What’s wrong with you? Good Lord. She never said her horse was a special snowflake. Generally young horses are turned out together not with mature bullies.
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Yes. What I said. I have NEVER had a boarding barn ask or inform me before making changes. A few times I had to search for my horse when he or she was not in the expected pasture, and discovered them moved to another pasture with different horses. Same with my saddles and bridles. Same with feed.
I boarded three horses so all the moving around could get very confusing. Imagine trying to find your dark bay horse in a dozen turnout paddocks filled with similar bay horses. And you’d think each horse boarded would have its own saddle and bridle and halter space, but boarders with one horse would find it “not fair” that I would be allowed to take up three tack spaces.
After decades of that nonsense, I am finally on my own farm and I love it. But as I said, I just assumed lack of communication was the norm for boarding barns in Aiken.
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Oh Lord! I like you purchased my own 20 acres and we are building this year. I am currently at a great barn but board is $900/month and I am horse shopping for number 2 .
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Glad you found a new place and will be moving. Good luck
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It sounds like you were right, and the BO moved your guy to the small group after he really got hurt? I’d be super pissed too.
Follow your gut. It is NOT normal for horses to injure each other in group turnout. If a horse is getting beat up or can’t get food or shelter you don’t leave things they way they are.
Your guy may need solo for a bit, but don’t write off group turnout. Friends they can touch are important. The whole “it’s just how it is” thing is not true—it just takes adequate space and resources to manage bigger herds and some barns are not set up to make it work, but get greedy and do it anyway. It’s rolling the dice at the boarder’s expense.
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I am not opposed to my horse being turned out with others, and have discussed my horse going out with another horse at the new barn once he’s had time to settle in.
I have always kept my show horses turned out alone during show season plus my horses are usually shod all the way around. This is what has worked for me, and I’m sticking to it.
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Glad OP was able to find a new barn.
As an aside, when did isolating new horses stop being a thing? Not only for disease control, but also to give a horse time to get its bearings before having to sort out herd dynamics and to allow the BO time to assess that the new horse is eating and drinking well.
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My barn has a 3 week quarenteen rule for pasture horses . They go into a far pasture within eyesight of other horses but not next to them.
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This sounds like a good system, although I was taught the number of piles equals the number of horses plus one.
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Yup, I always put out more hay piles than there were horses; that’s what I was taught and it always worked for me.
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Thank you for your kind words.
A few posters have made me feel like I’m an overly worrisome, babying, complaining horse owner that is up to no good. I’m doing what’s best for myself and my horse, and that’s all I care about.
If my horse got hurt because I put him in a situation that my gut didn’t feel right about, I would never be able to forgive myself. And these other posters can do as they please with their horses…I’ll do as I please with mine 
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That makes sense and I’m sure it was basically the same deal… number of horses varied because of sales etc. It was a calm, easy herd. Any trouble makers went to solo turnout and had over the fence friends on the other side of the farm. I just don’t get barn managers allowing crappy behavior, unless they are so limited on space they have to…. In which case, run.
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You have nothing to feel bad about. I had a horse get injured when he was turned out in in a herd. It happened without my knowledge. He had upper level potential and the injury ended that hope. Since then, my horses have always gone out in their own paddock. None of them suffered.
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We always put one flakes or more every five horses, so if there are, say, 15, we put at least 3-5 more flakes out at good distance from each other.
We rarely had any horse not stop and eat until full on their first flake, no playing musical chairs or bossing anyone around this way, they had all some place to settle without being crowded.
At times we also had foals running around and even deer coming to eat with the horses, then we added even more extra flakes.
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You’re very dramatic.
People had issues because you didn’t ask the BO about it, but came to an anonymous internet discussion board to vent and state in your first post that you were already considering moving. Before asking a single question of the only actual person who knew the answers.
I’m glad you’re moving him, and I think the BO will be happier as well because you obviously aren’t a good fit for each other. Hopefully the new barn will be a good match.
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Isn’t one of the primary reasons to come to this board to ask these kinds of questions? The OP needed advice at the time she posted. She had thought things through as far as she could and then asked for help. Can’t we just all cut each other some slack and try to help each other out rather than criticize?
@luv2lope Best of luck to you. Hope this new place is a good fit.
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That is what I have always thought was the purpose of this discussion board. To ask questions.
This one fits in perfectly.
It is the kind of question lots of people ask - is this how it is done everywhere, is this normal, etc.
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She should have asked these questions to the BO not wait a week to come on here while her horse was getting the crap beat out of it.
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Because this is her first post.
Apparently she’s already made up her mind.
I don’t know this person… and I agree that their original post was very dramatic.
But honestly, that is pretty common for people who really are not sure… dramatic is normal for many posts around here.
< shrug >
I am glad the OP has found a barn that has the type of turn out they want for their horse. Hopefully they will be happy at the new place.
And OP, do not let the grumpy people scare you away. There is lots of great knowledge on this forum.
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