Hey, All,
I could use some advice.
I’ve been riding and giving lessons for a barn owner who is the nicest lady in the world, but is COMPLETELY clueless when it comes to stable management or general horse care–she is proudly “self-taught”, and some of her “practices” and ways of doing things before I got there get my eyes rolling frequently…or worse, freaking out entirely because they’re downright dangerous (feeding boarder’s horses piles of grass clippings from her husband’s mower, not providing salt or minerals to pasture horses, tightly buckling the halter around horse’s neck while they’re still attached to cross-ties on both sides while bridling, trying to tell me that a wire twist snaffle is less harsh than a plain full cheek, etc). She is kind of one of those “my cup runneth over” people, who thinks because she’s always done things one way and no one’s died yet, it must be correct.
Anyway, I ended up buying a horse from her who I have been training, because she’s just too nice of a horse to get left in a situation like that. I’m planning on moving her to a barn near my house so I can ride her more often and get her out of a dangerous situation (the owner’s barn is almost an hour away), but that is pending a vet check and me finishing paying for her first, so she’s still currently out at the owner’s place.
I went out to see her yesterday and realized she has contracted a case of warts all over her muzzle. This shocked me, because she’s 8 years old and therefore WAY out of the typical yearling stage where warts are more common. I asked the barn owner about it, and she acted like it was no big deal, told me 3 of her yearlings that my horse hangs out with in the same pasture have them, so she probably got them from the babies and not to worry about it.
Well, I am irritated to put it lightly. I’m paying for this woman to provide sound stable management to my horse (only because I have to at present–the scary thing is she has many other boarders and used to teach all the lessons before I got there), and she acknowledged that it was her PERSONAL horses who had the warts, and instead of quarantining them away from the other horses, she just left them in with my horse and the other boarders’ horses.
Now, my mare has a nose full of warts, and I can’t help but think it’s going to be tough to find somewhere to move her, as no REASONABLE, knowledgable barn owner is going to want a horse with EPV at such a mature age carrying it to other horses at their barn, and it severely limits my show schedule, as I don’t want to take her anywhere she can pass it on to other horses.
Am I overreacting here, or is this a reasonable thing to be mad at? Is she in the wrong and providing improper care? What would you do in this situation?
Thanks for your help.
CR
