Loaning out your horse - your experiences please!!

0dd

0dd

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May 27, 2006
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I'm thinking of loaning out Ben next year as I want to go to university but you hear all these horror stories of people selling them on and what not.. tell me some good stuff :confused: lol

I'm afraid that say.. they take him on, then I go off, and then they decide they can't do it and them I'd be really stuck!

Ideas? Suggestions? Experiences?
 
I had an awful experience at the end of last year/beginning of this year. Because of family deaths and illnesses throughout last year, I was talked into loaning out my beloved Fell to a friend's sister. Worst thing I ever did. Not only did I feel as though I had lost the only thing left in the world that loved me, but I ended up having a breakdown as it was sort of the last straw.

Fortunately another real friend of mine got my Fell pony back for me a few weeks later, found me somewhere to keep him [with her own horses] and I brought him back. Unfortunately the damage had already been done. He came back to me in a bad state - he had rubbed himself all over, literally, with stress. He had bald patches everywhere and worse, he turned out to be unrideable due to muscle spasms and back problems and a sore mouth. These had been caused by young children having riding lessons on him, for up to 2 hours at a time [and he's an unfit 26 year old pony, so it was far too much for him] and yanking at his mouth and bouncing up and down on his back. Cantering him up steep hills as well I believe. And I had loaned him out on the basis of light hacking only. I am not saying any of this was deliberate - the family who had him on loan simply did not know how to look after him properly or what they should or shouldn't do. It was simple lack of knowledge.

There followed months of physiotherapy, Reiki healing, equine Bowen and lots and lots of love from me - and at last I have a beautifully healthy loving pony again who is happy to be ridden once more. A new saddle because his back now has to be looked after carefully [HM Fhoenix treeless]. It has cost me a fortune to get him put right again, and I will never ever loan him out to anybody again.
 
......................... damn. lol

problem is for like 2 years I never ever went away. I was always the one that was there to do him morning and evening and then one night I was away it was Such a weight off my shoulders to know that someone else was taking care of him and I didn't have to worry about him for the night.

I feel like at the moment I don't have enough time for him anyway, or myself, so I really want someone I can thoroughly trust, who I know is responsible and has worked with horses for a long time, who'll give him all the attention he deserves (because he is so damn gorgeous and kind and he's been through so much), and for someone to take him forward in dressage because he has so much potential and I'm lazy!!

anyone got any positive posts?

thanks though carrieh, any response is good right now.
I'm in a muddle about what to do.. o_O
 
Maybe you could look for a sharer that would be willing to take him on full loan next year - at least that way you will have peace of mind of who will be looking after him.
 
Sorry Odd - you can tell the whole loaning out affair still rankles a bit with me! :D

Are you going to be far away at University? If not, can you perhaps do as I've done, which is put your horse on a friend's field with her horses, and she will look after him whilst you are not around? Pay her a few pounds for doing so? That's not exactly loaning, and you can still see him and ride him as often as you can.

I live some distance away from where Benny is now kept and I can't get there every day, but I know this friend looks after him so well if I can't get down and there's always somebody around to give him a cuddle!
 
0dd said:
I'm thinking of loaning out Ben next year as I want to go to university but you hear all these horror stories of people selling them on and what not.. tell me some good stuff :confused: lol

I'm afraid that say.. they take him on, then I go off, and then they decide they can't do it and them I'd be really stuck!

Ideas? Suggestions? Experiences?
Click to expand...

Be very careful about checking the bonafides of the potential loaner. I ask for references as to experience and ability from a BHS recognised instructor who knows the person professionally. (Ok so this sounds a bit OTT but no-one who has my horse's well-being at heart has ever taken offence at this.)

I don't allow him to be moved away from his yard because I then have plenty of people around who will quietly keep an eye on things.

I have a contract which must be signed by both me and the loaner and witnessed by two independent persons - this is very important because the contract is a legal document and can be used if things go wrong. You can download a basic loan contract form from the BHS site and when you have thought about what you want you can add other conditions such as any prohibitions and conditions as to use eg no hunting, must stay with the same vet and farrier, feed must not be changed, or what ever is important to you. Write into the contract the notice required for ending the loan agreement (this protects both sides) - say a month either side but add a proviso that in case of the horse's welfare being at risk you can reclaim your horse with no notice. I also include a bit about I or my representative visiting without notice to check on the horse.

It is advisable to continue to pay for the horse's insurance but advise the loaner that s/he is responsible for her own personal accident cover as the owner's insurance doesn't usually cover this (consult your insurance provider).

For your own peace of mind while you are at uni you need to know that you have done your best to protect your horse while you are not able to look after him. Anyone who objects to your conditions should be viewed with suspicion.

Oh yes - and don't let the passport out of your possession. Whatever else we may think of the scheme it is a very useful proof of ownership. It's also a good idea to have him chipped and the chip registered if he isn't already and make sure the loaner knows this. It may protect you against theft of the horse.
 
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I too had a really bad experence with loaning my mare' came back looking like a rescue case' I too nearly had a nervous breakdown due to trying to get her back' foot and mouth on at the time and she was in a field next to a cow' wouldn't let her out of my sight again' mind you there are good loaners out there' I was one once years ago' eventually bought the pony'
 
I loaned my old horse out twice and it did (on the whole) work out well. The first time he went on loan I was pregnant with my first, the girl was only 16 so her parents signed the agreement.

She kept him for about 3yrs and then had to give him back when she got engaged and was setting up home herself. In the time she had him, she cured his napping, taught him to jump and competed him regularly.

I did find she became a bit vague in the last few weeks she had him and I ended up taking him back a little early. Also when I wanted to register TC at my old vets - turns out she hadn't paid a bill and because they knew I was the owner they refused to take me back as a client despite it being her that ran up the bill. So I'd say do make sure your vets know who is responsible for bills.

The second time he went on loan it was to the girl I had been sharing with - she was fab and she loaned him for a few years and then bought him.

The thing is because they are loaned with a clause where the loaner can give a months notice you do cringe every time your loaner rings you in case they want to give your horse back (and thus drop you in it), but unfortunately there is nothing you can do about that.
 
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You might be safer loaning him to an equestrian college or centre if he is a suitable exam quality horse. At least you can specify what work he is to do and provided he suits know he will not suddenly be returned based on a commercial contract
 
Don't want to hijack this thread :eek: . . .

But Eml - can you explain "exam quality" please?

I've heard this phrase quite a lot over the past few years (and I notice you have an exam training centre, so you're probably in a good position to advise ;) ).

It's been a loooooooong while since I did mine :p , but there never seemed to be any particular type of horse we were given for any part of the training/examinations. Is it just a health specification? Or more to it than that?

Odd - One of mine has been in the same loan home for the past 9 yrs.
So it can work out :D !
But I think everyone else has covered it :) . Some work, some don't (another of mine was given back in the same week - and they'd seemed very genuine).
 
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as posted by sidesaddlelady1

passport is a useful proof of ownership

in theory i am sure that we all are of this opinion , or should i say i was

i know someone who was selling a horse , i won't go into the whole story but said horse got stolen , owner reported it to police but managed to find out the whereabouts of horse , reported this to police , person who had the horse claimed to own it , real owner had passport POLICE DID NOT RECOGNISE THIS DOCUMENT:eek: referred owner to defra who were of course powerless to do anything:eek:
 
I would never loan a horse of mine out again after a horrendous experience, however, I now have a fantastic horse on loan, I look after her properly, keep in touch with the owner and everything is great. So there are good loanees out there, just take your time and if possible, keep horse at present yard so people who know your horse can keep a regular eye on him
 
Sorry taking thread a bit OT but reply to DeirdreBarlow:

'Exam' horses basically are those who will jump a 2'6"-3' course fluently, do some simple XC fences at a similar height and work to Novice dressage level showing a correct contact if ridden correctly for Stages 2 and 3 or be quiet enough to ride in all paces for Stage 1 where the standard of rider can vary greatly! Often they are retired competition horses who need a quieter life or peoples ex PC horses.
 
From a different point of view, I had both my boys loaned to me when I was younger, I believe that you really need to 'vet' the loaner, I would not mind any search being done on me by the owner as I would like to prove that I would look after that horse as they believe best.

I think the idea about sharing with a view to loan being the best solution, and keeping on a yard where he is known.

When you meet people, trust your instincts.

Remember the old addage, if you have a good experience you will tell 1 person, but if you have a bad experience you will tell 10. So learn from the bad experiences others have had, but don't be afraid to loan out Ben.

In relation to the passport issue, the loaner may need it, a vet will need the passport to administer certain drugs, the passport is there to stop animals that have been treated with certain drugs from getting into the food chain. So maybe micro chip and/or freeze marking are a good idea. (Had to do a lot of research on this for work!)

Also for you peace of mind ensure that you have loads of pictures of him for when you're at Uni, not only so you can look at him all the time, but so that you have records of what he looks like, markings and condition wise.

Sorry it's so long but I hope I've helped put your mind at rest a bit.

x
 
Thanks for all the replies!
wow.. what a very mixed reaction! :eek:

I was thinking about it last night and I think in mid summer I shall ring round a few of my horsey folk that know a lot of people and ask if they know someone who would be interested in loaning him out long-term.
At least that way I know that someone knows them and that they're capable and responsible!!

Tbh I don't think it will be very hard to "get rid of him", it's just finding the right person for him. I went to a SJ thing last night and we had at least 3 people stroking his head and saying how handsome he was :D lol

We got two clear rounds out of 2 so I can now add "showjumps" to his CV :)
 
My horse is currently out on loan whilst I am on a gap year and just having a little time away from horse ownership. Turns out I can't be without horses altogether, and have a part time job working with them, but not having to be there every morning and night is a relief in some ways. I do know, however, that I will want him back in the next few years when I am in a position to do so.

At the moment, fingers crossed, the loan is going well. He has moved quite a long way away from my family home, but still only just over an hours train ride from my new flat, so not a great strain to go and visit. Me and mum aim to visit him every 4-5 weeks. We made sure that his new loaner was more than capable of riding him nicely, and we went to check out the private yards she was going to keep him on - all very plush and relaxed.

He is out competing regularly (which is what i did with him and what he loves) and he has performed impeccably in all competitions fulfilling his role as an eventing schoolmaster.

Furthermore, he now lives by the forests and by the sea, so when I visit I can go for incredible hacks :D
 
My experience is a bit different! My old cob was generally a bombproof ride, the one thing that meant he wasn't really anybody's ride was his habit of putting in a big buck. The third summer I had him, he just seemed to down tools - I wanted to jump & compete, he more or less waved 2 horsey fingers at me (or would have done if he could) & didn't seem to want to do much more than gently plod about. I decided maybe he'd be happier with a less competitive person, and a good friend of mine said she'd like to loan him - she's a bit of a nervous rider, but capable enough & all she wanted to do was hack. Meanwhile, another good friend asked if I'd like to loan her mare, who had a bit more ooomph. Well all seemed to be going swimmingly until 5 months later, his lordship decided the quiet life was not for him & he bucked my friend off, out of the blue, on a road - very very naughty. I was shocked, but obviously she didn't want to keep him so both loans had to end & I took him back. After his 5 months of gentle hacking he was back to his old self, and we went back to jumping & competing. Fortunately my friend was OK & hasn't sued me or anything, but I think if I ever loaned a horse out again the welfare of the loaner would need to be considered, as well as the horse!!
 
loaning out do it or not

hi i loan casper out for 3 months, it was the worst thing i ever did. i got jealous when i went to see him and the loaner was doing things to him like grooming him but it wasnt the way he like to be groomed and of course watching her giving him hugs was heart breaking any way luckily i took him back and now im happy and hes happy
 
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