How many acres per (large) horse not to poo pick!!

[canteron]

As in the title.

Is 2 acres/horse enough not to poo pick for 3 months of the year? (and then harrow and rest!).

 

[meandmyself]

Sorry, but it's always better to poo pick!

 

[thatsmygirl]

I don't poo pick, never have.

 

[tazzle]

The only time I have had experience of field not being poo picked was when I was on a livery at a farm where field was 20 acres and there were only about 6 horses on it. I at the time was not so aware / thoughtful about worming programmes / tests and was still chemical worming every six weeks. (It was a long time ago)

Now I prefer to limit worms getting into their systems, limit worming horses with chemicals and do poo counts regularily. Poo picking daily ( can miss the occasional day but only ever one) is part of that system.


I think that 2 acres per horse is not enough to not poo pick .

Our ratio atm is 1.25 acres per beastie and we would struggle to leave it a week as they dont eat where they have poo'd.

 

[be positive]

I dont poo pick over winter, too many horses, not enough time and fields get very wet they are not all out 24/7 though.
I have about 2 acres per horse and use 1/2 the land in winter 1/2 in summer. The winter fields get rested in spring until autumn, if you have somewhere else for yours to move to it should be ok.

 

[Mare Stare]

I dont poo pick over winter, too many horses, not enough time and fields get very wet they are not all out 24/7 though.
I have about 2 acres per horse and use 1/2 the land in winter 1/2 in summer. The winter fields get rested in spring until autumn, if you have somewhere else for yours to move to it should be ok.

Same here (well, have winter and summer grazing in different places)! Plus frozen poo is soo heavy to lift!!

 

[flashmans]

I have just under two acres - gets poo picked once a week at the moment (while I'm away at uni), and poo picked everyday when I am home.

 

[cptrayes]

I have twelve acres with 3.25 horses ( one Shetland) and I have not poo picked in 20 years.

 

[Alphamare]

We dont poopick either! We have around 4 acres LSD horse though (not that they get that all at once) but we rotate the herd through the fields harrowing as we go. Love it!

 

[PeterNatt]

Ther are two important reasons as to why one should pick up poos.
The first is to control worms.
The second is so as not to damage or sour the grass. If you leave poos where they are the grass underneath will die as no light will reach it. That grass will then be replaced by weeds.
It is very bad management not to pick up the poos on a daily basis.
Harrowing only spreads the poos around the pasture.

 

[Alphamare]

I don't agree with that. The fields are left to rest and the poo provides nutrients for the grass! I've not had a problem with them turning up their noses at it so it's obviously NOT sour!!

 

[sprite1978]

16 horses in 20 acres, for 10 hours a day, all year round - Never ever poo picked, and have very healthy horses.

 

[cptrayes]

Ther are two important reasons as to why one should pick up poos.
The first is to control worms.
The second is so as not to damage or sour the grass. If you leave poos where they are the grass underneath will die as no light will reach it. That grass will then be replaced by weeds.
It is very bad management not to pick up the poos on a daily basis.
Harrowing only spreads the poos around the pasture.

The grass is not replaced by weeds. The grass grows very strong in the areas fertilized by the poo. Under the poo, the roots go wild with growth and then break leaf through to the sunlight. The horses avoid those patches for a year or so and then poo somewhere else and graze them happily.

Worm control is only an issue on paddocks too small for horses to avoid grazing the toilet areas. You will also find that fields large enough to be proper meadows contain anti-worm plants like red sorrel that horses will eat to regulate their own worm control.

Grassland has always been fertilized with animal manure. Farmers routinely spread their cow and sheep muck. Human sewage is also used. It does not cause weed growth.

 

[be positive]

If your horse is clear of worms you have broken the cycle and unless you bring new horses in it should not be a problem, most will be fairly tidy in their habits and the field does not get covered, provided they have a decent sized field, the tiny paddocks some horses are confined in are a different matter.

 

[JenHunt]

we don't poo-pick our winter paddock, which is 9 acres for 2 big horses. but we do poo-pick our smaller fields (about 4 acres)

 

[mon]

Human waste not allowed on grassland just arable!

 

[Pebble101]

I clear the summer fields daily or every other day - there were 3 horses on 3 acres but only 2 horses in future.

It is difficult to pick the poo in the winter field (6 acres) so I don't do it from November to March. My horses always have clear worm counts and only get wormed once a year for red worm and tape worm.

 

[Keimanp]

Wild horses aren't wormed or tidied up after but they have the ability to roam (in theory) over larger distances so that the worm cycle is broken, So it should be possible to use this case in the domestic scenario.

I would split the pasture up into a few feilds (probably at least 3) and move between the fields in 3-6 weekly intervals to aid breaking the worm cycle and give the poo gremlins time to process the waste.

I would also go on to take regular (frequent) worm counts to keep an eye on the worm burden and to see how (and if) not clearing the feilds was having an effect on the horses. I would keep the worm counts going at regular intervals over the course of a year to give you an idea of the horses cycle (then easing off but still having them done).

If you begin to notice that the worm burden increases progressively when you are not clearing the poo from the field then it is likely that the horses aren't able to roam widely enough and you may have to incorporate a regular worming program (rather than responsive) to facilitate not clearing the fields.

My horses are at home and I can see the appeal of wanting to claim back the time spent poo picking, but I don't think I could bring my self to leave it in the field, staring at me. I like the pastures to look clean and smart and don't like longer tufts and clumps of grass that would be the designated toilet areas.

We poo pick to simulate the roaiming of the horse whilst keeping them on less grass. I would not want to put horses that live on fresh air and water (my shetland) on more grass as he would balloon which could/would cause more health issues in his case. Could this apply to you?

How much land do you have available and how many horses? What type are they? and do they live in for part of the day or out fully?