winter turnout in livery

[Meowy Catkin]

My horses aren't worked every day. One is retired, two are youngsters (although one will be bought into work in the spring) and the fourth is ridden, but not every day due to the fact that I work and there isn't enough daylight to ride in the evenings.

I don't think that it is unreasonable to want turnout for a few hours a day.

My retired horse would drive you nuts - you can't stable her for more than a few mins without her really going to pieces (shakes, grinds teeth, wont eat or drink). She was a racehorse and was stabled 24/7 unless working. Then she was a broodmare turned out 24/7 in a herd. She makes it quite clear that she never, ever wants to be stabled like that again.

 

[FRESHMAN]

where i am all horses can be turned out everyday whatever the weather-its at the owners discression. i provide full livery where they can live out with mine and come in for 2-6hrs daily mares only currently though. its cheap too i started doing it cos i wanted my youngster out all yr round-cant abide them standing in, its not how theywere designed to live

Not how they were designed to live!
Many moons ago. The new breed of horses do not always need to be in a field. Providing the management & quality/quantity of work is provided many many horses would not choose to be out in the wind,rain & fetlock (if you are lucky) deep mud. It just is not a case of it suits every single horse or owner.

 

[Meowy Catkin]

How many horses work all day pulling a cab on the streets of London these days?

 

[Goldenstar]

How many horses work all day pulling a cab on the streets of London these days?

Just a great idea let the fat good for nothing beasts pay for Christmas by doing ten hour shifts pulling taxis about.

 

[FRESHMAN]

FC. What! None of mine for sure. Nor do they have a plod round the block with a rider that thinks the horse has been worked. Work & feed ratio are so very important. Standing in a cold muddy field all day is not on my agenda. My point being one size does not fit all. Unlike most of the threads on here tend to suggest.

 

[Jools1234]

Not how they were designed to live!
Many moons ago. The new breed of horses do not always need to be in a field. Providing the management & quality/quantity of work is provided many many horses would not choose to be out in the wind,rain & fetlock (if you are lucky) deep mud. It just is not a case of it suits every single horse or owner.

most horses wait to come in because that is where there is abundant, easy, high energy food not cos they want to be shut in a small box-but thats just my opinion, my youngsterwho has lived out for 3 yrs has more natural muscle developement than the event horses i work with, and my youngster has been ridden today for the first time-keeping a flight animal that is designed to roam for miles in a day in a stable is not natural however you try to wrap it up.

they only stand deep in mud if thats what you provide for them to stand in. in 28yrs of working with and keeping horses i have never had one of my own with mud fever as i move electric tape daily if that is what is needed to prevent them standing in muddy areas.i do realise this is not possible for everyone but i wish people realised the only reason that horses are stable kept is for the owners convenience

 

[Meowy Catkin]

Sorry FM, I was teasing you. Although GS has made me see that it's actually a pretty good idea. I think the two arabs will make a good plough team - that will get them earning their keep.

 

[happyhacking:)]

I wouldn't be happy without 24hr turnout all year regardless if weather mud ect and will not accept anything less. Personally I think it's cruel forcing them to stand in a space the size of most people's bathrooms!! They are horses at the end of the day herd animals and should be treated as such and given adequate space o move around graze ect.
If u don't like ur turnout situation ten move!!!!

 

[FRESHMAN]

most horses wait to come in because that is where there is abundant, easy, high energy food not cos they want to be shut in a small box-but thats just my opinion, my youngsterwho has lived out for 3 yrs has more natural muscle developement than the event horses i work with, and my youngster has been ridden today for the first time-keeping a flight animal that is designed to roam for miles in a day in a stable is not natural however you try to wrap it up.

they only stand deep in mud if thats what you provide for them to stand in. in 28yrs of working with and keeping horses i have never had one of my own with mud fever as i move electric tape daily if that is what is needed to prevent them standing in muddy areas.i do realise this is not possible for everyone but i wish people realised the only reason that horses are stable kept is for the owners convenience

Trust me it is not for owners convenience. I do not like having to pay 3 full time staff! But hey you might need to try living in Lancashire to decide what the land s like. Then perhaps you would have some mud rash (sorry I did state fever, my mistake) You can strip graze all you like, but it does not work. I did say in a previous post that my exception to the rule is with youngstock. But even they do not want to stay out for long. & yes I have some pretty decent horses, all of them happy with there lot.

 

[SusieT]

freshman-turn 10 horses in the field with a good shelter and an oepn field with some muddy bits, some dry bits, some shelter-you wont' see them standing in a 12x 12 bit of the shelter all day! as for your assumption that because you 'work' (would like to know what you class as 'work' and what as 'beneath you patheticness' that you seem to imply everyone else is carrying out?) your horses they are therefore content i think you'll find that there is adjustment to a situation, and horses are led by their stomachs. if your fields are either too muddy/not enough grass/have no shelter then yes horses will be looking for a better solution, additionally if they get fed nice food everytime they come in they will look as thought the 'hate ' turnout. i find that enough rugs, adequate grass/hay and space and not overstocking (which are all commonly not provided at 'high end' yards as you imply yours is) horses, worked or ambled or retired are better off out and moving and healthier. i haven't one horse who would stand in for days on end without getting annoyed. give it a few weeks and they would settle to it, but they're always glad to get out. and yes, they are 'worked' hard regularly and event off grass to international level.

 

[SusieT]

ps-re; mud rash. again its a case of space. if you have too little space for the number of horses the ground gets churned up-simple. it's all about management.

 

[FRESHMAN]

I wouldn't be happy without 24hr turnout all year regardless if weather mud ect and will not accept anything less. Personally I think it's cruel forcing them to stand in a space the size of most people's bathrooms!! They are horses at the end of the day herd animals and should be treated as such and given adequate space o move around graze ect.
If u don't like ur turnout situation ten move!!!!

Hey HH i have my own very luxurious yard thanks. & like it just the way it is. Some people just can not see further than the end of there nose. & that is what is so annoying.
Throughout I have said & my point is. One Size Does Not Fit All.............

 

[happyhacking:)]

Freshman u may like it but do ur horses? Really???? I'm yet to meet a horse that would if given the choice stand in a box all the time! It's for YOUR benefit that your horses are in all the time not theirs!!!!

 

[Goldenstar]

Freshman u may like it but do ur horses? Really???? I'm yet to meet a horse that would if given the choice stand in a box all the time! It's for YOUR benefit that your horses are in all the time not theirs!!!!

Your very sure what other people horses like I had one that hated turnout when she arrived twenty minutes was her limit I managed to get her with time to accept two hours in nice weather .
She just loved being in the stable watching what was going on it was who she was .

 

[FRESHMAN]

freshman-turn 10 horses in the field with a good shelter and an oepn field with some muddy bits, some dry bits, some shelter-you wont' see them standing in a 12x 12 bit of the shelter all day! as for your assumption that because you 'work' (would like to know what you class as 'work' and what as 'beneath you patheticness' that you seem to imply everyone else is carrying out?) your horses they are therefore content i think you'll find that there is adjustment to a situation, and horses are led by their stomachs. if your fields are either too muddy/not enough grass/have no shelter then yes horses will be looking for a better solution, additionally if they get fed nice food everytime they come in they will look as thought the 'hate ' turnout. i find that enough rugs, adequate grass/hay and space and not overstocking (which are all commonly not provided at 'high end' yards as you imply yours is) horses, worked or ambled or retired are better off out and moving and healthier. i haven't one horse who would stand in for days on end without getting annoyed. give it a few weeks and they would settle to it, but they're always glad to get out. and yes, they are 'worked' hard regularly and event off grass to international level.

You want to try reading back my post. When did I say I work? With regards to beneath my patheticness I think you have just proved my point which is basically "everyone who does not agree with this will get *******ed" Most people who compete at International level know for fact that one size does not fit all.

 

[FRESHMAN]

HH all I can say is bull*****. Furthermore how can you be so sure your horses are happy? Is it because you think they are?
Goldenstar. Thankyou, that is just my point exactly. No one here is right or wrong. Just different views & I have many horses that are just like yours. Lets face it , it would be far easier & cheaper to chuck em in a field

 

[happyhacking:)]

How do I know my horses are happier in the field? Because they are chilled out well mannered when they are out and complete monsters when in added to the fact that when unhappy mystery quickly becomes very poorly stops eating and becomes very depressed so yes I know she is better off and happier in the field.

 

[Goldenstar]

Freshman u may like it but do ur horses? Really???? I'm yet to meet a horse that would if given the choice stand in a box all the time! It's for YOUR benefit that your horses are in all the time not theirs!!!!

Not so much a comment on what your horse likes but an comment on freshmans supposed inability to tell if her ( or his) own are ok and an accusation that she or he is only interested in whats convenient .
I suppose you would have forced my mare to stay out even though an idiot could have seen she preferred to be in to fit your view of what's right.
It's downright rude to question whether someone likes their horses just because you don't manage them the same way as you do.

 

[FRESHMAN]

Then surely you must understand & accept that I know when my horses are happy. They are also chilled out, look fantastic, fit, do a job & get great results. They eat good quality feed & haylage. ( not high energy like you suggested) do not have vices & actually above all they are very well mannered & a pleasure to be around.

 

[smellsofhorse]

I would exoect atleast day time hours in winter.

Obviously in extreme weather reduced to a few hours.

I would not settle for less.

 

[FRESHMAN]

That is so correct Goldenstar. Just because it is not what you do with your own horse does not make it wrong. I actually own 19 horses, all of them are competition horses. Even the brood mares are not interested in being out for more than an hour in present weather conditions. Each to there own is what I say, & believe in.
As a matter of interest is anyone worried about hard rutting ground on horses legs during winter months?

 

[happyhacking:)]

I've never questioned anyone on whether they like their horses!!!!!!

 

[Goldenstar]

I've never questioned anyone on whether they like their horses!!!!!!

OOopps sorry it's getting late.

 

[FRESHMAN]

Freshman u may like it but do ur horses? Really???? I'm yet to meet a horse that would if given the choice stand in a box all the time! It's for YOUR benefit that your horses are in all the time not theirs!!!!

No but you suggest it is for "my benefit" rather than my horses. From my experience I would accept that native breeds in particular " may" prefer an outdoor life. On the othe hand I am certain that any horse can get used to any lifestyle given time & no other choice.

 

[Dolcé]

No but you suggest it is for "my benefit" rather than my horses. From my experience I would accept that native breeds in particular " may" prefer an outdoor life. On the othe hand I am certain that any horse can get used to any lifestyle given time & no other choice.

LOL, I can point you in the direction of 2 particular natives who would much rather be tucked up cosy in stables, on thick straw beds, than stuck out in the field on ad lib hay! We also have several warmbloods who are stuck out but would much rather be inside. One of the natives wouldn't even enter a stable when young until he came down with lami and had to be forced in, he loves his stable and would be in all year round if he could choose himself. I was a big believer in 24/7 turnout but having so many now makes it very obvious that they really are individuals and the least likely do actually want to be in for quite a bit of the time.

 

[FRESHMAN]

Which proves my point that there are no hard, fast rules regarding horses.

 

[Mossi]

Personally I prefer keeping horses as naturally as possible, they evolved to be out roaming, grazing for around 16 hours a day. I am more concerned about my horse's psychological and physical welfare than his performance as a competition machine, kept in a way that is more convenient for us humans than for them.

 

[Mossi]

It is such a shame that we have no happy medium. Does the alternative to turnout have to be putting your horse in what is basically a locked cage for hours on end. In my ideal world I would have an open barn in the field with bedding, haylage and water then the horses would be free to chose their own lifestyles, it would be interesting to observe.

 

[Mossi]

That is so correct Goldenstar. Just because it is not what you do with your own horse does not make it wrong. I actually own 19 horses, all of them are competition horses. Even the brood mares are not interested in being out for more than an hour in present weather conditions. Each to there own is what I say, & believe in.
As a matter of interest is anyone worried about hard rutting ground on horses legs during winter months?

I'd honestly be more concerned about the hard impact on the legs of shod horses on tarmac roads.

 

[flump]

Each to their own! Mine stay in in bad weather as that is my choice! Why leave my horses out in mud and wetness when they can be rugged up in a huge stable with big nets of hay!