Grazing - DIY (standard allocation per horse)

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Wiggy88

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Hi - I'd appreciate hearing from any YO / YM's or anyone who knows anything about what a horse should have as minimum on DIY livery.

I have a 16.3 good doer who I'm looking to move from full livery onto DIY where they will be on 24/7 grass in summer and grass/stable in winter.

YM quotes 1 acre of grazing per horse which they divide up into summer and winter paddocks. Summer half an acre (in individual paddock) and half acre allocation in winter but in shared paddock with other horses who pool the allocation into say a 2 acre paddock.

I believe if I pay for 1 acre a month I should get 1 acre a month not 50% now and 50% in winter but YM says this is normal? Is it?

Also, looking at the BHS guidelines it looks as though they recommend 1 to 1.5 acres of grazing per horse - so does this mean the half an acre I will get in summer is too little ?

I'm asking these questions because I believe half an acre is too little for a 16.3 horse on 24/7 TO.

Any advice gratefully received.
 
Given no one else has responded I will, not sure how much help it will be though.
The last DIY livery I was on my then 16hh tb had a good 1/2acre which she used all year round. Summer turn out >10hours, winter turn out 2-3hours. Slightly poached at gate but with good management it was in very good condition.

The general rule I believe is 1 acre per horse. On a personal note I would split it and use 1/2 rest half. I think it works out in the mixing pot. What I would be more warry of is the fact there put together in the winter. They would be far better together in the summer (if using that system) when there is grass to keep them interested. Winter time, the grass will go quickly and there more likely to get injured with little grass and mud.

Hope that helps
 
i am on diy livery and we have fields of minimum 1 acre for our turnout. i think 1/2 acre is not enough for 24/7 in summer especially as your boy is quite big. mine is only 15.2 and 1 acre is about right IMO. i would alos not be happy with mixed grazing for winter in a small area, asking for trouble i think!!!!
 
Hi neweventer - thanks for replying. I was sure 1/2 would not be enough but perhaps it is!! Noted your point about when to socialise them - hadnt thought of it that way.

Thanks for bumping it up!
 
On a half acre at a time I think you will be adding forage to the field aswell especially in winter when it will be trashed.

As an aside though if that is what the Yard is offering you'd have to decide whether its suitable for your horse to be there and if not look to go somewhere with more grazing.

If you have to go there consider and look up the paradise grazing system to get the maximum benefit from your space.
 
splashgirl45 said:
i am on diy livery and we have fields of minimum 1 acre for our turnout. i think 1/2 acre is not enough for 24/7 in summer especially as your boy is quite big. mine is only 15.2 and 1 acre is about right IMO. i would alos not be happy with mixed grazing for winter in a small area, asking for trouble i think!!!!
Click to expand...

This is what I thought was more likely - thanks splashgirl
 
Victoria25 said:
Is this the only DIY place near you? I'd perhaps get a few options and compare them :confused:
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Yes sadly it is - there are others but the ridnig is rubbish, so guess the trade off is the good riding and I'll just have to decide if that is worth the poor chap munching on 1/2 acre in summer.
 
I used to be on DIY livery. I had two horses at the time (both female) and each had a stable although the filly had a pony size stable and the mare had a larger than normal horse sized one. I also had a storage area for my feed bins, grooming kit etc... I bought hay and straw from the yard which was good quality and a discounted price for liveries. :)

The geldings and mares were turned out in separate herds but there was no individual turnout (fine by me as I believe that horses are happier in herds). Hay was put out in a hay feeder in the winter and the cost of number of bales that they ate was divided by how many horses were in the field and then added to the bill.

The fields were large and averaged out at 1 1/2 - 2 acres per horse, depending on how many liveries were there. We could turn out 24/7 all year if we wanted, although some liked to stable at night. The fields were harrowed and topped as needed.
 
I would be looking around for another place as in my mind this is not enough for your horse, at our yard we have 3 acres per horse. Would say 2 acres per horse as you have to manage the land for summer and winter grazing.
 
Ahh what a shame :(

is the riding rubbish but turnout better? depends on your situation I suppose, we have 25 acres for 7 horses (winter/summer) but I really need good turnout as they go mad without it ... :rolleyes: our yard doesnt have a menage and is just off a busy main road so hacking is not the best (OK after a short hack though) but the turnout means I dont have to worry about riding every day :)
 
The idea of both a fickle YM and that little grazing allocation would worry me. Last time I was on a livery yard, we had 2 fields for ours of just over 2 acres each, we had five horses. Then my pony came back off loan, and we gained another small paddock. We rested that all winter to discover our YM had then given it to someone else, so we then had 4 acres for 6 horses. We moved, and now have 18 acres for 6 in the winter, and a different summer field of about 16 acres.
Turnout is the one thing I would not compromise on, we had to feed ours an unbelievable amount when we had such limited grazing, hard feeding 2 x a day in the summer when they weren't doing huge amounts, whereas now we feed rather less, and do rather more.
 
We have individual turnout paddocks at my yard of no more than 1 acre per horse, with some paddocks a bit smaller than 1 acre. My paddock is approximately 0.9 of an acre and my daughters is about 0.75 of an acre. We choose to keep the two together (one is 14.3 and the other 14.2) and alternate the paddocks. During the summer they go in the slightly larger paddock and I split this in two, so that they are in just under half an acre at any one time. They will alternate between the two halves and will be out 24/7. During the winter they will be stabled at night and go out in the smaller paddock during the day. This is not ideal, as the paddock is really an orchard with lots of shelter but not a lot of grass growth. My YO agrees that this paddock is too small but has no alternative at present. It does mean that I get through a lot of hay in winter as there is no grass whatsoever in the paddock, and it does get very muddy but we manage.
 
I think that 1/2 acre for a 16.3hh is too small as well. You will manage but it will cost you as you will need to supplement 24/7 turnout. It depends what is important to you but the hard work through the winter needs to be offset by decent 24/7 grazing in the summer for me!!!

I'd also be concerned about 4 horses on 2 acres in the winter unless it was in tip top condition and free-draining. Hope that you get it sorted out anyway :):)
 
i think 1/2 acre is ok for day time only but not 24/7.

mine all have a 1/2 acre summer paddock and a 1/2 acre winter paddock but my ground is exceptional (very sandy) and the grass growth very quick (winter paddocks are over knee deep when they go on to them in Oct and summer paddocks have to be mowed monthly to keep it under control).

they are only out 6.30am-3pm and they wouldnt have enough for 24/7.
 
Might do a pony, but don't think it would be enough for 16.3hh, unless also stabled for a portion of the day.

I think you would end up with an overgrazed paddock in the summer that would get quickly trashed in the winter, and would likely have to feed forage all year round.
 
I dont know what an acceptable min is but 1/2 an acre is nothing! we have 3 horses and 2 mini shetties and about 9 acres, they all live out 24/7 365, and already I'm worried we won't have enough grass for the summer!

I used to have mine out in a 20 acre field and there was a herd of 4 and that was perfect! never ran out of grass!
 
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