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No matter what discipline of riding you are involved in, or how experienced you are, the barn which you choose can make or break your riding career. Even if you are simply taking lessons at a place, the atmosphere and the trainer are vital parts of the learning experience. When your boarding your horse at a barn, the cleanliness and upbeat attitude of the staff and living arrangements are crucial.
Whether your moving to a new part of town, or simply changing barns, there is a tried and true strategy to testing out a barn. Look the barn up in the phone book, or take friend’s recommendations, get the address, then simply show up. If you call ahead of time the place will be spruced up, rid of kids, and thoroughly changed. Once you arrive ask to speak to the barn manager, if they are not available ask for the trainer.
Once you are in contact with the appropriate person, have a list of questions ready to ask. Ask the prices of the lessons, prices involved in showing, price of board, if there are school horses available, what board includes, and the turn-out schedule. Also remember to ask if there is a ferrier which the barn uses, what his rates are, as well as the vet. In the ideal situation there will be a set number of lessons included in board, as well as at least three turn-outs a week. Investigate to see if there are hidden charges such as medication application, or turn-out cleanup.
Check to see when the barn is open, whether jumping is allowed out of the lessons, and how often the stalls and water buckets are cleaned. Look inside the stalls at the horses, are the horses clean? Dirty horses is a bad reflection on the barn, as well as bug infestations. Look to see if any of the horses have empty water buckets, or if there are flies swarming around them.
For $800 a month you should be able to get board, at least four lessons a week, turn-outs, food, hay, and horse maintenance. If the barn you are looking at is in your budget, arrange to take a test lesson on one of their school horses, these are almost always free. This lesson will let you get to know the trainer’s style and demeanor. If the trainer has you jump too high, be too harsh on the horse, or do things which you consider dangerous, proceed with caution. Another tell tale sign of a barn is the training capacity of their school horses. If the horse you take your practice lesson on is green or spunky, do not go to that barn, for they do not take their job serious enough to invest in a good enough up-down horse.
Ask for a sheet of rules, and prices, a barn with too many rules is often to strict and does not promote a friendly attitude. Talk to some of the people in the barn to see what their personalities are like, also look at the locker situation to make sure they are provided. Check to see where the food and hay is kept, and ask how many grooms are on staff. Good luck, and remember to trust your instinct when you first arrive at a barn, it’s probably correct.
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