[zwarte]

Today, I was brushing my horse as a girl ran into the tack room and emerged with a coral colored saddle pad. Hmmm. I didn't know anyone else had one that color.

So after I stick my horse in the stall, I check out my tack cubby - and my new coral colored saddle pad is missing. What to do?

So I follow her down to where her parents are loading up her horse and say, "I am sure that you didn't mean to take my saddle pad .....but...
then I reach inside her truck, where her mother is driving, and take it back.

She says, Oh. I don't have a saddle pad and I need one.

What am I, a tack store?

As I am taking it back to the tack cubby, I decide it wouldn't hurt me to loan it to her. So I hand it to her and ask her to wash it before she returns it. Because this is a small community of horse people and I would prefer to get along - and also get my stuff back. I do wonder if I would have ever seen it again if I hadn't snatched it out of her truck.

 

[Whipple]

That was awesome that you let her borrow it otherwise. Hopefully she has learned you are willing to let her borrow. Maybe she was used to always being told no and so just grabbed it.
I love how you handled the situation.

 

[Shawneen]

That is a good move, if it doesn't bother you that you might not see it again even now. Kill them with kindness I say. Too bad though, even now you will always have that in the back of your head when you see her.

 

[ChingazMyBoy]

Yes I agree with what the others said that it was kind of you to let her borrow it and a good way of handeling it

 

[zwarte]

Actually I DON't want her to think she can borrow my stuff without asking. And you are right that I will always kind of know in the back of my head that she takes things. I hope she realizes that what I did was kind - but it put her on notice.

I expect to get my saddle pad back in perfect condition. Or I'll ask her to buy me a new one.

And I should mark stuff better.

 

[Jubilee Rose]

I really admire the way you handled that. Good job. I'm sure others wouldn't be so compassionate. How old was this girl? I can't believe that she would just up and take it. :-|

 

[eventerdrew]

UGH! I had this problem at the last barn I boarded at (don't have that problem anymore since i have my girls at home now. phew!). I would come in and find random things missing. like saddle pads, whips, brushes, treats, anything. I started putting a drop of purple nail polish on all of my things. that way i wouldn't have to write my name on them but I would know they were mine. I put it on backs of brushes, bags of treats, ends of whips, and the little tags on my saddle pads.

There were several times where I caught people (usually a specific person) taking my things that, i'll admit, were very plain looking so some of these incidents could have been a true mistake. But I would walk up to this person and say "excuse me but that looks alot like my ____ and I just lost mine". Usually this person would deny it left and right and claim it was theirs and "brand new". I just checked for the purple dot and low and behold.... no more stealing problems!

you're alot nicer than I am. I can't stand stuff like that

 

[sandy2u1]

you are an extremely nice person! When she brings it back though....I would ask her in a very nice way to plz ask before she borrows anything else. That way she knows that she cant just get what she wants from you.

 

[LeahKathleen]

I am not that good of a person. People used to take my things CONSTANTLY at the old barn.

I had bought a BRAND NEW navy halter for Joey. It's Mustang brand - you can only find them in Brehnam, about two hours from me. Certainly not locally. I couldn't hang it on his stall - he chews on things. So I had hung it on my other mare's stall. The next day it goes missing and I asked the BARN OWNER if she had seen it. She says, "Yeah, I've seen it. It's mine. I just bought it for July. It's hanging in my garage." 0.o

I was completely floored. I ended up asking to see the receipt (which she didn't have - and I had mine) and driving her down to our local tack shop to show her that they didn't sell that brand of halter.

How do some people think they can just take things? I don't get it. And then lie? Like I'm not going to figure it out?

I ended up putting all my stuff in a locker with a lock on it. Heh.

You're a better person that I am - I HATE it when people use my stuff.

 

[smrobs]

Yeah, you are much nicer than me too. I have a real bad habit of just spouting off whatever is running through my mind without utilizing my brain/mouth filter and sometimes, it ends very badly. I don't mind loaning people my things if they ask first but when they just take something "because they need it" or "Well, I don't have one", it just chaps my butt. That, to me, clearly demonstrates a VERY spoiled person that has never been taught any kind of respect for themselves or others. I would keep a lock on my tack cubby. Around here, we have a real issue with saddles being stolen from private property and sold in pawn shops. In lieu of putting a lock on my tack room, I chained my most agressive dog in front of the door. Oddly enough, I have never had anything go missing since I did that.

 

[MIEventer]

I am not that nice of a person either.

I used to be, until people took advantage of me, and I wiped the stamp on my forehead that used to say "sucker".

I would not of handled that situation very well at all. I do not tolerate my stuff being used, without being asked first.

When I boarded at a large barn, I used to borrow stuff myself - BUT when asked permission first. And I would clean it and put it back exactly where I got it from.

I would NEVER think of using someone's tack, without asking first. I find that rude.

I don't have allot of money, and the stuff I own, I had to work hard for. So I am possessive - and I have large tack trunks, with locks on them because I have had people use my stuff and never putting it back, or taking it and I never see it again.

~~~

It was very nice of you to of done what you did.

I would of definately had a chat with her parents, and I would definately of had a discussion with the Barn Manager - and I would of put a sign over my area of tack

I AM NOT A TACK STORE!

 

[Whipple]

This has made me think, if you're paying a good hunk of money to board, why doesn't everyone get their own locked space. I really doubt it would be that hard to implement, and it would be great! If I ever have a boarding stable (and hopefully I will one day) that will be one thing I will do fur sure. And if I ever board a horse before then, I think I will be keeping my tack in my car.

 

[danastark]

That's a good idea to start marking your stuff. I have that problem with my neighbor. I haul his daughter's horse for him and they are always missing something like a clean saddle pad (English), spurs, etc. I think they forget they borrowed it and start thinking it's theirs.......I was missing my gray and white striped cotton lunge line and when I was over at their house recently, I noticed they had it....... yesterday he was looking for her spurs and pulled out my daughter's that have pink stones along the outside and said, "Oh there they are!" and I had to remind him that those were Shaylea's and he had borrowed them. I have taken a sharpie and written my name on the underside of all my dressage pads..... I'm lucky to have my horses at home but even sharing a trailer gets messy......

I hope that girl is very grateful for your loan and that it comes back in good condition.

 

[LeahKathleen]

I don't have allot of money, and the stuff I own, I had to work hard for. So I am possessive - and I have large tack trunks, with locks on them because I have had people use my stuff and never putting it back, or taking it and I never see it again.

That's how I feel. I lent my saddle and pad to a girl I used to board with for one of her barrel competitions. She only had a synthetic saddle, and mine was leather, and I have a cute pink pad to go with it, so I said, what the heck?

I only asked that she wash my pad (for the safety of my horse, more than anything) and to please wipe down my saddle with some of MY LeatherNew wipes, and cover my saddle when she put everything back.

When I got it back, my pad was DISGUSTING and my saddle was COVERED in arena dirt - I found out her girth had come undone during the race and my saddle had fallen in the dirt.

She just tossed everything in the tack room, dirty, not even on a saddle stand, and I never heard a "thank you."

I work hard for my things. Treat my property with respect.

I just don't get how people think they are entitled to anything they need. It's one thing to grab a lead rope when you can't find yours, and then put it right back where you got it. It's another to take something off the property without a word to its owner, and without intentions of bringing it back.