Mini livery price, whats fair?

Jessey

Jessey

Well-Known Member
Dec 20, 2004
28,373
18,028
113
43
Suffolk, UK
A friend has asked me to take her mini on livery but I have no clue what a fair price is if I say yes, so what would you think fair?
He would go on track with mine, living out 24/7. I'm guessing they want a kind of full field livery, so I'd be doing the poo picking and field maintenance, probably to include me providing hay and give the feed they provide.
 
The yard the owner is currently on charges 25 pounds a week per horse inc. hay and feed but turnout is in small pens 15x20m with no grass and no poo picking, I think the reason they aren't taking the mini there is they feel that's too much to pay for a mini and the yard has a one price for all policy.
 
I have no idea if this sounds reasonable but could you take your weekly rent divide it by two and then two again (i.e. a quarter)? My thinking was that that way two little'uns equal the same as Jess which I think would be about right in terms of the extra work involved? Just an idea though - that may come up with a ridiculous number. Don't undersell yourself, even for a friend: they are going to get top quality care in a lovely set-up which is much nicer than small grassless pens!
 
  • Like
Reactions: lauren123, Kite_Rider and Trewsers
My rent is only £80 a month because I do all the upkeep, which is a good few hours of my time on top, plus seed, fertiliser, fuel for the mower etc so I'm not sure.
 
I think £10.00 per week would be more than fair assuming it is just grass livery.
A mini won't cost you a lot in hay, poo picking shouldn't be very much more and there shouldn't be a lot of damage to the track.
I also think you could perhaps agree with your friend that if the mini turns out to be a fence wrecker then any associated costs are outside normal weekly rent and payable by your friend.
I accepted a known fence wrecker onto my yard on a similar agreement - I was prepared to repair/ replace the odd fence rail but if it happened on a regular basis then I would be entitled to charge his owner for cost of replacement and my time to repair.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jessey
I think small horses are just as much work as big ones! Having had minis and 16hh ones I speak from experience. My mini, Harry, was more trouble than all the others put together!

Our DIY grass livery is a flat rate of £20 per week. That includes all facilities though but no poo picking or feeding.
Feeding and turn out, bringing in, rug change are all £2 per job. Mucking out is £5. Full livery is £10 per day. I think if you are field checking, dealingh with issues arising, haying, feeding, hoof picking, poo picking and maintaining the land/tracks then £20 is more than fair.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jessey, OwnedbyChanter and Trewsers
Jessey said:
My rent is only £80 a month because I do all the upkeep, which is a good few hours of my time on top, plus seed, fertiliser, fuel for the mower etc so I'm not sure.
Click to expand...
Oh well on that basis my formula won't work at all - £5 a week would be a true bargain! :D

If it was me I would write down everything it involves with a 'time cost' (e.g. preparing a feed = 2 mins or whatever) then estimate how much extra time a week it would take. I'd convert this to a weekly cost using a fair hourly rate and then add on additional costs like hay, land rent, fuel etc. See what this comes out at and maybe round it up and see if this gives you a reasonable figure.

The other way to do it would be to research how much livery yards change for their 'extras' on DIY/grass livery and use those figures to come to a figure. There was a (random!) yard I found near Reading that charged £17p/w for under 14.2hh for grass livery then it was £1 for preparing a feed, £1 for preparing a haynet, £1 for cleaning buckets, the same for filling, £5 for holding for vet/farrier so it does add up.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jessey
Normal daily care would probably add 15 mins a day in poo picking, checks and feed, call it 2 hours a week.
My livery is probably plus 2 hours a week on looking after the place, some weeks don't take much but others when fences need sorting/replacing, fields topping, dealing with weeds etc it can be way more, i normally take a week off work in spring and another in autumn to do the bigger jobs.
The possibility of him going under fences is a worry, hank is good but he is a bit smaller and I vaguely remember my friend saying he's not always the most respectful of fences and my neighbours probably wouldn't appreciate a visitor :p
 
Well even 3 hours a week at National minimum/living wage rates is more than £21 so I think £20-£25 a week isn't unreasonable with a separate agreement about fences like Star the Fell suggested. As you say in your original post, you are providing full livery albeit field based and that takes time and costs money even on mates rates - maybe ask them what sort of figure they have in mind and see if it matches what you feel would be ok?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jessey
I would charge £30 per week. That is cheap compared to almost every livery yard offering full grass livery. Don't let yourelf be taken advantage of just because it is a friend asking.x
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jessey
I've been thinking on it, I think I'm going to say no, I don't think they really want to pay more than pennies and as we are still looking for a pony for D (I promised her a place to keep it) I'd struggle to keep up with 4. This has been useful though as I'll be having the same dilemma when we find a pony for D, her parents are willing to pay a fair price and muck in on chores and do them all if I want to get away too which is nice.
 
newrider.com
Top Bottom
Back