How many of us are at yards which dont offer 24/7 turnout at all?

katie_southwest

katie_southwest

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My yard doesnt offer 24/7 turnout at all, this is really the only thing that I dislike.
Apart from that we have really nice hacking onto dartmoor, and an indoor school.
At the moment im in 2 minds whether to look for somewhere that offers it, but then I suppose do I uproot her and myself again when everything else is fine at this yard....
I guess lots of us make sacrifices like this when we're at livery yards to find the best compromise?
Luckily my pony is easy going and doesnt really care whether shes in or out so long as shes got food to munch :)
I suppose when I win the lottery I can have her at home at my mansion :)
 
So, your horse doesnt mind if she is in or out, so you dont need 24hr turnout, but are thinking about moving because your yard doesnt offer it?
 
Yes because although she doesnt mind, I much prefer her to be out 24/7 as its far more natural.
Just interested as to how many of us have to compromise our 'ideal' situation (for me, 24/7 turnout) for other things such as good hacking/schools/security/ etc :)
 
Oh God, after 3 glasses of Green Ginger liquuer, here we go again. B' turnout. Do bedbugs care - no. If your pone is happy, why do you feel the need to move????? If you want all year turnout, go buy 5 acres at £10k an acre, and trash it. When you've done that, go pay a local farmer x no of ££££'s to harrow, re-seed and rest it. 9 months later you might be able to use it again :))
Or buy a tractor £?????, seed drill, grass seed, harrows, weed sprayer and you could do it yourself.

Toddles off for another glass of the Ginger stuff..............
 
I do have winter turnout...not sure I could afford my two if I didn't! What with all the extra bedding, feed, hay and time! If they stay in all day due to bad weather, I end up going up there 4 times a day to re hay, skip out etc. Wouldn't have time to do that every day! How do you manage it?
 
id love 24 hr turnout - my cob has just recovered from a very bad chest infection needing lots of vet care and resulting in a £700 bill.
Im hoping it doesnt recur but if it does i have to look into moving him to somewhere who can offer this - my ideal scenario woudl be fields with open shelters where he can wonder in and out

And yes i agree - my vet confirmed all year turnout with adequate hay and shelter is best
 
irish_only said:
Oh God, after 3 glasses of Green Ginger liquuer, here we go again. B' turnout. Do bedbugs care - no. If your pone is happy, why do you feel the need to move????? If you want all year turnout, go buy 5 acres at £10k an acre, and trash it. When you've done that, go pay a local farmer x no of ££££'s to harrow, re-seed and rest it. 9 months later you might be able to use it again :))
Or buy a tractor £?????, seed drill, grass seed, harrows, weed sprayer and you could do it yourself.

Toddles off for another glass of the Ginger stuff..............
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wow why so rude?????
 
Irish_only - not really sure why you bothered posting that but hey ho!!!

Irishbabygirl- perhaps I didnt word it too well, I actually didnt mean staying in 24/7 but yards that dont allow you to turn out 24/7 at all, even in summer :)
 
Even in summer? Ouch! So by that do you mean they get no turn out at all in the summer or that they need to come in for a period during those 24hours?
 
darkhorse123 said:
wow why so rude?????
Click to expand...

Not being rude - just factual. Ask a farmer, or a livery yard owner who has to provide good grazing all year round - nigh on impossible.

Why do you think farmers take their stock off the ground for the winter? Because it robs the ground, not putting anything back in, and it needs to be rested. Ground can be fertilized but you don't want high nitrogen content as this is not good for the health of the horse.

Winter in the UK is the time when grass goes dormant, ie it doesn't grow. Keep nibbling away at it and you end up with mud and no ground cover the following spring other than weeds and buttercups. Simples

There is such a huge lack of understanding about land management within the equine world, which is why the equine world has such a reputation for knackering and poaching land.
 
I wouldn't be without 24/7 turnout as one pony would be fine with it, but the other hates being inside in any weather.

I would like to be on a yard with a school but hey, the ponies are settled where they are and the YO is fantastic.
I have a winter paddock and 2 separate summer paddocks so in spring ponies get moved and come mid-summer, winter paddock is full of grass, ready for winter.
 
irish_only said:
Not being rude - just factual. Ask a farmer, or a livery yard owner who has to provide good grazing all year round - nigh on impossible.

Why do you think farmers take their stock off the ground for the winter? Because it robs the ground, not putting anything back in, and it needs to be rested. Ground can be fertilized but you don't want high nitrogen content as this is not good for the health of the horse.

Winter in the UK is the time when grass goes dormant, ie it doesn't grow. Keep nibbling away at it and you end up with mud and no ground cover the following spring other than weeds and buttercups. Simples

There is such a huge lack of understanding about land management within the equine world, which is why the equine world has such a reputation for knackering and poaching land.
Click to expand...
I think the OP is talking about yards that don't offer 24/7 in summer either though - I don't think it's the winter that is necessarily the problem for her.
 
Mine doesn't. Partly (I think) due to the estate we rent the land off not wanting us to, but mainly we simply don't have enough land to give each field the rest it would need to sustain it. So we would either have 24/7 in summer and no winter turn out at all (or only a couple of hours a day) or we have day time only turn out (approx. 10h in summer and 8h in winter - or in fattys case 7am til he wants in, which is a lot earlier than the rest in winter) all year round.

It may not be ideal or 'natural' but it's practical and personally I know which I would prefer, and luckily neither of my horses mind, infact last time I took 1 away and he spent 3 days living out he was always the first to the gate when he got home.
 
I've never been on a yard that has 24/7 turnout. Either in at night in winter and out at night in the summer.

Down here we don't have loads of land but for youngstock and retired or lame horses there are a few farms that only offer 24/7 turnout but you don't get facilities ect.
 
irish_only said:
Oh God, after 3 glasses of Green Ginger liquuer, here we go again. B' turnout. Do bedbugs care - no. If your pone is happy, why do you feel the need to move????? If you want all year turnout, go buy 5 acres at £10k an acre, and trash it. When you've done that, go pay a local farmer x no of ££££'s to harrow, re-seed and rest it. 9 months later you might be able to use it again :))
Or buy a tractor £?????, seed drill, grass seed, harrows, weed sprayer and you could do it yourself.

Toddles off for another glass of the Ginger stuff..............
Click to expand...

Wowzer! I have 6 acres with good hedges/natural shelter. Horses live out 24/7 all year. My husband is a farmer, but having said that, only need to harrow once or twice a year, fertilize every few years, strip graze through spring/early summer so that rests the field. Pulling weeds/rag is free - the above does not cost much, I couldn't possibly afford to keep 5 horses/ponies on livery - if you can buy grazing, my advice is to do so - much cheaper in the long run and also an investment.
 
irish_only said:
Not being rude - just factual. Ask a farmer, or a livery yard owner who has to provide good grazing all year round - nigh on impossible.
Click to expand...

Then they shouldn't run a livery yard if the owner simply doesn't have enough land to allow rotating fields and 24/7 grazing all year round. My horses live out on our own land 24/7 all year round and I'd never have it any other way. Most livery yards up here I know of offer 24/7 grazing all year round, I guess down south its a different story as there's not enough land...

irish_only - Out of interest, what do you do with your horses? Do they get turned out at all?!
 
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My yard doesnt offer 24/7 but I wouldn't want it either, connie would balloon in spring/summer on our grazing, however we can turn out overnight during the warmer months, which i prefer, as it mean horses are in thr stables when I want to ride etc, and turned out when I don't need them, happy medium for me.
 
The one we are on at uni doesnt but when ever we go home he's out 24/7 any time of the year, I have the option of a stable if I want to use it but he has shelter in the field that he uses and I can put hay and water in if the weathers bad enough that I think he will use it. At uni though the soil is diffrent and it couldnt take the horses being out 24/7 as its rock hard in summer and a clay pit in winter so its not practical. But as I say we will be going home in may so its not a problem.
 
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