How do you introduce your horse to new grass without upset tums?

kinnygirl1

kinnygirl1

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Hi

As title really. We are just moving onto summer fields and 24 hour turnout after being in at night out at day for the winter. Summer fields have been resting since November and are now lush and rich. Last year I found my cob bloated up and looked tired and full after about an hour on the grass so have been introducing him to it this year for an hour one day, two hours the next and so on. Today someone told me this may be doing him more harm as he will gorge for the short time he is on it rather than self regulate himself as he would if he was on it for 24hours. Is this right? Just want a smooth transition for him really withour upset tum!

How do you guys all do it?
 
I would either muzzle for a percentage of time over first few days, introduce them gradually in patches/sections or provide some hay in the field to help them digest it better.
Personally I wouldn't bring in and out repeatedly but have done in the past with lami prone horses.

Pan
 
i rotate mine round the fields all winter , then shut one off completely about feb , by turnout time it has a little growth but not too much to cause probs , while they are on this the others are rested and they then rotate thru summer , also from xmas time i feed readigrass gradually introducing to their feed so their tums get used to a rich grass don't know if this helps but touch wood have never had a prob
 
I would never turn a horse out on to unlimited fresh pasture. It could be a recipe for disaster (Laminitis and Coloc). I would section a very small amount off first say 20 feet by 20 feet with electric fencing and put the horse out in that small section for one hour the first two days returning the horse to the Winter pasture the rest of the time and then increase it to two hours for the next two days by which time the grass will all have been eaten in the small paddock and then put the horse in that paddock but move the electric fencing a bit each day to allow some fresh grass.
 
OWLIE185 said:
I would never turn a horse out on to unlimited fresh pasture. It could be a recipe for disaster (Laminitis and Coloc). I would section a very small amount off first say 20 feet by 20 feet with electric fencing and put the horse out in that small section for one hour the first two days returning the horse to the Winter pasture the rest of the time and then increase it to two hours for the next two days by which time the grass will all have been eaten in the small paddock and then put the horse in that paddock but move the electric fencing a bit each day to allow some fresh grass.
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Thanks for this - it would be a very good solution for my cob the only thing is I don't think that my fieldmates would agree to this. They seem to be able to turn thier horses straight on the summer fields with no issues at all. :( Maybe a muzzle is the answer!

ETS - my horse does come back to the winter field inbetween spells on the summer one.
 
If it is your own place, then you could introduce slowly and strip graze etc., but if on a yard it is more difficult. Could you use a grazing muzzle to reduce intake and bring in for a small haynet until the grazing has been eaten down by others?
 
My girl is prone to colic so I am building her up to 24/7 on the fresh grass. First week we had muzzle on all day then in at night with hay, then the muzzle was off for a couple of hours a day and now it is on for 5 hours of turnout and seven hours with it off then she is coming in still.

Taking it slowly as she has suffered in the past. Within the next 2 weeks she will be put 24/7 with no muzzle and muzzle will be used to control weight as the rain comes and we get some more growth.

x
 
TBH, we used to just bung our out onto the summer pasture, but for various reasons this year they are going out on there overnight first, and still be supplemented with a little bit of hay in their winter paddock to make the transition smoother.

We never had any problems with what we've done in the past such as colic or lami, only slight problem being very giddy horses, and very sloppy green poo! (although they were already out 24/7 before moving onto the new grass) but think this years way is better.
 
Stencilface said:
TBH, we used to just bung our out onto the summer pasture, but for various reasons this year they are going out on there overnight first, and still be supplemented with a little bit of hay in their winter paddock to make the transition smoother.

We never had any problems with what we've done in the past such as colic or lami, only slight problem being very giddy horses, and very sloppy green poo! (although they were already out 24/7 before moving onto the new grass) but think this years way is better.
Click to expand...

Think that most of my yard seem to get away with just turning them straight onto it but my boy looks full and uncomfy after just an hour on the first day so think he could have real probs if left any longer. He has been on 24/7 for the week before the summer fields open but in the winter fields which are virtually bald with hay supplemented. Think its the transition that seems to throw him.
 
i dread the time when the ponies get moved onto our hay field to munch it down a bit...my cob and welsh both live off fresh air and i think i'm the only person that is appreciating the dry spell with little new growth coming through! however once the rain increases or they got moved, both have their muzzles on 24/7. Only when we are pretty much into winter and new growth has stopped do they get weaned out of them. Welshie is a cushings pony so i hated our stupidly warm autumn as he was muzzled till november! I tried muzzle on during day and then off at night for cob but as soon as the muzzle was off he gorged all through the night only to find him blown up like balloon, stuffed and almost begging for the muzzle to go on by the morning...too hassly and completely defeated the point of it. Once it's on, it's staying on!
 
I'd muzzle and/or restrict the time out. My ponies have muzzles on when moved onto a new patch of grass, and my horse has to do things very gradually, so she increases 'new grass' time by 1/2 hr a day - but then she's special!
 
Knobberpony has lived out all winter and has moved paddocks a couple of times.We turned her out into a rested paddock yesterday evening and brought her in at about 7.30 am,back into her old bare paddock with some hay.I'll do this for a couple of weeks until she has gotten used to it.
 
I always put my girl on Pink Powder a week before they move, I then limit the time she is out and for the first week in the new field continue to use powder, but really do not allow her to pig herself out.
 
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