Need help/suggestions.....

[Neeners]

ok, so ive been working for the barn owner feeding/turning out the horses in the morning. im only supposed to work M-F but on the weekends i feel awful that im feeding my guys and the others are all banging on their doors and barn owner doesnt make it out til around 10ish (im there no later then 6) so i feed/turnout the other horses as well.. Here is the problem... this is the most poorly run barn ive been in, he doesnt insist that the board be paid in a reasonable amount of time, some of the boarders go months without paying, in turn he doesnt have the money to pay for hay only buys in small amounts and usually runs out with barely enough to give everyone a flake or two. Now he only feeds 4 flakes a day to each horse (not including my horses there are 12 horses there.. 4 of his own)..all the horses are in good weight so they are getting something, he does not clean stalls everyday.. even if they come in...there are 15 cats there and he will let them go a few days (i bought cat food this week just so they would stop crying at me when i walked in the door) with no food because we ran out before we were supposed to have. I understand being on a budget (hubby works full time and the wife is a stay at home mom) They have a large amount of chickens/geese/roosters/guinea hens who have been traveling down to the barn (which im disgusted with) to eat the cat food, he leaves the cans of feed open without lids and does not close the door to the feed room, lord forbid a horse gets loose and heads into to the feed room... founder and colic... I know a lot of barns dont have tractors, but his has been broken for a while.. i understand the cost, but in this snow its been difficult to maneuver without it being plowed.. this morning i got the jeep we use to feed out of stuck in the snow and had to pull my truck up to it, load all that stuff in my truck and feed from there..(:curse::curse::curse:) the horses that have run-ins normally dont come in.
He has been talking about raising board and taking in more boarders.. He can barely keep up with what he has and if i didnt help out as much as i can (and although it is a good deal its not really 'worth' all that i do in this weather and extra for him) he wouldnt get that much done either. Now here is where I need help, I want to give him a clue on how to better run his operation but im not really sure how to go about it.. He avoids confrontation like the plague (as do i normally) and i know he will feel 'attacked' when i approach him so im asking how to nicely tell him that he has GOT TO GET A CLUE on this.. Its not fair to any of the animals there. Financial problems are happening to everyone lately, but i feel that the boarders that do pay arent getting the care they are paying for.. The hay that he got last week was SO bad that i was afraid to feed it to the horses.. full of dust, some with mold, and pricklies... really bad hay, i told him that this was horrible but instead of getting a different batch and complaining to the people that sold it to him, he fed it anyway. The horses did eat it, but for their 4 flakes a day im sure that they were happy to receive anything. Thankfully i buy my own hay from a good supplier and i never have to worry about my own horses care, but i just cant sit by and let this continue. Suggestions please???

[ZenRider]

ONly suggestion I have is that you and TinaNTango need to buy a barn together. ;D Wish I could offer more.

[Neeners]

lol I WISH.. unless the very minimum amount of $500,000 falls into my lap buying a farm here is out of the question, not to mention the $7000 in taxes you would have to pay WITH farm assessment. Actually, i was toying the idea of renting the whole barn from him and showing him how its done lol but i know he would try to rob me blind in rent and it wouldnt be worth it for the work i would be putting in. ... did i mention the pile of garbage (shavings bags, buckets, ripped blankets and other misc. stuff like hay bale wires) laying infront of the feed room that he hasnt taken to the front of the house to be picked up in weeks??

[Amy]

but lord help you if you push enough of my buttons!

Okay, this suggestion may be WAY out there, but I'm going to offer it anyway. Maybe if we all brainstorm, you can take bits and pieces and find your answer.

Instead of renting the barn from him, what if you offer him a proposition, you manage the barn in exchange for free board. If you could get the boarders to pay on time, and offer other more timely services, maybe you could take on one or two other boarders that would do the chores (mucking, feeding, etc.) that you're doing now, then you really wouldn't have to put in any more time than you already are (theoritically,!). Of course, if this actually works, and he sees what a well run barn can bring in, he may try to continue taking in more and more boarders. You would definitely have to put some guidelines in writing.

By doing this, your not really confronting him, you're just saying, "So, you want to make some money? What would you think if I could bring in x amount for you each month?"

Now that I've written this down, I realized I've dumbed it down quite a bit and I've never run a barn so I'm sure there's gobs more to it than I realize. There are tons of details that would have to be worked out but what do you think? Isn't the bottom line that he's just looking for a steady income? That's what you would be offering him.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

Amy

[horsepowerco]

Neeners...I would have him come out to the barn and say look...I can see from the shape of things out here you are in over your head, time and money wise. I want to be able to help you and I think this can be done in a reasonable fashion. Will you let me help you? Let me act as the farm/barn manager and I will make sure all moneys are collected in at timey fashion, feed/hay is bought in the amounts needed to get quanity discounts and I'm willing to continue to help you with feeding and turn out. But by raising your rent now and taking in more boarders this will only cause more problems, we need to get a handle on whats currently wrong now with what we've got. In exchange you get paid and get to keep your horse for free. If you're able to collect the board money on time then there should enough to help pay for your time as well as the feed bills. Make a list of things that need either repaired/ moved or tossed out to the curb and put them in order of priority. ASk him if and when he can address these issues and if he can't tell him you will have to pay someone to do it...when he loses a few bucks maybe he'll start to see the light. Also stress the fact that after you 2 have got a handle on the place and the current problems and things are running like a well oiled machine THEN you can think about raising the rent! But always make him feel included...try to reason with him on his level...its HIS PLACE and as long as he runs it the way he wants nothing will change. It sounds as if hes over whelmed with all need to be addressed and maybe just needs to know someone is willing to help and will lok out for his interets as well as the business. Most horsepeople are not good business people and they mean well, but just needs a kick in the pants to get headed in the right direction!

[Smay]

Boy, this is a tricky one Neeners - sounds a little like Tina's problems, but not as bad yet. I would try to do as Horsepower says, ALTHOUGH you are already receiving free board for your work, right? and you STILL have to pay for your own feed and bedding, right? For the amount of work you're doing, you may be getting the short end of the stick, because as you have discovered, the owner there is happy to have you do MORE than you bargained for. It IS impossible to ignore the other horse's needs when attending to you own. I can't imagine dishing out that measly hay to the poor things, while your horses chow down happily on their GOOD hay...that must make you feel so mean! I can barely give my PONY his grass hay, when the other two are getting their beautiful mixed greens! He practically CRIES and so I give him some anyway although he's the fattest pony around at present. I think you'd have to do all or nothing, and I'm trying to figure out how you could not get ripped off for it....

I bet an offer to "manage" the property might be acceptable to him... Unfortunately, you'd have to have access to funds to do so, and he probably wouldn't want to have that...If you could do your purchasing through an account system - where he gets billed for what you order...that would work. Then you could keep the good quality feeds, hay and bedding on hand that you need, and he would get the bill. In return, you'd be doing the work, and collecting the board for the current residents... It's more than fair...for him. The paycheck you'd receive would be free board, feed, hay and bedding for your two horses. No more buying your own. The only other way it could work would be for you to have supplies delivered, and have him ready to pay by check when they came in... Like "the hay guy is coming with 100 bales today, so have a check ready for $400 and I'll pay him." Etc. OK, and another way to propose it would be for you to say you'll manage the barn, and collect the board money to deposit in a barn account separate from his account, from which you'd write checks for all supplies and feed. You'd quickly see whether the barn was self-sustaining at the board rate you have now.... if there's money left each month, then that's his profit. Again, your paycheck is the free FULL board for two horses.

[LynnC]

This is a tough one!! I see where you are coming from, but you are going to burn yourself out with always doing the work yourself. I agree with some of the posts on the board. Approach him in a way that benefits him. He may be feeling overwhelmed which has made him lose interest a little. But, he can't let the feeding go until later morning or the horses will be crazy. By the way, you are doing an awful lot of work......you are practically running the place already. He should be paying you plus giving you free board. I hope it works out for you.

[Neeners]

Thanks guys, these are all great ideas, i will use them when approaching him (soon) My board isnt totally free.. basically i get 2 free stalls and i have to pay for my own hay/feed/bedding.. My responsibilities are to just hay/feed grain and turnout the horses that are in, in the mornings.. No stalls although i do do a few on occasion because his idea of clean and mine are totally different and i have a problem with horses living in filth. Feed cats (also not a responsibility but no one else does it) and im not supposed to do weekends but i have been for the past 5 weeks. Ill also cover for him when he is late getting home from work and the horses need to be fed at night.
I wouldnt mind being the barn manager, infact i know i can do the job very well its just him not wanting to give up position and the pay issue.. He says he cant afford to pay for a manager. I would even take things out in trade (supplies and such) but he is just interested in bringing IN the money and not the actual care part. *sigh* some people just dont need to be running a barn/boarding facility

[niaru]

That Barn Manager idea sounds like a good one, if you're ready for such a commitment...Good luck to you!