Boggy field

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tessybear

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We are praying for cold weather at the moment as our 2 acre field that only has our one mare on it is currently looking like a marsh ! We have taped bits off but as usual she just stand right behind the tape and ruins the area there. Outside her field shelter is a state we have put bark down but it seems to be struggling !! Was just wondering if anyone else is in the same boat as us ? :)
 
Yup, the field is starting to look like a war zone. Our plan of attack is to only turn out when it's dry, as long as we can ride on the other days, or it would be totally ruined.

Sure some good ideas will follow :)
 
shysmum said:
Yup, the field is starting to look like a war zone. Our plan of attack is to only turn out when it's dry, as long as we can ride on the other days, or it would be totally ruined.

Sure some good ideas will follow :)
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Lucky you ! we dont have a stable as of yet so its under attack 24 hours a day ! we can only ride at weekends now as well so it doesnt get a break in the day. Its so depressing going down to the field and seeing a bog with your little fat cob sinking in it haha! :o
 
Could you not just tape of half and acre and put her on that? A sacrifice area over winter or at least until you get a Stable or something? That way you only have to look at half an acre of bog? Lol. If my mare was that much of a mud maker I would put her in a smaller area for the whole of winter. Aslong as she gets some nice exercise in the weekends( I read what you wrote on the other thread about it being too dark on weekdays) lol
 
moodymare_1993 said:
Could you not just tape of half and acre and put her on that? A sacrifice area over winter or at least until you get a Stable or something? That way you only have to look at half an acre of bog? Lol. If my mare was that much of a mud maker I would put her in a smaller area for the whole of winter. Aslong as she gets some nice exercise in the weekends( I read what you wrote on the other thread about it being too dark on weekdays) lol
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May do that this weekend, i want to but for some reason dad is moaning about the field (he seems to think it should look like a show home garden ;) )

Yes we take her out 3 times each day at the weekend a big hack in the morning with some cantering and then quiter hacks towards the end of the day so she does get out and about. Just worried now that it wont come back for the summer :(
 
My dad is just the same. I swear he would put In some decking and flowers if I turned my back lol. It will come back for summer don't worry. And if its just the one horse 1 1/2 acres should be plently anyway. I only have 1 acre all year round and its the same acre. There are 3 of us( an acre each) and if my 16.1 tb greedy mare can live on an acre every year so can your cob lol. Honestly it will grow back. I hate with a passion to see any and I mean any mud on my field. I swear it would just be better to concrete my whole field that way I won't have to worry about mud lol. My dad says to me every year without fail " it will grow back. You'll have a job to stop the grass growing darling. It will grow back anywhere if you give it time" every year lol
 
i feel your pain... ive made a hardstanding area infront of my stables and fenced it off with a gate into the field, so I can keep them off the wet with haynets dotted about. I used 20 tonnes roughly , it didnt work out that cheap though but its a solution
 
moodymare_1993 said:
My dad is just the same. I swear he would put In some decking and flowers if I turned my back lol. It will come back for summer don't worry. And if its just the one horse 1 1/2 acres should be plently anyway. I only have 1 acre all year round and its the same acre. There are 3 of us( an acre each) and if my 16.1 tb greedy mare can live on an acre every year so can your cob lol. Honestly it will grow back. I hate with a passion to see any and I mean any mud on my field. I swear it would just be better to concrete my whole field that way I won't have to worry about mud lol. My dad says to me every year without fail " it will grow back. You'll have a job to stop the grass growing darling. It will grow back anywhere if you give it time" every year lol
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I know he comes down to the padock stands at the gate grumbling and shaking his head while Tess whinnies at hime and trorts about sqelshing in the mud as if to say "look what i am doing to your field" haha :p

January time we are going to really sextion it off and fertilise the grass and plant more grass seeds ( fatty wont like that) but hopefully it will look semi decent again !
 
NeverSayNever said:
i feel your pain... ive made a hardstanding area infront of my stables and fenced it off with a gate into the field, so I can keep them off the wet with haynets dotted about. I used 20 tonnes roughly , it didnt work out that cheap though but its a solution
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If only we had the money :( saving up for a stable at the moment so we have chucked loads of bark and straw down in an attempt to make it abit more solid for her ! she tip toes through the sludge and looks at you like why are you doing this to me ?

do feel sorry for her :P
 
We keep her at home and have no where to move her off to sadly or that would be the first thing we do the problem is the area round us is mossy and clay soil so drainage is poo :(
 
That's what I have don't NSN. Lol is not very cheap like you said. Cheapest way of getting her off the feild for some rest is top buy a cheap wooden stable. You can get them off eBay and some of them are really nice. That way if it were me I would put her in ever night without fail unless it turns cold rather than wet and keep her in on the days it's crappy. If she goes out 3 times a day over the weekend I would stable over the whole weekend that way she's dry and clean for you and you have a couple days rest of the field at a time. I had to persuade my dad to let me have a new stable. My other one is too small so we are in the process and my yard area is a mess. But it will all be worth it when it's done :)
 
moodymare_1993 said:
That's what I have don't NSN. Lol is not very cheap like you said. Cheapest way of getting her off the feild for some rest is top buy a cheap wooden stable. You can get them off eBay and some of them are really nice. That way if it were me I would put her in ever night without fail unless it turns cold rather than wet and keep her in on the days it's crappy. If she goes out 3 times a day over the weekend I would stable over the whole weekend that way she's dry and clean for you and you have a couple days rest of the field at a time. I had to persuade my dad to let me have a new stable. My other one is too small so we are in the process and my yard area is a mess. But it will all be worth it when it's done :)
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Thhat is the plan at the moment but we need to pay for a concrete pad to be put down then a stable put ontop :/ nearly there but it wont be here till summer time :( Money is abit tight at the moment as we just bought a £1500 saddle for the spoilt cow !
 
Tessybear, I feel your pain!
We're on clay soil and on a hill, and even though just under 2 acres for one horse the top part of the paddock nearest the gate looks like a war zone!

Currently split in 2, horse has just gone onto the rested part but he still has to have access to the trashed bit to get to water and the gate (which thankfully has grass matting and so holds together).

Once its gone cold and firmed up I will be back to treading in divots on a daily basis.

I open field up completely end of Decemeber, then usually in March start splitting it again as grass starts to come through. And yes it does always come back but its hard to remember that at the moment!

Bring on the cold weather I say (which will also kill the mosquitos that are still hanging about which is crazy given its November) :)
 
If she's at home alone, does she have other horses in adjacent fields? If so I'd sacrifice the half acre near her friends, & sort out some hardstanding, & put the hay on it. If however there's no horses in adjacent fields, then sorry I wouldn't keep a horse like that, I would move it.
 
Tessybear so do you already have a stable? Cuz you can get some really nice ones with skids onthe bottom. That way you can move if needs be, if you don't I would get a stable with skids. Plonk it in the field, Preferably where it's dry and puts lots of straw or whatever in the bottom. Atleast then you have a stable. Summer is along way away. My new stable is up but we are waitng for the grass to dry out a bit so we can get all the hardcore materials across to my yard so we can lay concrete in te stable and add on a bit to make my yard longer. But I have the other stable to put my girl in atm. If not then seriously make a small sacrifice area. Half an acre or even smaller will be enough. Then do when the colder weather comes. Let into the rested side cuz if not she might hurt herself on the frozen rutts. Then as it get sloppier and warmer put her back in the sacrifice pen to let the rested grass shoot up. By summer the sacrifice pen would have grown lovely. If we have a good year. If not your gunna have a 2 acre slop of a field and no nice grass come spring
 
Agree with moodymare on this - buy a movable stable now (no planning permission required in most areas but do check) can double as a shelter for summer, and keep in for whole w/e and every night x
 
littlelegs said:
If she's at home alone, does she have other horses in adjacent fields? If so I'd sacrifice the half acre near her friends, & sort out some hardstanding, & put the hay on it. If however there's no horses in adjacent fields, then sorry I wouldn't keep a horse like that, I would move it.
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I do not see the issue with keeping a horse by herself we live in the middle of no where no neighbours for miles and miles so not that simple i am afraid. She isnt great with other horses anyway she wont hack with others etc as we think at one point has had a beating by others for being the weaker one
 
The Boy said:
Tessybear, I feel your pain!
We're on clay soil and on a hill, and even though just under 2 acres for one horse the top part of the paddock nearest the gate looks like a war zone!

Currently split in 2, horse has just gone onto the rested part but he still has to have access to the trashed bit to get to water and the gate (which thankfully has grass matting and so holds together).

Once its gone cold and firmed up I will be back to treading in divots on a daily basis.

I open field up completely end of Decemeber, then usually in March start splitting it again as grass starts to come through. And yes it does always come back but its hard to remember that at the moment!

Bring on the cold weather I say (which will also kill the mosquitos that are still hanging about which is crazy given its November) :)
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Its a pain in the bum ! haha think we are going to have to sacrafice some land !
 
My horse has poached the fence line a fair way back, but I don't understand why people bother fencing it off, as she would just poach that fence line! Is your field literally all mud? It will be good in the summer if yours is a good doer, mine is so will probably use the bare bits to restrict her eating a bit when the time comes.

I am afraid I don't think it is right keeping her on her own either, horses are herd animals and there are very few who wouldn't get on with a small companion, even if its a goat! I know you don't have a lot of extra space but you should think about all the time she will be on her own when you aren't there...
 
We'll have to agree to disagree then. Because they are herd, not lone animals. So whilst I don't think its ideal to only have company over a fence, I accept for some individuals its the only solution. However imho its cruel to keep a horse completely alone. So in your shoes I'd either move to a yard/shared field. Or get a companion, & as your field doesn't sound as though it would support another, I'd use it only either winter or summer, & rent one locally for the other time of year. And if I couldn't for whatever reason do that, then sorry, I'd put the horses basic need for company above my own desire for a horse.
 
mandwhy said:
My horse has poached the fence line a fair way back, but I don't understand why people bother fencing it off, as she would just poach that fence line! Is your field literally all mud? It will be good in the summer if yours is a good doer, mine is so will probably use the bare bits to restrict her eating a bit when the time comes.

I am afraid I don't think it is right keeping her on her own either, horses are herd animals and there are very few who wouldn't get on with a small companion, even if its a goat! I know you don't have a lot of extra space but you should think about all the time she will be on her own when you aren't there...
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Not totally poached just a few areas where she stands like outside her field shelter. And regarding living on her own she hasnt got any horsey company but is next to sheep if that counts ? :p generally she doesnt bother with them until the farmer comes up to feed them and then she is their best friend
 
tessybear said:
I do not see the issue with keeping a horse by herself we live in the middle of no where no neighbours for miles and miles so not that simple i am afraid. She isnt great with other horses anyway she wont hack with others etc as we think at one point has had a beating by others for being the weaker one
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Then presumably you're surrounded by fields? Why not see if you can rent some extra.
 
littlelegs said:
We'll have to agree to disagree then. Because they are herd, not lone animals. So whilst I don't think its ideal to only have company over a fence, I accept for some individuals its the only solution. However imho its cruel to keep a horse completely alone. So in your shoes I'd either move to a yard/shared field. Or get a companion, & as your field doesn't sound as though it would support another, I'd use it only either winter or summer, & rent one locally for the other time of year. And if I couldn't for whatever reason do that, then sorry, I'd put the horses basic need for company above my own desire for a horse.
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Guess we shall agree to disagree then. She is perfectly happy where she is previous owners left her in a starvation padock all year round and shoved hay in now and then. From what she has come from she is well looked after it is not an abusive situation at all ! I find it hard to believe we should sell or get rid of her due to her living alone !
 
The best investment I ever made was to have new drainage put in my fields (and yes I am on good old clay soil). It really has made a significant difference.
 
OWLIE185 said:
The best investment I ever made was to have new drainage put in my fields (and yes I am on good old clay soil). It really has made a significant difference.
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Thats a good idea aswell think we shall be putting on a small area to wreck and let the rest of it recover and then fertilise for summer :)
 
Sheep are certainly better than nothing :-) hopefully if you get some summer grazing at least your land will have a chance to rest before next winter... my fence line is so wrecked from when horse was settling in (a month or two ago) it probably takes up about a fifth of the field, with the main gateway areas being super squelchy, so we have woodchipped those, but there is plenty of grass, hedgerow, nettles etc so I am not at all worried. She doesn't like to step in the mud so much now she's trashed it!
 
mandwhy said:
Sheep are certainly better than nothing :-) hopefully if you get some summer grazing at least your land will have a chance to rest before next winter... my fence line is so wrecked from when horse was settling in (a month or two ago) it probably takes up about a fifth of the field, with the main gateway areas being super squelchy, so we have woodchipped those, but there is plenty of grass, hedgerow, nettles etc so I am not at all worried. She doesn't like to step in the mud so much now she's trashed it!
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My friend just read this and sai "tell em to ******* off " haha !! lovely child but no im not bothered as i know Tessy and as said she is nervouse round other horses especially if they are bigger than her. She can see the dogs all day and has sight of sheep. I just didnt like how merrylegs made it sound like she is being neglected, she is spoilt rotton
 
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