Is anyone else thinking its becoming impossible to keep grazing horses safe ?

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BBH

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Having read some recent threads I'm starting to think between the perils of ragwort, acorns and yew trees its getting to the stage where its a hazard even putting your horses out.

Whilst you can minimise the risks you can't possibly eradicate them entirely, especially if you are at a livery yard reliant on being given certain grazing.

Are we becoming a bit paranoid about this or is there a genuine risk.
 
No I don't think it's impossible to keep grazing horses safe, my horses live out 24/7 as much of the year round as possible.

In my field I have permanament issues to deal with - odd bits of barb wire and oak trees - plus the usual bits of ragwort. These are nothing that cannot be fixed with electric fencing (barb wire and oak trees) and a bit of work pulling up ragwort.

I have never had any problems on yards in over 20 years of horse ownership with the turnout in terms of safety of the paddock, the only problems that could have arisen were from other horses / people.

I am intending to move back to livery next year and will simply hang onto my own electric fencing, that way I can make safe any paddock I am given. If I was not allowed to make the paddock safe - eg fence off oak trees etc then I wouldn't move there as allowing my horses to be turned out is most important to me.
 
Even with the safest grazing in the world horses will still manage to injure themselves. My boy has just come in minus 3 shoes and with a hugely swollen leg - think check ligament :rolleyes: :(
 
There's always a risk and I don't think people need to get OTT about it. It's just common sense really. I think if a yard has always been a yard/farm then it's less likely to be bordered by poisonous trees etc - you don't really get that many yew trees about and, had they been near fields that had livestock in for years then I would think they would have been swiftly disposed of. Ragwort is pretty easy to get rid of, it only grow at specific times of the year, is easy to spot and horses don't reallt choose to eat it unless there really is no grass. Plus, they'd have to eat a fair bit over a long time frame (in mst cases) for it to have any severe detrimental effects. As for acorns - well, many fields have Oak trees in (I think they're lovely) and again, it's fairly easy to manage them as they only drop the acorns at a certain point in the year - you can fence off the tree or rake up the acorns or both to ensure horses don't scoff them. Again though they generally have to eat a fair few!

Our horses live out for most of the year 24/7 and we've had horses living out for well over 20 years in our field. We have an oak tree and we do get the pesky ragwort cropping up each year but so far they've never caused a real issue.
 
I personally believe that no fields with stock in should have access to Yew - it has been a known hazard for centuries, maybe with new 'equine grazing' being made available there is more access but fencing should form a barrier? The same goes for blinking Leylandii!!

As for Oak trees, with temporary fencing you can minimise the risk, not taking into account squirrels who like to transport the acorns around... dropping some in the process!

Ragwort is one of my bugbears, it is a toxin and can be fatal - livestock does not appear to suffer because they are slaughtered before the toxins can take effect so data is very sketchy, funding is lower on the list for research into how many equine deaths have a link to ragwort. Again though, the risk can be prevented by regularly checking the land and removing any plants.

So my answer is no, as long as the land owner is in agreement... if not people should be voting with their feet!
 
.... you forgot grass sickness, laminitus, worms and magnesium deficiency!

I was always a 24/7 er, but just recently - and you may be right after reading so many threads on here - I have become hugely more cautious had all my grass/forage nutritionally/minerally analysed so I can keep on keeping all horses out as much as possible and have become an ardent poo picker!!
 
You can't worry about everything. My electric fencing costs thousands and yet my mare still managed to terminally injure herself. They can put their leg down a rabbit hole, feet through metal gates. One of my yearlings got its leg stuck through a metal gate when sleeping last winter. For every one thing that goes wrong and that you see, there are probably at least 100 that you don't.

However poisonous plants...no, no excuse for that. Mind you, I did spot some mushrooms today.....
 
ditto rueysmum

its doable!! im on a fantastic yard.... my horse has her own paddock - i poo pick - and the one time i had to ragwort pull but that was only due to the neighbouring yard failing to do the ragwort pulling and it got blown over to us

My paddock is safe (shes on her own).... no ragwort/no mushrooms etc- just brill :)

Oh and i poo-pick daily!
 
canteron said:
.... you forgot grass sickness, laminitus, worms and magnesium deficiency!
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Too right. After owning my 21yo mare for almost 16 years (she was my first pony), chucking her out in all weathers with no rug on, even in snow, in a 16 acre field with a stream bubbling through, only keeping an eye out for ragwort, after moving to my husband's farm I now have to do/have the following:

Fly rugs to avoid sweet itch and bug bites
Factor 30 to avoid sun burn (chestnut with white blaze & four white socks...)
Grazing muzzle for laminitis (she never got this in her 16 acre field!)
Feed Mag Ox for lami
Turnouts for wind and rain
Moving her out of fields with oak trees
Keep an eye on foxgloves
Electric fencing portions of the field off for mud/too much grass
Install water in said portions of fields
Watch for Mud fever
Ensure she has some sort of shelter from wind/sun/rain
Feed hay if we run low on grass!

Oh god, she also sometimes gets summer pasture related COPD, and a weird skin condition related to photosensitivity which makes the skin on her hind legs go crusty (cannon crud anyone?).

Maybe I should just stable her 24/7, far less stressful!
 
On our yard the fields are all fenced off with electric tape and proper posts. YO is really careful about ragwort and other poisonous plants, shes obsessive about not turning out new horses unless there is someone to keep an eye on them. The fences are maintained regularly and the gates all in good condition. We all poo pick regularly and keep an eye out for holes/hazards etc. Horses don't generally get turned out if its really windy or bad weather as they are more likely to charge round and injure themselves.

On Monday one of the horses got her foot stuck on the gate, pulled back and severed two tendons in her leg. They tried to operate but it was no use, she had to be pts :( She was only six.

Sometimes it doesn't matter how careful you are, accidents happen :( RIP Scarlett
 
My tb did this 3 weeks ago out in the field! No idea how or what on!


194.jpg
 
jumpthemoon said:
On Monday one of the horses got her foot stuck on the gate, pulled back and severed two tendons in her leg. They tried to operate but it was no use, she had to be pts :( She was only six.

Sometimes it doesn't matter how careful you are, accidents happen :( RIP Scarlett
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That's so sad! Rip scarlett x x
 
No, I have been keeping mine out completely for six years now with only the odd nick or bump. I actually think they are far safer out than in, particularly from theft and fire.
 
Jumpthemoon and BBH- it was a huge shock. Looking a bit bette rbut as soon as it scabs over he itches it and opens it up again! Too swollen for staples, the skin wouldn't stretch! When he eats, you can see all his muscles contracting! Yuk!

Rhino- he may well have done it this way, many trees lining the field!! Never thought of that!
 
shellonabeach said:
No I don't think it's impossible to keep grazing horses safe, my horses live out 24/7 as much of the year round as possible.

In my field I have permanament issues to deal with - odd bits of barb wire and oak trees - plus the usual bits of ragwort. These are nothing that cannot be fixed with electric fencing (barb wire and oak trees) and a bit of work pulling up ragwort.

I have never had any problems on yards in over 20 years of horse ownership with the turnout in terms of safety of the paddock, the only problems that could have arisen were from other horses / people.

I am intending to move back to livery next year and will simply hang onto my own electric fencing, that way I can make safe any paddock I am given. If I was not allowed to make the paddock safe - eg fence off oak trees etc then I wouldn't move there as allowing my horses to be turned out is most important to me.
Click to expand...


Are oak trees poisonous to horses ? - Have just fenced mine off, any way, to protect oak trees, but did not know that they were, if they are.

But my horses live out 24/7 and very few issues, apart from routine manintenance such as teeth, vaccinations have not had vet out for ages, say 18 months.
 
Apart from the freak accident of my old mare breaking her leg i have only had to have the vet out once in 6 years for something other than routine vaccs, and that was when the big girl got herpes:rolleyes: yes having them out 24/7 involves having to pull ragwort and fence off oak trees and do the usual perimeter checks but i had to do that when i had one on livery too, plus regularly checking stables and yard for hazards :) 9 times out of 10 it was on the yard that i'd find something potentially dangerous, like a broom left where it could be tripped over, no one sweeping up after the farrier had been, tinsel round the doors at xmas (why???)
 
We do everything we can to ensure that the field is safe.....the naughty Houdini's have got through the electric fence 3 times to get to the oak tree to scoff the acorns.....
 
I don't find it that hard :) I kind of think of it like the farrier, yes it can be time consuming and you always have to do it but its just essential basic maintenance to me :)
 
Half the problem is the way many people are forced to keep their horses - through no fault of their own - or of the YO, they are providing a service (some better than others) it is just the way things are if you keep horses, whether it is your own property or not. You have to do the best you can with what you have.

More horses, less land/yards available, small grass paddocks, often with no browsing, sometimes overcrowded, sometimes boggy/flooded, sometimes too rich and actually quite unsuitable for equines at all. I never have much grass, by design, and I like it that way, I would rather feed extra forage any day than muzzle or half starve fatties because I put them on grazing that does them no good.

Horses eat things they wouldn't if they were in much larger acreages where they have the opportunity to forage and eat what they choose to rather than just grass. They get kicked/bitten because they don't have space to get out of the way, they run through fences for the same reason and they escape because the grass is always greener on the other side and they are bored of their pretty, pristine, little squares ;)

My own place is pretty rubbish as far as horses are concerned actually, I have one hedge, 20 acres of mosquito ridden pine plantation (Christmas tree anyone?) and what wouldn't I do for some hills, little slopes would do me even. Half my horses don't even know how to go up or down a hill because I haven't got any :(
 
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Totally agree, Enfys.

There is barbed wire on parts of the farm where I keep my ponies but they never get in it because they have no reason to, they have plenty of room, plenty of trees and hedges to browse on, and have each other's company (but never have to mix with other people's horses) so have no need to hang around and over the fencing and/or eat things they shouldn't. I do know that I am very lucky though!

ETA, I have lots of hills too! :D

DSCF2695.jpg
 
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Marmalade, I am quite jealous.

That picture is lovely, lots of shelter, varied terrain, brambles etc. Enough trees that it doesn't matter if they choose to bark some. I bet your horses pick the fresh bramble shoots and help themselves to the blackberries too!
 
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I think we are becoming too paranoid, although I agree with the other posters who have said that is due to the way we keep horses these days, in areas that are too small, overgrazed and unsuitable. I pull up any ragwort I find but my fields are lined with oak trees and there are plenty of acorns on the floor. However with grass in abundance the horses just don't bother with them. A gratuitous pic of my little 'un in his meadow to demonstrate my point. The oaks make great shelters!

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