I don't know what it is about horse owners, that generally make us exceptionally opinionated. But, we are. Maybe its that we feel so passionate about our horses, that if we find something that works for us, we want everyone to know that and share. I am being generous here....
Unfortunately, I am really bad at being told what to do. I could go into the physcology of it but basically, I'm a stubborn control freak,. Thankfully, I like to think I am an intelligent person and I like to do my own research about pretty much everything I do. Equally, there are a couple of people out there who's experience and research means I dont do my own (literally I can count these people on one hand) Hence why being on a livery yard is my idea of hell!
Livery yards are an interesting place and were never ideal for me. Looking back now there are a few factors that make them very irritating. Mainly, the people....
1) I have no interest in your opinion, unless I actually ask for it.
2) I work hard, when I get down the yard at 630pm what I want to do is spend valuable time with my horse to unwind me. Not listen to someone gossip about someone gossiping about me, winding me up.
3). I'm hypoglycaemic, the chances are when I get down the yard, I havent eaten since lunchtime. This doesn't make me the most tolerant or receptive of people. Funnily enough I could not eat all day and the horses will never annoy me!
4) When it peeing down with rain apparently you can't just let your horse out to wander round the yard all day instead of being stuck in its stable 24/7 for 6 months.
5) Actual livery where people look after your horses as if they were their own.... Or maybe they did which is a scary thought?
6) All year turnout was essential for me and my horse.
7) How is it so many people can spend all day down there generally telling everyone else where they are going wrong. Shouldn't they have jobs? How the hell do they afford it?
What livery yards need (in my opinion) is strict rules. The happiest I have been on a yard is a small very strict one, but you knew where you stood. I was on full livery and had all year turnout, it worked brilliantly for me. Also there were onto 3 other people on it who had long gone by the time I got there.
Unhappiest I have been is on a massive yard, were gossip was rife. It drove me nuts and made me so unhappy. Funnily enough though I think this is where Conor was at his happiest. Also, the owner although lovely wasn't very strict. So some people got to do somethings, others got to do other things all dependent on who was flavour of the month. Which was obviously, never going to be me as I was at work all day.
What they are good for is giving you the incentive to do something with your horse. You kind of go along on their energy. I would certainly never have evented Conor (nor would anyone in their right mind) if it hadn't been for the fact lots of people on the yard were doing the MK3DE. I would never have gone. On this note I was also the only only person who ended up going! I remember noting this irony as I loaded him to leave for MIlton Keynes in 2006.
It does take a certain amount of willpower to stay focused to compete when you are at home, with no one else loading up looking smart. This may be partly the reason I haven't for a few years.
Also, livery yards are not always for people who think outside the box.
When Conor wouldn't load apparently the thing to do was send him to the Irish Horse Dealers..... Really? Is this actually what you would do with your own? I think probably not! After 4 years ( yes it took that long) for me to acknowledge that I couldn't, the yard owner couldn't, intelligent horsemanship couldn't. I phoned Richard Maxwell who for approx. £400 (yes you can imagine the comments about that) got Conor loading within an hour and he never not loaded again! The best £400 I spent in my entire life. Infact, when I got Zulu and he also decided he wasn't going to get in a tin can again, I phoned Richard without even blinking. No point in having an 8k horse and not be able to do anything with him? Make it 8.4k and the world is your oyster!
When I purchased my Barrie Swain Holistic Treeless saddle.... Dear lord anyone would think I had just told everyone on the yard the way to ride was to sit backwards and pull on the tail. It won't last, it was a waste of money, they are not tested enough... Blah blah. It fitted big shouldered Conor perfectly (the reason I tried it, as everything else was so restricting). Yes, you do have ride your arse off in it, there is no protection from the horses back, i can feel everything. The saddle is now 6 years old, it looks the same as it I'd the day I purchased it and it has fitted all 3 horses from 18hh to 16hh perfectly without being adjusted and they have never had any back problems from an ill fitting saddle. I bet they can't say the same about their stubben's!
When Becky started training with the genius that is Phillipe Karl (and then passed on to me). I cant see that their comments would have been "What an interesting man, I've read his book and his comments about how dressage as it stands is breaking horses. I'll be really interested to see how his training methods work out and the reasoning behind it" it would have been.... "have you seen Nicola riding around with her hands in the air, what does she think she is doing".
When Becky started training with the genius that is Phillipe Karl (and then passed on to me). I cant see that their comments would have been "What an interesting man, I've read his book and his comments about how dressage as it stands is breaking horses. I'll be really interested to see how his training methods work out and the reasoning behind it" it would have been.... "have you seen Nicola riding around with her hands in the air, what does she think she is doing".
I can't even comprehend what they would say about me looking to compete Eager barefoot...... Lol
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