Those with horses at home.....

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missshell

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that are stabled overnight....whats your routine? :)

ATM I turn the boys out in the morning usually between 7/9am, then they come in at around 630/7pm have a feed and haynet. Then at around 1030/11pm I go and remove their nets and give them more hay (off the floor).
I was chatting to someone who doesn't understand why I bother going back out and should just leave them once they've been fed and hayed in the evening.

Just looking for opinions really as its got me thinking :confused:
 
I've only got one at home at the moment.

I turn him out between 8 & 9am, he has a feed in the field while I muck out and get everything ready for the evening and then I ride.

He stays out till I get home from work which is usually 8:45pm and then he's brought in and fed. I always do a late night check before I go to bed, I skip out, remove feed bowl and do some carrot stretches/have some cuddles.
 
Ours are out at 6.30am and in at 4.30pm, then fed and left with big haynet. That's it for me and girls then as when we say 'at home' we mean down the lane a bit, but OH usually walks round last thing.
To be honest, that's made me think, now the girls (and their ponies) are bigger, we probably ought to drive down about 8.30/9.00 before they go to bed, and look everyone over, if only to get the girls into good habits.
 
Mine go out at 7am, come in at 2.30pm and have feed and haynet. I feed another slab of hay to both after work about 6/7pm and then give them a further haynet at 9pm, top up water and do any extra mucking out.

I find the extra mucking out at night helps cut down the time spent doing the full muck out in the morning.
 
I only stable overnight in the winter and turnout around 7.30am and try to bring in around 5ish, and then I always go down and check before I go to bed!! She's only at the bottom of the garden, I always felt luky I am able to go down and check her and give her a bedtime carrot and cuddle :D
 
breakfast at 7.30,out between 7.30 and 9 depending on weather and how active I'm feeling. may bit a bit later if they are working first thing.

Back in 3.30 - 5 or earlier if need to work before it's dark. Have feed then.

Back out to do hay/evening check, skip out anytime between 7.30 and 9.30 depending on what I'm doing.

I tend to flake out shortly after that.

OH takes dogs out later on so he would hear if one of them was crashing around.
 
Out about 6.30am (earlier if I have a Vet visit booked - oh the joys of being 1st on his call list) hay and feed stalled horses, then hay the other 20 or so in paddocks. Back in, hassle daughter and get her out of the door for the bus at 7.30. Turn out, muck out, blah, blah, blah.

Bring in whenever the horses want to or I feel like it, depends entirely on the weather and what I am doing. No set routine.

Evening stables (God, that is so BHS!) whenever I let the dogs out last thing at night, could be 10.30, could be 1am. I really do not do routine at all, can't be doing with door banging, gate hugging horses nagging me.
 
Mine are fed at 7.30 turned out after exercise - normally about 11 or 12.
In at 3.30 or whenever they start to charge about the field. They have their tea then and hay.
Back out at 7pm for hay and a skip out.
In this weather, thats me done! I can however, see them from my bedroom and OH takes dogs out during the evening so would hear any goings on.
In the summer they get far more attention!
 
Ours tend to go out at about 7.30 in the morning, back in about 7.30 evening, fed etc then. We tend to deep litter for a week, but may skip out a little in the morning. Tend to do last checks when let the dog out. In summer tend to go out and check them all in the field just before bed.
 
I have one horse in overnight, and three ponies in the field.

Feed all four and turnout between 6am and 8am depending on when the children are waking up. Muck out whenever I feel like it! Ideally early morning, but often ends up being afternoon.

Bring in horse to stable ready with hay and tea anytime between 3.30 and 7.30 again, depending on what we are doing. Final haynet at about 10-11pm.

He is right outside our bedroom window so we would probably hear a problem, but he is a greedy pig and does need his hay in at least 2 portions - he would guzzle the whole lot in an hour!
 
Ours are given feed and final nets about 6.30/7pm. They get large haynets at might. I used to go down religiously at 11pm with the dogs, but often disturbed them - the ones lying down got up etc, so now I just walk nearby and check for sounds of distress! They always still had hay in their nets at that time. When its snowing/freezing hard we shut the top doors at about 8.30pm. I think its good to alternate the times you check them for a security point of view..

My friend has the best thing - CCTV in each stable connected to her TV, so you can even have each stable on a split screen, tiny picture while you watch TV!
 
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Thank you for the replies. I think im going to stick with my routine as it works and my boy is a pig and really needs his hay staggered. Plus I like checking them before I go to bed :)
Roll on spring when they'll be out 24/7 again! :p:D
 
Ours are not at home now but when they were I used to turn out in my pyjamas about 7, they would come in about 7 at night and then would always have a late night check before we went to bed. Even now, with a drive of 6 miles we often go down late on just to check all is ok and are sometimes wandering around the fields at midnight.
 
Turn out at back of 8am ish, in at 3.30pm for tea (chaff/hard feed etc) and a full hay rack. Back again at 10pm to poo pick, another really small feed of just chaff and top up haylage for the night. Check water, but usually a full trough is more than enough.

I too don't understand why people wouldn't come back last thing. If you don't you get a muckier stable in the morning and horse/rugs also get yucky. However I'm lucky, my stables are just outside back door and space between is covered by car port roof so can go out in my slippers if I so wish! Sad but true!
 
At the moment mine are fed around 7.30am and either chucked out with hay in field, or left in for a bit if the weather is horrible. They come in again around 6.30pm, for feed, and a pile of hay on floor. i look at them before going to bed but don't put the light on inside if one is lying down. I skip out daily and muck out about every 3 days. two are on deep straw beds, one on shavings.
In summer they want to come in through the day when the flies and clegs are bad. Often they let me know whether it's to be in or out - they are pretty good at weather forecasting!
 
Mine are turned out around 6.30am after a short feed. They get haylage in the field. They come in around 4.30pm and have another short feed and haylage. I then go out around 10.30pm when they have carrots whilst I skip out, change water and top up haynets. I 'do' them last thing to save the mess in the stables, as I have to muck out in the mornings before I leave for work at 8.00am. I have 3 horses.
 
mine are turned out at 7.30 - 8.00 am and brought in at 4 - 4.30 pm . i tend to give tea and hay at 6 and another net of hay and check between 10 and 11. i would worry if they went longer and luckily they are at the bottom of the garden.
 
Mine are turned out at about 9 mucked out all feed made up ready for the evening , then brought in at 3 30 -4 00 then fed, watered at 5.00-5.30 only during dark nights they are left out later in the summer but brought in for some days as have one veteran laminitic, my comp horse who i dont want to get lamintis or too fat and my shetland
 
Mine get turned out at about 7am, then brought back in at about 2:30/3, ridden and then left in with a haynet. At about 6/6:30pm I go back up just to give them their feed and top up water/poo pick. Then up again at 8:30/9 for a new haynet, water top up and poo pick, and cuddles of course :)
 
How funny you posted this, I was thinking about asking the exact same question!

Last year I didn't have any help so routine was - on yard at 6.30am to feed/turnout/muckout before work. Haylage in the field, though they normally ran out in the afternoon. Home at back of 6, horses in (very grumpy) and fed by 7 with hay. Go out again at 10 to give more hay and remove any muck (as others have said, really saves time and mushed up mess in the morning).

This year a slight change - still out at the same time with haylage, but taken in by someone else between 3 and 4 to hay and feed. I say hello when I arrive back from work but then go inside to do a few things. Ideally, though I haven't got this bit right yet, I'd go out just after I've eaten to do evening stables. My plan is this spreads their hay eating out a bit more, but also saves me being wide awake just before bedtime! It was making me a bit of an insomniac, so if I do evening stables earlier (say 8.30) I can come back in, put PJs on and get sleepy before bedtime. Stables are very close to the house so I can hear kicking (and indeed my horse cribbing sometimes) so my evening routine is more about their health (spreading their hay ration) and helping with the morning; in any case OH usually goes out about 10.30/11 "for some fresh air" so he usually checks they are standing upright at that point.

Weekends it all gets done a bit later! My horse tells me when she has run out of hay by kicking her trug around the stable until she sees movement. Who needs an alarm :rolleyes:
 
They go out at about 7.30am in the week, about 8.30 -9am at w/ends, no breakfast. They have hay in the field. I muck out & go to work (if it's a weekday). They come in about 6.30pm for feeds and hay. I skip out, water, hay & check rugs about 10pm. They also get cuddles & carrots. My old horse used to get colic from coughing (COPD). If he was going to start it would be at about 10pm & if I treated the cough then he would be OK. That's why I got into the habit of checking them last thing.
 
I feel really bad now as I dont do a late night check.

Mine (and liveries) are fed and turned out at 8am, unless being ridden. If riding left in with hay whilst I muck out and breakfast settles. I'm usually done down yard around 10.30, more like 12 if I ride.

Then go back down just before dark (4ish at mo). Bring in, hose legs, do feet, quick groom, rugs etc. They are then left until liveries come to ride after work. The last one to leave chucks all feeds in and check they have enough hay. They normally leave 7-7.30.

They are then left...all night. And yes they do all have hay left in a morning. I can see them from my bedroom window and will open window before bed just to listen for any trouble. But that's the closest they get to a check
 
Iceni said:
Turn out at back of 8am ish, in at 3.30pm for tea (chaff/hard feed etc) and a full hay rack. Back again at 10pm to poo pick, another really small feed of just chaff and top up haylage for the night. Check water, but usually a full trough is more than enough.

I too don't understand why people wouldn't come back last thing. If you don't you get a muckier stable in the morning and horse/rugs also get yucky. However I'm lucky, my stables are just outside back door and space between is covered by car port roof so can go out in my slippers if I so wish! Sad but true!
Click to expand...

Exactly this^^^. I have just come in, 9.45, skipped out and given more halage. Dogs out and now we are ready for bed!! My horse is 20 strides away though.
 
i keep my horse in overnight all the year round

winter routine
7.00am breakfast and hay .
7.30 am Turnout in to 1 of the fields with hay, fresh water
muck out etc
5 .00pm bring in dinner, hay, fresh water.
9.00pm skip out top up hay and fresh water

summer routine
7.00 am , turnout into 1 of the fields, fresh water
muck out etc
9.00 pm bring in for the night , hay fresh water

when brought in to ride , shes put back out afterwards until bringing in time.

i have cctv in my stables and yard which it linked to the tv's in the house , so im able to watch whats going on , and bedroom window is left ajar so i can listen, they are 15 strides away from house, and when i awake in the mornings and walk along the hallway she can hear the floorboards creaking lol , and starts neighing like mad, and keeps doing so until shes got her breakfast .
 
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Between 5am and 10 am - Ride (ice/snow permitting)/Feed/chuck out.
Then I'm at work. Sometimes in the really bad weather, I can work form home and so I bring them in mid-afternoon, then they defo get another net later.
Between 4pm and 9pm - Bring in again! Poor hosses - no routine!

I do a late night check every night around 11 (combined with dog walk), unless I've only brought them in at 9 ish! If they have been in early or especially at this time of year and in this weather I like to give ad lib hay anyway, so I dish out a bit more. Check water/temp/how much they've eaten/sometimes poo pick (if I don't have to be up at 5!):eek:/ retrieve feed buckets ready for morning.

To be honest I have 2 new stables at my pad this year and I just LOVE being out there, so I am more than happy to check them as many times as I (not they!) like!! Dog also likes to come, so he can sneak a carrot!

Husband not so chuffed; if it doesn't have four legs and a tail hanging out the ar$*, apparently I'm not intereated?! :o:)
 
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