a) she looked at all these places when she was looking for a place for her mare
b) her mare has chronic lameness issues and so she's obsessive about footing and care
c) she's from the area
d) she travels to many of these barns on a regular basis with her job
I managed to take her list of 8 and whittle them down to 5, which I have listed "in order", although admittedly the order wouldn't necessarily stick based on a few factors:
1. So Great There's a Waitlist
- great facilities
- better price
- the owner is an equine massage therapist and a saddle fitter (got to be handy)
- not sure about rules of outside trainers (but I get the impression it's ok)
- BUT there's usually a waitlist
2. Distance Doesn't Love Me
- great facilities (including "the most beautiful indoor in the area with perfect footing")
- once again not sure about rules of outside trainers but seems ok
- working boarder option to help reduce the already reasonable costs (which is a nice perk)
- BUT it's about 40 minutes away (which could be a problem with my job since I can work late nights and weekends)
3. No Indoor
- no onsite trainer (which is fine by me because then I can get whoever the hell I want)
- customized care (they apparently have a lot of older horses which they take great care of)
- BUT no indoor (so definitely not a long term plan for me with Winter and all that jazz)
- AND outdoor is used as a turnout so the footing is hard and packed down
 |
| Walker Summer '12 Fat and doing what he loved best - eating |
- great turnout
- great facilities
- BUT barn owner only has time to feed horses once a day (which means I either risk Walker colicking or I find the time to go out every morning to feed him half of his meal instead)
5. Quarter Horse Barn
- small indoor
- large outdoor
- BUT might not take boarders
- AND they're Quarter Horse people (which you'd think I'd like since I have a QH, but this probably means that we don't share similar disciplines or views on training - QH people can be harsh, and not in a good way)
The other three barns got cut off the list because they had bad conditions and one outright doesn't take boarders (which, unfortunately for me, was the lady I met at Greenhawk and was most interested in working with). There are also a couple super expensive ones but they're so expensive that she didn't even bother to put them on the list (like $900/month for just basic board kind of expensive)
 |
| August '12 Notice how he could care less about the camera In case you're not catching the pattern, he likes his pastures with grass |
- big indoor
- small outdoor that's unfenced (and a Walker-disaster waiting to happen)
- turnout without pasture (and ponies that pick on my baby!)
- phenomenal care from the barn manager
- some training methods and emphasis that I'm not necessarily all about (but could grow to love and do result in some lovely well-manner ponies)
- expensive
- no outside trainer (nor probably outside instruction of any kind)
So there is the list! Like I said, I'm still mulling everything over in my brain and trying to decide if we should just give our current barn more of a chance or we should hightail it while we can. Decisions, decisions...
I'd get on the waitlist of the first barn so you could have the option of going there if need be.
ReplyDeleteAgreed.
DeleteI agree too!
DeleteMe three :-)
DeleteDitto.
DeleteYeah. Obviously that sounds like the nicest, although I should probably go check them all out myself first
DeleteDefinitely one or two. I boarded an hour from my house for a while, but the care was so phenomenal that I knew my horse was safe even if I only went there once a week. #3 would be a pain, especially if you have to move horses out of the "outdoor" if you want to ride. And #4 feeding horses once a day is just not healthy or safe!
ReplyDeleteI agree about #4 which is why it fell so low on the list. The only reason it even made the list is because I would totally make a point of going to the barn to give Walker half of his meal. But yeah, I like number 1 or 2 as well
Delete1 or 2. Like L said, get on the wait list for barn 1 now so it's an option. You can always turn own the spot if need be.
ReplyDelete40 minutes isn't a huge deal to me, but I'm used to it. Fair warning: if you ever move to Halifax, you will NOT find a barn with any kind of decent turn out that's less than 30-35 minutes from the city, and most with be 40-60+.
Yeah. I just worry because it means I would be at the barn much less than I get now
DeleteYeah, get on the waiting list if it's your favorite. You can always say no. My current barn is a 40 minute drive for me, but it's worth it because I trust in the care and I don't HAVE to go out there every day since they are so good to my horse.
ReplyDeleteNever hurts to be on a waitlist. You can always decline if your number comes up and you're just not feeling it.
ReplyDelete40min would be a non-issue for me, but if that sort of drive is not your cup of tea I would take it doubly into account when considering a work-off-your-board situation; what feels long when you're driving to see your own pony is not going to feel any shorter after you've done a bunch of stalls.
It's not the drive itself, it's my work situation. I can have long days at work, and if you added 40 minutes on top of that, I may not get to the barn until really late at night (maybe 9 or 10 or maybe even later...). I don't mind driving 40 minutes if I'm home at a decent enough time to not be that weird creeper riding at midnight.
Delete