Do ANY livery yards have.............this?

Hormonal Filly

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I kind of have some grass left.. I think our yard is ran well. Turnout as much as you want, when you want, no matter what the weather but we are on a hill with well drained fields.

Each horse has their own paddock you look after yourself, must be 1.5/2 acres paddock per horse so you either ruin it or look after it. I poo pick daily, others don't whatsoever. I have 2 horses and have one 3 acre paddock and one 2 acre paddock. I use the 2 acres in summer and they’re currently in the 3 acres winter paddock. I made the mistake of putting my 2 in the winter paddock to early, so they ate the grass to quick and have some grass but not as much as I’d like. I wish I waited a bit longer before moving them. A friend has tons of grass in her winter paddock, she managed it much better than me!

Most of us keep them in at night and out during the day, every day, unless its like today and mine only went out for a hour but some have them out 24/7 and put out haylage if grass gets low.

I was previously at a yard of over 32 horses. If it rained, farmer made them stay in for weeks 24/7 but they were in 2 big fields all winter. The fields got trassshhhed to say one word (when let out they went mad, as only 10% of the owners actually bothered to exercise them when they were kept in) and 0 grass was left. Wouldn’t go back there.


That’s not much land for that many horses..
 

flying_high

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So, on our yard, we turn out EVERY day no matter what the weather is doing. The consequence of this is that our paddocks get completely trashed and that means no grass. We feed hay outside so the horses have something to eat. In summer we have 24/7 Turnout as well on different paddocks that have been rested all winter. We resow etc in spring when horses move to summer ones. So what I would like to know is this, are there any yards that have the same kind of arrangement, but have grass all winter too?? We have other paddocks, but the walk to get to them would be very very long, and in the depths of winter, not really safe. Is it worth the compromise do you think, or do you think we are trying to get too much out of our land? We have approx 18 acres and 22 horses, quite a few of which are high laminitis risk as they are either elderly or very good doers. Thanks!

We have 20 acres, and a max of 8 horses (two are paddocked laminitics though) and we manage it with grass all year, and mud by gateways in winter. I think you need very forgiving soil or 2 acres a horse to manage grass all year.
 

Alibear

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Yard is fully livery only. Individual turn out, grass all year round, summer and winter paddocks for each horse, if you want additional hay whilst out in winter you can. Most do out during day and in at night all year round but a couple switch to 24/7 in summer. We're lucky enough that there is even spare paddocks if needed.
 

JFTDWS

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I have 24/7 turnout all year, but the acreage isn't sufficient not to hay in winter. I'm not sure there is a sufficient acreage which my two highlands wouldn't strip down given enough time, to be fair... They'd see it as a challenge! I do still have grass in my winter field, a surprising amount, but not enough to support a herd of three, so they get hay too. It's muddy at the gate now, but the vast majority of the field is fine.
 

Rosiejazzandpia

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We have 24/7 turnout all year round. 13 horses on around 25 acres. We are on the side of a hill, well draining sandy soil too. We have grass all year round, horses hold their weight well and we only ever have to chuck a few small bales out when we have deep snow.
 

scats

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We have more grass than we know what to do with and plenty of spare fields to move to if any get trashed. Currently have only 5 horses on the yard and two lots in pairs and one on his own (but next door to others). Horses go out all day in winter and 24/7 in summer. We can use the fields all year long as we rotate regularly but there’s a few we avoid in winter as they get a bit wetter than the rest.
 

Nudibranch

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6 acres is a lot per horse. I have a 9 acre winter field which has usually 2 but sometimes 3 horses, out 24/7. It's all clay with a stream and a spring, but the only mud is around the gateway and that barely comes over the sole of my boots.

Horses in at night often trash the ground more than those living out, as already mentioned earlier.
 

tankgirl1

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Ours go out every day on the winter field for 8-12 hrs, mixed herd of 7 on about 5 acres ish. Out 24/7 in summer on about 12 acres. They always have something to nibble at in the winter field, but most get adlib hay when they are in overnight. They do fine over summer, no extra feed needed.
 

cobsandbassets

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The paddocks at our yard are quite small but YO allows year round turnout. We keep ours out as long as it's not too wet but do feed hay/haylage year round as the grass is not sufficient on it's own. Not perfect but works out ok with good doers. Yard is brilliant in every other way. Compromise
 

oldie48

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I have two one and a half acre paddocks and a 7 acre field. I use the 7 acre field for winter turnout and take a cut off it in the summer for haylage. The two smaller paddocks are the summer grazing but I do use the one nearest to the yard in winter if the weather is vile/snow or the horses are out for a shorter time, just for convenience. We are on heavy grey clay but all out gateways are well stoned and we never have a lot of mud. I've had a max of five horses, usually three but now down to two and tbh I have too much grazing and often inthe summer we top. I don't have my horses out 24/7, why? Because it doesn't suit me or the horses. We have a lot of thunder flies and horse flies in the summer so they are in during the day once it gets warm and out at night, suts me, seems to suit them too.
 

ILuvCowparsely

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So, on our yard, we turn out EVERY day no matter what the weather is doing. The consequence of this is that our paddocks get completely trashed and that means no grass. We feed hay outside so the horses have something to eat. In summer we have 24/7 Turnout as well on different paddocks that have been rested all winter. We resow etc in spring when horses move to summer ones. So what I would like to know is this, are there any yards that have the same kind of arrangement, but have grass all winter too?? We have other paddocks, but the walk to get to them would be very very long, and in the depths of winter, not really safe. Is it worth the compromise do you think, or do you think we are trying to get too much out of our land? We have approx 18 acres and 22 horses, quite a few of which are high laminitis risk as they are either elderly or very good doers. Thanks!
A lot depends on the type of land and how it is treated, and type of livery you have.

We do not hay in the fields at all.

The land has resting periods, and de poo daily. Ours are all in at night in the winter and depending on horses in at night winter. We have 8 acres at the back and 9 horses on it, we have way to much grass, and as from last Friday moved onto the other half of the 3 acres at the top, and that has been resting ove 8 months as there was plenty on the others. We never do 24 hr grazing, and horses go out daily all year round except Christmas day
 

ILuvCowparsely

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The recommended stocking rate for horses is 2 acres for the first and one acre for every other one so your land is overstocked but thats not unusual in the horsey world.


I was taught 1 1/2 acres for the first horse and one acre for every other horse added. It does depend on grazing and type of livery, we have no grass livery here, so you could say we are over stocked, but that said before our farmer retired we got 250 bales of hay off the land too.
 

meleeka

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You need at least 3 acres of well drained grass land for each horse if in at night and out in the day and 6 acres of well drained grass land for each horse if out 24/7.
Surely that’s if you want the grass to be their only source of fibre all year?

I have natives and couldn’t put them on that much land, they’d explode!
 

windand rain

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We use much less acreage in summer but the extra is left to grow for foggage which lasts almost all winter in a good year last year was too dry so we have just run out and am now feeding a small amount of hay in the winter field
 

ILuvCowparsely

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You need at least 3 acres of well drained grass land for each horse if in at night and out in the day and 6 acres of well drained grass land for each horse if out 24/7.
Rubbish = where are your facts from??

With your synopses any yard with up to 8 horses in it would need 24 acres and a riding school with 70 horses would need 210 acres.

It is 1 1/2 or 2 for the first horse = 1 acre for every horses added = but pasture management is a key importance. We have 9 on 5 acres in at night and the land copes well and we have more than enough grazing. While the oher paddocks are resting.

I think it would be a good idea you read this article from the BHS website. file:///C:/Users/User/Downloads/Guide%20for%20the%20Keeping%20of%20Horses.pdf

To many local here cram too many full grass livery horses out all the time, pay little attention to land management, as they want the land to make money for them but won,t give the land anything back (dee poo, weedkiller,fertilise,resting)

We won't do grass livery ever, there is no money in grass livery, and fields get over grazed.
 
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webble

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We have the option to turnout every day in winter and usually do, if the weather is bad we sometimes don't but that's through choice not YO say so. We have seperate fields for summer and they are out 24/7 then unless it's v hot when they come in to get away from the heat and flies

The first winter I was there two years ago was an easy winter and we had grass all winter. Last winter we didn't and put hay out for most of it. Touch wood this year we should be OK. We have around 7 acres between 8 but but 4 are under 13hands and another is on very restricted turnout
 

Summit

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We have individual paddocks for winter and summer and 24/7 TO. my horse doesn’t like being in so it would need to be really bad for him to come in. I’d say he’s had 5 nights in this winter. Ground isn’t too bad, muddy around the gate but he has hay day and night and seems happy.
 

Starzaan

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So, on our yard, we turn out EVERY day no matter what the weather is doing. The consequence of this is that our paddocks get completely trashed and that means no grass. We feed hay outside so the horses have something to eat. In summer we have 24/7 Turnout as well on different paddocks that have been rested all winter. We resow etc in spring when horses move to summer ones. So what I would like to know is this, are there any yards that have the same kind of arrangement, but have grass all winter too?? We have other paddocks, but the walk to get to them would be very very long, and in the depths of winter, not really safe. Is it worth the compromise do you think, or do you think we are trying to get too much out of our land? We have approx 18 acres and 22 horses, quite a few of which are high laminitis risk as they are either elderly or very good doers. Thanks!
When I had a livery yard I had grass all winter because I had significantly more land than horses. I had 100 acres of grazing for just 36 horses. They had proper grass all year round.
 

Nativelover

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I think you are all incredibly lucky to have access to such grazing.
Around me, I don’t know of any yard that provides winter turnout. They all close the fields in September and open them up again in June. A couple of yards have a sandpit for a leg stretch, but that’s all. Even when the fields are open, many yards restrict the access to a few hours a day.
 

windand rain

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I think you are all incredibly lucky to have access to such grazing.
Around me, I don’t know of any yard that provides winter turnout. They all close the fields in September and open them up again in June. A couple of yards have a sandpit for a leg stretch, but that’s all. Even when the fields are open, many yards restrict the access to a few hours a day.
I would not even consider owning a horse unless it could have at least 8 preferably 12 hours turnout a day every day. In fact might even have to move areas as I cannot live without my horses either
 

Nativelover

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I would not even consider owning a horse unless it could have at least 8 preferably 12 hours turnout a day every day. In fact might even have to move areas as I cannot live without my horses either

The worst bit about it was the first yard I went on lied about what turnout was provided. I quickly learnt it was as I stated above, so in my search for something humane, this is when I found the yards were all like this!! How cruel!!!
Anyhow I ended up travelling a fair distance for the turnout.
 

Cortez

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The worst bit about it was the first yard I went on lied about what turnout was provided. I quickly learnt it was as I stated above, so in my search for something humane, this is when I found the yards were all like this!! How cruel!!!
Anyhow I ended up travelling a fair distance for the turnout.

Do you know why they restrict turnout?
 

abb123

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So, on our yard, we turn out EVERY day no matter what the weather is doing. The consequence of this is that our paddocks get completely trashed and that means no grass. We feed hay outside so the horses have something to eat. In summer we have 24/7 Turnout as well on different paddocks that have been rested all winter. We resow etc in spring when horses move to summer ones. So what I would like to know is this, are there any yards that have the same kind of arrangement, but have grass all winter too?? We have other paddocks, but the walk to get to them would be very very long, and in the depths of winter, not really safe. Is it worth the compromise do you think, or do you think we are trying to get too much out of our land? We have approx 18 acres and 22 horses, quite a few of which are high laminitis risk as they are either elderly or very good doers. Thanks!

I would check with your clients that they do not want to use the other fields. There maybe some who are happy to only turn out or bring in in the daylight and have the time for the walk.

I would also think about whether you need to save the grass for the summer. If you have a lot of laminitics then it would be better for them to have very little grass in the summer so you may be able to use the summer paddocks more.
 

skint1

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Our yard has year round turnout on good land, but no rotation of fields. It's 24/7 in spring/summer and daytimes in winter. It's on high ground and drains well. Not sure of the total acreage, turnout fields are at least 3/4 acres, most are bigger and horses are in groups of 3-5 horses depending on field size. A lot of people don't turn out every day in winter, or if they do it's for short periods of time, that's what i tend to do, it saves the field for one thing. In summer mine is in all day to manage his grass intake. We used to be able to strip graze and rest parts which was great but since the farmer's son has taken over he doesn't let us do this, people took it too far and caused damage to the fields.
 

ihatework

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I think you are all incredibly lucky to have access to such grazing.
Around me, I don’t know of any yard that provides winter turnout. They all close the fields in September and open them up again in June. A couple of yards have a sandpit for a leg stretch, but that’s all. Even when the fields are open, many yards restrict the access to a few hours a day.

People all have different circumstances but, for me, if I were fitting in a leisure horse on DIY around full time working hours it would be completely unacceptable to have the horse in 24/7 for extended periods. Half a day out bare minimum every day except in extreme circumstances.

But these days it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find the yards with not only the grazing but also the facilities to allow adequate exercise in the cold & wet & dark - which is the reality for most working owners .... not to mention the motivation to do that.

I see horses stuck in stables barely worked. It’s not acceptable, I don’t think we have the god given right to have a horse if there are either not suitable grazing or we cannot commit to working them enough to compensate (or afford to pay someone to do it on our behalf)
 

Nativelover

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Do you know why they restrict turnout?
Unfortunately it’s because the YO’s won’t put the finance or effort into maintenance. There’s no harrowing/rolling/seeding/topping. It’s far easier just to look at green fields and have the horses in.
Some of the yards are also pushing the numbers for the acreage. Strangely enough, the YO of the first yard I was on turned her horses out for a few hours every morning. You can say her yard her rules all you like, but it was cruel on all of the liveries imo.

ETA- the you is a general one rather than directed at cortez
 
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