Night Check?

[Amy3996]

Is “night check” a common practice for those of you who board? In my experience, it’s been a normal thing at every barn I’ve been to… except my current one. The horses come in from turnout around 4-5pm and the barn staff are gone until 7-8am. 12+ hours without eyes on them makes me (and several other boarders) a little nervous.

Obviously it’s not possible to have supervision 24/7, but is it unreasonable to want a night check, just to make sure everyone’s healthy and well (as we’re getting into prime colic season now) and maybe top off water buckets for the night? BM lives on property.

[trubandloki]

@Amy3996

Is “night check” a common practice for those of you who board? In my experience, it’s been a normal thing at every barn I’ve been to… except my current one. The horses come in from turnout around 4-5pm and the barn staff are gone until 7-8am. 12+ hours without eyes on them makes me (and several other boarders) a little nervous.

Obviously it’s not possible to have supervision 24/7, but is it unreasonable to want a night check, just to make sure everyone’s healthy and well (as we’re getting into prime colic season now) and maybe top off water buckets for the night? BM lives on property.

If a night check was important to you (and the other boarders) then you should have asked about that before moving into this barn.
What does your boarding contract say about a night check?
It is not unreasonable to ask the BM if they offer a night check that you can pay extra for, if it is not part of your boarding agreement that one is included.

I have boarded at far more barns that do not have a night check than do have a night check.

[Simkie]

@trubandloki

I have boarded at far more barns that do not have a night check than do have a night check.

Yup, me too.

I don’t night check my horses now that I have them at home, either.

@Amy3996

The horses come in from turnout around 4-5pm and the barn staff are gone until 7-8am. 12+ hours without eyes on them makes me (and several other boarders) a little nervous.

Are there no boarders in the barn after 5 pm?? Just because barn staff is done at 5 doesn’t mean that there are no eyes on the horses, unless the barn is truly empty.

[trubandloki]

@Simkie

I don’t night check my horses now that I have them at home, either.

Right.
I just make sure they have enough water so that it does not need topping off and the right amount of hay and all that.

I admit we used to night check (my horses are at home too)… then…

Now the only time we night check is if someone is ill or acting weird or if it is so cold I want to make sure even the one that gobbles her hay has more hay for over night.

[Amy3996]

There’s nothing about it in the boarding agreement. BM went through a phase where she did it for a few months and then stopped. It’s a relatively small boarding barn (10-12 boarders), so it’s more likely that no one’s there after turn-in. It didn’t bother me before, but a colic was very nearly missed a couple of days ago. If another boarder hadn’t happened to drop off grain after work, no one would have seen the horse until morning. I guess it’s just made me a little nervous.

It never occurred to me that night check wasn’t a regular thing, so I didn’t ask about it. That was my oversight based on my previous experiences.

Just curious what everyone else’s experiences have been, so thanks for sharing!

[bt1]

I have seen about a 50/50 night check vs no check…personally I strongly prefer that “someone who knows something” like an experienced fellow boarder who is familiar with the horses at least does a walk through and casts a quick glance at horse/water/hay. Not to say this person needs to be a super sleuth or poke their nose in anyone’s business…but a quick sniff test and passing it on if something smells a little funny is reassuring. Just because of my work schedule I am usually the last one in the barn (where owners live on property) and always do a walk through with my eyes open when I leave around 8:30 and owners will be back out 6-6:30 in the morning. I used to get paid to throw more hay and top off waters general night check where I had boarded before. I do not blame you for being nervous and if owner was doing it as a regular habit when you moved in I would have assumed it would continue as well.

[horsepoor]

Night check is pretty rare around here for boarding barns that I have been at. But I do feel a lot better when it happens. I am boarding mine for the winter so I have access to an indoor arena and was shocked (and pleased) to find that the main guy does a walk through at 9:30 pm. I do night check at home as well, around 10 pm, as that is one of the 4x we feed hay here at home in winter. Just got into that habit with my IR/EMS horse and continued.

[candyappy]

@Amy3996

There’s nothing about it in the boarding agreement. BM went through a phase where she did it for a few months and then stopped. It’s a relatively small boarding barn (10-12 boarders), so it’s more likely that no one’s there after turn-in. It didn’t bother me before, but a colic was very nearly missed a couple of days ago. If another boarder hadn’t happened to drop off grain after work, no one would have seen the horse until morning. I guess it’s just made me a little nervous.

It never occurred to me that night check wasn’t a regular thing, so I didn’t ask about it. That was my oversight based on my previous experiences.

Just curious what everyone else’s experiences have been, so thanks for sharing!

Why don’t you set up something where you boarders rotate and do 1 night check a week?

[Amy3996]

@candyappy

Why don’t you set up something where you boarders rotate and do 1 night check a week?

That’s a good idea, thank you!

[IPEsq]

It’s fairly common here and is very helpful aside from being able to throw more hay (they often are on an earlier turn in schedule although breakfast is also earlier like 5am), it’s much easier for blanketing. Sometimes we have pretty big temperature swings, and it can be too early for the blankets needed for overnight till the sun has gone down.

[Gainer]

I’ve been at a lot of barns that claimed to do night check but didn’t. It frankly bothers me that horses can go, say 14 hours, without anyone checking on them, but that’s me. I’ve found enough injured/colicky horses after 6:00 to think it’s a good idea.

When I boarded, since I was often the last one in the barn, I just walked the aisle and checked all the horses before I left, made sure stalls were latched, etc., but I don’t think many people would think to do that. I’ve worked in a few barns and it’s just something I do automatically.

I have my (elderly) horses at home now and I always go down around 10:00 to check on them, throw hay and top off water. I usually give them a treat, too, as that will tell me real quick if someone isn’t feeling OK. Heck, since I live above them, I’m not opposed to running down in the middle of the night if I think someone isn’t quite right.

I once found my old mare caught with her head under her water buckets, waiting patiently for me to show up and get her up. I also had a gelding decide to rip his nostril nearly off. Had I not done a night check, both stories would have had very different endings.

I guess it boils down to how risk averse you are.

[quietann]

Night check has been part of the deal at every place I have boarded, but it isn’t necessarily SOP. It’s probably more common where I am, thanks to how many boarders are obsessive adult ammys who are also busy in the rest of their lives (/raises hand!).

I honestly had never thought about night check before I bought my horse. What counts as “night” varies a lot … it’s been as early as 7:30 to 8, or as late as 11 (but that barn had TWO night checks, one at 8 and one at 11.) In all cases the horses were given another flake of hay, or 2, at night check. (Note: New England 40-50 pound bales, so 1 flake is usually around 3 to 4 pounds.)

I have been told (by a vet) that at night, there are way more mild colics and even horses getting cast than anyone would ever guess. I am not sure whether that is reassuring, or not! :eek:

Rotating night check sounds like a cool idea if it can be worked out.

[bluepece2]

No night check here but generally there is someone at the barn until 8 in the evening anyway. But colic can hit at any time, 10 min after night check, middle of the night…

[khall]

I do night check and have for years, even when my horses are turned out overnight which mine are even during the winter unless bad weather. I throw hay then during winter.

[joiedevie99]

In my adult life, I’ve always boarded at barns that did night check (although not as a kid). I always do night check at shows too.

We currently have several horses who get grain at night check (for 4 meals/day instead of 3), some of which include meds (especially ulcer meds that are 3x/day or can’t be fed with other meds).

[Palm_Beach]

It’s silly. What happens when horses are turned out all night, does the BO have to walk the pastures with a flashlight in the dark and count heads every night?

7 AM to 5 PM is a 10 hour day. Physical labor, in the heat, cold, rain, etc. And you want them to work more? That’s an extra 30 hours a month, maybe that labor charge should be tacked onto the board.

OP if you are concerned, go check on your horse.

[theresak]

@candyappy

Why don’t you set up something where you boarders rotate and do 1 night check a week?

No night check in my area but most boarding barns have a few boarders who are there late every night, or in the case of my barn, we have a white board and indicate which nights we’ll be out and can do the late check.

We check/refill water buckets and toss extra hay. The horses come in at 3:30 in the winter, but we’ll do our own late turn in during the summer (and then skip night check). Our “night” check can be anywhere from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. depending on who is there last.

[EquestrianRunner]

In my experience, seems like folks that keep critters at home are more likely to do night check? Not sure if that is just the barns I’ve been in/around, but I’m not sure.

In the past we have kind of rotated night check among boarders. In my own weird way I feel like night check isn’t needed if they are out 24/7 or on night turn out year round…I feel like in my head they are less likely to hurt themselves in the field? That might just be my own weird imagination!

I always liked when we did night check, going to the barn in my PJ’s on a cold night…or just sitting with my pony while he munched on hay…especially as a kid, those were the best nights!

[cutter99]

My horses are at home, and I do not do a night check unless there is a specific reason to do so. My biggest concerns are that they have plenty of forage and water, so I plan according to those needs.

You cannot watch horses 24/7.

[alibi_18]

@Palm Beach

It’s silly. What happens when horses are turned out all night, does the BO have to walk the pastures with a flashlight in the dark and count heads every night?

7 AM to 5 PM is a 10 hour day. Physical labor, in the heat, cold, rain, etc. And you want them to work more? That’s an extra 30 hours a month, maybe that labor charge should be tacked onto the board.

Not silly at all.

The OP was used to the BO doing a night check, and now that it’s no longer being done for unknown reasons, the OP is wondering if it’s « normal ».

I’ve always been to barn where the night check was indeed billed into the boarding fee. Most barn around here would close at 10pm and the BO/BM/Staff would then do a one last check tossing the last flake of hay for the night and making sure everything was closed and secure after everyone was gone.

Not talking about pasture horses… Still, the few times I pasture board, horses were checked daily by BO.

OP if you are concerned, go check on your horse.

That is silly.
The OP is somehow paying someone to check on her/his horse during the day, and if the BO was doing a night check before, it’s normal to expect the night check to be done.

Also, most night check are done after barn hours… So the OP might not be allowed to go later at night.

The OP has a valid question and the topic should be talked with the BO.
The BO might not want to go back to doing the night check, which is their right, so the OP and other boarders might have to work something the BO will allow.