Texting is literally the worst way of communicating. Tone is lost, context is lost, this was a lesson learned.
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I don’t read the BO’s text as coming at OP, at all. It was a politely stated request, with an explanation as to why the request was being made. Did she need to start it with “Hey girl! Hope you had a nice ride!” For you to not have been offended?? I get quite annoyed by people needing someone to text them a bunch of pleasantries or smiley faces for it to “seem nice” or whatever.
Having been on both sides, yeah it can cause major anxiety for a horse to not be where you expect it to be. As a boarder, I once had a BO who changed stalls around every couple weeks. Talk about stress looking for your horse who isn’t in their pasture nor in their stall. As a barn owner, it’s even more stressful (because you’re caring for someone else’s animal) to walk out to start your morning or evening routine and a horse is missing. So maybe her text did have an edge, understandably so.
Maybe the BO could have repeated her request and then moved on. Or maybe, there’s been other stuff you guys have disagreed on and this was her final straw. Or, it is the first “concern” but she realized you want services she doesn’t provide.
Your response stating you just will not follow her instructions, yeah I’d have asked you to leave too. As someone else pointed out, she didn’t actually ask you not the leave the horse in. She said to not do so without letting her know. That’s not an unreasonable request.
For the other question - I had no problem with them out 24/7 on my Florida farm (read - lots of lightning) with “only trees” for shelter. In Ohio, they almost always chose the trees over the available lean-to.
Sure, you can decide a man-made shelter is a must for your horse. That means don’t board at a barn that doesn’t have them. As you learned, it’s not cool to board somewhere then try to force them to change their practices. And it is a ridiculous demand to expect a BO to run out to bring them in to stalls every time it might rain.
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I DO want to remind y’all my contract is stall board with no mention of it being hybrid. I went there under impression my horse would be in a stall every night, as per the contract. The newest contracts say the same thing as she just sent them out.
They do have pasture board. Those horses do have shelter. They do pay less than the stall boarded horses.
It’s just not what I signed up for contractually.
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I’ve never seen a board contract outline the daily schedule. Does the contract actually say they’re stalled every night? Or does it just say “stall board” and you made the assumption?
There’s no single definition for “stall board.” Calling the summer turnout a “hybrid” is pretty strange. Lots of barns with “stall board” have them out most or all summer. You didn’t lose a stall for the summer, your BO just lets them be out more. Everyone I know would be ecstatic for more turnout. You still have a stall available, the BO still uses it when needed, and your horse was going to be in it a mere hour later than you wanted it to be in this particular situation. Also, again, your BO simply asked you to TELL HER, she didn’t ask you to not put the horse in the stall at all. Frankly, the unwillingness to communicate was directly caused by you when you just said no.
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It is fine that you ended up not liking what they do there.
It does not mean they have to be wrong or you have to be wrong. You just have different theories.
I am not sure why it needs to be that they are evil in some way?
I personally would have really liked the set-up that would have my horse out as much as possible. That is hard to find where I am.
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Your contract lists the daily schedule?
Most people prefer the extra turnout time. I do.
If you are fine at your new place, then let this go. Move on.
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I agree. You’re gone and it’s over.
That said, at my barn if a boarder pays me for stall board, that means their horse can be in it as much or as little as they want.
In the situation as you described, I would probably not have turned him out either. But I would have texted the BO and said “ hey it was lightning so I left Pooky in his stall . Hope that’s ok! “ I’m not running out to bring them in if the weather is getting nasty but I will leave them in . I’ve had a horse struck by lightning and I’d not care to repeat it.
But you have found a place that’s a better fit so I would just not worry about it anymore.
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I hadn’t witnessed this sort of shenanigans until recently and I’ve boarded a lot of places over a lot of decades. It’s garbage. Be glad you’re gone. I can understand wanting to cut costs of feed, bedding, and labour for a few months, but it’s absolute garbage to not be up front about it.
As far as the don’t leave your horses in because they’re coming in later thing? 
Absolute silliness. That’s at least one trip back and forth that doesn’t have to be made … But I suppose it’s a couple more hours of manure accumulation 
Could both sides have handled it better? Sure, but move on and be thankful that you don’t have to deal with that nonsense anymore. Bonus, you’ve got a new and useful question to ask if you need to shop for board again.
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This is what I usually do in terms of a text to BO. I also have a similar situation in that contract states stall board but we have moved to seasonal where they are in stalls at night mid Sept to May and otherwise stay out in the summer at night- however- she’s very good about bringing them in when there are storms. We pay the same year round and she hasn’t increased board so I think it works well overall.
IMO this is a bit of an extreme reaction by BO but that’s just reading this as a third party and not being involved personally. Really hard to say what’s an overreaction without knowing both parties and your relationship with each other.
I’m glad you found a spot and left a situation that didn’t work for you or your horse.
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I probably wouldn’t have rushed over and moved my horse out but called and spoken with the barn owner in person to sort out any confusion.
But I do prefer my horses to be inside the barn during lightning storms. I have one mare out on lease and one thing I am somewhat concerned about is the lack of shelter during thunderstorms. She is coming home for this month but after that I have to decide if I want to send her back as it will be midsummer with no shelter.
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Am I missing something?
This is the barn you’ve been at for a year, right? The one you’ve been been terribly unhappy with, and have posted about online since then?
So, among your other complaints over the last year - you’re complaining about the turnout situation, which you didn’t know about until you moved in - but have now known about for a year? And, which you managed yourself with storms last year by moving your horse, possibly without telling/asking - the barn owners.
So now - they asked you not to move your horse without saying something, and your reply was
It sounds like they’ve had enough of your complaints. Bye bye.
(FWIW, most horses do just fine in thunder and lightning, and many barns don’t bring them in because of that weather. But if you don’t like it - you needed to move before now.)
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OP keeps changing their story about what they are concerned about and what they want. First it was horse not out in storms, then it was them not wanting to walk out themselves in a storm to turn out, which is a different concern and one not expressed to the BO or us until later in the thread when OP didn’t get the validation they were looking for. Changing stories and not communicating well are PITA things that will be the straws that break things in boarding situations and other relationships in life.
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And some die. If I have the chance to have my horse indoors during an electrical storm, I will. Proper shelter is next choice. The only time I expect full board horses to be left out in life-threatening situations is during pop up/unexpected storms because ultimately human life is more important than horses.
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And that is great that you feel this way. Thankfully there are lots of boarding options in the world so you can make sure you always pick what you have decided your horse and you are happy with (and pay what that costs).
No one is making someone board at a place that the rules do not fit their needs.
Some people want their horses out more. Some people want their horses in more. Use a barn that agrees with your core needs and stop trying to make every barn into what you want.
I can say that my horses do have a man made shelter available.
One horse runs to the shelter (literally runs) if there is a drop of rain. The other horse has no interest in the shelter. If it gets really ugly she turns her butt to the wind, puts her head down and just stands there until it is over.
If I went out to put that horse in during bad weather, she would not bother to move to come in. I would have to go out and halter her and make her come in.
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I have one that runs away from me to avoid getting brought in and out of a storm. One that will stand in a run in shed. One that likes being in the rain. I don’t know. Horses are weird.
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Things change when you know people who have lost horses due to lightning strikes. Also, please read “full board” as full board (stalled at night and for bad weather) rather than the variety of other board options available that other people may prefer.
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Honestly I think you might have been better off saying okay to the text and setting up a time to discuss the issue in person . I think your text could be interpreted as a bad attitude on your part, which in turn led them to think you would not be a good fit for their program. For many barn owners you can do everything else right ( paying on time cleaning up after yourself etc) but if you show any “attitude” about the way things are done you are out. They decided based on one text you were not worth dealing with, which is their right .
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Full board does not mean one simple thing, no matter how much you want it to.
Full board means different thing at different places.
Some places full board means your horse is brought in, groomed, etc. Heck, even tacked up for you to ride.
Other places it simply means they feed it twice a day. Sometimes that is even feed that the owner has provided.
Proclaiming it must mean one thing does not make it so.
Horses get killed/injured inside buildings during storms too.
Again. You are allowed to do this horse care thing however you want. I think it is great that you know how you want your horse kept and are willing to stand up for it.
That does not make your horse care way the only way. That does not make your use of a term the only way that term is used.
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That’s not what full board means, necessarily.
Could be grooming and tacking, or horse lives in a stall 24/7 and you have to turn it out yourself, could mean night turnout, could mean they make sure it’s alive and feed the grain you provided and bring it in and out twice a day. This is why you ask these questions before moving to a new barn.
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Most of ours stand under the shelter for light rain but bolt for the trees when the wind kicks up or it starts really storming . Or the one mare claims the ENTIRE shelter and the rest are left to stand looking pitiful.
Horses are weird. I’d rather mine in for real storms, but we get pop up thunderstorms most afternoons here and there’s no way to predict them. They’re going to be out in weather one way or another, so we just make it work.
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