Horse Insights

 

A horse is for life and not just for Christmas. When you do not have a horse paddock of your own you are also taking on a partner in caring for your horse. That partner is the horse agistment provider and the various people who do the caring at your horse’s home when you are not there.

 

This partnership with your horse agistment people is very much like a marriage of parents where the horse is the child. Both partners have responsibilities and duties towards the horse. Both partners have a vested interest in making the horse agistment partnership work amicably and effectively for the lifetime of the horse. Neither partner wants to end up separated from the horse or worse in the agistment divorce courts in dispute over the minutiae of equine care. Unlike a marriage though, a pre-nuptual agreement is not a matter of controversy more a matter of necessity. The horse owner should take as much care, if not more, in selecting a horse agistment partner as they do in selecting a marriage partner. This can only be to the benefit of the precious horse.

 

Your pre-nuptual agreement or horse agistment contract will spell out in full the depth and breadth of your partnership. Your visitation rights and financial contribution are inversely related. The more you visit and do with your horse the less your agistment partner needs to do and therefore the less you will have to pay them to do. The lowest level of commitment to your agistment partnership would have you visiting daily, cleaning, exercising, training and monitoring health. Your agistment partner would be providing the basic pasture, shelter and exercise facilities. You may even need to bring all of the equipment or ‘tack’ that you need with you each day unless you commit to moving this stuff into your partners premises. If this were the case of course your partner would be committed to securing your tack.

 

The basic level of commitment in your partners agistment vows is not only to provide the facilities agreed but also to maintain a watching brief over your horse when you are not there. This means notifying you of any changes in the horse’s condition or changes that may affect your horse at the agistment site.

 

Are you looking for a deeper, more meaningful and permanent partnership? Because, your horse agistment partner almost certainly will be. The only question from their point of view is do they have the resources to give you everything you want. Are you looking for a partnership where you simply have all the riding and the petting fun parts while your partner does ALL the hard work and maintenance tasks?

 

A top of the range horse agistment partnership would provide and charge accordingly for twice-daily exercise, washing down, personals secure tack room, owners’ recreation facilities, horse treadmills, hydrotherapy swimming pools, and veterinary services on twenty-four hour call.

 

Like all relationships the ‘ménage a trois’ with you, your agistment partner and your horse will be successful and best for your horse if communication channels are always open and honest.

 

 

Lina Smith
http://www.articlesbase.com/business-articles/horse-agistment-partnership-726824.html