Serious Trail riders

["guest@endurance.net" <guest@endurance.net>]

diane knapper knaptyme@qwest.net
I've had the distinct pleasure of boarding for the past 10
months with my best friend and riding partner.  I have
learned that the things I thought I needed in a boarding
facility, which are most of what has been mentioned aren't
important.  What is important is the care that my horse
gets.  Maybe, I'm fortunate that I can trailer to riding
areas since none are really available where I board.  If I
didn't have a trailer, I would maybe rethink things.  Things
I do know, my horse is out 24/7 unless the weather is
bad...and I would rather her error on the good side of
judgement.  I do know that she runs a pasture only boarding
facility, but has stalls available for bad weather...hey we
live in MN -- we have bad weather.  But when I talked to her
at the end of October about bringing Phoenix in at night
because he couldn't get into the lean to and he was freezing
to death, she agreed...but in all fairness, I offered to
increase the amount of the board by $25 a month to cover
that and blanketing him when needed.  You see, he was the
only horse out of 11 that needed a blanket!!  She calls me
when he is running low on his prepared thryroid meds.  I
make things easy for her, I make up a batch of his vitamins
and meds and she just has to put them in his feed.  She
never has to wonder what I'm giving my horse.  That is my
responsibility, not the barn managers.  Very small
tupperware containers marked AM & PM work great for that.
And if you are in a barn that has help that doesn't speak
english, put moons & suns on them...they get it.  She puts
meds on little scrapes and bumps.  What do I do in return
for this.  I make sure that when I bring my horse in, that
his stall is clean in case he pooped, the aisle is clean and
when I'm around during feeding time, I help her.  When you
are in the position of boarding, the ultimate question
becomes what kind of care will my horse get.  You can have
the most luxurious boarding facility, but if the horse isn't
getting the best in care, it doesn't matter.  You are going
to move them.  I'm in the position right now of knowing the
lease on my house expires 6/1...I'm determined to find a
place to live close by so I can keep my horse where he is.
The last thing I want is to move him.  When I come home from
a weekend ride on Sunday night, I want to know that he is
going to be turned out in the pasture...not locked in some
stall.  I want him to be able to move and flex those tired
muscles.  I'm not worried about bite marks, hey horses get
those in a herd...it happens.  I've also learned that when
it is -10° and the windchill is -40°, I'm real happy that
someone else is responsible for going out and feeding my
horse and making sure the blanket is properly adjusted.  One
thing I would recommend is making a stall sign for your
horse with the following info:  you home number, workI've had the distinct pleasure of boarding for the past 10
months with my best friend and riding partner.  I have
learned that the things I thought I needed in a boarding
facility, which are most of what has been mentioned aren't
important.  What is important is the care that my horse
gets.  Maybe, I'm fortunate that I can trailer to riding
areas since none are really available where I board.  If I
didn't have a trailer, I would maybe rethink things.  Things
I do know, my horse is out 24/7 unless the weather is
bad...and I would rather her error on the good side of
judgement.  I do know that she runs a pasture only boarding
facility, but has stalls available for bad weather...hey we
live in MN -- we have bad weather.  But when I talked to her
at the end of October about bringing Phoenix in at night
because he couldn't get into the lean to and he was freezing
to death, she agreed...but in all fairness, I offered to
increase the amount of the board by $25 a month to cover
that and blanketing him when needed.  You see, he was the
only horse out of 11 that needed a blanket!!  She calls me
when he is running low on his prepared thryroid meds.  I
make things easy for her, I make up a batch of his vitamins
and meds and she just has to put them in his feed.  She
never has to wonder what I'm giving my horse.  That is my
responsibility, not the barn managers.  Very small
tupperware containers marked AM & PM work great for that.
And if you are in a barn that has help that doesn't speak
english, put moons & suns on them...they get it.  She puts
meds on little scrapes and bumps.  What do I do in return
for this.  I make sure that when I bring my horse in, that
his stall is clean in case he pooped, the aisle is clean and
when I'm around during feeding time, I help her.  When you
are in the position of boarding, the ultimate question
becomes what kind of care will my horse get.  You can have
the most luxurious boarding facility, but if the horse isn't
getting the best in care, it doesn't matter.  You are going
to move them.  I'm in the position right now of knowing the
lease on my house expires 6/1...I'm determined to find a
place to live close by so I can keep my horse where he is.
The last thing I want is to move him.  When I come home from
a weekend ride on Sunday night, I want to know that he is
going to be turned out in the pasture...not locked in some
stall.  I want him to be able to move and flex those tired
muscles.  I'm not worried about bite marks, hey horses get
those in a herd...it happens.  I've also learned that when
it is -10° and the windchill is -40°, I'm real happy that
someone else is responsible for going out and feeding my
horse and making sure the blanket is properly adjusted.  One
thing I would recommend is making a stall sign for your
horse with the following info:  you home number, work
number, vet number and and emergency contact with home &
work.  Not someone who will get in contact with you, but
someone that can authorize emergency medical treatment.
Sometimes minutes can and do count.
Diane & Phoenix (I'm not moving...I moving up in the herd,
headed for top horse...just get rid of that ***** Flash
horse!!!)


number, vet number and and emergency contact with home &
work.  Not someone who will get in contact with you, but
someone that can authorize emergency medical treatment.
Sometimes minutes can and do count.
Diane & Phoenix (I'm not moving...I moving up in the herd,
headed for top horse...just get rid of that ***** Flash
horse!!!)