Anyone turn out on a concrete yard



Yep, the RDA ponies are turned out on concrete yard with food/water access inside the stable too. Only the minature horse we have Tonto had problems with it as he has no shoes so he's got a permanent bedroom in one of the three stables and he stays in there during the night.
 
Billy's stable opens into a concrete yard which is about 30f by 20f (approx) and anytime i stable him that is what he lives in - i don't think he has actually been shut in stable in well over a year!
He is very happy and he has his water in the yard and a hay trough also in the yard. It has an overhang so can stand under for cover. Attached onto the yard is a small woodchip area which he can go in if field too wet as field is also attached to yard. One side of yard is stables, the other wall, the other half wall half gate and the other wall is a gate.

the yard is just big enough for him to have a good walk/wander round but small enough that at most he could get maybe 2/3 strides of trot, but he never actually does. I love the yard and so does he - saves a fortune on bedding!! However because its concrete shoes do tend to wear down faster, would be similar to hacking on roads everyday.i wouldnt be without it - very handy to have! :)
 
horsefeed said:
I have a herd of 5 that live on a yard with a double field shelter. Yard is 30x30ft, they have round bale of hay in feeder and self filling water trough, I poo pick daily and its much better then stabling works really well.
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Are these 5 horses or 5 ponies? It would be interesting to know their sizes and do they all get on without bickering?
 
My three stand on concrete to eat their hay in winter. They also have access to a large rubber matted barn, a large stoned yard and a sand pit. Our ground is heavy clay and way too wet to turn out in winter. They are barefoot so no danger of slipping.

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What a super picture and certainly gives confidence that this can be done for the winter. One question do they stay there 24/7 or do they go out for exercise?
 
Do you think wood chippings or even plainings over concrete would actually make it more slippy? I'm not sure how I could section it off securely without drilling into the concrete (not keen to do that)

Pen - do you have slipping silliness problems ? I guess if you keep them in 24/7 for a week then let them out they'll be silly, as anything introduced slowly they are better. Must be a way of making it work, such a good space if I can work it out properly. I could straw the whole lot (tractor it up in the spring) but I;ve a feeling that would be as grim as the mud pretty quickly!

This is the yard, and the opposite side (obviously minus the caravans now !!)

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my god polos mum can I move in please!!!

Yes you could straw it and deep litter it but frankly I think thats a waste of good hoof stimulating surface as a barefoot anorak! Id put a couple of hay feeders in like Pens pic, have some sand to hand to sling on when weather starts freezing just in case of any water pooling and get on with enjoying dry clean legs and feet :D
 
Thanks Tigertail, it does look like such a useful space - hence all the questions to try and help me use it well. My new TB is doing amazingly well in his new no shoes lifestyle so interesting to ponder whether it would actually help. With deep straw beds in the open stables I guess they'll soon tell me if it's worth being out or not.
Just not worth it if I have a nasty pelvis injury from falling flat on it!
 
You'd have to put planings down quite thickly to prevent slipping. I'd try without first on that yard.

How many horses would there be? I'd try them with lots of piles of hay dotted all over, give them lots to mooch to and from.
 
I've got 4, - well 3.5 really as one is 7hh. 3 of them are over 20 and all bare foot - but they still do have a good play in the field.

I think if I let one out he will just stand in front of the others stables, but could easily do it in pairs. I'm not anti stables just keep looking at this big mud free space thinking it's a shame I can't make better use of it.

This planings over that area would be a huge quantity so probably not practical.
 
Ours is a hardcore base so not slippery. There are only 3 of them at the moment. The YO's 2 year old, my 17 hand 3 year old and my arab mare. They get on fine and share the stables and shelter.
 
Honestly I think your barefoot horses will be fine. Mine do play a little on the concrete area but never more than a couple of strides of trot because they know it's slippy and believe it or not they don't want to fall over.

Sorry to hear about the horse who slipped and got stuck in a gate but that was so bad because of the gate, if he'd fallen close to a gate in the field the same thing would have happened.

As long as you are sensible and don't expect them to stay there all winter with no other form of exercise and get them out into the field whenever possible you should have little in the way of problems.

If it's going to be frosty or icey then mine go out in the field or if the field is too wet they come into the stables for the night and I clear the ice in the morning and they go back into the yard.

I understand people's concerns but as long as your sensible you can really make it work
 
the yard I used to rent had a smooth concrete yard in the middle (it doesn't look like OP's is smooth) and it was lethal for barefoot horses when wet-about the only surface I've met which is worse for barefoot than shod animals. OP I have a similar sized yard I am using for a pole yard in the winter (not as big) and that is tarmacked. I will have a small area where they'll have hay which will be matted-I have these ultra heavy, non sloppy quarry conveyor mats which are great. I have young geldings so probably won't turn out together.
 
tbh they were left on the property when we bought it last year. Being in Lanarkshire I am surrounded by quarries so I expect they came from a local one when they were putting in the driveway. Last winter I used some on top of plastic grid as a standing area for the ponies before we had the stables put in-worked really well on the lawn!
 
I have an area of concrete around the back and sides of my stables which is part of my field, being in the field it gets mud on it and its lethal and I think worse if they are barefoot, I used to put hay out on the concrete for them but tie nets on the fence now as wet hay on concrete is also slippery, and I disagree about horses not trying to run on slippery surfaces some just will one of mine does, so I would be carefull putting any horses loose on concrete.
 
MotherOfChickens said:
the yard I used to rent had a smooth concrete yard in the middle (it doesn't look like OP's is smooth) and it was lethal for barefoot horses when wet-about the only surface I've met which is worse for barefoot than shod animals. OP I have a similar sized yard I am using for a pole yard in the winter (not as big) and that is tarmacked. I will have a small area where they'll have hay which will be matted-I have these ultra heavy, non sloppy quarry conveyor mats which are great. I have young geldings so probably won't turn out together.
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I also get the conveyor mats from our local quarry, they are very handy for around the yard.
 
I think rubber mats, in the form of conveyor mats would be your best bet- the risk of slipping on concrete is quite high, especially if they decide to have a buck and play.
 
I have mine on a yard with open access to stables with mats/big bed of shaving, & hay. I turn out every other day, clay field on slope so just gets water logged. I havent had any issues with horses falling/slipping, if get any ice I will put salt & shaving down. Horses have shoes removed as concrete keeps feet down as well.
 
Are yours barefoot? If so they will be fine, or as fine as horses can ever be!

I can also see a little patch of grass in the pic, so its not like there's nothing else for them to stand on is it? You could woodchip a patch for some lying down space if you really wanted to, but if they're stabled at night anyway, they can just do their lying down then :)
 
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