How many horses on 1.8 acres?

mandwhy

mandwhy

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Hello all, have worked out my prospective field's size using google maps and folding a sweet wrapper into the shape of the field - a good combination of technology and innovation I feel but accuracy questionable :-)

So how many on 1.8 acres (about 200x400ft... does that sound right?) I assume the standard is one acre per horse, and there will be one big horse, but want to know what potential combinations of companions/field sharers I can have, so two full size horses, or one horse and two ponies? Would that be too much? Does size of horse make much difference?

I also don't know what to do about resting it etc, there are some other fields around but how long does it have to be rested for? It has just been topped and is looking very good (too good) at the moment, and it drains very well.

Have spied a hidden and apparently empty small field next door through the hedge so could investigate that....
 
Impossible to say really. It depends on the type of soil, how well drained, type of grass to start with. Then you have to consider are the horses out 24/7 or just during the day. Size of horses and amount they run around and churn up the ground is also a factor.

I personally wouldn't want 2 living out 24/7 on that much ground. However it would be plenty if they came in at night.

Most people dont have the luxury of resting fields these days, they poo pick instead. You can keep them off parts of it in the summer using electric fence though. Gives you chance to weedkiller bit, mend fences etc.
 
Sorry but only one horse!

I go by the rule of thumb, one and half acres for first horse then one acre per horse thereafter.

Of course a lot of it depends on management, size of horses, how much you are planning on turning out/stabling across the year including the winter where a lot of your land may get trashed and need awhile to recover.

I have 3 acres - one 17.1 ID and 16.2 WBx which are 24/7 turnout during the summer and in overnight during the winter as needed. The land by the stables I 'sacrifice' as winter turnout which then recovers over the summer months. I still sometimes have to go a put my guys on a local livery yard to allow my fields to rest etc.. if I need to dress/fertilise etc them
 
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If out 24/7 you will find it just supports one horse plus a companion pony, if you divide into 2 or possibly 3 so you can rest it but it will be fairly tight and probably in winter the big horse will need extra feeding.

The standard is 11/2 acres for the first horse plus 1 for each additional one but obviously it depends on the quality of the land.

I currently have 4 on 2 acres, they are all under 15 hands and very good doers, they have it divided into two and move every 7- 10 days before the grass grows too much but this only has 2 on it in the winter with ad lib haylage given to them. I also have the option of stabling and more land available to enable the field to rest.
 
Traditionally, 2 acres for the 1st horse and 1 for every subsequent horse. But if you are prepared to supplement the forage year round, you can manage with less. A few sheep can improve the land so that you don't register that they are actually eating the grazing iyswim. I would never have a single horse but you can leave some at home alone and some you can't, so 1 horse and 2 ponies might be better.
You really need to know what the soil is like before making any decisions, the extra small field sounds useful.......
 
I currently have two ponies and one horse on that size. It's divided down into smaller paddocks which I rotate. I poo pick daily and we also harrow 2 or 3 times a year. They are out in the day 8-12 hours depending on the season and we manage fine. It is hard work and I do manage every blade of grass, but there is plenty there and probably around one third currently has knee height grass which they will gradually get by strip grazing. When they get extra new grass, I close up the fence behind them so that gets a rest. I should add that I really try to keep it looking nice as well as providing grazing as it's our own land and should we want to sell up I don't want it completely trashed.
 
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Hmm thanks everyone. They would be out 24/7, it is quite well surrounded by trees/hedges (could do with more shelter) it is raised up about ten feet from the road on a bank, and I am pretty sure we have chalk soil here, it looks pretty good at the moment and is not the type to get boggy or anything, will try and see what types of grass are in there. I do that sort of stuff at uni so should probably apply practical skills!

I was thinking of dividing it in two (or three) and rotating, I do poo pick regularly. There is one horse there at the moment that I am looking after and I do quite like it as I can use the whole field to do schooling - wouldn't mind using the spare half when dry etc.

If I either take this horse on loan or he gets sold and I take the field with a new horse, I would probably want some sort of company so just want to see what options I have. Current one seems OK on his own but does windsuck etc so I imagine it might help alleviate his boredom.

I have thought about getting sheep, they improve the land you say? Do you leave their droppings then? I would just worry about thinking I'm being nice by bringing in horse company and then having separation issues and ruined fields so sheep would be good!
 
mandwhy said:
Hmm thanks everyone. They would be out 24/7, it is quite well surrounded by trees/hedges (could do with more shelter) it is raised up about ten feet from the road on a bank, and I am pretty sure we have chalk soil here, it looks pretty good at the moment and is not the type to get boggy or anything, will try and see what types of grass are in there. I do that sort of stuff at uni so should probably apply practical skills!

I was thinking of dividing it in two (or three) and rotating, I do poo pick regularly. There is one horse there at the moment that I am looking after and I do quite like it as I can use the whole field to do schooling - wouldn't mind using the spare half when dry etc.

If I either take this horse on loan or he gets sold and I take the field with a new horse, I would probably want some sort of company so just want to see what options I have. Current one seems OK on his own but does windsuck etc so I imagine it might help alleviate his boredom.

I have thought about getting sheep, they improve the land you say? Do you leave their droppings then? I would just worry about thinking I'm being nice by bringing in horse company and then having separation issues and ruined fields so sheep would be good!
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Think the short answer is that you are going to need to rent more land if you thinking all year round 24/7 turnout and ride/school in your field. I would be investigating/speaking to local farmers

Sheep graze differently to horses so you don't get the same roughs and lawns plus they help worm control. Your local farmer may help you there too.

Best of luck - land management is a learning curve especially with the unseasonal weather we have been getting last few years.

If looking for a companion horse - Shetlands are small, do small poos so worth considering over a normal size horse!
 
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I have two large ponies and one small horse on a similar size clay soil. I feed extra forage as it's over stocked but for me it's easier that way to keep weight off 3 good doers. I plan to put one on livery next winter and keep the other two in some nights (2 stables) so it's in better nick next summer.
 
I have 4, well 3 1/2 (3 normal horses and a diddy blob! :o) on that much land for winter and spring, I then get the luxury of moving them down to 5 acres during summer and autumn after the hay has been cut.

It is hard managing the troops on that much land and I call it 'turn out' not grazing - which is what it is. They are brought in at night and on really horrid days I am lucky enough to have a hard core area and concrete area, with hopefully an additional handcore area being added on for this winter. No one is stuck in their stable for 24hrs unless for a medical condition need.

So to answer your question I would say 2 to 2 and 1/2 (or a small companion/field ornament type :D)
 
Oh forgot to mention I would be expecting to give extra hay/haylage in the winter, do people manage NOT to do that?

JFTD - I can definitely see that giving extra hay rather than too much grass would be better for good doers (the current TB resident is getting round), that's why I worry about having a teeny shetland or anything like that as the grass is like my dad's front lawn at the mo!

For one horse I could put it on livery for winter or rent a space somewhere else I am sure, but wouldn't want any companions becoming excess baggage in that case bless them!

I just hate seeing the current chap all on his own!
 
I was talking to someone today and they have 2,500 sq m, that is about 0.6 acre with, if I remember correctly, 12 horses and 3 ponies on there.

Of course they are fed forage all the time and are separated.

1.8 acres is plenty as long as you anticipate feeding forage most of the year. If that was all the land I had available to me I would fence a permanent track around the outside for winter, limiting grazing etc, and expect to feed additional forage, then use the inner section for riding, extra grazing etc.
 
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I've got 2 arabs and 2 *****lands on a similar sized bit. It's not grazing, it is deliberately bare (fatties and allegedly fit horses), and I supplement with hay all year round.

There is next to no grass on purpose. Normally the ground copes OK, but its been struggling in this wet summer weather we've been having.
 
I think its plenty of land, especially if you have good doers. I woul split the field, one third/two thirds. Safe the larger for the winter; Run a track around the smaller third for spring/summer and strip graze it.

You will have plenty of grazing for the start of winter then.
 
diluteherd said:
I have 4, well 3 1/2 (3 normal horses and a diddy blob! :o) on that much land for winter and spring, I then get the luxury of moving them down to 5 acres during summer and autumn after the hay has been cut.

It is hard managing the troops on that much land and I call it 'turn out' not grazing - which is what it is. They are brought in at night and on really horrid days I am lucky enough to have a hard core area and concrete area, with hopefully an additional handcore area being added on for this winter. No one is stuck in their stable for 24hrs unless for a medical condition need.

So to answer your question I would say 2 to 2 and 1/2 (or a small companion/field ornament type :D)
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Only works for 2 to 3 horses, if OP also has 2 acres to turn out on to after hay making, that is to say she has four acres available!
Sheep are good thing as they clean up the grass and eat it off level, so tend to improve things, horses graze selectively, and can leave a field in a weed infested state if overgrazed. You need to find a farmer as you can't just "keep sheep", they need regular maintenance.
 
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I have 1.9 acres that I tried keeping 1 horse and 1 pony on 24/7 - horse was lame so didnt run round and pony Section A - worked short term until I had 2 horses instead then ended up just mud - I had to rent land elsewhere over the summer for it to rest. I now have an additional 2 acres and it is bliss - no worry - able to rest ground and make hay

If you had somewhere to keep them in at night and if at all wet to save it getting churned then it would be just doable but out 24/7 even with one horse one pony I think after a year you will struggle.
 
meesha said:
I have 1.9 acres that I tried keeping 1 horse and 1 pony on 24/7 - horse was lame so didnt run round and pony Section A - worked short term until I had 2 horses instead then ended up just mud - I had to rent land elsewhere over the summer for it to rest. I now have an additional 2 acres and it is bliss - no worry - able to rest ground and make hay

If you had somewhere to keep them in at night and if at all wet to save it getting churned then it would be just doable but out 24/7 even with one horse one pony I think after a year you will struggle.
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This. You definitely need one (or ideally 2 so you can ride) companions, but your land will not support that without supplementary forage (hay) being fed for much of the year. Sheep would help the worm burden and improve the grass but not if there isnt much there, and also need quite a bit of looking after, foot trimming, shearing etc and they also will need hay in the winter if the grazing is tight so on balance I would say forget the sheep in your scenario.(NB you have to register to keep sheep and inspections are done, they also have electronic ear tags etc).

Think of your grass as turnout and not feed and calculate the hay bill accordingly. Then it will be fine. If one could keep one horse alone then it would be enough for that horse, but that would breach the welfare code - horses have to be kept with company of their own species.
 
I'm also having a mind boggling moment at 12 horses and 3 ponies on 0.6 acre, individually fenced! They must be packed in like sardines!
 
I have 2 horses and a pony in a similar size - but they come in at night. The land wouldn't support 24/7 turnout.

I have it divided into 3 with electric fencing- small winter 'trash paddock' which is currently resting and turning into a jungle. The rest is divided into 2 and grazed alternate weeks.

If its really wet/boggy they go into the trash paddock.

I poo-pick daily. It really works for me but I would guess it depends on the types of horse/pony you have....mine are all good-doers and the grazing is ample for them- any more and I'd have to add lami to my list of things to worry about.:)
 
We have about 2.2 acres on clay. I rotate the fields regularly as they get muddy easily in the winter and the grass grows well in the summer. I try to electric fence of any poached bits to give them time recover after winter.

We had 3 small horses living out 24/7 one year. They were up to their eyeballs in mud and we supplemented a lot of hay over winter. I wouldn't want to do it again.

We now have 2 horses out 24/7 in the summer and in during the winter and that works fine. We don't have much grass in the winter but as they come in to hay at night it's not really an issue.
 
I entirely depends on how wet the field is!

If it's free draining and dry you could manage 2 horses on that easily enough. If it's wet or boggy you couldn't even keep one horse on it.

At that size you will need to think about hay all year round so it's really the mud which will become a problem.
 
OK, if the field is well drained, with reasonable grass and currently supporting 1 large horse my suggestion would be to get just 1 small pony (shetland or similar) as a companion.
You could see if a farmer would loan you a couple of sheep during the summer which will help control rough grazing/weeds/worms.

Despite this I think on this size acreage you will still need to be very diligent in poo picking and would need to be prepared to supplement with hay/haylage throughout the winter and possibly in very dry spells during the summer too.
 
I have the same amount of land. For the last two years I moved the two ponies off for two months during April/ May and came back to far too much grazing - both native .. .They stay out 24/7 and it was fine through winter, . It does drain well and I seem to have rich grazing.

i also have two sheep and have thought of getting rid of them but I don't have any 'sick' areas and am sure they do more good than harm... if I were you though I would borrow some :)

In Feb my loan pony came back ( Sec A ) so I had three on it and I found that made a big difference. I have just had it split in two, one paddock slightly larger. I have only just stopped feeding hay

I wouldn't want to have 3 on there long term/permanently, although if weight is an issue I find it less stressful to supplement hay than muzzle and worry about lami :rolleyes:
 
We keep three mini shets and two dartmoor hill ponies on 2 acres and so far there has been masses of grass for them. We have an additional 2.5 acre paddock and I've had to mow that as it would be far too much for them to graze down. I think it all depends on the quality of the grass, and of course on the land and drainage. We have stables and tend to bring them in during the really bad weather.
 
If you are prepared to supplement grass with hay then I think you could have up to four large horses on two acres.
 
2 horses, on ideal pasture at ideal weights.

However the moment you start mentioning variables you absolutely cannot say. I have one 16.2 + 2 x 11.2 on 2 acres. It's high nutrient, unimproved meadow grazing. With fairly good drainage, natural shelter and natural water supply. My 16.2 still does too well off it, so I'd like to split it down more.

So there's your answer. How long is a piece of string :D sorry!
 
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