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  Discussion on Farm owner responsibility to keep stalls safe?
Author Message
Member:
Angel77

Posted on Saturday, Jun 18, 2005 - 4:41 am:

Recently my horse was seriously injured and damaged for life by a shifting clamp with two 2 1/2 inch screws protruding into my horses stall. The clamp(which was facing in a safe direction 2yrs ago) holds the roof of the outdoor pipe corral. This last winter in Calif we had record rain.

Isn't there some kind of Farm or property insurance for boarders that would reimburse a person for Medical for the horse considering he was injured for life by pure neglect of the owners not inspecting each and every stall for any dangerous protrusions.

I inspected the stall myself before I moved in. It was fine. Now 2 yrs later there were several places that had to be wrapped in the last two weeks.

Any and all comments are welcome. I would like to add, I do love this particular ranch. I do not want to leave. I am looking for an amicable solution for everyone.


Thank you
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Saturday, Jun 18, 2005 - 9:14 am:

Hello WTG,
When did you first notice the clamp had moved? Yes the barn owner's have responsibilities but you do too. When it comes to determining whether your horse is in a safe environment or not I would say it is at least equal and perhaps a lot greater than those who run the barn. If you have brought this problem to their attention several times prior to the accident, I could understand your position of "pure neglect" but if you looked at this situation dozens of times and said nothing you should keep this is mind when you consider what is amicable.
DrO
Member:
Jojo15

Posted on Saturday, Jun 18, 2005 - 11:33 am:

i have boarded for 12 y ears, each circumstance was different (only 2 different places). One was a homeowner ranch and they expected me to pay for horse damage to property, but they kept the quality up themselves. At the other ranch, once i moved in it was my responsibility to keep up the stall, feed room and surrounding area. Whether or not it was horse related or not. The only thing i couldn't do was install my own fans or add electrical.

I think Dr. O has an excellent point. If you complained about it repeatedly than you should ask for their help in covering medical expenses. But chances are, you aren't going to receive any. It depends on how ethical they are, and your relationship to them.

I do think it's your responsibility first. You are in the stall daily, and you see how its aging. Unless they are full boarding facility and you have a contract to that, i can't imagine them feeling they are solely liable for this accident.

What kind of damage did the horse endure? Is he unridable? or just has a nasty scar for ever.

jo
Member:
Angel77

Posted on Monday, Jun 20, 2005 - 3:42 am:

Dear Dr.O and JOJ,

The horse has been in this stall for two years. I had been asking the owners to cut the pipes which are sticking up vertically instead of being flush with the other pipes. The injury occurred because of 2 2and 1/2" screws that were not in my stall when I moved in. The screws were facing away from my stall when I moved in and out of the way of any danger. I understand that if I were to fall off that would be my fault. But to have an accident in a stall that supposedly was safe I believe is not right. I did not notice the clamp shifting at all. It is in an invisible spot. Belive me I wish to God I had noticed it before any of this happened.


I have wrapped all of the pipes appropriately. The stall is now safe.

I was out of town when this happened. Thankfully my girlfriend who rides him noticed right away and the vet was out in less than 30 minutes.

The horse lost his eye-enucleated. He is happy to be home with his girlfriend Angel. They get turned out together everyday.

My horse has jumped a little since he has been home. He seems fine. We are going to take it easy for a couple of months. So all we can do in life is forge ahead and hope for the best.

Thank you for your support,

WTG
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Monday, Jun 20, 2005 - 10:25 am:

We are trying to support you WTG by giving you a frame of mind that will prevent this from happening again: you do not assume something is safe because someone else says so. What is important here is the horse's injury may have been preventable and for everyone reading this post to get it in their minds that they are very responsible for their horse's situation. If you leave this to someone else, that does not care as much as you do for your horse, it will not be done as well as you can do it. Examine your horses stall carefully and fix those errant nails, screws, and other harmful areas today!
DrO
Member:
Jojo15

Posted on Monday, Jun 20, 2005 - 11:29 am:

wtg, i am so sorry to hear he lost his eye. what is enucleated? poor thing. This is a hard lesson learned. and i for one am going to look over my pasture today. (we don't stall anymore) One reason that every where i boarded it was never really up to standard. Unless it was a full board 500 or more a month facility. too rich for my blood.

I have a friend who had a one eyed horse. she retrained him and was arena jumping within the year with him. Winning Too!!! what an astounding horse. his injury didn't hurt his living a full life.

I know how angry you must be...at yourself and these farm owners. But, i firmly believe that holding a grudge, trying to sue and other negative things, just don't make it better. You can't reverse the damage. And you can't change people. Just keep it realistic and try to work it out with them.
Member:
Angel77

Posted on Thursday, Jun 23, 2005 - 2:35 am:

Dear JOJ,

I am at a full boarding facility(very expensive) with over 115 horses. I am not a sueing type of person.

I just believe that this could have been prevented if the owners would take care of their ranch as any reputable full boarding facility with a conscience would do. By the way, CA state law states that all boarding facilities must have insurance for such in stall injury occurances.

I am not attempting to be negative in any way. I love this ranch. It would be great if the owners would at least show some compassion and ethics by offering to claim it on their insurance or free board for the next 9,000.

Which is what this entire feasco has cost. Let alone the emotional stress on me and the horse.

And by the way I took off work to be with my horse for the 23 days he was in the two hospitals. I love him and did not want to leave his side.

I am looking for an amicable solution for all involved.

Sincerely,

WTG
Member:
Angel77

Posted on Thursday, Jun 23, 2005 - 2:43 am:

Dear Dr. O,

The injury happened in a place that was not asked to be repaired. It happened in an invisible place in the stall that no one was aware of the presence of 2 21/2 inch long screws that were not capped,wrapped, or sawed off.

Thank you for your support!!! God Bless all creatures and the people who take care of them!!!

Sincerely,

WTG
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