# smoking in the barn



## skiafoxmorgan (Mar 5, 2014)

So we just moved to a new barn. Literally, we took the horses off the trailer, led them into their new stalls, gave them hay, got a quick tour of the facilities, then turned to get our tack in from the truck and saw the owner lighting a cigarette inside the barn. We thought it might be an isolated occurrence, but then noticed the can of butts inside the door. We logicked that it could be a winter thing, and maybe she just stands inside the door and smokes, then began noticing that she smokes all the time. While cleaning stalls. She puts the butts out on the aisle floor. 

Then I found the stash of crushed beer cans.  And for the last week, we've noticed that at 10 am, while cleaning stalls, she has her beer on the stall divider, a cigarette in her mouth. 

We are already searching for a new place. But WTF?


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## chinoerika (Jun 10, 2013)

Having been a firefighter I know what can happen when a barn goes up in flames. Trust me you don't want to see the aftermath. I would be out of there before she could pop open her next beer and lite her next cig. Phil....


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## Roman (Jun 13, 2014)

Definitely a bad idea. If someone smoked in my barn they would be kicked to the curb. 

It's too dangerous risking the possibility of starting a fire and personally I CANNOT stand the smell of a cigarette.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Jumping4Joy (Jan 29, 2014)

My boss smokes in the barn. It literally makes me cringe. One time I was tacking up this horse, who is notorious for acting up when putting a bridle on, and I asked her to help me. With a cigarette in her mouth she got all in the horses face, while blowing smoke into the horses face, and put the bridle on. I felt so bad for the poor mare, there is no reason to smoke inside of a barn, too many dangerous things can happen. Drinking inside of a barn is horrible too, what if something bad happens and its your fault because you were too toxic aged to function correctly.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## karliejaye (Nov 19, 2011)

I am pretty tolerant of people's vices, but only as long as they don't pose a threat to others. Smoking in a barn, which is chock full of flammable items (hay, sawdust or shavings, straw, dust, many grooming products, cob webs, horse hair, fuel and oil if there is a tractor in there) is absolutely not alright.
I would high tail it.


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## skiafoxmorgan (Mar 5, 2014)

it's just absurd. We had no idea. My horse's owner had gone to look at it without me, and she had seen nothing to indicate this was going on. By the time we knew, we were already unloaded. I keep having nightmares. When I was younger, a friend of a friend lost both of her horses in a barn fire. It's just horrific. I know she feeds in the afternoon then gives hay in the evening. I keep imagining her on her twentieth beer of the day, cigarette in her mouth, going into the hayloft to drop hay and death on all the horses below.

I know I'm not overreacting. I am just stunned and venting that she is doing this. And we can't complain, because she owns the place. We just hope we can get them out before tragedy strikes.


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## Shosadlbrd (Nov 3, 2013)

OMG, Hope you find a place...LIKE YESTERDAY!! Good luck!


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

Sorry to say this but you should look for somewhere else ASAP


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

Oh Boy! I can't imagine smoking IN the barn, I won't allow a lit cigarette on the property.


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## SueNH (Nov 7, 2011)

I smoke and I'm saying get out of there!

If I need a cigarette I can go stand outside and I will even pic a damp spot which I have no shortage of.

My friend has a sign in her boarding barn that says "If you are smoking we will assume you are on fire and take the appropriate actions." She will too. I go stand in the road.


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## Woodhaven (Jan 21, 2014)

I have my horse at my sister's and recently she sold her property to her SIL. One day last winter when I was over and cleaning the stalls, he came out and helped me and did all the heavy work for me. When we were done and I thanked him for the help, he lit up a cigarette, I told him he couldn't smoke in the barn (his barn:-|). He apologized and put out his cig. and as far as I know never smoked in the barn again.

I feel it's especially bad to drink and smoke in a barn, alcohol has no place with horses and while drinking a person could be a lot less careful about their cigarettes. Bad combination, I would be very worried about my horse in that situation.
Another thing to put on my list of what to ask about when looking for a place to board.


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## Saranda (Apr 14, 2011)

My horse was once saved from a horrible barn fire before I bought him. All the property went up in flames and to the ground, nothing could be saved and a family was left without all their belongings and their home (the BO's house was adjoined to the barn). Fortunately, there were only two horses in the barn at that moment and they were saved in the last moment, with no injuries, and the rest of the herd was in the pastures at the time. 

So...yes, it goes without saying - NO smoking in the barn. Not once. I hope you find a new place soon!


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## Clayton Taffy (May 24, 2011)

I love a cold beer when I clean stalls on a warm summer afternoon, and I love one on a cold winter afternoon too!


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## NBEventer (Sep 15, 2012)

The drinking, as long as she isn't intoxicated, doesn't bother me. However I would blow up at someone smoking in the barn. I don't care if they own the barn! My horse is in that barn, therefor my horses life is at risk because of their stupidity! I'm a smoker and I have no tollerance for smoking in the barn. I smoke outside the barn, but not when its dry. And not in the barn. I've been in a barn fire. And I never want anything to do with one again.


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## EdmontonHorseGal (Jun 2, 2013)

a friend of mine runs a barn and she has a rule that you cannot even smoke ANYWHERE on the property. this is an all outdoors pasture boarding type place where the only place horses can go inside anything is open sided sheds/shelters. no stalls, no barn. just tack and equipment storage indoors.

i smoke, and i board at a different 'all outdoors' barn. we have a rule that the only place you can smoke is on the porch of the tack shed. i follow that rule to the utmost. i do not want to be the one that ruins the property for everyone because i wanted a cigarette. the day i have my own land/barn i will never smoke in any of the buildings designated for the horses or equipment. heck, i don't even much like smoking in my apartment now when it's freezing cold outside and i decide to be a wimp and stink up the place, lol.

hightail it out of there fast as you can. that's a fire waiting to happen, regardless of what the barn owner says she does to make sure it's safe for her to smoke in the barn (IT'S NEVER SAFE!). i see you put 'my horse's owner', so i'm going to assume you are leasing? hopefully you can convince the horse's owner that getting the heck out of Dodge before Dodge goes aflame is very important.


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## skiafoxmorgan (Mar 5, 2014)

We have a place. It's now down to getting there. Hopefully we will be out on Sunday. I don't mind the drinking, either. Guarantee you that once I've got my girl on my own property, I'll likely have a beer while cleaning stalls or hanging out. No problem. But the amount of beer consumed (I watched her down two at ten am while cleaning stalls) combined with the smoking...it's like a perfect storm for disaster. 

As of today, we have most of our belongings out. We left tack, just in case we needed to ride to the new place. (possible, though not desirable--the route is about eight miles long and includes some busy roads and narrow shoulders, and too many fences for cross country. sigh)


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

When it comes to barn fires, it's not the bedding that ignites but the dust in the air from hay and bedding materials. It's a flash fire that's why the barns are so quickly engulfed in flames. Glad you are getting out of there. If there's a paddock I'd ask about putting the horse in there until you get it moved.


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## EponaLynn (Jul 16, 2013)

skiafoxmorgan said:


> We have a place.
> As of today, we have most of our belongings out.


Yay, that sounds like a nightmare, I can't even imagine how worried you must be.

What did you tell the BO, or did you tell her yet?

It's amazing how addicts can justify just about anything in their own minds!


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## natisha (Jan 11, 2011)

Taffy Clayton said:


> I love a cold beer when I clean stalls on a warm summer afternoon, and I love one on a cold winter afternoon too!


I think you just love a cold beer:wink:


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## skiafoxmorgan (Mar 5, 2014)

We haven't told her yet. We are supposed to give 30 days notice, but the concern is that if she knows, she'll try to hold the horses for next months board. And that would be about eight hundred dollars...which is needed for the new barn. We are paid up for the week we have been there, and are willing to pay for the first day of the month, but since the reason we are pulling out so early is her own negligence, we aren't feeling too guilty. Our first obligation is to our horses. I took lots of pictures of cugarette butts in the aisle, the ash can by the door, and the bag of beer can empties. If she complains, we will show her the pictures.


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## skiafoxmorgan (Mar 5, 2014)

For your awe.


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## karliejaye (Nov 19, 2011)

Uh, is that a no smoking sign DIRECTLY above a bin of ashes and butts!?


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## EponaLynn (Jul 16, 2013)

karliejaye said:


> Uh, is that a no smoking sign DIRECTLY above a bin of ashes and butts!?


I noticed that right away too :lol:!

OP, is that her sign?


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## skiafoxmorgan (Mar 5, 2014)

yep. awe-inspiring, isn't it?


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## skiafoxmorgan (Mar 5, 2014)

Now, at first we kinda thought...okay. just inside the door. but I have pictures of butts in the aisles, too. I just think this is the funniest photo of them all


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## NorthernMama (Mar 12, 2008)

Wow. Just wow.  Why does anyone keep their horse their?


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## skiafoxmorgan (Mar 5, 2014)

to be fair, she has a LOT of good going on there. Nice, new barn, big stalls, conscientious stall cleaning, good hay, big turnout fields, indoor arena, nearby trails. Laid back. But the one negative outweighs, for us, the positives.


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## NorthernMama (Mar 12, 2008)

Yup - that one negative is a doozie. Glad you are getting out.


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## Blue (Sep 4, 2011)

Scary! Even when I smoked, and I was a heavy smoker, I didn't smoke in the barn. I'd go outside and only allowed smoking by the hose spigots, just in case. This is bad.


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## SlideStop (Dec 28, 2011)

I've seen people's vices totally ruin their business and reputations. This woman could have pasture of gold, but it won't mean squat when she lights that's barn on fire or comes outside at 2am, wasted, doing something stupid... While smoking a cigarette. 

Glad you make the decision to move!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## skiafoxmorgan (Mar 5, 2014)

It really wasn't a decision. It was more a case of "where do we go, and how do we get there?" 

In about a month, Copper will be moving onto my property. The last thing I really wanted was to have to move her three times in a month. What a pain. Fortunately, the NEW new place is only thirteen minutes from my current home, less than five miles from the horses' owner's house, and possessing not only NO SMOKING rules, but also better facilities: three outdoor rings (including regulation dressage ring) and one indoor. Plenty of turn out. So that eases the pain. Still, in another month, I'll have to wrangle transport AGAIN. Grrr. Ugh.


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## Blue (Sep 4, 2011)

skiafoxmorgan said:


> It really wasn't a decision. It was more a case of "where do we go, and how do we get there?"
> 
> In about a month, Copper will be moving onto my property. The last thing I really wanted was to have to move her three times in a month. What a pain. Fortunately, the NEW new place is only thirteen minutes from my current home, less than five miles from the horses' owner's house, and possessing not only NO SMOKING rules, but also better facilities: three outdoor rings (including regulation dressage ring) and one indoor. Plenty of turn out. So that eases the pain. Still, in another month, I'll have to wrangle transport AGAIN. Grrr. Ugh.


Best laid plans, right? :lol:


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## skiafoxmorgan (Mar 5, 2014)

MOVED! Drama-free move, for which I am grateful. Pulled in, grabbed horses, loaded (thank goodness for easy loaders), and pulled out. Got a text an hour later from owner asking if we'd been there with a horse trailer. Left her a note explaining our reasons, a day's board (for today), and the tack room key. She only said that we could have had the courtesy to talk to her first. 

True. Agree. Except someone that smokes in a barn already shows bad judgment, and how are we to know that she wouldn't show equally bad judgment in other areas of life?


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## Blue (Sep 4, 2011)

Well at least you're out now. Did you tell her that? About the bad judgement?


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## skiafoxmorgan (Mar 5, 2014)

Nah. We don't need to fight with her or scold her. We are out, our horses are out, our belongings are out, and we are just glad to be shut of the place. She's a nice lady, has a nice barn, but as someone else said, her pastures could be gold, and I wouldn't want my horse there.


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

Whew, glad you got out. Like others, I'm okay with the drinking so long as she's taking care of things, but smoking is a huge no-no.


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## Woodhaven (Jan 21, 2014)

I'm sure glad you are out of there, and you did it as nicely as possible.
If someone was looking after my horses and started drinking by 10am or even earlier for all you know, I would be very worried about what shape they would be in by evening.


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## skiafoxmorgan (Mar 5, 2014)

Exactly. We were off the property by 9:30 am. We had cleaned our own stalls all week, done much of our own turn out, and considering everything, don't feel too bad about the Great Escape. This is a picture from this morning, while we were waiting for the trailer to arrive:


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## waresbear (Jun 18, 2011)

None of the other boarders mind this? I couldn't care less about her having a beer or two in the barn, but smoking, and carelessly like that to boot!


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

*shudders*


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## skiafoxmorgan (Mar 5, 2014)

I don't know how the other boarders feel. I guess since they are all still there, they feel fine. The barn we moved to had a very bad reputation a few years back, but it's under new management now, and all the horses look good. There is a caretaker onsite, and ample turnout--enough for private turnout if we want. Copper and Deo (owner's other horse) get a huge field to themselves. By the time Copper leaves to move to my property, Deo will have acclimated and begun making fence pals. His owner lives about four miles away, so she'll be there a LOT.

It's a cool place. Very high-end at one time. It has a massive indoor arena with a full jump course, and then wings that come out at ninety-degree angles. Two wings--one for boarders, and one for a rescue organization that rents facilities there. Twenty-foot ceilings, paneled, with ceiling fans and "not-quite-chandeliers" for light. 12x12 box stalls with sliding grates for doors. Auto rollup bay doors lead to the indoor arena. The space framed by the two wings and the indoor is an outdoor demonstration arena, with seating. Across the paved parking lot is a massive outdoor riding ring with jump course and a full-size dressage arena. Plenty of trails in the area, so many fields for the horses. Such a better move. I imagine that once it's not covered in snow, it's going to be so lovely. Best part: no smoking.


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## DuffyDuck (Sep 27, 2011)

I took a lesson at a yard, then moved there. I was so happy. The BOs lived on site, and took good care of the horses. We became close friends with them, and would spend our weekends chilling in the restaurant (no food, just drinks) with them over coffee and helping with maintenance for lessons.

The guy that ran it had an alcohol problem, and was sent by his partner to dry out with his parents for three weeks. I took that time off work to help her run the stables, teach and clean. They did me a good service by return of lessons, and I allowed them to use my school master for lessons until they started using him daily, or twice daily.

They were both smokers, and would smoke in the indoor, but never in the stable lines.

He came back, lasted a week then one Sunday opened his top window that oversaw the indoor and yelled a load of abuse at me. Then my friend found smashed liquor bottles in her mare's field, and a half smoked cigarette in the lines that had extinguished itself.

We gave our months notice.

It got worse, and worse. The cigarettes were smoked when they were mucking out, then put in a wheelbarrow. Cans of beer everywhere. We sucked it up and left after two weeks in to our notice, and paid extra to the new yard. They'd not only let us down, but they were also putting our horses in danger. No one else was allowed to smoke around there, however.

OP, I am so glad to hear you've moved out of there. It is a shame, when everything else works for you, but something like that is just way too much to ignore.


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