A fresh start

Things continue to go really well with baby. Last week she had her feet trimmed and she was a rockstar. She doesn't crosstie yet, but she had no problem patiently standing in the aisle on her rope halter while farrier shaped her tootsies. Next week she gets Spring shots and my vet gets to meet her and look her over for the first time. We've basically just been focusing on the same routine every day: pull her in from turn out, tie her in her stall, groom, pick feet, and do about 20min of ground work in the indoor. She has definitely started to feel her oats since getting on the right diet, putting on some weight, and getting wormed. Her personality is really starting to come out!

The past couple of weeks we've started looking for a barn closer to home. While I absolutely LOVE my barn, I do not love the commute. It's an hour without traffic, and up to two with traffic. Since hubby's work schedule changed and I am working more hours I find myself going up to the barn during high traffic times and 4 hours!!!! on the road to spend an hour with her just doesn't work. When we started looking I knew I wanted to look everywhere and find the perfect place. I don't want to keep moving her. Another reason I want to move her is because she is in Finn's old stall and every time I pull up to the barn it hurts not being able to see him. I really miss the little guy and it's hard to move on when I don't see him in the paddock and see her in his old stall. Also, she is currently in individual turnout. My barn's turnout situation is not the best. There are three large paddocks: one for geldings with either front shoes or no shoes, a paddock for geldings with four shoes, and a paddock for mares. Then there are 6 very small individual paddocks, that you have to pay an extra $25 a month to keep your horse in. You can see the size here:

She could go out to in the mares paddocks, but the mares are absolutely BRUTAL with each other. There isn't a week that goes by that one of them doesn't come in with a bad injury. There have even been a few injuries that have required surgery. That doesn't work for me! I want her in turnout where she can really run and play like a baby should, preferably with other horses that aren't vicious. She was part of a herd and I bet now she's thinking what is going on here?? So the search began. I looked at a couple of places:

One was really nice, with good turnout, but 40 stalls and an active lesson program. My current barn has nearly 40 stalls and a somewhat quiet lesson program and it is still very busy. I love all my barn friends, but most of the time I just want to do my own thing. I was concerned that a barn that big, with that many lesson kids, would just get too crazy. I realized after looking at that place I wanted somewhere quieter, but still with all the amenities. I made a list of things I wouldn't compromise on:

1. Indoor with good footing and lighting
2. An aisle way with good lighting-- I have been in a few dark barns, and it's awful
3. Fenced in outdoor
4. Large, all day turnout with only a few horses to a turnout, preferably grass (but not a must)
5. Hay 4 times a day
6. A barn manager, or someone, that lives on property and does a night check
7. Hot and cold water
8. Less than 40 minutes from my house, and preferably right off the highway
9. Adequately bedded stalls with shavings. Current barn has switched to sawdust and it is SO dusty and doesn't absorb anything
10. Well maintained, clean, safe property, with a competent barn owner


It is really tough to find these ten things! I looked at a few places without indoors and quickly realized that not having an indoor, in Massachusetts, in the winter, was CRAZY. I was having a tough time finding a small barn with everything we wanted and needed. All the barns I liked were 40+ stalls, didn't feed enough hay, factory-like, no personal attention, and $1200+ a month. Then while searching online one night I found a barn 20 minutes from my house, a barn I had never heard of. We went to look at it the other day, and I really went in thinking it was too good to be true. It ended up being absolutely PERFECT! My husband calls it a backyard barn on steroids. 16 12x12 stalls, all with windows, heavily bedded. An indoor with rubber footing and mirrors. Heated tack/viewing room. A fenced in outdoor. It also has a wash stall with hot and cold water. My current barn has the best wash stall, but no hot water, which I don't like! 4 flakes of hay a day. And TURNOUT!! Oh the turnout. She will be in a large grass pasture from 7am-6pm. She's currently turned out 10am-2pm. There are two older broodmares that she will be turned out with, which is just perfect. The owner lives on property, and I really, really liked her. It is just a private boarding barn, so there are no lesson kids. It is quiet, peaceful, a great place for a baby to grow. There are also acres and acres of conservation land to walk her on, and later, trail ride her on. The commute couldn't be better. We move May 1st, and I can't wait!!! Here's a couple of pics: