People don't board horses around here anymore. They hire a horse "caregiver"

[NNN0LHI]

Was at the vet yesterday looking at the cork board with all the lost dog pictures and cards and posters for local businesspeople. Reading a poster I was stunned at what I was reading. The person was offering to be the "caregiver", for horses. Couldn't believe what I was reading at first. Caregiver for a horse? Almost $400 bucks a month too. I always thought being a "caregiver" for a horse consisted of shoveling hose shit, throwing them some hay and oats, and turning them out occasionally. Called it boarding a horse. Things have really changed.

Don

[wtmusic]

1. About the same time waiters became "servers" and salespeople became

"sales associates". This country is going to hell. :)

[riderinthestorm]

2. I own and operate a large boarding stable and my impression of those ads

are that they are offering vacation care. Instead of hiring a house sitter to take care of all your pets, you'd hire this particular person to care for your horse specifically while you are aware.

Or its because there are lazy ass owners who should never be allowed to own a horse and are farming the "hard work" out to someone else. There's an old maxim that's actually very true: owning a horse is 75% work and 25% riding. The daily maintenance is pretty extensive from grooming, tack care, holding the horse for the vet/farrier/chiro etc. to the "extra" minutia like mane pulling, sheath cleaning, blanket maintenance, and clipping.

[csziggy]

4. The family who takes care of the farm and my horses

(Now that I can no longer do the work myself) is away this week at a show. They've hired a "caregiver" to come in over the weekend to feed all the horses and put theirs in and out of the barn as need be.

If it were not for this family I would either have to hire a caretaker myself or get rid of my horses. It's not that I am lazy - for decades I did all the work on the farm, from feeding, shoveling shit, mowing, repairing fences and barns, bookkeeping, advertising, running shows, training horses, trailering, etc. But my injuries and age have caught up with me. This is a great arrangement for all of us - they get to have more horses than they could if they were boarding. I get to keep my horses and still do a little breeding. The farm is being maintained better than it has since I was banned from using the tractor.

When I was in college I interviewed to be a caretaker for a horse farm. The owner was like I am now, worn out from decades of running her farm. She was willing to trade rent and utilities on a nice little house on the property in return for feeding, grooming and other work around the farm. I ended up turning it down because it was too many miles away from the university, but it would have been a neat position.

[riderinthestorm]

5. Oh I understand that situation completely (and that day comes to all us old horsepersons

when the body just gives out from the physical labor). I'm hoping we have another 20 years in us but we're already 50 and it's getting tough. I understand "caretaker" in that situation but I didn't get the impression from the OP that was what he was talking about.

I know that hiring someone to come for vacation coverage is pretty standard. We typically don't only because we have so many horses that require a lot of individualized care it's impossible to "train" a temp to step in so we usually pay one of our staff to stay at the farm in our house and take over, plus manage the dogs. But it's very common otherwise.

Glad to see you weighing in. I was wondering how you were doing. I saw your comment on my "owning a horse boarding facility is so fun!" thread in the lounge... I have to admit, I couldn't laugh at that cartoon. Too depressingly real. Sigh. :hi:

[csziggy]

6. My body broke down after 50 - knees are the worst

Medial meniscus removed in 2001 on the left, in 2007 on the right. I think the radial meniscus is now worn through on the right since it has never stopped hurting since the surgery. At this point I can't even walk around the house much. I've committed to a seminar in September or I might be trying to schedule knee replacement this year. But I am thinking about starting the process right after the first of the year so all the medical costs will be in one calendar year.

We did have one colt this year and he is now officially huge and soon to be weaned. He's about a hand shorter than his dam at 3-1/2 months old and she has begun kicking when he wants to nurse. My biggest regret is that I am no longer agile enough to mess with the foals. I miss handling them so much even after I was prohibited from halter breaking after my shoulder was rebuilt. Even then, I could go out and give them scratches and get them used to people, but since my right knee went, I can't move around enough to be safe doing that.

We bred our two older mares this year - the stallion that is the terrific cross on my older mare is 23 and aging badly so this may be the last foal on that line. The trainer wanted to bred the other mare since she is a nice cross with his stallion who is the out of the first mare by the aged stallion. With a fifteen year old and twelve year old mare we didn't want to leave them open another year. The trainer thinks he will be able to sell the babies. No one has been breeding so there are few weanlings on the market and people are beginning to look for prospects.

I am so glad I am out of the boarding business! People are just stupid about what they expect. The son of this family wants to train and show so I am hoping that we will have a long and prosperous relationship without any of us having to get back into the boarding crap.

[riderinthestorm]

7. Boy do you have it tough.

It's odd, we got out of the breeding just as the market crashed. Not because of that per se, but because we were just too damn exhausted to manage the foals.

I only have 1 eighteen month foal left out of our breeding program and she's a cross between a sentimental/pragmatic choice: the stalwart farm/family pony - a 12.2h Shetland/Welsh cross who at 12 yrs old was too lovely and fancy to just abandon to the back 40 but who was just too little for my last daughter to ride. 110% honest XC, dressage, driving and Pony Club games, with A-show quality over fences, yet as a Shetland cross capable of living to 40 yrs old - so the perfect grandchild pony. No way was I letting this pony go. So we bred her to ensure her possibility in the future.

Her foal is like a toy! Beside all the warmblood crosses and eventers, this little thing is just... hilarious. I know you know. Breaking her to tack this summer will be uneventful with her bouncy 14 yr old owner (my daughter) doing most of the work in the round pen. I'm actually looking forward to this after fretting for so many years. It's so damn difficult to watch a 16h, 2 yr old monster TB/WB charge your 48 yr old husband trying to leap out of the way while he tries to put his foot in the saddle.

So I know you understand when I say, my husband is investing in an air-vest, the latest jumping technology this year, but we are keeping on, keeping on. I gallop, condition and manage the farm. He trains and competes. Knock on wood, we're here in a year.

Hugs to you. Hope all is well in the near future.

[csziggy]

8. I'm getting depressed these days - I hate not being mobile

We bred last year for the first time in several years. The owner of a Reserve World Champion (he's since made World Champion) wanted to breed to my senior mare and offered a free breeding. We bred our junior mare to see what she would throw - she's the only mare I have that is not a result of our breeding program. The senior mare didn't catch, the junior one did. Things fell apart for a re-breeding to that stallion (our trainer's comment is that the stallion owner is "off her meds") but we know we will be happy with the crosses we made this year.

Oh, I bet that pony foal is a hoot! And I can believe it is easier to handle than a WB cross! We breed Quarter horses, but I did some crosses on WBs years ago. With the same dams, same handling, those WBs always wanted to push us even when they were not as big as yours. I was happy to see them go, even though they brought more money than the QHs of the same age.

I've been wondering what the possibilities of riding after knee replacement. I would love to ride again, but I'd have to wear all the protective gear!

I hope you and your husband are still going ten years from now and beyond! One of my teachers in high school rode until she was seventy. When they forced her to retire from teaching, she retired from riding also. Then she lived another twenty five years and outlived the school board members who made her retire, LOL.

[robdogbucky]

3. Don, that is the way it is in my neighborhood

I live in an area with lots of horses and horse people and stables and even horses living in backyard paddocks, etc.(American miniatures and some quarter horses) This is a suburban area on the edge of a state park and lots of trails. I have met people that make a living taking care on a daily/weekly basis, as well as when people vacation, taking care of horses for owners that are either too busy, or too disinterested, etc., in caring for their horses. It is a good living for some here, and they are all animal lovers to the core and probably should be the ones owning these steeds instead of the actual owners. Not unusual to see traffic stopped on those crosswalks that are on the horse trails.

I walk dogs and the trails around here are specialized, they have horse trails where no one cares about the horseshit, and then there are paved people trails for walkers, runners, bikers, etc. with even dogshit discouraged and regular bag/dump stations for folks to deposit fido's doings. Everyone gets along, just as long as you don't try to run on a horse trail and you don't take your horse on the paved trails. We also have lots of wildlife, coyotes, hawks, snakes, plenty of varmints and various little critters on the food chain for everyone to eat, etc.

This has always been the case in this neighborhood from talking to the longtime residents. Even the local high school mascot is a Bronco.


Just my dos centavos

robdogbucky

[uncle ray]

9. well horses have to get their medical marijuana from somewhere.