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Being nickeled and dimed at boarding barn

I apologize - it was a general statement to those that said ‘you dont have a contract, leave now, you dont owe her anything’. Like djones and the people that agreed with her.

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Nah, the 30 day verbal agreement is terminated when the BO behaves inappropriately and doesn’t honor regular business conduct and harasses their client. The agreement is terminated when the BO fails to honor their commitment to appropriate care and puts the horse at risk.

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There is a clear difference in evaluating a barn and the BO advertising that board at the facility is as is, and a BO advertising that improvements will be made in a certain time frame and the BO not honoring those commitments. That is false advertising.

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Not necessarily. Without a written agreement, one party’s idea of what might prompt termination with waiver of other obligations is likely not to mesh with with the other party thinks. However, there is absolutely no reason other than $ to keep your horse there the entire notice period. Don’t move the horse until all liabilities are paid up. Once they are, you are not required to keep dealing with this BO. Yes, it might mean you are paying for that space and space in your new barn at the same time, but sometimes peace of mind and safety for your horse is worth the price. The BO could then offer to pro-rate you for moving earlier but I would not depend on that happening.

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INAL, but as I understand it, promising to upgrade the arena within a specified amount of time when negotiating the oral contract is enough to breach the contract, especially if they have put no effort into making that promise happen.

If the BO is using coercive behavior in order to influence the OP to stay when they otherwise wouldn’t, or to pay for services they do not want to and that were not originally agreed upon, then that would also legally void the oral contract.

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It is unfortunate, but I’m going to pay for the 30 days and call my losses and leave next week. Through this whole deal she has been pretty unkind with name calling and the works and just sees me as money bags, which is fine I guess. I 100% understand how hard it in to make money boarding horses but there also has to be balance. She told me she has a waitlist so I hope the best for her. I also saw a price sheet today and she has her full care stall board as $200 a month(not sure she has ever cleaned a stall). And to add I had someone come out and ride my horse a few times (signed waiver) and she charged me 100 bucks for that and told me I couldn’t have unauthorized riders or guests ride my horses, which as it reads makes zero sense. She is just mad and charging me for it. I just don’t think this lady knows anything and I try to interact as little as I can at the barn, coming really early in the morning to beat heat and have alone time, so I just wasn’t seeing everything that was happening. My horses are happy there and its an ok place for the horses to just be horses with lots of grass, but I’ve learned my lesson and will be vetting barns better. Hopefully we can buy a few acres in the next few years and never have to deal with this kind of conflict.

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She has liability here as the property owner and it makes complete sense to prohibit random other people that she does not have a contract with from coming onto her property and engaging in a dangerous activity. That said, charging you $100 after the fact is just weird. Any rules about guests and outside trainers/riders should have been in the boarding contract.

I’m glad you’ve found a good place to move to, I hope it all goes as smoothly as possible.

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I think you are seeing the difference between west coast boarding facilities, which are typically large businesses and run as such, and east coast which are often small hobby farms owned and run as little fiefdoms by whoever has the cash to buy them.

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Yes, I agree but this was planned out, and she was told like a month in advance and said nothing. When I inquired about the $100, she said that she didn’t know and that I needed to sign a lease and give her proof that the girl had health insurance. Which just seemed really off to me. It’s all good, though, I really don’t have any hard feelings about it, but I just hope that other people are not put through this, and she starts to learn more about horses.
I have high hopes about the new place, and I know my guys are going to get great care.

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Yes! Its bummer its like this. A place like this, where I’m from, would have never lasted. Luckily we have got like 8 months left and we are free from the navy and get to go back to the west coast.

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So one thing I think a lot of people can learn about vetting farms: ASK FOR REFERENCES!!!

I offer my veterinarian (who can speak to the quality of care, as well as me personally) and current boarders (what the care is like now, and me personally) and former boarders – who have no incentive to sugarcoat things. Ask for references! You will learn a lot!

That said, I also require references. As much as you want to know the BO isn’t crazy and is knowledgeable, I want to know you aren’t crazy, that you pay your bills on time, and what your knowledge level is.

Yes, the OP’s barn sounds problematic, but the real takeaway is that she (and others!) needs to learn how to spot issues before arriving at a place.

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OP, I definitely feel for you as being part of a military family, since I know moves can be sudden, and it’s hard to have the time and emotional bandwidth to vet a facility or get a feel for the area.

I’ve always noticed that new facilities even in my own, much higher cost of living area, tend to advertise lower monthly board at first, presumably because everyone knows they are an open quantity.

In this case, it sounds like someone who is just feeling things out, without really any knowledge of how much it will cost her to run the place. I certainly would prefer a higher monthly fixed cost, versus what the owner seems to be doing (making up charges as they go along). Barn owners can charge for changing blankets, holding for the farrier, administering medications, and anything that takes up their time, but the costs should be clear beforehand in an ideal world. (I say ideal, because regardless of the type of facility, complaints by boarders about mysterious charges make up a big percentage of posts here.) However, any facility will want to know (and should know) if a strange person is riding your horse, for liability reasons (not only if the stranger gets hurt, but also for general monitoring of the safety of the premises, for their own and that of other boarders).

I know you’re paying the 30 days, but it’s tough to argue the “but they promised and did not upgrade,” if you don’t have a written contract (and proof that they said so). And even sometimes the best-run barns have issues with riding areas due to weather/construction and so forth. I hope where you’re moving to does have something in writing, and, ideally barn rules posted, liability waivers for friends who ride, and has been in business for longer than this person.

Barns are very rarely run with the same kind of rigor as, well, any other kind of business, but the more professional a place is, the better, and if a barn is charging substantially less than similar facilities in the area, it’s always good to ask yourself “why”?

I have lived in places where “pasture board” meant self-care and others where it meant “the only amenity you don’t get is your horse brought in at night/during the day to a stall.” So full-care, feeding twice a day, but no stall. I would say most places were pasture board = full care, no stall.

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This was how the pasture board option worked at my previous barn.

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Red flags:

  1. No boarding contract. I’ve had previous barn owners not allow me to sign a contract, and add charges mid-month that were not agreed on. They do it because they know they will charge you for things later on…
  2. $650 for pasture board with nothing but access to very basic and unsafe amenities and 1 feeding per day? Unless you’re on an island, that’s too much money for too little services/amenities.
  3. Brand new barn with an owner who cannot halter a horse?
  4. She does not have a care, custody or control clause in her non-existent contract, meaning she should not be handling your horses for any reason. EVER. Let alone, grooming and bathing daily.
  5. Charging for “services” she rendered on her own decision, that you didn’t ask for? wow…
  6. Feeding anything you said not to… WTF.

All of this makes me wonder what the BO would do in an emergency like colic, broken bones or sudden death…

Cut your losses, ask for an itemized bill for everything, pay it and keep a copy of the bill and the payment for yourself, and move your horses. Personally, I would give a 30 day notice, pay for another month if you can, but leave ASAP. As long as they have last months board, they don’t have a reason to prevent you from leaving.

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Best leave I ever had was to take my horse for an off site lesson and never came back. Just told the BO that we found some training issues and he needed to stay at the trainers. I did, of course, pay my remaining bill.

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Thank you for your and your family’s service. My husband was active duty for 10 ears of our marriage and I had at least one horse the entire duration. Keeping horses while active duty is NOT for the faint of heart. Juggling orders, last minute moves, being told where to go, dealing with orders overseas … ugh, don’t miss it. Being able to buy my own farm and do what I want to do care wise has been liberating. I miss some things about boarding but not much. In total, boarding was exceptionally frustrating on the east coast. I hope it all goes well for you guys as you transition.

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I did something similar from barn I call the “house of horse horrors” Came back from a vet visit to find one of the other boarders in the process of moving out and after talking to her about what the BO was putting her through, I loaded my horse back in the trailer, loaded all my stuff and left. I was paid for the rest of the month and I texted the owner and said it wasn’t the right fit. They never asked for another 30 days board money so didn’t pay it. Luckily I had space at home so moved him there for a while. Found out later the cops had to be called after the BO came close to getting into a physical altercation with the boarder’s husband, a screaming match ensued, cops called, and all in front of people there taking a barn tour. Nice.

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I was looking for a new barn for outside board because my horse hated stalls. I went to check one out but no one was there. I was looking around and a boarder arrived. She directed me to the BO’s house at the end of a long dirt road/driveway so I hopped in my car. The last 6 telephone poles each had 3-4 signs: don’t drive any closer to the house, you might get shot.

BO returned and we had an enjoyable conversation. She was in the no shoes, no blankets crowd. We agreed we wouldn’t be a good match. She emailed a few days later that if I needed to get out of the current barn she could take my horse temporarily. That was a nice gesture.

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For what you are getting I personally think you are being overcharged ( a lot).

I would pay through the end of the month but move now to the new barn if you can manage it. That gives her 2 weeks + to fill your spots and not lose the income while doing it.

30 days is a courtesy but since you have no written contract and are so unhappy there, 2 weeks is a compromise.

Pasture board out here is full care. The only difference is your horse is out 24/7 with shelter. Not an individual stall to themselves. All feeding / care is covered.

Self care is labeled as self care . It is not dependent on type of housing for the horse.