Mt Miguel Equestrian Center

This used to be a barn I liked and recommended but not after the BS the owner pulled a few weeks ago. Seriously take some lessons on bein nice and how to talk to people. They are ok with horses but you gonna get nickeled and dimed for every lil thing an get bs for askin. Go to a place that’s not gonna be nothing but kids there for lessons getting in the way and mean people. There is more places close by that are better for riding.

There are many boarding faculties my horse Cody has been to in the past 11 years that I’ve owned him and have been unhappy with about 70% of them. Mt Miguel Equestrain Center is surly not one of them. I have been boarding him here for a few years now and my horse and I have been truly happy! Judy the owner of this barn is professional, knowledgeable and takes pride with passion in her business and her clients (horses)
She takes the time to walk around grounds and checks on all the horses just to make sure everyone is doing AOK, especially during hot seasons. She will also help out financially during vet clinics if something comes up unexpectedly with your horse. I have never had feeding or cleaning issues. My horses stall is ALWAYS clean with consistent workers. My boys gets nervous and upset when A barn is
forever changing hands. Anytime I’ve ever needed anything fixed it is done immediately
My boy Cody also participated in the training. Emily is his trainer and we love her!
She steps out of the box to help or answer questions you may have pertaining training with your horse or yourself. She is kind and loves her horse family. She owns many lessons horses to accommodate all needs. Whether you’re into Hunter Jumper, Huntseat or Western she has it! Don’t worry about your training level, Emily concours all.
The arena is huge so there is always room to ride even during lessons or kids camp!
This barn has truly been a great experience for Cody and I and i’m proud to say we’ve been a part of this faculty.
Cody and I will be soon moving and this saddens me and hope and pray that our new location will be half as good as this barn has been. If not we will be back!
Cody and I wish you all the best in life and we give big thanks to Judy, her team and Emily for caring for us when we needed you!!!
God bless you all.

So instead of writing a huge paragraph of complaints, I’m going to write a list:
1. Property looks like it’s falling apart. The box stalls are a wreck, even with the re painting. It is also incredibly crowded with horses.
2. For how much money you’re paying a month, you’d think they’d feed your horse enough to keep him fat and happy right? Well that’s not the case. All horses are fed the same amount, not according to their weight or needs. And the amount isn’t much.
3. The workers are sometimes incredibly late, and the horses don’t get fed until 8AM. Which makes me feel horrible for the lesson horses who start their lessons around 8:30 and can’t get their food down, being hungry the rest of the day.
4. Now to the lesson horses, there’s usually 6 – 8 of them in the arena. So imagine a 7 yr old trying to maneuver around the arena at a trot, while you’re trying to jump a course. Yes, people have crashed. It’s a total mess.
5. There are 2 trainers on the property. They’re fine if you want to learn the basics, aren’t serious about showing and just want to have fun. But it’s when you get into the intermediate and advanced training that you know they don’t know enough. In particular the Hunter/​jumper trainer, all you have to do is watch her ride and you’ll know her education on the sport. Because I really don’t care how knowledgeable you may say you are, a trainer that can’t ride, can’t train.
6. They used to have horrible footing. Now they have updated to deeper footing, which is fine for the flat, but not good at all for anything over fences.
7. Apparently the owner feels water cost is too high on the property so she has removed all hoses in the bathing stations. If you want to bathe your horse you must sponge bathe your 1500 lb animal with a bucket of water.
8. And last but not least, the barn owner is uneducated, unprofessional, and always lets emotion and pride get in the way of business.
There are much nicer places to board in San Diego for the amount of money you’re being charged. So look around before you decide to board at this facility.

I have nothing but the best things to say about this facility! It is professionally run and kept immaculate at all times! The staff is caring and takes amazing care of all of the horses there! The owners are great make sure that you feel welcome at all times!

Last week my horse was stolen from me and sold to a person/​boarder at mt. miguel. When i arrived to seize my animal, I was forced to leave the property by Judy the «owner» and her husband. Later after the authorities were called, I was allowed to seize my animal and return him home safely. The horse/​animal loving community should know that this place is incredibly «shady» institution and no one should support this facility or a any facility owned by these people. It is sad how such a nice area has such horrible, manipulating people in it.

My daughter has never enjoyed sports like her older brother, so we were looking for something that she could look forward to each week… and we found it! She is 8 years-​old and has been taking weekly riding lessons with Emily since September. She loves it so much that she asked to have her birthday party there, which we did, with five inexperienced riders. Emily’s young volunteers (who were professional and knowledgeable) gave a mini lesson on basic horse care and handling, then off they all went for actual riding in the large arena. My daughter declared this «the BEST birthday party ever!!» In addition to watching her ride, I love watching my daughter’s confidence grow each week :)

Hello all! I just wanted to tell you about a wonderful experience here today. I called ahead of time to ask if they had any horse poop that they could either sell me or give it to me for free. The girl on the phone was extremely friendly and advised me that YES we could come during opening hours. We drove down there and found a lovely place! They have many horses that they do boarder care for and the horses are beautiful and well taken care of. They have a volunteer program for people to come down and brush the horses and if you are knowledgeable maybe even turn them out (Take them to the coral and walk them out for exercise). Athena was the first impression of this establishment. I advised her that we were there to get Poop. She giggled and then directed us toward where we should go. Athena changed her mind and walked us over to where it was. That was nice because it was a little bit far away. While we were walking we asked if there were a possibility of the Grand babies petting a horse. She said «Absolutely» and walked us over to Her horse and allowed the babies to pet her horse. My Grands were so excited and afraid at the same time that they might have pooped on themselves. The horses were clearly very happy here. Prior to leaving a customer name Emily (At least that is what I think her name was) started chatting us up. She advised us of the different programs that they have here including the volunteer stuff I mentioned above. Including riding lessons and teenage volunteers. Turns out that the great customer service girl was only 14 years old. AMAZING! If you have a horse that needs to be boarded this is a great place for you. I also learned about another amazing experience. Did you know that you can lease a horse? IE: If a person boards their horse there and are unable to brush or walk their horses frequently you can lease them. According to my understanding it is an individual contract with the owners of the horse. You go and brush, groom (if you have the skill) and ride the horse along with possible re-​shoeing fees and pay a monthly fee toward their boarding to have an unmentioned un-​contractual ownership of the horse. I will be coming back to volunteer to help take care of them just because I have already found a kinship with several of the horses. Funny how animals make you fall in love at first sight! I want my grands to take lessons and I will update you on that part later.
PS: I love this place!

Clearly the one reveiwer has an axe to grind, and is NOT a true Unilocaler!!! Most probably «Bully» is an unethical competitor. People with less than 25 reviews I don’t take seriously! We keep our horse here, she is not a competition horse, more of a pet with an extreme pedigree! The paddocks are cleaned daily, the hay is of good quality and the rates are reasonable. They have 3 round pens, tilled daily, and a large riding arena. The footing is not bad, it does get dusty though. This is home to many young riders who want to simply enjoy their mounts in a friendly setting, it is not a competive show barn, though each have their places within the equestrian community! Perhaps horses at MMEC may have more leg wrappings/​problems or vet visits as horses get passed down to younger, less experienced riders as they age. These older horses do require more care, chiropractic and otherwise. It speaks to kindness and compassion at this barn that these older mounts get the care needed and are still doing a job they know to do well, as opposed to being neglected and put out to pasture. A horse with a job is always a happier horse! These horses are more forgiving and very valuable in teaching a young rider to become better. There are different barns for different riders, disciplines, levels, incomes and this barn serves a good purpose. BTW; we don’t and never have worked with any of the trainers here! I hope this helps clear up for you what I found to be an illigitimate earlier review. Feel free to peruse my other reviews, you will realize I tell it like I see it, hoping it helps you.

I love Mt. Miguel Equestrian Center! Have had my horses boarded there for years! The only skinny horses are the ones coming in from other ranches. Owner and staff bend over backwards to make sure my needs and those of my horses are met. Mt. Miguel is full of people who love their horses. That makes the center busy and fun and I have lots of friends there. I’ve personally known the barn manager/​owner for over 40 years and she is educated, professional, has a strong ethical compass, is passionate about safety/​rules/​regulations and following the law.