Filthy Yearling!

[missemsky]

Hi, I have a yearling colt who is the first youngster I have ever had, and after been out 24/7 through the Summer he is now stabled due to Winter field management. I am truly shocked at how filthy he is. I have been around horses for around thirty years and shockingly he is in the top two muckiest horses I have ever known. After taking six wheelbarrows out this morning I am at my wits end on what to do, I don't want him stood in wet and muck all day; but no matter how deep his bed is it just gets churned up. I think he is moving around a lot and this is the issue.

My question is to anyone who has had a messy youngster... Do they grow out of it? I was told Colts are generally clean.

Roll on Spring!

 

[PurBee]

Gosh 6 wheelbarrow is alarming! poor you!
On shavings with 2 sharing an open double doored stable, i thought 1.6 wheelbarrows daily was alarming...they churn it up. But one wee yearling colt must be doing zoomies in there and rolling and having a whale of a time to churn it up so much.

Maybe its because he’s not used to being in a stable so is pacing and finding it frustrating? How long has he been stabled this winter so far? I would expect him to get less messy if these are his first few weeks in this enclosed environment.

Can he see out and see other stuff going on in the yard and other horses to help distract him a bit and keep his mind occupied and curious?

 

[missemsky]

I know, everything came out except the bankings, and I had deep littered as I had read that would help.

He has been in overnight for around two weeks and in full time for the past three days due to waterlogged fields. I hate it and really feel for him. The stables are in an open barn so he has a good view of everything going on and the other three horses.

Fingers crossed you are right and it's a settling in period.

 

[windand rain]

You mean he is in 24/7 no turnout at all and you are complaining because he is trying hard to exercise himself, keep himself amused and not go barking mad. You need to move him where he can be out 24/7 at best but for at least 12 hours at worst preferably with other youngsters

 

[ycbm]

Welcome to the forum.

It is completely unacceptable to keep a yearling stabled 24/7. At the very least he should be in a barn with a herd but preferably a field.

He is mucky because he is being driven out of his mind.

You need to find him somewhere else to live. Please, no "i can't" responses. You can.

 

[paddi22]

find cheap grass livery and chuck him out over winter. even if it's miles away from you, there will be places where they can get checked everyday. mentally and physically it's so tough on a horse that young being in that much.

 

[TheMule]

Firstly, get him gelded
Secondly, turn him out in a herd or find him suitable barn youngstock housing at the very least.
If you're going to own a yearling then you have to provide suitable living conditions. If you really can’t then sell him.
Poor creature

 

[AmyMay]

Firstly, get him gelded
Secondly, turn him out in a herd or find him suitable barn youngstock housing at the very least.
If you're going to own a yearling then you have to provide suitable living conditions. If you really can’t then sell him.
Poor creature

Totally agree.

 

[Arzada]

This is not an acceptable way to keep him. No living being would ever choose to stand in pee and poo for even 5 minutes yet you are confining him in such an area for so far 72 hours. As well as being forced to stay in such a ghastly environment he is also forced to drink and eat in there. Find a cupboard and confine yourself to it for the exact same number of hours that you are confining your horse and see how it is to pee, poo, eat and drink there. And not fulfil your need for movement. Right so that's that bit out of the way. We are all designed and need to move especially youngsters Ever watched children coming out of school. It's an eruption of energy. Your youngster desperately needs to move so he is and this happens to be the confined space that you keep him in and yet you are complaining about him messing up the bed. If horses had their own forum he would be on there justifiably complaining about the horrible way that you are keeping him. Find somewhere suitable for a youngster ie out and in a herd.

 

[missemsky]

Thank you everyone, I really appreciate how helpful, emphatic and friendly you have all been as a newbie it's always nice to feel welcome!

So I think the answer to my question is that no one really stables a yearling and it's quite normal for them to be messy. Unfortunately in the real world where I actually have no control over the yard owner and cannot move yards due to a variety of reasons your opinions are really unhelpful!

 

[AmyMay]

Because none of us live in the real world either....

What responses were you actually looking for?

 

[TheMule]

Thank you everyone, I really appreciate how helpful, emphatic and friendly you have all been as a newbie it's always nice to feel welcome!

So I think the answer to my question is that no one really stables a yearling and it's quite normal for them to be messy. Unfortunately in the real world where I actually have no control over the yard owner and cannot move yards due to a variety of reasons your opinions are really unhelpful!

You've been given very good advice to help you to solve the problem.
If you would like to give a rough area that you're in then I'm sure there are people who can help further by suggesting suitable youngstock livery near to you. For example, I have several suggestions if you are in the South West, though many of them would require him to be gelded first.

 

[The Xmas Furry]

Thank you everyone, I really appreciate how helpful, emphatic and friendly you have all been as a newbie it's always nice to feel welcome!

So I think the answer to my question is that no one really stables a yearling and it's quite normal for them to be messy. Unfortunately in the real world where I actually have no control over the yard owner and cannot move yards due to a variety of reasons your opinions are really unhelpful!

You might think replies are unhelpful to you as a 1st time yearling owner, but the replies above come from knowledge and experience.
I think you can just get away with a yearling in over night, but to keep in 24/7 compromises the welfare in a huge way.
I suggest you look for urgent options to get him out of such a yard that actively prohibits him being out and stop making excuses.

Edited to add, yes I have had a good number of youngstock amongst all other ages and sexes, so I'm typing from experience.

 

[twiggy2]

Op we all live in the real world and if you cannot supply adequate living conditions for a horse you don't have a horse.
Stabling growing youngsters 24/7 not only messes with their brains but affects them physically too.
If you cannot provide turn out then sell him

 

[Chinchilla]

Well I am sorry you do not feel welcome here but we mean well; we're just very passionate about horse welfare here.

However that seems to be have been covered by others so assuming you're planning on getting him gelded and on 24/7 youngstock turnout ASAP, for the time being it would be easier to help if you said whether he is on straw or shavings? How much forage does he get? Have you tried him with enrichment like a mirror, or a swede/carrot string from the ceiling? Does he have any time out of the stable at all, e.g. in an arena to stretch his legs or for in hand walks or grooming?

Depending on the answers to the above, I'd put him on straw, not deep littered, with rubber mats underneath, and try him with some toys e.g. as above, mirror, swede on a string etc. My mare was on boxrest for a very long time over the summer and she also likes to plough up her stable. She was on shavings for the first week as she had to come in as an emergency due to the injury and we couldn't find any straw at such short notice, but once off shavings and being handwalked for half an hour either end of the day she was actually much neater, and she improved even more when allowed a little bit of turnout in a small area. Learning to tolerate stabling is an important skill for a youngster but shutting them up for days on end is not the way to do it, in fact it will likely make them entirely intolerant of stabling; and if you think your yearling is messy now, think how much worse he'd be if he developed a box walking habit!

I'd also potentially look at a ground feeder type net for hay/forage or a low calorie chopped forage like topchop zero for him to munch on to pass the time so he's got his head down eating but won't get fat/put excess weight on young joints so he doesn't go out of his mind whilst you find a more appropriate yard situation for a young horse.
I hope you stay on the forum here: it's a very useful place to learn from some very experienced, albeit sometimes a tad abrupt, individuals.

 

[Gloi]

I actually have no control over the yard owner and cannot move yards due to a variety of reasons

Sell him then before you screw him up for life.

 

[Parrotperson]

Thank you everyone, I really appreciate how helpful, emphatic and friendly you have all been as a newbie it's always nice to feel welcome!

So I think the answer to my question is that no one really stables a yearling and it's quite normal for them to be messy. Unfortunately in the real world where I actually have no control over the yard owner and cannot move yards due to a variety of reasons your opinions are really unhelpful!

Can you not find somewhere with other youngsters in afield that he could go out with? personally I wouldn't want him back til he was at least 3! He's got a lot of growing and learning to do and needs other horses around to do it.

 

[Arzada]

You are in the position of being your horse's only advocate. At the moment you aren't on his side. You are both at your wit's end though you only see that you are. If you want something enough and refuse to keep a horse this way you will find somewhere more suitable for him. It may not be as suitable for you but that's part of the price we pay for the honour and privilege of owning and caring for horses.

 

[paddi22]

we all live in the real world. lots of people get stuck in your position and any ones I've known have paid a transporter or a friend to move colts to suitable grazing. it is often an unusual situation for people to be trapped in yards as well unless there is some crazy contract stuff. no one is attacking you as everyone can get stuck in unsuitable situations, I myself had to move a colt away to grazing hours away from me due to personal circumstances and I didn't see him for a year, just trusted the people checking him. it wasn't perfect, but it gave him a quality of life than was better than him being stuck in a stable with limited turnout with me. sometimes there's no perfect decision but you have to factor in the damage caused to a young horse mentality and physically by being restricted in movement and socialising so much.

 

[hollyandivy123]

Here is a possible example...the cost is about the same as diy I have no association with them

https://www.martingalefarm.com/youngstock-livery

 

[doodle]

I suspect we will not see op again as she has not got the answers she wants.

Keeping any horse in with no turnout is not acceptable. Never mind a yearling who can’t be exercised in any other way. Poor horse is reacting the way any horse would. You either find turnout for the horse or you sell it to someone who can keep the horse in a humane way.

 

[J&S]

To even consider buying/owning a very young equine you must FIRST have the proper environment available for them. It is no good buying in the spring then finding out there is not enough land or the ground gets too wet or the landlord doesnt want stock out in it come the winter. All this should have been acertained in the beginning.
Personally, when I lost my last companion pony I would have dearly loved to have purchased a forest foal to bring up and my partner was all for it, he even picked one out. However, with limited land available and having to stable in winter, plus for the moment using mostly electric fencing and only an elderly mare for company I knew this was not the thing to do. What kind of assesment did you do before you bought your yearling colt????

 

[Pearlsacarolsinger]

If you can't find an alternative, I suggest that you ask his breeder to take him and look after him for you until you have adequate facilites or until he is old enough to live in the facilities you can provide.

 

[rascal]

If you do not have turnout for him i would either move, or sell him. What part of the country are you in? Someone might be able to help with grazing. If you are in the West Midlands, the yard ours are at have young stock.
Had several youngstrs over the years, from just weaned, but would never keep them in.

 

[PurBee]

find cheap grass livery and chuck him out over winter. even if it's miles away from you, there will be places where they can get checked everyday. mentally and physically it's so tough on a horse that young being in that much.

This would be best OP, as he had almost a year of freedom and only just recently been introduced to stabling, so it’s very foreign to him to be restricted in a stable.
The movement youngstock get from leaping around in a field not only occupies their curious minds but importantly help their bone growth and density...their whole skeletal development, so this time in their life movement is so important for them to have sound health later on in life too.

It’s quite unfair a yard doesnt allow for at least youngstock turnout, despite field conditions.
Have a word with your yard expressing your concerns and that your colt needs turnout, and if they cant offer it tell them you’ll have to move yards. If they want your business they’ll offer you a field for him....but he really does need other horses out with him to socialise with and learn healthy horse behaviour , otherwise him out alone all winter can then affect his behaviour. So really ‘youngstock grass livery yard’ would be best.

At his age he needs other horses and movement more than any human interventions. This proper foundation really paves the way for having a healthier horse in body and mind later on. He’ll be much healthier to train.

Fingers are crossed you succeed in pushing your yard for some turnout and company for him, if not, have a search for grass livery herds.
If you let folk on here know which area you’re in, they very well might be able to help with contacts for a place. This forum covers many areas!

Dont take the comments personally, when experience meets inexperience it’s natural for the experienced to abruptly ask ‘what are you thinking?’...yet inexperience only gains experience by first being inexperienced! We’ve all been there. So do take on board the advice, it’s golden and will help you both in the long run.

 

[eggs]

Unfortunately for you the advice that you have been given with regards to 24/7 stabling being totally inappropriate for a yearling is not what you wanted to hear but that does not make it incorrect.

I cannot think of a good reason why you could not move him to youngstock livery which will solve your problem of the messy stable.

I know of two youngsters that were kept in full time and it didn’t end well for either of them.

 

[rascal]

OP we all live in the real world, but if you want to keep youngsters then you need suitable facilities to do so.
We once had a person share our pony who had been outgrown, at the time my eldest had a 2 year old, they kept putting all the horses in the stables for hours on end, even though they were repeatedly asked not to. He went from a friendly, easy going lad, to a grumpy pain in the backside. No you do not have control over the yard owners wishes, but you do have control over which yard you use.

 

[scats]

If you let us know what area you are in OP, someone might be able to suggest somewhere suitable for him to live out.

I appreciate that people are very much tied to the rules of the YO and if this was a riding horse, although not ideal, there would be ways to make it work in the short term and I’m sure people on here would be much more understanding of your plight, but with a yearling, this really is a different situation.
They need to be out, with others. It is really unfair to keep a yearling in a stable 24/7. Your dirty bed is a by product of a very stressed animal.
I also know of a youngster who was kept in from 6 months old on a yard that had no winter turnout. Let’s just say he was riddled with problems, both physically and mentally, and his life was far shorter than it should have been.
Please find somewhere for your youngster to go and live out and perhaps re-assess the livery situation in a couple of years time.

 

[windand rain]

I doubt very much the OP is around but if you are why on earth did you buy a foal/yearling without first making sure you had facilities for it and if your circumstances have changed then get him gelded it will give him far more options in life and will buy you a little time to sort out his welfare as his current situation is cruel. If you care at all about his welfare you will read this thread and realise you cannot keep him this way. Youngstock livery would help but as long as he is gelded any herd environment will do him. "Every good stallion makes a better gelding" especially welsh as they are 10 a penny and not an at risk breed. Not sure why some people consider it an option to keep colts and stallions like cages tigers then expect good temperament and manners.

 

[sport horse]

You have chosen to take on the care of a yearling colt. Find it a suitable place to live where it is happty and cared for appropriately. If you cannot, then sell it or give it awy to someone who can.