I'm a youngin, still in school, and live with my parents so that they can claim me as a dependent and such. I intend to finish my education and take up an internship (ideally paid but no firm opinions) in order to learn facility management. There's lots I don't know about barn care, even after working at a few places and being self care. So I'm not quite ready to step out on my own with one horse just yet. I only work part time, and while my paychecks are enough to cover my horsey expnses, gas, phone insurance, car things, etc, I don't have the funds to add a rent or mortgage payment. :( If that were an option I'd have given my notice weeks ago. I'm constantly eyeing properties in the area for sale...

The owner was also absolutely firm on multiple occasions saying that no self care would be allowed. They are to be the ones doing the care because their insurance doesn't allow for them to let others operate on their own terms. There's no machinery (I would understand not wanting me to use their tractor or something). I already use their wheelbarrow and hoses and such (and they know this) so I'm a bit confused. But no self care it is. :/

Thanks again for all the thoughts. :)
 
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