Boarding is the only option for many as land, time, training resources, and horses become more valuable, but it can really, really suck- for both the land owner and the horse owner. Granted, there are many A+, wonderful facilities out there and many mindful equestrians thriving in their boarding situations, but wow have I been relating to many clients lately as they vent their boarding woes and frustrations. It's that time of year. As wet weather sets in around the US and turnouts become limited in quality and quantity, the level of boarding anxiety surges, and it's mostly about how or what the horse is being fed. Unfortunately, it's also a really difficult thing to talk about, because there's a lot of passion, preferences, and priorities to weed through. The land owner has a tremendous amount of emotional and financial investment in their facility and the horse owner has a tremendous amount of emotional and financial investment in their horse(s). I've now been on both sides of this complicated human relationship, and I have a few things to say.
About half of my clients board their horses and about half of them have horses at home. There are advantages and disadvantages to both, but what I want to focus on today are the opposing viewpoints of boarding facility owner (manager) and the horse owner. At this point in my life, I feel that I can speak intelligently to both sides, because I've experienced it all over the last 22 years. I've boarded at large facilities and small private properties. I've kept horses on acreage that I've rented as well as acreage that I've owned. I've had good experiences and bad, and I've learned a lot from my clients across the United States who each have their own unique boarding opportunities and challenges.
Here are some of the issues that I hear about a lot.
Hay, grain or supplements provided by the facility do not match the needs of the horse.
Turnout is limited.
Horse has long periods of time without long stem forage.
Schedule is inflexible.
Management is defensive.
Boarders are too high maintenance or uneducated.
I'm going to open this tough topic up for discussion by framing my perspective- qualified or unqualified as I may be. It may seem like I'm on the side of the facility owner, but I'm offering guidance from the viewpoint that they are the authority at the end of the day. However, I do want to make one note about respecting the horse owner...
RESPECT FOR THE HORSE OWNER
In my business, I've always tried to keep in mind that, on average, the horse owner knows best. It has served me well when I've remembered it! Even if I think that I have more education on a topic or more years of experience, I try to halter my ego and listen even if it sounds weird. I respect that (most of the time) they are the human that lays eyes on the horse the most, has the deepest connection with the horse, and intuitively understands their behaviors the best. So, when they recognize that something isn't right, we should respect that and open our minds to understanding and resolving. I think that this ego can get in the way of owners/managers sometimes, because they are living in it everyday and often have more years or quality of experience.
Now, onto how to be a better boarder...
WAYS TO RESPECT THE LAND OWNER/MANAGER
My little five acre farm is a dream come true, but it's also not perfect. I don't have shelters (yes, shocking), my paddocks don't have soft places for horses to lay down, and my arena isn't finished. However, my husband and I have invested an incredible amount of time and money making the fences, pastures, barn, arena and in-between spaces nice and functional, so whenever a boarder complains about something, it's a dig into not only your home, but your sanctuary, your choices and your sweat. This is why, after only two years of boarding other people's horses, I won't likely do it again, and here in lies the problem- I'm not alone. Personal barn doors are closing everywhere which means that more horses are being crammed into tighter spaces and prices go up at the facilities that remain. In my area, there are waitlists for any boarding facility with an indoor as equestrians flood into the area.
My experience sharing my own property has also given me a HUGE amount of respect for those land owners/managers that persevere year after year. They continue to take those thousand emotional cuts and the financial hits, solely because of their passion and generosity. Their amygdalas must be calloused. It's 110% impossible to satisfy every boarder's expectations and wishes which feels like constant, bombardments of failure. So, lesson number one is to have empathy and consider the following ways to change your mindset about your boarding facility.
Here are ways to grease the wheel with your facility owner or boarding manager;
Walk into every boarding facility with realistic expectations. You're going to have to give up on your "ideal" no matter where you go or how perfect it looks on the outside.
Find a facility where your horse is the "average". You'll be happier if your horse is NOT the "outlier".
Keep it simple! Moderate your blanket and supplement use. As a traveling salesperson for 12 years (all of which time I was boarding horses), I got really good at this and it has paid off dividends even today.
Notice the ways in which they improve the facility every day, and thank them for it regularly.
Offer to help out NO MATTER WHAT the contract says. What's hard to swallow is that the boarders are often NOT paying for much of the labor that goes into running the facility, so help out whenever possible! Sweep the feed room. Pull a weed. Show up on hard days when the pipes freeze.
Follow the Rules. I realize looking back on my boarding experiences that I was not a great rule follower, and now I feel really guilty about that.
The Situation Could Be Better Than You Think. I know that you think that the online forums are helpful, but often times the information that you "research" is counter productive or only half true (very common in nutrition). I can't tell you the number of times that a client has described their boarding anxiety (created from something that they read online) only to realize upon more applicable education that they are lucky to have the management that they do.
Be adaptable! That might look like deploying a slow feed device that you've never heard of, a better understanding of how to compliment the hay that is provided, or making small adjustments to the supplements that eases tension. I often have clients call me in a panic about the forage being provided by the facility, just to realize that it's really easy to work with.
ACCOMPLISH NUTRITION GOALS TOGETHER
Like I mentioned above, a LOT of friction between facility owner and horse owners comes from what and how the horse eats. This is why I've been having so many boarding woes conversations lately. My advice to clients is this; write out your specific nutrition goal. Theories, assumptions, and "he said/she says" are not good arguments. Make it a SMART goal with a a measurable outcome and timeline. Involving your owner with the solution is the best way to stroke their egos. Good examples are...
My horse has grade 4 ulcers. Can you help me figure out a way to decrease his ulcer score from 4 to 0 in the next 90 days? The best way to treat and prevent them is to increase the number of hours chewing long stem forage. Is there a way to increase that number by 2-4 hours?
My horse is a body condition score of 4. Can you help me figure out a way to increase that to a 5? He needs to gain 60 lbs to do so. I need to incorporate higher density forages and feeds to accomplish this. What are my options?
My veterinarian has recently diagnosed my horse with chronic asthma that is likely due to dust in the hay. He coughs about 6-12 times per minute in my warmup, and I'd like to decrease that number. Here are a few ways that I've learned to mitigate dust in the hay. Would any of these options work for you?
If you only have vague notions of what is good or bad for your horse, then get help! An independent equine nutritionist is a great place to start! You want to add a professional to your horse's team that isn't just trying to sell you product and has the time to go over your management parameters. I help horse owners think through their boarding situations every week. You have more options than you think.
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