Natural Horse Care

AlDestoor

AlDestoor

Well-Known Member
Joined
22 March 2012
Messages
327
Location
Midlands
Visit site
Hi,

I'm just wondering what your thoughts are of track systems and natural horse care- and yes this includes barefoot.

The reason I ask is I've been doing a lot of thinking recently about the way I personally keep horses. Just to put it in perspective, I own 2 horses, a TB who last raced Dec 2018 and I've had for 4 months and my mare, who I've owned for about 7 years.

This last year I have had nothing but bad luck, my mare had nerve damage in her head so was off for the summer, and my new tb has just had his suspensories done and is about to have the ligament snip. I've had to adapt his stable- no hay nets, toys on the floor etc but it got me thinking- if this is what is right for my horse to correct his back then why do we use haynets etc in the first place. Another example is my mare, who lived out for 6 years (even through heavy snow) with only access to a shelter and haylage, I never had a single vets bill. I moved so I could ride in the winter to the yard I'm at now and since then, she's had nerve damage with at one point becoming unrideable. Both horses are settled btw so it isn't the yard.

I've done a bit of reading and read alot about bare foot and track systems being good for legs, a more natural diet correcting gut issues and obviously, horses being out and grazing helping with back issues when after some of these horses have gone through box rest and were at the point of being pts.

What are your thoughts? I'm curious, I'm currently on a DIY yard with access to adlib haylage, menage, solarium etc which will be beneficial when my TB comes into rehab but I'm thinking about afterwards. Would this way of life be more suited and if so, why do we choose fancy yards, haynets, and all the other un necessary things?
 
I'd add, re haynets (I know there is more to the post than that, but) there were some posts from physios on FB doing the rounds recently about how it was beneficial to have multiple eating positions for horses, because they are browsers not just grass grazers. So while feeding from the ground is a good thing for various reasons, having a variety of eating positions uses different muscles which can be a benefit too. I tend to give mine some from a haycube and some from a lowish haynet.

https://www.facebook.com/bridgetbazellphysio/posts/667668810307533
 
We make our choices based primarily on personal circumstances and availability.

Like it or not we live on a small, generally wet, over populated island with a disproportionately high level of horse ownership - therefore compromises will always need to be made.

What do I think of track systems - blooming brilliant if done well, I’m struggling to find any real downsides to a good track system.

Barefoot (I generally say unshod 😜) in general I support it provided the horse is not in discomfort [I have seen plenty of horses whose rather evangelical owners are completely unaware their poor horse is footsore allround], and that any competitive ambition is moderated to keep the horse safe [eg I would never competitively event a horse unshod].
I fully support the use of shoes in working horses where needed but also appreciate they take their toll and most horses benefit from a shoeing break.
 
Your mare lived out successfully because she understands the hazards of natural living, she knows how to find and use shelter from the snow, etc
You chose to stable her and it was your choice to use haynets. I wouldn't use haynets if you paid me and never have done, whether the horses were at livery, or now that they are at home. The reason that I don't use haynets is that they can be dangerous for a horse. All horses, whether shod or unshod. There are other ways of organising different eating levels and if they are out for part of the 24 hours they can browse outside..
It is always best to do your own research rather than just following blindly what others do, or YO instructions. If you want the advantages of the facilites at the DIY yard where you are now, just adjust your management so that it suits your horses.
 
Its very hard to keep a horse 'naturally' when they can't roam across large territories to search for food. I've seen herds of feral and wild horses and they aren't always in great condition either. A stallion with gaping holes in its neck because its been in a fight isn't a pleasant sight and nor are starving horses because there hasn't been any rain.

So 'natural' is not something we can either deliver or should try to with our domestic horses IMO.

But we can try and have as much turnout as possible. We know that being in a stable for hours on end is bad for them mentally and physically, but even then that has to be weighed up with the land available (quality and quantity - anyone else got lakes for fields still?)

Unlimited turnout can lead to fat horses, as can ad lib hay. I use haynets to slow down my fast eater otherwise she'd be out of hay an hour after going into her stable. Its the best of the options available to me and she grazes from the ground for the vast majority of the day.

Neither of mine are shod but that hasn't kept my mare from having all kinds of problems with her joints - so barefoot isn't the answer to every problem!

I suppose what I'm saying is we all have to do the best with the environment we have - I've given up beating myself up daily because I couldn't get x,y,z right for the horses. I do my best to tick as many welfare boxes as possible, but compromises have to be made.
 
I think we all do what suits us within our means. I would love to go the total natural way with a track system however the chances of it lasting more than a week in the west of Scotland I think are pretty slim unless it was properly done with hardcore etc which just won’t happen unfortunately. I’ve gone from feeding haynets to feeding out my haycube, I have a haynet hanging from a tree in the paddock if he wants it. It’s horses for courses really.
 
I like the ideas of having hay stations situated around the stables in all fairness and you all make valid points.

Mine are fed out of a haybar as I can't stand to see them pooing all over it plus the yard owner would have a fit.

Another questions for those who know about track systems- how do horses who don't keep the weight well cope? I've only ever seen successful ones help with losing weight and lami etc. I do like the idea of communal shelters- the horses do look happier.

It's catch 22 for me here, I would love to have them at home, all year turnout etc BUT I have no arena, so no riding in the week in the winter. I agree it is more of a convenience for me on the yard but just with has happened to the horses this year, it just got me questioning a few things but that said, both my mare and my TB are begging to come in when it's wet...
 
When I had a track system, I had one that didn't keep her weight as well as the others so she would spend some time in the middle each day getting a bit of extra grass, or in the winter she'd come in for a few hours to munch on some hay.
 
I wont use haynets. I cringe when I see horses yanking on them. I dont object to having them in overnight though. Mine goes out at 6.30am and comes in at 4pm and thats enough for her in winter when the grass isnt as interesting and the weather is vile. I will be setting up a track for her next year, but it will only be for summer use not all year round.

She lived out last winter on a huge hilly field. It was incredibly good for her mind and body, but it was next to impossible to do anything with her. She was always caked in mud and there were no facilities or even lights so it was a pretty miserable way to own a horse!

Its a compromise between keeping her well and keeping her in a way that means I can drive her.
 
Leo Walker said:
I wont use haynets. I cringe when I see horses yanking on them. I dont object to having them in overnight though. Mine goes out at 6.30am and comes in at 4pm and thats enough for her in winter when the grass isnt as interesting and the weather is vile. I will be setting up a track for her next year, but it will only be for summer use not all year round.

She lived out last winter on a huge hilly field. It was incredibly good for her mind and body, but it was next to impossible to do anything with her. She was always caked in mud and there were no facilities or even lights so it was a pretty miserable way to own a horse!

Its a compromise between keeping her well and keeping her in a way that means I can drive her.
Click to expand...


This is exactly it- I do want to rethink how they're kept but also think about my own reasons to have them too. I can't go or do anything as yet as the yard I'm at is brilliant for rehab which my TB needs.
 
Mine have always lived out - the younger one was born out in the field! As others have said this is purely due to convenience. Old cob hates being in a stable so lives out in a herd of 5 or 6 depending on which field they all need to be in at the time. He cannot eat much hay now as his teeth are poor but he has two mushy feeds in the field each day in winter and maintains a good weight. He can browse on the grass and hedges. I can usually get there once a day to check him. I wouldn't keep a horse stabled at that yard as the YO is not reliable but the fields are great and fairly well maintained. There is a track round the winter field which was meant to be in reserve for old cob as it has some very nice grass but a tree has recently come down and the whole herd can now get onto it as the YO has not had the tree removed and the fence repaired!

Young cob is at another yard and lives out, mostly to keep other horses company. He is often on restricted grazing to keep his weight down but changes paddock every couple of weeks which ends up being quite a natural system. The YO there was recently bemoaning the fact that the two horses that are in fairly serious work - affiliated dressage at advanced medium - and are on 24 hour turnout are (touch wood) the two most straightforward and sound ones on the premises!
 
Mine live out as much as possible and as from today all will be unshod, I have plenty of grass for the amount on it at the moment so they are still out 24/7 apart from the one that needs to be very restricted is in at night to help keep her weight down, it is too wet in her bare paddock so she has been moved onto fresh grass during the day.

I use haynets in the stables, they are small holed nets hung as low as possible, almost touching the ground for the unshod ones, I feed adlib and find they do not snatch or pull out of the nets because they are never that hungry, any that are inclined to pull get some on the floor until they realise it is not a race to eat as much as you can in the shortest time.
If I could set the yard up from scratch I would put in a track and am giving it some serious consideration for my new place as there is less acreage and it could work well for 3 requiring very different management that I do not want to stable unless it is essential, the two fatter ones could be on the track with the bigger horse in the middle at times to get the best grass.
 
If you can find a place which offers the kind of livery you want or you have the ability and space to create your own, why would you NOT keep a horse as naturally as possible?

It's only due to the lack of space (among other things maybe) that many traditional liveries are organised the way they are.
 
tallyho! said:
If you can find a place which offers the kind of livery you want or you have the ability and space to create your own, why would you NOT keep a horse as naturally as possible?

It's only due to the lack of space (among other things maybe) that many traditional liveries are organised the way they are.
Click to expand...

This is what I'm saying. I'm just curious as to why track systems are supposedly better for the horse etc.

More my own musings than anything else
 
horses live how we keep them, they adapt to their life style and the reason we have fancy yards and keep them in is purely for our own comfort and ease!! obviously each horse is different but mostly horses will live to their means. I personally have both my horses out all year round with a constant supply of hay and access to a field shelter, I find they are much calmer and there for less accident prone.
 
Lucy-Jay said:
This is what I'm saying. I'm just curious as to why track systems are supposedly better for the horse etc.

More my own musings than anything else
Click to expand...
Because horses have evolved as nomadic herd animals. A track system comes closer to this than traditional management with stabling and static fields. It's good for them both physically and mentally to be moving, making choices, browsing, interacting, rather than just standing around, especially in the isolation of a stable.
 
I think most of us carry on keeping our horses the way we were brought up with until something makes us think about that a bit more and consider changes. That is how we ended up with a track (albeit just grass)

In summer we have a track round our bigger field at the back of our house, which is set up perfectly for pony observation. Previously had to be strip grazed and they definitely move masses more on the track. (You also notice just how much longer the native spends eating than the anglo....)
 
I personally find the whole thing of shutting them in a stable really weird, esp when you think of how they live in the wild. Mine had all sorts of problems in the stable, swollen legs, dust allergy, crib biting... Turn her out =problems solved. Obviously need to protect my grazing as I don't have loads, so they are in some of the time, but have small pens attached to their stables. I wouldn't have it any other way now. I dont do barefoot, too much roadwork! I hate haynets but I cant spend money to watch hay get trampled and shat on!
 
So interesting that there is a mindset about barefoot horses can't do roadwork... yet roads are the perfect surface and ours do mainly roadwork during the week.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top