How do you transition from winter to summer fields?

[Hovis_and_SidsMum]

I was telling someone last night about transitioning Hovis to his summer fields and she looked at me like i was potty so it got me wondering is our yard just very cautious?
We have winter fields and summer fields and the summer ones are fertilised etc in the early part of the year - as a result by this stage they're full of good grass which has to see us through until Autumn.
So as the horses come off the winter fields we do a week in hand grazing on the new grass for 20 - 30 mins per day. Then YO rotates them between the winter fields and summer fields with 2 -3 hour on the summer fields for a week or so before they are turned out onto the new fields. After that its up to us how we ration it but i also strip graze Hovis to stop him guzzling it all.
Writing that down does make it sound like a long winded process (!!) but touching wood we have never had issues with colic or lami. How do you do it at your yards?

 

[Hells Bells]

Pretty similar to you really!

We pop them in the summer field on a rotating basis for about half an hour each group, them back in the winter fields for the rest of the day.

When they make the move across its then strip grazing to stop the neds pigging out!

 

[madeleine1]

she moves from winter livey back home so i cant do a little bit at a time however she has a smaller field to start in and she gets hay so she is eating food shes used to and then i let her into the other feilds after a week or two x

 

[ebonyallen]

Hi, the week before we move I put her onto a probiotic, then she will go out for a couple of hours each day getting a little longer, but she can never go all day, normally in the summer out during the night and in during the day. We are not allowed to section any part of the fields off and we have so much land and hardly any horses so it is a real nightnare for me as Ebony IDXHippo, would just explode I have tried to get her to wear a grazing muzzle, but I ending up wearing it instead as madam was having none of it so its just easier to have her in for half the day to try and matain the weight

 

[Nevergrewup]

We're lucky enough to have OKish grazing + all-year turnout. So YM rests a bit (and organises harrowing etc.) but mostly rotates - the well-grazed padocks get a couple of fat ponies on them while the ones that are coming off rest (summer paddock stylee) with better grass have the skinny TB types graze first on them (the horses go out in 2s and 3s that have similar metabolisms).

The only snag is that the mustn't-get-kicked-poor-doer-eventer on our yard has to go out with my fat cob as he's been voted least likely to start a fight. So Mr Eventer has to have two huge haynets overnight to make up for the cob standard rubbish grazing

We don't transition to better grazing like at Hovis' yard...I've never heard of it before but it does make sense, especially for neds with sensitive tums.

 

[indie999]

Same, at this time of year he would be better on the winter field as its well grazed but I move him to summer field (as winter field has better shelter on it just to let grass grow for winter again).

On summer filed ,Yes grass is too lush so he gets fenced into a small bit with electric fencing(& I mean small). Twice a day I move it a few inches in strips and keep an eye on his big belly and too much weight etc...he is arthritic and greedy good doer. When he was being worked it was a bit easier. He is now in about 70x50foot of grazing and getting bigger each day(the patch and the horse).

 

[Spiritedly]

I don't have summer grazing as such, I have 2 fields of equal size and like to keep them in one all winter then the rotate from one to the other during the summer, then towards the end of autumn they stay in one field to allow he winter field to have a last growth spurt.
At least in theory I try to, the little s****y Shetland has a habit of just walking under/through the fence and into the other field whenever he decides he's bored with the field he's meant to be in

 

[Moomin1]

I just start moving the fence foot by foot each day. My girl's 16:3 and a guzzler. I literally give a tiny strip each day added onto her current field - so tiny that to be honest she has finished it within an hour. But she gets hay in the field too at that stage. When summer is here she won't get hay but she will be managed the same way with regard moving fence ever so slightly.

 

[happyhacking:)]

Mines on the same bit all year. We section part of the winter grazing off at the end of jan and rest it for a few weeks and then they moved onto it at the beginning of march. Have just halved the bit she's on and will now forward and back strip graze all summer they will likely then be given all of it after the grass stops growing December time.

 

[Goldenstar]

I start putting the two with no overweight issues into the first summer paddock for part of the day when they have eaten off the best they move into next one the fatties go into the first one and when it is dry enough ( might be by July LOL) They go out all night and come in during the day until then the two out at night will spend the night in the winter field.