How many horses per acre of grazing do you all have?

[MDB]

Our new field is about three and a half acres for two horses, and by the way they munch through the grass I am wondering if it is going to be enough. Just really wondering how many horses everybody else has per acre.....

 

[booandellie]

that should be plenty for 2 horses. We have 2 horses and 2 ponies on that amount. I section some off to use in summer and rest the biggest part(around 2 acres) for winter. Ours don't get 24hr turnout but approx 12hrs a day- even in winter. From what i can remember they say the ideal is 1.5 acres for the 1st horse and an extra acre per every other horse in the field. Really i don't have enough grazing but i manage it well so they get all year turnout without it becoming a bog!

 

[JosieB]

So long as you tape it off in sections you will be ok, mine get fat easily so i tape a small bit off at the top and they go in that... the rest i leave to get really long and run a piece of electric tape across it, moving it down abit every few weeks, lasted me till January that way. I used to section off into three sections, and rotate them every couple of months or so into a new section letting the other two grow ... if i let them in the whole lot they would be fat as pigs and the grass would go very quickly

 

[Meowy Catkin]

Eight acres (split into a field and two small paddocks) and three horses out 24/7. I did have four horses on it at one point and that was too many really.

 

[cobgoblin]

Two on five and a half acres, split into four fields and strip grazed.

 

[Kezzabell2]

6 acres into 2 fields. 1 15hh mare, 1 14hh gelding and a mini Shetland 31 Inch gelding

They are out 24/7 so don't want it over grazed

But there's space should I have to take my 16'2 gelding back there

 

[Wheels]

I have 5 acres, one horse and two ponies - way too much grass. The last two years I have cut haylage from half of the field.

I am just in the process of building a paddock paradise track system to keep my fatties on the move. Part will remain grass but they will eat it quickly hopefully and then I'll supplement with hay when necessary. Part is hard standing, part a stone track and will put more gravel areas as and when I can afford it so eventually they will winter out in the stoned areas

 

[quirky]

5 acres, 11 horses.

 

[oldie48]

I've got a pony and 2 horses with a 7 acre field and 2x 2 acre paddocks. i use the 7 acre field for winter grazing and make haylage off it, selling the surplus. I rotate the other 2 paddocks depending on how much grass there is, topping if I have too much. No year is ever the same but I need more grazing as I'm on heavy clay and my horses have all year turnout although they are always in at night once the nights get cold.

 

[Copperpot]

8 acres and 4 horses. I always have too much grass and have to restrict their grazing! Even the winter field is green and growing! They live out 24/7.

 

[Cortez]

The standard formula (and this of course should be adjusted to reflect type of land and grasses, size and metabolism of horses, etc.) is 2 acres for the first horse/pony and 1 acre per horse thereafter. In other words, if you have three horses then you would need 4 acres.

 

[ChesnutsRoasting]

Depends on the size of the horses & the soil type. Two lil' ponies on three acres is fine. Two strapping 17.2s on clay, not so much!

 

[Auslander]

About 10 acres, two big horses, and two small ponies. I could do with the grass coming through a bit quicker, but I haven't had to feed much hay this winter (Had three big horses on it til January, then two for a bit - ponies are a recent addition)

 

[MDB]

Very interesting replies. thankyou all. I intend on dividing the three and a half acres up and rotating them around it. They will be out 24/7 year round so may need to sacrifice an area for the winter too. Hooves and fingers crossed it will be sufficient.

 

[Bertolie]

I have a 15.1 and a 14.2 on approx 1.75 acres (clay). It's split into a summer (1 acre) and winter paddock (.75 acres). The summer paddock is then split into two and rotated weekly. Both horses are good doers and if necessary the summer paddock gets split again or strip grazed. The winter paddock could do with being bigger as it's not a lot for two horses but they go out everyday for 10-12 hours with hay if necessary. We have individual grazing at the yard and we don't have our full 'quota' of grazing but we manage.

 

[EquiEquestrian556]

6 horses (4 ponies & 2 horses) on a 4.5 acre field. It's normally grazed by 5 though, as one of them can't have grass, so wears a muzzle (PPID & EMS). They all come in at night, all year round.

Plenty, if not too much sometimes, of grass for all.

 

[laura_nash]

7.5 acres for a cob and a pony, both good doers! Obviously far too much, we currently have the best maintained 3 acres rented out to our neighbour for a year after cutting it for hay, to give us a bit of thinking time mostly. Another acre or so is unusable (no fencing or gates and too stony for electric fencing stakes), so about 3.5 acres will be the grazing for this year.

They have been on two fields of around 2 acres in total since Christmas, 1 acre of which had already been grazed down by neighbours cows. About to move them now to one of the two other paddocks as it is pretty bare in there. Both out 24/7 and have only fed about 6 bales of hay in total since last June (usually because I have had to restrict their grass rather than due to a lack of it).

 

[melissa1971]

8 on 6 acres.. All ponies on track through summer let the middle grow really long then strip it through winter only 2 come in over night the others didn't need any hay until Feb so works well for me

 

[amandaco2]

4 acres for summer for 4 horses, 10 for winter for the 4 horses.
So 14 acres for 4 over the year. They dont eat much hay!

 

[Goldenstar]

13 acres five horses , four is perfect .

 

[canteron]

The more intensively you graze the area the better you have to look after the grass - harrowing, slitting, rolling, fertilising, liming, etc. if over grazed the grass quickly becomes compacted then you really do have to invest in aerating equipment to keep any quality of grass.

 

[ILuvCowparsely]

Our new field is about three and a half acres for two horses, and by the way they munch through the grass I am wondering if it is going to be enough. Just really wondering how many horses everybody else has per acre.....

we have 7 acres in the back split into 4 we use two and graze two - when full (two spaces) we have 9 grazing , at the moment 7 grazing. We won't do 24 hr grazing so they are out 7 - 4 now till change over time.

 

[misskk88]

We did have 4 horses on about 8 acres, split into 4 same size areas. They grazed in pairs, and alternated between summer and winter fields to allow grass to rest and grow properly again. We now have 2 in the same space, and so will probably alternate a bit more quickly. They get ad lib hay all year round as whilst we have good drainage and the grass grows ok, it isn't the best and soon gets eaten down. They are hardly touching it at the minute though with the field move, so have reduced it for now. They will eventually be out 24/7 and so will then need more again once they have managed to eat the grass down a bit.

Mare is now on 12 acres with 5 other horses for summer, and another 10-12 acres for winter. Area seems to have better grass than where others are and I guess gets a lot less wear and tear given the room. Again, just moved to summer fields so not even touching hay at the minute!

 

[pansymouse]

3 and 9 sheep on 22 acres; we're a bit spoilt really.

 

[L&M]

I currently have four small horses grazing on 10 acres. They can live out 24/7 on this with minimal hard feed and only hay etc when it snows.

I allow each horse an acre each for summer grazing, which are adjacent but individual paddocks. In winter they are then split into pairs and each pair has a 3 acre field of standing foggage that lasts them Nov through to March.

A lot depends on how you manage your horses, and how you manage your land. If one of mine was part stabled, an acre of our grazing would just about suffice as it is well draining so does not take long to recover in the spring. It would be a different story if it was an acre of heavy clay though.....

 

[kassieg]

I have 3 on just under 4 acres & then a small paddock which i use to ride & pop them on for an hour before competition.

I have also managed to get another acre ish for april & September so i can manage the other grazing better

I have 1 field of just under 3 acres & a 1 acre paddock

It was better when i only had 2 horses on it & i am going to go back to only 2 during the winter as 3 is too much really i spent a lot on hay & hayledge this winter

 

[Asha]

We have 6 horses on 14acres. We only use it all in the winter, in summer our biggest field is left to grow haylage. So the rest is divided into smaller paddocks otherwise they would be incredibly fat.

 

[webble]

2 horses on 2 and half acres its enough but being clay soil turns to mud in the winter

 

[windand rain]

It is a bit of how long is a piece of string question I have four on 4.5 acres fatty natives sandy mud free soil but the grass is poor quality so loads in summer not quite enough in winter all live out 24/7. Track them in summer and have standing hay until christmas. I then have to feed small amounts of hay til about now. Poor doers or muddy land it wouldnt be enough so again it depends on the horses and land

 

[Christmas Crumpet]

1 15.2hh & 1 8.5hh (muzzled) out on 2 acres of clay. Out all winter 12 hours a day and 24 7 in summer. We now also have a big concrete yard for winter but ideally I like to turn out every day in fields. They are wet but seem to hold up fine.