Small Paddock

[Hairy Horror]

Just wondering if anyone keeps horses on a very small paddock and if so how is best to manage it. I have the chance of renting 1.6 acres for two horses, plus a shelter.

 

[HashRouge]

Is that the only grazing you'd have, summer and winter? How big are the horses? I have a 14.2hh and a 15.2hh and I wouldn't even consider such a limited amount of grazing. Unless you're on really well-draining, sandy soil it will be a nightmare in winter.

 

[paddi22]

I have very little land at my house where my stables are. I rent a bigger field but I usually have some up at the house in the small paddock. it's basically only useful as a turnout paddock at this stage. even when it got rested two horses grazed it down in four weeks. so when they are there they are hayed all year round. I had to section off an area its an all weather turnout and put mats and stone down. if I hadn't down that the whole are would be destroyed after a few wet days.

it is doable, but you would def need an all weather part and to be haying and poo pick all year round.

 

[Lintel]

I use roughly 1.5 acre.
I own and Highland and a Shetland.
Split into three paddocks of about 2/3rds of an acre each.
I supplement all year round with some hay, mostly because I bring them in for a period of time each day. I also have a hard standing that they use in the winter to stop the field bogging up.
They are both fatties and we get along just fine like that. It all depends what you want, what you own etc ?

 

[sherry90]

Depends how you manage it, the type of soil and if they are out 24/7.

I used to keep mine out 24/7 in summer on poor draining land of bigger acreage. Moved yards and he is now on smaller acreage but the soil is sandy and hilly, it drains well even in winter (was a bit sodden this year in parts but was a wet winter) would not have got away on this size field at previous yard. The soil was clay and water just sat on the top most of the year round.

I wouldn’t and don’t keep out 24/7 in current field and he’s off it for half the day year round.

 

[chaps89]

I have a 12.1hh and a 14.1hh on 1.5 acres, the little one lives out 24/7, bigger one comes in during the day all year round. I poo pick and expect to hay all year round.
Usually I have a track up so they stay a bit trimmer and it rests the middle bit for winter.
If I was definitely staying long term I would be investing in some mud control mats or hard-core.
But if I had 2 x 16hh horses out 24/7 I wouldn't even contemplate it!

 

[J&S]

I have a system pretty much like Chaps89, maybe around 2 acres. We have stables for the winter nights and a hard standing area. The field drains well but still it gets a bit churned up after the winter. I give hay all year round as well, they don't need a lot of grass.

 

[Hairy Horror]

Thank you for letting me know your experiences, it’s made me feel a lot more confident in the fact that it’s doable. What did you use for your hard standing and did you need planning permission? The horses are good doers, I don’t mind if I have to supplement them with hay and feed. I was thinking of putting in some sort of hard standing around the field shelter for the winter months with a fence around it to protect the land, again i will have to see if I need PP. I will only be renting the field at first with hope to buy it in the future. Of course when I purchase it I can hopefully get pp for a permanent structure. Thanks again for sharing your knowledge.

 

[ihatework]

Small/ponies, unshod, good-doers and not clay might be manageable.
Otherwise it sounds like my worst nightmare for horse keeping

 

[Milliechaz]

I have 1.7 acres at home and stables in a fenced off yard area with concrete and crush and run on the floor. I have two 15.3 and have had them here for 5 years. They are out in the summer but come in for 8 hrs a day in the height of summer to get away from flys and heat and I give them a haynet while they are in but they rarely eat it. In the winter they have free roam of the stable yard and their stable doors open all day with hay always available and they just go in and out as they please but are shut in their stables over night. I also have an arena to let them have a run around in, in the winter. When they come in for winter is weather dependent, last year it was really early if I remember rightly because of the rain but I have had them still out with hay (in the day in December some years).

You have to look after it properly, we have it fenced in to 3 paddocks and there is always 1 (sometimes 20 resting. I poo pick everyday and harrow when the fields are closed off for winter, I also run over them with the ride on mower when they are rested as it stimulates growth. They are fertilized with Suregrow once a year and I manage just fine.

 

[Lovemarmite]

I have a 11hh and a 14.2hh on an acre all year round, both stabled during the day and out at night, paddock is split in two and I track during summer then they gradually work their way through the foggage in winter, I feed hay all year round, they are good doers so don't really need the grass, it does get muddy in winter and this year was awful and I borrowed a bit of the paddock next door for a few weeks to save me trashing all of mine! Both are usually BF over the winter months which makes a difference, I would love more land to make it easier in the winter but certainly don't need the grass in the summer

 

[Orangehorse]

I have a small summer paddock but I have big turnout for the winter when I rest the paddock. I feed hay all year round and muck out the paddock daily. It is too small to even make a "track" system and frankly this year the grass has been so little I only have to adjust the hay ration.

A 16.00hh horse and 11.00hh pony.

 

[thefarsideofthefield]

I have 2 highlands who have been living out 24/7 all year round on 1.25 acres for the last 4 years . It is our ' home ' paddock ( the one nearest the house ) and is excellent free draining land . They have free access to a yard and stable area where they are fed hay and ad lib straw in the winter months and ad lib straw is available in the summer . They are both very good doers and after trying all sorts of track/strip grazing/time in/time out combinations we have discovered that this is the easiest and most effective way to keep them happy and healthy . The trick with small acreage is to treat it like a massive stable/exercise area rather than as a source of food . Ours have grazed the paddock down to a bowling green and are constantly moving around in search of food . At the moment there seems to be plenty of grass for them , they are both well covered and are generally ignoring the nets of straw which are always available on the yard area . We poo pick twice daily .

 

[Orangehorse]

I have 2 highlands who have been living out 24/7 all year round on 1.25 acres for the last 4 years . It is our ' home ' paddock ( the one nearest the house ) and is excellent free draining land . They have free access to a yard and stable area where they are fed hay and ad lib straw in the winter months and ad lib straw is available in the summer . They are both very good doers and after trying all sorts of track/strip grazing/time in/time out combinations we have discovered that this is the easiest and most effective way to keep them happy and healthy . The trick with small acreage is to treat it like a massive stable/exercise area rather than as a source of food . Ours have grazed the paddock down to a bowling green and are constantly moving around in search of food . At the moment there seems to be plenty of grass for them , they are both well covered and are generally ignoring the nets of straw which are always available on the yard area . We poo pick twice daily .

Yes, the "outdoor stable" is how I think of it, although outdoor barn might be more appropriate size wise. My two look about the correct weight, although I can vary the amount of hay I give them if the grass has grown because of rain.

 

[Reacher]

Another with 2 horses in paddock under 2 acres and a yard area with stables. In winter letting them have free access from the paddock to the yard where they can get hay and get out of the mud is a good way to do it. At night (and in bad weather) I divide yard in half so each horse has free access to its stable and a “patio area” equal to about 5 or 6 stables in size to amble about. The yard is mostly concrete, there is also an area with concrete grid tiles which have holes(not sure of the right term for these) on top of hard core and in summer grass grows through the holes in the grid which they can pick at.
I do feed hay all year round.
In late winter the fields are fairly hammered but rolling it and some tlc it soon recovers.
You do have to watch over-grazing it as the unpalatable weeds can take over.
If you can rent it first you can get an idea if it will work for you.

 

[JennBags]

Thank you for letting me know your experiences, it’s made me feel a lot more confident in the fact that it’s doable. What did you use for your hard standing and did you need planning permission? The horses are good doers, I don’t mind if I have to supplement them with hay and feed. I was thinking of putting in some sort of hard standing around the field shelter for the winter months with a fence around it to protect the land, again i will have to see if I need PP. I will only be renting the field at first with hope to buy it in the future. Of course when I purchase it I can hopefully get pp for a permanent structure. Thanks again for sharing your knowledge.

You would need PP for hard standing, however as you're renting, I'd recommend getting Mud Control mats and laying them down instead. They're not permanent and you can move them as and when you need to. They are expensive but they're brilliant. They've got a discount on until the end of July.