2 horses on 2 acres - doable?

J

Jericho

Well-Known Member
Joined
26 February 2008
Messages
2,568
Visit site
Potentially moving house and we have a 15.1hh and 13.2hh at home on 4 acres at the mo. Have found a lovely house which only has 2 acres of paddocks. Both horses are very good doers and in the summer they are on less than acre but am worried in winter I will just have a mud pit. Anyone else keep their horses on similar and what are the downsides / upsides and any tips in laying out the stables and fields?

We would need to build a stable yard so I guess I could incorporate a large hardcore area and use that in the winter to save the fields a bit.
thanks
 
Do-able May to October, you may even need to split field into 2 paddocks and graze 4 to 6 weeks in each [this is what I do].
however if they are to be turned out there in the winter too then they will make a mess of the ground.
maybe fence off a quarter acre area near the stables and cover it with menage -grade woodchip [Ransfords sell it] and use this for winter turnout for a few hours each day. This would keep the paddocks decent.
 
Horsesforever1 said:
Do-able May to October, you may even need to split field into 2 paddocks and graze 4 to 6 weeks in each [this is what I do].
however if they are to be turned out there in the winter too then they will make a mess of the ground.
Click to expand...

Ok so summer will be ok but during the winter - daily turnout in one paddock only to save the grass in the other? Would you need to reseed the trashed paddock and rest for a few months every spring?
 
Exactly as you suggest - if you make a good hard standing area and good sized stables (mine are 20 x12 each in a barn) then you can be prepared for keeping them in for a few days in the worst weather. I would scarifice a half an acre in winter and use off the ground hay feeders you can move about to stop poaching. This way you will have some summer grazing. I only have 1.5 acres at home - oversized stables in a barn and a sand manege. I have managed 3 (a 16.3, a 14.2 and a 10hh) on that for years. I now have 10 acres I bought literally up the road, but actually for the good doers my home set up is just perfect.

At the moment I have a 15.1, a 14.2 and the 10hh at home and they get hay in the field and are in at night and all fed small hard feeds. All are happy and I can throw out some treat balls when I am feeling generous :D It is indeed very doable.
 
Our neighbours have three horses (16.2, 15h and 13h), and whilst they have 4 acres of grass they keep 2 for making hay and only use 2 for grazing. They strip graze as much of the year as possible until it gets too wet. They then stable 3pm till 7am and turn out 7am-3pm. They have two summer paddocks (total about an acre) and two winter paddocks of 0.25 and 0.75 acres. In the winter when the ground is decent, so frozen or just not too wet, they use the bigger winter paddock. When things get really muddy and sticky they use the small paddock and use lots of hay. It seems to work for them. They never reseed, with the entire summer off the winter grazing just seems to always recover for them.
 
Dont forget that the stables, storage and muck heap will take up quite a bit of room

I think you'd just about get away with it if you use the yard for part of the winter

Fields usually recover without being re-seeded as long as you can give them enough rest
 
I had 2 horses on an acre each from Jan onwards. They did make quite a mess!! But we are on very wet clay. Fields totally recovered now and full of grass. The horses were out from 8 a.m - 6 p.m and in overnight.
 
Personally I could not cope with that!

I have four on 6 acres; Only use 1 for the summer ( track system and strip graze ) 5 for the winter.

I do like mine living out in the winter though, they come in during the day April until October and can wander in and out of their stables and around the yard. All good doer's and one laminitic.

If you can make a hardstanding area that would be good.
 
It is doable but it depends on what type of ground you are on as to how well it drains and recovers and also how well you manage it.

I have approx 2 acres and in the winter I divide it in half and keep both horses seperate as otherwise one is always tearing around destroying the ground and rugs. This way only half gets destroyed as the other doesn't like mud and doesn't mess around. I also keep fencing off different areas to let ground recover and I fertilise and overseed each spring. In July/August time I fence off a good square in the centre of the field and then strip graze that until Christmas. From Jan to March there is not really anything out there for them to eat and they get fed hay out in the field all winter.

I don't turn out 24/7. Mine come in at night all year round and are only out for 8 hours max in winter.

I have good draining soil but think I would struggle if it was clay.

I was always look at it in February and think it will never recover, but some TLC, some rolling and harrowing and resting and it does come back. The trouble is the more it is allowed to get poached the more weeds will take hold so you need to invest in some weedkiller whilst resting and fertilising areas.
 
I only have just over an acre of grazing and have 2 small horses and a mini. I currently have too much grass! All are good doers on a track system. In winter they are not turned out on the fields - we are on very heavy clay in a flood plain so in wet weather it is just not possible. When the ground freezes they can go out on the fields, but tbh I don't normally bother as I have a very large concrete yard they get turned out on that joins straight on to large school. They get hay on the yard and gate to school opened and have plenty of food and room to play. This means the fields get rested all winter (if being under water for a few months at a time can count as being rested?) so there is plenty of grass for 24/7 grazing march - October.
 
I think that should be OK. What sort of soil are you on? I am on heavy clay and have 3 horses of 17hh living out on 3 acres. It is proper old ley and recovers without fertilising or reseeding, it just gets well harrowed when it dries out. Their hay feeder is the far end so I don't have to look at the mess around it! A hardstanding area by the stable sounds like a good idea.
 
Jericho said:
Potentially moving house and we have a 15.1hh and 13.2hh at home on 4 acres at the mo. Have found a lovely house which only has 2 acres of paddocks. Both horses are very good doers and in the summer they are on less than acre but am worried in winter I will just have a mud pit. Anyone else keep their horses on similar and what are the downsides / upsides and any tips in laying out the stables and fields?

We would need to build a stable yard so I guess I could incorporate a large hardcore area and use that in the winter to save the fields a bit.
thanks
Click to expand...



Well first think carefuly where you put the stables . (drainage etc).

As horses will hang round the gate and if the stables are close to the house and they are on the downward, it will get boggy.


Next Yes it is do able. I have 11 animals on 8 acres, our land copes VERY VERY well in fact we have way way to much grass.

I would divide the fields into 2 so you can rest one and use one.

I would not have them out full time so less damage to land.

remember to weed kill fertilize etc and dee poo.

The old saying 1 1/2 acres for the first horse and 1 for every other horse is true based on


land
drainage
maintenance
de poo
feed
horse size
time grazing

I personally will not do grass livery for many reasons

I always believed in the above till we brought this place and with care, hard work time and money you get have more horses to the land in some cases
 
thanks everyone for your thoughts. I guess that there are lot of factors involved. Would be quite exciting though to plan a new stable block
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top