Who's turning out in this...

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spotty_pony

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If yes why and if no why?

Mine are currently ging out for a couple of hours each day just while they get mucked out really. There is nothing for them to eat out there because the grass is all buried under snow and ice and tbh they are ready to come in after a couple of hours anyway and if I leave them any longer they get bored and start running around which isn't safe on this hard ground! YO seems to think I shouldn't bring them in so early but I don't think it's right to leave them out for too long without food, and we are not allowed to put haylage out.

What does everyone else think?
 
D wouldn't come in tonight and cantered up and down the field in protest when i tried to catch her. If it was only going to be a couple of days I'd have been tempted to leave her in but its been two weeks now and showing no sign on stopping so she's going out. She'd happily stay out all night if I let her.
 
No, not unless he is lunged/worked hard first cause mine is a loony and if he goes straight from his stable he gallops and bucks and generally enjoys himself, but he has already come in once with a puffy fetlock so i am now not risking it. Plus as you say there is frozen grass so no food.
My old cob went out in anything though, as the chances of getting him galloping around the field were very slim, but as you only for a few hours as there was no food and too many horses to put hay out (lots are way too dominant).
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I agree with you. My horse is only out for a few hours otherwise there is pandamonium in the field. Its not worth risking injury for.

As long as they get some fresh are, horsey company and a mooch about a field in this weather, I dont worry.

Yes they need out for a while, but nobody needs injuries. The horses themselves say when they are ready to come in.
 
Mine is out for the whole day and so are all the rest at our yard. She potters around the field and munches on a pile of hay - might as well stand outside doing that as inside IMO!
 
in, defo, with stable rug for my TB, with MW rug during day. Even the ice froze in the stable bucket today, and I just bought myself some thermals in Tescos - mega cold.
 
I would leave them out longer if I could feed them hay/hayledge. If there's nothing to eat they'll just get bored & either hoon about or stand & mope & get cold.

Under the circumstances I agree with you.
 
Mine goes out for about 8 hrs, I put lots of hay out so he has plenty to eat. The reason i do is because he had colic back in february, and it scared the hell out of me. I know there is the worry of him eating frosty grass, but as there is no grass anyway he should be ok. If we get more snow then i will have to keep him in.
 
Mine are out, the yard is really icy and I thought they'd be safer out with lots of high fibre food and ad lib haylage. They don't charge around as they are out 24/7 and they are all warm and happy so that's where they are staying until it thaws out!
 
Depends on the horse i think or how bad the field is , my horse doesnt like staying in but the one next door loves it , our yard are turning out but we havent got snow just icey x our YO wouldnt let us the other week for two days so had to ride those days very icy x
 
If the horses are used to being out in all weathers, then its not such a big deal, but for the ones who are stabled part of the time during the day and have to walk across ice its a different matter.

Luckily at my yard they dont feed in the fields. Just as well, as my horse guards all food in the field, no matter how much or how many piles are outside, he runs himself stupid guarding the food.
 
Mine go out during the day with lots of piles of haylage so they have to walk to get it. Horses come in at night ponies stay out in dry rugs with more haylage. I never leave in 24/7 if I can help it
 
All out for at least 8 hours, no matter what the weather, My big grey would try and kill me if he hadn't been out, he at least only tries to kill you when he's coming in if he has been out
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Yes, Toto is generally sensible, he doesn't hoon about in the field. We don't have snow, just a little frost and ice, we just have to be careful when bringing him in/turning out as the yard is icy in places
 
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Mine goes out for about 8 hrs, I put lots of hay out so he has plenty to eat. The reason i do is because he had colic back in february, and it scared the hell out of me. I know there is the worry of him eating frosty grass, but as there is no grass anyway he should be ok. If we get more snow then i will have to keep him in.

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Can horses get colic from standing in then? I would have thought it would be more likely to be caused by eating frosty grass than standing in?
 
the stables i keep V at open right out into the field so they can go in and out as they please during the day, they absolutly love it rolling and digging about in the snow plus we put out piles of loose hay for them and you can guarantee when we go back up at night they wont have set foot in there stables, plus the other 2 horses are fairly old and so its better for them to keep moving about and mines just a youngster so idont want him standing in all the time. x
 
mine are all out for 8ish hrs with hay altho they dont really eat it & are digging up the snow to get to the grass instead. the 3 foals have the odd charge around but not as hectic as usual, they are strangely sensible foals! the older 3 horses have a bit of a run but not much, the youngster loves the snow! mine have all been out throughout the bad weather & dont seem in the slightest bit bothered by it all. im glad they are all out as the menage isnt finished & hacking is out of the question due to the lethal roads, so if they werent turned out they wouldnt be gettin any exercise. luckily i can keep a very close eye on my lot as we keep them at home, but none of them are 'asking' to come in any earlier than usual!
 
Yep- 3 (hunter, pony and yearling) live out and 3 (2 wb eventers and a tb) come in at night. luckily they have about 10 steps from the barn to the field and with plenty of hay i am managing to keep the running around to a minimum. they get about 15-20mins walking out under saddle on grass which is scary but otherwise my horses will probably kill me. one of my horses is a weaver so cant stay in anyway, he just about copes with coming in at night!
 
Mine have been in almost full time for two weeks now (this goes against the grain for me, I generally turnout for whatever the weather)
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Normally just in a night, but for the first week the yard was a sheet of ice (had snowed, then melted, then froze), so too dangerous to cross. I did turn out for a couple of days but we've not been much above freezing for about three weeks now and we had heavy rain on boxing night. Imagine, frozen ground, heavy rain, then that has frozen on top of the hard ground
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Its now just too dangerous to turn out.

Kids due back to school tomorrow, but every school is closed in Dumfries and Galloway is closed due to the dangerous conditions of the playgrounds, that gives you an idea how bad it is
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Nope far too dangerous at my yard (turn out is down the road & a track) so have been in for about 3 weeks now only being turned out in the school. Not ideal but not worth the risk in my opinion.
 
My mare goes out with hay for the whole day, generally she is out 24/7 but with this very bad weather I have been bringing in at night as the filed is trashed, though I have a 5am start tomorrow as its back to work, hideous
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If the field was good she would stay out but its awful out there at present.
Very rarely will I keep her in all day and night
 
Mines out 24/7 while we put hay/hayledge in the field, plus he gets breakfast and dinner, he's rugged and happier out, if we cant put food out he comes in at night to fill his face till morning.
 
Mine is still out 24/7 as normal. He is in a 7 acre field with 2 others and they are in deep snow (at least 2 feet deep). They get hay 3 times a day, fed once a day and offered water several times a day. Mine has a chaser clip, allbeit quite grown out now and he has 2 turnout combo rugs on (one light under a heavier just in case he rips one) as it's quite exposed. They are all happy as larry, rolling in the snow, having leaping about sessions now and then and have had no problems at all. The snow is too deep to loon about much. He'd go insane with boredom if he were shut in and would have no more food or warmth than he does out. They do have access to shelter (open stables) but rarely use them unless it's very windy.
 
Mine go out at 6.30am and come in at about 3-3.30pm they have haylage in the field. As yet we are only suffering from severe frosts that don't defrost, but even in the snow they spend all day out. Once the snow starts to thaw mine stay in and untill the the paddocks dry up a bit as that's when they make the mess!
 
Apparently so, a stabled horse is more likely to get colic than one that has plenty of turn out. I suppose the odd day or two in would do no harm. I just try to minimise the risk. As i said there is no grass on our paddock anyway.
 
Three of mine have been living out all winter and the other two, who were stabled at night at a local livery yard up until yesterday, have now joined them so they are all permanently out. I do have two stables but I don't plan on using them. We've got 10cm of snow forecast tonight but they've got rugs on and get plenty of haylage. I'm much happier with them out than in and so are they! I should add that they are all purebred arabs
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