Update on Barns and One Maaaaaad Pony

Over the weekend I visited 2 barns to see if they had any potential to be Reno's new digs. Here is the down and dirty on each:

Barn #1

I decided to ride out and check barn #1 before I arrived for my appointment to tour the farm just to get a look for myself without someone else around. It is super close to my house, so this was feasible. I got to see some of the pastures and the barn, all of which looked pretty good so I decided to go ahead with the appointment. The farm is privately owned, and is operated as a co-op. There are 3 very large pastures with TONS of grass. And I mean tons. They have wooden posts with that thick electric wire fencing that is coated, so it is pretty sturdy. The riding "ring" is really a smaller pasture, but it seems to be level and would be acceptable for riding in. They have a few jumps as well, if we ever get to that stage in our training. The horses are on 12/12 turnout, which I am ok with. The barn is HUGE with 9 very large stalls with mats. The place is kept extremely well organized and clean, which I was all for. The feed room is great, with separate spaces and boards for each owner to write down feeding instrucitons. There is also a separate tack room with lockers for each boarder. The lockers are gigantic (like I could almost move in one) and the space is kept very tidy in there as well. There are currently only 3 horses on the property. All 3 are owned by a couple who manages the Co-op, and they seemed both knowledgeable and very nice. Feeding is divided between the boarders, and they feed 2x a day. So a quick analysis:

Pros
-price $200/month plus hay and feed
-good turnout
-very close to home
-good barn management

Cons
-have to come out everyday to pick stall
-no lights for night riding
-having to feed 4-5 times per week

Overall my main concern would be having to come out everyday to pick his stall. I am SO busy, I am just not sure this is feasible. I did ask about vacations/weekend getaways, and they said they trade off taking care of each other's horses when this happens.

Barn #2

Heeeeck no. Its 30 min away, and someone basically built 3 stalls and a tack room inside a pasture. No riding ring as of yet, and there were chickens on the property (I realllly dislike chickens). Plus they wanted to charge me $250 for pasture board. I think I stayed about 10 minutes and then politely excused myself.

Barn #3

I am going to see barn #3 on Friday. Good things about this one: 15 minutes from home, big pastures, they are full service, indoor/outdoor ring, trainer on site. Cons: its expensive ($325 for pasture board).

I am really excited about option #3. Although it is more expensive, price is not my biggest factor. Since I have such a busy schedule, I need a place that is both convenient for me to get to and that I can access at any time. The indoor/outdoor with lights is a big plus, as I may not get out there until dark in the winter.

About the mad pony:

Finally got to go ride Reno yesterday for the first time in 3 weeks. BM had already been on him, so I just wanted to do a light ride and get some basics down. For those of you who remember, our last ride ended in head tossing, biting, refusing to move so I was nervous about how this one would go. We did lots of walking, changing directions, halting, backing up, circles, etc. He was listening very well and was being responsive to my aids. I went to ask for the trot and out came a VERY mad pony. Immediate ears pinned, head curled, biting at his girth. I eventually got him into the trot after some protest, and we were able to do some walk to trot transitions and work through the issue. He maintained a "I am NOT happy" look on his face the entire time we were trotting, and seemed to short-change in the front. Rachel was out there with me, and after some assessment we both agree that it has got to be a saddle fitting issue. I think he is going to be a very hard one to fit. He has very wide shoulders, but is not wide anywhere else. He also has no muscle on his topline, which I think is adding to his discomfort. We need to work on developing those muscles when I get him here, but I also am thinking that he could really benefit from that chiropractic assessment. I think it may have made its way further up the list after this discovery. I hate that he would associate me riding him with pain, so I will have to work something out. A different saddle is definitely on the list, and I think I can part with at least one of my other 2 at a low price so I can purhcase another. I am happy that despite that issue we were able to work through it and he did respond to what I was asking him to do. Baby steps, but we are getting there!