Should I full loan DIY with no experience?

[CAMHShelp]

My daughter wants her own horse but she doesn’t currently ride but would like to. I rode 20 years ago but not so much now.
Thinking of getting a full loan as there’s a stable come up but not sure how they work in terms of how long the loan would be for, what the expectations are etc.
I work fulltime and I hate the dark so a little worried about going out in to a field at night now winter is coming.
Otherwise what could go wrong?

@CAMHShelp did you not post a few weeks ago about your daughter going to equine college if so I’d just continue with that and with the diet so that she can actually ride . I really can’t imagine who would loan a horse to someone who hasn’t ridden for 20 yrs and someone who can’t ride at all .

I would not trust anybody who loans their pony to a complete novice rider and parents with little equine background. They are not someone who wants the best for the pony! My point being, even if you pull it together on your side, the horses owners are the ones I’d also the raise an eyebrow at.

No decent owner would loan a horse to you guys. When you ask what could possibly go wrong, it’s really what could possibly go right?

Finding a horse to loan to move yards is nearly impossible, if you look on Facebook sites there are loads of wanted ads looking for horses to full loan. Very rarely do you see horses advertised available for full loan that can move yards.
Any owner who does want to loan their horse would look for homes with experience in horse care and a suitable rider.
So what you're hoping for isn't a realistic possibility.

Just to echo what other posters have said, this is a horribly bad idea. The idea that the horse will “just have to wait” shows how spectacularly poor this idea is. He won’t wait, if everyone else gets turned out he will hurt himself and destroy his stable trying to get out of it. Plus no responsible owner is going to let their horse be taken off yard by someone that can’t ride. Your daughter needs to lose weight and learn how to ride before you even consider anything else.

What’s in it for the horse?

Not sure if this is a joke 😅. If it’s entry level equine college for complete beginners she will need to do a couple of years before she has the level of ability and understanding to even think of sole care for a horse and I can’t imagine who in their right mind would loan a horse to a family with so little experience. I am surprised about the panic around being up at 6 am though. Most DIY yards don’t have everyone arriving and turning out at exactly the same time. You get the odd one that will get in a tizzy when the first horse moves but most are used to the comings and going’s as everyone is on different schedules and some horses spend more time in stables or in the field than others. Please don’t take this as me thinking it’s an option for you to get a horse though as there are countless other reasons it’s not suitable, just that that is not the most pressing one!

I’m going to take a wild guess from your username that your daughter has MH problems and you feel this may be good therapy/ of benefit. I’m not being insensitive here, I’m just saying that a horse will not be flexible as to how many spoons their owner has that day. They need the same level of care, day in, day out, regardless of how their owner is feeling. They can work wonders for mental health, but you either need to pay someone else or do it yourself. What about assisted livery?

Definitely not a good idea

Nope. A full loan means exactly that! The owner does not want to be involved with helping out - they’re giving the horse over to someone and walking away for a while. They’re not going to be on hand to help out if you’re in the field in the dark and don’t know what to do.

Find a share. Couple of days a week on a decent yard. Don’t take on the responsibility of caring for a horse with no experience. What happens if it’s lame or suffering with colic - would you be able to tell?

Owning or full loaning a horse is a huge responsibility and should only be taken on if you know what you’re doing.

You're the same person whose daughter was going to equine college, but didn't tell them she was over the riding weight limit?

Is that you, @CAMHShelp ?

Sorry - but this demonstrates your total lack of understanding about care. Horses are creatures of habit. If other owners are going down and feeding at 6am and you’re rocking up when one of you gets out of bed, you’re going to have an extremely stressed out animal with severe vices in a few weeks. I’m not saying this to be unkind, but to try and make you understand that what you’re considering is fraught with problems. Horses won’t just wait. Believe me - I’ve had them for over 20 years - and you have to change your whole life and fit it in around them - getting up at the crack of dawn in all weathers, home at 10pm soaked to the skin in winter. It’s bloody hard work and can only be done if you’re absolutely dedicated to the welfare of the animal. I had to give mine up a few years ago when other life commitments - a very elderly and needy father being one of them meant I just couldn’t give my horses the care they needed.

Rocking up when one gets out of bed? Where did I say that? I just said it won’t be 6am. No one on the yard turns out at 6am, at least no one I have spoken to anyway. Maybe a couple do but majority is later. They all turn out at different times and if the horse needs a rigid 6am turn out then it isn’t the loan for us.

I was looking at livery. I know one of the riding schools an hour away does it and they obviously get ridden etc there but we love mucking out and grooming etc. We were looking at companion horses as we weren’t too fussed on riding, it would be nice to get back to it. But enjoy free schooling and in hand etc at the moment. A lot of the ads say they are green or out of work and need bringing slowly in to work which we thought was ideal as I need bringing slowly in to ridden work too 🤣
Also concerned I won’t bounce like I used to!

I think that might have be us but she did tell them at the start of college so not sure if it’s the same post.

I’d like to think so and I’m sure of I’m in any doubt I would ask others on the yard to take a look to and see what they think.
Hence why I want the loan to move yards as we have experienced people who can support on this yard and they thought we were ready albeit like another poster has said a baptism of fire.
I’m not someone who would get a horse and then not look after it. Hence being here willing to do thorough research first.
I’m surprised so many people are fixed on the riding. I thought that was just a small part of horse ownership and other than whether I’d bounce it wasn’t something I considered much. I was more concerned with making sure I had the right set up and enough knowledge of what could go wrong.

Owning a horse is not and should never be a baptism of fire. They’re complex animals with complex needs. It really isn’t a muddle along and learn as you go - unless you’re going to put a horse on full livery and have the yard do everything for you. As others have said - finding an owner who is going to be willing to let two complete novices take their horse off the existing yard is going to be a challenge. Why not dip your toe in the water and find a share horse - where your daughter can go down a couple of days a week and learn? Having said that - as someone who shared my horses for many years, I would never have taken on a complete novice who couldn’t ride, it’s too much of a risk - first and foremost for the horse. Find a riding school that can offer your daughter some lessons first and you will have much more if a chance if making this a success.

Now I’m sure this is a wind up. A horse that is green/needing brought back in to work is for someone very experienced or a professional! Potentially they are out of work as are difficult/quirky or even verging on dangerous which tbh even the quietest green horse can be in the wrong hands. We have someone fairly novice but with much more experience than you guys who had a 4 year old on our yard. They are constantly having issues and being injured whereas my competent 11 year old has no issues managing the pony in every aspect of its care. She’s an easy pony, just a bit bargy if allowed and yet to be taught full ground manners being young . Not a job for a novice!

@CAMHShelp Green / needing bringing back into back into work needs an experienced , confident rider not someone who is equally as Green / novice as the horse , that would be a recipe for disaster .

Thanks that’s good to know.

Green + green = black + blue

A beginner rider needs couple years of riding lessons in a riding school NOT getting a horse.

Focus on helping your daughter to lose weight to be able to ride at a riding school.

Do you have someone who has offered a suitable horse for loan?
In my experience owners with safe sensible ridden horses don't just put them out on loan to move yards to someone who they don't know & with no experience.
The ones that do tend to be companion/non ridden or with a whole heap of problems.

You are going to be better off looking for a part loan/share type arrangement.

Have you considered volunteering at a horse rescue or RDA centre?

This. Goodness me this sounds like it needs a lot more thought. I got my first horse last year and even though I am a confident rider and so are my girls , we have experience of horse care, it’s still been a huge learning curve. We use a full livery, but still you need to know so much stuff. Do you really want to spend £1k a month at the moment when you’re so far away from being ready for the commitment? You won’t find anyone willing to loan to you without you upskilling significantly and please please if you do go ahead do not get anything younger than 8, green or been out of work!