DIY livery - how do you manage yourselves? Am i doing enough?

[Palomino Mare]

for the record, just to stand up for DIY a little a was on full livery for 7years and hated every minute of it.

when i would go up, although there was nothing wrong with the way the beds were done etc it just wasnt how i wanted my horse done - no one can look after your horse as well as you can

being lazy i would hang around watching tv all day, then look outside and go oops, its raining, cant go up tonight and thus my horse became eratic (well ok jerry did) as needing to be ridden everyday the temptation for me not to because i new he was looked after was too great.

like i said above i think the best solution would be to speak to the other liveries bout could it be also that this yard isnt working out for you?

 

[*-crazy-chaz-*]

yeah cheers, thats what im doin now. only it doesnt last long was thinking of putting in a big round bale....

haha lol! as long as you dont mind your ponios gettin fat lol

 

[anna15]

ETA - anna15, how do you do it?? i'd be falling alseep @ school! lol

hehe i actually dont know to be fair its the people who then have to go to work after the morning shift that i feel sorry for, falling asleep at work has to be harder to get away with than falling asleep in lessons lol

 

[*-crazy-chaz-*]

anna15- yh i do aswell.i suppose it is worse to fall asleep @ work as there is a chance of the sack looming.......

 

[PatchyPony]

like i said above i think the best solution would be to speak to the other liveries bout could it be also that this yard isnt working out for you?

yeah - i did today, but they werent keen on getting together a rota, they are happy doing their own. and i dont feel its fair to impose on them...

 

[Pink's lady]

I'm afraid I don't think a once daily check is enough if your the only one doing it - that's 22hrs on their own where anything could go wrong. They could be stuck in the fence for hours and hours.

As for putting a bale out - that works fine with bigger horses if theres a couple but one small shetland pony isn't going to manage to eat it all, or will explode if she tries (which is quite likely)! I know you have Tia now but even so you are going to waste a LOT of hay, completely destroy the ground and have a very very fat shetland pony!

For what you've said (frozen water/not enough hay) it sounds like one visit a day definintly isn't enough.

Trying to sort something out with other liveries would be best. If you are organised you could have the water nearby so they can check it and have a big bag of hay ready for them to put out (we use those big white builder bags) so it's quick and easy. Althought to be honest you should be able to fit a 10min visit to the yard in yourself. One proper visit once a day and a flying visit just to give hay and check no-one's broken a leg.

We have finally got ourselves orgainsed this winter. Ali's dad gives them all (all 7 of them) hay in the morning at 7am on his way to work and counts legs. One owner is up during the day and has a quick look at everyone and gives more haylage if needed. Me and Ali are up in the evening and get all the hay ready for her dad the next morning (in those big bags) and feed etc. Other two owners work shifts and are up at random times but also check all breifly and give haylage if needed.

 

[PatchyPony]

I'm afraid I don't think a once daily check is enough if your the only one doing it - that's 22hrs on their own where anything could go wrong. They could be stuck in the fence for hours and hours.

As for putting a bale out - that works fine with bigger horses if theres a couple but one small shetland pony isn't going to manage to eat it all, or will explode if she tries (which is quite likely)! I know you have Tia now but even so you are going to waste a LOT of hay, completely destroy the ground and have a very very fat shetland pony!

For what you've said (frozen water/not enough hay) it sounds like one visit a day definintly isn't enough.

Trying to sort something out with other liveries would be best. If you are organised you could have the water nearby so they can check it and have a big bag of hay ready for them to put out (we use those big white builder bags) so it's quick and easy. Althought to be honest you should be able to fit a 10min visit to the yard in yourself. One proper visit once a day and a flying visit just to give hay and check no-one's broken a leg.

We have finally got ourselves orgainsed this winter. Ali's dad gives them all (all 7 of them) hay in the morning at 7am on his way to work and counts legs. One owner is up during the day and has a quick look at everyone and gives more haylage if needed. Me and Ali are up in the evening and get all the hay ready for her dad the next morning (in those big bags) and feed etc. Other two owners work shifts and are up at random times but also check all breifly and give haylage if needed.

thanks PL. I dont have another horse yet - and if it is that mare she wont be called the dreaded 'T' word

i thought roxy would only eat what she needed - as she doesnt always eat the hay i put out for her now.. if the ground inst frozen she prefers the grass.

 

[laceyfreckle]

yeah mine are out by themselves in their own field.

ive been feeling poorly as well, i just feel i have zero energy

your doing fine!!

i don't even have DIY lol its me 7 acres, 4 stables and my two ponies. I only get down once a day as well.

I do the same as you except only one of mine needs hay out and thats only one section a day. I am there a lot longer at the weekends then i am during the week i don't really have the time in winter during the week.

mine don't seem to mind.

With the water though i found by having bath tubs and filling them right up the sloped sides and the amount of water helps stop them from freezing.

Soon be summer

edited to add..........if the fields etc are fairly safe and you do basic 'risk assessment' they should be fine, put out as much hay as you need *(you might have to waste some) little shetland won't explode on hay, it's all good fibre stuff. I like feeding hay ad lib anyway but i have loads of grass still at the moment.

also make sure you leave your name and address for emergencies (i do with the people that live near my field and the people i rent it from)

 

[Pink's lady]

i thought roxy would only eat what she needed

hah, that'll be right! Most shetlands (or any horses for that matter) will stuff their faces as they couldn't care less about their waist line! They will eat until they are full, which isn't nessesarily the amount they need!

Visits really don't have to be long if your organised. If Ali or I are in a rush and have been organised the night before we can have them all in and fed, back out and all given haylage in 15mins. Ali's dad gives them haylage in the morning is 7mins! Have everything ready and get into a rountine. Buy a couple of things to make your life easier (like extra buckets, big hay bag, hay manger, lanterns etc) and get sorted.

 

[*-crazy-chaz-*]

horses will eat as much as they can for as long as they can. it's instinct from being in the wild.

 

[laceyfreckle]

Patchypony - have a look at the 'feeding hay' thread in the cafe section. A lot of people there agree with me (and you lol) that ad lib hay is never a bad thing.

It's concentrates and hard feed that make a pony fat not hay. Horses and even ickle ponies are designed to trickle feed and there guts are healthiest that way. (sorry if teaching you to suck eggs btw)

 

[Tots N Dots]

A tennis ball would do, which is smaller and more easily replaced!

not picking fault with this at all, but just to say I had to retrieve one of these out of pickles mouth as local school threw one into Pickles field,
though most ponies dont seem to think eating a tennis ball is funny but just a thought

 

[Samantha1980]

I visit my horses at least twice a day when they are out and 3 times when they are in over night. There is no one else there to check on them so I feel these visits are a must. I would worry otherwise.

 

[shandy84]

at grazing I have always visited twice a day even if just briefly as there are no other liveries to tell you if your pony isn't looking right. I think perhaps a quick spot check extra would be a good idea.

I'm on rented grazing with stables and share with a friend and my weekdays go like this....

up 5.30 am get dressed etc for work
out by 630 for a walk with the dog
up to farm by 730 check on Bramble give all over check and some feed
go to work for 830
finish work at 430 head straight to Bramble
spend about an hr with her ride or just fuss etc check alls okay and feed

it's up to you what you do but i've had some scary times being on grazing before with the horses being sick and now would not, not check twice to make sure alls ok

 

[PatchyPony]

Patchypony - have a look at the 'feeding hay' thread in the cafe section. A lot of people there agree with me (and you lol) that ad lib hay is never a bad thing.

It's concentrates and hard feed that make a pony fat not hay. Horses and even ickle ponies are designed to trickle feed and there guts are healthiest that way. (sorry if teaching you to suck eggs btw)

thanks - there are a few different ideas arent there... before tally left the hay was getting guzzled prono. Now its just Roxy, unles the ground is frozen she doesnt eat it... so she isnt stuffing herself at the mo..

 

[SavingGrace]

When I had one on DIY livery he was in at night and out during the day 5 days a week the other two he stayed in!


I always made up a haynet and a feed for morning and evening and the yard owner fed them all at the same time so by time i got there he had a full tummy! I groomed if needed and rode first thing then turned him out by 9am 9.30am on his turnout days then mucked out, filled haynets put one in, left two outside one for last thing and one for the morning! Saturday and Sunday he would get ridden for longer and turned out then same routine, I would go back up to bring him in at night and the 3 weeks days he was out i paid a freelance to bring him in and clean out his feet, she also took off TO rug, washed his legs if needed, groomed him and put his stable rug on (she was fantastic i couldn't rate her highly enough) all for £20 a week... The other two days that he stayed in i would turned him out into one of the indoor barns that were set aside for this for an hour or so while I gave the stable a full muck out or went feed/hay shopping, he would then be given an extra (small) feed, two large haynets and tucked in... and at night he would given his dinner with all the other by last one on the yard and a large haynet! I couldn't go down twice a day as I worked back shift and the girl I found could only do mon, wed and fri for me! But he was more than happy as when I had him on full livery he was kept in all weekend anyway!

 

[Minski&Kai]

I'm sure once you get into a routine it will be much easier. I've had 18 years of getting up at 6 so have got the nack of it now!!

I currently have my horses in a rented field on my own so only me to look after them. So I check them and break the ice in the morning at 5.30 work 7-3 then back at 4 to ride and pick poo in a head torch, very fetching!!

When I was on a DIY livery yard I partnered up with one of the other liveries, I would do our 2 horse in the morning and she would do them in the evening. If you could find someone you could do this will, would be a big help.

 

[SO1]

I really admire you all - I work full time and live quite far from my yard so don't know how I would cope without out being on assisted DIY. I am tired enough as it is!

 

[redhead123]

I added this to another thread but it's prob relevent here

Turned out 24.7...unshod...haylage put in field by YO twice a day as part of grass livery set up. Large sandy field, doesn't get muddy. Breathable waterproof rug. 15 other horses for company. That's my answer! I can't get up every day..in the week sometimes I can't get up at all because of the distance from where I work to where he is kept; I ask people to keep an eye on him and at the moment am paying the YO to feed him once a day, but I'm not even sure he needs this as he's hardly ridden at the moment. The difference between him being on grass livery and part livery (where I have a stable but don't use it, YO feeds once a day, my own food) is nearly 100 quid a month!!!!!!!

Kids go up every night to see their ponies and have said they will check his rugs etc, as there's at least 20 people going up every day (it's a huge yard). It's not great and i worry myself senseless but I'm hoping that will be ok, even though it isn't ideal. I've tried and failed to find a sharer so I thouht turnout was the best option and am hoping to find someone willing who fancies spending time with him in the week to groom/feed etc. It's not ideal at the moment but I was paying lots to have him part livery and he only got 2hours turnout a day and wasn't ridden in the week...

 

[clarabella_78]

I go up in the morning before work for 45 mins. Change rugs, turnout, muckout, put feed,water and hay in for the evening. Back home in the shower at 7am. Good start to the day, but it does mean that I MUST be in bed by 10.15PM.
When I go up at 4.30 I just bring in,change rugs and leave.

This system works for me. Means I don't spend ages chatting instead of doing jobs in the evening. In the mornings I am half asleep so have forgotten by the time I get to work that I even did all the jobs in the morning!!!I would highly reccomend getting everything done early.
When you get your new horse perhaps you could look into getting a sharer? That's what Im thinking of doing - to give myself a few evenings/mornings off a week.

Sounds very like my day - an early start and I get as much done as possible before work (depends how messy he's been in the night!!!) I'm at the yard about 6.30am till 7.15ish. I start by changing his rug and feeding him. While he's eating I muck out, take down empty haynets and clean last nights buckets. If I have time, I fill some haynets and make up some feeds to save time later. After work I bring him in, pick out his feet and brush off muddy bits, put on stable rug, hany up new haynets and brush down bedding then leave him to it with his dinner. That all takes less than 30 mins.

I do know how you feel though - I'm able to drive down before and after work as it's not far, but I'd struggle if my yard was further away. I'm lucky in that the other owners drift in and out through the day so I don't need to worry about a frozen trough as we all check it. Winter has come as a bit of a shock to the system though - I only got my horse in June so this is a lot of work in comparison to when he lived out!