Mares and geldings together?

I prefer mixed. Although there does need to be an established herd, not swopping & changing. One of mine is the ultimate tart, she spends ages trying to wind up the mainly uninterested geldings, she'll go & present & squirt while they have their heads down grazing. Not a problem because the geldings are pretty chilled & my other mare runs the herd smoothly. But, I'd be reluctant to put her in a mixed herd without it being well run, she'd cause havoc.
 
I don't mind as long as groups are well managed and grazing well managed. So that all groups have the right amount of grass and introductions are done sensibly with thought and care.

I think often it works better to split fatties and skinnies first and foremost and then make sensible groups that take into account personalities, pecking order and other factors. If the fatties and skinnies are separate you can manage grazing and supplimentary hay etc better.
 
Kat said:
I don't mind as long as groups are well managed and grazing well managed. So that all groups have the right amount of grass and introductions are done sensibly with thought and care.

I think often it works better to split fatties and skinnies first and foremost and then make sensible groups that take into account personalities, pecking order and other factors. If the fatties and skinnies are separate you can manage grazing and supplimentary hay etc better.
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This is how I am going to do it this summer since two of the horses are lami prone (a mare and a gelding). They will share a paddock this spring and both will suffer the 'misfortune' of wearing muzzles and coming off the grass daily. I tend to have mixed herds in any case, as with only seven horses (two mares and five geldings) with one gelding that needs to be on his own, it is difficult to segregate.
 
Our yard has them turned out as a herd. Lovely for them because there is so much room and they can move as a pack across and up the hill when its wet. When ever I have had or looked after a horse mares and geldings have always been out together. I think its more natural for them but you do get the odd mardy mares and little fights between bolshy geldings. My mare is really mean to the geldings if they get within 10 feet of her and there is one mare who is head of the herd but we let them settle it between themselves :)
 
Mine used to be mixed but now moved to a new yard where he has to stay with the boys :(

I think he was happier mixed, seems to befriend the girls a bit better and just playfights with the boys all the time or wanders around on his own =[
 
I prefer to have same sex groups.

My main herd is mares and youngstock, all the weanlings are colts and will be leaving the herd in Springtime, fillies remain with the herd. Yearling colts go in with whatever nanny I have at the time, frequently they live with the stallion.

Having a band of mares and geldings just doesn't work for me, invariably there is one gelding that wants to be the big 'I am' and I really can not be doing with the squabbling and bickering, especially with in-foal mares, foals and also taking into consideration that many of the horses do not belong to me.

I have 2 year old colts/geldings together, and a couple of same owner mare/gelding pairs in separate paddocks either the owners prefer it, or the horses have not settled/are not suited to the same sex groups.
 
I run mine together, the adult mare and gelding and then the four rising 2 year olds as another group. There are 2 of each and they run together very nicely when the fillies are home (they run on the forest, but are currently home). The "babies" have been together since weaning apart from being split up from when the colts testosterone kicked in pre-gelding and then the fillies went out on the forest. However, it was clear they all remembered each other when the fillies came home after Christmas and soon settled down again with the help of a large round bale of hay to bond over ...

They are very relaxed and settled groups, the boys macho biffing games play just doesn't really happen when the girls are about. The adult ponies are like an old married couple, the mare is constantly outwitting the gelding and it is very funny to watch. She lets him think he is the boss most of the time....

However, if I were on a livery yard I am one of those who doesn't want my animals sharing with anyone elses. If they hurt each other, that is my problem, but woe betide another horse hurting one of mine...
 
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At current yard it's single sex fields. It would be really interesting to see how the pecking order/behaviours changed if they were mixed! However as the owner of a mare I would worry about riggy geldings. I always remember the furrow that was caused when we had a lone riggy gelding on strip grazing (right next to the mares) never seen such a silly bunch of squealing/ squirting creatures! YO soon put a stop to that set up! :D
 
Have always run mares and geldings togher, with no problems, and prefer it that way. But I do see that with a large number of breeding horses, as in Enfys' case, you would need to separate.

Ours have always got on really well, I believe it's more natural (well, if you can call a gelding being natural!) and they have always sorted themselves out re pecking order.
 
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