Stable in garden

[scrappydoo]

Does anyone have a stable in their garden? if it takes no more than 50% are horses are still classed as pets not livestock ? Cause it says on our deeds we cant keep hens or livestock in the garden area

[Maddison's girl]

oooo I wish. Unfortunately the only access to our garden is through the house, not sure if my OH would be happy when I walk the horses through the house :D

seriously though I thought horses were classed as livestock

[scrappydoo]

:D :D You cant exactly ask the horse to take its shoes of either.

[becs]

Are you planning on building a stable? If so, you will probably require planning permission - best to check with local council. If it's out of sight etc you may get away without though - many do.

Livestock are defined well on DEFRA's web site - essentially something like "animals kept and / or bred for meat / wholesale / agri usage", not as pets. So a horse in your garden wouldn't qualify as livestock IMHO (this is in UK where it is not considered normal practise to consume horses as meat like France does / did).

A previous neighbour had 2 stables in a garden that's only 1/2 acre max. It only worked because one horse was elderly and propped up on bute so didn't bomb around, the other a tiny good-doer sheltie. She had to divide it to stop poaching badly and they often stayed in if weather was wet. Expensive to feed lots to compensate for lack of grazing.

[donnamm]

Hi,

Sounds like a lovley idea however I work im planning and you would need to apply for planning permission to your local planning authority. A committee would then decide to pass it or not and they may attach conditions to any consent. The application would also be availble in the public domain so people could raise an objection if they wanted to. I wouldnt advise putting it up without permission as if you get caught you may get a fine and would have to apply for retrospective planning permission. If this got turned do you would have to take the stable down.

[becs]

I wouldnt advise putting it up without permission as if you get caught you may get a fine and would have to apply for retrospective planning permission. If this got turned do you would have to take the stable down. This is often quoted but sadly rarely enforced it seems. Bad experiences have left me rather cynical!

This isn't a go at you obviously donnamm, but I feel this is another area in life where the honest lose out.

When we were trying to buy a horsey property, I was appalled how many people get away with putting up not just stables but whole stable blocks / maneges etc with no permission. This is is rarely disclosed to the potential buyer - we only found out by doing searches ourselves at the local council (showed nothing applied for). So you could easily buy a place then be told to rip it down!

When we prodded the planning depts (generally) about this, they implied they're so busy with the ones folk have moaned about, if there's no complaint they don't want too know, eg ignore if poss. Usual case of us few honest folk are limited what we can do / pay more and as usual the dishonest get away with it, due to few resources to address the issue.

Sorry, sore point (as it stopped us having horses for years), rant over...

[parsharainbow]

Are you planning on building a stable? If so, you will probably require planning permission - best to check with local council. If it's out of sight etc you may get away without though - many do.

.

What about a change of use like a garage etc?? would you need permission if the building was already there - just curious really :)

[acw295]

The owner of my share pony has built a single stable in her parents suburban back garden - they then used to rent grazing nearby. Seemed to work well - but I don't know how easy it was to get planning permission.

[becs]

What about a change of use like a garage etc?? would you need permission if the building was already there from our experiences, "change of use" term is used to refer to...

"agricultural" to / from "residential" usage eg land / fields...
or

"business" to / from "domestic / residential" eg setting up soley a business in an outbuilding.

If the garage was normal residential use, then used for keeping a pet (horse) in, I would imagine that still counts as residential use so "change of use" PP not required.

Only guessing though, from all the stuff that' s been told to us over the years, trying to buy a horsey property where we could work from home, etc.

[Lucyad]

I have a stable in my garden. It is rather a large garden though, and surrounded by green belt. We live in an old department of agriculture 'back to the land' small holding, though the previous owner kept hold of the field that went with it. It is now zoned residential, not agricultural. We demolished a delapidated timber and metal byre and replaced it with a new garage with 2 stables on the end. We did get planning permission in the end, but due to the distance from the house, front boundary, and proportion of overall plot developed, we wouldnt have needed planning if it had been of a lower roof height (we went for full attic accomodation for storage however). We did get told that all proposals should be issued in the first instance to planning to allow them to comment on whether it would require planning even if it did fall within the definition of acceptable development.

I would give them a call and talk it through.

[arlosmum]

If you check out the BHS website, or ask an equine solicitor, you'll see EVERYONE has the right, enshrined in Common Law, to erect a stable in their garden. English Common law supercedes ALL LA planning regs. I know this to be a fact, a friend of mine erected some stables, Barnsley Council demanded she take them down, BHS engaged a solicitor on her behalf to "remind" the Council about Common Law, result, stables are still there!!

[Lucyad]

Ohh, do you know if this is the case is Scotland as well? My neighbour wants to build another stable, but the way his garden is set out he needs to do it closer to the front boundary than his house, which would need planning from the guidance I have been given.

[abbiegirl]

Someone i know has took her poorly horse home - erected a stable in the garden so that she could keep an eye on her.

[artemis]

I applied for planning permission & was then told it was permitted developement - so up they went:D Field is just at the end of the stables.

[scrappydoo]

:D did a load of research into it today, and i can have a stable in the garden, as you are all right a horse is classed as a pet. Also spoke to a stable company who make a normal stable and bolt it onto a metal skirt and not the conceret so its classed as a moblie shelter. I thought it would be better to do that first so its semi perm incase things dont work out.

I have a conceret back yard then a large field grass garden so my plan is to just place it on the skirt, on the yard and then go for some extra thick matting. My 14hh pony is now laminitic so would only be able to have a hour a day on the grass anyway, and i would let him just wonder around on the yard in the winter with plenty of exersise. Hes not bothered about company either, just have to make sure he gets a good daily groom and attention.

[Forever Fern]

I wish i could have a stable in my garden that would be lovely, but i will just keep wishing, but atleast the yard is onnly 2 mins from my house.
xXx

[parsharainbow]

from our experiences, "change of use" term is used to refer to...

"agricultural" to / from "residential" usage eg land / fields...
or

"business" to / from "domestic / residential" eg setting up soley a business in an outbuilding.

If the garage was normal residential use, then used for keeping a pet (horse) in, I would imagine that still counts as residential use so "change of use" PP not required.

Only guessing though, from all the stuff that' s been told to us over the years, trying to buy a horsey property where we could work from home, etc.

Thanks, just made me curious when I read this thread :)

[alwaysfallingof]

I have a conceret back yard then a large field grass garden so my plan is to just place it on the skirt, on the yard and then go for some extra thick matting. My 14hh pony is now laminitic so would only be able to have a hour a day on the grass anyway, and i would let him just wonder around on the yard in the winter with plenty of exersise. Hes not bothered about company either, just have to make sure he gets a good daily groom and attention.

Sorry scrappydoo, but IMO an hour turnout by himself on grass, and being allowed to 'wander on the back yard' with no company for the other 23 hours is no life for a horse.

There are other options if you look for them. Could you not find a yard that would let you strip graze, and then turnout him out muzzled for slightly longer, with company? Or if you *really* don't want to turn him out for more than an hour a day, then find a yard which has adjoining stables so he can still see and touch other horses? I know that you're desperately worried about him after his laminitis attack, but wrapping him in cotton wool for the rest of his life will just make him miserable.

[Pink's lady]

Sorry scrappydoo, but IMO an hour turnout by himself on grass, and being allowed to 'wander on the back yard' with no company for the other 23 hours is no life for a horse.

There are other options if you look for them. Could you not find a yard that would let you strip graze, and then turnout him out muzzled for slightly longer, with company? Or if you *really* don't want to turn him out for more than an hour a day, then find a yard which has adjoining stables so he can still see and touch other horses? I know that you're desperately worried about him after his laminitis attack, but wrapping him in cotton wool for the rest of his life will just make him miserable

echo that - living in isolation is a sad and lonely life for a horse:( There are beter ways of dealing with laminitis.

[Trewsers]

What about mobile field shelters? You definitely don't need planning permission for those.

[Tuscan Dream]

id love to keep my horse in my garden and to be honest i should have last year when he was on box rest:)

personally though i woudlnt keep a horse on his own- - anyhorse even if its got human attention 24/7 it jujst dosent make up for equine company

[artemis]

You do with some local authorities Trewsers. They seem to make up the rules as they go along.

[scrappydoo]

I do have very good reason for this, not just the laminitis. My garden is an acre or more.

My horse was hand reared and is aggressive to other horses so has been kept on his own up until i inherited 6 pet sheep and a 20 year old mare last year . It took him months to accept the mare but when your not looking he does really like her. for the last few days shes been on her own and so has he in his stable, i havent even heard them neigh or show any signs of stress.

In fact she can graze close to the stable if she wishes but, shes always about 30 acres away.

I cant imagine putting him at livery, he jumps all the fencing and how would you all feel if he ended up in your patch kicking and bitting the hell out of your horse. the last time i tried he dragged someones beloved pony around by its rug and took a bit chunk of of her neck.

There is a livery yard close to use, they charge £25 per week for stable and grazing, your have the option of turning out onto an overcrowded mud filled paddock. In the summer you all share a small field of poo that no one can be bothered to pick up, everyone supposed to worm at the same time but doesnt, and there always your fair share of busy bodies.

I think i still prefer my option for my horse. There is a lot of horses that are happy to be on there own, but if they are used to living in groups it would be cruel to remove them from a herd.

[scrappydoo]

:) no offence though, you are all intitled to your own opions.

[Trewsers]

You do with some local authorities Trewsers. They seem to make up the rules as they go along.

Hmm, thats naughty:p But, as far as I know Redmire boast that they're shelters (which is what we have) don't need planning permission because they are properly mobile - they're actually on skids. Now I live in one of the most stringent county council areas known to man and I've had them down to check them out (thanks to my lovely neighbour - see seperate thread:rolleyes: ) and they agree that they are perfectly legal / conform to regulations - but, they aren't altogether happy but there is absolutely nothing they can do! To be honest, they look just like "proper" stables and are in fact a major loophole in the system - but I guess it depends where you purchase from - some field shelters do not conform to these regulations.