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Horse left at Barn?

4K views 12 replies 10 participants last post by  Beauseant 
#1 ·
There is a horse at my barn that has aparently been "left" there by the owners. What I mean is they just stopped paying board/farrier, and are not returning phone calls. This has been going on for three months. My question is this- Is there a point at which the horse will become property of the barn? Would they have the right to sell it or give it away? He is costing money in feed/hay/shavings for his stall, and the farrier is refusing to do his feet anymore without pay.
 
#4 ·
I don't think that they are unfamiliar with the scenario, I think they are just hoping there is something going on with the owners. They were really good about paying on time just until recently.

I was just asking out of personal curiosity- I'm the one cleaning the horse's stall and feeding him every day, so I was just curious about what they could do if say, the owner never turns up again. I didn't want to ask the BO about it because it's really none of my business anyways, but curiosity got the best of me which is why I posted on here.
 
#7 ·
In Iowa the barn owner would file a lien at the courthouse. They would then have to sell the horse at a public auction. The barn owner can ONLY keep what they are owed, the remaining money must be sent to the original owners.

So record keeping is vital. In our contract we state that a lien will be filed after 60 days of no payment. With the horse market the way it is in Iowa, we would be lucky to sell the horse at auction and get enough money to cover costs.
 
#9 ·
unfortunately, this seems to be happening more and more all over the country with the ecomony going down the toilet.
I can understand if people just can't afford to feed their horse anymore, but seems it would be easier to just be up front with barn owners and tell them the truth, here is my horse, I can't afford to feed him anymore, so do what you have to with him. Instead of just walking away. It would sure make it easier on the barn owners to be able to just sell a horse instead of having to file liens.
Happening with dogs and cats also, leaving them for boarding, then never showing up again. I imagine each states laws differ with what the barn owner can do. I think it is going to be happening more and more with the price of hay going up. We sold hay for $75 a ton last year for alfalfa/grass mix. This year it is going for $150 a ton and they expect it to reach $200/250 a ton before winter is over. So much rain that most farmers will not be getting a second crop.
 
#11 ·
Well I have heard of cases like this... An owner wouldn't pay and so the BO took them to court. The verdict was the owner of the horse had to pay the money by a certain date or the ownership of the horse would be passed to the BO and now the horse is the BO's pride and joy (he is an old boy now)
 
#13 ·
This is what happened to our Belgian mare, Epona.

Her owner abandoned her, stopped paying her board and didn't have her feet trimmed for months. The BO contacted him and told him she had people interested in buying her (us) and that he owed her over a thousand dollars in board fees and that Epona's feet hadn't been trimmed in six months and were in a horrible state....and told him, sell her or else I will place a lien and do so. He opted to do the right thing and sell her and clear his debt. Sales contract stated that the purchase price was used to clear his debt to the stable owner, with the rest going to him.

So, if the horse is abandoned, BO should try to contact the owner and find a resolution. If not possible, horse becomes the property of the BO once a lien is filed.
 
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