If horses still have turnout, how important is grazing to you?

little_flea

little_flea

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Just been thinking really, and to me it seems that people in the UK are focussing really heavily on the importance of good grazing for horses. I am from Sweden, and where I have kept horses there we always had access to daily turnout - but these were just fields which never really had a chance to grow much grass and got muddy in the winter. They provided turnout for the horses, but no grazing/feed. Instead we would turn the horses away for grazing for a couple of months over the summer. Where I am stabled now is fairly similar - not much land so the grass does get eaten pretty quickly and then it is just "turnout" really.

Do you think that good grazing actually matters as long as the horses don't spend all day fighting in the fields, and are (obviously) fed properly? Why?
 
How much do you pay for hay? I am more interested in turnout than grass in the winter, if push comes to shove. But they have to have plenty of hay to eat if there is no grass. I'm not a fan of knee-deep mud either, I don't think that's great for them.
 
I think turnout is vital, even if you dont have grass. you can replace grass with hay or other forage so the digestive system is ok. Obviously having grass too is the perfect situation but as long as grass is replaced with an alternative if it is short then i dont think its the only consideration
 
I like my winter fields to have as much grass cover as poss (they were cut for hay june then grown all summer) because it helps to reduce poaching.

We have a low stocking density. 2 horses, 4.5 acres, we use 3.5 of these in winter and split it in to 3, this means the first bit grazed starts growing for hay first.

In the past most yards that have had turnout paddocks the areas generally become very poached and a nightmare for losing shoes in and horses getting strains. So am not worried about the grass for feed but just for keeping the field in a better condtion

it is wet and flat down here on the somerset levels
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I think if you're prepared to feed them properly it doesn't matter at all....
It is important to some people because if you keep your grazing as good as possible it means less hay etc to feed so its so much cheaper! Hay is expensive and if you can keep your grass as good as poss it saves money.... thats all really i think
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i personally think grazing is important, "Dr Green" always does a great job of keeping my horses looking gd
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i'm lucky here in scotland and have good grazing all year round and really if possible wouldn't have it any other way

***HOWEVER i am aware that some places cannot allow for this and its not an option. so it really depends on the persons situation****

had to put that in stars after the last debate i caused lol!!! even tho i put tht then aswell :P
 
Turn out to me is very important. Horses need to just be horses for a while, they need to interact with each other and chill out in their own space. Grazing is important also but as long as they have something to chew on isn't essential.
I am lucky as my fields are on sand so drain brilliantly and rarely get muddy.
 
All valid points. Cost is of course something to consider, as is quality of field - but being based at a yard in overpopulated Essex, we just have to get used to things not being perfect. I was wondering also if there is (I know this might sound silly) any evidence that points at horses who are not allowed to graze and express "natural" eating behaviour (walking around, slowly grazing, rather than being stood in front of a pile of hay) could be in any way detrimental to them. What if they don't even have grazing in the summer (but hay and turnout)?
 
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All valid points. Cost is of course something to consider, as is quality of field - but being based at a yard in overpopulated Essex, we just have to get used to things not being perfect. I was wondering also if there is (I know this might sound silly) any evidence that points at horses who are not allowed to graze and express "natural" eating behaviour (walking around, slowly grazing, rather than being stood in front of a pile of hay) could be in any way detrimental to them. What if they don't even have grazing in the summer (but hay and turnout)?

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well for example even tho abby get turned out everyday through winter and in at night...... she still drops a bit of condition no matter what i feed her, but when the good grass comes through she just thrives off it and looks and feel a million times better..... if she was stood in front of a pile of hay all day i think she would be a very angry horse lol!!
 
So let me put this scenario to you all: If you had limited fields (this is not my yard but I know yards that operate like this), would you rather have horses in 24/7 during winter, and decent grazing in the fields for a few months in the summer, or would you rather have turnout all year round and no decent grazing?

Obviously we would all have lush grassy fields all year round, but that is not reality for everyone.
 
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WPW, what are the reasons for grazing being important to you? (I am not having a go, I am genuinely interested)

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as above really
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i think my horses really thrive off good quality grazing and T/O even tho they could get sufficient feeding from hay etc it's just not as good as nice lush grass. however this is just my opinion (dunno if its just the way i was taught) and i'm sure there are plenty of horses who cope fine with little grazing..... we're all good owners on here and as long as the horses are healthy and happy its all good
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i actually kno a yard that put horses on very gd grazing through the summer and lets their own fields recover for the winter, they are still out in the winter tho but al fields have hay or hayledge in them to supplement the lack of grazing
 
I've never had grazing.

In the south I had a 7m x 10m dirt pen with a 3m x 3m shade/shelter for two. Horse fed on hard feed and oat straw. One year we grew our own oats and fed them green along with the dry.
Most horses were box kept or in similar conditions to mine - in fact my pen was considered stupidly large for two.

Here in the north I have a bald paddock of about half an acre and feed ad lib hay all day and they have a feed morning and night.

As long as they are outside for part of the day, grazing is not so important to me.
 
Well, our yard doesn't have fantastic grazing at any point in the year really. But they get turned out every day which is the most important thing to me. They have hay if the grazing is really poor, or if they are out on the woodchips... and they go up to a large field in the village with good grazing during winter for a few days a week if we want.
 
Grass and turnout are very important to me, sadly it isn't always possible to have both.
Dr Green has done my ex-racer the world of good. My grazing isn't brilliant in winter but there is enough for them, they also get hay and feed in winter. I wouldn't be happy stabling my horses 24/7 in winter in order to have better grazing in the summer. Although costs would surley add up I would prefer 24h turnout on poorer grass than limited turnout on good grass (personal preference). In an ideal world I would love 24/7 turnout on perfect grass. But my horses and I are happier with them having as much turnout as possible.
 
I think as long as they can at least pick at grass to simulate the natural habitat then supplimenting with hay wouldn't bother me. In fact sometimes its better as you can have complete control over what they eat.
 
Not important at all.
Turnout is higher on the list than grazing. My horses live out in paddocks and are hay fed for 8 or 9 months of the year.
My fields grow grass for hay, nothing is grazed on them until after the last cut (3rd) in September.
 
We discussed at length with our liveries what they thought better and what they thought they might prefer...
Have turnout for a FEW hours a day/every other day and be more likely to have a little grass....
Or the horses go out all day everyday and dont have grass, have hay if they want, and they put up and shut up about the mud.

We chose between us for all day everyday turnout, also for our own horses. Its then peoples choice in foul weather to keep them in etc.
 
Ditto ester: I'd prefer far less good grazing, to keep the pony's weight down, but turnout is essential. I've recently been to visit a "track system" turnout situation that is meant to encourage the horses to keep moving through the day (partly by placing hay and water quite a distance apart), to simulate natural behaviour---I'd be interested if anyone on here has anything similar, and what your experiences of it are.
 
Honeypots does.

I do, sort of.

My mares and youngsters are out on a half mile exercise track, in all they have about 8 acres of meadow, there is a pine wood, a maple wood, a pond, a lot of 'set aside' along the sides of the track and a big section of scrub/willow/tall grass (burrs
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) and herbage. So, not really a pure 'track system' and not at all intended to keep weight down, just a lot of good picking.

They have a damn good hooley around the track about 9pm every night, can't see them but I can hear them galloping along it.
 
I would rather have poor quality trunout all year round and have to supplement with hay than to stable them for part of the year.
I wouldn't imagine that there are many horses that live out 24/7 that have developed vices such as windsucking/cribbing/weaving etc out of boredom and pain from such things as ulcers.
 
Turnout more important than grazing, there's no doubt about it!

Actually I found this thread highly interesting. Recently I've been trying to read articles about natural management and everybody seems to agree that grazing in lush fields full of perfect grass is NOT natural at all. In the wild, horses do not have access to fields like that (artificially sown and re-sown and fertilised...) at all - in fact, they have to cover many miles to find food and have access to a vast variety of grasses, bushes etc. It's not coincidental that our horses suffer from laminitis, are overweight etc...
 
I'd rather have turnout 24/7 winter and summer with pot luck on grazing than no turnout in winter and lovely grass in the summer.

I loathe seeing horses indoors all day and night with just a couple of hours turnout or being ridden.

I know at many yards this is your lot, which is why I wouldn't be at one
 
Mine is in overnight during the winter and out 24/7 in the summer, we're lucky enough not to have to compromise as we have plenty of grazing. If I had to choose I'd choose turnout as he is climbing the walls if he's not out by 8am. Even if I'm riding him in the morning, I still turn him out first, even just 15 minutes while I muck out makes him a much more pleasant horse to deal with. He's always happy to come in, even after just the 15 minutes and he'll stand much better and won't be so grumpy if he's had roll and a charge around. Farrier asks me to chuck him out on the days he does him in the winter and says he'll get him in rather than deal with the Victor Meldrew he's faced with if he's left in!
 
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So let me put this scenario to you all: If you had limited fields (this is not my yard but I know yards that operate like this), would you rather have horses in 24/7 during winter, and decent grazing in the fields for a few months in the summer, or would you rather have turnout all year round and no decent grazing?

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Turnout for me every time. Keeping my horses in 24/7 is simply not an option. One needs to keep moving for his joints, another has a history of behavioural problems and would go mad if kept in.
Having said that, when I've had to move, I've always searched and searched until I find somewhere that has sufficient grazing for the number of horses kept. Meaning that the turnout might be rough over winter, but in the summer they have grazing on fields that have been rested. If this means I have less facilities and need to do more work, so be it.
 
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Ditto ester: I'd prefer far less good grazing, to keep the pony's weight down, but turnout is essential. I've recently been to visit a "track system" turnout situation that is meant to encourage the horses to keep moving through the day (partly by placing hay and water quite a distance apart), to simulate natural behaviour---I'd be interested if anyone on here has anything similar, and what your experiences of it are.

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This is something I am looking into at the moment, hoping to set up for the winter. Would be really interested to know where you visited also if you/anyone can recommend any websites etc or has personal experiences.
 
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