I'm sure there are a lot of you people out there that board horses on the side and I was hoping to get some input from you. I have nice farm with several good sized pastures that I rotate and a huge barn with empty stalls and I would like to take in a few boarders. My place is not fancy, but it is safe and comfortable and has a few small trails. I'm interested in hearing from all, but even more so from Tennesseans, being that's where I live. Some of my questions are things like, Do you carry extra insurance and what does that run? How liable are you if a horse is injured, but reasonable care has been taken? Have any of you been taken to court for any reason and what what the outcome? What seems to be the going rate on board for those who live further out from town? What do you do with people who don't pay their board? I have a million questions, so any insight would be helpful. I look forward to hearing from you and Thanks for taking the time to read my post.
Posted 2005-06-30 11:09 PM (#27451 - in reply to #27446) Subject: RE: Information wanted. Boarding Horses Pros, Cons & Liabilities
Expert
Posts: 1723 Location: michigan
I do not own a boarding facility however I have thought of it and spoken to a few people who do run a facility. My first step would be to ask someone who does in your state, a bunch of questions, get a copy of their board agreement. Ask about the payment policies, rules of the barn. then consult a lawyer for the legal questions and your insurance company or find one that deals with the horse business.
Dealing with the horses will be easy- its the people that will drive you nuts. Are you prepared to deal with obnoxious, lazy,silly, or plain old screwed up people? Are you prepaed to deal with smart mouthed kids? i know there are plenty of good people who pay on time and don't cause a problem but there are always jerks, those are the ones that will keep you up at night.
Not to say it a bad idea, just something that needs alot of thought.
Posted 2005-07-01 12:04 AM (#27457 - in reply to #27446) Subject: RE: Information wanted. Boarding Horses Pros, Cons & Liabilities
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 378 Location: Nebraska
You need to decide what services and ammenities you are going to offer, how you will handles emergencies (accidents or natural disasters), security for the horses and tack. Keep up to date with your bookkeeping, become familiar with agister liens for your state (consult with a lawyer), water supply, feed supply, property maintenance. there is alot to it.
Check your cinch often and good luck
Posted 2005-07-01 8:07 AM (#27463 - in reply to #27446) Subject: RE: Information wanted. Boarding Horses Pros, Cons & Liabilities
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 565 Location: Michigan
Ahhh empty stalls? Very tempting to either fill them up with your own horses or someone elses. I would prefer to fill them up with my own. I boarded for years and the people who owned the boarding facility drove ME nuts. So I was very thankful to marry someone who wanted to live on a farm and let me have horses. LOL!
I do agree with Farmbabe, the people will question your sanity.
Posted 2005-07-01 9:51 AM (#27472 - in reply to #27446) Subject: RE: Information wanted. Boarding Horses Pros, Cons & Liabilities
Regular
Posts: 97 Location: Middle Tennessee
I have thought about the issues of dealing with boarders and I'm not so sure I want to do that. It has crossed my mind to maybe just take in elderly horses and run the place almost like a retirement home. If I did that, I would more likely only have the occassional visitor and not have people coming day in and day out. Of course then, death will always be an issue and a place to bury them. I definitely will have to do some research. I may just find out the the insurance will be just too expensive and not end up dealing with it at all. Thanks for the advise and keep the comments coming.
PS. As far as filling the stalls with my own horses, that would be wonderful, but not very practical. Since I'm a stickler for health care and quality feed, I wouldn't be able to make ends meet. Being that I'm the only one that rides, having three horses is more then enough for me.
Posted 2005-07-01 10:11 AM (#27477 - in reply to #27446) Subject: RE: Information wanted. Boarding Horses Pros, Cons & Liabilities
Expert
Posts: 1989 Location: South Central OK
Hey, get involved with a rescue. All the $$$$ you spend on their horses is tax deductable. That way you can have fuller stalls, see some people, and gice that great feed to some horses in need!
Posted 2005-07-01 1:20 PM (#27491 - in reply to #27446) Subject: RE: Information wanted. Boarding Horses Pros, Cons & Liabilities
Member
Posts: 32 Location: Brazil, IN
huntseat, good idea! i'm sure they are always looking for poeple to do that, but the ones with room, money, time, love are hard to come by! i'm sure that a few rescues would be very lucky to find a home in your barn! good luck!
Posted 2005-07-04 9:42 AM (#27569 - in reply to #27446) Subject: re: boarders
Regular
Posts: 55 Location: Kingston, Ontario
I have taken in boarders...thought that it would help cover my own horsey expenses....but never worked for me....I always had trouble finding horses that would get along and because I only had a couple of shelters, mine were always the horse left out in the rain!Then, we often lose power where I live..had to haul water from the lake that's a couple of miles from our farm...Also, I will never do business with a friend(??) again..board money always was late and eventually became non- exsistant!Insurance can be an issue.... must check your fire and theift insurance...may only cover animals and equipment that you own!So, I will board no more....tempting, but when I think back to bitten horses, damaged property and fences and the ammount that you are tied down, just isn't worth it to me....We are having a terrible drought in our county this year...no rain and hay is $4.00/bale and up!Boarding stables are shutting down and horses are going cheap!Good luck...think long and hard before you decide...
Posted 2005-07-05 7:39 AM (#27590 - in reply to #27569) Subject: re: boarders
Member
Posts: 30 Location: Summerville, SC
WOW, equigal, $4 per bail! Down here in SC we pay $7 for native coastal hay which is junk hay and $12 for T/A which we prefer. You are lucky. As for boarders. Be very very careful. We have had as many as 6 boarders at one time. More of a nightmare than it is worth. We only have 3 small pastures so our horses are kept in small herds (4 or 5). Our own (11 of them) all have shoes because they are ridden everyday and shown a lot. When horses are establishing thier peking order they kick out. We actually lost a boarders horse 2 days after it arrived. Got kicked by one of our shoed horses. Had a thief for a boarder once. Had the boarder who was never happy. Had a boarder who gossiped and stirred trouble all the time. Running a boarding facility is like haveing a bunch of missbehaving 2 year olds around all the time. We have however had the honer of a few perfect boarders. The ones that are horse smart, friendly, curtious and understanding. If by some miracle you could fill your empty spots with those kind of people, your life would be greatly enriched. One cannot explain the all troubles you can encounter in such a short forum. All I can say is be very very picky about who you accept as a boarder and make sure in your contract, you have writtten in that you can ask the boarder to leave at anytime for any reason with a 30 day notice. That way you can send the nightmares on down the road as soon as possible. Good luck!
Posted 2005-07-05 8:27 AM (#27595 - in reply to #27446) Subject: re: boarders
Regular
Posts: 55 Location: Kingston, Ontario
I have heard that hay is pricey down there....LOL*** we pay $1.75-2:50 for good quality T/A hay !!!I do have a lot of friends that ship Ontario hay down to Florida..they get aprox 7.00 Canadian (5.00 US) for it so SOMEONE is making bucks..and it sure ain't the farmers!!!!So, I will complain no more about the price of hay here...But, I still wish we would get some rain..hay crop is 1/2-1/3 of normal....Also, if your hay is imported, everyone will pay a higher price!
Posted 2005-07-15 12:13 PM (#28116 - in reply to #27446) Subject: RE: Information wanted. Boarding Horses Pros, Cons & Liabilities
Member
Posts: 25 Location: Western Oregon
I understand everyone's pessimissium(sp?) about boarding but you can set it up where it is not so much of a headache and not so much trouble. Lots of horse sites will have sample contracts and you can adjust to fit your needs. If you don't want people crawling all over your property any day of the week consider taking in retired horses! Or horses the owner can't ride any more and wants a loving place to keep it. I have a friend in NCalif making $400 a month for 2 horses! He feeds morining and night, calles the farrier and cleans up. The woman who owned them since they were small couldn't stand to sell them and she knows they are well taken care of. A fail-safe for board monies- Whatever your areas board fees are, charge $50 to $100 more but give a $50 or $100 discount if paid on time! Rarley will the payment be late! My farm insurance can cover animals on my property that are not mine and I can add them in increments according to how many are boarded. Having the boarders sign a release of liablity may be good but check legal advise in your state and county. Don't be discouraged if this is something you would like to do. Do reseach, be prepared, figure out what you want to deal with, be prepared to take ownership of animals left, know what you will do if that happens, and enjoy your property! Just my 2 cents! Pat
Posted 2005-07-17 12:52 PM (#28152 - in reply to #27446) Subject: RE: Information wanted. Boarding Horses Pros, Cons & Liabilities
Elite Veteran
Posts: 602 Location: md
A woman I know just started to board. She got the insurance. Around 300.00 a year. She has lots of pasture and gives them grain and hay as needed. She would not be doing it if she was'nt making money.
Information wanted. Boarding Horses Pros, Cons & Liabilities
