How do you move your horses into new paddocks?

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Sophstar

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Not as in moving yards but from their current field into a new one. Curious as we are currently combatting having a lot of grass and its taken nearly a month for us to gradually move our herd of 8 into a new paddock from their eaten down knackered one! Between 3 owners we have all done different ways..

My 2 have a bare paddock that they are in every night and as my houdini kept escaping from the old field and gorging on the lovely lush grass in the new paddock, I have strip grazed them onto it. If they get a big patch, a day of muzzles then muzzle less. They have both loved the freedom and quite enjoy bumbling along together :D

The youngster was put straight on it to start hoovering up the grass. Occasionally got the odd night back on the old paddock to deflate but she's been happily munching through for the entire month! Another mare was allowed a couple of hours on it every morning with a muzzle to 'get her turn'

Third group were allowed on it at night and moved back to old paddock to deflate through the day. Only now, have they eaten it down enough for mine to almost come out for the entire patch with muzzles....hurrah.

By no means a big paddock. We keep a herd of 8 on 6 acres, from a couple of little 12hh ponies to our biggest at 16hh. Split into 2 x 3 acres, we are going to have to strip graze them across the rested 3 acres through winter. Luckily we have a group of very good doers:D We successfully kept all 8 on 3 acres from April till now with 4 of them still being in muzzles till the end...it can be done with ALOT of poo picking and management!
 
Depends.

Broodmares straight out as they don't gorge but monitor their own intake. If v overweight or lami prone then I'd strip graze broodies in a section for them first.

Generally straight out however if the land is very lush then I'd strip graze everything else.

Muzzled one once on fertilized land and then moved her as when 20 odd horses are all muzzled no matter what the breed/condition, it is not suitable for horses!

Ours are all 24/7, no stables. Patch in starvation if necessary.

Pan
 
Our lot will go in for a couple of hours the first day and have a little longer each day until they're only in the new field (they're out 24/7). Usually takes about a week to shift them over. Better safe than sorry! :)
 
Our 'other' field is the hay field, which has a late cut from it, so its usually October when they go in it, & regrowth isn't that rich. (all our grazing is bland, suited to native types). Mine just goes straight out, puts on weight but is never fat. Daughters is a good doer, but not food orientated, spends so much time racing about & winding the others up she gains little weight from it, by the time the excitement of the new field wears off its been eaten down. Lami prone one the owner muzzles. Yard fattie goes straight in for two weeks, then owner panics & keeps him in starvation paddock for two weeks. Others young/ poor doer & go straight in.
 
Having just moved yards and facing a lot more grass than she is used to I have upped her time on the paddock each day. Today will be 7 hours and I am obviously building her up to being on there for roughly nine hours before coming in for work and then bed.

She has been there since Saturday so within a week I will have her up to a full day give or take.

AND she is in a muzzle - I dread to think of the consequences if she weren't :(
 
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I have this problem!

I have:
1 x 3yo Fat Traditional Cob,
1 x 4yo Fat 13.2 Riding Pony,
1 x 3yo Very skinny Warmblood who wont stop growing Upwards and not outwards.

The 2 Fatties are on a bald field and the the skinny is on lush grass but want to get them all together on the grass over the Winter. It is a 3.5 acre field tha was topped 6 weeks ago but still very long and green!

Think i will split the field into 2 and let them eat one half down and then move them on to the other....
 
I've also got this problem. We have a large paddock joined to our stables which they have pretty much eaten down now. And another smaller paddock with no shelter that's knee high rich grass and clover. I've got an anglo Arab x who can easily just be turned out on it but his two mates are fat and lami prone.
I need them off the current paddock now really so it has a chance to grow back a bit, but at the same time I don't want the fattys on it yet!
I think we'l strip graze or put them out on it during the day and then on a little strip by the stables in the larger paddock at night.
 
I just open the gate, ponies are self-inserting :)

My grass doesn't get really long either, it's either mowed for hay or grazed by sheep and /or cattle during the summer. It's old meadow pasture, not planted dairy pasture so never gets that lush either.
 
Thats funny i was going to raise the same question today.

Mine are currently in a well grazed field and i need to move them to the small hay field that was cut mid-July, but is now knee high lush grass.

I'm doing a gradual move so in for 30mins first day, then an hour today (utter loopy fruit when moved back), 2 hours tomorrow and then by next week they should be in fulltime. Thats the plan but if the big lad continues to behave like a fruit loop i will wait a few more weeks.
 
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