Those with horses who live out 24/7 year round..........

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millyspaniel

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I have approx 3.5 acres with a tb, baby coblet and 2 welshies (tiny ones) i have seperated approx just over 1 acre for winter grazing, the other part i use approx 1.5 acres is used for summer and is currently looking good and is coming back nicely, i really want to save this land for the spring summer months. Theres another 1/2 acre or so which i plan to use next year for hay and the rest has pigs on it!! anyway the bit there on is really boggy along the whole of one side and it looks worse as its on a downward hill/slope, its where they stand and have thier hay. The other section isnt brilliant but not as boggy and has a small bit of grass. Its only november and they are on it till april/may!! thats another 5 months or so, i hate the mud it looks such a mess and there standing in it fetlock deep
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My dainty TB is rugged up and shes really toasty i just cant bear to see her in the mud, it will be her first winter out
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they are having approx 1 bale per day of hay and the tb has 2 feeds, not been able to ride all week
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they look miserable. I am considering putting the tb on livery for the winter but its part livery only, no DIY and its £55 pw
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the ponies are fine out its juat my mare. Am planning to get 2 stables and a hay barn and a field shelter next winter so she can be in at night.
I dont know what to do, £55 a week is a cost i really could do without!! any suggestions??
 
Is she dropping weight? I would only panic then to be honest. As long as there is some kind of shelter and you make sure she has adlib bulk, then she'll be fine............
 
Its only mud
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Personally, I would give them the run of the lot and then rest some just before spring. It will get less poached that way but even so, it will regrow
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well shes always been on the slender side, shes not loosing any weight but could do with a bit more on, her ribs are still visable but no muscle wastage - she did have muscle wastage when i got her back in july but she looks loads better now.
I suppose i could just move the hay to another part then move it again untill the boogy bits gotton better? was thinking of even moving her to a bit of the summer section with one of the welshies see if thats any better?
 
If you are worried about the tb mare i would use he land you have, i dont have much experience of land management but i reckon you will happily get a cut of hay off it even if you were to graze it for a while yet, thats my take on it
 
[ QUOTE ]
Its only mud
smile.gif


Personally, I would give them the run of the lot and then rest some just before spring. It will get less poached that way but even so, it will regrow
smile.gif


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Thats a good idea - i may make a gateway for them at the bottom and section off half the summer bit so they can have a bit more field, how long does it need to rest for spring grass??
 
I would put some bark down on the muddy bit - unless grass grows back there in the winter. Bark will soak the water up and look tidier. Maybe even some hardcore/slabs?
 
I agree with the others, I would use all the land. I think you will be surprised how much the grass will grow come spring, so section off just before to allow it to grow. I of course have absolutely no experience of land management by the way.. lol I just know how lush the grass can get to quickly formy horse.
xxx
 
We have six acres in four paddocks, and normally two tiny ponies, and the two in my sig although the spotty is away for this winter. We never seem to get it right with the grazing! We only keep aside about one acre, four are used most of the winter, but only get muddy around the 'walkways' that they use, and around the field shelter and haylage feeder. One seperate acre is boggy in winter and midgy in summer!

I find that once they come off the winter field and we shut it up after harrowing and topping, it comes back really quickly, in fact far too quickly and I spend all my time topping! I would think that if we wanted to, we could take a hay crop off it but we don't, too fiddly and small, we did it once but the hay wasn't great.

We did reseed bald patches this year but it didn't really take.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Its only mud
smile.gif


Personally, I would give them the run of the lot and then rest some just before spring. It will get less poached that way but even so, it will regrow
smile.gif


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This is what i do- I'm lucky in that between two of them they have nearly seven acres but I open it up in october and give them full run of the park until about March time when I fence off 2/3rds of it to recover before summer. This way it only gets poached at the gate and outside the shelter.
 
I do the same as Charlyan - they have access to the whole four acres now until March/ April, then section off as the grass begins to grow. It's amazing how quickly it comes through, even on bits that have got muddy.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Its only mud
smile.gif


Personally, I would give them the run of the lot and then rest some just before spring. It will get less poached that way but even so, it will regrow
smile.gif


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It's funny that you should say that, as I used to think that about my field, but have discovered that by splitting it up, it is so, so much better
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However, this is partly due to the variation of drainage on my field, which I think is worth baring in mind when it comes to field management
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I'd let them have all of it until spring. 3.5 acres isn't a lot for four horses & some pigs!

I used to have a TB who struggled to keep weight on. I used to section off half our land to make hay, but he never had enough grass to eat while we were growing the hay. I'd forget about making hay & buy it in as you won't get enough for all of them anyway. I used to spend a fortune trying to feed him up, when it would have been cheaper to give him more grass & buy in the hay.
 
I do the same as most other people

I've got 2 cobs and Shetland on approx 3-4 acres.

I give them the lot, which they wreck. But it's surprising how quickly it grows back in the Spring.

I tend to shut them in a small portion in the Spring allowing the other parts to grow, and roll it with my 4WD if it's really bumpy as I haven't got any equipment!

Move the hay piles around too so it doesn't get too boggy in one place.

You get used to the mud - honest!
 
I agree with those who say give them the whole lot for the winter. You can move them off in march and get enough growth for hay, although you will lucky to find someone to cut so little - unless you can do it yourself - and it may cost more than you save.
 
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