Do you tip or buy Christmas gifts for your grooms or trainers?
I don’t have a trainer anymore but, yes, I purchase gift cards or cash for all the barn worker, grooms, trainers, fellow barn horses.
Barn workers got a box of hot hands with some cash. Other horses at the barn got a small bag of horse treats packaged nicely or a box of candy canes. My previous trainer got misc. things that she wouldn’t buy for herself to make life easier.
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Yes! Generally, all of the clients will go in on a big gift for our head trainer. Last year, we bought new jumps, the year before we went in on a heated coat so she’d stay warm teaching in the winter. We also all throw in money to give our assistant trainer and barn workers a nice tip.
If you’re on your own as far as coming up with gifts, I’ve always found trainers appreciate (and desperately need!) a gift card for a massage, and I think most trainers/assistant trainers/grooms run on caffeine, so Starbucks gift cards are always good!
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Money is hard to beat for serious gifts.
In a nice card, maybe with a small gift card for other or little present also.
If it is to be a substantial gift, money is always appreciated best.
Our barn does a collection for all of the staff (stable hands who clean stalls/do turn out) and then most of the time each trainer’s students will gift to them separate from the barn donation. I typically head up gift planning for my trainer and generally it will either be a very big gift (last year was 16 cavaletti) or we’ll set an agreed-upon minimum cash donation for her (can always exceed if desired) so we end up giving her anywhere from $300-500 for christmas.
Barn owner, I will generally go in for a nice bottle of her favorite liquor with a friend or two.
we had our horse take the trainer and wife to dinner each year, horse had her own credit card so we just got the bill
but our groom… she was just wonderful. She treated our horse like she was the Queen. The groom’s comment was she really liked our horse… but dear you are buying treats for her out of your own money… but I really like your horse… so we started sending her a monthly cash tip
My daughter is at a lesson barn a I do cash plus small gifts for owner/instructor and other employees. They spend more quality time with my daughter than our family does.
LOL! I am the Groom/Barn Help, So yes, I “gift” myself 
Trainer comes to my place, so I get her a small gift - usually something consumable - very year.
She does the same - one year an apron (for keeping show clothes clean, not kitchen use!) with a Dressage print she had done herself - she’s also a talented artist & jewelry maker. Another year a compilation of riding tips & artwork in a notebook.
When I boarded I never liked the coercion of being expected to contribute to a big ticket gift for trainer.
Did not like being told what I had to spend - especially when it ran into hundreds.
I was justified when the custom Koenig boots other boarders wanted me to pitch in for never fit right.
DH & I chose instead to go with a gift card to a restaurant we often ate at with trainer.
Our BO is our trainer, but it’s hard to find a gift individually so we try to get a pot of money and buy a bigger gift. This year seems to be more difficult because several people want to get different gifts but nothing has been chosen yet.
We have a BM and we do a gift together with all the clients and lesson kids like a big gift card or a needed clothing item. The showing clients also tend to give her money in a card outside of the shared gift, because she helps us a lot more than the non-showing/lesson people.
If I’m happy at a barn and there’s someone that goes above and beyond then I’ll get them a gift. Otherwise, I pay them year round for a service don’t feel they deserve anything more.
I lived across the country for a couple years, knowing it was temporary I opted to stay at the barn with decent care that was convenient. The BO wasn’t great with people but she treated the horses well. The trainer was ok, but nickel and dimed for everything. I hated Christmas there because I didn’t like being told what to contribute for Christmas, when I felt that I was getting the bare minimum all year.
At my current barn the BM and BO/trainer are fantastic. The BM lives at the barn and is there 24/7, she literally doesn’t take days off, the horses are her life. She’s older and knows her stuff and I completely trust her. I’ll probably just get her a gift card as she never really talks about anything other than the horses.
Trainer is great about discounting lessons or show fees if she was late, etc. Personally for the area I think she undercharges but I’m not complaining. She’s a single mom with two young boys so I’ll get her a gift card as well. I don’t really like giving cash to people.
at one of my former barns sometimes the boarders would all chip in and get a big massive gift; next barn most everyone did their own thing but we always chipped in cash (whatever we wanted to contribute) to get a gift card for farrier; current barn I generally give trainer/BO a multi-restaurant gift card and a bottle of wine; BM who is awesome - and it depends on whats going on in her life which sounds crazy but generally its a gift card or something we know she wants or needs. She is way to practical.
As a trainer and instructor, I feel compensated already. A “Merry Christmas!” is plenty. If you MUST give, a homemade treat is a nice gesture. But completely unnecessary!
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