Horses in the field

GeorgiaR95

Well-Known Member
Joined
5 January 2016
Messages
72
Visit site
Just a little rant but does anyone else have problems with other horses in the same field as yours?

My girls have been fenced off for over a month now with no problems, now the geldings have decided to torment mine causing them to now trash my fencing down to get to them and are getting their legs caught in the fencing whilst stomping their front leg whilst squealing at the geldings!

As much as i love horses sometimes they do nothing but cause trouble! :mad: Getting phone calls from my YO nearly every day with either they have broke the fencing and are in the field or have got their leg caught! Massive inconvenience when i have to leave work to sort them out!
 
Last edited:

Enfys

Well-Known Member
Joined
11 December 2004
Messages
18,086
Visit site
Fortunately no I don't, but I have been there, so I feel your pain.
One of the downsides of having horses on a yard :(
Are these all your own horses? Are you responsible for the fencing? :( (I never quite get that, it should be YO responsibility)

If you are at a livery yard and this is, as it seems, a regular occurrence, your YO really needs to get his/her act in gear and sort the fencing, or field separation out. Pronto, before a horse gets badly injured.

As an owner, I would be casting around for safer grazing facilities myself.
 

Luci07

Well-Known Member
Joined
13 October 2009
Messages
9,382
Location
Dorking
Visit site
I would run a second electric fence to keep the girls away from the geldings. Mares on our yard are coming into season and getting very flirty!
 

GeorgiaR95

Well-Known Member
Joined
5 January 2016
Messages
72
Visit site
Fortunately no I don't, but I have been there, so I feel your pain.
One of the downsides of having horses on a yard :(
Are these all your own horses? Are you responsible for the fencing? :( (I never quite get that, it should be YO responsibility)

If you are at a livery yard and this is, as it seems, a regular occurrence, your YO really needs to get his/her act in gear and sort the fencing, or field separation out. Pronto, before a horse gets badly injured.

As an owner, I would be casting around for safer grazing facilities myself.

No the only horses i have are my two girls that are in the fenced off section of the field.. The others are just free in the rest of the field. It is my own fencing so when they trash it i have to replace the posts etc.. I cant put them in the field with the others either due to them been good doers.:(

I wish i could move but i have someone that rides one of my girls for me so would be hard for me to find someone as good as her. Had no problems last year but these geldings have only been in the field since winter and are causing problems...
 

GeorgiaR95

Well-Known Member
Joined
5 January 2016
Messages
72
Visit site
I would run a second electric fence to keep the girls away from the geldings. Mares on our yard are coming into season and getting very flirty!

My energiser isnt working properly at the minute so i have bought a car battery and energiser so that it is stronger and will hopefully keep them away from the fencing...

I just have to somehow keep them seperated until they get delivered which is going to be an ongoing task. :(
 

applecart14

Well-Known Member
Joined
12 March 2010
Messages
6,269
Location
Solihull, West Mids
Visit site
Yes years ago we had a horse in the herd who decided quite literally that the grass was greener on the other side despite having about 50 acres to graze in! So he'd just barge through the barbed wire fencing leaving a trail of wire in the grass that my horse would always manage to get hooked up on. He was a big Dales so didn't really feel the fence that he literally pushed through with his shoulders! Total nightmare.
 

GeorgiaR95

Well-Known Member
Joined
5 January 2016
Messages
72
Visit site
Yes years ago we had a horse in the herd who decided quite literally that the grass was greener on the other side despite having about 50 acres to graze in! So he'd just barge through the barbed wire fencing leaving a trail of wire in the grass that my horse would always manage to get hooked up on. He was a big Dales so didn't really feel the fence that he literally pushed through with his shoulders! Total nightmare.

That is my biggest fear that they will get it wrapped around their legs. The others horses owners does not seem to care what they do whilst in the field, so yet again as always it seems to be me that has to deal with the problem that other horses have caused making my life hell and full of worry!
 

ihatework

Well-Known Member
Joined
7 September 2004
Messages
21,346
Visit site
That is my biggest fear that they will get it wrapped around their legs. The others horses owners does not seem to care what they do whilst in the field, so yet again as always it seems to be me that has to deal with the problem that other horses have caused making my life hell and full of worry!

Why is it 'the other horses' causing the problems.
It's your horses being flirty and going through the fence.
It's your fencing with insufficient electric

No livery yard is perfect so maybe it's time to consider if the set up is suited to your requirements - it sounds as though we aren't talking like well fenced adjacent fields, more you penning yours in via tape as part of a large field?
 

GeorgiaR95

Well-Known Member
Joined
5 January 2016
Messages
72
Visit site
Would grazing muzzles be an option, as then you might not need the electric fence?

I would worry that they would manage to get them off and would then gorge on the grass, they have gone into summer bigger than i would have liked so not sure if a muzzle would restrict them a lot, i havent ever used one so dont know if they are good or not.. :/
 

Meowy Catkin

Meow!
Joined
19 July 2010
Messages
22,635
Visit site
I don't use them, but my neighbour has a mini shetty as a companion for her TB and she successfully uses a muzzle on the shetty so that he can do his job without exploding.
 

GeorgiaR95

Well-Known Member
Joined
5 January 2016
Messages
72
Visit site
Why is it 'the other horses' causing the problems.
It's your horses being flirty and going through the fence.
It's your fencing with insufficient electric

No livery yard is perfect so maybe it's time to consider if the set up is suited to your requirements - it sounds as though we aren't talking like well fenced adjacent fields, more you penning yours in via tape as part of a large field?

The other horses are also kicking and getting their legs caught not just mine, I have ordered a car battery and energiser set to make it sufficient to hopefully stop them going so near to it, never had this trouble before with using posts, tape and my energisers. Its the only thing we are aloud to use at the yard. YO refuses to do wooden posts etc..
 

Holzdweaver

Well-Known Member
Joined
18 September 2011
Messages
549
Location
Derbyshire
Visit site
Personally in your position, id be buying a couple of decent muzzles (may take a few to find the right one for the right horse) and start getting them used to them and eating through them now, rather than taking a risk with my horses legs through a fence like that. It doesnt take much to sever a tendon, a leg through a loop and a panic and there could be serious problems. Id not take the risk of having a non electrified fence between two herds of horses, especially if those two herds have shown to not respect fences. Getting a muzzle off may be a risk, yes, but in the situation you have described, i feel that the injury from the fence is the highest risk factor. Especially if the YO wont allow wooden fence posts to get a good tension on it. Without a current it may as well be plain wire and without tension its just asking to be challenged and dragged down. If muzzling wasnt an option, id be putting a double row of fencing up properly with a 100cm gap inbetween and tension posts in the corners. would YO allow wooden posts just for the corners, this is the cheapest option? Id be getting a good tension on it if so, so it becomes a more solid barrier and not ribbon like and easily squashed down. may be enough of a deterrent until you get a current through it?
 

GeorgiaR95

Well-Known Member
Joined
5 January 2016
Messages
72
Visit site
Personally in your position, id be buying a couple of decent muzzles (may take a few to find the right one for the right horse) and start getting them used to them and eating through them now, rather than taking a risk with my horses legs through a fence like that. It doesnt take much to sever a tendon, a leg through a loop and a panic and there could be serious problems. Id not take the risk of having a non electrified fence between two herds of horses, especially if those two herds have shown to not respect fences. Getting a muzzle off may be a risk, yes, but in the situation you have described, i feel that the injury from the fence is the highest risk factor. Especially if the YO wont allow wooden fence posts to get a good tension on it. Without a current it may as well be plain wire and without tension its just asking to be challenged and dragged down. If muzzling wasnt an option, id be putting a double row of fencing up properly with a 100cm gap inbetween and tension posts in the corners. would YO allow wooden posts just for the corners, this is the cheapest option? Id be getting a good tension on it if so, so it becomes a more solid barrier and not ribbon like and easily squashed down. may be enough of a deterrent until you get a current through it?

No YO wont allow any wooden posts :/ I will be getting my new energiser etc on tuesday so just have to figure something out until then. The horses all lived together in the winter so they are used to each other and have never bothered to get to each other until this past week even though they have been fenced off over a month, but think i will definitely have to look into getting a couple of grazing muzzles incase i still have this problem when the new battery comes. Do grazing muzzles restrict their intake of grass a lot or can they still get a good amount? I just worry they wont be getting enough with one one..
 

Clodagh

Well-Known Member
Joined
17 August 2005
Messages
24,952
Location
Devon
Visit site
Grazing muzzles restrict their grazing by up to and over 70%, they are amazing. They don't work on the wrong length grass, it needs to be fairly short for the horse to ber able to eat at all. Greenguard are best, IMO, with the proper greenguard headcollar. Expensive, and they look like Hannibal Lector, but better than the alternative.
 

ester

Not slacking multitasking
Joined
31 December 2008
Messages
60,198
Location
Cambridge
Visit site
I use a shires deluxe muzzle, IMO he get a bit less with that than the multiple greenguards on the yard (which all seem to rub badly too) just because the overall open surface area is less.
 

GeorgiaR95

Well-Known Member
Joined
5 January 2016
Messages
72
Visit site
Thanks for the advise! :) I think i will see how they go on when my battery comes and if they still wont respect it then a grazing muzzle looks like the best option.

Such a nightmare having good doers on good quality grass, i dread the summer months with their weight!
 
Top