While the other gets cross tied for 12 hours? Omg no no no. How is that even a thing? Is this some gaited horse bitting rig world?
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Many stables decades ago had barns with standing stalls, where horses were tied to the manger all day except the hours taken out for work, lessons or trail rides.
They could lay down to rest and flat out for deep sleep, just could not move around.
Many of those horses, if managed right, many hours out a day and some turnout, did fine.
A bit like someone working physically all day and then coming home and vegging out on their recliner, then to bed, hardly moving around.
Not ideal, but due their circumstances, little space, many horses, they managed ok.
Today we have better standards and resources for stabling, but standing stalls are still used successfully where appropriate, like first picture, Canada’s mounted police.
The important part is proper management, having the right situation for the right horse and being very careful to do it right, whatever way you manage.
Images for standing stalls:
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Nope, Hunter jumpers. I actually had a mare that I sent there once; she needed a real ‘come to Jesus’ moment and he is excellent for that.
She came back no worse for wear and finally paying attention instead of standing on her hind legs every time she didn’t want to do something. It’s a weird way of horsekeeping, and not a way I personally would, but it works for him.
Ok, its the equivalent of tying a horse to a tree all day in Western world.
Standing stalls maybe worked for horses that were out pulling carts for 8 hours a day. And they let the horses lie down carefully. Cross ties don’t allow that. I feel like you’d have the SPCA on your back here if you did 12 hours cross ties.
I wouldn’t use a trainer that did any of these things. We know better now.
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Do your horses pony? If the rider that you trust can take turns ponying different horses, that might work.
It’s certainly not my cup of tea, but he is really the only horse trainer in the area who is gentle with the young horses but also works with the rowdy/somewhat dangerous ones (and treats them fairly without beating the crap out of them or something). I try to trailer them in daily when I use him for training, though he did try to not have my mare share a stall when she was there for a few weeks, and he turned her out in the small paddock he has for a few hours every day even though he personally doesn’t find it necessary.
It’s not anything close to how I would keep mine, but I believe it’s how he was raised to horsekeep in Europe and all of his horses are physically healthy, so I guess it works for him.
They do, but the rider doesn’t 
Is different.
Is whow many riding center school horses were kept in Continental Europe decades ago, in tie stalls, box stalls were for private and top level competition horses.
Funny story, when we had box stalls empty, we would put school horses in them.
There were some of those horses that, if you left the stall door open, they would sneak back to their tie stall, that they considered their home.
If another horse had been put in there, they would shoehorn in there with the other horse, it was THEIR place!
That is how many horses think, their place in life is where they live and just fine, don’t understand a box stall is more space, etc., tend to live in the moment, don’t stand there wishing their lot in life was different and how it could be better.
That is one reason we can do all we do with horses and they are contented if it is their idea also, even if we know there are better ways that we at that time can’t provide.
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Also, the horses have no turnout, and just switch from stall to crossties every 12 hours? That sounds insane to me.
I’m sorry to derail your thread, OP, and best wishes for your recovery. But I have to say, that sounds pretty horrifying.
Also, in Ye Olden Times, there was some excuse that people living on a shoestring needed horses to live and for transportation, which isn’t the case today. Even police and carriage horses in NYC get some turnout and downtime, and are moving around quite a bit.
I don’t know if it answers your question, but with adequate turnout I’m more worried about this guy’s horses than yours! I went to an eventing camp in Vermont where the horses were beautifully cared for, many of which were in their 20s, and were turned out all winter, pretty much. The hills and soft footing, helped.
But back on topic, I agree FB groups would probably attract nutters who are looking for free rides and are too cheap to pay for lessons, but you could ask some barns you trust if there are any riders looking for extra saddle time with references.
There’s so much interest in this haha. Essentially yes, from what I’ve experienced of his program. The horses are ridden a lot, both ridden in the arena and on a hack on any day they don’t go foxhunting or to a horse show. There’s a small paddock by the barn/arena that my mare went out into, and one very large pasture far away from the barn that is used for any horse that is not in any work (he has some broodmares I think. I’ve never been out to the pasture so I’m not entirely sure what’s out there). The rest of the property is hayed. The stalls are all regular size, but I’d say somewhere around 1/3 to 1/2 of the stalls are ‘shared’ stalls, alternating who is on the cross ties. This totally seems to depend on how many horses are in training at one time. The horses do not seem to mind one bit, so I’m guessing this has been going on for a long while.
I feel like maybe the horses who aren’t in full work are just out in the back field? But I’ve never asked the particulars of how he likes to keep his horses. Once I did see that there was some new horses turned out in the small paddock, so maybe if they aren’t in the more intense under saddle schedule they get turnout.
It’s a drastically different way of horse keeping than how most of North America does it, but it seems to work for them. This thread makes me think of all the different ways I’ve seen horsekeeping go. Growing up, I kept my horse at a barn that didn’t turn out on the weekends; the head trainer felt too much turnout was unnecessary and tired the horses out too much. In Miami, most horses were just put on the hot walker for a few hours since the ‘turnout’ wasn’t much bigger than a stall. I had people cold calling me and leaving their card all the time asking if I’d board their horse because I had the biggest pasture in the area; a whole 1.25 acres in size.
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I wouldn’t worry about giving your horses time off. My filly got 6 months off when she was a late 2 year old - worked with her over the summer, got on her 2 or 3 times, then left for 6 months. Picked right back up when I got back.
I have ridden plenty of horses that have had 6 weeks or more off and for the most part, they are fine - some needed a day or two of lunging first but generally speaking, still sane and knew how to be a riding horse.
Especially if yours are out 24/7 stil while you are recovering, they will be fine.
When I got hurt last year and had to take 6 weeks off, I considered asking a friend whose horse was laid up to come ride mine. Ultimately I decided it would be more stressful for me to worry about what was happening out there (a la @beowulf’s story!) than to just deal with legging the horse back up. I started longeing him lightly, including over poles, the week before I was allowed to ride again. It worked out great and I would make the same decision again. I think you would expend a lot of money and stress keeping 5 horses in work.
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Check with your local Pony Club, usually nice riders willing to help out.
