Winter Turnout: is that happening to everyone?

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SuPeRtRaMp123

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Having been told at the start of the year we could turn out all winter 8-5, the farmer who owns our two stables and fields has gradually got us down to just two days a week! He is then surprised when the gallop around on those two days! ANYWAY

I was thinking of moving to another yard for next winter but, we do have the benefit of a big barn to turn out in during the day or turn out in the sand school (with buckets of hay replacer/grass chop etc so hay doesn't ruin the surface rah rah rah).

The point being - my groom said nobody really gets winter turnout anymore so I might as well stay where I am because at least I have the barn and sand school.

Is this true? Are people just not getting winter turnout anymore?!

What is happening to the world?!

Ok rant over.
 
Depends where you are in the country I guess. Mines turned out in the morning, brought in at 5pm ish during winter, they have a really big field on the side of a hill with still loads of rough grazing. I'd hate for him to have no turnout for a season.
 
I'd stay where you are. We are very lucky and have 'spare' fields for when a field becomes too muddy for use. They're better in a barn than stood in mud, or in their stable.
 
Personally I would move. I have 3 on 2 acres and they are stabled at night, but go out virtually every day (maybe kept in 5-10 days per year for one reason or another). They are out a minimum of 6 hours a day but even in winter, today they were out for 9 hours and they are certainly not standing in mud. This (slightly crazy!!) photo was taken the other day:

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We are currently on every other day turn out. Means the liveries don't get fed up in the field and helps as they don't have to ride on the ' out' days. My own horses are out every day but for no more than three hours.
 
Both of mine have been out 8.30-4 all winter and will continue to be until they go out overnight it the summer. Plenty of yards manage their turnout correctly and offer it all year, you just have to find them
 
I turn mine out on a hard standing area most of the winter with hay. They go out in the field once or twice a week. Your barn turnout sounds good, at least there is somewhere they're offering you that the horses can walk round in all day, it's not like they are stuck in their boxes.. I'd stay put personally unless there is somewhere with perfect turnout locally.
 
In my area there are about 10 yards we went to look at, I'm at the ONLY one with winter turnout(turnout every single day of the whole year, weather doesn't matter) all the others have winter turnout but it's either restricted or taking turns in a tiny' mud paddock' while you muck out. I'm going to move soon though, the other yards have much better facilities and better hacking. We are at the yard as when I got my horse when she was 3 and she needed turnout everyday but now she is 5 and ridden more the turnout isn't worth it.
 
Mine is out 22/7 - just comes in for food and hay in the morning. All horses at our yard except two stay out. Mind you our usual field is out of action due to waiting for the waterboard so have more mud than usual and am putting hay out which we don't usually have to do.
 
Bexx said:
Both of mine have been out 8.30-4 all winter and will continue to be until they go out overnight it the summer. Plenty of yards manage their turnout correctly and offer it all year, you just have to find them
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It's not so simple as managing turnout, I have 16 acres for two horses but it's wet clay, totally different to the land at yards I have run in other areas of the country with good soil!
 
My mare can't remember the last time she went out or at least that's how it feels! Awful set up but every yard in the area seems to be the same. Been like it for last two winters and unless these God awful wet winters cease I can't see it changing :-(
 
We have all year turnout in small (About half acre) individual paddocks, I've sectioned mine to try and keep one part unpoached for frosty days but when it's genuinely Rock hard I will make the decision to keep mine in - I dont want a foot or tendon injury or worse. YO will let me turn him out at lunchtime in one of the emergency paddocks if this happens so he gets a few hours after 12 noon when ground starts to give.
Tbh you always have the option to turnout 365 days a year but YO occasionally keeps them in if it's mega windy/gale force however we have three small grass turnout paddocks by the ménage for emergency use so if this happens all the ones that don't go out will get an hour or so in one of these three paddocks while they're mucked out.
I need to get mine out if at all possible - I'm the only part livery who turns their own horse out, all the others get turned out and brought in so I make that decision before I go to work, at 7.30 am.
 
I'm lucky as yard owner doesn't really worry. my winter paddock is mud and more mud but it's turn out. Come April my horses will go onto their summer field. I would hate limited turn out.
 
I feel blessed having the option of 24/7 turnout 365 days a year. In or out its my choice whatever the weather for any length of time at any time of year
 
The problem with winter is that there are so many variants - when I did livery I offered winter turnout daily, but when we had very wet weather was lucky that most liveries decided to keep in off their own accord, but at least had a school to offer as an alternative to turn out in.

As a yo you have to weigh up each day as it comes at this time of year - if you have ground that churns up quickly, or horses that use their paddocks to 'self exercise', then this has to be taken into consideration. The cost of recovering grazing can often outweigh any livery paid.

In my experience liveries wanted 24/7 turnout in the summer, and were prepared to accept if I occasionally limited their winter t/o to ensure the fields were in good nick for the summer.

In an ideal world a livery yard should provide more land, but with the profit margins so slim yards are often forced to 'over stock', so unless liveries are prepared to pay more, grazing will inevitably be limited at some times of the year.
 
I think it depends on where you are in the country. Where I am, in the Lake District, at a yard with low lying fields, the ground is pretty wet at the moment - the mud sucks your wellies off. We can turn out when we want, although the farmer expects us to be careful. So at the moment, mine are out on dry days from about 7am until I get them in at lunchtime (about 12noon) or if the weather is bad, I turn them out for a couple of hours in the morning - turn them out at 6.30am and then get them in about 8.30am. Mine hate being stuck out in the mud, no matter that they have plenty of grass. The field is not sheltered and despite rugs, they run round madly once it gets windy or torrential rain. In an ideal world we would all have fields with shelters in for them, but we can't do that. OP I would stay where you are with the barn turnout. I think that sounds pretty good to me!
 
The horses here are out in the sand turnout for most of the winter, except for the two youngsters who get to go out in the field as much as they want. Sometimes that is 24/7 but they only want to do that for a few days. After that, they are hankering to come in again despite rugs and ad lib haylage in the field. As soon as the wind gets up they want in. So they then go out in the sand at night and the stable during the day for a few days or a few weeks. They let me know when they want to go out in the fields again. My sister has 3 horses on ten acres and they have free run of their field and a huge barn and yard. They choose to spend the majority of their time in the barn and yard in the winter.

Anyway, what I am saying, is that horses with a choice often prefer to come in. I think your sand turnout and the barn are excellent facilities. I would stay. Horses hate wet muddy fields IME.
 
Love the crazy horse picture!

Can I ask what areas you are all from?

The advantage is that I also have sole use of the sand school so I leave a course I jumps and poles out most the time. It sounds petty but if I move and have to put jumps away each time a jump or do pole work it adds a lot of time to my day!

But I want the horses to be happy! It seems like a lot of people are still getting turnout!
 
Compared with last winter this year has so far been easy, they all go out each day and have only had the odd day in for vet/ farrier visits, last winter I had to limit turnout as the fields had more mud than grass, at the moment while they are far from dry there is still plenty of grass and only the gateways are muddy.

In Somerset on clay, I think we are getting the best of the weather this year to make up for having the worst last year!!
 
Slave2Magic said:
IMAG0326_zpsa9b8dcc1.jpg

Mine are out 24/7 on this over winter with access to open stables. Seems to be suiting my previously stabled at night mare and ID youngster.
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This looks ideal!

I worry about them being bored without a field to mooch about in, having said that they look quite happy in the school today.

I wish they could speak, then I could just ask where they would prefer to be! 😜
 
Out 24 7. On the 10 acre winter fields, just opened last 3 acres today, not fed hay yet this year. The 4 acres summer fields resting nicely.

I feel your pain. Been told one can turnout all year then at slightest rain that theres no turnout for 5 months! Its not on to promise one thing and go back on it. Turnout is imho essential
 
Honey08 said:
It's not so simple as managing turnout, I have 16 acres for two horses but it's wet clay, totally different to the land at yards I have run in other areas of the country with good soil!
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I'm in the same situation. My 2 acre field has loads of grass but clay soil so standing water in places :-(. The half acre I decided to let get 'trashed' is so deep that I only turn out in it for a few hours about three times a week. I do have a yard off the stables so my two are never shut in during the day but we are turning a large area of the half acre trashed paddock over to an all weather turnout area ready for the next winter. I hate clay soil 😢😢
 
I have never been on a yard where the fields have been shut due to rain or wet weather. i have been on one yard where I shared a horse and there was winter turnout but a lot of people decided not to turn out during the winter during the week. I think probably because the winter turnout field was mixed turnout whereas the summer turnout was split into small groups by gender and the walk to the winter field which was not easy in the dark and there was no services. I expect if there had been services available most of the horses would have gone out for a few hours a day in the week.

I can understand when there is heavy snow or the conditions become dangerous that sometimes the best thing is for the horses to be in esp if they are the sort that run around or you can't put hay in the fields.

My pony is out every day and there is a decent amount of grass and big fields, friends so all very nice. He does still seem keen to come in after about 5-6 hours esp if weather is not great and there is tasty hay in the stable. We also have winter fields and summer fields so they can be rested which helps preserve the grazing. As it is mainly a part livery the horses can come in early if the weather is bad and they are waiting at the gate so not dependent on what time the owners can bring the horses in which is sometimes the case at DIY yards where horses go out very early before work and come late after work which can lead to the fields get more poached in wet weather as the horses are out longer.
 
I live near London adn had all but accepted the nightmare of limited winter turnout. In the end I gave up an moved to another part of London so I could have my horse in Kent with proper winter turnout. He's now been at the yard over a year and has been out every single day without fail and always for a good length of time (in the worst of the winter out at 9 and in at 4). I used to believe 'no one gets winter turnout', but it's simply not true and a symptom of having too many horses on a given bit of land.
 
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