Well, it's narrowed down to two places for Halo's future home.
The first was #1 on my previous post, the nice boarding barn. I went out there again last night. It's priced VERY reasonably for what it offers. It's also a real community. They do a lot of shows, playdays, trail rides, etc just to expose the horses to various conditions. This is definitely a place I would love to have Halo once she is started under saddle. The do a wide variety of activities, accept riders of all disciplines, and are still not a "show" barn. It's a long drive from where I live now, but won't be too terrible from the area we hope to move to in December/January. The big downside is that for now it is further to drive, and it's also about $70 more expensive per month than the other place (this includes the cost of gas, assuming 3x week visits to the barn). It is also 5 or 6 miles further from where I work than from home, and traffic is usually nasty near work.
The second place is the self-care co-op. It's the same distance from work and home, and is at least $70 cheaper per month even after factoring in hay, grain, and gas (assuming 5x week visits). Seeing Halo more frequently would be a big advantage here. I also miss cleaning stalls and doing chores - as strange as it sounds, I do enjoy just spending the time around my horse. Being the food lady has perks too - it's nice to hear your horse nicker when she sees you. The quality of the hay is very good, and the other co-op members are very responsible and conscientious horse owners. The barn itself is pretty nice, and each stall has a small individual run, so even when they are in at night they still have extra room to move. What concerns me is that the fencing is a little bit questionable for a younger horse. The fences are mostly wire (not barbed) with some hotwire and one area of barbed wire (but it's in the cedars where the horses don't usually go). The pasture is rocky, and there are TONS of prickly pears. I was worried that Halo might hurt herself on the prickly pears, but the co-op members say they haven't had any injuries related to the foliage. A temporary issue is that I will be out of town a lot for the holidays. The co-op members usually adjust their schedules to cover other people's absences, but I would feel guilty having two full weeks of travel in the first two months of boarding there.
What I think some of the choice comes down to is whether I want to join a horse community and immerse myself in that lifestyle. Alternately, the co-op will offer solitude, which I have enjoyed at my current boarding barn. As Halo matures and I do more with her training, it would be nice to have others around to share ideas and thoughts. Of course there is always the other side of that - people whose thoughts and opinions I could do without! Casi has pointed out that it might be nice to just move her where she's going to go and not have to deal with moving her again. And it is likely that I will want her to be at a busier barn once I'm starting her to ride. It's good to have people around to dial 911...
I'm feeling very conflicted. If anybody is out there reading, I'd appreciate your comments.
Showing posts with label boarding. Show all posts
Showing posts with label boarding. Show all posts
Friday, October 10, 2008
Friday, October 3, 2008
Time to Move On
The news came last week. I mentioned offhand to the barn owner where I board that Casi and I are probably moving back to downtown when our apartment lease is up in December. Part of that move would include finding a new place for Halo. I drive 13.2 miles each way to see her now, and with a move to downtown that distance would double. I am a practical person...as much as any horse owner can be, I suppose.
Last week I got an email from the barn owner the day after our discussion, and she informed me that she would like us to find a new barn. She said they had been planning to ask me to leave November 1st with 30 days notice anyway. Brilliant. While I wasn't thrilled to hear that we were being booted out, for reasons I can't quite identify, I know that it is probably in the best interest of myself and my horse. But finding a new place can be such a challenge!
Behind the Bit has a fantastic checklist for the neurotic barn owner. Fortunately, Halo's requirements are minimal at this time. The biggest problem is that she is so young that it is silly for me to a) be at a fancy riding facility and b) lock her up in a stall all day. I am not comfortable with it at all. I want her to have a foalhood and be a horse. Stacey of BtB is right...finding the right barn really is like finding a nanny for your child!
To add to the complication of finding a new barn, not only are we moving in December, but my office is moving in December. At least I know where the office is going, whereas we don't have an apartment lined up yet. So I'm trying to make this decision with a lot of variables at play. Obviously Halo's well-being comes first, but I would like to be able to see her on a regular basis as well.
My options as of now are as follows (names withheld to protect the innocent):
1. Boarding/Lesson barn in Manor, TX. This is about 19 miles from the approximate location where we will be living, and 27 miles from my work. Pasture board gets a small pasture with other horses, run-in shelter, free choice coastal hay, mineral/salt lick, and Nutrena Safe Choice. The pastures are not very big, but they seem safe. The horses are all fat and friendly, and the tack room is the cleanest, most freakishly organized tackroom I have ever seen. I really like the barn owner. I rode a horse of hers for a while last winter, and he was an absolute pleasure to ride. Definitely not push-button, but very soft and responsive. He reminded me that I once was a very good rider! Also, I know that this barn owner would find me another one of her horses to ride for free until Halo is ready. $265/month.
2. Small, private boarding barn in Manor, TX. This is 23 miles from home and 31 miles from work, but in reality it's pretty close to the other Manor barn. They have 23 acres cross-fenced into three pastures. Run-in shelter, free choice coastal, salt/minerals, Safe Choice, and daily worming. I have an appointment to see this place on Sunday. This barn only has three boarders right now, and they are in the process of building an arena and possibly another part of their barn. It doesn't matter to me since I can't ride anyway, but it might be nice in the future. The downside is that there wouldn't be any extra horses for me to ride, and it is furthest away of the barns. It will be very hard for me to get out there with any sort of daylight left in the winter months. $270/month.
3. Co-op barn in South Austin. Initially I thought this was further away, but after checking distances it is no worse than Manor. That said, going south of Austin during rush hour is NOT the same as going east. Traffic is MUCH worse. Austin is a tall, narrow city from north to south, and traffic is much worse if you're trying to take one of the two main thoroughfares in either of those directions. Anyway, this place is equidistant from work or from home at 17 miles. There is a barn, 6 acres of pasture. There are three other horses - a 27 year old mare, her 10 year old daughter, and an older gelding. I don't know how that dynamic would work for Halo since she's a very playful little thing. Luckily she wouldn't have to fight for food since the horses are brought into their stalls to eat every night and turned out every morning. The cost of hay and farrier visits is split between the boarders, and I would need to buy my own grain. The only thing that initially worried me was them saying that they "just throw the same amount of hay to every horse." Hmm. Then again, if I go out and their horses look healthy and well taken care of, there's nothing to complain about. To board here, I would have to feed and turn horses in or out probably at least 3x per week. I will find out more details tomorrow when I visit. $85/month.
4. The final option is similar to the first, but much closer than any of the others. It is a H/J and dressage barn 9 miles from work and 15 miles from home. The benefit to this is that I would be able to get there fairly quickly after work, which would be fantastic on the weekdays. The disadvantage is that there seem to be lots of kids here. It's also the most expensive of the three options. On top of that, I'm not into showing anymore, and while I would like to do so again someday (and take some lessons) it's not a concern at all right now, and won't be for a couple of years. Pasture, stall, or pen board is available. Pasture board provides free choice coastal, salt/minerals, and Safe Choice. The owner told me that the pastures are "rocky" and that any horse pasture boarded would need front shoes at least. My reaction was WTF? given that I have been taught that rocks are good for a barefoot horse with good feet. (Granted, this does not mean you should ever make a habit of tearing around on gravel or pavement). I will not put shoes on Halo unless I have a reason, especially when I can trim her feet myself. Anyway, this is a nice facility with a big jumping arena and a lighted round pen, both of which would be great to have in order to further Halo's training. The round pen would be especially useful to get her longeing nicely. $315/month.
Clearly I need to SEE these places to make a decision. I hope the answer becomes easily evident, and that it turns out to be a solution that's good for me and my horse. I may be a horse owner on a budget, but I want to do right by Halo in every way possible.
Last week I got an email from the barn owner the day after our discussion, and she informed me that she would like us to find a new barn. She said they had been planning to ask me to leave November 1st with 30 days notice anyway. Brilliant. While I wasn't thrilled to hear that we were being booted out, for reasons I can't quite identify, I know that it is probably in the best interest of myself and my horse. But finding a new place can be such a challenge!
Behind the Bit has a fantastic checklist for the neurotic barn owner. Fortunately, Halo's requirements are minimal at this time. The biggest problem is that she is so young that it is silly for me to a) be at a fancy riding facility and b) lock her up in a stall all day. I am not comfortable with it at all. I want her to have a foalhood and be a horse. Stacey of BtB is right...finding the right barn really is like finding a nanny for your child!
To add to the complication of finding a new barn, not only are we moving in December, but my office is moving in December. At least I know where the office is going, whereas we don't have an apartment lined up yet. So I'm trying to make this decision with a lot of variables at play. Obviously Halo's well-being comes first, but I would like to be able to see her on a regular basis as well.
My options as of now are as follows (names withheld to protect the innocent):
1. Boarding/Lesson barn in Manor, TX. This is about 19 miles from the approximate location where we will be living, and 27 miles from my work. Pasture board gets a small pasture with other horses, run-in shelter, free choice coastal hay, mineral/salt lick, and Nutrena Safe Choice. The pastures are not very big, but they seem safe. The horses are all fat and friendly, and the tack room is the cleanest, most freakishly organized tackroom I have ever seen. I really like the barn owner. I rode a horse of hers for a while last winter, and he was an absolute pleasure to ride. Definitely not push-button, but very soft and responsive. He reminded me that I once was a very good rider! Also, I know that this barn owner would find me another one of her horses to ride for free until Halo is ready. $265/month.
2. Small, private boarding barn in Manor, TX. This is 23 miles from home and 31 miles from work, but in reality it's pretty close to the other Manor barn. They have 23 acres cross-fenced into three pastures. Run-in shelter, free choice coastal, salt/minerals, Safe Choice, and daily worming. I have an appointment to see this place on Sunday. This barn only has three boarders right now, and they are in the process of building an arena and possibly another part of their barn. It doesn't matter to me since I can't ride anyway, but it might be nice in the future. The downside is that there wouldn't be any extra horses for me to ride, and it is furthest away of the barns. It will be very hard for me to get out there with any sort of daylight left in the winter months. $270/month.
3. Co-op barn in South Austin. Initially I thought this was further away, but after checking distances it is no worse than Manor. That said, going south of Austin during rush hour is NOT the same as going east. Traffic is MUCH worse. Austin is a tall, narrow city from north to south, and traffic is much worse if you're trying to take one of the two main thoroughfares in either of those directions. Anyway, this place is equidistant from work or from home at 17 miles. There is a barn, 6 acres of pasture. There are three other horses - a 27 year old mare, her 10 year old daughter, and an older gelding. I don't know how that dynamic would work for Halo since she's a very playful little thing. Luckily she wouldn't have to fight for food since the horses are brought into their stalls to eat every night and turned out every morning. The cost of hay and farrier visits is split between the boarders, and I would need to buy my own grain. The only thing that initially worried me was them saying that they "just throw the same amount of hay to every horse." Hmm. Then again, if I go out and their horses look healthy and well taken care of, there's nothing to complain about. To board here, I would have to feed and turn horses in or out probably at least 3x per week. I will find out more details tomorrow when I visit. $85/month.
4. The final option is similar to the first, but much closer than any of the others. It is a H/J and dressage barn 9 miles from work and 15 miles from home. The benefit to this is that I would be able to get there fairly quickly after work, which would be fantastic on the weekdays. The disadvantage is that there seem to be lots of kids here. It's also the most expensive of the three options. On top of that, I'm not into showing anymore, and while I would like to do so again someday (and take some lessons) it's not a concern at all right now, and won't be for a couple of years. Pasture, stall, or pen board is available. Pasture board provides free choice coastal, salt/minerals, and Safe Choice. The owner told me that the pastures are "rocky" and that any horse pasture boarded would need front shoes at least. My reaction was WTF? given that I have been taught that rocks are good for a barefoot horse with good feet. (Granted, this does not mean you should ever make a habit of tearing around on gravel or pavement). I will not put shoes on Halo unless I have a reason, especially when I can trim her feet myself. Anyway, this is a nice facility with a big jumping arena and a lighted round pen, both of which would be great to have in order to further Halo's training. The round pen would be especially useful to get her longeing nicely. $315/month.
Clearly I need to SEE these places to make a decision. I hope the answer becomes easily evident, and that it turns out to be a solution that's good for me and my horse. I may be a horse owner on a budget, but I want to do right by Halo in every way possible.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Bad Self-Care Boarder
I need some advice.
I've always considered myself a responsible person, and I do my best to be a conscientious boarder. My horse lives at a private barn on 80 acres. All the horses are on 100% turnout with run-in shelter. I am the only boarder. How much trouble could I cause? Plenty, it seems.
This morning the barn owner called me at 7:30 to let me know that the horses were all in the top pasture, and she was very upset about it. She knew I'd been there because I'd replenished Halo's feed bin last night. And of course this morning the gate was wide open between the run-in for the lower pasture and the upper pasture. I am a natural suspect. There have been at least two or three extra times that I've done something wrong with a gate - usually because I've had to move some horses out of the barn area so I'd have somewhere to groom and work with Halo.
The funny thing is, this time it wasn't me. Last night as we were leaving, I told Casi to wait a minute - that I had to go back to make sure all the gates were latched. And I did, and they were. This morning....loose horses all together in the top pasture.
If I were the barn owner, I would be damn pissed too. There are very good reasons she doesn't want all the horses in together yet. There are three babies still unweaned, and her gelding (recent ex-stallion) is extremely protective of "his" mare and her baby. They are usually kept up top together, and don't go in with everyone else. So this morning, she found them all in together, and one of the other babies had an injury.
Obviously I need to do something to improve this situation. While last night wasn't my fault, plenty of times the mismanaged gates have been my fault. How hard is it to make sure all the horses are in the right places with latched gates before I leave? You wouldn't think it would be. Lately I've tried to minimize moving any of the horses, just to give me less chance to screw up. But I think I need another system.
Do I make a checklist and tape it to the dash of my car? Do I offer to pay the barn owner $5 every time a gate is closed or open that shouldn't be? These things shouldn't be hard to remember. And I would never intentionally put horses in the wrong place. My barn owner is a great person. The horses have a good life. She takes wonderful care of them and is generally just a smart, good person. Why do I keep making myself look like an idiot?
Even though last night wasn't my fault, I've still been walking around today feeling awful about it. Maybe because I am the perfect culprit for having left the gate open. If I were the barn owner, I would have placed the blame in exactly the same place. How did I become such a scattered person that I can't even latch and unlatch the right gates consistently? I could really use some advice about how to deal with this situation. It will be a while before I can leave, even if that turns out to be the best thing. As much as I like where my horse is boarded now, I would rather leave there than be the idiot who endangers the barn owner's horses by leaving the wrong gate open or closed.
Is full care a better option for me, even if it's tougher on my pocketbook? I would love to hear what advice anyone has for how to manage my own idiocy. Right now I feel so awful that I don't even want to go out there to see my horse for fear that I'll make another stupid mistake.
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