Charging for grain prep?

[dmveventer]

@trubandloki

I will feed does not mean, I will sort out your array of random products.

You can choose to interpret it however you want but it seems like that is what it meant in this agreement or OP wouldn’t be here asking how to change it. If she wanted prepackaged supplements she needed to say that, which shes doing now. I’ve been in several barns (including my current one) where full board DOES mean they’ll feed whatever concoction of supplements the owners want. They typically charge accordingly and have the feed room space to make it work. I think requiring supplements to be pre-portioned is totally reasonable in most cases, but it sounds like OP is mixing full meals including grain in advance which is not common in full board IME. Everywhere I’ve been has scooped the grain fresh and just dumped the portioned supplements on top. I get why it makes sense for OP’s barn setup but it wouldn’t work for a lot of people with harder keepers, especially with limited storage space.

If nothing else I think we can agree this is why a clear, written contract is always a good idea. People interpret things differently based on their backgrounds and having clear expectations in writing protects both sides from feeling taken advantage of.

OP I hope the conversation with your boarder goes well and she doesn’t cause any drama for you!

[Annie10]

Do what??
Nope she preps all that crap for you or she pays more board. A lot more. Your time is valuable. The end.

[kaya842]

Read most but not all of the replies.

You should not give her any other option other than storing and bagging it herself. At most, I would allow the grain to be stored (in one trash can or other container), everything else needs to go home with her. If she wants Dobbin to get 5 supplements and 3 different grains, she needs to make the baggies up and store it herself.

I’ve boarded at a bunch of places and this has always been the rule (owners provide smartpaks OR 1 container with all supplements pre mixed and dosed). Several barns charged a fee ($20-30/month) for feeding pre mixed baggies too.

I’ve also kept my horses at home and even then I pre made those supplements. It’s insane to do that twice a day all mad scientist like vs sitting down once every 2-3 weeks and making them all up in bulk.

[fanfayre]

@dmveventer

OP I hope the conversation with your boarder goes well and she doesn’t cause any drama for you!

Holy Cr p! IF that’s all it takes to send the boarder off the deep end, then OP has bigger issues with the boarder than some feed bags; it would be a good thing, because then the boarder would show just how high maintenance she is and OP can take whatever steps to rectify the situation!

[mmeqcenter]

I had a boarder like this, brought out a commercial feed, beet pulp, alfalfa pellets, flax seed, an oil, and like five supplement containers. Which made me implement a rule that boarders would get space for ONE grain bin (metal trash can) provided by me, and whatever they wanted fed had to fit inside it, therefore if they wanted six feeds they had to bag it themselves and store in the bin. And they could bring up to TWO supplement containers. If they wanted more than two supplements, they had to provide them in Smartpaks or a DIY daily container (baggie or tupperware).

Charging $20/month is not worth this continued headache. I’d make it $100, or tell boarder to pre-make their feed bags.

[UrbanHennery]

Make her bag her own, or charge her a fee that won’t make you angry. I think at least $1 per day is fair. The only time I haven’t bagged my own was when the barn provided grain and a vit/min and I just wanted to provide a vit/min my horse liked more. The BO didn’t charge me, but even then I provided it in a bucket with a scoop clearly labeled with his name. And if she had wanted to charge me I wouldn’t have complained. Now I provide and bag my own OR I pay the BO $100 per month for grain and would still need to SmartPack or bag any supplements I want fed.

[Kyrabee]

I have always supplied baggies. That is what the barn owners required.

I have no problem with that…it does take significant time. I would charge significantly (ala mmeqcenter) if the owner leaves all that stuff for you to portion out…if she refuses, maybe require smartpaks?

I prefer to do my own then I can alter as I please and never inconvenience the barn owner. And it would be an inconvenience…my mare currently gets 5 potions and I recently added a 6th with a round of Nexium. I board at a private barn and she has 12 horses…no way she has time to do that. If I do it myself, I know she gets it as the BO or her AM help simply has to dump the baggy, in her feed bin.

[quietann]

Where I’ve boarded in the past 10 years, 3 different farms, they provided “grain” from what they carried, and I made up supplement containers. I do them every 2 weeks and there are 16 containers each for AM and PM, in case I can’t do exactly every 2 weeks. I have different containers for AM and PM. Barn owners would add anything that couldn’t be pre-mixed, like oils, certain medications, etc.

Current BO includes TC30 ration balancer as part of board; she will add any other bagged feed to the feed order and then invoice the horse owner. And supplements must be premixed, as above.

Yes, I said containers; they are so much easier to deal with than baggies, especially if they have screw tops (the snap off tops deteriorate over time, especially in extreme temperatures.)

[fanfayre]

Yes, that is what I do too, Tupperware-type containers, colour-coded for the morning and evening feeds, since the morning feed has different supplements than the evening feed. If both feedings were the same I would probably use baggies, but my BO seems to like the containers.

[atr]

I baggie up feed and supps for 2 meals a day, once a week or so. I have designated storage drawers in the barn feedroom for am and pm feedings, which hold a week’s worth each.

The barn feeds them for me.

Works well for both of us. I can make any adjustments I need to, and I know my horse is consistently receiving what I want him to eat.

It’s also a good check for me to keep things simple!

I think I’ve had one boarding situation in the past 25 years that didn’t work this way. Turned out I knew a lot more than the BM about nutrition, so I went back to doing it my way.

[CanteringCarrot]

I’d go with option 1. Whenever I’ve fed anything in addition to grain I’ve always made up baggies or containers. The only exception to that would be liquids.

It’s pretty normal to only be allowed one bin or to have certain rules on how much boarders can have in the feed room. I’ve even kept all my stuff at home before and brought up baggies 14 at a time. Which really wasn’t that inconvenient for me, but I also had the storage room at home.

I’d never ask a BO or barn staff to make up baggies for me or add in a bunch of supplements at feed time. BO’s have always been fine with pre-made bags or containers.

I’d just give her option 1. Just communicate with her. If she’s reasonable, she’ll have no issue with it.

[BrookdaleBay]

I work where I board, and regularly make up grain for 23 horses. No one has 6 different supplements, but the manager has never required anyone to make up baggies. Its easier for me to just scoop out the one or two supplements everyone gets, everything is clearly labelled, and it takes me 20 minutes.

[GigiBecker]

Can’t the owner prep baggies?

[Pico_Banana]

I have my horses at home and even for myself I make up supplement containers a week at a time. Between the three, I supplement with a Vit E, flax, copper, zinc, MSM, psyllium for one, and salt. It’s easier for me and it’s definitely easier when I need to ask DH to feed if I’m stuck at work. So much more efficient than opening all those bags each day. The only thing I don’t add in is Prascend because that degrades out of the package.

[Annie10]

If they all get the same one or two that’s one thing. I bet that would change if everyone had two or three or six different buckets of crap for you to scoop out of.

[Djones]

I would tell her that effective next Sunday she’s on the hook to prep either bags or containers, and that you have room for x days worth…whatever that is, a week, two weeks, some set number. Share that you didn’t mind the idea of doing it, thinking the horse would get 1 or 2, max, but you’ve realized it’s a tedious task that just isn’t working for you. The end. That gives her a week to sort it out. Done.

[PonyPenny]

I always prep my gallon grain bags with everything my horse needs including the meds in newton type squares. I would never expect the barn manager or staff to do it as I make sure it is done to my specifications. All they have to do is feed the newtons, dump the grain in bucket and mix with water.

[ParadoxFarm]

If this is a lot of work (and it is!) and you don’t want to do it – don’t offer the surcharge. Just let the boarder know that they will have to do the bags to make it easier for you to manage. If they miss out on a day or two, the horse doesn’t get the supplements. I’d be personally tempted to say they have to store the bulk supplements somewhere other than your feed room if you truly need the space. Just allow room for the bags/containers for the days’ supplements.