What do you do with your horses when there is snow/ice

Mine lives out, so it's not an issue.
For the horses at work, I still try to turn them out every day regardless of the conditions, even if it's so bad they only go out for an hour it's still better than nothing!
We do have a treadmill, and a lunge pen that doesn't freeze, so exercising them in the snow is not impossible. But I will always prioritise turnout. They need it more IMO.
 
Mine are still out, but they'd be going out in the day if they were in. I've never really understood not turning out in snow, unless you have to do anything extreme like walk down an ungritted, icy road with traffic trying to slide into you at every turn.
 
ILuvCowparsely said:
In one sense I can understand no bedding because of the mess but salt??? why not salt it is the normal thing.
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probably because it damages the concrete I used to work for someone who would not salt the ground for that reason, bloody dangerous with 35 liveries and having to try and do your day to day stuff on an ice rink.
 
All the yard has been turned out as usual during the snow from day 1, it is sometimes tricky picking our way across the yard but the fields are just snow not ice so no problems there
 
ILuvCowparsely said:
In one sense I can understand no bedding because of the mess but salt??? why not salt it is the normal thing.
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Salt can have a detrimental effect to some surfaces like concrete, or so I was told by someone. And its not just getting rocksalt, its the laying it down that takes the time, staff don't have time to do that, I know I don't at the moment.
 
Pinkvboots said:
probably because it damages the concrete I used to work for someone who would not salt the ground for that reason, bloody dangerous with 35 liveries and having to try and do your day to day stuff on an ice rink.
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Yes I think that was part of the reason and some weird logic that if you salt and someone falls and hurts themselves you’re more liable than if you do nothing at all. That’s why the liveries tried putting down bedding which he angrily scraped up. It would have only been for a few days, it was a ridiculous and downright dangerous attitude!
 
Our winter field is about 800ms away down a concrete track. There isnt enough bedding to cover that distance. Mines back out today as usual, wallowing in all the mud that has appeared since it started to thaw!
 
Leo Walker said:
Our winter field is about 800ms away down a concrete track. There isnt enough bedding to cover that distance. Mines back out today as usual, wallowing in all the mud that has appeared since it started to thaw!
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Yes I would have no hope with either salt or bedding even if YO allowed it, my stables open onto a big yard which turned to ice immediately, we then have a walk down the road and up the other yard drive - all of which was sheet ice about 2 inches thick. I managed to ice-skate them out to the fields today for the first time, still pretty dicey (as in, can't stand up on it myself in places!) I'd rather they have an enforced stay in than fall and injure themselves.

They both did wheelies round the fields today but they do that anyway ;)
 
I make a path of straw from the stables to the field, chuck a load of haylage in the field and they go out as normal. Mine are at home though so I can make my own rules.
 
I have no problem turning out in snow but more wary in ice. My stable is at the top of a short but steep concrete slope which isn't fun in the ice. This week we had massive amounts of rain/sleet Monday instead of snow, it was running like rivers off the field and what didn't drain sat on the surface. It then froze rock solid over night, yo tried to get them out Tues lunchtime but on getting to the fields there was solid ruts everywhere especially the gate ways so put them back in with more hay. While mine is pretty sensible I would rather she didn't injure herself stacking it down a hole. If it had defrosted enough they would have gone out for the afternoon.
 
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