Boarding Blues

Hello, here I am again. I think this may be the first time I have posted the same day. I wanted to let you in on a little secret. Horse people suck! There, I said it. I have boarded my horse for over 5 years and it seems that every year I have to find a new place for them. My aunt always convinced me that boarding with people that just let me in to "use their facilities" is the best thing, rather than going to an established facility that runs horses as a business. I really believe that she is wrong. I have been having issues with the lady keeping my horses. There are a lot of perks to her place. It is close and she will ride with me once in a while. She has a few acres on which I thought they would be let out. Come to think of it, the only perk is that it is close and cheap.

Recently, she bought 2 more horses which puts us at a total of 8 horses on 3 acres. To add to that, she never uses her horses or brushed them or anything. I have never seen her ride any horse except mine. Anyway, my boys are now stalled together (which I don't like). They are never turned out because she has to "walk out and brig them in for dinner". Now she tells me she doesn't want to fill their water. Excuse me? Not fill their water? What the he!!? Anyway, she has the nerve to tell me that I have to clean twice a week because the stall they are both in is too dirty. And telling me my feed is getting low is too much for her as well. To make matters worse, they do not keep up their facility so the stall has been dug out and, of course, the boys pee in the hole. Her husband (who works in DC) began to fix the stall and left it undone so I cannot put chips in it and can hardly clean it at all. He has not fixed the stall door nor have they hauled the maure for over a year. Not to mention Logan somehow got tangled in the fence that they had down and got all cut up. They didn't even notice...

That is just a brief rundown. I feel so sorry for her because she has all these horses and 4 kids and practically no husband to help her. I couldn't keep up with it either. But, the fact of the matter is that she is responsible for the care of my horses. Which she is not doing, right? I talked with Jay and even though a real boarding place is much more expensive, I wouldn't have to worry about them having water and a clean place to stay. I have never had the opportuntity to keep them in a nice place and I think Jay might be willing to rework the bills a bit. Who needs cable anyway, right? Meanwhile, let me tell you about the new place I have in mind. Heated 3 stall barn, 12 acres to be shared daily with ONLY three horses. Access to riding trails (and I mean REAL riding trails) and full care. This means I would not have to clean or feed or water! I would no longer have to buy my hay and haul and stack it. She said she has a garden and gives the horses snaks if it is okay to do so. She really cares and everything! I feel like a little kid explaining their list so santa...

So, I am really excited about that. I am hoping to be able to meet with her next week if I can. I am also thinking about working a little more to afford the new place. It would be a bottom line of $250 extra a month. Anyawy, I think I am finally typed out now. Thanks for reading and take care.