How much time do you spend with your horses

[Russ]

Good post Lisa!

I haven't kept track ......but spend alot of time with the 2 mares.....especially in the morning and evening.

Time kinda gets away from me....you know the saying, ''Time flies, when your having fun.'' :bgrin

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[Cara]

i try everyday! i lease some were

 

[lyn_j]

I spend about 45 minutes in the morning feeding and doing a once over on everyone. Then I go into my office and work my business till noon. I take a lunch break outside with the bred mares just watching them.. looking for changes in behaviors foal movements etc. 1-3 back in the office . the out for snacks for the mares due and the mare and filly. back inside for more calls.They get supper around 5. Lately Barry and I have been eating dinner and spending evening time out on the deck where we are with the horses in the evenings to watch them again. I only drive on cool days, not many of those in VA this time of year. I do quicky halter lessons going to and from the field... I fit them in wherever I can. I do clips and baths as needed. So I guess I spend a third of my day with them.

Lyn

 

[PaintedPromiseRanch]

wow so many lucky, lucky people :new_shocked:

in the mornings M-F i go out between 5 and 5:30, feed everybody, they all get talked to and a bit of lovin for those that come to the fence for it... clean the hay barn daily (takes like 2 minutes) and do a wheelbarrow of poop somewhere trying to keep up... check anybody who needs it which varies from time to time, right now trying to flyspray everyone every morning but some don't like it... in the house by 6:30 to get ready for work. because i have to work a full time job to feed my critters (and my family) i am gone from home 50 hours a week <sigh> but in the evenings when the kids are home they feed and i get to just visit :bgrin which i love!!! (when they are at their dad's house my evenings go pretty much like my mornings <sigh>

but oh the weekends

: i still get up around 5 to feed because it is so hot here... then i work outside until i can't stand it any more. in between the work i try to get in as much lovin time as anyone will give me, some are too busy eating but some are actually more interested in seeing what i am up to

: during the hot part of the day i make feed runs when necessary and TAKE A NAP then back up and outside for more of the same until dark. i would say i do 75% of the care and maintenance so a lot of my time with them is actually taking care of them but we always make time for some lovin... for instance last night i was trimming a few, so each one got lots of conversation and petting while being trimmed, and anyone else who came up to see what i was doing. in fact i had to shoo them all out and shut the gate because they were getting in the way

: but as soon as i was done and opened the gate they all came back

i really enjoy my winter weekends because i can stay out all day, so i get my chores done and still have plenty of time for messing with everyone. however the payback is winter weekdays because it is dark before and after work so it cuts down on what i can do... good thing i can love on them in the dark

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edited to say this post made me think about how much i am missing, so last night instead of chores i had a BUNCH of cuddle time... talk about restoring my soul! so thanks for starting this, it was a good wake-up call for me

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[AceyHorse]

Not as much time as I would like!

I work full time in town in a completely non horse related job. In winter I spend about 1 hour everyday out with the boys after work, by 6ish its really dark. In summer I get in 1 hour before work and 2-3 hours after work everyday. Where I keep them is only 15 mins from my house so thats really handy. If I could I would be out there all day everyday!

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[susanne]

This is where it's great being self-employed. While I frequently have tight deadlines and sometimes work on site, for the most part I can choose what hours of the day I work. I'm a nightowl, so I do most of my work at night.

In summer and in decent spring and fall weather, we virtually live outdoors, so we spend most of our daylight hours around them -- if we're not working/playing with them (or working FOR them, we're hanging out with them.

They love to supervise gardening and yardwork, and always have to inspect our work when we're done. Our mailbox is far from the house on the main road, and checking the mail always involves taking one of the horses along. When we have visitors, we sit at the picnic table under the apple tree, surrounded by four horses who assume everyone is there to see them.

We often sleep outdoors, just inches away from whoever is out on the lawn.

If I'm stuck inside working during the day, at least one horse is always out on the lawn, just a nicker away from my office and fully visible through the floor-to-ceiling window wall and patio slider.

So...this is a very long way of saying that while we don't bring our horses in the house, we pretty much live out with them, so we're with them almost all of the time..

 

[Warpony]

In this heat... not much. I have been hanging out with them for about an hour a day aside from feeding/grooming/maintenance stuff, but not working them. It's been hot and dry, and the ground is hard as a rock, makes my feet hurt. Plus I need a harness that will fit Mary and I'm broke so my serious training is on a back burner until I get some equipment anyway.

In the fall and spring I'm out there a lot more. I tend to go out 4 or 5 times a day and just cuddle on them all year around. If I could I would have them in the house with me.