How many hours turnout during winter

[claracanter]

Mine are at home. The field ornaments are out 24/7 and the two ridden ones are out for about 8 hrs. This years dry winter has helped hugely as we are on clay. Things can easily change if we get a deluge. Last year the field ornaments came in at night but I think bringing them all in and out caused almost more damage to the field.

 

[L&M]

Ours are at home and atm go out around 7.30am and come in around 2pm. There is little grass left in their winter patch and today was the first day they ate hay in the field, (have been offering it for a couple of weeks now but they were ignoring it.)

Hopefully they will be back out 24/7 by the beginning of March.

I would far rather see them out, even if only munching on a pile of hay, than being stuck in.

 

[Spot_On03]

Mines out between 7-8am and in again usually between 7-9pm in winter.. Summer comes in around 6am and out again around 12/1pm.

 

[pistolpete]

Mines at grass livery so very lucky as out all the time. The waiting by the gate only started when they started getting hay last month. The waiting to ‘come in’ is just food driven or habit. Horses are not nesting animals. I don’t understand how people who have the choice bring them in? A lot of yards don’t have enough land to allow them to chop some ground up but in an ideal world they’d be out being horses. I’ve been on yards where the most turnout they got was 7 hours winter and summer. One phrase I really hate is duvet day for horses! They don’t go to bed!! I genuinely think horses that seem to love their stables are just clever at coping with the boredom. Sorry bit of a rant!

 

[Dave's Mam]

My yard does not put limits on time, as long as they're in overnight. Dave usually goes out at about 7am, and in at 2ish, ridden & then tucked up for the night. As long as no horse left out, they are out til last person arrives from work.

 

[magicmoments]

My yard doesn't stipulate amount of time out, as long as in overnight in winter, BUT can't hay so I don't want her out too long at present. She's out between 6-9 hours, but would have her out longer if could hay. The ground is loam thankfully so that isn't a problem.

 

[Ali27]

When mine were on DIY livery, out at 5.30/6 during week and in at 6. Now I’ve got my own field, they are out 24/7 with hay as so dry but if field gets really wet, would be in at night but still out in field at least 12 hours each day. I also have a all weather turnout in front of stables which I use if they have to be in waiting for the farrier or if I’m off to a clinic/ competition as my ridden mare gets very cross if she is in over night and then not out in the morning.
Mine would never be stuck in a stable 24/7! I can’t understand how some yards have no turnout in Winter. Horses are meant to be out grazing and not stuck in a stable!

 

[flying_high]

Minimum 10, max 12 at my yard and 24 hour April to November ?

that sounds good. You run a livery yard? In winter to get ten hours of turnout, do you turn out in the dark? Or bring in in the dark? As there isnt ten hours of light in the depths of winter?

I've yet to be at a livery yard that will fetch in / turnout in the dark as standard for horses stabled at night. (My horse is out at night so he's different anyway).

 

[JGC]

Ours go out from 10-5 in winter in pairs and threes. The winter turnout is in smaller fields so they get muddy if it's really wet, but they have hay every day. If it's a real torrential downpour, they'll get a couple of hours in the small school in the same groups, but I can count the number of times that happened last winter on my fingers. From February, they'll be out from around 8/9 in the morning and they usually go to 24/7 in the summer fields from around the end of March to end of November.

Before this place, the best I found was turnout 8-12 in winter, unless it was grass livery with no facilities whatsoever, which is difficult to manage working full time.