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Frankie

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I know all of us are very busy. But this is for those who also work full time out side of the home.

I need to do more of my own training but it is hard for me to come up with the time. I do know others do it and do it well.

I am in a catch 22 so to speak. Need to work to pay for the horses, but the work takes away the time from them as well.

Plus have a child and family at home.

I would like to know how others are able to do it. I know it can be done I have seen it, but haven't had the time to sit down with them and talk with them as to how they do it.

Would like to hear your suggestions and how it is you accomplish all these things.

thanks
 
WHAT......THAT'S POSSIBLE?
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Maybe with some "youngsters" who still have that thing called, lets see, what was it........ENERGY!
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I only work part time & still can't do it.
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I am just exhausted all the time....not fair!
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It's always a time crunch somewhere. When I was seriously doing the futurity circuit I would work 5-6 horses, clean and be at work at noon. I don't want to work that hard anymore. It depends on the work you are doing. Driving flat takes awhile to do but if fitting and doing obstacles or jumping, you could turn several in an arena, let them run for 15 minutes, tie to the fence and work one at a time. Saves time from getting one at a time out. Also gives them tying lessons and teaches them patience. Then again I find the minis are so smart a little lesson time goes a long way with them. My guys get sour if I work them too much so lots of free time and make the most of short lessons.
 
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YEP CAROLYN I WANT TO HEAR ANSWERS ON THIS TOO. WE HAVEN'T EVEN HAD A CHANCE TO WORK OUR DRIVING GIRLS THIS YEAR. HUBBY WORKS EVERY OTHER WEEKEND, WHEN HE IS OFF WE ARE NEEDING TO GET HAY OR SOME OTHER HORSE STUFF DONE OR IT IS RAINING OR TO DARN HOT, WE WON'T DRIVE THEM IN THE 90 TO 100 DEGREE WEATHER. SO WE WON'T BE DOING THE SHIRLEY PARADE THIS YEAR OR PROBABLY THE CHRISTMAS PARADE IN LEBANON, OHIO. JUST NO TIME. WE BOUGHT A THIRD HORSE FOR A UNICORN HITCH AND WE HAVE NEVER HAD TIME TO WORK HIM. JUST TO MUCH WITH WORK AND KEEPING UP WITH EVERY THING ELSE. DOESN'T HELP THAT I WORK DAYS AND HUBBY WORKS EVENINGS, SO IT IS HARD TO DO THINGS THAT TAKE TWO PEOPLE. OF COURSE WE HAVE OUR OTHER HOBBY WHICH IS COWBOY STUFF, WE MISS A LOT OF THAT BE WE AT LEAST DO THE TRAIN ROBBIES EVERY 3RD SUNDAY IN KNIGHTSTOWN, SO THE SATURDAY BEFORE IS GIVING A MINI A BATH AND GETTING STUFF TOGETHER.
 
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I own a business and work full time +++. I don't keep office hours on Fridays, but spend a lot of time at home working on proposals and other things, and it's not unusual for me to be at the office 12 hours a day, with an hour commute before and after.

When I have done my own conditioning from home, what has worked best for me is to do it before work! I mean, 5:30am, I'm out there in my PJ's lunging horses!!! If I do not do it before going to work, there's way too good a chance I won't do it when I get home and am tired and it's way, way hotter than it was in the early morning hours.

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I don`t "train" them anymore..just halter breaking the babies. I work part-time too..but I also have other things going on...and I just haven`t the time.
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I have hired someone to train our soon-to-be gelded stallion to ride and drive...guess that is the only way it will get "done"...
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I for one have always felt it was better to do a good job on a few than a half a job on a bunch. We have been there, done it and got the t-shirt to prove it. Having just a few that perform well make for a very satisfied feeling as opposed to working all day (or night) then dragging yourself out to the barn and ring and feeling that you are pressed for time, energy, money self control and patience. Doing it well with fewer horses mean lower vet bills, lower farrier costs, lower feed costs and more time for yourself, family and friends. You might just be surprised at how well the extra time with individual horses produces a stronger bond and willingness to want to please. Yep better to have a few that perform well than a herd that runs you ragged.
 
Well a typical day for me goes like this. I get up at 5 a.m. and make a cup of coffee, need that BAD, lol. Then I go out and feed, turn out and muck stalls. Come back in and depending if my daughter was working early shift I will get my grandaughter up and ready for daycare. I then get myself dressed and head out the door by 7 a.m. Leave work at 4:15 and pick-up grandaughter if needed, then get home and go directly to the barn, bring the horses in and feed. Come into the house and prepare dinner. Around 7:30 I go back out and whoever is being worked is done. Once that is done I usually re-pick stalls so they are totally clean again before the horses bedtime
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. Come back into the house and do whatever needs doing, dishes, etc. Usually soak my weary bones in a HOT bath. Around 10:30 or 11:00 I go back out and do bedtime barn check, they get their bedtime snack and lights out for them and me. Get up the next morning and do it all over again. Weekends are pretty wild as I use up most of the entire weekend doing things I didn't have time to do during the week pertaining to the horses.
 
I work full time as well, I manage a local business. I do get the calls when someone hasn't weighed in, and get most of the sunday work as well.

Been organised is the key.. Make no mistake I would much rather be outside than the inside work. I have 10 mini's did cut down my numbers from 15, work full time, got 3 kids 14-8, got 3 dogs. Building a new house, so have all the the fittings to source in my SPARE time. Visiting mares to be covered, foals to halter etc etc...

[SIZE=14pt]HEY why's my butt this size !!! I never get to sit on it ![/SIZE]
 
Yes Carolyn, there are just not enough hours in the day it seems.
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Fortunately my husband is retired and he takes care of all of the feeding and "barn" related chores. We hire an individual to clean stalls.
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Then my wonderful daughter in law, Christina, helps with the training, grooming and conditioning.
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Since we built our facility from scratch - we set up everything to save time and effort and to make the most use of equipment (tractor, skid loader, wagons, gator etc.). This has been a huge help.

As others mentioned, since I also work outside the home, our typical day begins at 5:00 am and ends at Midnight, seven days a week.
 
Jill said:
I own a business and work full time +++.  I don't keep office hours on Fridays, but spend a lot of time at home working on proposals and other things, and it's not unusual for me to be at the office 12 hours a day, with an hour commute before and after.
When I have done my own conditioning from home, what has worked best for me is to do it before work!  I mean, 5:30am, I'm out there in my PJ's lunging horses!!!  If I do not do it before going to work, there's way too good a chance I won't do it when I get home and am tired and it's way, way hotter than it was in the early morning hours.

 
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Same here!! I am up at 5:00am driving for 10- 15min. everyother morning, I have my little cousin who is 12 thank god for her. She has been doing the jumping and lunging and I take care of the driving in the morning.

It is really hard but I find the minis do not need to be worked as much as the large horses so this saves time.

Just try and work out a schedule that works for both you and your family. Early mornings work here and its much cooler.
 
It is possible. You need to be extremely organized with your time, have the dedication to do it every day (it isn't easy) and most of all the support of your family. It also mean little or no free time.

I have a pretty crazy schedule. Here's my typical day:

Up at 4:45 a.m., throw on barn clothes, drive to the farm, feed, water and check on all horses. In for a quick cup of coffee with my mom, drop my dog off with her for doggy day care, then back home to shower and change for work. out the door by 6:15 a.m. commute to NY City (2++ hour trip). Work 8:30-5. Dash for the train. 2++ hour trip home. change from suit back into barn clothes, to the farm by 7:30. work and groom the show horses, get the dog back, drive home. dinner around 9:30. Go to bed.

Weekends are "catch up" days. when we don't have a show, we do hoof trims and anything else that needs to be done around the farm. I am also in charge of all mucking and paddock raking on the weekends. Monday-Friday my folks do it.

Training your own horses takes a lot of dedication -- that of you and most of all your spouse/significant other/family. It wouldn't be possible for me to do this if I couldn't count on the support of everyone around me.

This time of year is especially hard, as I am pulled away from home for 6 weeks -- smack in the middle of show season. My office relocates to Saratoga for the racing season, so I am gone from the end of July until after Labor Day with very few days off. My folks take up the slack and jump in and work the show horses in addition to all of their other responsibilities.

You have to decide if you want to dedicate your life that way. It isn't something that can be done any way but 100% because your horses will reflect your dedication. They will only be as fit and ready as YOU make them.

I find training and showing my own particularly rewarding because anything accomplished in the show ring is due to the hard work of me and my family. I went the trainer route with a horse once or twice and found that I don't like to watch. I want to be an active participant. I find it extremely unsatisfying any other way.

Jenifer

Millstone Farm
 
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Enough time in a day? No way! If it wasn't for my husband

[awesome man that he is] and three kids it wouldn't work. I am self-employed

which means 10-12 hour work days. In the summer my husband makes supper

just so I can work horses. Bless the man! Kim cleans stalls, Matt does water buckets, Courtney and I clean paddocks and work and groom horses. All of us take turns feeding, but I set the guidelines for the feed program. If I am away

Kim will work the horses. So you see its a group effort here. When we go to a show however, I'm in charge as my husband will have nothing to do with showing.

Talk about organized! The two girls and usually five horses, halter and driving.

We have a system and it works. But its true you have to be very organized and also very dedicated in order to do this. At the moment we are getting ready for nationals and I feel my horses are not being adequately worked, Linda B
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We have 19 mini's and a donkey. There is me, my husband and our daughter. I have a full time job, my husband runs our business, and my duaghter will be a senior this year in school and works for my husband (her Dad) when not at school.

I am a night person and my husband Jay is a morning person. Between us both and Chasta picking up everything extra she can when not doing school work we get by ok. Jay will feed in the morning, his day starts at 5 am. I get up at 6, when I get Chasta up. We go off to where we go everyday. Then at 5:30 we all meet back at home, work the horses, do some barn chores, feed everyone. Then go in the house and try to find something to eat.
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Between March and September this usually means something take out or a sandwich or Spaghettio's. In the winter all the horses, including the show horses are turned out and get to act like horses. That is usually when we get to play more with them, and watch a little tv everyonce in a while. Summer=no tv. We have an equipage, with a phone dialer. If I have been up watching a mare and just can not keep my eyes open, I will wake someone else up. Their turn. Fly home when the pager goes off. Everyone at work thinks we live in a crazy home. I love it.

I really don't think I could do it alone, this is a family effort. Each of us have our chores we do and at night when we are in a hurry it is kinda neat. We move around the barn getting everything done. We trade off turns in the round pen and who works the walker.

I really don't think I could ask for a better group of people to be around either than mini people. Lots of our social life is centered around other people with mini's and doing mini activities. Life is good, but boy am I tired!
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Fred said:
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Enough time in a day?  No way!  If it wasn't for my husband[awesome man that he is] and three kids it wouldn't work.  I am self-employed

which means 10-12 hour work days.  In the summer my husband makes supper

just so I can work horses. Bless the man!  Kim cleans stalls, Matt does water buckets, Courtney and I clean paddocks and work and groom horses.  All of us take turns feeding, but I set the guidelines for the feed program.  If I am away

Kim will work the horses.  So you see its a group effort here.  When we go to a show however, I'm in charge as my husband will have nothing to do with showing.

Talk about organized!  The two girls and usually five horses, halter and driving.

We have a system and it works. But its true you have to be very organized and also very dedicated in order to do this.  At the moment we are getting ready for nationals and I feel my horses are not being adequately worked,  Linda B
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Linda, isn't the saying something like "now that I work for myself, I only work half the time. I get to pick which 12 hours each day."
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I have not been able to do it either. I work full time and have the help of my sister and niece. When my niece was in high school and college she did alot of the training (she better at it then me - I spoil the horses too much). Now, she has graduated and has a full time job. Plus we moved to a bigger place (for the horses) and have more horses which adds up to more to do. I love to someday be able to hire a trainer to show some of my horses.

Typically, work day - up at 3:10 am and go directly down to take care of the horses. Back in the house and get ready for work. I am at work by 6 am. I try to leave at 3 pm but it doesn't always happen - sometimes 4 or 5 pm. Come home, eat supper. Go down and take care of the horses. Do what training we can fit in. In bed by 9 or 9:30 and then start over again.

The heat has been really hard on us this year. We are in a draught now. We don't feel like working the horses and it is too hot for them too.

I would love to have energy I had 13 years ago when I got my first mini!!!!!!!!!!

Where did it go?

Freida
 
would say the best investment you can make is lights for your arena so you have more time at nite to work them in the winter and fall.
 
Jill said:
Fred said:
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Enough time in a day?  No way!  If it wasn't for my husband[awesome man that he is] and three kids it wouldn't work.  I am self-employed

which means 10-12 hour work days.  In the summer my husband makes supper

just so I can work horses. Bless the man!  Kim cleans stalls, Matt does water buckets, Courtney and I clean paddocks and work and groom horses.  All of us take turns feeding, but I set the guidelines for the feed program.  If I am away

Kim will work the horses.  So you see its a group effort here.  When we go to a show however, I'm in charge as my husband will have nothing to do with showing.

Talk about organized!  The two girls and usually five horses, halter and driving.

We have a system and it works. But its true you have to be very organized and also very dedicated in order to do this.  At the moment we are getting ready for nationals and I feel my horses are not being adequately worked,  Linda B
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Linda, isn't the saying something like "now that I work for myself, I only work half the time. I get to pick which 12 hours each day."
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Sorry about that I hit the wrong key!

Jill, self employed certainly does mean 10-12 hours sometimes not the 10-12 I

want to do. We start at 6:30 am and I'm working horses at 9:30 pm usually!

My husband is also a farrier, so he has the same type of day I do. Believe me,

the man is worth his weight in gold! When I go to shows he has to cover my clients for me! Thiis time of year I'm really ticking off some clients as I get in too

late to return calls. Linda B
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