Who Maintains A Stable?

What kind of stable? It's perfectly possible to just own a horse (or several) because you like horses, no questions asked. If that's the case, the uncle could do everything himself and you'd have a lot of leeway in how the stable is set up.

If the uncle keeps the stable as a money-making venture, then you have to look at how - does he offer riding lessons? Board other people's horses for a fee? Train for competitions? Compete at rodeos? All those things would affect how many horses he keeps and how many staff he needs to keep the stable running.

Depending on how much detail you need to go into, even if a single person owns a property of just a few acres with, for instance, a two stall barn, you would need to be concerned with 1) hay delivery (unless you grow hay on your own property); 2) manure removal; 3) shoeing your horse (or keeping hooves trimmed) - a farrier would do this or, perhaps, the guy knows how to do it himself?; and 4) requisite fence repair and other structural concerns.

The list goes on, but those are the basics.

Having even one horse is a lot of work unless you are at a full service facility. Maybe all the barn chores will be good for the angry nephew?

jaus tail said:

It's on a vast plain and the uncle's got a stable at the farm. Is it possible for a man to own a stable?

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Who else would own a stable?

Does he require any specific license for it?

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That depends on local regulations. If he has a farm, then including a stable wouldn't usually require any additional permits.

Would he require maintenance guys to look after the horses?

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Who would do the actual work would depend on lots of factors. It is not unusual for some impoverished horsepersons to do most of the maintenance for the rental of a stall, but there are large stables that have several full-time employees.

I want to involve minimum people in the story, if possible only the uncle and his nephew. How many guys would he need to look after the horses? How many horses does a stable contain?

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That depends on the size of the operation. I don't know how many people are necessary for what size operation, but it also depends on what kind of business they are running. A boarding stable that doesn't do anything except turn the horses out and muck the stalls doesn't need many people. If they give lessons or train horses, then there would have to be more people.

There's tons of books out there on horse ownership. You probably want to read some of them.

But let me warn you. Horse readers are knowledgeable readers. If you don't know the difference between a fetlock and a saddle horn, your readers will. Do you have the confidence to write to this level of reader about a subject you don't appear to know anything about?

Best of luck,

Jim Clark-Dawe

Pretty much what Jim said.
I have ten horses. I wouldn't call what I have a stable, it's just my barn. I do not need a license to own my horses. We did board for a fee at one time and no we did not need a license or permit to do so either.

I do not hire anyone to look after my horses, my husband and I do that ourselves. Yes its a lot of work, particularly in winter. It is also expensive- again particularly in winter ( I live in Pennsylvania) If someone related to me wanted to bring their kid- or relative to my house and teach them to ride, I would want to know the following things- does the person teaching KNOW how to ride? do they KNOW how to TEACH someone to ride?

What about the kid's parents? Are they going to sue me if the kid falls and breaks something? I have had people ask me to teach their kids to ride, most of them think Im going to put them in the saddle the first day and gallop them up the mountain- nope- not happening.

truth is they probably aren't getting in that saddle for at least a week and then it will be in the round pen with my most trusted, slowest, and boring horse.

depending on the level of knowledge and skill from the kid- the next step would be outside the round pen but I will be leading his horse from my horse- no going solo yet.

when I think the kid is ready I will let him have the horse's head and we will WALK the horses up the mountain. Oh yeah, and the kid is also going to clean my barn, feed my horses and clean and fill my water troughs, whether they are paying me or not. If the kid has attitude and doesn't listen to me- bye- bye. Horses can kill you, if an arrogant self-absorbed teen doesn't understand this I will not teach him or have around my horses.

I probably didn't answer everything but that should give you a start anyway.

jaus tail said:

Hello everyone,

In my story, an uncle takes his teen nephew to his farm. He wants his angry nephew to learn horseback riding.

It's on a vast plain and the uncle's got a stable at the farm. Is it possible for a man to own a stable? Does he require any specific license for it? Would he require maintenance guys to look after the horses? I want to involve minimum people in the story, if possible only the uncle and his nephew. How many guys would he need to look after the horses? How many horses does a stable contain?

Regards,

Jaus

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What country is this story taking place in?

If it's in the US, what state is it taking place in?

There can be a lot of difference between how someone keeps their horses in one place, compared to another.

What riding style is being taught? Western? English? Bareback?

"Angry nephew". No angry person is getting on one of my horses until they get their attitude straight. A horse isn't a machine. If the rider is nervous, the horse can tell. If they're pissed off, the horse can tell. They may react to those feelings in a negative way.

As Jclarkdawe said earlier, be careful with the details.
I once read a story where the author was clearly not familiar with horses, but felt the need to go into detailed description. They said the horse went to the stream to get a drink. That is exactly where they should have stopped, but no, they decided to try and describe it. Going into loving detail about how the horse lapped the water from the stream. Like a dog.

I was laughing so hard I could barely finish the story.

If you're not familiar with horses, you really need to get familiar with them (a lot) before you write this story. I recommend taking a few riding lessons to learn not just about horses and riding, but how a stable works, the atmosphere of a stable, and the type of people who love horses. You can look online to see who in your area gives lessons.

If you can't do that, it might be worth it to recast your story's setting to something you do know about. As others have said, horsey people are going to see right through you if you don't get the details right.

In my town there is a stable run by a married couple. They hire the grooms, all the workers, but most of the horses are owned by people in town. These people keep their horses at this stable because it's easier for them. Of course they pay for the upkeep, etc. They also pay to have their horses exercised when they are unable to ride the horses themselves.

I also had cousins who owned horses. They lived across the street from me when I was a child. They stabled their horses in a barn on a farm down the street. They paid the farmer to take care of the horses, but they rode almost every day. In fact one day one of their mares jumped the fence (they pastured in a big field behind my house) and was discovered a day later in a neighboring town. (She was in a field with some thoroughbreds.)

About a year later she gave birth to a foal. True story.

Sorry, I got off track there.

In the US, (I'm assuming US until told otherwise) the word stable is more often used for a commercial venture that can combine boarding horses for other people, riding lessons, sometimes offering trail rides or preparing riders for competitions and getting their horses there and back. Or it might be a breeding operation. Or a racing stable. Or a stable full of pregnant mares producing estrogen-laden urine. Or some combination thereof. Or something else. But it usually has the connotation of a commercial venture.

If it’s just a person who owns hir own horses and keeps them on hir own property, the building is often referred to as a barn.

If this uncle owns 10 horses, what does he do with them? Is he breeding them and selling off the foals? Is he a competition rider and has 10 horses in various stages of training? Does he just like horses and uses them for his own riding and/or driving pleasure?

Learning to care for horses can certainly turn around a person whose life is heading downhill or has already arrived at the bottom. There’s a wonderful program in some prisons where inmates take captured wild mustangs and train them enough to sell well. It’s good for the mustangs who would otherwise be culled or starve, it’s good for the inmates, and it’s good for the purchasers who have a basic trained horse to buy. You might look into that program.

But I agree with Wicked that anyone who is currently angry or cannot control hir temper ought to be kept away from horses until some self control is achieved.

Also, horseback riding lessons can be relatively inexpensive and a good way to learn a ton about horses rather quickly. Even cultivating an acquaintance with a local stable would help. You could offer to volunteer to learn to muck out stalls!

Or attend some local horse shows of the style of riding the uncle uses. If he’s in the middle of a vast plain in the US, Western riding is more probable.

If you’re at the level of knowledge where you weren’t aware someone could just own a horse, I hope you really enjoy research!

Also, if this isn’t taking place in the 21st century, tell us now. Because answers to your questions from before the latter 20th century will be very different.

I don't own a stable myself, but i've boarded horses for 20 years and know how stables work. I'm a competitive show jumper, so our stables are very organized and on a fairly large scale.

My trainer actually owns the barn, with the help of a few investors. They have full time grooms / caretakers who live on the property. That is really typical for large public horse properties because it’s not really safe to leave valuable animals overnight with no one there.

Boarders pay a monthly rent for their horses to live on site. This usually covers the actual stall, bedding, hay, and sometimes blanketing/turnout. Usually training is separate, unless the trainer owns the barn and decides to make it a lump sum.

You really need to know what type of horse world you are talking about. At my barn, everyone is a show jumper. That means that all the horses are in training with a trainer. This type of barn is vastly different from a more casual barn where people have horses for trail riding / pleasure / retirement.

Typically you don’t see grand prix show jumpers and trail riders in the same place. Both types of activities are awesome, but they usually have separate facilities. Know that there is a lot that goes into the horse world. If you have no experience with horses, anyone who does will immediately know that. Its not something that is easy to fake.

So, if you are going to write about a barn, you really need to KNOW what goes on. Horse people buy books about horses, and then will promptly put them down if the world doesn’t make sense. Frankly, I can always tell who rides and who doesn't. If you want your book to appeal to an audience familiar with horses, I think you are going to have to do some very extensive research. Stay away from show jumping / competitive riding. It’s really more of a lifestyle than a hobby.

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions. I’m not trying to be discouraging, just honest.

jaus tail said:

Hello everyone,

In my story, an uncle takes his teen nephew to his farm. He wants his angry nephew to learn horseback riding.

It's on a vast plain and the uncle's got a stable at the farm. Is it possible for a man to own a stable? Does he require any specific license for it? Would he require maintenance guys to look after the horses? I want to involve minimum people in the story, if possible only the uncle and his nephew. How many guys would he need to look after the horses? How many horses does a stable contain?

Regards,

Jaus

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So it's his farm? Maybe he runs a lesson stable? In that case there would be other people around, like stable hands. You could have the place be as large or as small as you want. The only state as far as I know (in the US) that requires licensing is Massachusetts. It'd be easier to set your story somewhere other than there.

I have a small lesson barn in New Hampshire, with six horses (well, one horse, four ponies and a burro.) Most of my teaching is done at other people's farms though, on their own horses. I do not have any outside help, although my oldest daughter helps out with the mucking. Many years ago I had a larger lesson barn, also in New Hampshire, with up to 50 horses. We had a few part time people working for us there. So you can totally make this fit your story. If you don't want any outside help, give him just a few horses.

I agree with other folks though, that if you're going to write about horses at all, you have to know what you're writing.

jclarkdawe said:

But let me warn you. Horse readers are knowledgeable readers. If you don't know the difference between a fetlock and a saddle horn, your readers will. Do you have the confidence to write to this level of reader about a subject you don't appear to know anything about?

Best of luck,

Jim Clark-Dawe

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I second this a million times. I can't tell you how many times I have been reading a book (usually a historical) where horse riding is mentioned in just a small way and the writer gets something so wrong that it takes me completely out of the story.

If the horse riding idea that you have is secondary to the main plot, I suggest doing lots of research and EVEN THEN it is probably best to keep your descriptions about things pretty vague. I know people who have been in horses in a casual way for decades and still don't have the same depth of knowledge as those of us who have been involved very seriously for the same amount of time.

Good luck!

A great way of handling your lack of knowledge jaus tail, is to take some lessons yourself. Then you'll be learning right alongside your character. To my understanding, one bestselling children's author did that. I believe it was the author of the beloved Saddle Club series.

Stepping in on this one.

He would not need a license unless he was teaching or renting horses to the public. Whether he had employees would depend on how many horses he has.

If you are going to make horses major to your story, then please, please, PLEASE spend some time with them. I can hand out all the information I like, but without a bit of experience - you don't necessarily have to ride, but at the very least find a local lesson barn or rescue that will let you muck a few stalls in exchange for some instruction about the way horses are. Another option is to look at horse training videos on Youtube, but that's not as good as actually interacting with them.

Also worth thinking about - are these just riding horses or does he actually have draft horses? There's been a movement over here to go back to horses for farm work...

I don't have time to read the whole thread in detail, but I did skim, and I'm not sure if anyone mentioned this. In Canada, or at least the part I am in, it is quite common for commercial stables (the sort that would teach lessons) to have their students help with the stable work, as part of the learning (Actually, I've never attended a stable that didn't do this). So if your Uncle character teaches lessons at all to other teenagers, it's quite possible they would help with the upkeep of the horses and stables, especially if he teaches them in exchange for that assistance (Riding lessons can be pretty expensive for a kid to afford, usually $30-$50 a lesson in my experience).

King Neptune said:

Who else would own a stable?

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Many women do.

girlyswot said:

Many women do.

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But do any horses? Probably only examples of the human species do.

King Neptune said:

But do any horses? Probably only examples of the human species do.

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I've known a few horses who thought they owned the stable.

Careful folks, the one liners aren't a welcome tangent.

Horse lovers are very particular, so whatever you do, make sure you get the details right! Otherwise, you'll have a whole bunch of protesters boycotting your novels. There's a book: 33 Worst Mistakes Writers Make About Horses. I haven't read it, so I don't know how detailed it is, but it might be a good place to start. There's also a very brief section on horses in The Complete Guide to Writing Fantasy, Vol. 1.

jaus tail said:

Thanks a lot for all your replies. I've actually done a crash course in horseback riding myself, but it was in a camp, in a village organized by my college, also back then I didn't think of asking any questions.

I'm from India and the story is set in India. The horseback riding is secondary to the plot.

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You should ask equine people, people who ride, care for and keep horses.

You can try Pony clubs:

https://www.facebook.com/MyPonyClub

And India has some unique breeds of horses

http://nrce.nic.in/breeds.php

These people seem really lovely:

http://www.adagioridingstables.com/