Do you own a horse or are you thinking about buying or leasing one? Do you need to find a boarding barn? Here are some questions that you will want to answer on your search for a boarding barn.
How Much Does Board Cost?
As it is with everything in life, you get what you pay for. And so it is with boarding facilities. Costs can vary from location to location, service to service and discipline to discipline. You will want to do some research to determine what your needs are how much boarding fees run in your area. Then budget accordingly. Cost however, should not be the only determining factor. There is a lot to consider for the welfare of yourself as the rider and the welfare of your horse.
What is the Location of the Barn?
How close is the barn to my home? The closer the better, right? Walking distance would be perfect! But before you agree to put your horse in your neighbor’s pasture, there are a few more things you want to consider.
What is the Social Experience You Are Looking For?
Horseback riding is a very social experience. Finding a barn with other riders in your age group may be important to you. If you are a rider in your fifties, you probably don’t want to spend your time riding with a bunch of teenagers. Finding a group of friends that you can connect with and share experiences with is important, so don’t overlook this important aspect of the barn.
You may also want to find a barn where many of the boarders ride in the same discipline as you. This can be important particularly if you want to compete. You may also want to take lessons. So finding a barn that has a good trainer or riding instructor may be important. If you are a trail rider, are there trails near by, or will you have to transport your horse to go trail riding? Are there other people to trail ride with? This is important for many reasons including safety.
How Much Time Do You Have?
The amount of time you plan to spend with your horse will be a factor when determining if you want full or partial board. If you are a weekend rider, than you will want to find a barn that offers full board. You will need to have someone ensure that your horse if fed and watered. If your horse is in a stall, that the stall is picked out a couple times a day. If your horse is to be kept in a stall, you will want to be sure that there is turn out time. You don’t want your horse standing in a stall all day, everyday between your weekend visits without daily turnout.
If you do plan to visit your horse everyday, then partial board may work for you. You may provide feed and stall maintenance. They may feed your horse in the mornings and provide daily turn out. there are a lot of different arrangements with full or partial board, so you will want to be clear on what each of you are to provide.
What Services Does the Barn Provide?
This point is worth repeating as you will want to be clear on what is provided for your monthly fee and what will be “extra”. For example, if you want your horse blanketed on cold days, will they put the blanket on for you, will they do it for an extra fee, or will you need to make a trip to the barn to do it?
Do they have a farrier come regularly or will you need to make arrangements for that? Do they provide transportation for your horse if you need it? If you have your own horse trailer, do they let you park it on the grounds? If you have to be away for an extended period of time, do they have someone available to exercise your horse?
What is the Condition of the Horses and the Barn?
When; you visit the facility, take a look at the horses that board there. How do they look? Are they in good condition? Do they look fit and well fed? How does the barn and stalls look? How large are the stalls? 12 X 12 is a good benchmark. Are they in good repair? Do the stalls look like they’ve been picked?
What is the condition of the fences? Do they use barbed wire or hog wire that the horse can get hurt on? What about other junk that is laying around the barn or the pasture?
Ask to see the feed room. How does the hay and feed look. Check out the water buckets in the stalls. Have they been cleaned. Does the water look fresh?
Is an arena to ride in important to you? Is a covered arena important if you plan to ride in winter or rainy weather? What other amenities are there? What about the footing in the arena? Is it appropriate for the discipline you ride in?
What are the rules of the facility? Do they have hours of operation that limit when you can visit or ride your horse?
Conclusion
If you are boarding your horse, finding a good boarding barn is essential to ensure the happiness and security of you and your horse. There is so much to think about! But, as with anything, finding everything you want in a facility within your budget is probably not possible. There’s going to be compromises. You’re going to have to pick what’s important to you and what you can live with or without.
If finding a place within 15 minutes of your home is important, you may have to pay more. If you want to work with a specific trainer, there may be additional costs to that. An air conditioned arena? Cha Ching!
Good luck with your search! By the way, if you still haven’t found your first or next dream horse, you will want to get my free dream horse buyers guide! It has everything you need to begin to search for your next equine partner. Get it today!
Enjoy the Ride!
Pam