HorsesHavingFun
Well-Known Member
I have no pictures at the moment, but post if you have some! How bad are your fields? Are they like lakes? Please make me feel better about mine! 
Go on then...how bad are your fields?!
- Thread starter HorsesHavingFun
- Start date
MinxGTi
Well-Known Member
Awful 
everyday they are coming in with mud up to their armpits! Wouldn't be so bad, but they do like to have a good gallop and play about, which covers them in mud and churns the field up that bit more.
everyday they are coming in with mud up to their armpits! Wouldn't be so bad, but they do like to have a good gallop and play about, which covers them in mud and churns the field up that bit more.Dumbo
Well-Known Member
horses went out for 2 days over christmas and this is the result.. - sorry it's come out so big!
RainbowDash
Well-Known Member
Needed Fisherman's waders (up to Ponio's knees in places) - now put boyo in youngsters paddock away from the mud TF!
Rebels
Well-Known Member
Deep mud round gates but more scary is that it is impossible to walk on. We are on chalk, the grass isn't particularly thick so you slip about a foot with each stride, on a slope too. I was letting them out as and when I could then had to bring in 2 of my live outs in on box rest with pulls. The 5 ridden competition horses are living in but 1 has tweaked something even turned out for a short while. I had hoped that the dressage competition beforehand may have taken the oomph out of him and tbf he didn't hooly round. I have now arena to turn out in either so fed up!
figgy
Well-Known Member
I must be lucky my fields are great only little mud round the gate and still have grass, horse have been out everyday all day .
Wagtail
Horse servant
My fields look gorgeous, lovely and green and lush. But that's because the horses have been off them since mid October. They are stuck in the sand turnout instead. Can't wait until I can turn them out again in the Spring.
MochaDun
Well-Known Member
Put it this way unless your horse comes to the gate at bringing in time it's not really safe to get much further to retrieve them without high risk of going over - very thick deep mud that goes uphill slightly for the first 3rd of the field. Also as I discovered attempting to turnout even if in long wellies whilst in trousers suitable for then going into work is a silly idea...splattered just from walking through gate and turning round.
ILuvCowparsely
Well-Known Member
round the gates its boggy as the horses stand there for the last 2 hrs waiting to come in, the rest is squidgy but fairing better than i expected. That said its a nightmare pushing the barrow round
tessybear
Well-Known Member
Had to move her off the field, it has small lakes on it and had to put straw down outside the field shelter because it was up to your ankles in clay mud so difficult to walk in :-(
However ponio is now on neighbouring padock on lush green grass whilst ours recovers abit
However ponio is now on neighbouring padock on lush green grass whilst ours recovers abit
ILuvCowparsely
Well-Known Member
This is the entrance to the field
Then from up looking down the mud is just concentrated in the gate area
the top end where they spend most of the morning
looks like mud but but actually the grass lying down on the ground and trodden on so they can sift through and eat the grass to keep them busy
and the two resting sides
I am not worried because as soon as the wet time is finished I will move them over.
A will come in harrow weedkill and fertilize and after a month or two rest this field will be as good as new.
Our land recovers very quickly so even on NY day I decided to turn them out so only xmas day they stayed in otherwise they are out from 7am till 3pm.
Then from up looking down the mud is just concentrated in the gate area
the top end where they spend most of the morning
looks like mud but but actually the grass lying down on the ground and trodden on so they can sift through and eat the grass to keep them busy
and the two resting sides
I am not worried because as soon as the wet time is finished I will move them over.
A will come in harrow weedkill and fertilize and after a month or two rest this field will be as good as new.
Our land recovers very quickly so even on NY day I decided to turn them out so only xmas day they stayed in otherwise they are out from 7am till 3pm.
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Ilovefoals
Well-Known Member
Mine are only muddy round the gate thank goodness. The rest of the field is fine, except for one day when I woke up to a lake but that drained away in 2days.
russianhorse
Well-Known Member
Mine is not too bad - the dykes surrounding it is filled to nearly the top, but the field itself is just slippery
I went to do my friends 2 horses yesterday and found she had sectioned them off into a little bit of grazing about 20 ft sq (with access to their stables). The mud they were stood in was horrendous and I could barely walk to them as the mud came just below my calf!!
I opened the section up and let them graze back onto the 4 acre because they looked how I feel with this rain and mud - totally fed up and miserable
I went to do my friends 2 horses yesterday and found she had sectioned them off into a little bit of grazing about 20 ft sq (with access to their stables). The mud they were stood in was horrendous and I could barely walk to them as the mud came just below my calf!!
I opened the section up and let them graze back onto the 4 acre because they looked how I feel with this rain and mud - totally fed up and miserable
rowy
Well-Known Member
Lets just ssay, i put all 3 of them out into a tiny paddock which hadn't had horses on it since the spring/ summer and in 3 days (only out for a few hours each day) the field is now mud with a few strands of grass here and there.
They were in a paddock outside our house but something keeps spooking them which means galloping round and round and round and completely trashing it and risking injuring themselves so they are now in 24 hours with menage turnout until it dries up.
We still have 1 winter paddock with ankle deep grass we are leaving until the snow and one other winter paddock with short but lush grass but because it is short their feet just slide through it just walk so we are leaving that until completely dry.
They were in a paddock outside our house but something keeps spooking them which means galloping round and round and round and completely trashing it and risking injuring themselves so they are now in 24 hours with menage turnout until it dries up.
We still have 1 winter paddock with ankle deep grass we are leaving until the snow and one other winter paddock with short but lush grass but because it is short their feet just slide through it just walk so we are leaving that until completely dry.
Annagain
Well-Known Member
Ours is fine, a bit squelchy with water rather than mud around the gate but within about 10metres it's good grass. We're at the top of a hill on good draining soil and there's only about a foot of soil before you hit rock so it's never very muddy. On the down side though it gets very hard very quickly if we ever have a dry few days.
The one the other herd is in has a narrowish corridor from the gate going about 40m until the field widens and that's horrible. The farm's at the top of the hill and the two winter fields go down opposite sides of the hill - the difference in the two is incredible, you'd never think they were only about 20m apart! There's obviously different types of soil on the two sides.
The one the other herd is in has a narrowish corridor from the gate going about 40m until the field widens and that's horrible. The farm's at the top of the hill and the two winter fields go down opposite sides of the hill - the difference in the two is incredible, you'd never think they were only about 20m apart! There's obviously different types of soil on the two sides.
Magicmillbrook
Well-Known Member
Could be worse! We are on heavy clay and overstocked. We have done a lot of work on land drains, matting in gateways and hardcore which has helped and in a 'normal' year I don't think we would have had any problems. Our fields are divided up into 7 small paddocks and we are slowly working our way through them (turn out from about 7/8am until 3/4pm), taking the horses off before they get too churned up. When its raining they are turned out in the manege. I have two paddocks left that I don't want to start until Feb. I wish we could have a nice cold icy spell so they could stay out. I am a fan of horses being out 24/7 and at our old house (same acreage) where we had very free draining soils they would be out in all but the worst weather.
miss_c
Well-Known Member
The field they are currently on is doing very well - it's the highest point of my land and had long grass. Considering how much we've been under water I'm really pleased with how the land is coping, and as it hasn't been too cold even the paddocks that are already grazed are looking quite green again, even if the grass is very short. Their last paddock lasted a month even with the rain, so I am hoping this one will last them into February - touch wood!
Their last paddock about 2 weeks before they moved paddocks
An idea of how wet it's been...
Looking down to the paddocks that are grazed and resting
Their last paddock about 2 weeks before they moved paddocks
An idea of how wet it's been...
Looking down to the paddocks that are grazed and resting
Tiarella
Well-Known Member
I havent a picture, but have lovely organic grazing with good soil and drainage. Fields still growing grass where I am! 
siennamum
Well-Known Member
Our fields are varying degrees of horrendous. The main field has a lake in it, but the grass is growing like mad! Paddocks which are flat are just like paddy fields. We are turning out for limited time during the day.
MileAMinute
Well-Known Member
Our fields aren't too bad at all considering neighbouring yards who's horses are in 24/7. It's more surface water on them than anything!
I'm lucky that when me and MoomincePie on here go to get ours in, I can wait at my stable - my lad will just follow MMP's mare in and walk himself into his stable
I'm lucky that when me and MoomincePie on here go to get ours in, I can wait at my stable - my lad will just follow MMP's mare in and walk himself into his stable
Baggybreeches
Well-Known Member
My big field (7.5 acres) is waterlogged and slippery but only muddy at the gateway (like mud soup!) my small field (1 acre) is pretty churned up in places (mostly where we go to and from the big field) and my paddock (1/2 acre) is just about ok (except where I have walked across it). I decided to put my horses on the big field as it got pretty churned up getting the hay in (waterlogged at the top of a hill?!) so we will just leave it now and sort it out in April, get it rolled, harrowed and bag mucked ready for hopefully a decent year of haylage making!
Mine are all in the sand paddock this week due to some mud fever flare up even my bloody donkey is flaking from rain scald (which was from living out before I got her 3 weeks ago!)
Mine are all in the sand paddock this week due to some mud fever flare up
even my bloody donkey is flaking from rain scald (which was from living out before I got her 3 weeks ago!)Prince33Sp4rkle
Well-Known Member
we are doing ok, but then we are half way up a hill on very sandy soil!
the walkway between fields is fine, squelchy but not muddy, just very wet grass.
the gateway in to the field from the yard has a few muddy hoofprints, but you can step round or over them and the gateways in to the 2 nearest paddocks are also fine, few deep hoofprints but no actual mud.
there is a bit of mud in the corner of each paddock where the 4 paddocks meet, ie the area where they all stand grooming/talking/playing over the fence .... its prob about 3ft square area and its not deep or gloopy-because the soil has such a high sand content it wont stick to their leg or feet unless they gallop through it repeatedly or do sliding stops etc, if you walk them through it to bring them in they have a little bit of mud on the actual hoof wall but thats it.
most days they come in with clean white socks
loads and loads of grass, still nearly knee deep in the top half of CS and Fig's paddocks and at the bottom of my liverys section (bruce the fat pig has of course consumed all the long grass in his bit at breakneck speed, but still has a good covering of old turf left to devour )
this is the worst the fields have been in 12 years, most years we dont have any mud at all, and i honestly mean that, not a single wet muddy hoof print, but this year even we have had a few days when there have been puddles sitting in the ridge and furrow areas, its grim.
summer paddocks are green, but not enough grass on them to use at the moment, give it a couple of warm weeks in march/april and it will be knee deep though, so im not worried.
really feel for people on clay soil or on overstocked land, some of the yards i teach at are pretty much under water with no turnout still, and the turnout they can get, is pure liquid mud-i wouldnt put a pig on it let alone a horse!
the walkway between fields is fine, squelchy but not muddy, just very wet grass.
the gateway in to the field from the yard has a few muddy hoofprints, but you can step round or over them and the gateways in to the 2 nearest paddocks are also fine, few deep hoofprints but no actual mud.
there is a bit of mud in the corner of each paddock where the 4 paddocks meet, ie the area where they all stand grooming/talking/playing over the fence .... its prob about 3ft square area and its not deep or gloopy-because the soil has such a high sand content it wont stick to their leg or feet unless they gallop through it repeatedly or do sliding stops etc, if you walk them through it to bring them in they have a little bit of mud on the actual hoof wall but thats it.
most days they come in with clean white socks
loads and loads of grass, still nearly knee deep in the top half of CS and Fig's paddocks and at the bottom of my liverys section (bruce the fat pig has of course consumed all the long grass in his bit at breakneck speed, but still has a good covering of old turf left to devour
)this is the worst the fields have been in 12 years, most years we dont have any mud at all, and i honestly mean that, not a single wet muddy hoof print, but this year even we have had a few days when there have been puddles sitting in the ridge and furrow areas, its grim.
summer paddocks are green, but not enough grass on them to use at the moment, give it a couple of warm weeks in march/april and it will be knee deep though, so im not worried.
really feel for people on clay soil or on overstocked land, some of the yards i teach at are pretty much under water with no turnout still, and the turnout they can get, is pure liquid mud-i wouldnt put a pig on it let alone a horse!
HorsesHavingFun
Well-Known Member
The field they are currently on is doing very well - it's the highest point of my land and had long grass. Considering how much we've been under water I'm really pleased with how the land is coping, and as it hasn't been too cold even the paddocks that are already grazed are looking quite green again, even if the grass is very short. Their last paddock lasted a month even with the rain, so I am hoping this one will last them into February - touch wood!
Their last paddock about 2 weeks before they moved paddocks
An idea of how wet it's been...
Looking down to the paddocks that are grazed and resting
The wet one is awful!
Poor you! At least the rested paddock looks great HoneystarEquestrian
Member
Mine are on a working dairy farm.... Extremely Muddy tracks + Cow poop = one very sad and muddy and smelly mummy
tallyho!
Following a strict mediterranean diet...
I love the mud in my field so much, I sat in it today! It came all the way up to my middle and when I tried to get up, my arms sank to my elbows. Lovely jubbly!
Never liked those trousers anyway....
Never liked those trousers anyway....
spookypony
Well-Known Member
My larger paddock is not too horrible except in the bit where the previous owner's veggie garden used to be, and just infront of the gate. "Not too horrible" being a relative term here; there's deep hoofprints and lumpy bits everywhere, but it's been rested for about 3 weeks now, and there are some new green shoots.
The smaller paddock is horribly horribly muddy near the gate and pretty bad for the first 1/4. THe rest is a series of large puddles, but the ground is holding up. They're in there at the moment; I put the hay feeder near the gate so that at least only one area would be a disaster, and so that I can get the bales in (I have to roll them). They're staying in there for another month at least.
In the meantime, I'm coralling them on my lawn for a few hours when I can, just so they get out of the mud and have something fresh to nibble! They're devouring hay like nobody's business!
By next winter, I should have my stables sorted, and hopefully fence off the hard standing (aka "the driveway/parking area"), so that I can keep them on the hard standing when it's so wet.
The smaller paddock is horribly horribly muddy near the gate and pretty bad for the first 1/4. THe rest is a series of large puddles, but the ground is holding up. They're in there at the moment; I put the hay feeder near the gate so that at least only one area would be a disaster, and so that I can get the bales in (I have to roll them). They're staying in there for another month at least.
In the meantime, I'm coralling them on my lawn for a few hours when I can, just so they get out of the mud and have something fresh to nibble! They're devouring hay like nobody's business!
By next winter, I should have my stables sorted, and hopefully fence off the hard standing (aka "the driveway/parking area"), so that I can keep them on the hard standing when it's so wet.
mandwhy
Well-Known Member
I told my horse she should be really pleased about all the long grass she has but now she has run out of nettles and hedge she only wants to eat hay and runs over shouting like a starved maniac when I bring it to her
It's alright for a snooze though!
It's alright for a snooze though!
L&M
Well-Known Member
Well I think you have all got off lightly then - all the photos look fab and just wish my fields looked as good.
Off to sulk....
Off to sulk....
Wimbles
Well-Known Member
I'm so grateful that I took all the land that I could afford on. Got six living out on about 20 acres and it's doing great. Yes it's a bit muddy in the gateways but as they aren't coming in then they don't stand in it.
These were last weekend
A hideously wooly Tiger, it makes me feel quite unwell that he looks so hairy as he's usually fully clipped but under all that fluff he looks the best he ever has in winter and his personality is greatly improved!!
Apologies for the size of the rug on George, it's his big brother's!! You can see the farmer's field behind him which is completely waterlogged! We're so lucky!
These were last weekend
A hideously wooly Tiger, it makes me feel quite unwell that he looks so hairy as he's usually fully clipped but under all that fluff he looks the best he ever has in winter and his personality is greatly improved!!
Apologies for the size of the rug on George, it's his big brother's!! You can see the farmer's field behind him which is completely waterlogged! We're so lucky!
nikkimariet
Well-Known Member
we are doing ok, but then we are half way up a hill on very sandy soil!
the walkway between fields is fine, squelchy but not muddy, just very wet grass.
the gateway in to the field from the yard has a few muddy hoofprints, but you can step round or over them and the gateways in to the 2 nearest paddocks are also fine, few deep hoofprints but no actual mud.
there is a bit of mud in the corner of each paddock where the 4 paddocks meet, ie the area where they all stand grooming/talking/playing over the fence .... its prob about 3ft square area and its not deep or gloopy-because the soil has such a high sand content it wont stick to their leg or feet unless they gallop through it repeatedly or do sliding stops etc, if you walk them through it to bring them in they have a little bit of mud on the actual hoof wall but thats it.
most days they come in with clean white socks
loads and loads of grass, still nearly knee deep in the top half of CS and Fig's paddocks and at the bottom of my liverys section (bruce the fat pig has of course consumed all the long grass in his bit at breakneck speed, but still has a good covering of old turf left to devour
this is the worst the fields have been in 12 years, most years we dont have any mud at all, and i honestly mean that, not a single wet muddy hoof print, but this year even we have had a few days when there have been puddles sitting in the ridge and furrow areas, its grim.
summer paddocks are green, but not enough grass on them to use at the moment, give it a couple of warm weeks in march/april and it will be knee deep though, so im not worried.
really feel for people on clay soil or on overstocked land, some of the yards i teach at are pretty much under water with no turnout still, and the turnout they can get, is pure liquid mud-i wouldnt put a pig on it let alone a horse!
Picture of said not too bad field (scuse the Fig):
