CountryByNet.com Forums :: Interested in what you think of my situation

tdiller,

You hit on something that I had not and I agree 100%. You must protect your investment. For better or for worse, my state of PA is one of the few without shared equine liability laws. Although, finally the senate has passed one that is now going through the house. Seems our bar association has a problem with people accepting responsability.

We are set up as an "LLC". An LLC has most of the benefits of being incorporated but requires no officers, meetings, etc. It takes maybe a grand in legal fees to set up. You name managers, co-managers, etc., establish a separate checking account for the horse operation and do not co-mingle with personal affairs. You might want to write out a business plan, document it then follow it as most operations run in the red for a time. You will want to have full insurance coverage for all aspects of your operation. Be honest with your insurer and cover all areas. Our property is leased to the LLC. The LLC is a "paper" corporation with no actual assests. It provides a layer of insulation to a frivolous lawsuit. I don't mean to imply that we shirik responsability. We try our best to maintain a safe operation. I can tell you though that I have made mistakes and have been run over by a horse, spent day in the hospital not knowing where or what, etc.

All I am saying here is that most horse lovers accept this as part of the "deal". Some fall prey to scavenger lawyers.

"Getting started". This is exactly what happened to us. As I said, we completed the new barn allowing us room for boarders but only had folks interested in the "old barn" at a much lower fee.

Our best success at that level was with one boarder, new to horses, who came on as a volunteer. We agreed to teach her horsemanship for her labor. After a time, she purchased a horse for her own. We then agreed to board at a reduced rate in exchange for continued labor. It did not work. We had not set a rate and she was not showing. Then, she showed but expected more rather than a pro-rate to cover the lack of parcipitation.

I mention this because, I suggest, you set a rate at full board then allow for pay afterwards. Now, keep in mind that this is a tricky business. It is illegal of course to pay someone an hourly rate without the rest of the normal employee pers. I ask you though, how many operations can bare this to be done legally? Darn few I would suggest.

This is what we do, however dubious. If someone wants to learn horsemanship, we establish a fair exchange of labor vs horse time. IE; you clean stalls, then you can choose to ride some of our horses in conjunction with a trainer. The trainer is at your expense. We don't fuss with tit for tat, ie; an hour of cleaning for an hour of riding. Our volunteers can spend as much time as they wish with the horses.

Are we wrong? You decide. First off, this is minimal to what we do. My wife and I do most of the labor. We offer a positive experiance to some young folks that might otherwise be involved with drugs, etc.

Owning a horse is an expensive propostion. It is human nature to feel sorrow for those that want but cannot afford to pay the freight. Truth be told, their horse would be better served to be sold. Set your rates, be firm. Set up and treat all boarders equally.

Be honest. As I mentioned prior, I give a small break for multiple horses with minimal owners. I tell the individual right out that I would rather have one owner with four horses as opposed to four owners with four horses. I also tell them that should your horse require above and beyond care, that we will do our best to be there.

I realize I am sharing more info than perhaps has been asked for. I hope though, that by doing so will enlighten those interested in horses. Really, I hope to continue doing what I do but mostly, I like many just hope to make the world a better place for not only the horse but for all interested.

Brian

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