Agistment agreement checklist: what to put in writing before your horse moves in

Get legal advice. This is general information, not legal advice. Agistment law differs between states and territories, and the Victorian Act mentioned below doesn't apply elsewhere. Agriculture Victoria recommends an experienced legal adviser prepare the contract [1]. Use this checklist to work out what you need, then have a lawyer draft or review it.

Most agistment starts with a chat over a gate. That's fine until something goes wrong: the horse is injured, the fees stop, the dam dries up, or a fire comes through. Agriculture Victoria points out that verbal agreements "rarely plan for problems such as horse injury or disease, non-payment by owners, or the need to relocate horses because of fire, flood or drought" [1]. And if one party disputes the deal or can't be reached, the other is left in a difficult position.

A written agreement protects both sides. Here's what it should cover, drawn from Agriculture Victoria's guidance on agistment contracts [1].

Who's responsible for what

Agriculture Victoria sets out the usual split [1]:

Horse owners are normally responsible for:

• caring for the horse and paying all associated costs
• insurance for the horse, and for any damage it causes
• telling the landholder about any disease the horse is carrying
• checking the horse routinely to make sure the agreement is being met
• making sure the landholder can contact them (or their representative) in an emergency.

Landholders are usually responsible for:

• telling owners if the property becomes unsuitable (for example, diseased animals on site)
• telling owners about any accident or injury. Agriculture Victoria notes the landholder would not be liable unless it was due to negligence.
• sending invoices, and final notice before any planned sale to recover costs
• giving the owner access to records of costs and any sale proceeds, and paying out any money left over.

The checklist

Agriculture Victoria's outline of what to consider, arranged as a checklist [1]:

1. The parties

• Full names and contact details of owner and landholder
• A witness
• An emergency representative for the owner
• The type of arrangement, especially if it's tied to training or stud services

2. The horse(s)

• Name, colour and markings (brands, whorls, scars) of every horse
• Pre-existing injuries, ailments or vices
• Vaccination record (tetanus, strangles, Hendra), plus dates of worming and dental care

A printed horse health record is an easy way to attach this.

3. Money

• Duration of the agreement
• Fees, charges and payment schedule
• What happens if fees aren't paid: lien, sale of the horse (and any progeny), and updating ownership papers
• Owner's indemnity for agreed vet or other costs the landholder pays
• Advance payment, if required
• Owner's access to records of costs and any sale
• Whether fees can be re-evaluated in drought or flood
• For training contracts: how prizemoney is allocated during and just after the contract

4. Standard of care

• Accommodation, shelter and fencing
• Stocking rate, allowing for seasonal conditions
• Authority to call the vet, dentist or farrier, and spending limits
• Who is responsible for the horse's welfare, day to day
• Owner's right to inspect
• Pest and disease management: quarantine, paddock rotation, worming, teeth, feet, vaccinations
• Special diets; quality of pasture, feed and supplements
• Pasture care: fertiliser, weeds, irrigation
• Water supply (dams, troughs, tanks)
• A description of the service and the standard of care
• For studs: pregnancy, foaling and foal care

5. Ending the agreement

• End date and/or notice period
• How the arrangement can change if circumstances change
• Who pays transport to return the horse
• Final payment
• For stud contracts: progeny, stud book submission, live foal guarantee

6. Disputes

• A dispute resolution clause. Agriculture Victoria suggests that for higher-value contracts this can send disputes to an agreed expert, or one appointed by an industry body, rather than the courts [1].

7. Fire, flood and drought

Agriculture Victoria lists ways the contract can deal with sudden jumps in feed and pasture costs [1]:

• Landholder can end a flat-fee agreement after giving notice
• Costs can be re-evaluated in adverse weather
• Owner supplies feed and water if the property can no longer support the horse
• Short-term agreements that renew automatically unless either side gives notice

Add a bushfire plan. Agriculture Victoria recommends that owners of agisted horses set up a bushfire emergency plan with the landholder [2]. Agree who moves the horses, where to, and on what trigger. See our bushfire plan for horses.

Non-payment, liens and the right to sell

This is the clause most likely to cause a fight, so understand it before you sign.

In Victoria, even without a written agreement covering non-payment, the Impounding of Livestock Act 1994 lets a landholder create a lien over an agisted horse if fees aren't paid, and take steps to sell, dispose of or destroy the horse if the debt stays unpaid [1]. Many landholders keep these rights in their contracts, and may also ask for power of attorney so they can sell the horse with proper papers [1]. Other states have their own laws, which is one reason to get local legal advice.

If you're the owner, Agriculture Victoria lists protections you can ask for [1]:

• a minimum period the debt must be outstanding before any sale
• the option to pay part of the debt to postpone a sale
• invoices and final notice sent to you and your representative before sale
• the auction advertised in a named newspaper.

Agriculture Victoria notes that clear sale terms can actually help owners: they know the consequences, the debt stays smaller, and any surplus from a sale is more likely to come back to them [1].

Watch out: who actually owns the horse?

• If the contract isn't signed by the owner or all co-owners, it may not be upheld in court [1].
• Lessees and trainers can't offer a lien or the right to sell as security, because they don't own the horse [1].
• Landholders may ask signatories to declare they're the sole owner, hold power of attorney, or have authority to sign for co-owners. Alternatives are getting all co-owners to sign, or payment in advance [1].
• Foals: under common law the mare's owner owns the foal and is liable for its agistment. If a landholder wants the right to sell progeny to recover debts, that needs the owner's signed agreement [1].

Welfare is a shared responsibility

Agriculture Victoria notes that both owners and landholders can be held legally liable if agisted horses aren't properly cared for [1]. Write down when responsibility for welfare passes from one person to another, especially when horses move for breeding or because of fire, flood or drought [1]. Owners should still check their horses, or appoint an agent to do it [1].

Before you sign: practical checks

• PIC: Agriculture Victoria says owners of properties where horses are agisted must have a Property Identification Code [3]. Ask for it.
• Walk the fences, check the water and shelter, and look at the condition of the horses already there.
• Ask what other horses come and go, and the property's worming and vaccination rules.
• Ask for the bushfire plan.
• Compare the total cost, not just the weekly rate. Our agistment tool helps you compare what's included and has a printable checklist.
• Agriculture Victoria also suggests your industry association can help with standard contracts and referrals to experienced legal advisers [1].

Then take your notes to a lawyer. Getting advice at the start usually costs far less than a dispute over a horse later.