Keeping my horse with cows - now I really wasn't expecting this!!

S

Sunny08

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I have moved my mare to my OH parents farm. I posted a few months ago about being worried that she would be on her own (other horses over fences) and was concerned about introducing her to cows.
Anyway she has settled superbly, however she ignores all the other horses over the fences and spends her whole time with the calves. Her stable is seperated from theirs by a low wall (4.5ft ish.) Every day when I go to feed her she has her head stuck in with the calves and them licking her face and neck. I must admit I have never seen her so relaxed and happy so I am not concerned. The only thing that worries me id does anyone know if there are any particular diseases horses can catch from cows that I should be aware of?
 
Aw how sweet
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Only ringworm, so don't worry. I use to breed Oxford and Sandy pigs and my old TB loved them, I have a photo somewhere of several piglets either rubbing their bottoms on his feet hanging off his tail,and about 4 asleep under his belly out of the sun and he stood there for hours until their mum called them for lunch. I also had 3 cows and most of my horses got on with them very well, just the youngsters that tried to chase them. but I had them put down last year at home with old age and they all went together.
 
Years ago my friend kept her pony in with the cows on her dad's dairy farm, and he used to come in for milking with the herd every day. She loved it because she never had to go and catch him - he brought himself in, and she'd wait by the milking parlour and put his headcollar on.
 
All my horses have been kept with cows for last 17 years and I have never had them with ringworm though some of the young cattle have had it.
My horses field was used as maternity unit regularly but I had one horse that loathed newborn calves. Regularly attacked them and chased them into ditches
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which was quite unlike his usual nice nature with all other things bovine. He was not my husbands favourite
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Chewed tails could sometimes be a problem though!
 
an old mare of mine used to adopt new born calves and attack the mother if they tried takeing them back. used to get alot of early morning phone calls 'TO MOVE MY BLOODY HORSE' from my annoyed boss at the time!
 
Mine live with cows - generally in the next field, but cows are incredible escape artists!!

Only thing mine do is cut out one particular calf - its a cross bred and the rest are pure bred so this one looks different and they force it out of the field if it gets in.
 
I kept my horse with the cows when I first got her coz the other ponies kept taking her headcollar off and I couldnt catch her
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She got more friendly with the cows than the ponies! She was out with the pregnant dairy cows and very young calves and would frequently wash and groom them
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