Are we getting too hung up about turnout?

benson21

benson21

Well-Known Member
Joined
26 December 2009
Messages
2,861
Visit site
Think I might have to wear a tin hat before I write this, but here goes....

Am I the only one on here that thinks people are getting to hung up on turnout?
It seems everyone thinks that its got o be 24/7 turnout, whatever the weather, and I sometimes wonder if thats for the benefit of the horse or the owner.
Personally I am more than happy with the t/o at the yard I am at, out during the day, in at night, if the weather is really bad they are in, restricted in winter.
All of the horses at our yard are happy and settled, we have no problem with any of them if box rest is needed, if they have to be in on their own they are fine, and we have decent fields with a good amount of grass throughout the summer, ok, no field is rested as there is not the spare grazing, but with restricted in the winter, the fields dont get horrendously trashed, so we are left with good grazing in the summer.
I dont expect everyone to agree with me, actually I am almost expecting to be crucified!
 
We have 24/7 turnout in the summer and bring them in at night in the winter (november till may). My horse seems to really like being out - if it's raining and I've caught him to ride or whatever, he won't go in the stable without being coaxed in with food. Before he was gelded he spent a lot of time in on his own and I think he's much, much happier being out most of the time. Having said that, we have a lot of grazing where we are and they rotate the fields, chain harrow, get rid of ragwort etc. and there is a lot of natural shelter. I wouldn't have it any other way. A couple of people on our yard choose to keep them in overnight during the summer though.
 
Depends on the horse. Some wouldn't mind that, some would go stir crazy. I think from the owners side of things, it is their responsibility to make sure they do the best for the horse, and if that means 24/7 turnout is needed then they should try their best to provide it. I don't think every horse NEEDS it, but I think i'd like it for mine if/when I get my own.
 
I think that what suits the horse is best :)

I am of the 24/7 brigade simply because I believe horses were designed to roam, and also because it helps with my old boys joints if he's still moving :)

However, I'm not opposed to people that stable overnight, and during the winter Bailey will come in for a few nights if weather is particually cold + wet, but I prefer him to be out where possible!

I don't agree with yards where horses only have 3/4 hrs turnout a day, just because I don't think its natural or healthy for them to be stood inside in a stable all day, but that's just my personal opinion :)
 
It seems everyone thinks that its got o be 24/7 turnout, whatever the weather, and I sometimes wonder if thats for the benefit of the horse or the owner.
Click to expand...

Gosh, I don't. I simply want several hours during winter, and the choice of 24/7 in the summer.

I'm more than happy to keep a horse in if the weather is vile etc.

I have never been on a yard where t/o is restricted (except maybe on one or two occasions when we've had heavy snow), nor would I move to one.
 
I've known horses thrive on stabling, but I've known more who don't.

Mine hates it. We have 24/7 turnout all year on our yard and everyone says how much more relaxed their horses are. We are on well draining soil and have enough fields for rotation when needed, so no trashed fields.

Personally I wouldn't stable again and I wouldn't go anywhere with 24/7 all year as an option. It's not for my comfort - I actually loved mucking out and still don't mind sweeping out stalls etc. So it's 100% for the horse in my case.

I don't like stabling in bad weather as cooping a herd prey animal up in a box while it's cold and crashing noise isn't ideal imo.

That's not to say I don't box. We have stables for emergencies. They've been used once this year for 3 days. And we have a stable for foaling, if people prefer this for their horse (we don't for ours).

Pan
 
I totally agree. I think it is ultimatley down to the individual horses needs/wants. My 2 are clearly miserable if left out in the pouring rain and howling winds. They have lived out for the last year due to a delay in my stables going up (planning problems!) On numerous occasions they have been stood with their heads low and clearly not happy being out. They have been desperate to stand in their field shelter, they aren't fed in there so its a not a food choice its a natural choice.
 
I think everyone understands that a horse may need to be stabled sometimes due to ground conditions/injury but if you put a cat or dog in an equivalent size cage (scale down for their size) and left them in there for 14 hours at a time poeple would be horrified (think 6pm stable 8am turnout).

Sooo many health benefits for having them out and it seems many conditions aggrevated by keeping them in (arthritus, copd etc)

Mine are shut on yard/arena and open fronted field shelter when weather is bad - I know I am lucky as have my own place and can do as I please but the thought of shutting them in their little boxes for too long horrifies me .... sorry rant over !
 
On the whole I think most horses prefer to be out, ideally choosing to come in if they want to with free access to a shelter/stable.

I keep mine out 24/7 as I believe there is less risk of injury to a horse that is constantly moving and keeping everything working without huge hooleys at being turned out after being in, mentally most horses are happier out I think, and I'm not a huge fan of box rest anyway.

It isn't always convenient having to traipse across muddy fields to bring in, having wet horses when you want to ride etc. and poo picking is easier in a box.;)


Providing the horses are happy and getting plenty of work if stabled for long hours I've no issue with it.
 
I guess it depends on the horse.
My mare would stay in all winter if you let her (she HATES rain/wind/snow/overcast days.....you get the picture).
Youngster would trash the place if he had to stay in. He hates being stabled full stop, so 24/7 with a shelter is the only option where he is concerned.
 
benson21 said:
Think I might have to wear a tin hat before I write this, but here goes....

Am I the only one on here that thinks people are getting to hung up on turnout?
It seems everyone thinks that its got o be 24/7 turnout, whatever the weather, and I sometimes wonder if thats for the benefit of the horse or the owner.
Personally I am more than happy with the t/o at the yard I am at, out during the day, in at night, if the weather is really bad they are in, restricted in winter.
All of the horses at our yard are happy and settled, we have no problem with any of them if box rest is needed, if they have to be in on their own they are fine, and we have decent fields with a good amount of grass throughout the summer, ok, no field is rested as there is not the spare grazing, but with restricted in the winter, the fields dont get horrendously trashed, so we are left with good grazing in the summer.
I dont expect everyone to agree with me, actually I am almost expecting to be crucified!
Click to expand...


Every yard I have been on is run this way. My own yard also is run this way, I dont have much land so I need to rotate and save what I can!
 
I do agree with you Benson and will join you with a 'tin hat'!!

I have a small yard and we treat every horse as an individual, and try to tailor the turnout to them. The natives are happy out 24/7 in the summer, but equally enjoy being stabled in the winter, after only a few hours turn out. The throughbreds can't tolerate 24/7 turnout at any time of year - therefore they get 2 hrs turnout plus excercise in the winter, then are out overnight in the summer, in during the day weather allowing.

Not all horses suit 24/7 turnout - even if that is what the owner wants, and this can often result in over grazed and trashed land. Land is expensive to maintain and look after, especially atm with the weather, so don't blame yard owners for limiting turnout. I would like to think that we have the balance right here - even with all this wet weather, all the horses are happy and the fields are in tact. Because we rotate and rest pasture, when they do get turned out the grazing is of good quality.

I think people also have unrealistic expecations from livery yards. To make any profit a yard has too be full, and that may well mean limiting turnout. Running a yard is a hugely expensive business and think that any livery that moans about their yard should look at the figures! I make just enough profit to keep my 3 horses, the rest is just breaking even when taking into account bill, rates etc.

I also think if a livery wants 24/7 turnout, they should actually expect to pay more. Land is getting scarcer, and more and more people are taking up horses as a leisure activity, making spaces harder to find.
 
Last edited:
I think people also have unrealistic expecations form livery yards. To make any profit a yard has too be full, and that may well mean limiting turnout.
Click to expand...

I have a very realistic expectation of a livery yard. Based on experience, and knowing the yards around me.

All are full (and always are), and all offer all year un-restricted turnout (i.e day in winter, 24/7 in summer). They are able to do this because they have enough land.

If you don't have the land to support the horses, either reduce your numbers or don't offer livery.
 
I do not have the option of stabling but our conditions are milder, having said that. I know of people with horses in Alaska with 24/7 turnout. They do cope with it.

Our temperatures in winter are aboutb 3-20 degrees c on average, cold at night and cool during day and in summer up to about 35 degrees (sometimes 40 plus).

I rug in the cool winter to cut down on feed bills for about 2-3 months. The horses get miserable when it rains for a week straight, but they are ok as long as they get a belly ful of hay.

If I stabled I would have more lameness and soundness issues, I have no doubt of that- however, I do think that given the land available, your weather, and the no of horses you have on that land you guys do well to manage and maintain it all - and tbh I don't think youi could with 24/7 turnout - so you do what works for you and what your resources allow.
 
benson21 said:
Think I might have to wear a tin hat before I write this, but here goes....

Am I the only one on here that thinks people are getting to hung up on turnout?
It seems everyone thinks that its got o be 24/7 turnout, whatever the weather, and I sometimes wonder if thats for the benefit of the horse or the owner.
Personally I am more than happy with the t/o at the yard I am at, out during the day, in at night, if the weather is really bad they are in, restricted in winter.
All of the horses at our yard are happy and settled, we have no problem with any of them if box rest is needed, if they have to be in on their own they are fine, and we have decent fields with a good amount of grass throughout the summer, ok, no field is rested as there is not the spare grazing, but with restricted in the winter, the fields dont get horrendously trashed, so we are left with good grazing in the summer.
I dont expect everyone to agree with me, actually I am almost expecting to be crucified!
Click to expand...

This is what I have had at my last two yards and it is a regime that seems to suit my horse and. Tried out 24/7 and found that it really didn't suit my horse or myself. I had more injuries during this time, with the amount of rain the quality of her hooves deterioated and oddly she dropped weight dispite plenty of grass
 
I probably do fall into the too hung up on turn out group but I don't really care, I've always kept my horses at livery yards that offer grass livery but I make sure that the fields are suitable (big enough, plenty of natural shelter) I have visited yards that offer grass livery but I wouldn't be happy leaving my horses out in their fields in the winter due to the lack of shelter.
For me it's the best choice, partly because it's cheaper & easier but I do also think that many horses are better off living out, even if I won the euro millions I'd still keep my horses out if I felt that they were happy living out.
I've hunted & team chased a full tb, part tbs & a warmblood from the field with no problems.
If I had to leave my current yard (which is the only yard in the area offering grass livery) I would stable them in the winter if necessary as I know it won't kill them but I would always choose living out over living in.
 
Hmmm.... ok, maybe I dont need the tin hat then!
Maybe I have just read things wrong then. I always felt in the minority when during the winter we were on limited turnout because of the snow and danger of the ice, and was made to feel quite bad because I didnt mind him being in, and when its bucketing down with rain it is always put across quite strongly that its only rain, when I prefer a dry and warm pony.
 
Sidney said:
I think people also have unrealistic expecations from livery yards. To make any profit a yard has too be full, and that may well mean limiting turnout. Running a yard is a hugely expensive business and think that any livery that moans about their yard should look at the figures! I make just enough profit to keep my 3 horses, the rest is just breaking even when taking into account bill, rates etc.

I also think if a livery wants 24/7 turnout, they should actually expect to pay more. Land is getting scarcer, and more and more people are taking up horses as a leisure activity, making spaces harder to find.
Click to expand...

I disagree with this. We do 24/7 all year. We are not at full capacity and make enough to keep our 6 and pay the bills.
Even at full we have separate winter fields and rotation fields for if necessary.

It's a lifestyle choice, not a job, but it's not impossible to make a profit.

It certainly isn't an easy job, it's demanding at the best of times, but it is not impossible to run any less than full and not go broke.

Pan
 
I am happy for mine to come in at night. In summer he has all day out and in winter half a day. He is happy, he is worked every day and tbh in the winter once he had had his roll and buck he wants to
come back in to his haylage anyway!
 
You've said before that Donovan is quite happy being in, so maybe for you less than ideal turnout for the majority of horses would be fine. Me, I want as much as possible, if that means less facilities with more land then I'm there.
 
I have been in the happy position of being able to keep horses in stables with large runs (almost half an acre), and you would be AMAZED (well, I was) at how much time they chose to spend in their stables - if it was hot, cold, windy, rainy, fly-ey, they were in there. I would say from observation they spent easily 1/3 of their time in the stable, either resting, eating (haynets always available) or lying down. The rest of the time they were grazing or mooching about the paddocks. These were fit competition horses, BTW. Broodmares and youngstock were out in the big pastures.
 
There are valid points on both sides, but in the end I do come down on the 24/7 turnout (SO LONG AS THERE IS A FIELD SHELTER AVAILABLE).

The first 30 years of my horsey life our horses were kept in at night in the winter, but always had 3-4 hours turnout per day (they were hunters). In summer they came in from 9am to 3.30pm nd were out the rest of the time.

For the last 20 years my horses and my livery horses have been out 24/7 - with two choices of barn/stables to use if they wish. They do seem immensely happy, settled, un-neurotic and healthy. And it suits the arthritic ones perfectly as they are always on the move, at their own speed but moving nevertheless.

Don't ever think it's less work keeping them out though - or at least it shouldn't be. Keeping pasture up to scratch takes time, phusical effort and money.

What always interests me is that the horses retreat into the depths of the barns to escape the flies, and doze happily in there for hours; but on what we would consider a dreadful winter day they are happily grazing (rugged) backs to the wind and entirely ignoring their boudoirs!
 
I agree with you Benson (and with Sidney). I haven't been on a yard with the option of 24/7 turnout for years, not since I kept my old horse on a yard which had been a dairy farm previously and so had 100s of acres. They had summer and winter paddocks. The horses could stay out 24/7 all year round but you accepted that the winter paddocks got trashed. We were lucky there though because they had something like 400 acres to play with, for 30 horses!

Turnout at my current yard is restricted, horses come in for some part of every 24hr period all year round. This suits me and my big horse. He is arthritic so although he benefits from being out as much as possible, hard ground affects his ringbone and makes him sore so in his case, he needs to come in at some point. He also likes to come in, he likes his routine, he spends most of the day (when not eating) in the stable flat out lying down. He's also a very good doer who needs to come off the grass sometimes. He stays out at night all year round. The new one is out at night ATM and will be in at night over winter. Again, this suits me because I'm still getting to know him (and him me) so I like him in a routine to get him settled down and used to me. He'll be hunting probably weekly through the winter, as well as all the work required during the week to keep him fit, so I've no issue with him only going out for a few hours a day. Plus I suspect he will have a tendency to be a real fatty so wouldn't want him on the grass 24/7 in summer!

By restricting TO in summer, our YO has been able to rest lots of land to rotate.
 
9tails said:
You've said before that Donovan is quite happy being in, so maybe for you less than ideal turnout for the majority of horses would be fine. Me, I want as much as possible, if that means less facilities with more land then I'm there.
Click to expand...

But who is it that decides that the t/o I have for Donovan is 'less than ideal'?
 
Amymay - I have 21 acres for 7 horses so have plenty of land!!! I could have more horses in but want to ensure my facilites are not over stretched. I am aware that I may be an exception and other yards have more horses/less land, but I own my yard with no mortgage to pay, so can afford this luxury.

However even with this acreage, I will still restrict turnout if the conditons demand it and have never had a livery compain yet, as they also get the benefits of well maintained and nutritional grazing.
 
It doesn't have to be 24/7 all year round but I do expect them to get out for a decent length of time each day all year round.

Mine comes in over night in winter and stays out apart from when I'm bringing in to feed and ride in summer. I could live with her coming in during summer but prefer her to be out. I couldn't cope with a yard that keeps them in when the weather is bad.
 
What I personally could not cope with is being told when and how long my horse can go out/in.

This is why we have them at home,(I did DIY livery briefly inbetween movnig form parents )if the weather is bad or fields getting trashed then we choose to restrict or bring in.

If your yard rules suit you and your horse then its not a problem. Many people have different views/ideas.
 
Cortez said:
I have been in the happy position of being able to keep horses in stables with large runs (almost half an acre), and you would be AMAZED (well, I was) at how much time they chose to spend in their stables - if it was hot, cold, windy, rainy, fly-ey, they were in there. I would say from observation they spent easily 1/3 of their time in the stable, either resting, eating (haynets always available) or lying down. The rest of the time they were grazing or mooching about the paddocks. These were fit competition horses, BTW. Broodmares and youngstock were out in the big pastures.
Click to expand...

I do wonder though if the fact that they have the choice makes that difference? I know I quite enjoy the odd duvet day, but if I was confined to a duvet day because of illness or whatever it drives me mad!

I have a 'hardy' :rolleyes: native who prefers to stand in when it is wet or hot and likes to sleep in her stable. However she will not do box rest and is far happier with the free choice of where to be.
 
turkana said:
I probably do fall into the too hung up on turn out group but I don't really care, I've always kept my horses at livery yards that offer grass livery but I make sure that the fields are suitable (big enough, plenty of natural shelter) I have visited yards that offer grass livery but I wouldn't be happy leaving my horses out in their fields in the winter due to the lack of shelter.
Click to expand...

+1

My last yard moved us into the field with no natural shelter around any of the sides and no field shelter (because we had mares) for winter. Out of all the fields it was the only one with no shelter and I wasn't happy. I'm all for leaving them natural in a field, but not when you take away any option for them.

Mine is now at home on our livery yard with natural shelter... which I've seen stocky pony under, but my tb x is always stood grazing in the rain, head facing wind :rolleyes:

Pan
 
It's very much down to the individual horse, one of my mares came from being out 24/7 in a herd as a broodmare she can live out 24/7 happily with no rugs and just someone looking over the gate to check she's still standing she doesn't need or want the fuss. But my other mare also came from being out 24/7, unfortunately she had already had laminitis but I managed to keep her out 24/7 over the summer until I couldn't exercise her and she got acute laminitis a few years later. I now don't have the option of keeping her out 24/7 or even all day :( she's out for a couple of hours during spring/summer/autumn and up to 5/6 hours during the winter.

My field has never looked better than it does now, but the hay/feed/bedding bills have never been higher :rolleyes:

If there were no issues with my mares they would be out 24/7 all summer and in overnight in the winter.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top