For those whose horses live at home

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bumblelion

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Got the opportunity to rent house with stables which would be amazing! It comes with 6 acres which is plenty for my 2 horses. There hasn't been anything out in the fields now for a few months so everythings overgrown and in a bit of a mess! We can get the keys in a months time but was wondering how long after that do you think it could take before the horses could move in too? Would work out very expensive keeping them on livery whilst paying for this house too!

Also I'd have to get someone in to do the paddock maintenance, how much does this normally cost?

Many thanks x
 
how exiting.
i would strip graze and they will probably eat it off over the winter.
paddock maintinence is expensive,i strip graze then follow on behind with my 6hp lawn mower.
 
we had this problem (except not as much land) and we moved horses in straight away (we were moving area so couldn't leave them in their usual livery yard). we fenced off a small bit of land with elec fencing whilst we fenced/maintained the whole area. worked well for us. xxx
 
we brought ours home a week after we moved in. We used electric fencing to divide the grazing (inside drystone walls). That allowed us to spend some time how best to fence for the long term. If I were you I'd move the horses in asap. If they can't access the grass you could give them hay/lage to be going on with.
 
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I find that if I strip graze my lot, poo pick daily and rotate/rest the grazing before it gets too poached etc then there is very little paddock maintenance to do.

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i do this /\ /\ ,it sounds silly to say i do my field with a lawn mower but it works and i can do half an acre in about 40 mins.
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The grazing shouldn't have to much goodnss in it by december when you would move in, so I would say move them straight away!

Good luck, I love having mine at home
 
For a relatively small acreage you can do a lot of the paddock maintenance yourself. I spray weeds myself from a backpack (although it may depend on how badly infested your fields are) and I spread fertiliser by hand (use gloves and a mark, you can get 25kg bags of 20-10-10 or similar from most agricultural merchants, but beware it will make the grass grow quite a lot!).
 
Oh thanks everyone! I really have no idea about the maintenance side of things as my livery yard takes care of that. So would I not need to fertilise or get it weeded yet or is that more spring time? X
 
We also did this when we bought our place, we actually had to move the horse on before we moved in the houses because the livery YO turned nasty when he found out we were going, fortunatley everywhere here has stone walls so there was no fencing to worry about at the time, but the stables didnt even have roofs so we had to rug ours up and get the stables done as soon as possible, land is hard to maintain and needs keeping up to but I agree strip grazing is the best thing to do, possibly try electric fence until you can organise more permanent solutions x
 
Luckily I have plenty of electric fencing just need a battery and must purchase a decent lawnmower! Luckily the paddocks aren't too weedy, the owners have looked after them!

So excited but also scared about having them at home! I don't get any help with them but always know there's people there if you need advice etc! Will prob see me much more on here now! LOL! Will be nice to not have to drive 20 mins each way twice a day to get to them, and no more fighting over the schools! Doesn't help that I'm at a yard which constantly has comps on too!
 
6 acres for 2 horses I really wouldn't fertlise, I have never fertilised my paddocks and the grass grows beautifully. Fertiliser has its place if you are pushed fro grazing but makes the grass too rich for horses if they have a lot of it.
I have mine at home and its great - you can do them in your dressing gown at the weekend and then go back to bed!!
 
Def dont fertilise, much better for them without. Horses arent designed to cope with rich grass.

You could put them in straight away at this time of year. Ideally with some hay from their last home so they can nibble it and make the transition a bit more gradual.

If you do want to increase goodness, get some sheep!, they will fertilise gradually and also break the worm cycle and graze down (they follow the horses) to a bowling green lovely sward. Just dont leave the horse lick in, it can have too much copper. Im just about to enjoy the first chops from our little herd.
 
Congratulations for a start.

Is the fencing horseproof? Are there any danger spots? (Holes, hidden wire,machinery, poisonous plants etc)

Personally, I'd put them out on the whole lot for the winter. They'll browse it down for you beautifully and by Springtime you'll be able to sort it all out without wasting time and energy mowing it all now.

I am fortunate in that I have a lot of set aside, woods and forest that my horses can run in, good for them physically and mentally.They pick what they want, when they want, have burrs in their manes, rips in their blankets and are as happy as larry.

This picture is at the edge of a pond:
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Same pond, the palomino in the background is 15h
DSCF1655.jpg
 
I'd move them in straight away, stip graze them with electric fencing. We also use a sit and ride in the fields when the grass is too long or for the clumps they dont eat. Have noticed that cutting it regularly with the sit and ride is making the grass grow back better as when we bought our land it had previously been used for maze and hadnt been re-seeded. The grass that had grown back was all woody and stalky, but with grazing and mowning is now turning into nice green grass.
 
Your local agricultural store should be able to help with advice for weedkiller if you need it. Mine has a handy illustrated guide so I can point out the plants I want to get rid off and they tell me what to buy!!! The guide also shows the plants at different stages and when to spray them (google is bound to produce similar information). The usual time to spray is spring, may have to repeat it in early summer. Look out for ragwort, this needs to be pulled out from the roots or sprayed quickly. When you spray you will need to keep the horses off that patch for at least two weeks (or more depending on the manufacturer's recommendations).

Six acres for 2 horses should be plenty but if you find that it's all weeds and you need to fertilise, early spring and early autumn is the best time to give the grass a boost. If you then have too much you can always get hay out of it!

Other things to keep in mind: if you can hardcore gates do it, it makes life a lot easier in the winter. Look at for acorns at this time of year if you have oak trees. In general, long grass has less nutritional value than recently cut grass so they may be better off on the long grass (especially as the tips of the grass will have turned yellow by now) rather than on newly cut grass.
 
Enjoy. I have my 2 horses at home on 4.5 acres & actually have too much grass. I don't fertilise but do pay a contractor to weedkill every other year & to harrow/roll every year. I have a winter 'trash paddock' of about 2 acres which gets rested & repaired in the summer & a local farmer makes hay/silage from the other 4 acres every year. The biggest problem I have is getting rid of the muck heap! I give it away/ pay a contractor to take it away/get hay making farmer to spread on field or cut hedges in exchange for the hay/silage. What do other 'horse at home' people do?
 
I would move them straight in, after, of course, checking for anything dangerous lurking. The grass really will not have too much goodness left. I agree that with six acres for two horses, you will not need to fertilise. Your local Agri merchant, or friendly farmer, will help you learn what you need, when and what to do.
 
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