Am I making a rod for my own back???

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tangoharvey

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Just wanted some advice really. My mare lives out 24/7, but I do have a stable that I use to groom when its raining (ok so the stables for me really
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!) Anyway in this cold spell, I made a lovely deep bed, filled it with haynets galore and let mare stay in. Well she is in heaven! I turned her out for a few hours thinking she would be off grazing (there is 45acres) but no, she was stood at the gate 3 hours later. So in she came. I have just bedded her in for the night again - it seems to be what she wants, but will I now have to keep this up for all winter, with my job its not always practical, althought ok til after xmas as I have time off. So should I kick her out and tell her to toughen up, or treat her like a pampered TB??
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I think you'll find the draw will be the hay nets, not necessarily the bedding, so if you'd rather she stayed out can she just have more hay out in the field?
 
However, if down the line you can't keep her in overnight, maybe she ought to be booted out with hay, as mentioned above!

Either way , she'll be fine
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You've changed so many things it is hard to know what is attracting her: hay, bedding to eat (often done if straw), bedding to lay on, shelter...

I guess the first step might be to see what is attracting her. Does she still come back if you remove the hay nets? How about if you change to an inedible bedding (e.g. wood pellets)?

In any case, if you don't have the time to keep it up (at least on the coldest/wetest/windest days) I think it might be best not to start. If she has a relatively warm and shelted place her coat may not grow quite so much, so if there comes a really cold week and you are too busy, then she could have a harder time.

Alternatively, you could just open the stables for her without putting down hay and bedding. Personally, I think every horse should have as a minimum shelter from weather. Also, where does she sleep? Does she have to sleep in the snow?

If you have the money but not the time, consider putting down a liquid rubber floor. It provides a measure of insulation and unlike a concrete floor she is unlikely to tear her skin getting up.
 
its shavings for bedding so she isnt eating it. There is loads of grass out, ut not much goodness I wouldnt think at this time of year - my dilemma was really about letting the horse choose how it is cared for instead of me deciding...I can afford to stable her, i can afford for her to be brought in, but should I??
 
She's a Clydesdale isn't she? IME they are rather fond of home comforts. They were actually bred to live inside so as to be available for work without a great deal of drying off/mud removal etc. One of ours was once found by my sister lying in a patch of sunlight in the stable on a rather cold day. Sister became quite worried because she would NOT get up. Eventually after the use of rather a lot of force, the mare stood up and there was ABSOLUTELY nothing wrong with her - she was just enjoying the sunbathe. We often said that so long as she got the opportunity to go out to stretch her legs she would be quite happy to turn round at the field gate and go back into the stable, if she could eat when she got there.
It's up to you how you keep her if you are sure that she is happy and healthy on your system.
 
I would stable over night in winter... out in the day with hay and obvs out all the time in summer... mines seems happy on it but some nights i have to leave her out and she is ok so dont worry too much
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Do what suits you and your lifestyle and don't feel guilty about it! All I would say is as long as she has plenty of hay and hard feed if necessary then there is no worry. I think it is far worse to keep chopping and changing as then they do not know what is what. It is far better for them to be out as nature intended.
 
You big softie!
I have read some of your previous posts and they do make me laugh, we both seem to own big chunky wimps!
Today it was raining, Ron looked positively miserable standing in his field with more than enough haylage at his hoofs and TWO rugs on - He is honestly under the impression he is some elderly TB struggling to keep weight on! Lucky i don't have the facilities of stables unless for emergency otherwise i'm SURE i would have given in by now too.

My advice? Chuck her back outside after tonight and tell her to toughen up!
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If you are unable to kep this up for the rest of the winter, than, yes, you have made a rod for your own back. You can't just start then decide part way through this winter to keep her out.
 
Is it the person in the photograph or a TB?
If the former, kick her out with a decent HW rug on and plenty of grub but give her some shelter if really wet weather.
Horses will cope with the cold, no problem - it is the wet which causes the serious problems.
If she is a TB, then yes, they usually do need a feather bed and pyjamas - and sometimes bed-socks as well!
Not always practical?
What is more important - your horses's welfare or your time off between working hours?
Get up a couple of hours earlier in the morning and forget your social life to a certain extent during the winter if the weather is not clement.
 
I would also see if she will stay out in the day and come in at night. Better for everyone that way. If she has hay and shelter then she should be ok to stay out for a good 8 hours, it will probably do her good. If you ignore her by the gate for a bit she will probably soon give up and get back to the food.

I wouldn't let her be in full time and then have to kick her out again in a few months, that will be a pretty harsh shock to her system! lol
 
I don't think thats fair on the horse really. I think its best to either stick to out all the time or in at nights. Not in when it suits you or when you think it looks cold. Windy wet weather is much more of an enemy to horses than snow. You are the owner, you decide what management is suitable for your horse, not the other way round!
 
Defenatly in i am so soft i could never leave mine out in this weather no matter how much they wanted to stay out.Both been in now for about 6 weeks and to be honest its the way me and rich like it,Clydesdale likes to play out every now and then but couldnt leave him there all night i would never sleep
 
Mine are in at night while we've got the snow. Last winter they only spent 2 weeks in at night in February while we had prolonged snow so nothing to graze on in the field (we have good grazing all year round normally, also on a 45 acre field!), then they went back out quite happily once it had cleared up. We'll see if they go back out once we've got over this patch of bad weather but I would think so as they are bored bored bored.....
 
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