If I could give the volunteers and fellow boarders 5 stars, I absolutely would. They are the only reason this place functions and they are the ones who truly care about the horses.
Unfortunately, the actual business practices and treatment of clients were some of the most unprofessional and unpredictable I have ever experienced. The financial terms of our contract were changed behind our backs and behind the backs of multiple boarders. When we questioned why we were suddenly being charged double and asked about the changes in the contract language, we were told not to question her authority because she's "the business owner" and that we should just pay because we are "wealthy and have fancy cars" (see pic). "60 days" you are asked to pay when leaving turns into 90+ days upon departure- its insane and if you contest it- that's when things turn very nasty. The people giving 5 star reviews will see at some point what this place is and who management is if you contest their fraudulent practices.
The lesson company on the property, Valara Equestrian Academy, was also charging our credit card through a completely different company (The Peaceful Equine LLC) that has been administratively dissolved since 2023 (and isn't even filed as a riding/training business) That is ILLEGAL We asked for the legal business name multiple times and it couldn't be produced. I'm not sure how that works with liability insurance but I wish I had looked into this sooner but initially we were naive. We had no idea because the company name processing the charges was different from the one listed on the paperwork and branding. We only discovered it later after going back through records and statements. . We slowly uncovered fraudulent, unethical, and deceptive business practices at every turn.
Beyond the financial and business issues, the conditions & care for the horses were less than satisfying and safety was a big concern. Our stalls constantly had manure left in them even after they had supposedly been cleaned the pic was before the horse was even turned back into the stall). And honestly, this was not the workers' fault. Expecting one person to properly clean that many stalls by 2pm was unrealistic. The staff work hard -- management cuts corners at every chance they get for example getting rid of "night check" so the last time the horses have any forage is 2pm UNLESS the boarder provides more hay and is on property to fill and hang hay bags. Plan to spend a lot of additional money from buying shavings that won't hurt your horse, a ton of hay and additional fees to store said hay. Having horses go from 2pm- 6am with no forage is not good care. One of our horses ended up with Ulcers- (this was also not cheap to treat ) due to stress and limited access to adequate forage and the other lost a ton of weight. see pic
Top- week we bought him and brought to ST.
Middle - Week we left ST (he had been there only 4 months)
Bottom- taken today at new barn 4 months later
We couldn't be happier with our new barn and the care they get.
We also had to spend our own money making both of our stalls safe and habitable because of rotted flooring and sharp boards sticking out from the stall walls. Boarders should not be expected to repair dangerous stalls themselves just so their horses can safely stand inside them. Boarders were expected to pay out of pocket for repairs and safety fixes to their own stalls, despite the facility itself not being properly maintained, because we were repeatedly told "the barn can't afford it."
The shavings were also unsafe (see pics), I don't know if I would even call them shavings. On several occasions there were loose wires hanging in the paddocks and in the dirt causing one of our horses legs to get caught.
The manipulation and toxic behavior from the trainer -- especially within the group of teenage girls -- was also incredibly unprofessional and honestly pretty disturbing to look back on after leaving. The texts I have uncovered from trainer to my daughter and having her call her at all hours. Very un professional. Their response to another negative review on Google should tell you all you need to know. (See pic).
Looking back now, there were red flags everywhere. I genuinely wish we had left far sooner than we did. I have heard from many people/boarders past and present that years ago this was a beautiful family run establishment but unfortunately has gone down hill under more recent management. Dont be fooled by positive reviews. I wish we hadn't been. I wish we paid attention to the mass exodus of boarders leaving when we first arrived. read more