# What were your BEST and Worst Riding schools/stables like?



## Arksly (Mar 13, 2010)

My current one is pretty much a dump as well. Not as bad as the op story but pretty bad. The pastures are swamps and the fencing is rotting boards. The barns are made out of rotting wood. The footing in the arena is basically compost. But, the people are very nice for the most part. My first barn was a nicer facility but the people were horrible. 
My last barn would probably be the nicest on I was at. The pastures had brand new fencing that was taken care of. The stalls were just replaced. The arenas were absolutely beautiful and the people were wonderful. But, after some unfortunate events we just couldn't afford it.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## ridergirl23 (Sep 17, 2009)

I have been super lucky to only have ever been at super barns. 
The first one i took lessons at wasnt the best, but the people were nice, but the arena and grooming area was seperated by a rope, so it was kinda dusty, which made me sneez a lot and stuff. 

The one i am at now (which is the second one ive ever been at) The people are great, the barn is really nice, not all super new, but well built and always fixed up. i love it where i am!


----------



## wildberryxX3 (Jun 28, 2010)

My worst was a barn where I took care of two horses. I LOVED these horses, but I really had no say where they went when they moved from our previous barn. The barn we moved to was a dump. Dangerous for horse and rider. The Barn Owner's children ran around half naked most of the time and they left their 13 month old child UNSUPERVISED in the barn with a loose horse. She ended up crawling under him and I had enough and moved her and put the horse away. Water buckets were never full, horses were fed VERY irregularly, there was only one turn out and stalls were rarely cleaned. One of the horses I took care of coliced Three times while we were there and had to have a total of three surgeries. She finally had to be put down. I'm positive it was from the stressful environment and irregularity in everything that happened at the barn. Needless to say, I had to remove myself from that situation.

The best barn was the barn they had actually moved from. I learned so much there. My instructor was amazing and stalls were always clean. The horses were happy and the barn was neat. The outdoor arena was wonderful and everyone was wonderful. We had to move when the owners decided to move. I miss it a lot!


----------



## Brithorse1996 (May 25, 2010)

haha my current one's arena is great but since the ground are wood chips/shavings you can imagine what it's like in summer especially if you have hayfever


----------



## Mickey4793 (Sep 24, 2009)

The barn I'm at now is the only barn I've ever been at, I had been taking lessons there for years, every single one of my instructors was amazing, the barn owner is the most amazing and helpful instructor I've ever had, everything she says makes sense, everything she says has helped me improve.

When I got my own horse I knew I would NEVER board anywhere but this barn, where I am still currently boarding and never planning to move. The grounds are moved, all three barns where horses are kept are very well kept, very very comfortable, the people who work there are AMAZING, they are amazing about horses with specific feeding requirements, they spray off horses if they're sweaty after turn out, they'll ride your horse for you if you're gonna be away, One night my horse pulled up lame and I came the next morning to assess whether or not I'd be able to ride him for my weekly lesson, and when I had gotten there one of the workers had taken him out, trotted him around the arena on the lead, and told me he was looking much better.

They have SEVERAL arena's, one of which is indoors and 4 of which are outside, and miles and miles of trails and pastures for the horses, along with 4 paddocks, I'm truly blessed to board my horse here, and because of this blessing I've never had a bad boarding experience.


----------



## AnimalFarm2006 (Aug 6, 2010)

Worst barn I've ever leased at is a lady about 10 minuets away. She had a few outside stalls that were never cleaned and always dirty. They were metal car covers with plywood sides. No floor.
The fields were knee deep and more of mud,pee,poop, etc. Hay was just tossed INTO this mess. The horses were all skinny. VERY VERY skinny. Tipi was the best of them all but only because I personally made sure she had food when we rode. 

My best stable is of course my friend up the street. She keeps her barn clean, stalls clean, BIG open pastures, A nice ridding arena. I've know her since i was a kid and it's only gotten better. Barn rebuilt. Wash room built with a washer machine for stuff. Hot water added. etc etc.


----------



## Brithorse1996 (May 25, 2010)

Is that lady still looking after horses?


----------



## LoveStory10 (Oct 31, 2009)

Worst - the one I was at previously. It was actually AMAZING, had great facilities, and even had a wash stall. But I hated it. The person that taught me was only a few years older than me, and she pushed me too hard. I fell off almost every lesson, and started to dread going. The pony I was on I wasnt ready for. He would bolt, bite, and try to kick. I got forced to jump alot, even though I wasnt ready, and fell off alot, and had the pony bolt and rush more times than I can count.

The people were horrible too, those typical snobs that look down on everyone. This was a very competitive place, and so they looked down on me, cause I diddnt compete, it just wasnt a nice atmosphere. I got yelled at once for giving "my" pony a treat, even though the BO had told me that I was welcome to.

The horses were nasty too, and would try to bite and kick whenever you walked passed them, and going into a field was like WW1.


Best - My current. It doesnt look like much; the stalls are made out of poles, theres a few broken fence poles, most of the fence is barbed wire, the jumping ring has no fence. and the arena is full of weedy grass.

We love it there. The horses are SOOOO sweet, and the atmosphere is great. We have been given a "name (the Children of Corn:lol, we can go ride whenever we want, and are not pushed over our limits. We love our instructers so much. They have taught us so much. 


When Bishop lost his eye, his owner and the BO at my previous place wanted him put down(he stayed there), but my riding instructers offered to take him, so there he is. The BO told my mom that I will never make it to a show. Look at this:









The girl who would "never make it to a show", with the "useless horse" who was wanted to be put down.


Wow, sorry for the essay. Cookies if you read it all :lol:


----------



## Chimerical (Jun 12, 2010)

Worst - the dry paddocks were small and often they didn't have much water, they were all in rows like at an auction and the horses would get switched around a lot. Because the instructor was often late, I'd spend ages just trying to find the horse I was supposed to ride.

I took a couple lessons there when I was just starting to ride, my first forays into equestrianism - I never learned to tack up properly because the instructor tacked up in front of me once, and expected me to do it myself afterwards. Considering I'd never even held a saddle before, tacking up on my own was an interesting business. I had to get a then-14-year-old classmate who boarded there to help (and on one occasion, she was hoisted into giving me a lesson suddenly when the instructor decided to out to eat with some boarders and leave it to her!)

Shortly after we left, two horses STARVED to death because their owners were on vacation and the BO had neglected to feed or water them for weeks. It was shut down pronto.

Now, though, I go to what just may be the greatest barn in the world  Big green paddocks with shelter, automatic waterers, three (soon to be four) rings, a nice trail nearby, huge lockers and a nice cool boarders' lounge complete with fridge, coffee machine and microwave. Every horse has a nice big stall along with their paddock, too. The only downside is that they don't feed grain for you, but they make up for it with being so friendly and having such a great property.


----------



## Shadow Puppet (Aug 15, 2011)

Well, where I'm from, my town there is only one barn for about two hours and I at it. Some of you would probably classify it as your worst, but to me it's my home! It's a six stall barn with four paddocks, and one outdoor riding ring. And it definatly isn't omething fancy. Considering it is about fifty years old  I Love it So much


----------

